Stavanger Bay the inner claims i hadn’t breadth to shake
stormblessed
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#1
All Welcome 

They had found it, and all of the stories that had been told to him as a young pup seemed to come to life in a staggering and beautiful display. Ford had found his home – his true home – and he would not let those shores be claimed by anyone else. The moment they had reached it, he felt as though he knew his true purpose.

That had been, of course, a couple days prior. In that time, he had roamed the terrain with the purpose of knowing it better than just what he'd heard in stories. Velen had already found the wood beside them – destroyed by a wicked fire that had swept through. Fire could not claim the waves, though. In that, Ford felt as though he had assurance. Still, if Velen wished to claim the charred wood beside them, the titan would make that happen. They would need numbers; enough to fill both territories.

The scent of Dalia was there, but faint. Ford wondered if she was nearby, or if she had found the lazy charm of Rannveig to be too appealing and run off with him down the coast. Surely, the sea stone male would have found interest in her.
settling their restless wings
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#2
to dalia herself, it was no secret that she'd managed to be charmed by every male she'd met thus far. it was inevitable as a yearling, but she had her mothers hardheadedness in other ways. charmed she may be, dalia could hold her own ground still. at least, so far-- and so she thought. so she had not run away with anyone, not now-- not yet.

she wandered the territory with interest. truth be told, dalia felt drawn to the charred forest. it felt... different there then it did here, and she couldn't quite put her paw on why. but this was their land to claim, and dalia was content here-- it was closer to the ocean than the forest, and therefore it was safer, more familiar, more friendly. 

and so the pale girl padded along the beach, stopping only to examine a conch shell, large and with a bold crown as it laid in the tide. dalia wondered if she should bother starting her collection over again-- or if perhaps that was a hobby to be left in drageda. she considered this silently, turning the shell over with one paw, only half-aware of ford's presence nearby.
trigedasleng will be in blue.
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#3
It didn't take the titan very long before he locked his gaze on the freckled female. She seemed to have found interest in a shell that had washed ashore and had made a home in the sandy beach. Unnerving to some, the swarthy brute was content to follow her with his two-toned gaze. She seemed to know her way around the beach well enough; perhaps she had not been exaggerating when she'd claimed to have sold herself to the ocean. To him, it was a reasonable cost.

After some time, Ford opted to move toward her. His strides were carefully placed and precise in where they fell until he had closed much of the space that had stretched between them. Placing a smile on his dark lips, the titan allowed his gaze to fall on the shell first, showing interest there. “Do you collect them?” Ford inquired in a smoky voice. His mismatched gaze then darted toward her features and awaited her answer.
Call me Mr. Rattlebone
Holy Ghost who haunts your home
They don't know you like I know you
Call me Mr. Rattlebone
I am the driver, I am the shadow, and I am the hearse
settling their restless wings
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#4
as he approached, her gaze rose, her speckled muzzle following. he asked a question, one that was quite relevant, leaving a small smile to play at the corners of her mouth. "mostly shells and sea-glass," she said softly, resting her paw on the damp sand, "i abandoned my collection when i left home, i'm sure my mother guards it for me." dalia wondered if he'd ever kept memorabilia from the ocean, or if it was something that only she did-- something she'd picked up from portia. 

her pale gaze fell to the conch again, examining it's smooth, pink interior, ears flicking. "they feel like gifts from the ocean," she added, realizing it probably sounded a bit childish. so, sheepishly, she added as she looked back up, "is that silly?"
trigedasleng will be in blue.
stormblessed
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Another good subject, it seemed. The titan added it to the few things that he knew about her since leading her to the bay. The thought of someone guarding a hoard of treasures from the ocean seemed quite peculiar to him, but he could tell that she made the note with fondness. It wasn't a topic that he felt would be appropriate to remark on just yet. Perhaps, it would never be something that he should feel the need to comment on.

Dalia mentioned that she said it felt as though she was receiving gifts from the sea, and then she prompted him to tell her if it was silly or not. “Perhaps a little. Is the sea not gift enough?” the devoted titan inquired with a curling smile on his features. “But if it is something that brings you joy, then you should pursue it,” the swarthy creature added, knowing that it might do well to soften the admittance that her hobby was silly to him.
Call me Mr. Rattlebone
Holy Ghost who haunts your home
They don't know you like I know you
Call me Mr. Rattlebone
I am the driver, I am the shadow, and I am the hearse
settling their restless wings
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#6
dalia smiled, tucking her chin to her chest for a moment before peering out into the water, silence falling over her even as ford continued to speak. "they're an added bonus," she offered in reply, her attention raising back to his strikingly different gaze. he didn't ask, and maybe he didn't care, but dalia felt compelled to tell him more.

"my mother collects stones, interesting ones from the mainlands-- she calls them gems. she says that some of them contain healing powers, each stone treats a different ailment," she told him, her ears flicking. she was never sure if she believed it or not, but sometimes portia would lay them out and sit with them to relax. it seemed to help calm her mothers anxieties, and so dalia sometimes did the same. 

it was the sheer act of doing it, maybe, that always helped.
trigedasleng will be in blue.
stormblessed
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#7
How optimistic, he mused to himself, still unbreakable in his features.

Then, she went on to mention how her mother collecting peculiar stones from inland. She stated that the woman used them for healing purposes. The titan found the thought interesting, unable to recall if his mother had ever mentioned knowing anything about gems with such powers. Ford wasn't a believer in magic, but he had seen the power of a healing touch with the use and knowledge of plants and herbs.

“Did they look different from normal stones?” the brute inquired with a cant of his skull. He could have cared less, really. It wasn't in his nature to hunt for rocks when he ventured inland. Ford already disliked his trips away from the sea anyway. Still, he knew that it would be good to show interest. It would make her feel as though she was valued and her stories had worth.
Call me Mr. Rattlebone
Holy Ghost who haunts your home
They don't know you like I know you
Call me Mr. Rattlebone
I am the driver, I am the shadow, and I am the hearse
settling their restless wings
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#8
dalia nodded, smiling. "they are not as earthy as normal stones-- usually bright colors, especially when wet. and you can often see through them when the sun shines on them," she explained, and added without hesitation, "if i ever come across one, perhaps i could show you." 

she did feel valued. not that she didn't feel that way in drageda, but everyone knew her there. each of her packmates knew portia well as the pretty plant lady who collected stones and grew flowers in skulls. everyone knew dalia as the fisa's daughter. when ford asked her questions, dalia could tell, he was genuinely interested. and, she found, she liked sharing. 

"can you tell me about yourself?" she asked him with a gentle cant of her head. for as much as dalia realized she enjoyed sharing, she would always be a listener first.
trigedasleng will be in blue.
stormblessed
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#9
Bright colored stones, she'd explained to him, going on to say that she had seen them clearly in the sun. Ford knew that he'd never seen something like it. It was worth it just to expand his own knowledge of their surroundings. When she offered to bring one to him if she ever found one, he chuckled and nodded his head. “I would like that,” he stated softly, making his voice reflect a genuine-sounding tone.

It was then that the topic of their conversation changed. She fixed him with a canted head and a dual-colored stare. Then, the freckled girl asked him to tell her more about him. Ford's smile faded some, and he brought his gaze to latch onto her own. It did not waver from that position. “What would you like to know?” the titan inquired, hoping that she would elaborate more. It was challenging for him to simply talk about himself without some form of prompting.
Call me Mr. Rattlebone
Holy Ghost who haunts your home
They don't know you like I know you
Call me Mr. Rattlebone
I am the driver, I am the shadow, and I am the hearse
settling their restless wings
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#10
her tail waved a bit. she was glad he would like it, she hoped she could find them... it was easier near the cliffs and the mountains. portia said the mountains were the best place for them... dalia had never been to any before. 

"anything," she said, ears cupping forwards. she could feel her stomach and chest do that thing again as his gaze moved to connect with hers. how bizarre, she simply didn't understand how such a simple gaze could have such a strange effect on her. but, she'd admit, his eyes were quite striking. "about your mother-- or father. what you like to do for fun-- or for work. your favorite things. anything," she elaborated, unwilling to run the risk of being too obnoxious. now he at least had some options.
trigedasleng will be in blue.
stormblessed
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#11
Anything.

The great inkhound exhaled in a short laugh at the simple word. Simple, but ridiculously vague and unhelpful to him. His brows furrowed slightly, but he waited a moment longer for her to expand on her request. Part of him hoped to oblige, but he was not fond of revealing pieces about himself. When she inquired about his mother and father, he began to rifle through thoughts in his head that would appeal to her.

“My father is a very devoted man, and I guess my mother is devoted too... to her craft, and to him. If it weren't for her patience, I don't know that there could be someone who could dedicate their life to him. It must be hard to know that she comes second to the sea,” he offered to her with a contemplative shrug. The concept of love meant very little to him, and it was difficult for him to understand how Deirdre had given up everything she had ever known and loved to be with the tyrant that was Skellige.

Love was a powerful spell, and he aimed to cast it over anyone that he could.
Call me Mr. Rattlebone
Holy Ghost who haunts your home
They don't know you like I know you
Call me Mr. Rattlebone
I am the driver, I am the shadow, and I am the hearse
settling their restless wings
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#12
dalia's brow furrowed slightly at his comment. while ford could not fully understand how someone as kind and gentle as his mother could love someone like his father-- dalia was having trouble understanding how someone could put the ocean before a living, breathing wolf. dalia loved the ocean, it meant moons to her, but it was not anything that a physical wolf could ever be to her. of course, she didn't put ford at blame for this. 

"i would assume the ocean is that important to you?" she questioned, though it was stated as a comment. her pale crown tipped to the other side, ears cupped forwards.
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stormblessed
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#13
Ford was trained on her features. He watched every rise of her lips and every slight movement of her gaze. It was curious to see her face move to the question that she posed him. Immediately, his mind kicked in and crafted the appropriate time to respond to a question of that magnitude. From what he could tell, it was important for her to know something like this. She turned her head away from him and her ears cupped forward, and he became frustrated that he could not read her when she faced away from him.

Ford matched her, turning his head toward the water. A half smile lingered on the edges of his lips; the smile of a ghost. “Right now, it is everything to me,” he returned to her with a confident tone. Then, a pause before he turned back to face her. “But that is because I have nothing that can match it's gift. That could very well change, with time.” Though he doubted this, he thought that it would give her a modicum of hope.
Call me Mr. Rattlebone
Holy Ghost who haunts your home
They don't know you like I know you
Call me Mr. Rattlebone
I am the driver, I am the shadow, and I am the hearse
settling their restless wings
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#14
her ears swept back as he spoke, eyes still trained on the waves as they rolled in. and dalia did not have much to say in response-- what would change it? she almost asked, but she found herself wondering if she should bother. would she come across too forward? overbearing? dalia wanted to ask, but now  was not the right time. she wondered if she cared to know the answer anyway-- why would she ever need that information? the pale slylph rolled the questions through her mind a few times. why did it matter?

so, instead of speaking, dalia merely murmured a gentle hum in response, seafoam eyes blinking at the water.
trigedasleng will be in blue.
stormblessed
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#15
“Does that bother you?”

His voice was direct. And though she did not turn her attention toward him, fixed on the ocean, he did not pull his sights away from her features. There was a pensiveness to her stare. The brute was unafraid to ask these questions. He knew that if he said something wrong, people would often correct him. And if he said something right, it meant that he was reading them accurately enough. Either way, he thirsted for more knowledge on the girl.
Call me Mr. Rattlebone
Holy Ghost who haunts your home
They don't know you like I know you
Call me Mr. Rattlebone
I am the driver, I am the shadow, and I am the hearse
settling their restless wings
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#16
does that bother you?

at this, dalia turned to face him, her nose twitching as it tilted downwards better to search his features. dalia was not good at reading others, and so even while examining him she could not quite understand what she found-- or even what she was looking for. "should it?" she asked with a quirk of her brow, rather than answering his question.

it was not so much that he felt this way that bothered her, but that anyone could feel this way. and even if it did bother her, dalia did not know this boy well enough to let it bother her-- she could not be possessive over him so early on. she would not be jealous of the ocean, not over this.
trigedasleng will be in blue.
stormblessed
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#17
The question was bordering defensive, and he could not help but to crinkle his nose in a chuckle. It rumbled in his chest like thunder. The inkhound returned her pointed stare without pulling his attention away from her. “No,” he answered and then shrugged his shoulders. Though he wasn't quite as good at passing off lackadaisical charm as well as his brother, he did well enough.

“It would bother some,” he then added with a quiet nod. The water lapped against the shore almost softly, as though it were offering room for him to speak with Dalia without the threat of its beating swell against the sands. Ford felt calm when it was calm, and he was not bothered by their present conversation.
Call me Mr. Rattlebone
Holy Ghost who haunts your home
They don't know you like I know you
Call me Mr. Rattlebone
I am the driver, I am the shadow, and I am the hearse
settling their restless wings
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#18
she did not know how to take his comment-- except with a small smile. dalia could not quite grasp his charm. both velen and rannveig had sworn it was strong, and she could not doubt it's sway on her, but it made little sense to her. he was charming in a way that she simply wasn't used to-- at least, that was the conclusion she'd come to. 

though his gaze rested firmly on her own, and she tried to read it, she could not, and so she pulled it away to look back down at the shell near her feet. 

"i will keep this," the pearl said with a small wave of her tail. and then she lowered her crown to pick it up gently between her teeth at it's smaller end, holding it carefully in her jaws. and then, with a soft dip of her head, dalia said-- the best she could with the conch in her mouth-- "i will see you soon, ford." and made to leave, unless he should stop her, but she saw no reason why he would.
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The subject shifted back to the shell. Dalia bent herself down so that she could collect it between her teeth. It seemed that she was done speaking with him. The titan did not wish to stop her. He felt as though he had probably tested her patience enough for one day. Instead, he followed her with his watchful stare. The mismatched colors of his gaze lingered on her until she had disappeared from sight.

Anyone else might have felt foolish for how quickly the conversation seemed to have gone south. Ford felt accomplished. Though he may have breached on territory that seemed off color, he had successfully turned their talk away from him. He did well enough at feigning how open he was, but the inkhound was not fond of having a microscope on his life or his traits. The brute set it in his mind to wander down the coast a ways in search of another shell for the girl. Perhaps a gift would ease her mind some.
Call me Mr. Rattlebone
Holy Ghost who haunts your home
They don't know you like I know you
Call me Mr. Rattlebone
I am the driver, I am the shadow, and I am the hearse