Bat didn't have the faintest clue about this place's history. But the hard, blackened substance coating the broken rockery and the faint smell of sulfur absolutely tickled the traveler's curiosity. Carefully, she picked her way upward, stopping now and then to study the lustrous obsidian underfoot or sniff at a crust of white on a stone that smelled like her memories of the sea.
She explored for hours, then bedded down for a nap near the top of the old smokestack. The sun was warm on her back as she drowsed, Bat's eyelids fluttering as she dreamed. She had separated from
@Sequoia a few weeks back but now she dreamed they were together again. Bat was telling her companion some of her favorite recent aliases. She had been going by Dragontooth a lot lately. Sequoia laughed softly before fading into the ether as Bat fell into deeper, dreamless sleep.
bat didn't cross tristan's mind often. nah. she was in and then she fucked it up which meant she was out. tristan hadn't thought about her since the day she left! didn't think about her or dream about her or occasionally mention her when telling stories to strangers when striking up random conversation... no. no no no seriously. he didn't. i'm deadass!! well, its your fault you don't believe me. seriously. tristan was way over bat in every sense of the word.
including the definition of the word in that he was quite literally above her. and then he tripped over her. so now he was actually on the same level as her. he yelped in surprise after tripping over the dark object in the daylight (dumbass), skidding forwards and scrambling to his feet. he whipped around, teeth bared, ready to curse out some jackass log or rock or something -- when he froze.
bat?
he wondered aloud, suddenly feeling really sick. suddenly also really self conscious -- last time she'd seen him he was... nice looking. he looked mangier now than he'd ever been. his ear was still pretty gross looking and the fur on his cheek was still growing in strangely. he just stared, dumbly, wondering if it was a good or bad idea to fling himself off this mountain.
She eventually cycled back toward dreams, now venturing to Firebirds. She had been away, traveling for years, but they were all still there: Wildfire, Eljay and a whole host of younger brothers and sisters. Even Kiwi was there and (oddly) happy to see her. Bat greeted them all happily enough and was just about to go in for a group hug when she took a blunt kick to the ribs.
Bat let out a very rude noise, like a balloon rapidly deflating, even as she bucked to her feet. Was she under attack? Someone said her name, her real name, and she tried to blink the grogginess from her eyes. A beat later, she realized she knew that voice and her eyes flew wide as she finally oriented herself and spun to face him.
"Tegan?" Bat gaped at him, too taken by surprise to attempt schooling her expression. "The fuck're you doing here?" she blurted, about to tag a "fuggo" on there for old time's sake despite the hurtful circumstances of her departure but swallowing the word with an audible gulp when she got a load of his face.
holy shit it seriously actually was her. for half a second he expected it to be like a figment of his imagination or something. like a hallucination. he hadn't exactly eaten properly lately, so... whatever. he stiffened, a little pissed she looked way better than him -- especially since she was just woken up. like, he couldn't even do the whole 'i'm doing fine without you' shit because he literally looked like trash.
it's tristan, now,
he corrected her with a flick of a split ear, and... i left.
that mostly answered her question. and then he was quiet for a second. what are... you doing here?
he finally said.
Her face scrunched, lips parting to ask, What happened? Before she could, he spoke. His words were met with a blank stare that went on for a solid five seconds.
Finally, Bat found her words. She ignored the name for a moment, as well as the question. "You left? The Redhawks?" Silver eyes blinked. "Why? And why do you look so—" She flailed a paw at him, indicating his disheveled appearance.
because everyone else left,
tristan answered, smooth as butter, there wasn't anyone left, so there was no point in staying. and now i'm here.
he ignored her question about his face... just for a second, before sighing and looking away in a mild scowl. i was protecting some chick from some asshole and he got a good piece of me. and some bird attacked my head,
he said, his ears flicking back for a second.
he took his time, but he glanced back at bat, trying to find the strength within him to say what he really wanted to say. instead, he asked, how... are you doing? it's been a while.
yeah, no shit.
After setting down her foot, she meant to wait for an answer, but Bat found herself taking a step toward him. She stopped when something crunched loudly beneath her toes. She looked down to see a shard of obsidian crumbled into dust by her weight. But she didn't really see it, nor did she feel the little pricks it made on the leather of her paw; she was too busy listening to Tegan Tristan.
His tale was mildly alarming in more than one way. Her lips parted but she clapped her mouth shut rather than interrupt him. Bat's brow furrowed when he asked a second question of her. She still hadn't answered the first. To be fair, there was nothing particularly noteworthy about her presence here.
"I'm good," she said. "It's been very liberating, traveling around on my own..." But did she really want to get into all that now, with Tegan Tristan looking so much the worse for wear, clearly chewed up and spit out by life itself? "Teg—I mean, Tristan"—it came out like a question, her lips twisted in puzzlement—"tell me what happened. Who left? Where did they go?"
Surely he didn't mean that literally. The Redhawks and Firebirds couldn't just disappear... could they? Her heart humped harder against her rib cage as she remembered her interrupted dream. Bat looked to him with concern etched into her face, not just for him, but for their families.
to hear that it was liberating was shocking... because tristan kind of hated traveling alone. he was lonely. he also missed his mom. :/ but... whatever, he was glad she was happy. kind of.
i --...
he started and stopped right away, quieting to figure all his own shit out before explaining it all to her. mom and dad went to the firebirds... i can't remember if you knew that,
tristan admitted with a furrow of his brow, and niamh... and... you left, too...
he didn't give her enough time to say anything before continuing. and towhee left. i dunno where she went, i didn't want to know. i didn't really... care about anyone else left.
was that it? tristan couldn't really remember.
he shrugged, finally. yeah that's it.
He provided a list of names that did not amount to very many wolves, though she thought she understood. Bat's eyes softened, though she almost did a double take when he said Towhee had left. She was mightily curious as to what could possibly take the staunchest Redhawk away, though Bat knew better than to ask right now.
"Teg..." she murmured, forgetting to use his new name entirely. "I'm sorry I left. I honestly didn't think you..." Bat trailed off with a shrug, deciding to leave that sentence unfinished. She should've known better. But it made her think of that girl, Poe, and she couldn't help but wonder what had become of her. She didn't dare ask that either.
There was so much more to unpack here but Bat didn't want to press any buttons, hers or Tegan's Tristan's. She fell quiet for a beat, then began, rather inanely, "Can I," only to falter before forcing herself to finish this sentence, "Fuck it. Can I give you a hug?"
she kind of started apologizing but stopped halfway. tristan wasn't waiting for an apology or anything... so he didn't really look agitated when she paused. instead, he managed to look surprised at her next statement -- and, was that relief? without properly answering, tristan used his forelimbs to yank her quite crudely towards him, wrapping them tightly around her and burying his nose in the fur along her scruff. yeah, still smelled the same... less familiar, but the same. fuck you,
he muttered, all in good nature despite the fact that she couldn't see his face, i'm sorry i didn't say goodbye.
ah, PHEW. he'd been trying to say that for like 3 posts now. at least it came out now.
i'm really glad you're okay,
he added, leaning back now and dropping his feet back on the ground.
He reached out, clutching at her, and Bat went willingly. She had thought of him less and less lately as she threw herself into her travels; she'd meant to leave that heartbreak in the dust and she'd succeeded fairly well, actually. But her well-worn love for him felt fresh as ever as they embraced. She shook in his arms, not crying but laughing at his familiar epithets. With just a few words, he absolved some of the old soreness in her heart and before he'd even released her, she'd forgiven him.
"It's cool." She drew back to look into his rugged face, her own furrowing with concern again. "I wish you were okay too," Bat said quietly. "I can help you clean up, if you like. There's a river south of here. I can try to hunt too, if you're hungry. I've been doing pretty well for myself when it comes to small game; my mom would be hell'a proud."
i am okay,
tristan insisted, despite the fact that just a few weeks prior he'd been sobbing to his mom about he was actually the worst he'd ever been in his life. mentally -- but like, he was alive mostly. and probably definitely hungry but not starved. he certainly lacked purpose, too, but he'd given himself a kickin' new identity and was honestly doing a little better. not like, great, but better. he didn't say anything.
oh wait. oh fuck. he'd forgotten -- mostly because tristan had ruled all redhawks as losers -- but as soon as she mentioned her mom the blood drained from tristan's face and the smile faded from it. he tried to play it off, but only for a second, he was too caught off guard to play dumb -- clearly something was up. i... i'm really sorry, bat,
he said quietly, ears splaying, your mom... uh, passed.
he had to refrain from saying kicked it, because that was way outta pocket, but passed felt way too formal. whatever.
you've got new siblings, though, and they're both really healthy,
he added, trying to lighten the mood. unsure if that would help.
She expected him to perk up at the mention of food, maybe even make some remark or another about her supposed skills. Instead, she saw the smile slide off his face and Bat shot him a quizzical glance that said, What's up? The instant he began to stammer haltingly, she felt her heart drop.
When he said the words, a coldness swept through her, followed after by a heat that prickled every inch of her skin beneath her pewter pelt. "Wh—" she choked out, blinking stupidly at her friend. She knew about the pups; she'd met them. What had he just said about Wildfire?
"My—mom?" she just barely managed, "Died?" Her stricken face asked all the questions her wobbling mouth couldn't: What? When? How? And most importantly, Why?
y-yeah,
he said with an understandable amount of hesitation. i mean, we been said, tristan didn't really handle emotions really well... especially other people's emotions. she got really sick -- i don't think we knew with what. and then she just... passed one day,
he tried to explain honestly, but it might've been coming off as really blunt.
he repeated again, ears still splayed, i'm so sorry, bat.
He confirmed the worst news and Bat's legs gave out. She didn't go sprawling, simply sat, hard. And attempted to process this blindsiding news. It made her want to run directly back home, only she had never lived with the Firebirds. And now Kiwi was surely in charge, so would Bat even be welcome? She felt as if she had been stabbed, then the weapon had been pulled out just as quickly, doing even more damage and leaving her to bleed out. She struggled to breathe, her slim shoulders hitching as hot tears poured down her cheeks.
She didn't know how long she cried, though she was so completely dismayed that it didn't even occur to her to reach out to Tegan again. Eventually, Bat's wails quieted and she looked to her friend, eyes red and swollen. She sniffed, then swiped at her running nose before arching her neck and rubbing her teary face dry against her own shoulder.
She was an orphan now, though it felt silly to acknowledge that out loud; she was also an adult. But despite being on her own this past while, Bat suddenly felt as if she didn't know how to function in a world without Wildfire in it. She had always planned to make her way back to visit someday, maybe even live there, and now she felt a lot less like an empowered young woman traveling the world and more like a little dinghy lost at sea.
At length, Bat could only say, "What do we do now?"
tristan was entirely silent as bat was weeping before him. like... what do he do ? he do not know. when she finally pulled herself together, she asked a question to a higher being... except the only person there to answer was tristan. so, dumbly, he answered. well, i changed my name?
he offered, trying to force a smile... but it didn't feel right.
Bat stared at him blearily, not really sure what to make of the non sequitur. Maybe he intended it as a distraction? Or perhaps he was suggesting she do the same?
"Yeah, you did," she murmured, wiping at her runny nose again. She could've asked him why but the answer was pretty obvious: he needed a fresh start. She could respect that too. Bat had done the same, when they'd first found one another. And he'd vouched for her alias back then, so she would do the same for him now, even if it felt a little strange.
"I've been using lots of aliases on the road," Bat shared. "My favorite lately has been Dragontooth." She couldn't laugh, though her lips tugged into a brief sheepish smile before drooping again, still quivering minutely.
wassup with dragons lately?
tristan wondered aloud, frowning deeply. like -- he'd never heard of them before in his life and in like the last 3 days he'd heard two people talking about them. oh -- shit -- now probably wasn't the time for this nonsense though. i mean -- it's a cool alias, i just keep hearing about dragons and i dunno... it doesn't matter,
he said with a shake of his head before asking, you want me to call you that?
he noted the shift in her expression, how she still quivered, and reached forwards with his nose. he gave her a gentle nudge before finally deciding to up and move beside her, lowering to his stomach and looking at her like 'r u gonna come down here and be comforted or what?' because he didn't really know what else to do. but he wanted to help. he'd already fucked up their friendship once... and he wasn't gonna do it again.
She couldn't say how or why the theme might have popped up elsewhere in his life, though Bat did say, "It's kind of a nod to where I was born, y'know? Drageda." She shrugged artlessly.
Before she could say anything else on the subject, Tegan Tristan sank down to the ground, not without a nudge first. She sighed and curled up next to him. She'd meant to help him wash, then find him some food, but the thought made fresh tears prick at her eyes. When was the last time I saw her? What did I even say? she thought wildly, burying a moan in the side of his neck.
She calmed a few minutes later and withdrew to mutter, "I was actually thinking about taking it as my surname. I was never really a Drakru. I went by Redhawk for a while but..." It had never particularly suited. It had been a tie to her mother but Wildfire had herself dropped it to become a Blackthorn. Bat would've loved to borrow that surname but it wasn't hers to take. Besides, Tegan Tristan had probably shed that along with everything else, essentially making it taboo.
"Or maybe I'll just be plain old Bat," she sighed.
yeah,
agreed tristan, trying to put like 15 stories together in his mind to piece all of his knowledge of drageda into one full thought. it didn't work very well, but bat seemed content with that so he didn't try to say anything stupid. as she joined him tristan found himself feeling suddenly really awkward -- for what felt like the first time in his life too, considering he was normally really passive in all regards. but he tried to be sweet and comforting... even though tristan had never been described as those words in his life.
even as she began to sob into his shoulder, he gave her careful, measured licks to her forehead... and whatever else was exposed. and when she came up for air, he resorted to a less wet form of grooming along her neck. felt ? right? ?? ?
i don't think bat's plain,
he commented honestly, flicking an ear, bat dragontooth sounds... kinda whack, though.
couldn't not be honest with her. what else you got?
he asked, a silent reference to his conversation with ibis... but he was just trying to lighten the mood a bit. maybe he was making it worse.
"Nothin'," she murmured. There were aliases aplenty, though just now she couldn't recall a single other one of them. "Maybe I should come up with something to do with Wildfire," she added, voice barely more than a whisper. She hiccuped, a lump in her throat.
She appreciated his tender gestures and leaned into them. She felt guilty because she should be helping him get clean, then fetch him some food. For now, Bat halfheartedly groomed the worst of his tousled, dirty fur, and told herself she would hunt something after giving herself a little more time to process the sad news.
"I don't know what your plans are," Bat said after a while, "but if you'd like to hang out, I'd be happy for the company. Seq and I decided to split up a while ago. It was on friendly terms," she clarified, "I wanted to see what it was like to travel totally alone. I really have enjoyed it. But I could use a friend right now. Maybe you could too?"
And as it turned out, he could.