Dragoncrest Cliffs and i was extra cold

some assumptions, hope that is ok <3

sobeille was not one to share her playthings with others -- so when @Dogfish met the approval of her maman, sobeille began by giving her a tour of sapphique's inner workings.

she realized she was lonely. it was not that she was devoid of socialization -- her peers were largely familial -- and there was something exciting about branching out to strangers.

dis is where astera an' i made our den. sobeille announced, rounding upon dogfish and showing her the mantle where the antler known as boneflower resided. next to it was astera's purple twilight stone, and placed just after was the red pearl shaped in a fang. these -- among with other sundries -- made up the sparse decorations of sobeille's home.

you can make your den next to us, if you'd like.

she treated the collection of things very much like she had the altar.

she got close enough to have a good eyeful, to see everything she could of it. yet did not disturb a single thing. the antler was a good touch for a coastal home and the twilight stone reminded her of deep, dark northern lights reflecting across shimmering surfaces. something in her heart wriggled about with memories and she was quick to crush it in favor of new ones.

the red pearl, curved like that missing canine might have been.

if dogfish felt more confident in the spiritual world, she might have suggested it been moved to the sound. however it was not her pearl and nor was it her altar.

you gonna help me decorate? there is that shark smile on her face again and it beamed with a genuine excitement.

again sobeille prepares for rejection -- but once more, dogfish exceeded all expectations. she inspected the mantle with a worshipper's grave respect. and then, turning toothsome towards sobeille, asked her if she'd help decorate.

for a moment, sobeille stood digesting -- analyzing, even -- this riposte. her face, flat as ever, only briefly lifted in the ghost of a smile.

then she moved off into the back of her den that was cojoined with astera's, and for a time seemed immensely focused.

when she returned, her face was dusted with cobwebs. you pick de spot you be stayin' in. i got an idea. but without further elaboration, she returned to the back of the den and loud sounds of contents being shuffled around could be heard from the entrance.

this felt like a rather loft task to be given.

she examined the surrounding areas and figured that they'd want all bases covered, right? if every entrance faced the same way, then who would watch their backs?

so she'd set her den near theirs, but make sure her entrance faced their own.

a circle of protection, of watchful eyes over each other.

she set to work, claws carving out the start of it all. briefly she stole a glance over her shoulder to see if sobeille still shuffled around with the contents of her own abode.

as dogfish turned and looked around her, sobeille disappeared into the tunneled den.

when she emerged, she saw the fresh mouth of dogfish's new home and smiled secretly; for it faced her own as if two engulfing jaws meeting one another. she would wake up, and dogfish's den would be the first she saw in the morning.

if this was an unhealthy fixation, sobeille did not know it. dat be lookin' good. she announced, placing the thing she'd dragged up from her stores. the first was a glittering gold pearl -- stolen, of course. and the second was the petrified shark tooth val had found and given to her one day. housewarmin' gifts. sobeille cracked a smile, though the gesture did not reach her eyes.

you think?

she asked with a waving tail before she freed herself from the start. it would take plenty of work to carve it out to her complete liking, but she figured between kicking it with sobeille and scouting the coast, this would be her big task.

she circled around to find herself very pleased.

a glittering gold pearl.

like sobeille's eyes — was her first thought. grim, but thought of nearly affectionately. yet she had been shown the altar, she had been told the tales. she liked to think there was some kind of magic in this gift. it would be a watchful presence in her den.

the shark tooth was looked over just as keenly for different reasons. had someone here managed to find such a great beast? maybe it had just been dug up from sandy shores. yet she liked to think the might of sapphique might have afforded them such a toothy prize.

now hers.

you're makin' me look bad. her voice was a tease. how am i ever gonna match gifts this good? housewarming gifts were not typically a two-way giving, yet she appreciated how much sobeille had done for her.

the altar, the pack, this den.

you won’t. sobeille answered, expression deadpan save the subtle lift of one corner of her mouth. she did not expect gifts in return. truthfully, this bombardment of gifts came from val. it cost nothing to steal the pearl left on erzulie’s grave by the aventurine. the tooth, long admired for its legacy as a relic of past violence, had been replaced by sobeille’s red fang.

she nosed the freshly upturned earth. if she could name the emotion stirring her blood it would be anticipatory delight; now, every time she woke she would have a new troublemaking friend to look out for. astera, for all her fun, had turned quieter as of late and sobeille was dreadfully lonely.

what your favorite meal be?

she snorted, sharp and heavy but humored in nature.

she would not be surprised if that was the truth. yet she could chase forever to attempt to match this kindness, this continued generosity.

you ever had seagull eggs? a favorite food did not mean the most easily accessible. yet dogfish cherished them for the rich taste, the unusual texture. maybe she would be lucky and be able to pass along this knowledge now.

sapphique’s prize was not the coveted beach or the land they conquested and made their own; it was the free sharing of knowledge, the coven of sisterhood that only ever forged the success of their future.

to sobeille this kindness was a form of necessary altruism. she did it as much for dogfish as she did to secure her own place here.

her gaze danced past the jutting of stone and back to dogfish. the cinerous feathering of her greyed pelt. seagull eggs? she repeated, one ear forward. no. show me?