Silverlight Terrace walkin' after midnight

he was not like the ice, as arcturus was. he lacked jarilo's caution. revui was maguruk. 

and kukutux was becoming aware of how that piqued an empty part of her: someone who understood the role of man and of woman. a traditional sort, perhaps. less than her people, but more than those of the teekon. "why do you not live upon moonspear? many brothers and sisters are there." it was personal; kukutux turned her face away, in case he did not wish to answer.

the duck could not think of why revui chose his home away from his clan. perhaps strife between he and hydra? though kukutux did not think that the blackbear would allow anyone she did not care for so close to her claim.

It all came back to the mountain.

He should not have been as surprised as he was. This woman was astute, she was a purveyor of herbs and medicines and had to have a keen eye, so why was it so startling that she take notice of what he lacked? Revui did not carry the markers of a Moonspear wolf, and yet he claimed to be one of them. Kukutux had likely noticed the family resemblance: his hulking size, the jagged mantle of fur that gave him a heavy-set silhouette much like the queen of the wilderness. Aside from his own admission, of course. He was Moonspearian in every sense except for fealty.

Her question roused in him a yearning for home. He could not hide the heavy breath, nor the sag of his shoulders, or the subtle change in his expression; there was no name for what he truly felt when he thought of home or of his family, but Revui was not versed in hiding his emotions either. They played out as an answer to her question, if she knew how to read it.

Still, to honour his side of the bargain he answered.

I was taught to stay away from claimed lands, but when the world shook I felt fear, and need, and I broke that law. The guardians who owned the land came for me, and - wrongly - I fought them. I lost. They punished me, but also tended my wounds. A pause, he watches her face for a moment but cannot hold his attention there. When I was free to leave... I chose not to return. I went against what Hydra taught me and I do not deserve to be among them.

The desire to go home again was strong, it flavoured his tone. Now I protect the lowlands to prove I am honourable. One day I will go home. As his voice transitioned to something empty, it wasn't heartbreak that he felt nor expressed, but certainty, and calm.

before her eyes revui shifted, changed; his limbs grew more melancholy for a moment. fixed as she was upon him, though in more subtle rather than direct ways, kukutux read the silent history in his body even as the man began to speak. 

he had exiled himself over moonspear based upon the tenets of his heart. kukutux found a great respect entering her bones, a deeply felt sensation that resonated through her delicate frame. she held her head somewhat higher as she listened, making no effort to hide the approval that had shimmered to the surface of her soft jade eyes once more. 

"the land where i lived shook also. that is why i am here. my family, they went to the dancing lights." a pause, as anguish did enter her voice, for a moment that soon dissolved. kukutux drew her breath. "like you, one day i will join them again."

He was lost for a long emotive moment, recalling with no great clarity his time in the pit, his escape, the hot revenge he yearned for against his captors; then the time after, when he had left the wilds entirely and sought solace with strangers. They had taught him to control his temper and manage the lust he felt for revenge. Revui still wished he had been the one to dethrone the leader of the Nightwalkers - but he was not made bitter in knowing Vengeance had been felled by a child, nor that he had lost his one opportunity. He was at peace because of the wolves he had found in that time of need. What should have been taught to him by family had been passed on by strangers, though - and he blamed himself for this as well.

As the woman began to speak, Revui returned to the present and he listened attentively, as always. The gargoyle had sunken to his haunches as he had told his tale and now, listening to the sorrow in Kukutux' voice, realized they had more in common. He did not know what the dancing lights were, but he knew what it felt like to lose family, too.

Yet another reason he held himself back from the mountain. I have only known the mountain... When it belonged to my mother and father. He admitted this without need for a trade, finding the words flowing freely, comforted that they be heard by someone. They... died. I was not there. He blamed himself, as children often do, but could go no further with his words after that. Once they fled from him he was silent again, struck by how powerful the words were to say aloud. Revui had not spoken of the loss to anyone - not since Hydra had told him.

the chert knife in her very spirit, twisting and ripping the tendrils of control that held back her tears. her mourning time had been over for almost three moons. and yet she still ached, ached for the touch of her mother, the gentle word of her father. 

and perhaps like she, revui ached. kukutux would rather not remember how last she had the woman who had borne her, the father who had loved his daughters as if they had been sons. they had died in a brutal way. she hoped their spirits had been untied from the land despite their murder.

chin trembled. he sat before her, somehow at once laid bare and guarded all the same. kukutux understood now why he had not gone back. she would never return to the isle, to the death ulax, to where she had buried her grandfather. it must all be left behind if she were to move forward. but still she bore the responsibility of bringing them to life once more, in children. 

the girl stepped forward, descending into her own sit closely in front of revui as pale plume wrapped around her small paws for protection. springmint eyes were downcast demurely, but sunlight caught the glimmer of her gaze as she lifted it for a long moment to his own. "do you feel their spirits?" the girl inquired quietly of revui, wondering if he was linked to the world beyond as her people were.

500! this thread is so gooood

There was silence. They wallowed in their separate grief without speaking further about it, which contented Revui as much as it could. He struggled with words enough without adding emotion in to the mix, and so he grew comfortable in the silence while the woman sank before him. She appeared deeply moved by what he had said - or somehow stricken - and while Revui was not the most attentive when it came to the emotional states of others, he could feel the sorrow flowing off of her like mist from dry ice. It was the same sort of deep-rooted lust for how things were that he felt.

The silence united them. When it was broken, Revui almost did not catch what was whispered — but his ears twitched and he focused, trying to understand what the woman meant by spirits.

A feeling... he drawls carefully, picking his words with much deliberation, That they are watching. That they know I have failed them. Yes, that much he could recognize. When he ventured too close to the mountain — such as when he had been found by Hydra's patrolling boy — he had felt watched, as if Amekaze would stride from the dark of the woods to meet him.

Thinking of this, putting a voice to it, unnerved Revui. He fell to silence again, an uncomfortable silence, and shifted his weight - then stood up, lurching, feeling suddenly antsy and out of sorts with the direction the conversation was taking. He was a man of physicality, his world was real, it was solid and it could bite — but this talk of spirits was new and strange.

congrats! also omg yes it isssss <3 we can have another?

his words were jagged, followed by an uncomfortable aloofness that ended with him towering above her. kukutux glanced at the earth where he had been sitting, then gathered herself up. she had misspoken, pressed her questions too far. there was much to be said for mannerliness. perhaps she had even offended him. 

masking a sigh, the snowdrop tugged fretfully at her fur and glanced toward moonspear. she was suddenly wary, afraid of stumbling upon her words again. and yet her time with him had been pleasant. ears cupped forward, then folded back against her small skull. "i think i will return," kukutux murmured softly, a small bow to her lips. they need not part on such a note. she would have liked if he accompanied her some ways, but he was a trader. a wild man, not of the spire, belonging to no one but himself.

she would ponder that later.

He crunches across the grass a few steps but stops when she speaks, and turns, listening but not looking at her. He's watching the silhouette of the mountain with a deep longing. He could accompany her some of the way, and probably would if asked - but it isn't far, and she is stronger than she looks. He does not detect any dangers between them and home, so he relaxes his body. His mind remains active and alert, focused, and he murmurs over his shoulder: I can walk with you. If it makes her feel safe. But there is a limit to how far he will go.

kukutux nodded, falling into step alongside revui. despite the fact her gaze trained in the same direction, she was acutely aware of him, his breath, his steps. 

it was something at which she would wonder for some time.