Dragoncrest Cliffs crest

@Rosalyn and @Erzulie

He returns to the cliffs as somber as he'd left the Tangle, calling for his leaders with a note of urgency to his tone. This is important. He halts as he finishes, waiting, trying not to think about Mahler and how guilty he feels. There's no reason for the guilt, but it claws its way up his throat anyway, all burning bile and stiff swelling. He swallows a few times, reminding himself that he still needs to pass on the message. He can't crumble under the weight of neglecting his imagined obligations in an imagined friendship right now.

the harlot had begun to grow familiar with the stone balustrades and seawater causeways inside the place once known as drageda. at times she took her children to one place or another.
in a day she would leave to look for valravn. a twitch of her lips in consternation she had not gone sooner, but the pending conflict with sagtannet bound erzulie close.
it was swiftly that she came upon their new warrior alarian. she said nothing as she drew closer, noting that the man near vibrated with energy.

baby edit for shadowpost

Alarian.  He was barely here it seemed, but already he carried important news?  Rosalyn's head shot up from where she'd been curled to grab a quick spot of sleep, and regretfully she uncurled and stretched.  The pack was growing swiftly, swifter than she could have imagined.  Even with the threats on their borders, it was hard for her to regret this move anymore.  The stronghold on the coast felt right in a way the moors had not... permanent, not some transient hold.  Here they could carve themselves into the stones and re-write the histories within.

One more yawn, then she was off, ready to recieve whatever message he bore.  When she arrived she greeted him with a welcoming smile, then drew alongside Erzulie with an affectionate touch.  Alarian.  You called?  It was odd how some males caught this fondness from her as others engendered only spite.  She couldn't place why, but for some reason, her scorn did not reach him.

WC: 160

The leaders arrive swiftly, leaving him a little dazzled. Individually the two women are impressive — together, downright intimidating. And beautiful, of course, in the way women always have been to him; lacking attraction, and more awe-inspired than anything. Maybe there's a little jealousy mixed in, too, but he isn't thinking about that right now. He greets them both with a smile and a respectful dip of his head, wasting no time in explaining when Rosalyn prompts him. I ran into one of the wolves from the other pack, Sagtannet — the one harassing us. I think he's the leader. Turns out he's someone I've met before — um, long story short, he told me to tell you he wants... to parley, His stumble over how to reframe the word betrays his lack of familiarity with it, though he does know some of the meaning of the word; he's only heard it once, but he knows it has something to do with peace. He said that if Rusalka doesn't travel closer than the territory to the south of the cliffs, then Sagtannet won't either. Maybe not exactly what he'd said, but basically the same thing. After a moment, he adds, I don't mean to presume. The decision is obviously yours, and so is my loyalty.

skippin with perm

At first, when he began with a meet with the man from Sagtannet, Rosalyn feared the worst.  He didn't seem injured when she cast her eye over him, but she remembered the silent tension within the man who had called upon their borders.  Perhaps Alarian's familiarity with him had spared him a similar fate, or perhaps it had all been nothing in the end.

 A parley.  Generally this was called to discuss terms, but the terms had been offered.  This was a truce, but it was also all Rosalyn had expected from the get go.  She let out a breath of annoyance.  Pure arrogance, to harass them in full, only to draw back and offer bare minimum decency as though it were a gift to be served.  

It's all we wanted from the start.  We never wanted to trespass.  She replied, obviously annoyed.  But then she softened some.  Thank you, for bringing the news.  I'm glad he did not attack, despite my feelings on empty threats.  If it had been meaningless all along, then all that was achieved was an uncomfortable rift between them and some sleepless nights.  She could live with it.

WC: 193

Rosalyn seems to understand the meaning better than he does, while Erzulie takes the news in silence. Her annoyance might have wounded him if he didn't share it, directed at him or no; after all, he's the one who'd brought these terms as if they're a prize. But he knows as well as the scarred alpha that the underlying tone to it all is an insult, a feint and a sneer in their direction. He dips his head in response to her thanks. Of course. My feelings on it are similar to yours — it all seems like a drawn out insult now. I... did go off on him, a little, before he mentioned what I told you. About how I joined Rusalka for peace. I don't know if that's significant — but I don't want to leave out anything that might be, He glances over both of them briefly, gaze fond and respectful. Thank you — both of you. What I saw in the Tangle... that man has lost his grip on reason, and others still choose to follow him. I haven't known many leaders who could deal with that kind of situation rationally — but you did, and seeing the opposite end of the spectrum made me appreciate it more.
Maybe the depth of his commitment is out of place, so early on — or maybe not. Rosalyn had offered a chance at the life he's always wanted, after all, and they've already been through quite a bit as a pack in a short time. He doesn't expect the depth to be mirrored, either; his leaders are older, scarred, surely more jaded, and he has a feeling he'll have to prove his loyalty with time before he earns a similar commitment from the women. But he's okay with that. They're the type of leaders who are worth the effort.

erzulie listened. their conversation shifted from discourse around sagtannet to a heartfelt statement from alarian. it seemed he knew the hardheaded man who thought he might also rule their seaside. she wondered at this but said nothing, only favored the boyish creature with a low smile when he had finished.
"we have been t'rough a lot toget'er," she said with a grin that softened affectionately as she looked toward rosalyn. "an' we have always made it to a better place." and now here they stood upon the ocean-cliffs, breathing the clean salt air and listening to news of their latest triumph.

It was gratifying to hear he'd gone off on the man, but only a bit.  She still felt a deep-seated dislike born of their harassment and subsequent dismissal.  Cowards, unable to allow them peace yet unable to follow through.  Meaningless, but even now she would need to keep eyes on that border.  Who knew what his word meant when it had meant nothing before?

Alarian had a pretty way with words, and his plus Erzulie's response soothed her some.  Aye, that we have.  She could feel a bit of amusement at his praise because she could not remember a time she'd ever been described as "rational".  Usually the brush she was painted with contained a bit of a different hue.  I don't know if we should drop our guard completely, but if they couldn't muster their pack, then it means they likely pose no threat.  And it meant they were weak in their leadership.  Another wolf might seek to take advantage of that, but Rosalyn barely entertained the notion.  A small part of her piqued at the challenge, the bulk balked at the risk.  This was a victory and they could celebrate it.

WC: 193

fading<3

a nod to the handsome young loyalist, who soon set off the way he had come. erzulie looked to the horizon, then to her wife, thinking.
"it seems we are already remaking de history here," she commented. "no war to stake our claim. peace." peace after sorts was still calm to erzulie, and it lightened her heart to think of such.
she turned, wordlessly inviting her pirate to course the trail with her, and they spent the next swathe of time wrapped in the company of one another.