Dragoncrest Cliffs I would like ...

@Eske

Kendra just heard from Thuringwethil that she was promoted. She had proved herself enough that she was officially accepted amongst their ranks. Naturally Kendra had to tell her friend about this. Eske had been right that she had become a Skayona. She let out a howl towards the female and moved towards the Hougeda seeing that was the central meeting spot of the pack.

The dark colored female was quick on her feet before waiting for the female. As soon as she saw Eske Kendra met her with excitement. Her tail was wagging and she greeted the higher ranked female with licks under her chin. It was perhaps the most outgoing Kendra been. When she was younger she showed more excitement but it had been buried for a long time. "Eske! I am a Skayona!," she instantly told her the good news.

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When she hears Kendra’s call she is giving a rough tug to a fox’s neck, the feel of bones snapping satisfying to her as her kill falls limp betwixt her jaws and ceases it’s struggle. She curses low in Trigedasleng her words muffled around the fox as she drops it delicately to the ground at her paws and swipes her tongue against her salmon pink tongue across her jowls in an attempt to clean off the blood. Her kill was not a flawless execution …unfortunately. The fox had put up a fight and Eske had nearly lost it. Blood has splashed against her chest staining the agouti fur in random spots. She does not necessarily want Kendra to see her so …messy but her desire to heed the older girl’s call was strong and the Drakru picks up her kill and heads in Kendra’s direction/

It is not long before Eske sees the older girl coming towards her, and she sucks in a small breath of pleasant surprise around the gruff of her kill before she sets the corpse down at her paws as the dark girl draws nearer. “Kendra,” Eske greets her with a low, pleased purl and a soft giggle as Kendra places licks under her chin. It takes all of Eske’s will power not to read too much into each lick she feels with a shiver of electricity and heat: her pulse like the loud resound of a war drum as it jumped with each draw of Kendra’s tongue against her chin. Kendra’s excitement is catching and Eske does not need to ask for it comes out. Kendra has been promoted to Skayona. Eske’s tail wags furiously against her hocks. “See? I didn’t I tell you?” Eske asks Kendra but not in an arrogant way. “Congratulations!” Kendra’s promotion was a good sign: it meant she was officially apart of Drakru. “I knew you could do it.” Eske is proud of her, and is glad that Kendra has proven herself to Heda …both for Kendra’s sake and her own (because Eske is selfish, after all).

“Here,” Eske nudges the fox towards Kendra. She doubted anyone would care if it went to Kendra as a small token for her promotion instead of the cache it had previously been destined to go to. “A gift to celebrate your promotion.” Eske explains, remembering that Kendra had stated that she had not want to be spoiled (which was such a shame, Eske thinks) but hopes that she accepts it nevertheless.

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Kendra plopped down on her butt before Eske and watched her with a smile. She seemed just as excited as Kendra was which made her mood heighten even more. Kendra's tail patted against the ground and for once she wasn't feeling the loss of her bother so badly. She was happy. The happiness she was feeling now was a high point, surly there would be a few other low points but hopefully not as depressive as living alone for months.

Her pale eyes fell on to the fox, she was pretty sure Eske was not a fortune teller meaning she would have known about her promotion. However... maybe Thur told her before she promoted her. Hmm. Kendra instantly smiled. Deciding to take the gift without hesitation. "Thank you! I will keep the tail as a memory," she spoke as she bit of the red and white tipped tail. This time she would let herself be spoiled. She had to remind a bit of the fact that Eske was basically providing for her. Wasn't that what a mate would do? But then... Xan also provided for her, many times, even saved her life. That was then maybe also mate like behavior. Those thoughts confused her and quickly pushed those away.

"You did tell me so," she chuckled as she started to take a bite. "Will you eat it together? With me?," she asked then, not wanting to be the only one to eat at the moment. She wanted to share with Eske.

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Eske’s breath caught in her throat for a small moment as Kendra smiles as her. “Your smile is beautiful,” Eske compliments genuinely, letting the moment choose her words for her. After she says it, she feels a slight flush of heat to her cheeks but she plays her blush off (glad that it is not visible through her fur) with a pretty smile. Her tail wags eagerly as Kendra accepts her impromptu gift and tells her that she will keep the tail to remember. There is a warmth that rises to her chest where it lingers: a buoyant feeling that the aggressive Drakru could not place even if she had wanted to. “How does it feel officially being apart of Drageda?” Eske had the privilege of being born within it, but everything she had she earned — just like everyone else. She might have been the Viking Queen’s daughter but as Gyda had been an outlier of Sleeping Dragon she did not believe it gave her any merit. She was never the golden daughter anyway. Kendra pulls Eske’s attention from her thoughts as she poses her question. “I would be honored to share it with you,” Eske says with a grin, before she nudges it a smidgen closer to Kendra. “but you should have the honor of first bite, Skayona.” Eske tells her.

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Kendra was mildly surprised by the sudden words of affection from the other. She never really thought herself as beautiful, just very broken. The lack of a mother, and her father working so hard to keep them fed. To then also lose her twin brother and have her father choose his newborn children over her. It was quite a lot of misery that made her quite dark, a dark side that Eske hadn't even seen of her. Kendra realized that she had found the lighter, and smiling version of herself by being with ones who did care for her. It was not something she had to be taught, and for so long she thought that she could only be dark. For a moment she didn't know what to say. "Thanks. I don't think I've smiled so much since.. ever," she admitted. "Which perhaps also answers your question. I am happy that I proved myself to be useful."

Maybe that was the thing with Blackfeather. She didn't feel of any use as they were all murderers and spies. They all had affinity with herbs or toxics. She was black furred like most of them there. Here she was a Skayona. A rank special for her interests. Kendra liked it. She felt more valued. "I really like it. It makes me think less of my brother I've lost, and the darkness that used to cover me," she admitted quietly. Perhaps there would always be a dark edge around her but here it didn't show as much. Kendra did have the feeling that of all the packmates Eske would probably like it the most that she was a little but darker.

"Alright," she agreed and bended down to open the fox an started to eat from the soft meats. She opened it up further so Eske muzzle could also get some of the grub. Kendra's tail was wagging, Eske's words about her smile being beautiful were still going through her mind.

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Eske is genuinely happy to hear the Kendra is happy and she is still trying to get used to her affection for Kendra that it manages to surprise her. Eske is quiet, and glimpses down at the fox corpse that is between them as Kendra confesses about losing her brother and of darkness. For a long moment Eske wonders if she should share…that she, too, has lost her siblings. Eske did not know if they were dead or not but as far as she was cared: they were dead to her. They had turned their back on Drageda. She had no siblings, not anymore. Thus, she decided not to bring it up as she did not think their situations were even comparable. “I’m sorry to hear that you lost your brother,” She speaks morosely as her sea-glass gaze flickers up to Kendra, stretching forward with the intention of bumping her muzzle against the older girl’s own before she would withdraw back to her side. It caused Kendra a pain that for reasons that Eske isn’t quite able to understand she wants to try to soothe even though she suspects there is nothing that will take it away. “If I would have known I would have hunted something better. Maybe a deer or something.” A fox isn’t much but it was all Eske had to offer on the spot. Granted, she knew her chances of felling a deer on her own were slim but she was crazy determined enough to try it. “It’s almost spring,” Eske comments slyly as she takes a bit of the fox after Kendra. “do you think you might be able to find the plants you need to make your dyes in Drageda? If you can't I’d be happy to escort you outside of Drageda if you’d like.” She was a Gona after all and surely venturing out with Kendra counted as protecting the pack (individually, perhaps, but still). Though protecting Kendra is a big part of her offer, the truth was Eske truly wanted to see passion as it light up her face and eyes again as she found the plants she needed, even if all of their names and uses would end up going over Eske’s head.

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Kendra gave the other an appreciative smile when she gave her condolences to her about her brother. It would always be tough on her to lose her twin brother but if she was around Eske she realized that she didn’t think as much about him as she should? Maybe she should continue with her life instead to pine over her lost family, or the wolves that abandoned her. At least this pack was different, they truly seemed to care about her. Kendra was starting to feel more at home.

The girl shook her head in response of Eske wanting to hurt something better for her. ”Nonsense! You shouldn’t hunt a deer alone,” she commented to the warrior girl. She might be good but no one was that good. She should not even want to try it, it could be extremely dangerous. She took another bite from the fox to show the female she was more than satisfied with this meal and she did not want or need anything more than that.

Kendra smiled when she started about the dye. ”I think so. If not I will let you know. Then you can escort me outside of the territory and protect my life from vicious others,” she teased a bit. ”I do need some kind of dip in the ground, preferably rock where I can mash it all together with a rock, which means I would prefer the ground to be rock too. Do you think the Hougeda has that?” Kendra wasn’t sure if their central spot had what she needed to mix the dye.

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