Wheeling Gull Isle and forgot i had claws

for the sake of realism lets fastforward this to uhm, the 16th? that's a week from the time they left the saints. i know our thread isn't finished yet summer so i'm vague about that, just wanted to get this up. please let @Renard reply first.

it’s been a week since her and @Renard made their way from the hollow, quickly and quietly severing ties with the saints. she wonders if their absence was noticed, for surely donovan and derg returned to their canyon. if they survived. though she doubts anyone will be sent after them. if they had, they hadn’t caught up with them. she’d suggested they laid a few false trails, just in case. in the end, though, praimfaya was glad no one caught up with them …if donovan even cared enough at all. if he didn’t, well, that was his mistake. she couldn’t speak for her kru but she wasn’t a threat to be taken lightly and she was a threat.

the scent of the saints was faint upon them; a stain that praimfaya could not wait to be entirely rid of. rolling in the floor of the plateau as her and renard passed thru it, heavy with moss and cedar musk wasn’t enough to rid her of the saints’ scents entirely. @huā already knew why she was with the saints and she hopes that the empress is willing to take and aid them in exchange for their loyalty because she has already garnered the commander’s respect.

if not …well, as she’d told renard in the hollow that day: they’d keep searching.

the commander wouldn’t beg.

solid earth begins to give way to the shifting sand, swallowing the sound of their footfalls; warm where it nestles between her toes as the lulling roar of the ocean grows louder. praimfaya’s only been to the coast a handful of times and she thinks she will never be used to the way in which the sand allows her to move stealthily …if not for that she stands out like a sore thumb and it hinders swift movement ( at least to her ).

the sand bar stands risen from the water, a bridge between the mainland and the isle that the siren claims. she can smell them even over the salty tang of algae and seaweed. there it is. praimfaya gestures, frostbound gaze turning to renard and takes the first step on the sandbar. the sand here is damp, and the water laps over her paws as she walks. she stops about halfway, though being on the sandbar makes her nervous, displayed in the twitch of her tail she doesn’t dare go too much closer. borders were harder to discern since hua’s clan lived on the island.

praimfaya tips her head back and sends up a howl for the empress, though any leader would do, she supposed.

a week since they'd left, and donovan hadn't come after them. they would have noticed if he had. there wasn't a wolf in the saints who understood subtlety, or they might have waited longer before leaving.

they'd almost have liked him to try. it would have been entertaining, if nothing else. more proof that they'd left, if they came with saints blood on their teeth. but while he might have not known a bad idea when it looked him in the face, he probably had...other things to worry about. 

praimfaya had done her best to rid her coat of the saints. she hadn't succeeded. they'd followed along, but without the rain a week wasn't enough. muted, by the time they reached the shore. renard still bore it a little stronger than she did – but they weren't nearly as impatient to have it removed. it would fade on its own in time.

faster if they stayed here. when they lifted their nose to the air it was hard to make out much beyond salt and seaweed. the island was just visible at the end of a long strip of sand, not so different from the canyon; and here, there was the sound of waves to further muffle their steps, instead of nothing but silence.

they doubted this would go smoothly.

there was the kid. the main obstacle, assuming he'd made it back. he was blind and they'd barely spoken, and donovan had been eager to gloat to the wolf of yuèlóng on their proverbial doorstep. they doubted they'd made much of an impression when he'd been so eager to drag the kid to captivity, but it was always possible.

there was also neverwinter forest. if they were still allies. or maybe chasing donovan out of ravensblood was a one-time thing.

renard wouldn't hold it against them, being suspicious. they should be, if they were smart. because they weren't here for huā, they were here for praimfaya. they found something entertaining about donovan's blade turning to yuèlóng, of all places, but it wouldn't be huā's to wield.

as long as praimfaya wanted them to follow her commands, they would. anything else...remained to be seen.

eyeing the sandbar without expression, renard took up a position behind praimfaya's flank, ears flicking as they awaited any response to her call. wasn't out of the question anyone who responded would strike before speaking. depended on how much trust yuèlóng put in praimfaya, and just how much they knew.

sorry for the wait!!
also WARNING MATURE: mentions of r*pe um ik that seems random but you'll see

Praimfaya's voice splitting the air is certainly intriguing. Huā makes her way from the densite quickly to the borders, wondering what such a thing it could be- did she have news? Information? Had she left them behind? 

As she moved out from the treeline and across the sands, the siren spotted Praimfaya a very respectable distance away. Beside her, someone. Huāzhēn could not tell who they were until she came closer, and the male's purple gaze became apparent even from the yards she stood away. Cautious, of course- she knew this fellow. He matched Mal's description to a T, and though the empress had looked fondly upon the wanheda, she could only level her gaze at Renard with suspicion, chin tilted upwards in the most subtle display. Of course, she did not think the warrior would bring an enemy here on all four legs. But then, why was he here? Did she know he'd attacked- or tried to attack- the guy that was basically her crush? 

First things first. She had many questions, but there was no reason to be rude to her ally. And so seaglass shot to Praimfaya again, and she forced an awkward little smile, politeness. Praimfaya. The fading scent of the saints upon her. Have you removed yourself from them, then? The huángdì inquired with a little tilt of charcoal head. She knew this girl liked to get straight into business, and so Huā would not waste her time with that unnecessary friendly talk, nor the usual routine she gave at the borders. 

And then, her gaze on the wolfdog again. Not entirely cold, but there was no trust in those blue eyes. In many ways Huā could be considered "good"- and many such as Donovan might've seen her as the same sort of weak naive woman who would forgive him after he called her a pet name, if they had only seen the side of her that fought for peace. But truthfully, she was much more of a neutral creature. She was compassionate often, but there was not much forgiveness in her heart. She did not believe strongly that people could change. She did not believe it was worth the time changing bad wolves to good ones, rather, it was best to cleanse the world of evil. There was little hope for the condemned. Maybe it was her own experiences- she would never forgive her rapists, not in a million years, not even if they seemed changed. What was done was done. Of course, Renard had not done nearly such evil things from what she knew- he hadn't actually harmed Mal much, and the other guy, what was his name? Cupid? Had gotten his eye damaged, but it hadn't been the cause of his death. 

Still... it would be hard for Huā to trust him. A process, a learning curve. 

And... this man, he attacked Mal. I have some questions, but I think you can explain yourself, right? Huā asked the fellow, voice calm and level though her ears flicked forward eagerly. Hopefully he had something reasonable as to why he was here- and though she would not mind if Praimfaya butted in for him, she preferred this question be answered by him if he could. The paler warrior woukd be welcomed regardless as soon as she asked for home, but this one would have to find favor through intelligent words. And thus she wondered if he had any at all, for it seemed the saints ran much more on brawn and dick than whatever IQ they could scrape together.

yes. praimfaya responds to hua’s question as the empress presents it to her; head dipping in a sign of respect for the siren. we are seeking a home among you and yours. we are both warriors, praimfaya informs her. and beyond that we have useful information about the saints. i do plan to move against them. with a pack would be the best case scenario. worst would be, well, on her ( their? ) own.

hua’s gaze upon renard does not fall beneath the commander’s sharp notice and, having been misinterpreted as interest, praimfaya feels a hot rush of jealousy simmer beneath her skin; itching. burning beneath her breast. that revelation does not entirely come unwarranted but it surprises her nonetheless.

she realizes her mistake as hua speaks. it was not interest that drew and held the siren’s stare to renard — this revelation is followed by a rush of relief, followed by the heat of embarrassment that flushes beneath her silverlit fur; thankfully unseen. praimfaya, admittedly, wasn’t sure who ‘mal’ was other than renard attacked him. frostbound gaze glimpses at renard. if he wishes to, he could answer hua’s questions but nonetheless praimfaya seizes the small moment as it presents itself to her to pique up: he is my kru, empress, the title falls from the commander’s lips in the hopes of appeasing the siren. if he is not welcome here, than nether am i. for better or worse …or at least while their interests aligned, they were a package deal.

renard gave a polite dip of their head as she neared. it was clear enough huā knew praimfaya, trusted her even though they both bore the evidence of their last pack allegiance – but she leveled them with a suspicious glance. could have just been the saints scent lingering on their fur, up until she spoke.

so she did know. and mal...that wasn't the kid. so it was one of the others, but renard would be surprised if she didn't track her own people – letting them wander off without a word seemed more donovan's style. if they were staying, it was best nothing new about their activities cropped up.

they'd talked their way out of worse situations before. she might not trust them: a smart move on her part. they approved. for once, though, they weren't here with any...entirely underhanded intentions. 

praimfaya's interjection came before they could respond. renard's focus turned, the level violet of their gaze landing on her instead. as it had every time before, the language went past them. they wondered if that was something she'd be willing to teach, if they asked. if they followed her, it was worth learning. the court's own tongue had limited value here.

she didn't have to speak for them. it was more trust than they'd expected. but they wouldn't be considering betrayal, not any time soon; that much she'd earned.

they gave her a smile, edging closer to sincere than any of their others, before they turned back to the empress. "thank you. sure she'd like to hear from me, though."

"i was a saint. and donovan is..." they let their eyes drift from huā to the island and back, "not fond of you, or neverwinter forest. not after you ran him and nemisis out of ravensblood." they didn't have to force the disdain on her name. the only problem donovan had actually solved...funny how that worked. 

"when people he doesn't like come around near redsand canyon, they're just as likely to be attacked as kidnapped. happened to one of yours. a blind kid, called himself hide. donovan found him and decided to drag him back...another thing we didn't agree on." to put it lightly. they both liked a little entertainment, but this was the kind renard had grown tired of watching. it was only so fun to watch someone drive themselves into the ground when they were holding your leash. much better from a distance, and make no mistake, renard intended to watch all of this play out.

donovan just didn't have the good judgment to go along with his interests. it wasn't like he was dragging the kid back for information; they could've appreciated that. he was just looking to have his fun, because fucking everyone in the saints wasn't doing it for him anymore, apparently. 

"he let the kid go. but in the future, i wanted to avoid that. better if any visitors to the saints come in strength, or not at all." and renard left it there, nice and open for her own assumptions and with room to correct them if they needed to. "required a little...aggression, on my part."

Praimfaya tells her she's seeking home, which is all good and dandy in her case. Renard: not so much. The addition that she planned to move against the Saints with a pack was interesting, but Huā had to frown slightly, speaking up: I want to help. But I am afraid we have so many children and not-warriors, that we will not have enough strength with only Yuèlóng... I think it would be best to create an army of warrior from several ally pack. Yup, they'd need more- luckily, Huā had made connections all across Great Bear Wilderness. Hydra, Ira, Lumiya, Mal- she was sure each of them would have at least one warrior to contribute. Frankly, she could see that number becoming quite large. The saints seem to put their names on a list everywhere they went. 

Though Praimfaya's dedicaction to her friend was admirable, it did very little for Huā. Besides the fact that the word she perceived as crew reminded her of pirates all over again- the promise that Renard was part of Pri's little clique meant nothing. If they wanted respect here they would have to earn it, because they hadn't done a stellar job making themselves look great up to this point. It was kinda like committing a crime in front of a CEO and asking to work at his company a week later. Good luck pal. 

It was a good thing Renard didn't try to just fly with that- if they stayed silent they would've been sent packing. Here was their chance to prove their intentions now. The first part of his statement was obvious; Huā nearly wanted to exclaim I know, I was there. Impatient woman. The next part had her ears perked though. She'd looked and looked for her guardian-in-training, but at that time the rain wiped away scents so quickly that trails were gone too fast to pursue. So Hide's capture had been knowledge to this fellow, but something they hadn't agreed with. Huā wanted to wonder why Renard hadn't just freed him then, considering how utterly cruel it was to take advantage of the boy's disability and hold him captive. But Huāzhēn was not so naive as to imagine it was that simple. She didn't know Donovan as well as Renard did- and still assumed he was the type who might headhunt them for disobedience. Still, it was irritating to hear Renard had sort of just let it all happen. It was hard to say whether she would've been more or less angry hearing they participated in the attack- points for honesty, deductions for cruelty. Either way, the point was that she had very mixed feelings about this fool that came to her borders. 

And yet she knew that despite how idiotic it was to come here on their part, Huā would be the fool today. She didn't like this Renard. But she trusted Praimfaya, and liked the idea of being able to work with her closely. They had similar goals. 

Better if any visitors to the saints come in strength, or not at all. That part sounded ominous. She didn't like it one bit. Renard practically still sounded like a saint, and though this explained the story of Hide well, it still wasn't a valid excuse for attacking the totally innocent Mal. So because Donovan let Hide go... you thought attacking Mal would... somehow...stop people from coming near the saints, or...? Nice and open-ended. Huā didn't like riddles, and she didn't want this guy telling her a million of them. Another question, too- How much you care about rank here? Praimfaya might not like being ranked higher than Renard, but the question wasn't for her. It wasn't that they had no chance to rise- but Huā saw little reason to put Renard higher than a servant for now, and see if they could behave well enough to prove themselves worthy of something higher. And well, if they expected a higher rank to start with after attacking Yuèlóng's allies in the first place... then their expectations of the world's mercy were far too high.

i understand, praimfaya speaks as she is told that yuelong is not warriors and cannot hope to do it alone. i am working on that. she promises the empress with a small quirk of her lips. bringing together wolves was what the commander has done time and time again; from the first coalition to the tentative thing praimfaya is trying to build now. not a coalition — not like what she has outside of these wilds — but she is trying to forge an alliance of unseen proportions …if only for a short period; while goals are aligned. to prove her point. to take her revenge. to rid the wilds of donovan and chase from it the saints that would not switch to the righteous side. and if you accept us, she gestures to her and renard with her muzzle. i can train those willing to learn.

the attention shifts from her then and praimfaya is quiet as renard explains himself and his actions to hua. it is not her place to speak further: she has already said what she’s said on the matter and it still holds true even as hua cross-examines renard and his reasonings. praimfaya can tell the empress isn’t happy but she doesn’t say no. though it isn’t precisely a yes yet, either. the fate of what happens now still hangs in the salty air between them; tangy with the overwhelming scent of the ocean which laps, cold and frothy at her ankles. praimfaya hardly notices for the commander’s attention is solely on the scene unfolding before her, upon her kru and their potential ally.

renard cast a thoughtful glance at praimfaya as she spoke. she was a warrior; they hadn't found that in question. why she'd come to yuèlóng, if it was full of anything but – that was harder to reason out. she'd earned it so far, so they'd give her the benefit of the doubt until they could ask. maybe they were just the easiest to manipulate into this, the most annoyed with donovan. he certainly seemed the most annoyed with them.

they nodded agreement to her words. “as could i. if someone’s interested and willing to learn.” a twitch of an ear; their smile was still there, but it didn’t widen. fighting, spying, keeping to the shadows…they doubted even praimfaya knew redsand canyon as well as they’d learned it. “and if you’re ever willing to trust me.”

and right now, she wasn’t. good.

"hadn't seen any more of neverwinter around before i left, so it kept anyone else from coming too close." of course they weren't telling the complete truth. mal and the other one they'd found...it hadn't been intended as a warning, as much as an incentive to get them to come and put an end to things. "and made me seem like a good little saint, chasing his enemies away." their lip curled upward.

"though now he's ruined his alliance, i expect he'll be...distracted." renard shrugged. "or not. i don't normally say this, but he's not worth overestimating. the only problems that exist for him are the ones right in front of his face."

because donovan had asked. tried to look at those problems, once. and then had spend his time trying to fuck them instead of listening. there was no reason to keep trying; it was more fun to watch him flounder. more fun.  it was about time they stopped bothering to entertain him.

as to her other question... "this blade serves praimfaya now." simple fact, though renard's lips still curved in a smile around it. that was just habit. "her enemies are mine and i protect her allies. if she asks me to follow you, then i will. whatever your decisions."

they'd expected a low rank. would have been disappointing, otherwise. suspicion could be irritating as much as it could be amusing, but it spoke well of her when donovan had welcomed his own defector in without blinking. just look where that had gotten him.

...and what a low bar that was.

Praimfaya explained she was working on that aspect, and Huā smiled lightly at her, though darker things brewed in her gaze. She trusted Praimfaya despite their few interactions- though wondered where the youth gathered her army from. Nevertheless, Yuèlóng had their own allies. If they were willing to trust Praim too, then there would likely be more warriors to stand behind her in the form of Neverwinter, Moonspear, Kaistleoki and so on. 

She offered her training, and so did Renard- and Huā leveled her gaze upon them. I will trust you when you prove you can be trusted. That was purposefully vague- Huā still considered herself a young leader, and wasn't sure how to test them, or what sign would show her they could be trusted. She supposed she would know it when she saw it. 

Renard continued to explain they'd done what they had to prove they were a good saint. She quirked a brow slightly- would they do the same here? Play the role of a loyal warrior, and turn on them when the time suited them? And so the alliance was ruined, too, which wasn't a surprise, considering Praimfaya had described them as unstable before. Hearing Renard describe Donovan, though, was... amusing. His only problems were the ones he could see- and though she hadn't actually ever interacted with him much, she was glad to hear a wolf who once served him summarize him as a fool who lived moment to moment. 

Their final words made them out to be more loyal to Praimfaya than they were to Huā or Yuèlóng. Which was understandable, comsidering Huā didn't trust them yet- but from what she understood of Renard's words, they were Praimfaya's servant more than hers. That was okay for now. Huā believed Praimfaya an ally, and the information she had given the empress before had proven she was willing to assist in the downfall of the saints. Even if they didn't stick with Yuèlóng, as long as the silver warrior didn't start switching sides, Renard could be a useful asset. 

Huā was quiet for a moment. 

Very well, then. Praimfaya, you will be welcomed as a warrior. Renard, a role of servitude, for now- though I trust you will be able to show me you are not against Yuèlóng, in time. At least, I will hope. She eyed them, a slight twitch of her lip hinting the tease of a playful smile. Thank you both for choosing a home here. She dipped her head momentarily, mainly to Praimfaya... and would await any words they had left to offer.