Swiftcurrent Creek pilot

quietly, the commander settles herself into the life as kappa.

she works to familiarize herself with the creek, learn the movements of the woodland creatures and other prey within and directly outside of the territory.

she walks the borders; learning at first and then with purpose as the mental map etches itself a niche within her memory. carving out memories that no longer serve to make room for the new.

it was what bellatrix has done to herself time and again.

it was almost too easy, now.

steps slow, head bows and the scents upon the borders are drawn in upon a slow inhale; gaze flickering across the no-man's land.

Tag for reference just to establish some stuff, let me know if anything should be changed pls Ebony <3

It didn't take long for Reverie to remember all the little reasons why she did not want to live with @Lestan. There was no hiding her bad habits, her tendency to forget herself; she did not eat unless reminded, did not sleep except on those occasions when she and Lestan — well. You know. At times she would even go through entire days in a haze, hardly speaking, and would not remember a thing afterward; this one was new to her, something she had always done but had never noticed until someone else was around to remember.
She didn't often leave Lestan's side, but at this moment he was busy, and that was perhaps a good thing. Reverie had made a discovery, and she was entirely distraught over it.
She could not dance.
For the better part of an hour she tried, but each time she fell. She collected bruises and scrapes with a relentless repetition until finally, finally, she accepted defeat. Reverie flopped into the snow with tears burning in her eyes, and for a moment she only sat there and cried. Until something crossed her path:
A bird! A white bird, running!
Chicken! Reverie exclaimed fondly in the general direction of the definitely-not-a-chicken. She forgot her tears and hopped to her feet to follow. The poor thing was already fleeing, a blur of pale feathers across the snow. Reverie pursued it at high speed, and almost caught up to it for a moment! But she did not mean to hunt the feathery beast, so she let it slip away, further and further until it was crossing the border and then gone.
She stopped at that invisible boundary, and  noticed very belatedly that she was not alone. There was a girl. A very pretty girl! Oh, Reverie blinked at her. Hello.

a voice calls out to her.

the general's daughter lifts her head, gaze flickering to the pack mate who spoke.

draped in elegant golds and creams, she is sunshine in mortal flesh! bellatrix's breath catches in her throat.

a moment passes before the black phase commander gathers herself.

hello.

Reverie blinked again, familiar by now with this reaction to her presence but still quite baffled by it. She was reminded of Killdeer and the soft way he'd smiled at her, and she couldn't help but wonder if she was really... well... pretty! It felt so — so conceited to wonder about such a thing. But Reverie had never thought of herself as beautiful, not in that way, and she loved beautiful things more than anything else in the world.
She'd always felt that her own beauty shone in different ways; in the love she gave and the hope she nurtured through even the harshest storms. That was enough for her. Reverie did not want to be admired, only loved — but she could not deny that it was a lovely warm feeling, to be looked at in this way.
And there was something familiar about this girl, wasn't there? Reverie suddenly and inexplicably felt as if they knew one another. Have we met before? Her voice was soft and full of wonder, ears tilting forward as she studied the girl. It was the eyes, she thought; that burnished gold like something she'd seen once in a dream.

have we met before?

a thousand and one words jump to the tip of bellatrix's tongue; old archaic things. poetry.

i would remember ... taking the forefront.

she would remember a beauty that rivaled helen of troy's!

i don't believe so. she settles for instead; lackluster. a purposeful curb to all she wished to say, lest she embarrass herself by waxing poetry.

but if the girl was apollo, bellatrix would be icarius. if she was helen of troy, she'd been all the men that loved her, that waged war in her name.

i'm bellatrix.

They hadn't met. Reverie was not quite convinced, however; even her name had a familiar ring to it. Bellatrix. That's a pretty name, She commented softly, shyly, a little distracted as she tried to remember just where she'd seen this girl before. It felt as if the answer was lingering on the tip of her tongue, waiting to be discovered. My name is Reverie.
The girl in the reverie —
She drifted closer to take in Bellatrix's scent. Swiftcurrent was wound into her scent, yes, but more than that: she smelled of the wilds, of dreams and starlight and verdant winds through midnight fur. Reverie almost forgot herself, almost begged the girl to dance with her then and there. But she could not dance, not anymore, and besides — dancing with beautiful strangers was a dangerous game. She called Lestan to mind with a fierce insistence, but somehow it did not help. Somehow she only ended up picturing Lestan here, with them, and the three of them —
Reverie blushed and wondered despairingly when and how she had descended into this wickedness which plagued her now.

mesmerized.

that is what bellatrix feels. to stare at the sun and be unburnt. unharmed.

that is what it feels like to look upon her.

reverie! she gives her name.

surely, bellatrix could try to look away, even for a moment, but does not bother. does not want to.

a pretty name, she said. the general's daughter supposes so ... though it was not why she chose it. mulberry was a poisonous berry, but sounded to childish to the commander's ears as she grew.

so, she shed it.

bellatrix. lovely. fierce.

it means woman warrior. the commander offers in soft spoken words, as if admitting a secret at a gods' altar.

a slow blink; breath baited as the golden girl draws nearer. a trembling ghost step back — instinct to not allow anyone close despite that she desperately wanted to see if she smelled like sunshine.

what does reverie mean? bellatrix asks in the hopes of finding a distraction.

Warrior woman. Reverie flushed even more deeply, thinking helplessly that she should very much like to see Bellatrix in action. It took every ounce of willpower she possessed to avoid falling into some idle daydream of Bellatrix crushing some random man to dust. Violence was not her way, it horrified her, but —
Well, she thought it might look good on Bellatrix. She tried to shake the thought away and focus on the question asked of her. No one had ever asked what her name meant before. She blinked, suddenly feeling foggy as she reached for the explanation. It means... What does it mean? Why can't I remember? Reverie looked away briefly, unsettled confusion written into her features.
The girl in the reverie;
Do you remember now?
The voice was not her own. She inhaled sharply, and thought for the first time in many weeks of Father Fire. A high trill came from somewhere above them both, the beginnings of birdsong in the trees, and briefly the air came alive with the sound of many birds calling out. Reverie looked up, eyes wide with wonder. It lasted only a few seconds; the briefest moment of magic. And then, all at once, the birds went silent and took flight in a great rustling of wings and shuddering tree branches. She watched them go, and when she could no longer see them her eyes found Bellatrix again.
A daydream, I think, But her voice was distant now, her gaze wandering almost as soon as it had found the girl. She heard the voice again.
Do you remember...?

a daydream.

whimsical. soft. lovely. warm. perfect.

bellatrix did not have to know the blonde girl well to know that it fit. it's something the commander knows in the marrow of her bones.

but oh how she desires to know her more. to be lured into her as if she were the world's most fascinating book!

surely, how aphrodite felt when she saw helen of troy!

to have an innocent magnetism that made bellatrix just want to be around her! it was wonderful and puzzling all at the same time.

it fits you. bellatrix offers with a soft smile.

Lmfao I'm so sorry, I didn't know this was going to happen until it did

Reverie suddenly felt hazy, unfocused; caught between dream and reality. It fits you, Bellatrix said, and the gilded girl could only wonder at that. There was something she'd forgotten about her name, something important... the girl in the reverie, she remembered that, but what did it mean? She blinked and cast a glance around as if still hearing the song of birds.
Everything was far too bright, and suddenly she wanted Lestan. No; she needed him here, because reality was twisting around her and nowhere was safe but in his arms. I... I feel... Her eyes found Bellatrix again, imploring for a moment before her vision tunneled and went dark, and Reverie fainted.

no worries! i figured this was a good place to wrap so i archived with my post. i'd love another one sometime! <3

a soft fluttering of her heart.

softer fluttering of air upon her inhale, catching in her throat like spiderwebs on long heather grasses.

and then to have the spell shattered, like spearhead piercing mirror glass!

she watches as the blonde faints.

startled, bellatrix recoils before lurching forward in an attempt to cushion her fall; or at the very least protect her head from smacking upon frozen earth.

she lays paces back and forth for a moment before she howls for a healer. she ceases pacing when one arrives, telling them the details of what had happened and lowers herself in a sphinx-like position — alert and protective — watching over the blonde girl until she finally comes to, offering a quiet you're safe. when she does.