Noctisardor Bypass virgin girl

Back-and-forth, back-and-forth, back-and-forth. Fiona took a slightly different route each time, trying to make it a little bit more interesting for herself. She was heading back to Rivenwood this evening, but she stopped short when she heard a "thump" nearby. Her instincts kicked into high gear, and she shot across a clearing in the grove. It was all over in a matter of seconds (and a bite to her lip). In her jaws she now held a plump squirrel: another deposit for the cache.

Fiona buried the treasure along with the last she'd caught recently: a fat hare. Whatever others were catching seemed to be helping at least a little bit. When she'd first arrived, it appeared as though the stores were practically depleted. That all made sense when she put together the pack: Glaukos patrolled, Etienne sulked, Anselm pouted, Druid and Heda cared for the children. It looked like it was going to be up to Fiona to keep them fed and find out why everybody was in such a piss-poor mood.

She covered the squirrel and headed toward the heart of the territory.

During a brief foray outside the den, @Witch suddenly appeared beside her. They walked together in silence as they had done in the days of yore, whispering between themselves. Druid didn’t pay any attention to where they were going or how long she’d been gone from Dawnleaf, though abruptly she realized they were at the top of Ashtone Cliffs.

The views from up here were astounding, particularly at this time of year. The trees were blooming, though their boughs were still sparse enough to see through the canopy in many places. Druid thought she saw a figure moving toward The Pharmacy, though she didn’t bother trying to identify it.

She turned back to her sister, who was watching her with solemn eyes. While holding that familiar bewitching gaze, Druid crept closer to the edge of the cliff. When her toes wrapped over the edge, she lowered her body to the cool stone and gazed impassively at Silencepine across the way.

This can be a cameo if that works best. :)

She happened to look up toward the cliffs as she finished moving the last clumps of dirt over her latest contribution, and she spotted Druid there going toward a sheer drop. For a moment, she worried the woman might throw herself over, but she was able to breathe again when Druid folded her legs and lay down, apparently only there to admire the scenery.

Although she was weary, Fiona did think it was a good idea to check on one of her latest patients, so she dug the squirrel right back up and headed up one of the many paths along the cliffs. With the lifeless victim in her mouth, she dropped it near Druid and lay down beside her, happy to be off her feet for a little while.

Feeling any better since your day off? she asked.

TRIGGER WARNING: SUICIDAL THOUGHTS.

She arched her neck a little to look straight down at the foot of the cliffs. Not for the first time, she wondered if a fall from up here would kill her instantly. Perhaps she would only break some bones and suffer all the more. Druid breathed shallowly as she pondered, then startled slightly when she saw Witch appear below.

She looked sharply over her shoulder, though now it was Fiona who stood in Witch’s place. She moved closer, asking Druid a question she didn’t hear. She gazed down again, staring into her sister’s eyes as Witch craned her neck upward. As Druid watched, Witch took a seat and stretched open her arms as if to say, “I’ll catch you!”

I want to, she said, vision suddenly swimming, but I can’t do that to…

It wasn’t even her children who came to mind first. It was @Heda. Her sister had been there for her every step of the way. She’d even said she would step in as the pups’ caretaker, should anything happen to Druid. But there was a difference between dying of natural causes and dying by flinging herself from a cliff.

She’s already been through so much, Druid whispered, trying to convince Witch.

Druid's answer didn't make any sense, which really got Fiona concerned. It was like she was talking to somebody who wasn't there at all. She whispered something else, staring down the sheer cliff at something that either wasn't there or Fiona couldn't see. Either way...

Hey, Druid? Druid, can you hear me? Fiona asked, rising slowly from her prone position to stand perpendicular to the Den Mother. Who are you talking to? It was all kinds of unsettling, but Fiona's voice remained warm and free of panic, despite how fast her heart was pounding right now. She wasn't sure she could save Druid if she decided to catapult herself off the edge... at least not without putting herself in danger, and she had no plans of doing that.

Fiona cut into the conversation, prompting Druid to glance sideways at her. Of course she could hear her. It was the second question that made her face twist. She looked down at Witch again, then back at Fiona, her expression a peculiar combination of sorrowful and scowling.

I’m talking to my sister, she replied, gesturing impatiently at the foot of the cliff. Realizing what Fiona might’ve overheard, her eyes darted away as she mumbled, Mind your own business and leave us alone.

Welp, that confirmed it. Heda was nowhere to be found, and that was the closest thing Fiona could think of to a sister that Druid had around here. The other Den Mother was back at the den with the children. Fiona couldn't help but look over the steep cliff's edge, a touch of vertigo pushing her back immediately. There was nothing at the bottom but rock.

Right. Before I go, did you want the squirrel? Fiona asked, trying to think of anything to distract Druid away from whatever she was seeing. Arguing with the existence of what wasn't there seemed like a terrible idea, especially since she was already agitated by Fiona's previous questioning. If she could just get her to realize that what she thought was there wasn't really there... or at least get her to look away from it and focus on something—anything—else.

What? Druid thought sharply, eyes cutting back to Fiona before dropping to the carcass at her feet. Oh… She couldn’t think of anything she wanted less than food at the moment, other than life itself.

Can you take it to Heda? she replied instead, speaking more softly now.

Sure, Fiona said, pausing for a beat. She wanted to ask about the sister, but considering Druid had just told her to take this meal to Heda, that was apparently a different sister she was seeing. Tell your sister she's welcome to anything in the cache, she said, stalling just a little bit longer, wondering if Druid might still snap out of it long enough for Fiona to explain what was really going on with her. Maybe playing into whatever she was seeing would help Druid realize that her other sister wasn't really here.

Once she was a little more coherent, Fiona was going to have to tell her what had really happened here, and she was not looking forward to that conversation, as interesting as it might be from a curiosity standpoint.

Fiona readily agreed, leaving Druid to return her attention to Witch. When her eyes dropped to the foot of the cliffs, she was no longer there. Druid’s lips pursed and she pushed onto her haunches, head twisting this way and that way as she looked everywhere for a glimpse of that familiar svelte figure.

The Ash said something and Druid gave up looking after a few more seconds, turned toward Fiona with a scrunched expression and asked, Which one?

The one you were talking to when I walked up, Fiona replied cautiously. She wasn't sure if this was the right approach, but perhaps if she could get Druid to talk about the invisible sister, maybe Fiona could at least ask Heda if she had noticed anything similar in the past. The two did seem comfortable with one another. And if Druid didn't remember something that happened thirty seconds ago, they were going to have a whole other set of problems to deal with.

Witch, Druid replied, glancing away as if hoping to catch a glimpse of her before looking back to Fiona. She just came home, she explained, adding, The three of us grew up here, during the days of the original Rivenwood. I’m glad we’re all back together. So much has happened but when I’m with them, it’s like no time has passed at all…

She fell silent then, her thoughts drifting. Where had Witch gone? And how had she gotten to the foot of the cliff so fast? Why did she seem to want Druid to jump? “I’ll catch you!” she’d said… but a drop from that height would crush them both. Her brow furrowed.

In any case, she maintained her stance: she couldn’t do something like that to Heda. As badly as she wanted to put herself out of her misery—and the kids sometimes too, she acknowledged with a grimace—she wouldn’t dare hurt her sister like that. She’d already lost a mate and several children. Druid was odds and ends, yet she would never be so selfish.

What? she blurted suddenly, glassy eyes sharpening as she looked expectantly to Fiona.

last from me; tag for reference. <3

As Druid explained, Fiona began to form plenty of theories about why Druid was seeing her other sister. She'd been right about Druid and Heda being close, but she hadn't realized how close they had been. It was as though Druid was reverting to a previous, happier self to shield her psyche from the things it didn't want to see or deal with.

An accusatory "what?" from Druid was enough for Fiona to take the hint. She grabbed up the squirrel and headed toward @Heda, all the while her diagnosis beginning to click into place. Once Druid wasn't seeing Witch, they were going to have to have a very frank conversation about what was going on. Hopefully that time came soon, or the chances of getting her back would probably dwindle to nothing.

She could’ve sworn she’d said something, though Fiona only looked back at her in silence before grabbing the rabbit and taking her leave. Druid’s eyes tracked her movements until she vanished beyond the curve of the cliffs, then slowly faced forward again.

Witch sat beside her again. Perhaps it was she who’d spoken. The sisters both stared ahead at Silencepine again, a certain emptiness in both their eyes.