Felltree Marsh and beautiful-haired muses

erzulie searched for @Haunt. the rocks and tangle gave way to marshland, and she paused there to stretch her legs and to hunt the girl a meal she did not have to first catch herself.
an hour's time. a frog and a scraggled rabbit.
the obsidian put down her catches and gave a low purling call for the pale huntress.

Njord’s wounds healed well thanks to the diligent care from Erzulie and @Sobo. The little boy was attentive and careful. He seemed to have great interest in medicine like his mother, and Njord was proud to see his boy so full of life.

Yet, as the seasons changed, so did the weather. Colder air moved in as the aspens’ leaves turned gold. His one sleek summer coat was growing plush, hiding whatever was left of his wounds… But as his pelt grew dense, the pack grew lean. Njord hadn’t seen Avicus for many weeks… and he scarcely interacted with Zephyr and his children. Haunt, too, had grown scarce.

Concerned, Njord meandered through the forest until he heard Erzulie’s call outside the territory. He crossed the Tangle and the Marsh until he found his captain… but no Haunt.

“Erzulie,” he said, brows knitted in an uncharacteristically serious way. “You ‘av not seen Haunt?” His gaze scanned the quiet scrim, unaware of the white wolf's premonitions.

"not nearly as recently as i be wantin.'" the presence of the red-tailed pirate buoyed erzulie despite the low feeling in the pit of her stomach. he was a dutiful father and had been a loyally fixed wolf in sapphique for a long while.
the obsidian passed her chin along his shoulder in a passing gesture of affection. 
"she was huntin' for us, still, after she left. a ghost haunted her dreams. she was not sleepin' in de night."

Erzulie’s gentle caress was a welcomed gesture, but not even his captain’s touch could erode dread’s icy grasp on his mind. Njord felt a thick knot in his throat as the goldspun healer explained their cohort’s troubles.

“Wha’ ‘appened to ‘er anyway? ‘Er paw an’ ear…” Njord’s voice faded as he realized how much he hadn’t been privy to – or, perhaps, ignorant of. So consumed by the joy of children he had overlooked Haunt’s withering state. Memories flickered in his mind: hunting together in the Spring. Riding out a snow storm in the winter. What was happening to his friend?

"haunt left us a while in de sprin'. when she came back, she was changed." it was an easier word than the truest of them. "but she is keepin' her trades an' her huntin'." lips curved into a wan smile. "it did not stop her."
she swung her head and began to search for the pale wolf again, traveling slowly through the half-familiar terrain as she searched the horizon for any sign of snow.

“Aye, she is a fine hunt’r,” Njord agreed with a nod. “A braw wolf despite ‘er trials.” A sigh whistled out his nose as he thought to himself, ‘an’ that is why we must find her.’ The man was a brew of optimism, determination, and desperation. Ever since losing Merlin, Njord had felt a piece of him missing… and the absence of Haunt struck him deeply.

He began to walk in the direction Erzulie was scanning. “Four eyes are bett’r than two,” he said. An offer to team up. “Tell me more about ‘er dreams?” he asked, curious as to what affected his friend so profoundly.

erzulie sighed. this was haunt's part to tell, but the care and concern that njord carried with him at all times softened the obsidian. "a black she-wolf wid yellow eyes, telling her dat sapphique must leave de cliffs."
it made her wary to speak of, as if by not heeding the word of a waking dream might bring them to ruin. she did believe it was raleska, but why her daughter would urge them from their home escaped erzulie.
she bumped njord's shoulder and inspected scuff-marks in the dirt as she waited for him to respond.

It was a bad premonition. Njord’s brows arced quizzically. Serendipitously, the red-tail came to the same conclusion. “Could it ‘av been… Raleska?” he queried, voice hesitant. “But why would 'er ghost tell us ta leave tha cliffs?” he mused aloud.

With a laugh he broke the tension. “Quick, Erzulie… take a nap an’ dream of something special ta come,” he jested. “A good omen would be nice…” the pirate smiled. If only he knew they would soon lose Haunt… perhaps Njord would have never joked at all.

erzulie nodded. njord's joke coursed off the squeeze of pain that had happened at the utterance of raleska's name. "i will when i sleep tonight," she laughed to him.
and like the man, the thought would never have come to her lips had she known.
"did i tell you de history of dis place?" she inquired. she had spoken the story many times. once more would only be welcome.

Njord thought for a moment, a quizzical expression on his mug. “I canna recall… refresh my memory?” he asked with a smile. It had been almost a year since he had joined Sapphique and the small amount of information he did know had been overwritten by new moment, wonderful and terrible alike.

"rosalyn an' i once followed a woman called caiaphas. de pack dat claimed dese cliffs was called drageda. large. strong. dey did not want us to claim ankyra soun'." she gestured toward the archways beyond sapphique.
she had not returned for a long time.
"dey kidnapped rosalyn an' killed anot'er of ours. outnumbered, we went to war all de same to free her an' avenge him. rusalka took a great hit. but she was freed. an' soon after drageda fell."
"we returned after some years. it is like we have come into a circle."

Erzulie’s story was dark as she recounted the bloody trials between Rusalka and Drageda… but at the mention of the name Caiaphas, Njord guffawed inappropriately.

“Nice try, but ye canna scare me, Erzulie,” he said with a hearty laugh. “Caiaphas is jus’ an ol’ wives tale ta scare pups. Me Aunt Maera used ta tell me… if I was a rotten lad that Caiaphas would come an’ steal me away into tha night. A sea witch who ate chil’dren.” He made a contorted face and changed his voice to impersonate the witch. "Cross me an' I'll leave a head at your doorstep!" he said with a cackle.

Hit blue eyes searched the goldspun woman, but something in her expression told him that she wasn’t making this fairytale up. “Really, now, what is tha truth of this place?” he asked her.

erzulie chuckled. "she was real as de sea, njord. fearsome woman. many scars. her voice was rough wit salt an' her eyes missed no'ting, t'ough she was old even when i met her."
she breathed. "caiaphas was t'ere when i whelped my first brood. she stood guard at de door."
the obsidian smiled knowingly at njord and pressed on, inhaling the good wild air of this place.

Njord was surprised to hear this legendary figure was once an actual living, breathing wolf. He always assumed Caiaphas was more metaphorical. A name for a bad omen or spirit with sinister intent.

Then how could a wolf as good as Erzulie choose to run with such a terrible monster? “Hmm,” he hummed with a smile, “are ya sure she didna eat one of yer kids when ya weren’t lookin’?” Njord jeered with a toothy grin. He bunny hopped away as if to avoid a swing should she decide to clobber him for his bad joke.

“Tha must’ve been traumatic,” he said then, returning to the subject of Rosalyn.

she let out a long laugh that stretched and wound. "caiaphas was many t'ings. i was surprised when she had children so late. but she loved dem." and she had loved rusalka, and the sound, and the wild sea beyond.
her face sobered. "it was a terrible time. i t'ought surely i would not see her again. i called to her once. she called back. they beat her for it." her eyes were stark and alight, remembering.

Last from me!

Njord’s lips pressed into a thin line as Erzulie recounted the terrors Rosalyn endured. He withdrew into himself, somber. “I’m sorry that ‘appened,” was all he could say. It was easy to forget, in the day to day, how much history the wives had together.

He fell silent for a while, until Haunt’s scent revealed itself to them. Picking up the pace, Njord would follow with Erzulie until they would discover the young wolf, incapacitated.

<3

the mood changed over them both.
erzulie traveled at njord's side in peace.
haunt would soon be revealed, but for now, it was only two wolves of sapphique.