Moonspear shelter

twin

 

Much of her sisters time had been in the company of Rannoch, and Hydra had been patrolling more diligently than ever since her return from the Vale. She would speak to Rannoch when he was more cognizant; Lyra stated that he had good moments and bad ones (memory wise) given the herbs he was supplied. Remembering that Terance had forgotten half their conversations in the state he had been in, Hydra wouldn't even bother updating Rannoch until his head was squarely on his shoulder. She hated repeating herself, after all. 

Hydra trailed her twin now, tail waving as her scent became stronger. She bounded up a rocky face though said not a word—Lyra would know she was here without her saying so.

Pretending this is set before Alya drops the bomb on them lmao

While he had woken and had a brief moment of awareness (at least enough to be formally accepted into the pack by Charon), the boy still had a ways to go until he could roam the pack lands. The wound on his neck was severe and she hazarded a guess that it went so far as to affect his vocal cords. How he didn't die from blood loss was a mystery but she was glad he seemed okay. He wasn't too bad on the eyes, either.

She was out scavenging for the yellow flowers which seemed to be a miracle of a plant when she felt a familiar sensation. The soft click of claws upon rock confirmed the presence of Hydra and Lyra smiled, casting a look over her shoulder at her sister who had just materialised. "He's still alive!" she chirped happily, almost as if she was surprised herself.

At her sisters exclamation, Hydra sidled alongside her and nosed her cheek affectionately. Of course he is—he's got you working on him, she hummed. Lyra had healed Terance, it was only natural she'd be able to heal Rannoch. Hydra blinked and looked around them. What're we looking for? Automatically, she integrated herself into her sisters task. She was happy to help.

Her sister's words of encouragement were welcome, even though she didn't believe them herself. She was convinced it was by sheer and pure luck that the boy was still alive — that both of the boys she had tended to were. Or perhaps it was that yellow flower that was doing all the work? Whatever the case, Lyra was happy that at least Hydra was optimistic about this all, and she pressed her cheek into the other girl's muzzle, trying to soak in some of the confidence that she exuded so effortlessly.

At her question, Lyra took a moment to regain focus. "A flower," she stated unhelpfully. "Well, the leaves of it. It's yellow and small, and grows around trees." She motioned towards the forest she had been heading towards. "I...I don't know what it does but it seems to help with pain...I think."

Hydra's tail waved at her sisters touch. Really, it was only from her mirror images she accepted any form of physical affection; she accepted their worship, and loved them fully in turn. She was not the best at reciprocating physical shows of it, but her violent protectiveness of them spoke volumes. And no one knew her better than them. Alright, awesome, let's get to it, she hummed, and with a grin, Hydra shouted, last one to the forest is a stinky skunk! 

She bolted forward with an excited laugh, taking a headstart and hoping to have caught Lyra off-guard with her sudden decision to race.

She knew that was going to happen. Lyra was just glad she hadn't settled on the description of a yellow flower before telling her more exuberant sister to help her find it. Knowing Hydra, she would be back with a variety of flowers all in differing shades of yellow. Lyra watched as the other girl disappeared into the woodland with a taunt. "H-Hydra, wait!" she called though she knew it was a futile effort.

She chased after her, finding her sister's laughter infectious. The giggles subsided though as she drew up just behind Hydra, feeling a sense of mischievousness overcome her. "There's some up ahead!" she said, quietly veering off into the shadows of the trees and hoping her sister would take the bait.

NO! She shouted. Hell no was she going to be decreed a stinky skunk. Eventually Lyra caught up, but she did not overtake her. At her sisters exclamation, Hydra stopped abruptly—she saw some flowers just before them, then, but they were wrong. Hydra darted before one, and sniffed heartily. She turned and sneezed awfully close to Lyra's face, but blessedly not on it (she didn't think). What about these??? but Lyra had already darted into the shadows. 

Hydra huffed. Stinky skunk, look, I've found them already! Where are you stinky??? Hydra taunted and teased, squaring herself off and setting her defenses.

The plants had been a decoy, of course, though she would be pleasantly surprised if they were indeed the flowers they were looking for (but Lyra highly doubted it). She hoped it would throw Hydra off, mostly. She snickered quietly to herself as she watched her sister barrel straight towards them, skidding to a halt right before them and calling out. Lyra was hidden entirely by the time Hydra had noticed she was gone, and she watched as her sister snorted, trying to goad her into showing herself again.

But Lyra knew her sister's tricks.

"You're the stinky skunk," she said giggling, quickly moving through the underbrush as she spoke. Her movements were swift but deliberate, almost serpentine. She hadn't had a chance lately to practice her stealth, what with Rannoch and Terance and her baby sister. Though Hydra, with her prodigy-like hunting and fighting abilities was the perfect partner to test her own skills against.

Hydra became mute. Her hackles lifted—she knew Lyra was near. She even knew her direction, and Hydra looked that way, a compass drawn to her North. One ear flicked as she heard the rustling, and then the sound of her sisters voice. You lost, and so, you are the stinky skunk, she decreed, her eyes hard as she swung—intentionally—in the opposite direction. Hydra rounded a broad tree before she, herself, crouched and crawled silently forward. Her smile was crocodilian as she prowled, pantheric in movement.

She focused on her sister's ears which spun like radars, immediately picking up on Lyra's location. She now wished she hadn't responded to Hydra's taunt but couldn't resist. If anyone here was a stinky skunk, it was Hydra. Or maybe Korei. Yeah, definitely Korei. Feeling as courageous as she was impish at the moment, the girl blew a small raspberry at her sister as she spun on her heel. Where was she going?

Lyra poked her head slightly out of the brush as the dark form of Hydra disappeared from view, rounding a tree as she did so. Her instincts told her this was a trap, but the girl couldn't help but emerge from her hiding spot to tentatively follow after her sister, curious as to where she had headed.

Hydra turned around again, in noticing and hearing Lyra's change of course. She waited, crouched and still, until she saw the legs of her sister—and then, like a shark lunging for its prey, Hydra launched upward, forelegs reaching outward so that she could attempt to wrap them around her sisters shoulders and pull her down to the earth. Hydra certainly hadn't gone far, as Lyra would now know.

She stalked forward as quietly as she could, fur bristling along her shoulders in trepidation. She knew she was walking into some sort of ambush — her sister wasn't one to just up and leave like that. Though while all her senses screamed to turn back and try and get Hydra to show herself again, Lyra pressed on, asymmetrical ears pricked as high as they could go.

The snap of a twig was the only warning she got before she was met with a bear hug from her sister. She released a surprised squeal that dissolved into laughter as she was suddenly pulled to the ground by her shoulders. They both crashed into a dark heap of identical limbs, and Lyra wiggled underneath Hydra, using her forelegs to try and push her sibling off.

Success! Her forelegs squeezed her sister tightly, and her tail waved rapid-fire as she now stood over her sister. When a flailing kick struck her stomach, Hydra let out a whoosh of air before she decided to plop down and simply lay on Lyra as punishment. I'll get up when you tell me who is the best, she harrumphed, muzzle tilting upward.

Struggle as she might, Lyra couldn't free herself from Hydra's pin. While they were identical in stature, Hydra was the more trained of the two and knew how to use her weight to her advantage. The other girl was helpless underneath her, and she stopped with a defeated huff, only to quickly begin to struggle again as her sister lay directly on top of her. "Hy—!" she started to protest before the air was forced out of her lungs. "I can't breathe," she wheezed. Of course, it was all for show. They both knew that Lyra knew that Hydra was the head of the trio. But she wasn't going to admit that just yet.

Hydra listened to her sisters wheezing, though knew it was for show. Still, she removed the slightest bit of her weight from her sister—not so much that she could escape, but enough that she could say what Hydra wanted to hear without asphyxiating. I'll wait, she retorted with a flick of her ears, and then looked down at her sister and nipped her whiskers: you know how patient I am. Once, she had waited over an hour for Alya to think she had moved on from stalking her before attacking.

She withheld a smirk as she felt her sister's weight on her shift ever so slightly. She would be a fool to think Hydra took her dramatics seriously but the subtle show of even mild concern just reinforced her love for her mirror image. She wiggled again but knew her effort would be in vain. It was admit her sister was the best or remain here for the rest of their lives. Perhaps she could mentally summon Alya like she had done before when they were stalking their mother.

She quickly gave Hydra a lick on the snout back as she leant down to threaten her. It was true, however. The girl was leagues more patient than both Lyra and Alya. She guessed one had to be when out hunting and tracking. The pinned wolf huffed, staring up at her sister with her best puppy eyes in a last ditch effort to retain at least a shred of dignity.

Hydra did not relent. The puppy-dog eyes Lyra made was something she was utterly immune to when it came to moments like these. Hydra would not bend, and now she blew a raspberry at her sister. You better say it. I'm kind of sleepy, I think I could nap right here, she blinked, and yawned to make her point.

She flinched as Hydra blew a raspberry and, realising the act was up, Lyra finally broke. She hadn't the fortitude nor the physical durability to remain pinned under Hydra's unwavering stubbornness. Besides, the sisters all knew who the lead head of the Cerberus was. Hell, the entirety of Moonspear knew.

"Okay, okay," Lyra relented with a laugh, trying to bat a paw at her sister's face. "You're the best, Hydra's the best! The best in the whole world!" She felt the weight finally lift off from her chest and suddenly the other girl darted away with a playful flicker in her eye. Lyra scrambled to her feet and took off after her triplet, swearing her revenge for the damage to her ego.