Northstar Vale Adelfí

Snow crunched beneath sandy paws. The boy’s pace was hurried, busy. He did not seem swayed by anything as he journeyed through the red-leaf forest of the vale. He had visited one of the runoffs by the lake and found that the water had frozen. The clean shimmer of it had been stopped midair, or more accurately in a directly falling line from lake to stream.

Sniffing at the edge of the creek that wound through the trees, Antigone noted that the water began moving again, further down. He wondered what might break up the frozen chunk and set the water to flow freely again.

Pacing at the bank of the creek, Antigone wondered if @Zulema or @Zosime were near.

The cold crept up Zulema's limbs as she walked the over the blanketed ground. While all of her senses were engaged on her small ventures, nothing short of chaotic, her mind was quiet just as her steps were. No one would know she was there, and no one would know she had gone. There was no other word for the vale at this time of day and season than serene, the word able to describe the way she felt as well. The fiery girl had grown to like the wintry air and surroundings.

She had found herself doing this a lot. It's not that she wasn't interested in being social, she loved spending time with others, but these quiet moments she loved just as much. Her muted walk met its end. She noted her brother was near, blue eyes fixing on him from a distance. She watched him pace from a distance, hurried and focused. Zulema stood in silence, unable to piece what he was doing together. She'd rather ask him.

❝What're you doing?❞

Zulema’s voice swiveled his ears. Antigone turned his snout toward her, navy eyes latching on her expectant face. She’d asked what he was doing.

Hm.

It was nothing more than a thoughtful grunt from the young man. His sour expression turned back to the frozen runoff. It made his skin crawl. He wanted it to break. He wanted the water to be set loose, to flow freely. Antigone could feel the hairs along his neck prickle with discomfort.

Gotta break the water, he told her roughly.

The boy’s navy gaze swept the area for a stick or a stone.

❝Break the water?❞ She mumbled to herself with a furrowed brow.

Zulema followed behind him after her small pause, watching over his shoulder when she approached as he studied the frozen stream. It was as if the water had frozen in time. She glanced around them once more for anyone else before looking back to her brother. The girl had progressively picked up on his quirks, if they were even that. While she was not interested in breaking the ice for the same reasons he had, she had decided it would be worth it to settle him down. That and the boredom that pricked at her was what pushed her to sniff at the ground for something to break it with.

❝Maybe I can try with my paws.❞ Zulema thought out loud, picking her head up to look at her hooded brother again.

Antigone’s chest felt tight. He didn’t like that the water had frozen. He did not like the shapes it had created while it had stopped mid-fall. If he gave it too much thought, he could feel bile in his throat. The choking sensation was one that he did not care for. The words of his sister had nearly been lost in his obsessive mania.

Zulema seemed to think she could break it with her paws.

Antigone stopped his pacing and turned his dark eyes upon her.

Try it, he said quietly. She was certainly strong enough. She had nearly grown into her full adult size and she carried muscle beneath the creams and russet of her coat. The boy didn’t think she would fail.

❝Okay,❞ Zulema had brushed past him sniffing at the frozen runoff.

What could go wrong? The sandy girl climbed up beside the runoff, paws slipping behind her a few times before she had stood above it. Zulema pressed her paws against it, pushing forward. The only result of the effort was a small noise. She grumbled to herself before leaning back and picking her legs up slam them down, met with a shatter of the ice. A sting climbed up her limbs, but maybe it had worked?

The boy clenched his teeth as he watched his sister traverse the icy water. She slipped in a few places but maintained a good balance that allowed her to inspect the water.

The first push that she made against the frozen liquid did not cause it to give way. Antigone could feel his jaw aching from the tightness he had created in clenching it. He could imagine the feeling of the ice beneath her paws. It was almost as though he had braved the runoff for himself. Of course, he was not the type to take such risky action.

A heavy drop of her paws made the air come to life with the sound of ice cracking.

Antigone held his breath to see if the water had been set free.

The water began to trickle! Zulema immediately looked to Antigone with a smile, followed by a breathless laugh. The stream began to flow downward even stronger as the moment progressed.

❝I must be pretty strong.❞ She huffed, chest seemingly puffed out.

While she was being sarcastic, a small sense of pride did come out of the situation. Zulema climbed down and returned to Antigone's side. She exhaled dramatically as if cracking the ice was hard work, and it wasn't.

❝Better?❞ Her eyes dragged away from the stream and she moved to face him again.

The tension was freed from his stiff frame. The noise of the moving water was enough, enough to ease him out of the madness in his mind.

Zulema was proud of the work she had done. She claimed that she must be strong. Antigone eyed his sister with a dark blue stare. His tail waved, only slightly. The freedom from his mind was overwhelming, exhausting. The boy wanted to congratulate her. He didn’t have the words to form it, though. She had done him a favor and all he could do is watch her.

Thanks, he breathed out to the girl. Dad would say of course you are strong.

Antigone couldn’t help but roll his eyes. Their father was often too loud and too proud for his own good.

 ❝Mhm,❞ Zulema nodded, before turning to watch the stream flow.

Arsenio's approval was always something the girl adored, though Antigone didn't seem thrilled. She was quiet for a moment, the moving water inhabiting the silence she left.

❝Is something up with you two?❞ She assumed she was familiar with the things that irritated Antigone, though she had found herself surprised in certain instances.

Mm.

Antigone thought that his sisters had as much intuition as their mother. He didn’t know if this was something he appreciated or disliked. It had the tendency to leave him in difficult situations, or quietly considering complicated questions. Zulema wouldn’t mean to rile him, of course. She just knew how to pick at the scab of his emotions.

I think dad favors only one kind of strength, he confessed.

❝Yeah, I get that.❞ Zulema stared off as she spoke.

She assumed this was hard for him and picked her head up to look at him again. Antigone was always going to be strong to her. Through his eyes, Zulema thought the world would be a very different place. Seeing things and feeling things so intensely had to stressful at times. Perhaps it was gift, perhaps it wasn't.

❝I think you're strong.❞ She held her gaze to his.

Zulema was always joking, but she hoped this time it was clear that she wasn't. She felt it was something he needed to know.

*Screams* She’s the cutest and best sister, I swear. <3

I think you’re strong.

The intensity of her eyes on him had taken Antigone by surprise. His gut instinct was to be skeptical. What might she know about strength? What did any of them know about being strong? Even if he disliked their father’s thought process, Arsenio seemed to be the only one of them who might understand the truth behind being strong.

Thanks, Zulema, Antigone said. He would not cast doubt over his sister’s claim. She was trying to boost his spirit, to bring light into his clouded mental state. A dismal sniff struck the air. The boy turned his dark eyes away from her bright features.

Come on. I’ll show you my secret berry stash. A gift of thanks that he wasn’t able to speak.

:,) <3

She inhaled a deep breath before nodding to him. Secrets were always exciting, even if it was berries.

❝If you show me what the berries look like, maybe I could bring them to your stashes when I see them?❞ The girl said, waiting for Antigone to lead the way.

Though the previous subject had passed, she still thought on it. Zulema wanted her brother to know he was anything but weak. She did not yet know that would be a personal journey for Antigone, her words would not click just now.

The berries were the sweetest ones he had ever found. It had been like a hidden treasure. He’d gingerly carried them to his hiding place and the snows had kept them perfectly chilled, glistening, and waiting for when they would be devoured. Sharing this with Zulema was an important thing for Antigone.

You’ll need to be careful, he cautioned her. There’s another type that looks almost identical to these ones. It’ll make you-

The boy’s features were tight with discomfort.

Sick. In other words, if Zulema gobbled up a batch of berries and got the wrong ones, she’d be crapping in the woods for days on end with little relief. Antigone didn’t want to share this detail because it made his skin crawl. Sick was enough warning to keep her away.

Zulema listened intently, and by the look of Antigone's face when he said sick she decided it was best left alone.

❝How'd you find that out?❞ A smile tugged at the corner of her mouth.

It was either the teachings of Meadow, or trial and error. Regardless, the warning was appreciated, even if she was internally cringing.

Going to fade this out. <3 <3

Antigone grunted in response, unwilling to delve deeper into how he had discovered the difference. It was best left unsaid. The boy knew that if he confessed his experience had been a personal one, she would probably inquire further. He had no intention of telling his sister how his stomach had churned for days, turning anything he ate into lava.

Don’t worry about it, the red-hooded figure said in a surly tone.

C’mon, let’s cut through here, Antigone said while nudging against his sister. He stepped forward and slipped into the shadows of the foliage, loping ahead of any other questions.