Neverwinter Forest Traversed a winding road and came her way

@Liliana
whoops i got threads to reply to be realized she needs to go home LOL

After looking for Asmoses, she had sadly failed to find him. However she also had to refrain from searching farther, as Bronco made her realize it was simply foolish to abandon her daughter. While she wished to continue on the search, Miriam could only pray to the Goddess he star-boy may come home. May he follow the stars, and return so.

So she was back in Neverwinter, but not before spending a few days roaming around the area. Her scent may have been prominant, but she made no signs of returning until today. 

Adding 2 threadlog

He'd been on patrol and had wandered across Miriam's trail back into the territory. She was back! He sprinted off in her direction before his brain caught up and realized she was alone. His paws slowed to a trot. No Asmoses? Was that why she didn't call?

Well. He still should see her. He followed her trail, not taking too long before her silver figure appeared before him. Miriam? Why speak the obvious? He would close the distance, to greet her at a minimum, comfort her if she needed it. And at some point, figure out what to say to Liliana.

liliana learned that shadowing her father could be comforting, if she allowed it. she would often sneak behind him by stepping in his shadow to keep him from completely leaving her sight — even if it meant she couldn’t keep him within earshot, too. 


she watched him approach the border, but couldn’t tell who he was greeting from her place in the mulberry bush. it took a moment for her to finally decide that stepping out into the open was her only option.


miriam’s lilac sheen was the first thing to catch her attention, followed soon after by her familiar scent. she no longer smelled of mother’s milk and comfort, but of foreign lands; pollution. liliana crept quietly in the steps that mal had taken prior, her mismatched eyes focused on the phantom.


miriam! — yana’s ears flicked back against her skull, as though she were surprised to have her mother’s identity confirmed. you’re back? she coughed, voice chilled and full of disbelief. hadn’t miriam forsaken her children, allowing one to run off while abandoning the other? it didn’t make sense for her to return somewhere she was no longer wanted.


or, had already been forgotten.


unsure eyes turned upward to mal’s, meeting their twin pair. trusting him was made easier by pretending that instead of her father, this was asmoses, the first and only friend she’d ever really known. 


liliana drew in a deep breath, then turned back to miriam. where’s asmoses? she’d abandoned her wounded daughter to find him, a hefty risk, so surely she wouldn’t have returned unsuccessful.. right? yana hoped not as she remained teetering nervously between either parent.

She looked over to the two in guilt. The evidence clear upon her face; there was no Asmoses. She couldn't deny hesitation to return without her son around, and the wronging of Liliana to abandon her so to find him. Yet, she came back as a failure.

"I-" Miriam choked on her words, "I couldn't find him. I'm so sorry." However, the maiden had to confess her guilt. White eyes looked at Mal, before walking to her daughter. She wanted to embrace her so, but did the woman deserve it? There was hesitation to lean forward toward the beautiful little girl she gave birth to, but Miriam wasn't sure if she should.

"I'm sorry."

At her confirmation, he deflated a little. Where was his son? He had a million questions, but with Liliana having joined them, he felt he should metaphorically take a step back and let his daughter lead.

But this couldn't be the end of it. Because that was what had happened to him -- his sister just was gone and the adults had stopped looking. But people shouldn't give up -- he couldn't. In that aspect, he related far more closely to Liliana than Miriam perhaps, he looked to his daughter, We'll make a plan and keep looking for him, okay? I'm not giving up on finding him for you. A sister needed her brother. It was a very serious thing, not to be joked about, not to be one of those fake promises maybe would be made to a kid just to appease them. No, Mal was serious. He'd do what he could to find the boy, his mind already running through whether some should be sent to scout farther -- ones who didn't have as much weighting on them if their trip took longer, perhaps. He hoped his words at least would provide some comfort, that they weren't forgetting him, that they would do their damnedest to turn a 'try' into reality.

miriam’s broken-hearted confession — i couldn’t find him. — wasn’t met with empathy or understanding. instead, liliana returned it with a burning glare, despite the tears which threatened to fall from either eye.

and the synthetic comfort offered by her father was given a similar response: bared teeth-tips and a partial snarl. her anger quickly grew larger than what she could carry, bursting through the seams of her half-year body.

you didn’t look hard enough because you didn’t want to find him, yana barked at miriam, you wanted him to get lost. she stepped away from mal, whom she’d previously been standing beside. you never even wanted him here. you don’t care that he’s gone!

liliana’s chest began to heave with each heavy breath drawn in, then out, then in again. her temples throbbed as her throat continued to swell, a tingle blossoming from her cheeks into her mouth. i won’t let you get rid of me, she shouted, i.. i won’t! were her legs more stable, she might have run back to their den, but instead she collapsed onto her bottom in submission to sobbing greif.

Miriam looked at her daughter outburst with a heartbreak, but she only turned her head away in silence. Small droplets formed and fell, but she was at loss to say. The disappearence of her son was already an arrow in her chest, but upon realizing she left her daughter in dire times was even more shattering.

Her head raised when she spoke more, and let her mouth agap. The mother wasn't sure how her daughter came to this conclusion, "I never wanted him to leave!" she defended with a shrilled voice, full of cracking and sorrow, "or you.. I don't want you to leave- not you too." 

Liliana was at the ground sobbing in grief and all she wanted to do was step forward and hold her so, so she did, but there was clear hesitation weather her daughter would accept her. Miriam wanted to hold her in her chest, she had ground so big and strong, yet still a little girl that came from her womb.

"You're both my world."

In a sense, Mal had been shuffled to the background. Liliana's anger seemed to be pointed at her mother and Miriam's reply was solely for her. So where did that put Mal besides trying to hold together this chunk of his family, which was fraying far faster than any other and in ways he didn't expect. But why?

He didn't touch her, but he took a step back and dropped to his stomach, condensing himself into a small area. He looked at her imploringly. Mal was here. He wanted Liliana to be here. but he wouldn't argue with her now. She couldn't deny that, could she? He'd told his daughter that he loved her many times by now, and he felt like saying it again would just be irritating. But she was so angry with her mom... A quiet question, unsure of her response, Do you want to stay with Caerus and I still? He wouldn't force the girl to stay with her mother if she didn't want to -- he didn't want to deepen the wedge between them if she needed a bit more space. But it would also only take a nod or a shake of her head on that decision. He hoped it would just be time that would repair the damage done.

exit :)

miriam inched forward, but liliana didn’t want to be held. stop! she barked, then stood to trot several steps away with her tail tucked tightly between her legs. her eyes were filled with ire, unable to understand how her mother might think she would be so easily forgiven.

it was strange, then, the way that liliana sought her father for comfort. she circled around to stand beside him as she had when the conversation first started. i don’t know, she whispered, looking up at mal, can i leave?

liliana didn’t wait for a response. she allowed her head to hang low beside her chest and took heavy steps away from the border.

Miriam was denied, and could not move further. It was hardship, to lose one son, and only to lose her daughter as well. She could only hope upon being older, Liliana may understand she had to leave to look for one lost child, and only tried to help the other. However, time could never tell, and only the Goddess would be able to see the truth.

But she wanted it not to be true, and to deny seeing any hatred for her in Liliana's eyes. For what it was seen, she could see disdain for her own mother. Miriam wanted to hold her daughter tightly and lovingly, to coo' and whisper the stars beyond, and for the two to pray for Asmoses's return.

But she couldn't, and could only look down in shame.

How was any of this happening? This wasn't supposed to be happening. How had this one section of his family end up so screwed up? He'd treated them fairly, made sure that the twins knew they were loved and cared for, tried to keep them safe and out of trouble and yet somehow, all this had happened. None of it should have. But he couldn't make the mother and daughter like each other -- he was on the outside in a sense, trying to figure out how to stop it from fracturing more. Maybe he had, just a little. I'll save a spot for you, he offered softly. And then Liliana turned and left. If she didn't appear for bedtime, he'd go make sure she was safe in the territory at the very least -- whether it be at Miriam's den or elsewhere -- and maybe worry a bit in the meantime.

He looked back to Miriam, without words. In all honesty, he didn't know what to think. He would always offer his children sanctuary, and if they needed it within the pack by staying with him, then fine, that's what they would do -- he just couldn't force Liliana to stay with Miriam if that hostility was between them. They needed to work it out and fix it, and he was, for once in his life, smart enough to realize that providing space between them was the best option. But now what? Should he just leave Miriam here on her own? Or say something? He didn't know. But with Liliana out of sight, he stood up straight and shook out his fur, figuring he'd see if Miriam did anything else before making a decision on his end, peering at her with both hesitation and inquisitiveness. He was here, at least.