Larksong Grotto make ten men feel like one hundred

truly AW, though I'd love @Jhala or @Hiram for some DRAMA

Daniel had been quiet, friendly. Helpful. He had been a model priest, courteous and kind. He had reigned in his anger, his embarrassment, his despair at the sheer indignity of the assignment. This was not how he had envisioned this. The High Inquisitor had expected to amass a small army and sweep the grotto, using force to settle these problematic heathens. Instead he got a bitch seer, a heathen, a young priest who scattered to the wind not long after they arrived. He would have to resort to more subtle tactics, which meant his stay would be far longer than he had hoped.

To play the part of the pious man of peace, he dedicated himself to service of the pack, using whichever skills he had. This day, he had captured a rabbit, and after eating one of its legs, he carried the rest to a cache.

Jhala was an untrusting bitch, and was fully ready to pack her bags and leave. these wolves meant to harm her and her family, and after all poor Astik and Tapat had gone through with the step-children, she did not think they could afford that. she couldn't leave Hiram though, not yet. though at first she'd only married him to make him happy, she'd fallen in love with him-- slowly-- and leaving him would only hurt her more. she couldn't do it, she hadn't found enough reasons just yet.

instead she kept an eye on the strangers, today following the great and powerful high inquisitor Daniel-- the fuckin' asshole inquisitor, more like. he brought food to a cache, which was good, but not good enough, not for the vicar. it showed her he could hunt, but held no proof that he wasn't here to fuck up her whole life. she watched from a ways off, clearly in view but pretending like she wasn't.

Ah, there she was.

She made no effort to hide herself, which meant only that she wished to be noticed. Such a display was not appropriate, even as the consort of the "cardinal," but he knew better than to reprimand her. He was meant to notice her, but paid her no such favor, instead taking his time carefully arranging his addition to the cache before straightening. Then he made eye contact, not as a subordinate to his leader but a man to a woman, whom he was inherently above. (haha gross)

Jhala, he said pleasantly. I'm afraid we got off on the wrong foot. Oh, how he wished he could be direct. He wished he could chase her out, he wished he could expose her as the raving heretic he knew she was. Subtelty seemed so below him.

he took his sweet time, and when he wanted to look at her, looked her right in the eye. the fur on her shoulders bristled, and as he drew nearer he spoke like he was trying to mend a broken relationship. he was trying to be subtle, but she was not subtle. Jhala was blunt and crude and offended, and those things didn't mix. "no," she said lowly, baring her teeth. "you don't get to come into my home like some fuckin' almighty power and then treat me like i'm the problem. you are my subordinate, and i don't want to hear a fuckin' thing from you about the wrong foot," she growled, her tail lashing out behind her. her legs were locked and braced, as if she was expected to be pummeled. he was, after all, the bad guy here, and no bad guy had ever wasted an opportunity to attack. her gaze was locked on his, pupils dilated to small dots as her amber eyes burned a golden red in the sun. this was not a man she trusted, and not a man she wanted to 'talk things over' with.

Daniel had been recognized for his cunning and, though this was unacknowledged, his ruthlessness. He was not a man of exceptional patience, and as she spoke irritation flashed in his chest, striking up his throat. The Inquistor quelled it before thoughts became words or actions. Instead he listened, not quite beatific, but feigning a troubled expression all the same. I am sorry to have made you feel so threatened, Jhala, he said, cajoling. He took a careful step forward, slipping into something almost resembling submission. He took her in; her dilated pupils, her wild beauty, her braced legs. Jhala, are you afraid of me? The thought was pleasing. Fear meant control. Fear meant power.

jhala hadn't been afraid of anything in a while. when she was a pup she was afraid of a lot, but every day she was forced to do something she didn't want to, and every day she overcame her fears. even as an adult, she overcame her fears of responsibility and leadership. she was hardened. so no, she wasn't afraid of him, she was a seasoned (just about) warrior and beside hiram would take him down-- she felt, anyway. she was, however, afraid of what he would do. she was not afraid of laurel or indra, but both of them had made almost successful attempts at murdering her children. she was afraid she wouldn't be around when something happened-- that she would be in the wrong place at the wrong time and something she couldn't control would happen.

after a pause, her eyes searching his, her own filled with hatred, she bared her teeth. "don't mistake fear for mistrust. i don't trust you, i am not afraid of anyone."