Ankyra Sound fighting for something new in this

she had been disappointed on their trek back from blackfeather and wondered, in her strange way, how arrille had felt about his father's spiteful words. caiaphas by principle was not a kind she-wolf, but even she knew the lancing power a well-placed barb could put in ones' heart.

she sought @Arrille that afternoon, with the task in mind to ask the boy if he were happy for his pitiful reunion. caiaphas knew better than any that family was disappointment: she suspected he would be by the pools in the cavern and headed towards there with a steady clip.

Arrille was not feeling happy. Not too happy, at all. As Caiaphas sought him out, he sought her out. And found her he did, coming from the pools in the caves. "Caiaphas" he said, stopping at a distance somewhat. One could easily tell from his voice, he was angry, filled with impatience and upset at thinking back to the meeting that came to mind as soon as he saw her.

the siren needn't have searched long -- it appeared their thoughts were linked, for no sooner had she ducked under the threshold of the grotto had arrille's form appeared. there was no mistaking the heat to his step nor the incensed tone of his voice -- it was a strange pall to see shade arrille, and caiaphas stepped back out of surprise. certainly it was not a tone she had ever witnessed in him, nor a tone he had ever lodged against her.

she brushed by him then, continuing her descent into the cavern -- he could follow, or he could not -- it would not alter her course. once she entered the main cavern where the flowstone bled into steep columns she turned on her heels and looked at him expectantly, her gaze clearly conveying 'yes?'

Arrille watched as she passed him by, and followed behind till she stopped inside the main cavern. He remained standing as she looked upon him. "I've been looking for you" he said. She would no doubt know why, but he felt maybe he needed to remind. 

"I want answers...now." His tone very demanding, and his eyes narrowed. "I want to know why he would...why he would speak in such a way. You knew him." He even dared a step closer. "And you promised me answers."

like kjalarr, this was a side of arrille caiaphas had not witnessed before. her tail lashed in disapproval as she caught the forceful edge of his tone -- she had never been one to comply to demands. it went against the very grain of her troublesome nature. she folded her lean hips and sat down on the stone with a curiously indecipherable look.

"if you want flies, you use honey." she started, looking at him pointedly in a chiding manner. "not salt." she finished and silence filled the cavern save for the gentle trickle of water against wet stone. it was clear from her cold aspect that she had not appreciated how he addressed her -- and unless he made amends, no further answers would be forthcoming.

As Caiapahs began speaking, he could understand she did not appreciate this behavior of his. He lightened his expression, but what was gone was replaced with confusion. "Wh...What does that even mean? I don't want flies, I want answers." The confusion only frustrated him. "When did flies come into this?"

the scowl lifted from the boy's face, but remained on caiaphas' - she canted her muzzle to him and apprised his newfound expression. perhaps if he had not been so cross before, she would have found his confusion bemusing -- instead, she only sighed in exasperation as her suggestion sailed right over his head.

she was only slightly mollified by his change in stature and attitude, but it was enough to evince a rare streak of generosity in the sylph. "what answers do you want?" she queried, pulling both ears forward to complement her expectant expression.

Finally she spoke once more, asking just what he wanted her to ask. He smiled slightly, in a victorious manner. Finally, he thought to himself. "My father. I want to know everything you can tell me. Anything to explain that behavior he had. I want to know it all...because that was not the father I know." It was his father, and even though he may have left him, the boy was sure there was more to this. That his father was not right in the head.

she caught his smile and sought to end it with a scolding expression -- a deep scowl that somehow darkened her already pitch-black muzzle. she would provide this information readily enough so long as arrille did not become too arrogant or pushy in his requests -- she was not a wolf to be trifled with and kept his muzzle in the corner of her eyes as she began to speak.

"wolves change, arrille." she started wearily, a flick of her tail given as she drew onto her haunches like a cat. "did you see the white wolf with him? the one with the disfigured face?" she waited for him to answer before continuing. "that was not your mother, was it?" she paused then, examining the wolf in her memory with careful scrutiny. it was not ondine - she knew that -- but it had replaced her. it was not hard to measure from the white wolf's possessiveness of kjalarr that somehow, he had become involved with her. caiaphas did not assume -- or care to assume -- just how involved that relationship was, but she had lived long enough to recognize a tethered wolf when she saw it.

there was something sad about a wolf in chains, as if the feralness had been bled from it. whatever haunting and terrible beauty it was that shaped the wolf was lost when it was cornered and trapped. that wolf had no beauty to it, no cunning or majestic light. "he's not the kjalarr i knew either. if it was not obvious, he no longer loves you. there is very little that is less deserving of devotion than a family that will not carry the torch for you, arrille."

Arrille didn't want to believe that, but he knew it just as much as she did. His father had changed, and by quite a lot as well. The young male listened as she continued to speak. He shook his head, thinking she meant the female that had been there. His mother had been white, but he knew that was not her. "No...no, it wasn't her. My mother was named Ondine."

Had his father chosen another over him and his mother? Had he been...replaced? He felt a growl, a snarl come through. "My fa...no." He was not his father. No longer was he. "He is no longer my father...if he wishes to replace me...I shall replace him" he growled. A new fury in his eyes. And his heart, it burned as if it were in a scorching plain.

caiaphas watched gravely as a new sensation filtered in arrille's heart -- and she saw that inimitable fire and knew well the sting of its filth-black smoke. it would cloud his vision and his heart but she would not stop it, for it was what guided her against those that dared wrong her and her kin. she had learned to temper her fire, to guide it -- perhaps in time the embers would be arrille's to command as well.

"good." she affirmed, a cant of her muzzle given as she turned to face arrille. the first step to becoming stronger was shedding your ties to those that would hold you down -- blood, family, anything. "but you already have." she motioned with a paw towards the beach, the entire of grimnismal. they were his family now.

Arrille snorted. Yes, this was his family...though there was one he did not like too much. "Yes, and I quite like them...except for that old man." He had spoken ill of his father. And while he now thought the same of him, he still did not like the older male. "Ingram and Chusi though, I like them...and Nyx." He could consider them family. "And you as well...you took me in."

such a heartwarming moment -- until he mentioned 'that old man'. instantly caiaphas' eyes narrowed coldly, and her thin lips drew back in a disgruntled hiss. she disapproved clearly of his disdain, as evidenced by a quick lash of her narrow tail.

"kierkegaard." she corrected him abruptly, leveling the young white adolescent with an austere stare. how typical it was for men to dislike their superiors -- god, caiaphas believed them worse than women in that regard. "you owe him a fair amount, you know." she intoned, lifting her gaze for a moment as she reminisced: "there would be no grimnismal without him. i drowned once -- did you know that?" she motioned towards the ocean, still able to pristinely recall that blustery and cheerless cold morning. "but he was there."

It was obvious by the tell tale signs that Caiaphas did not like how he speaked of the old man. He owed him? As she went on, his gaze softened. Sure, he had saved her, and built up this pack. But he had also spoken ill of father. Anyone who did about any of his family, he disliked them.

"And what, he saved you? Well I guess that's good" he murmured quietly in reply.

it seemed her words had some subduing affect on arrille, who grew less intense as she spoke. this pleased caiaphas, for it showed her that arrille had some measure of control -- and in some ways, rationality. she would tolerate him not liking the gaunt ghost's presence, but would not tolerate hearing any ill words expressed. that was simply not the way of the pack -- if they were to subsist and to thrive, they needed to respect one another.

respect, she noted, had a funny way of excluding preferences -- there were many wolves she respected that she loathed. "be careful who you speak ill of, arrille." she cautioned simply, one thin wrist placed over the other as she did so. "words have a strange way of coming back to hound your heels. it's better to not burn any relationships if you can help it." strangely altruistic words from one as impetuous as caiaphas was -- but she lived a life she did not wish to see repeated in arrille. "your father saw to it that he ended any good will you and i have towards him. a shame, but we are better off knowing."

Arrille's ears pinned back a bit at her caution. He may not have been one to follow advice, but Caiaphas' advice he did, for now. "I'm sorry." It somewhat surprised him to hear himself say that, apologising to someone. Then, she mentioned his father. 

But unlike with Kierke, or anyone else who would mention him, he softened somewhat. "Yes..." he said, glancing to the ground. "Who do I have now, Caiaphas?" he asked quietly, still gazing at the ground. "My mother is gone...my father is gone...who do I have?"

the sea-witch hoped her words would be heeded. she knew arrille to be somewhat headstrong (in her eyes, this was not necessarily a fault for she was equally unpropitious and considered herself flawless) but if he at least took half of what she cautioned to heart, he might have a better headstart than she had in the shitty pathway that was life.

he asked her who he had. her thin muzzle pursed in a hardened grimace. "no one." she said baldly, for it was the honest truth. he might have had grimnismal, he might have forged a bond with her or ingram -- but caiaphas found relationships had an odd way of being temporary. they were strong when convenient, but had a tendency to dissolve in duress. she lowered her muzzle and looked at him then, her savage yellow eyes filled with a sad wisdom of the world. "there is no one who will ever have your best self interests at heart - not the same way you do. everyone is autonomous and everyone looks out for themselves first. remember that." she rose to leave, but gave him one last impart. "don't trust people you meet. anyone that says they always have your heart over their own is lying." including anyone in grimnismal.

Arrille was at first stunned to hear her answer. Somewhat, he had expected something more...comforting. Her answer was not at all comforting. So, he had no one then...He did not wish to believe that. No, he didn't want to have no one. He did not want to be alone...

"I...But I need someone...I don't want to be alone." Arrille needed someone to be there, to guide him. So if he had no one...and yet, her words held truth. He knew that too. Maude had been there, but only to find his father for herself. His father left. And his mother did not wait for him to return. "Even you?"

[narrow] it was a cold truth, and a bitter pill to swallow. caiaphas watched the emotions darkly roil over arrille's muzzle - she knew the tumultuous thoughts well, and gave him ample time to digest the severity of the words she had just uttered.

he asked if even she should be included in such an exclusionary statement and the siren queen lowered her sharp muzzle and focused her hawkish gaze upon him. "even those closest to you." it did not pain her to be so transparent with him -- it was a truth he would need to hold close to his heart if he was to walk through life with minimal pain. "i like you, arrille. for now.. but what happens when that changes? what happens when you change?" she set back on her haunches again and continued. "that is the funny thing about relationships we form: we like them when they are convenient. they have a nasty habit of costing us our duty - to ourselves and to our senses."

caiaphas could have dispensed out this grim outlook all day, but knew it to be disheartening for those like arrille who were young and yet unbruised by the world. "that's enough dark talk for one day.  hungry?" she rose then to leave, flashing arrille a sly look of her vehement yellow eyes as if their somber counsel had never transpired.

Arrille took her words to heart. Even those closest to you. He was unsure if he would look up to Caiaphas after hearing this...but after even what he had done, he saw it was true. He had left Drageda, after saying he would stay. Because it was convenient. Left Prince, Furi and the others behind. Left to find his father for himself. 

His eyes filled with realization, as he saw she spoke truth. And as she spoke of liking him for now, he learned that perhaps once he was done with answers from her...would he dump her aside? No doubt he was beginning to understand that it was highly likely. 

Caiaphas moved to another subject, and he nodded. "Yes...let's" he answered back with a somewhat different tone.

[narrow]in the dull gleam of the cave she thought she saw realization swim across the youth's features -- she did not press then to learn the details of his epiphany. in her eyes it was better to know of the world this way at an early age -- grow too old before you realized how insensate and heartless life could be, and you would be defenseless against the battering of time and misfortune. it was advantageous, to her anyway, to start building one's mental wall early.

she made for the exit of the den and clawed her way to the surface, stretching her hind legs out behind her as she stood on the sand. overhead the moon was overcast by grey clouds, but the scant light there combined with the glowing of the beach was enough to lend the strand a solemn, lonely kind of aspect. she turned to arrille and announced her intentions: "tide looks low." with that she made for the tidal flat at a casual lope.

Arrille followed by Caiaphas out of the caverns, but not stretching as she did. He looked about. Somewhat seeing the world in a new light. It was dark out now, with the moon above. Caiaphas announced her intentions, and he followed along the tidal flat. "Where are we going?" he asked aloud, with a rather flat tone.

[narrow]
they traveled along the flats, two thin creatures under the feeble pall of moonlight. he queried on their direction in a flat tone (one she would have inquired after, were she a wolf that cared for other's mood swings) and she answered with a simple cant of her head in the direction of the exposed rocks. wordlessly she pulled through kelp and stone, a seaborn thing that knew which stone to overturn and which rock to pass -- she shared this knowledge with her companion by cant of ear or muzzle.

the pair worked under the night cover in quiet, ate to their fill, and then retired to the sound's dark grotto.