Ankyra Sound are you going to age with grace

Vlad had chosen to disregard the possibility that @Rosalyn would not make a full recovery. He cared about her, cared about @Caiaphas — relished in the rising scent of salt and seaweed whenever he returned from a tour inland. Saltwinter had made a nest in his heart, and he cradled it close.

He had come home with a couple of rabbits in tow. They were still warm to the touch, and Vald was so excited to offer one to Rosalyn that he sprinted headlong through the forest - only to find the sickbed empty. The bundles thumped to the ground. A keening noise escaped the Russian, closely followed by a bark - then several more, each louder than its predecessor. Where was she? A deal was a deal! Vlad put his nose to the ground, snuffling loudly as he attempted to determine the direction in which she had gone.

Stumbling her way home took a while and a lot out of her, but the fever had faded, leaving her exhausted yet clear-eyed.  She had no recollection of leaving, no memory of her encounter with Caiaphas, and a splitting headache.

She made it to the edge of Monolith during her last leg of the trip and curled up there, glad she'd at least woken up on the shore when she's inexplicably found herself not home.  It could just as easily been some rando-forest, and likely she'd have never made it back.

A series of barks woke her up, and she lifted her head, sighing. Vlad. Shit. How was she supposed to explain this one? Kidnapped by crebz? Even she didn't know the truth of it.

Maybe if she ignored him she could die in peace and he'd never have the satisfaction of judging her. That sounded like a reasonable plan.

No suck luck. Rosalyn lived long enough for Vlad to find her, thought he did so quite by chance. There was no trail between her nest and the edge of the forest - at least not anything recent. Had she dragged herself out there to die? In the awful moment between spotting her and there being any kind of movement on Rosalyn's part, Vlad thought she might have succeeded.

"EH!" he hollered, thundering to her side and stopping with just as much grace. "Thees not deal! No say creb cerry you, Vlad heving deal veet creb for not leesten Stenderds." Vlad leered down at her, but secretly prayed she would counter his jest with one of her own.

No such luck.  Somehow he managed to find her, and she was stuck having to deal with a situation she really wasn't up for.  She appreciated, on some levels, that she hadn't managed to die first.  But her head made that a hard choice to make.

She blinked up at him, disappointed he'd called out her excuse before she had the chance to give it. Damn him and his crab obsession. "I'm just to pretty," she croaked, voice rough from thirst and the stress she'd put on herself going and returning. "They couldn't resist, not even for your ugly mug." She couldn't help it - a small smile. God he was crazy.

She rose to the challenge, just about. Vlad could not ignore the rasping quality of her voice or the fact that she could barely hold herself upright without shaking.  It was stressful for Vlad to see her like this without any way to make it better - was that the right word? Stressful? The feeling occupied the same ballpark as being chased or threatened, but didn't feel like a good fit for what was actually going on. 

Vlad slumped into a messy sit and stared sulkily at her. "Vlad ees not so aarglee," he retorted lamely, blinking his yellow eyes.

She had the decency to feel a little guilty about making him pout like that after he'd done so much for her recently - but only a little. She sighed, slumping more if possible, knowing she wasn't moving from this spot right this moment for anything. Maybe after another nap.

"Expression." She said, winking. "You are dastardly handsome, how's that?" He wasn't a complete looker, but he had a rugged charm that sent some girls wild. She wouldn't be surprised if he'd broken a few hearts back home. "Figure out a way to get me some water here and I'll come up with a few more for you." She licked her lips and looked at him piteously. Pretty pretty please. She'd done her share of begging favors off friends, and it served to show (her at least) that Vlad was amongst a small and ever-changing number who she could consider such.

from her vantage on the sea bluff's promontory, even she heard the keening bark of saltwinter's russian. she pulled herself upright from her sentinel, sliding off the brine-licked rock in the manner of a snake. the coywolf picked up a trot down the coastline, making towards the auburn wolf's makeshift den.

she was surprised to see rosalyn had made it back -- her last encounter had left her with the impression the fever-ridden wolf was expending the last of her sickly days. she looked much better than caiaphas expected, and slyly she wondered what sort of rebuke or misgiving would be sent her way regarding her encouragement of the red wolf's deliriums. for now she said nothing, electing instead to stride into their company without a word.

"HA. You believings! I meck so gud yoking face," Vlad was too quick to reply, blowing the world's dampest and ugliest raspberry in Rosalyn's face. Caiaphas all but appeared in their midst at that moment, taking some of the spittle shower as she passed in the vicinity of the Russian's flapping lips. "Bleckface!" he greeted, leering broadly at their mysterious leader - and then even more as he recalled what Caiaphas had done for Rosalyn. "You esking creb-queen breeng vater. She doing thees for you one timing before. So kindest wulf - you knowing thees about Cai-ee-furs? Maybe vant meck kees-kees on Stenderds! Thees why you no meck kees on Vlad?" Given how dastardly handsome Vlad was, pack-wide lesbianism was the only thing that made sense.

Mhmmm. She rolled her eyes as he blew spittle in her face, wrinkling her nose but taking it good-naturedly. Then Caiaphas rolled up, and Rosalyn cast a questioning (and not unsuspicious) glance. What was she doing hanging around here?

Oh god. She'd probably poison it. Well, maybe not. But the idea of recieving a favor from the witch for some reason caused her to recoil. She did grin wickedly when Vlad mentioned kisses, and her look at Caiaphas turned a bit more appraising, calculating. "In a couple of weeks, who knows?" She winked at Caiaphas. "I've seen worse." With her current headache and the state of things she knew it'd be a while before she would be able to take a good tumble - shame, that - but something told her Caiaphas wasn't much interested in the primal desires her cronies spoke of.

the reedy she-wolf bore a somewhat smug smile as vlad sung of her accolades -- yet the smile vanished into one of dark and empowered wrath as he probed at her purported sexuality. she had no humor for such machinations -- and she drew towards him in the manner of a cougar, tail lashing and gaze imbued with ire. "want to test how kind i am?" she asked coldly, drawing alongside rosalyn as if the red wolf would serve as some sort of support in her clearly incapacitated state. the threat was only partially empty -- short of flinging an angry crab at him, caiaphas didn't really have a follow-up if vlad did indeed test her imaginary  boundaries.

posting a wrap up since vlad inactive CRY - slight PP karm hope that is okay

her taunt was not answered -- instead the russian seemed to understand the restriction of his boundaries. coldly caiaphas watched as he pulled away, donning a guise of caretaking interest in rosalyn. unaffected by the shift in attention the siren flicked her tail and stalked off, long ears pulled back in an expression of grumpiness as she made for the borders to resecure them.