Raven's Watch when eagles halo the earth, i want the ballad of your blood

They'd become far more comfortable with one another as the days passed. Tirgatao no longer felt the faint tingle of anxiety in Heda's presence, and felt confident in her relationship with the swarthy warrior. Many discussions had passed between them, and Tirgatao spent many hours ruminating, filing, and storing all the information away for future use. Not all of it was serious, of course, but all of it was cherished. Nights were spent back to back, sharing in the mutual warmth, while days were spent walking, talking, and feasting on whatever either party was able to snatch up from the plentiful wilds.

Their trek, so far, had been a roaring success and now that they were nearing the familiar reaches of Drageda, Tirgatao found herself wishing it wasn't over. She would return to her duty as Heda, and Tirgatao would assume her place as Shouna in an official capacity once more. It was a bit selfish of her, sure, but Thuringwethil's quiet, confident, company was quite desirable and Tirgatao felt a kindredship she hadn't experienced since Seageda's fall. A friendship. 

Tirgatao lifted her head from where she'd been investigating a few bolt holes, and looked out to where she'd last seen Thuringwethil who was no where to be seen. One ear cupped forward and she twisted her mouth into a frown. Anxiety flooded her—she didn't like the feeling of not knowing where the Commander was. It was her job, partially, to keep them safe. Especially Thuringwethil. The dusky woman blended in well with the shadows, she knew, but it was curious that she hadn't thought to give Tirgatao the curteousy to tell her she was wandering further off. 

The pale Shouna felt a tug on her tail and she whirled to snap at one of the pesky ravens, where it hopped away, cackling as if mocking her. She frowned, growled, and swished her tail in a show of agitation as she trotted over to where she last saw Thuringwethil. Her nose flared as she sniffed at the Heda's prints, and followed the trail to the cliff—the scent vanished and her heart sank out her belly and slammed into the frozen ground. There, at the edge, was freshly upturned earth. "...Heda!?" Tirgatao called out, looking left, then right, unable to keep the growing panic from her voice. 

All-encompassing fear grips her, and she creeps towards the edge on ginger feet, careful not to disturb the earth further. There below, among the rocks, is Thuringwethil. A lump forms in her throat, and she swallows thickly as tears prick at her eyes. No no no no. "HEDA!" She cries out. "D-don't move, I'm coming!" The earth shifts beneath her paws while she leans further over to get a better look, and she immediately springs backward. Her eyes whip left, then right, as she looks for a proper path down. An immense weight is pressing down on her; guilty, selfish thing. You got your wish. She shakes her head and sprints forward blindly following the same path down to the base. Every scrap of energy is thrown into the kiln that churns her legs while they eat up the furlongs. Please let her live, please.

Tirgatao crashes recklessly down the path, tripping up on a rock and cutting up her foreleg, but stumbling back into her run. She coughs as spittle flies down her windpipe, but carries on until she finds Heda lying in heap, struggling to breathe. "Heda, Heda. S-slow breaths." She croons, hovering nervously over the Commander as she looks her over. It's bad, but that's as far as she can sermise without Portia's expert eye. She forces down her own panic and looks up. The fall was great, but she was alive, for now. "Don't move yet. You might hurt yourself further."