The Sentinels leda & the swan

open!

deirdre lurked in her forest, home from her brief journey and repleneshing herself in the arms of her trees. she rested, dozing, and then rose to all fours when a thought occurred to her. the face of her adored love came to mind quite suddenly, and she was restored and full of worry--her exhaustion had overtaken her, first, but now her nose quivered and deirdre felt a splintering pain within her ribs. emotion robbed her of breath as deirdre fret over the state of @Starbuck, and though she swore she scented a tendril of her aroma she feared she suffered delusions created by her longing! this had happened before, when her father had passed--to endure it again! oh! she was too frightened to call, lest she receive no response and know for certain that her emptiness would surely last a while longer yet.

It'd been nine whole days since Cas had brought her to the shoreside pack. Witchhazel's grief hadn't abated, wishing every moment to see her mother again, or her siblings. The longing was palpable, but she refused to stay put in any one place. Cas was the only one the creamy pup had met so far let alone talked to, and either she found caches of food or it was given to her. The abrupt weaning was rough on her belly, but the taste of meat was even better than the milk Althaia had produced. 

Today, she was doing her best to sniff out some form of fresh food. As the pudgy little flower slunk through the trees, she caught sight of Deirdre -- for a moment, the snowy frame spooked her, the paleness reminding her of her mother right away -- and froze in her tracks. Her sad, blurry sapphire eyes couldn't quite make out details, but she knew for a fact this was not her mother. 

Sniffling softly to take in the scent of the woman, Witch took a tentative step forward. Cas had told her she was safe here, in these woods, but it was still a worry of hers to lose her head. There was nothing promising each wolf's behavior, right? 

Assuming its okay to jump in this, correct me if I'm wrong! :3 Since I'm not sure who she's ben staying with or who she knows I'll just assume she floats around for now.

Guardianship was hard, as it turned out. Castiel was a quick study however and he made good on his promise to keep the little weed safe - if that meant damn near lurking in the shadows from a distance so be it. His nights were spent curled around Witchhazel in a similar manner to how he once tended to Winchester - the thoughts on their long 'W' names did not escape the man. He met her needs of food and warmth, tried to be comforting when she needed it, tried to encourage her exploration. He'd briefly considered what might happen - he'd hoped the girl would not be stripped from him as some seemed so easy to exchange children from hand to hand. 

He still recalled the dark girl that had been brought from the Depths to Donnelaith like it was acceptable to pass children about - and she was gone already. He wouldn't let such a thing happen to Witchhazel he had decided. He would offer her the stability she deserved. The chocolate colored males ears perked when he picked up the scent of Deirdre and Witchhazel together, immediately speeding up to come upon them. "Witchhazel, this is Deirdre."  Cas said gently as he leaned down to nudge the little girls shoulder. "I found her on the plateau, she was abandoned."  he explained, finally looking at the pale woman. 

her search for her adored starbuck was stopped at its very beginning; deirdre was taken by surprise to see a small girl approaching her within the side of her eyes, and she paused in her tracks. curiosity overtook the queen at the sight of her, and she wondered at the ruddy childs age. what was this? who was this? deirdre drew forward with a patient sort of slowness, not desiring to give the girl a fright, with the intent to close the distance between them. the business of passing children along was not one deirdre herself partook in, and so she felt the hint of displeasure within her belly--but, in smelling her, there was no hint of Teaghlaigh nor the Depths. only castiel's scent was there, and then he appeared! as though the very thought of him would conjure him!

he was swift to explain to her what the little babe was doing here, and deirdres soft heart grew all the softer. they would have no young to care for this winter within donnelaith, and what this girl needed was precisely what deirdre wished for donnelaith to give! i am glad you have brought her to us, castiel, deirdre commended, is it your wish to be her guardian? she asked gently, her eyes falling back to the ginger cub. of course the whole of donnelaith would ensure her care, but castiel had brought her here! she did not deign to take her away from him.

It wasn't often Witch realized that her guardian followed her as a shadow, but when she was spending time with the man -- usually at night -- Witch was happy to be comfortable around him, play and eat what he gave her. Each night she wished to go and wander more, but each night she fell asleep before the plan could form in her head, Cas' warmth around her lulling her to sleep. 

When Deirdre made her slow approach, Witch watched calmly from where she stood stone-still. The cream little girl reached her nose out, nostrils still flaring to take in the familiar scent of herbs. This woman, like the sea, had a drawing effect on the girl -- before she moved, however, aforementioned guardian slipped into view and came to her side. Most of their words falling, not understood, the cardinal-tailed girl rubbed against Cas' leg and cooed softly in greeting before her blue eyes flickered to Dei. Taking a testing step forward, tail quivering, Witch reached out to closer inspect the queen of Donneliath.

The male looked down at the child who was still so settled in touching him, so relaxed with him. It was surprising to him to say the least. He smiled despite himself, despite not knowing what was safe or okay. "Yes." He didn't hesitate when Deirdre asked her question, speaking before he even had the chance to really consider what that would mean. He would care for her, he would tend to her needs; he would be parent and friend and caregiver. 

"Would you like that, Witchhazel? To stay with me?" He asked, even as he watched with fond eyes as the little cherub snuck forward to investigate the pale witch. 

deirdre drew nearer to the girl as the girl did to her to sniff at her whithers, tentative and tender in her movements. castiels words met her ears and she, herself, spoke no words as it was not needed yet. deirdre knew nothing of being a mother, and was young herself, and so would not presume to take the girl under her own wing. from her knowledge of castiel deirdre was sure that witchhazel was in capable hands and so worried little for her. his lack of hesitation, too, spoke volumes to the queen.

The Queen reached towards her, and the creamy girl cooed again, this time to the white woman -- their words fell on her ears, speaking of her future, but she wasn't paying attention yet -- as her little nose touched the side of Deirdre. At her name, her crystal eyes turned back to her new guardian, shining with excitement and the beginnings of love for her new father. 

                       "Staaaaayyyy!"

She knew he meant to stay here, with them, even if the seriousness of it all didn't quite settle. She still missed her family dearly, wished that the three she'd known all her life could be here, but they werent: this was a fact the flower wouldn't come to terms with for a while, but she would be okay by the side of her guardian.

With the young woman agreeing that she wanted to stay with him he was relaxed some. He gave a nod to the girl, allowing her some space as she acquainted herself with the witch of the woods. "I will be sure to keep enough stocked so that she is not a burden on the pack, Deirdre." Because Castiel could give that much - and of his physical body he would give even more should it be required. Without Constantine he was uncertain if there was another guardian about, but, he took the role seriously. 

deirdre was thoughtful at the words of castiel, and smiled. she is no burden; donnelaith will have no children, come this spring; witchhazel is our young, and we will all ensure her survival. there would be none to compete with witchhazel for food when their prey was felled, none to contest her belonging with no trueborn heirs this year. witchhazel would find herself wholeheartedly welcomed by those of the wood. in any case, if this was a child castiel wished to keep, he himself surely deserved it. he more than any contributed to donnelaith, even if he was distant at times. she could not blame him for it with winchesters leaving. he was a good guardian nonetheless, and a good man. there was much she wished to share with the man, but she held her tongue here and now with the child present.

December 27th: Witchhazel is no longer active in this thread.

Witch didn't understand the words passed -- talk of caches and puppies and the seasons -- even had she been listening, but she would have been pleased as pie to hear that they loved her as dearly as their own, that she wouldn't be contested or rejected. She was family now, belonged, even if she still missed her blood relatives and would forever remember. 

The little girl busied herself lunging after a beetle that scurried across the earth, nipping at it with sharp baby fangs and squealing when it revealed little wings. She kept it grounded with gentle paws, not harming but observing it as it led her away from the adults.