Blackbeak Bluff And the rings i am breaking

quick for @Mirabelle (before i forget again) - reply whenever you have time kati no rush! i figure they're sort of at the edge of blackbeak/heading into the forest a bit if that works for you

The pair was making their way up the shore steadily. Their pace is casual. Or at least Étoille feels so. Now that he has a goal and company, he feels self assured as he once had been. Eventually they will reach.. whatever destination they were going to reach. And the journey is pleasant enough. 

So far he has largely stayed quiet, not being the sort to offer communication unprompted. Yet the beast is curious about his fairer traveling companion. Her formalities are an oddity as the name of her old home. Étoille has made little effort to press her for details since their original meeting, but he cannot help but watch her curiously, trying to make sense of the puzzle pieces he's presented for himself.

/feels the rust falling off/ oof

The shieldmaiden had nestled comfortably in the shadow of the giant.  During their travels the man had remained mostly silent and she had followed suit, but in the wordless space between them she took solace.  He had luckily not pressed her for any details of her shady entry to the Teekons and she had not provided them.

But she catches him staring at her, almost intently sometimes and though it does not unsettle her, it certainly piques her curiosity.  She knew just as little about him as he knew of her, and although it made it easier on her as she knew ultimately she would have to say goodbye  to the brute, she did wonder as much about him as he was of her.

She breathes in deeply through her nose as she catches his gaze upon her again.  Does something intrigue you about me?  It is such a bold question but she does not  realize this because where she hails from, it is not an offensive question.

He would not know what to do if she were displeased with the silence, lacking the social tools to keep conversation afloat. Small talk seems like too much trouble. And he is not the sort of move into deeper chats without some prompting. Not that he minds others who are talkative - Liana comes to mind, even now - but reciprocation is beyond his limits.

As are other things. She catches him staring and he blushes faintly, caught out. But more than that, her question throws him off guard. The man's nostrils flare in surprise. "Er," he says, sheepishly, "I apologise." It  is not so much the question itself - fair enough, he would think - but the way the femme has asked it of him, her eyes so velvet and doe-like. Étoille is not a complete stranger to flirtation - there'd been his brief feelings for Liana and his exchange with the woman in the quarry - but the force of it turned on him still weakened him, just slightly. "Je suis curieux," he murmurs, somewhat shyly, and clears his throat. "We have been traveling for some time now," Étoille says. His question is implied, though he gives Mirabelle a sideways look, clearly expecting an answer.

Her ears tilt forward at him.  Had she offended him?  Do not be sorry. I am intriguing. It does not upset me.  She does not understand his foriegn tongue as it is nothing like that of her homeland or the common speech they shared; she does not make any feeble, half-hearted attempt to understand although she would've liked to know what was on his mind.  

The way he stared at her reminded her of home and she revelled in it even as it hurt her.  Her questioning gaze lingers on him a moment before returning to the ground. She weaves whimsically through the small foliage that precedes the thicker forest ahead, lingering enough to where they maintain a steady pace.

He speaks once more and there is an expectation in his voice that she does not quite comprehend.  She is not unintelligent but these deeper social cues perplexed her — did he want something from her? That we have, she muses, but her voice is the slightest bit distorted by discomfort. Is something on your mind?

He accepts what she says, though it leaves him slightly more - lost, perhaps. Well, but: he wouldn't mind another staring at him. This was the luxury of the self-assured. 

The pair share a beat. Étoille lets her weave ahead slightly, dark gaze glued to her form as it moves, tracking her movements. It lingers even as she addresses his unaswered question, though his expression is not lecherous and betrays no deeper emotion than mild curiosity. "Oui, yes," he answers, because that is easy enough. "There is something..." Here the man hesitates. "In my mother's tongue, we call it 'je ne sais quoi'," he says. His translation is not entirely accurate - he means I don't know quite literally, without the implication of attraction, but it holds true enough. "You said you were from far away," he finally settles on, the closest he's come to prompting her for any explanations to date. It still offers her a chance to rebuff, but secretly he hopes she will open up, just a little.

Her muscles tense and her blood turns to ice as it pours through her veins, filling every cavity with fear.  She stiffens visibly, curled tail positioning itself high as she sucks in a breath.  Yes, she begins, from up north.

For a moment it is all she feels comfortable divulging and then something strikes her — glaine ár gcroí — and she understands that it is wrong to use this man and not fill him in.  You must promise not to run me off, she pleads as her ears flatten against the gentle curvature of her skull, eyes doe-wide in fear.  It is stupid, but this near-stranger is all she has left in the world.

Before she can stop herself she is spilling everything. I come from a pack up north.  We were at odds over hunting rights but I had never seen them so aggressive.  We fought back, but I think I was the only one that made it.  Her tail cups her most vulnerable areas — her soft, fleshy stomach that could so easily be ripped open.  

They took me.  She did not know if she had been supposed to survive or not, she did not know what atrocities they had intended for her.  I escaped.  And now I'm here.  

She wonders if she has said too much because now he knows everything, but she could not in good conscience lie to him, lead him on without explanation.

Étoille pauses mid-step, expression growing alarmed by her sudden reaction. He does not immediately connect his question to her fear, and so goes on alert, eyes sweeping the area for some threat - a bear, perhaps - despite the complete lack of scent. But then the femme speaks and the beast puts it together. His brow knits. 

What on Earth could possible cause the man to run her off. He supposes she could have murdered children. But even then, perhaps there was a reason for it. And looking at her, she did not seem the murderous type. "I do," he says, but it doesn't seem to matter because she speaks right over him.

Her story is brief but belies much more. "I see," the man says. What else is there to possibly say? "That sounds rough." Even he can recognize that his reaction is weak, but it is the best he can muster. Still, he manages to add: "I would never run you off, Mirabelle," dark eyes serious as they study her downturned face.

This does explain her.. odd reticence, though he'd chalked it up to personality. The dirt on her when they'd met. Her anxiety. Perhaps even why she'd wanted a traveling companion. Not that he minds; it suits him to travel with her, regardless of her intentions. Étoille feels the stirrings of protectiveness in him. However long they traveled together, he will ensure her safety. There is not much that could threaten him, at least. He straightens up and dips his head, a formal gesture to sign off his previous statement.

His words are short, but they are enough to comfort her for the time being.  She didn't realize she was holding her breath until he replied and it came out in one big gush.  Mirabelle realizes how childish — or doggish, maybe — she looks next to him with such emotive body language and pictures it in her mind.  Should she meet anyone else, she might respond differently but in all honesty she did not expect the man to ask with his previous silence.

I am sorry if I frightened you, she follows quickly, resuming their travels. and thank you.  She's quite glad he does not mind; she did not intend to use him as a bodyguard but had secretly hoped that his presence might ward off any unwanted attention.  Are you seeking somewhere in particular?

He does not relax even when she lets out a breath. The man feels no guilt for triggering this response from her; it had been a harmless question, easily dodged. Nonetheless, her fear is unsettling to witness. 

"Not at all," he replies, falling back into step with her easily. At her question, Étoille hums. "I am not sure," he says, gaze drawn forward. "Are you?"

This she has not thought through.  She presently wanders without aim; it was a stretch to say she was lost but she didn't know quite yet where she intended to land.  It's almost comforting that the other has no idea where he is headed either, but who knows?  No, she admits, I don't know.  Do you intend on settling down somewhere?

Another question she wasn't ready to answer herself, so if he didn't have one she wouldn't be offended.  Mirabelle has been part of a pack her entire life so she was unaccustomed to this traveling alone, but she thinks that perhaps this is her chance to be a lone wolf, something that had seemed so mystical to her some time ago.

It seems theyre in similar places. Étoille hums again, lets the silence between them stretch longer. He is thinking.  After a few moments, he finally says, "I would like so." The only pack he knows by name is the Caldera - and the nomad's pack that Ty is founding, though he does not recall the name of it. And of course he is headed towards neither. But that is alright; he will end up where he is meant to end up. "I have lived as a loner for a long while," Étoille tells her. Perhaps it is only fair he divulges some, too. "Very briefly I was with a pack named Gnarled Oaks, but it was small and quickly fragmented. I do not mind wandering, but I would like to..." the man trails off, thoughtful. "I would like to establish myself somewhere, if nothing else." Étoille wonders if given her history Mirabelle is interested in finding a new pack. He would not be surprised if she isn't. Well. There was time to think on that - and their eventual separation - later.

It seems odd to fall back into silence that had been so easy before. "...Thank you for sharing, er, your story with me," the beast says, somewhat awkwardly. He gives the smaller woman a thoughtful look. He supposes they are closer now, though he did not feel a paradigm shift. Perhaps.. perhaps friendship was a simpler thing after all.