Ankyra Sound i see your smile and it's like looking down the barrel of a gun

@Caiaphas :)

 

The encounter with the Drageda wolf left him undoubtedly unsettled, having not realized how closely they lied in proximity to each other.

It seemed like a recipe for utter disaster to him, for two powerful entities could not share one space in peace for very long. Redhawk had run Blackfeather from their territory largely for that reason following the war, and they had not been anywhere near as close as Rusalka and the Drageda wolves currently lived. How Caiaphas remained seemingly at peace with such an impending threat baffled him, having assessed her as someone who could be especially territorial. Perhaps there was a reason for the apparent lack of concern, or there was the possibility that something had already been done to address what he felt was an active risk to them all. In another lifetime Vaati may have enjoyed the irony of it all, but there is a very real reason to be wary of an enemy lingering just on the horizon; a reason lying in the belly of a particular theta. 

He does not call to summon her, instead opting to rather make his way in the direction of her scent. No doubt she was already aware of the rank he now bore, and so he did not find it of particular value to mention -- there were more important things he felt required an answer.

Hope you don't mind me snagging? Phas is welcome to jump in still ofc

Unluckily (or maybe luckily?), before he ran into Caiaphas, he ran into her.  Or, rather, past her.

He looked like he was on a mission, but Rosalyn still called out.  Oi! Could you help with this?  Just a second of his time.

She was trying short walks again, not stupidly leaving of course, but short trips that wouldn't set her back more than the previous already had.  Today, that trip had resulted in a find - a dead rabbit, for the most part fresh(ish).  Definitely fresh enough to eat.  She'd been carrying it back when she'd stumbled, and the thing had fallen into a short ditch that, on the way there, she'd had to cut around.

With a bum front leg, there was no way for her to get her head down there without potentially falling on her face.  So she was left standing in the tripod pose that was almost becoming second nature at this point, staring at her lunch resting only 3 or so feet below.

Until he came along, that is.  She'd even share if he could nab it.

<3

vaati was not far off from where caiaphas stood, though she was unaware of her follower -- up until she recognized rosalyn's call filter through the woods. pulling a slender ear back to assess where the noise had come from, the siren changed direction and made for rosalyn's call. she was, in truth, surprised to find or hear rosalyn's voice in the thicket given the unsightly nature of her injuries -- but in hindsight, she also knew there was little to keep the stormy woman at bay.

she came upon the two of them, with rosalyn standing in a tripod pose and her attention fastened to the ditch below. peering into its tangled depths, caiaphas did not see what had drawn such a call from rosalyn, and so, prowled forth to her shoulder and looked down into the sunless depths. "what's that?" the crone asked, still perplexed and seeing little of interest in the shadowed grove.

im gonna skip to move this, if that's ok! Vaati is still more than welcome to jump in and steal this thread back <3

He didn't immediately answer, but Caiaphas showed up, and Rosalyn directed her attention there instead.  Food.  Found it a ways back, but I dropped it and now,  she trailed off, a twinge of frustrated regret entering her voice.  Things with the woman and her had entered a truce, but that still didn't mean she liked having her inabilities on display to her.  Vaati had been a much more neutral party.

Big internal sigh.  If you can just reach down and nab it? It wasn't big, probably barely enough for one, but it had felt so good to find something rather than rely on the hunting of others.  This one she wanted to enjoy herself.

caiaphas' gaze was drawn down into the darkened bosk, where it appeared rosalyn had carelessly lost her meal. the crone's haggard muzzle twitched and she inhaled deeply, sorting through the scents of snow and damp wood.

blood, and the faintest hint of hare -- caiaphas' ear twitched as she wordlessly clambered down into the ditch, her own motions stiff. as she parted through the tangle of brush, she spied the crushed carcass and stepped gingerly past the thorny vines to secure it.

her ascent out of the grove was no more graceful than her departure down; at one point the steep bank frustrated her progress, and the incline was slicked with hardened snow. after several attempts, caiaphas made it -- but not without some exertion on her part.

she had no interest in stealing rosalyn's lunch, though an old shade of her former hellion-self snickered with delight with the idea of making off with it. still silent, caiaphas left the hare just before rosalyn's feet, her attention returning now to the dark tangle of wood she had no interest in returning to.

It looked like a difficult trek, and Rosalyn watched her retrieve it with a mix of apprehension, irritation, and satisfaction.  One that she might take it and dip out, two because she  needed the help in the first place, and three because it was good to watch Caiaphas struggle on her account.  The third was by far the most pleasant to embrace.

When it was dropped silently in front of her, Rosalyn eyed Caiaphas for a second, not sure how to read that reaction. Thanks, was all she gave for a reply, before picking it up and beginning to walk away.  Odd.

I thought of this gif as she walked away and got a good chuckle <3

caiaphas’ attention had been drawn on the murky tangle below when rosalyn’s thanks interrupted the silence. she turned her slim features sideways to issue some sort of comment, only to see the woman had already begun to hobble away.

there was little use pursuing rosalyn’s company. their relationship was stilted at best; with a shrug of her narrow shoulders, caiaphas fell in step after vaati’s trail, curious to see what the gamma was up to.