Ravensblood Forest Calling to join them, the wretched and joyful

It was the raven that led her. She had followed it for days, forever it seemed. For Lia, there was nothing else but to follow the raven who would lead her home. She stopped periodically on her journey to feed on some creature or another; sometimes no more than a half-decomposed carcass. 

The raven too, seemed to sense some higher purpose than whatever it had been doing before Lia came into its life. It stopped when dusk fell, like clockwork, perching in the trees above her to rest. When the sun rose, it gave a croak and was off again to lead her across lands unknown. Lia crossed rivers, navigated gullies and crevasses, travelled through forests and over mountains; all the while focused on following the raven. 

The doyenne was led to distant lands, far from Quicksilver Hollow. She halted as the raven did, watching as it settled on a branch high above her head long before the sun had reached its zenith. Head tipped back to watch it, her silver-dotted brows drew in briefly in confusion. 

Lustrous eyes cleared, quest forgotten briefly to take in her surroundings. The forest was bleeding. Lia's eyes landed on the thick forest ahead of her, the brief jolt of alarm in her chest fading as she realized the trees were not coated in blood. It was sap, sap as red as the vibrant sunsets she had fallen asleep to beneath the raven. 

"Why have you led me here?" Lia turned again to the raven for guidance. It stared down at her, benevolent silence its only answer. Lia returned to staring at the depths of the forest, ears flat in contemplation. 

It was the wind that answered her. It ruffled her fur with gentle fingers, bringing with it the scent of pack nearby. It was not too far, the border could not be more than fifteen or twenty paces away. The raven's ebony feathers were ruffled as it gave a soft rasp that seemed somehow encouraging. 

"This is my destiny then, friend?" The colleen smiled softly at her raven. 

Heeding its wish, Lia took on her most poised and submissive stance. She howled to the sky, calling for those who would meet her peacefully. The raven gave its own croak, seemingly of joy, with her call before it fluttered away on the same wind that brought the belladonna to the bloody forest.

"Goodbye," Lia whispered, saddened to see the raven go. 

[table width=85%][tr][td]

A call pulls Arturo from his wife and he departs from her leaving her with a kiss and a promise that he would return shortly. It is the second call this week and it is …promising. He has not hid his worry from Lotte and has been honest about his concerns with a small pack being able to handle two litters. The truth was that they probably would not have been able to. But things are looking up. He has brought with him Rollo: a quiet, stalwart man; a man that there is a promise of some great things between them Arturo feels. And Kitsch had found them not soon after. Though he has yet to resolve his concerns (or his ire) about Olive and Dakarai’s visit to Blackfeather Woods he does not dwell upon it while the situation does not yet present itself as severe. He does not forget, but Arturo does not deign to make a mountain out of a mole hill where there is none yet.

There is unbidden surprise when he recognizes the scent and face at his borders. Secretly, he holds the hope that his children might return to the Wilds but also that wolves from the original incarnation of Teaghlaigh might find their way here. Arturo does not know Lia as well as he could have but he recognizes her and is able to place her name with her face and those things with her family: Raurc. It is mostly known for it’s matriarch Neasa. “Lia,” The gangster greets her with a soft rumble of familiarity. “What brings you this way?” For she is far from home and though he is (pleasantly) surprised to see her in the Wilds there is a slight swell of concern for Boadicea (though she was never mother of the year she is still his mother) and Quicksilver Hollow.

[/td][/tr][/table]

She is not left waiting for long. The fur on the back of her neck stands when she gets a glimpse of the person coming, the eerie sense that she has seen this man before causes gooseflesh to break out over her body.

At first it is impossible to tell from where she stands, rooted to the spot as she is by the sudden realisation of her destiny, if the one approaching her is in fact who she thinks it to be. The raven has led her here for a reason. 

For coming from the woods is a man who bears stunning resemblance to Boadicea's son. Quite obviously a coywolf, marked as such by his sharp features and lean physique, his coloring is rare for one; he is true silver unlike her own blue coat and as he gets closer, Lia spots the dark mask and red eyes that she already had guessed would be there. Closer still he comes and now Lia can make out the scent of Arturo reaching her nose.

Lia had not been particularly close to him, or Boadicea for that matter, but she knows him and at one point she supported him. The doyenne is suddenly appreciative that she was not one of the less intelligent wolves in Quicksilver Hollow. To have been on this Ceannasach's bad side and enroach on his doorstep would not have ended well for any of them, of that Lia is sure. 

"Arturo," she answers automatically, just as surprised as he that this is where the raven wished for her to be. 

Reading between the lines, Lia realizes that her sudden appearance must have concerned him, if only a bit. She shakes her head in denial with a soft smile. "Everything is fine in Quicksilver Hollow."

"I seem to have followed after you, accidentally. Things seemed too...easy at home," the colleen tries to explain. "I did not feel I had earned anything of my own right. I wish to make my own way rather than live in Neasa's shadow."

There is nothing wrong with Neasa, Lia loves her mother dearly. Neasa was fierce as a grizzly when it came to her children; despite her conception, mother had never treated her badly or looked down upon her as a blunder or lapse of judgement.  

Lia just could not live with herself if she never tried to make her own legacy. She wanted, no, she needed, to prove that she was more than a bastard with a powerful mother. 

[table width=85%][tr][td]

There is relief at her words, at her assurance that all is well in Quicksilver Hollow. He figures that if anything were to happen to his mother word would reach him: at some point. He thinks that if it were to come to that, that Duana would perhaps take over. He hopes that she does. They may have never been in love, may have been nothing more than the mother and father of each other’s children to one another but Arturo holds her with respect, at least. “Three of my children have found their way to these Wilds but I have not seen any of them in almost a year,” Arturo misses them but he also understands that it is likely for the best. Children were meant to leave the nest and Arturo wanted them to find their own paths in life as opposed to following directly in his own (perhaps in a way that is a bit hypocritical of the way he pushes at Chusi to follow his example, oops).

Ah, the parent’s shadow. On this Arturo sympathized. It was the very reason he had left behind his ex-lover, children and mother, after all. To strike free of Boadecia’s shadow: to create a Teaghlaigh that did not live in the shadow of the warrior queen’s greatness. “Understandable,” Arturo murmurs in quiet contemplation as he cants his head ever so slightly at her. “The rules of Teaghlaigh have not changed, I trust you remember them?” He informs and questions her softly, knowing that when he left he took the ways of his rule with him. “If you are willing to adhere to and enforce them still and offer your skills to this incarnation of The Family then you are welcome.” Once apart of The Family, always apart of The Family. Still, Arturo thinks that it does not hurt to capitalize upon a few key points as a refresher.

[/td][/tr][/table]

He is relieved, quite obviously, by her words. Lia allows herself to smile at such though it soon slips from her face at the mention of his children. 

"I am sorry," Lia tells him, and means it. She remembers well the birth of his children, having been not so much younger than their father at the time. 

She wonders then, idly, if Arturo thinks them dead. It is a morbid thought, surely more so when in regard of one's children. The doyenne realizes then that she had not quite presumed the Hollow's former Ceannasach dead. At one point she had considered it; yet now Lia knows that she believed him to be alive subconsciously. 

"I do." She listens anyway as Arturo reminds her of the laws of their past home. Lia knows them well; Neasa instilled them into her young mind as soon as she could comprehend. 

As he mentions The Family, Lia cannot help but frown slightly. "I have a request regarding The Family. It is a bit odd but not so unreasonable," the belladonna smiles in reassurance. She would not ask for something he could not grant.

"I ask that, given you're willing, I remain a Comhlach until I have proven myself; until I have done something worthy of joining your Family," she dips her head slightly in respect, in question. 

Lia, of course, already understands the true identity of The Family. This is not why she asks to remain as an associate. The colleen is not even sure she understands why this is so important to her. Yet, she can't help but hope fervently that Arturo grants her wish.

sorry to change the style suddenly, it wasn't coding correctly.

it's ok! that happens sometimes. :p

[table width=85%][tr][td]

Though Arturo thinks that her apology isn’t all the necessary: for she did nothing wrong and none could control the Fearghal children he brought into the world — for controlling them was ultimately like trying to control a herd of wild horses — he accepts it with a small dip of his sharpened crown. His oldest children no longer need him, and Chusi is already of an age where she does not need him either: it is the inevitable cycle of life. So he will have more children until he became too old to sire them, if he had any say on the matter. She is right, Arturo realizes as she speaks: her request is odd but not unreasonable. She states her reason to his receptive ears and he is impressed. It is rare for anyone to wish to remain a Comhlach as it restricts access to The Family. They are mere associates. Not really apart of The Family and thus not included in anything that pertained The Family. Much how someone would treat their guest: welcome but not welcome to all family business. It is definitely a first for the gangster but he will not deny her of it. His salmon pink tongue draws across his jowls once and his tail flicks against his hocks as he lets out a low, contemplative hum. “If you are sure that is what you desire then I will rank you as Comhlach. You will be expected to meet the members of the Family and carry out a task that I assign for you.” If she wishes to be Comhlach than she will have to complete their tasks. He has chosen to forfeit this process while Teaghlaigh is still small — and it was forfeit to Lia anyway as she was apart of Teaghlaigh’s first incarnation — but he does not complain. If it is what she wishes then it is what she will get.

[/td][/tr][/table]

She feels herself sighing in relief unbidden, almost against her will. Despite her attempts to remain her composure, Lia is unable to remain aloof. A dazzling smile and wagging tail reveal her joy at being accepted into this new Teaghlaigh, even as a mere associate.

"Thank you," she dips her head in gratitude. It is not a usual thing she is sure, to ask for a demotion. It must be a first for Arturo, of this Lia is sure. 

The idea of remaining a Comhlach is a far more joyous occasion than if she had been granted a higher rank. Lia cannot help but think that if she were immediately admitted to The Family that she could not be content there. This is a completely new Teaghlaigh and she has not earned any such rights to its inner workings. 

"I will try to make you proud," the doyenne promises sincerely. Lia will put forth her utmost effort to make not only Arturo proud but this new Family and the past Teaghlaigh.

last post from turo & me. feel free to archive as is or post once more! <3

[table width=85%][tr][td]

Arturo didn’t precisely remember what trades she’d had or had been going for in Quicksilver Hollow so he is not able to provide her with a task at the current moment but he suspects that this will not be the last time they speak and that perhaps the next time they converse he will be able to provide her with a task to complete so that she could (re)join The Family. It is almost a strange thing for him: to behold another of Quicksilver Hollow. He had thought that when he had bid them all farewell almost over a year ago now that it was a farewell that would never turn into a “nice to see you again”. He might never have been close with Lia despite that they had, essentially, grown up together he is happy to see her and to see that she is well. “Come,” The smoky timbre of his deep, accented voice is a soft command as he gestures towards the bleeding sequoias as they stand vanguard and sentinel to the world outside of Ravensblood Forest. “I’ll give you the tour.”

[/td][/tr][/table]