Noctisardor Bypass Paradise Empty

Seth was grateful for her warm arctic coat. Not only did it enable her to blend almost flawlessly with her surroundings during this season, but the chill upon the air was lessened considerably. In fact, she felt quite comfortable as she strolled through the closed off valley, free to wander right out in the open without a worry for the slight breeze that currently whistled in through the pass in the mountains.

It would have been a lovely place were it just a little more lively. "What, is everyone hibernating?" the white female murmured with feigned amusement below her breath, watching it fog in the air before her nose. She'd thought this area, protected on all sides, would have acted as a hideaway for at least a few, but so far she hadn't run into anyone. Just an empty, snowy creekside.

Releasing an indignant breath, Seth merely shook her head, her tail twitching restlessly against her haunches, and continued to move through the valley.

Actress meets manipulator?? This should be good, hehe

Compared to other periods in her life, the female hadn't been traveling for very long at all. Her departure from her empire had been swift, leaving behind her ex-lover in favour of living a free life once more. Surprise, surprise, her aimless journeys had set her on a direct course towards Teekon. It felt like a long while had passed since she'd last been present within the vast land, and she wondered how much things might have changed—rather, she wondered how many new faces were present. She had discovered that, the newer a wolf was within a certain area, the easier it was to weasel into their mind and convince them to do her bidding. For young males, the task seemed even easier, though she did not intentionally seek them out. No, Sen just allowed her legs to take her anywhere, and then she would adapt to the situation.

Of the various places she could have gone, one in particular that she had favoured above most others, the woman had found herself entering a valley unfamiliar in appearance and scent. She doubted she had ever stepped foot within in before, or if she had it wasn't intriguing enough to have left an impression. Either way, her goal was to find a quick meal within the naturally crafted cage, her stomach groaning in protest towards her lack of calorie intake. Alas, she did not crave rabbits or voles, and being who she was it wasn't strange for her to be picky. What she wished to sink her teeth into could not be brought down by her alone, and so it was for that reason that she'd taken to following the scent of a wolf over prey.

It was another female, the snake could tell, which meant she would need to use a different approach. It was an unfavourable circumstance, yet her options were presently limited, more or less forcing her to take anything offered. It was with begrudging movements that she'd stalked after the stranger, silent in her ways and senses on high alert. When she had spotted the unknown wolf, however, her posture and expression morphed to resemble panic and her pace increased to close the distance between them quickly, barely managing to get out a short chuff before she was skidding to a halt. Sen's gaze was wide and her breathing rigid, for her act had begun. "I-I'm sorry for disturbing you but-" she cut herself off as she took in a great gulp of air, appearing to try and calm herself when, in truth, she was merely adding to the effect. "I need your help. It's my children, they- they're ill. They need food to keep their strength up, but I... I can't catch anything on my own, I-" Another pause. "I'm sorry for disturbing you, but they're all I have left." On the outside she was hysterical, but in her mind she was gagging.

The quiet was very suddenly broken by the loud tread of another, and with ears perked Seth stopped and turned to stare at the approaching individual. Her dark brown eyes swept over the wolf's slim, dark form, the bright frantic eyes that stared, panicked, back into her own. A look of blatant surprise lifted her brows in wonder, but she stayed silent, letting the wolf speak.

A tale was woven--though the white wolf didn't realize it yet--of a distressed mother seeking to feed her ill children. Given the current state of the weather and how quiet this region appeared to be, Seth could see the trouble in the situation explained to her.

But finding sympathy was more difficult. Having grown up with a paranoid mother who could barely take care of the two children she'd brought into the world, Seth's opinion of mothers was skewed and favored the strong, the stable, the capable, all the traits that her mother never had. And this woman, unable to properly care for her children and begging strangers to help her fulfill her responsibilities, was not one of those mothers either.

Her brow twitched, the faintest sign of disapproval, but she schooled her expression and offered the dark wolf a look of troubled concern. "Oh my, that's awful," she answered, shaking her head sadly, "I'd love to help. In fact, I know what you could do." Her expression brightened hopefully, falsely optimistic, before darkening with contempt. "Hand them over to someone who can actually take care of them." With an irritable flick of her tail, Seth turned to walk away.

Concern was expected, perhaps even a strong drive to ensure a bundle of children were not left to die. Yet, the expected was not the response she had received. At first, yes, the situation had appeared to be swaying in that direction, a sham of an offering having been presented to her. The second it was there, however, the pallid woman had ripped it away from her. Her response was undesirable, entirely so because it lowered the likelihood of Sen getting herself a decent meal. After all, it wasn't as if she actually had children hidden away close by, starving and wasting away—no, there was not a single soul out there that had been evicted from her womb. Rather than viewing her lack of evidence as a hindrance, it was deemed as quite the opportunity. No actual children meant she could spin her tale even further in any which way she desired, as there was no one there to trap her in her web of lies.

In other words, it was time to up her game.

When the stranger turned to leave, the ophidian woman was quick to intercept her, stance defiant; it was almost as if she believed her own lie. "Don't you think I'd do that if I could?" Her voice had increased, slightly, in pitch, signifying the offense she had allegedly taken. "There's no one who can or will take them in... I'm all they have left." With her tale came several years of experience, and many years of knowledge passed down to her. It was the legacy of her family, for the Gorgon woman have been manipulating their ways through life for generations. "Our pack came under attack, few escaped with their lives and those who did... they scattered. I haven't been able to find a single one of them, and the packs here won't take in sickly children. They only want the strong, they'll either let them die or k-kill them in cold blood." Halfway through, her voice cracked and she paused to take a breath, averting her gaze to "hide" the sheen in her gaze. "If you help me this once—just this once—I promise I will find someone more capable to look after them... someone who can give them the life that I can't..." By the end, she was sniffling, her voice and head low, portraying someone who'd long since been defeated, beaten and battered.

I'm sorry, I've decided to stop role playing Seth for the time being. I don't think I'm ready yet for two fully active characters, but maybe she could meet Sen again whenever I feel I can bring her back in?

Her path was barred and Seth hastily stopped, blinking her dark brown eyes as the dark-hued mother continued to plead her case. Apparently she'd already tried handing the kids off to others, but they'd been denied. Pity, Seth mused. Taking in two sicks kids and making them well would have easily put the whole family under a pack's debt. Especially with the way this foolish woman's going on. She likely would have done anything for a bit of help.

The thought was an interesting one--I could make her indebted to me--but the whole subject still made her sore. Help a useless mother prolong the inevitable death of her sick and failing kids? There was nothing in that for her.

The white wolf sighed, rolled her eyes, and proceeded to step around the frantic mother again. "Sounds like they're a lost cause, sweetie. Better hurry back to them and say your goodbyes now while you still can." It was a sad turn of events, Seth couldn't deny it--wasted life and all. But she was in no place to take over sickly kids, and if the packs around here weren't soft enough to take pity then obviously they weren't worth her time either.

Not giving the mother another chance to intercept her, Seth kicked into a run and distanced herself from the failure of weak women and sought somewhere new to cool down.

Ah, it's fine! Multiple characters can get to be a bit much, so I understand. c: I would love for them to cross paths again when you're ready to play Seth~
I'll go ahead an archive this for us.

The act continued, progressing further and further in the hopes that the woman would take pity and assist her. It seemed, however, that no matter how hard she pressed, the pale wolf just wouldn't cave. Either she was as heartless as the serpent herself, or just didn't understand the graveness of the situation. Either way, it was made painfully apparent that the lying "mother" would receive no help with a hunt. That caused the woman to scowl, the expression falling into place perfectly and lining up with the other female's words. Sen hadn't planned that, though, for she no longer cared about keeping her act up. The stranger wouldn't budge, so why continue to waste her time? She was ready to leave, too, when Seth had gone off instead. Slipping past the dark soul and breaking into a run, leaving the Gorgon standing there with a scowl etched deeply into her features.

"Dammit," the woman huffed, staring off in the direction her opposite had gone in. It wasn't worth chasing her down, that would only waste energy, so the woman instead left the scene entirely. She would continue on to then leave the bypass, beginning her search once more for a free meal.