Ravensblood Forest I'm taking full control this time

@Arturo becus yay, but AW

The girl had found her way back home safely after going a little farther out than expected, hoping no one had noticed how long she had been absent. She was safe though, and had not broken any previous made rules. To her own surprise, she had not even thought about attempting to sneak up the mountain by herself. She had lingered under it, looked up at it, but never had she felt the urge to go up. It was a strong gut feeling, and she trusted it more than she did her brain.

A dead rabbit hung from her mouth and blood covered her muzzle as her back was speckled with the snow that she had grown accustomed to. It was cold, but in a nice way - not the kind of cold she disliked. If anything, she felt stronger because of it. Sure, spring was her favorite season, but winter was not as bad as she had thought. She wondered if Arturo knew this was her very first winter, not sure if he knew exactly when she was born. Not that she knew - she only remembered warm weather, flowers and butterflies. 

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“Chusi!” Arturo was quick to apprehend his daughter, swooping in like a demon from hell upon her, the furrow of his brow giving off his displeasure. With Furiosa's murderer still at large, and Palisander out appealing to Blackrock Depths and Donnelaith to gleam if they could offer any information on the wolf that had stolen his red herring's life from her body, Arturo was loathe to let The Family out of his sight. Most of all his young, rebellious daughter. Admittedly, she'd been relatively good he was left to assume. Whether she disobeyed him behind his back or not he couldn't say. She did not know everything (alas, not even he knew everything) and he was afraid that next, it would be her that ended up dead upon his borders, bleeding out of her throat. The thought was enough to cause Arturo to shudder.

He absently eyed the rabbit hanging from betwixt her jaws, his lips terse as he fixed her in an intense stare. “Why were you gone for so long?” He demanded of her, trusting her to be honest with him. Perhaps under normal circumstances he might not have been so bothered. Exasperated, definitely. Angry and upset, no. She did not know what had happened and that wasn't her fault, he told himself. The fact of it was she was late returning from her trip and he had found Furiosa's body with his daughter still away and it had created a plethora of sadistic and horrific images within the gangster's mind. He was relieved to see her back alive and well but at the same time the gangster was annoyed, angry and still too shook up from finding Furiosa. He was afraid. He knew not if it was an old enemy of her's or if it was an act of war on Teaghlaigh. Arturo Fearghal did not like not knowing; and he knew that if something bad were to happen to Chusi that it would break him. She was his daughter and still too young for him to be able to acknowledge that her path was her own and it was no longer his duty to protect her. That would not come until she hit a year of age, if his elder children were of any sort of indication.

And it was not just Chusi and The Family he worried for. He worried also for Lotte. Whether this was personal or just a coincidence or not Arturo didn't know, unable to work out of it had been some stranger or if it was a warning to him. He was unsettled, on edge. Currently, he grieved and worried and intended to keep the members of The Family as safe and as under his watchful eye as he could. “I couldn't find you and I...I panicked.” Arturo spoke with a heavy sigh, his ears slicking back against his skull. It was as close to an apology (for his potential overreaction) as she was going to get.

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She practically froze in place as the booming voice of her father rang through the bleeding trees and the freezing air - amazed at how worried he sounded and how displeased he looked. She knew she had been gone for longer than expected, but this was not the reaction she had thought of when picturing her return. She was nearly ready to join the adult ranks, and so she found it only fair Arturo would allow her to have some more freedom to work on her trades by herself. She had decided on a scouting trade beside her mercenary one, and hoped that would not anger her father. She knew he did not like her gone for long - and this moment was a good example of that.

Dad? She reacted calmly, yet a bit shocked, talking around the meal she had caught. Her ears drooped to behind her head, her tail only thumping slightly against her haunches to show she was alright. She saw him staring - felt him staring, and as if reading his mind, she could predict what he was going to ask. She dropped the rabbit carefully, her own fur ruffled and poofed up from the cold and the running. She smiled at him weakly, kind of tired from her extended trip through only a tiny part of Teekon. Well, since i' was still so early - I went explorin' South. She answered truthfully, her eyes telling the same. 

Ya searched for meh? Why? Why are ya panickin', dad? She asked, worried this time about him. It was not like her father to worry - well, it was, but not like this. She wanted to help. Had something happened?

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Simultaneously, he was both overcome with relief that had returned to him alive and well, and upset that she had thought it okay to take a detour. Again, Arturo reminded himself that she didn't know about Furiosa. That right now she was in the dark and on the receiving end of the storm of his emotions as they surged through him: all hot ire and freezing relief and choking grief. He pushed himself towards her with the intent of pressing his muzzle to her cheek, to embrace her to ensure himself that she was, indeed truly with him. “You should have returned straight home, Chusi,” He chided her. She was his Heir after all and she had duties that he expected her to perform and fulfill. He'd told her the sacrifice of leading and if she found it stifling then she could give up her title. He wasn't going to stop her but he wasn't going to allow her to shrug off what he expected and what Teaghlaigh would expect of a future leader, either. Regardless of if Furiosa would not have turned up murdered or not he would not have approved of her wandering without returning home first, especially when he was expecting her back.

“Chusi,” Her name left his lips on a draw of a breath, the muscles in his cheeks working as he ground his teeth for a moment. “Furiosa has been murdered on Teaghlaigh's borders.” Meaning that not even his religiously patrolled borders were safe, which only made the mystery an even bigger crux. Surely, if they were being watched someone would have made note long before Furiosa's murder. “No one knows who did it or why. I do not know if it was personal for her or if it was an act of war I —” Arturo struggled for a moment. “when you did not return home I feared that I would find you next upon my borders, bled to death by your throat.” He took a small gasp of air, feeling as if invisible jaws had seized him around his jugular and had began to squeeze. “No one is to leave Teaghlaigh unless I order it or I have given permission for it, do you understand? Patrols have tightened and are to be ran in pairs,” He gave pause, salmon pink tongue drawing across his jowls. “This will not be forever but I must do what I can to ensure the safety of this Family. Outsiders of the Family are to be treated with hostility.” He spoke so that she understood the severity of the situation at hand because the very last thing he needed was her getting a stubborn, teenager streak and disobeying him because he'd tightened his (now iron) grip on the Family. Everyone not of Teaghlaigh was a suspect, for the time being.

Something else desired to be free of his lips, but for a moment it stuck in his throat. He swallowed harshly, ears slicking back to rest at half mast atop his skull. His worry for Chusi was not a lone one and he found that he worried over his scarfed nightingale just as equally. Thus, Arturo could not help himself. “Lotte...did you speak with her? Is she well? Is she safe?” Of course he had no way of knowing for sure unless he went to her himself for he doubted anyone in Donnelaith would seek him out to tell him otherwise. Perhaps the safest place for Lotte was in Donnelaith but the place he wanted her the very most was with him, admittedly.

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She knew it had been a little irresponsible of her to leave for a trip so soon after her first one, but she had been sure that the wind had wanted to go South. She wanted to see more - not only the coast, not only Teaghlaigh and she feared this was the only time she could do so. She was a heir, yes, but before Teaghlaigh she still had dreams. She was not an "old coywolf" like her dad who may or may not have given up on his dreams and hopes for his future. Maybe that's why he had started Teaghlaigh in the first place. Chusi remembered finding him lonely upon really getting to know him, and maybe she hadn't been wrong. Luckily she was here now, as his daughter but also as a free spirit finally ready to explore without needing an adult.I know... She muttered, clearly a bit ashamed of her actions.

One ear swiveled up to her father, entranced by the tone he was using. Listening further, she let out a tiny gasp. Death. Death had come for one of them - and she had missed it. It would've been her chance to see what kind of relief Death could truly bring - or maybe the wind had not wanted her to experience such adult things. Yes - yes, the Sea must've been looking out for her virgin eyes. She never really got to know Furiosa, but she respected her rank as the Red Herring and accepted her as family. Whoever had done this... She would find them and bring them to justice. Dad... She breathed out, pressing her forehead against the side of his neck if he would let her - being too big to press her head to his chest instead. What was she going to do with her scouting trade now? And Ingram? How would they know she was not coming because of the death of a family member? Would they think bad of her? I und'rstand... I'm sorry I wasn't 'ere...

She removed herself from him a little bit, a forced smile on her young face as the topic changed. She nodded at his question, softly sniffling while trying to get over the sudden shock. She's well - 'n Doe got some pops. M'rgash almost wanted to show meh how those were made, but Doe was just in time ta safe meh. Ingram was also at Donne-... She stopped her review and moved her ears down, blushing under her dark coat of inky black.

lmao their conversation is a rollercoaster. xD

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She showed some shame at her actions but this time it was not enough to appease Ceannasach. She offered him no apology. No “it won't happen again”. His patience was beginning to run thin. It wasn't her fault. Simply, he was not used to dealing with teenage rebellion and it ...disappointed him. If she could not follow what he expected of her, if she did not take her duties as heir seriously then ...she was leaving him with very little choice. “Chusi,” He fixed her in an intense, serious stare when she pulled back from him, allowing her to press her head against him in affection that he suspected was not bound to last for long. “You are not a child anymore. You are an adult. You, like all the other Family, will make me aware of your coming and goings, but now, more than ever, I need you here in Teaghlaigh as my heir.” In point of fact, it was rare for Arturo to step out of Ravensblood, and him leaving the territory until he promoted a co-leader would be a thing of the past. He had thought of approaching Isley on the subject as she had been with him since the very beginning and she had remained at the highest rank below the leadership since the very start. She was loyal and he had an inexplicable trust in her. It was never his intent to groom Chusi for red herring, anyway. He was grieving and he was frustrated and it manifested itself in the search of reassurance that he hadn't made a mistake promoting her to heir, that he hadn't been too hasty.

Their conversation switched to one that lifted Arturo's mood marginally. Lotte had that effect on him. “Good,” He responded in terms of Lotte. He didn't mention that he really didn't care much that Doe had given birth. It wasn't his concern, really, and him and the woman had never been close. Still, children were a sign of prosperity and for this he was happy for Blackrock Depths. “He what—?” The scathing hiss tore from Arturo's lips — guttural — as if it had came from the wretched mouth of a demon instead of the eloquent coywolf. His lips curled back over his teeth and his tail lashed furiously against his hocks, a low, irate huff leaving his lips as his skin crawled and his blood boiled. He vaguely remembered Murgash. The desire to march into to Blackrock Depths and give the urchin an unfriendly reminder of what would happen every time he thought inappropriately of Chusi for even thinking about his daughter in such a manner was a strong temptation. Almost too much for Arturo to ignore. Chusi's next words calmed the storm of his ire; if only a little. For the first time since being acquainted with her, Arturo felt a deep respect for Doe who, according to Chusi had saved the day. That was good. For Murgash and for Blackrock Depths.

His wrath still burned like a fire through his veins but he was attentive enough to his daughter to see her demeanor change when she mentioned a stranger named Ingram. He fought the urge to groan, thinking that this Ingram was just another Cam 2.0. At least, however, Ingram was not apart of Teaghlaigh and the distance would make it harder. He knew, because it made it hard on him when it came to Lotte. “Who is Ingram?” Arturo asked, more curtly then he intended. He was still seething over Murgash. While he could keep her from prowling men he could not keep her from boys forever and in the long run he'd much rather her have a boyfriend of her age group (lmao the fucking hypocrite) then be molested by a man three times her age, this much he acknowledged. He took a deep breath of the cold winter air as he decided through his words. “Don't hide it from me. I can see you've got a crush on him. Does he feel the same?” Oh, Arturo knew the symptoms of being head over heels quite well. Alarmingly well, in fact.

His fiery red-orange gaze dropped to her kill for a moment as he gathered his thoughts before his gaze rose back to her, holding steady. “Chusi, there is something you should know,” He drew in a short breath, nervous though he knew not why. Chusi adored Lotte, he felt sure. “This is just between you and me, understand? But I have grown to care about Lotte a great deal,” As a matter of fact, Arturo rather suspected he had fallen in love. “And if she'll have me, I intend to court her.” He confessed, watching eagerly, and perhaps hopefully for his daughter's reaction to his words.

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Her ears perked and her tail tucked itself in between her hind legs as Arturo spoke her name. She wanted to step up - be confident and say that how the hell could she have known, but she didn't. She knew it would only make things worse. She bit her lip and looked the other way as if entranced by the dripping of the bleeding trees, but she heard ever word her father spoke. How? How could she have known? Was he blaming her for doing something she didn't know was forbidden - for something she knew nothing about? What if she had been the killer? Would he even think about that, or would he deem her too weak to kill anyone? What was she in his eyes, aside from his daughter and heir? I'll stay 'ere - I'll hunt 'ere, if tha' is what makes ya happy. She told him, almost sternly but full of confidence. She would not let him down now - not ever. 

Chusi was glad she had said something that made him calm down a bit. What was it about Lotte that could calm her father? Sure, her big sister was beautiful and very regal - caring, also. Was it the love that had been forbidden for her? Had her big sister caught her dad in a spell of love - not as a daughter, but as a lover? One to make puppies with? Just as she was about to let her tail wag freely again did Arturo spoke again, so full of anger than Chusi took a step back. I-It's okay! I saw right through 'im! She tried to reassure him. She had not been touched - not been talked to without any respect. 

He asked further about Ingram, and Chusi frowned. Of course - Arturo would not let her have a private life. Was that really what a father was supposed to do? Maybe she should've been glad for never really having one in her earlier months. But the next words out of her father's mouth surprised her. She finally looked at him again - ears perked and tail slightly raised. How the hell did she know? Ingram's just stupid 'n rude - but he's very 'andsome. I think 'e likes me 'n that's why he treats meh like dirt. She explained, not talking about where they met and what they talked about. It would upset her father even more, she knew. The topic changed again, and Chusi took some time to take it all in.

Lotte's comin' 'ere? When? Will she be my momma now - or still mah big sis'? She asked in one breath, excitement clear on her young but pretty face.

 

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She complied and instead of feeling victory all the gangster felt was a twist of guilt in his gut. “Good,” Spilled from betwixt his lips, the deep, smoky timbre of his voice satisfied though it was followed by a tiny, nearly inaudible sigh. “I expect things of you as heir, not because I’m trying to be tyrant but because I want you to be able to lead and lead properly. Regardless, the lockdown is only temporary. I’ve set something up with a Donnelaith wolf about the mountain,” He gestured to it with a small jab of his muzzle. “She told me she’d be willing to take you up. When the lockdown ends I will see if she wishes to take you and you can go with me to meet her.” It was kind of an awkward time to speak about the surprise to her but he figured it might help to …lighten the iron fist he’d taken hold of Teaghlaigh into.

Arturo’s brow furrowed when Chusi said that she thought Ingram liked her because he treated her like dirt. The fact that anyone dared to treat Chusi like “dirt” was enough to cause the coy wolf’s hackles to bristle. Arturo disagreed. Then again, he had never treated any woman like dirt, then he reminded himself that he was cut from a different cloth. “I have never treated any woman of my fancy like dirt.” Arturo told her simply and though he was troubled by Chusi’s attraction to wolves that he didn’t think to be appropriate for her he let the conversation switch to Lotte, careful not to be swept away by his daughter’s evident excitement. “I don’t know for sure, I haven’t asked,” Arturo reminded her gently. “It’s up to you, if she would accept me, if she becomes your mother or not, but if she does accept you would need to stop calling her your big sister.” Arturo informed her, dreading that he might have to explain it to her.

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Finally, she satisfied her panicked father. It was not a fun thing that there were things to be expected from one, but all she could do was try hard to be exactly what everyone wanted her to be. An impossible task, but Chusi was still searching for the right meaning of the word. Maybe some things were just so extremely hard that nobody wanted to try it, but she would go beyond that. She would show them all how great the Fearghal name looked on her and she would not let her father down now - even Ingram would ask for her paw if he could see into the future. No, bad thoughts. She would not let him control her like that - even though she totally was. A big smile appeared on her young face. Someone from Donnelaith?! Maybe it was Ingram... It wasn't Lotte, otherwise Arturo would have mentioned her, so who else could it be? She knew only the faces of some, and many could have left or joined in the time she was gone. One question still lingered on the tip of her tongue though. Dad, how did ya learn to' lead? Ya nevah talk much about yarself...

When he commented about Ingram, Chusi chuckled. That's becus ya're not Ingram - ya're not even like him. I know him, bettah than most - he seems to hide a lot... She rattled on, actively trying to defend her crush. She was supposed to know better, but she was so sure there was more to Ingram than he showed. It was like cutting into a stone, only to find out there was a diamond trapped inside all this time.

The next bit he spat out was different - interesting and confusing. Why not? Was the first thing that came to mind, not understanding the concept of incest at all.

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As insightful and curious as ever Chusi’s next question was a weighted one and not one that Arturo necessarily had an answer to. How did he learn to lead? The gangster was quiet for a long moment, debating. Easily, he could have claimed that he learned from the example of his mother but the warrior queen of Quicksilver Hollow’s leading style was so very different from Arturo’s own. She had nurtured the gang mentality he had developed young in his life and from there it had …sort of happened. Though the exact moment he had earned the respect of the Hollow wolves had been when he’d taken the life of one of his aggressors through his childhood. “I suppose I took examples from my mother, but my leading style is my own and her influence in it is very little.” He admitted, salmon pink tongue drawing across his jowls. “I guess it is something that comes natural to me. I do not know what about me inspires others to follow me, but there is something.” He was charismatic but he was also know for his ability to manipulate. He preferred his followers to be there of their own free will but he was not afraid to manipulate outsiders to conforming to his offered deal. “It wasn’t always like that. My father is pure coyote and my mother pure wolf. The wolves of Quicksilver Hollow would have killed me where I suckled at my mother’s breast if she would have let them. Short of killing me she never intervene and until I killed one of my aggressors they made my life a living hell.” Yet, it made him stronger for it. Despite his belief in that, he deigned to spoil and protect his children likely because his mother had never truly protected him. Arturo did not want his children to suffer the same oppression and bullying that he had endured.

Arturo’s lips were terse as Chusi defended this Ingram and how he treated her like dirt. Arturo didn’t like it and he wasn’t sure how to make her see that it wasn’t healthy for her to allow it (in Arturo’s opinion). “Chusi,” Arturo began, drawing in a deep breath and letting it out in a soft, heavy exhale. “Regardless of who he is or who I am: you are a gift, do you understand me? You are precious and you should be treated with nothing short of the utmost respect and love. Letting him treat you like shit beneath his paws isn’t healthy and you shouldn’t let him do it. If he doesn’t respect you now: I doubt he ever will. You deserve to be treated like the princess that you are, do you understand? Regardless of if he or anyone else is like me or not you do not let others treat you like you are beneath them or unworthy of their time.” Perhaps Chusi should have never mentioned that Ingram treated her like dirt. In fact: she shouldn’t have. Arturo already didn’t like him for that fact alone, regardless of how big of heart’s her eyes had become as she spoke of him.

“Calling her your big sister implies that she is my daughter,” As it was, Lotte was about the age of his eldest children and though that was of no real consequence to Arturo (for age was but a number and all that jazz) he did not want Chusi running around giving others the wrong impression. “and it is unnatural to take your children as your mate and create life with them.” Oh, yes that was probably the most awkward thing he’d ever said in his life. He certainly felt awkward and the mere idea of incest created a shiver of repulsion down the Fearghal’s spine. “It’s not something that you would ever do or want to do. Others do not know of your adoption. As it is you could easily pass as my biological daughter and though Lotte could not... still, perhaps there is another nickname you could give her if you are not comfortable calling her mother.” Arturo offered her as a suggestion.

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She listened curiously, never having been told of her father's past. What stood out was that he was not a full wolf and that he killed someone. She could not imagine her peaceful yet controlling father killing someone. She knew he could, she knew he would if his or her life depended on it, but it still felt so surreal. I nev'r knew... She let out softly. I seemed she was not the only one with a dark past. At least she did not have to kill anyone - even though she was convinced that she would do so someday.

That wonder and understanding lessened when Arturo shat on her party again. Her lisp were pressed together tightly, unsure of what to say. I ain't a princess and donnot wanna be treated like one. She said sternly. I am a warrior - I dun't need smotherin'  of any kind. I just need you 'n Teaghlaigh. She said, her tone softer. She hoped Arturo would understand that she never intended to be treated so highly. She just wanted to do her best, but did not do it just so she could be the picture of sophisticated grace for her father's pack.

Mother is fine by meh... She said with a slight mumble. She wasn't angry, just a little grumbly and ripped in half by the situation.

in lieu of cleaning up threadlogs this is going to be the last post for arturo & me (i sincerely apologize for the wait on this!) <3

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“I very rarely tell anyone,” Arturo offered to her “I never knew”. His struggles had been his own and he did not want pity for the hell he’d lived as a child all because of what his mother had lain with, all because she had conceived him. Arturo’s mixed blood was not his fault but he had suffered for it nevertheless. The struggles of then, and even the discrimination he faced now as an adult made him strong. He took something twisted and debilitating and made it his own weapon. “Even as an adult I face discrimination for my mixed blood.” The sneer’s, the “thou art holier than you” superiority complex that some wolves harbored over him was like an itch beneath his skin but he was not a child and the gangster did not have to prove himself anymore. He had nothing to prove to anyone and he would not give into them by jumping through their hoops to prove that he was something (especially when it only made him look the fool and worked against him). At least his children did not suffer the same discrimination as he being more wolf than they were coyote. Cynbel’s DNA lingered within their own but it was such a small percentage diluted by Boadicea, Arturo and Duana’s pure blood own.

“Just because you are a warrior does not mean you have to let some child treat you like shit he stepped in. It’s disrespectful,” and regardless that Chusi did not want to be smothered (which was fine and Arturo knew he was guilty of that wanting her to have everything that she had been denied by her parents and Zephyr) surely she wanted to be respected by her spouse. If there was no respect there was nothing real about that relationship — but Arturo had very high standards on that front and would stick to his beliefs even if it meant fighting tooth and nail. “You want to be respected, don’t you?” Wasn’t that what she fought so hard for? Respect? “I will not tolerate anyone disrespecting you, regardless of how you feel about them,” He drew in a deep breath and left it out in a heavy exhale. “I am not trying to smother you, Chusi even though it seems like it. I only want the best for you because it’s what you deserve: the very best. You are my daughter and I love you unconditionally,” Just in case, in all his sternness she forgot that. “I only want to give you what your parents and Zephyr denied you. I don’t want you to ever feel unwanted or unloved. I suppose in my effort to make up for their failings I am giving too much and if I do, I apologize. I will take a step back and try not to be so overbearing.” Sometimes, admittedly, Arturo forgot that she was almost an adult.

His ears smoothed against the sharp angles of his crown and he offered her a sheepish twitch of his lips, a soft sway of his tail against his hocks. “You are Fearghal and you will always be my pride and joy even when we disagree with one another. Never forget that.” If anything her ability to think for her own only made him prouder (even if it infuriated him from time to time). “Patrol with me?” The gangster inquired with a gesture of his muzzle, though he left it an open question hoping that the softness of his fiery gaze told her she was not obligated in any shape or form to accept.

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I'll archive :) <3

She ignored his wise words. She wanted to shape her own future and make her own mistakes - and that included letting others treat her how they wanted. Whenever she would have enough of it, she'd call them out on her own. So far, Ingram had been kind in his own shitty way, which was good enough - but she didn't feel like defending him. At least, not to Arturo. She would just let it slide and get taking by the tides that almost took every little thing wrong with the world slowly but surely.

Only his comforting words got through to her, and made her feel a little less mad - which is why she silently agreed to come with. Patrolling was important, much like hunting was, and she had already proved she would do anything for her home. And so, she followed her father.