Blackfeather Woods and he spent a long time watching from his lonely wooden tower
a determination so powerful it could turn the sky storm black
683 Posts
Ooc — Athena
Offline
#1
Private 

The days have grown short, the nights cold, and Ceara feels it now more than ever.  The temperature in Wolfskull is never comfortable; for some reason, it always feels damp to her.  Sometimes she wakes in the night and imagines it's her own blood.  She can't get the image of the demon out of her head.

Sleep evades her more often than not, and when it comes it is fitful.  Maegi has helped the best she could, she knows it to be true.  But there are dark things at work in these woods, and there are some things that medicine couldn't cure.  Perhaps her sick mind was one of them.

Morning comes.  Her life here is not terrible, so far.  She is hungry and quite parched.. but she's alive.  And not being tortured.  It could be much worse.  She lets out a yawn and stretches, heading close to the mouth of the cave to take in her daily dose of sunlight.
killing is the most natural thing in the world; we're created for it
651 Posts
Ooc — ebony
Offline
#2
the ravens spoke.
morning; another night spent in communion alongside the altar. 
there was a grave seed within blackfeather; the listener could no longer bear to ignore her senses. rout it out, came the prince's whisper — sithis was not one who came oft to relmyna. but here he was, his dread voice a sibilant breath stirring the fringes of her awareness. her heartbeat quickened; stride lengthened. 
she sought out their scents — mou, maegi, kalganov, wintersbane. it was not long before revealed to her was the tendril of another fragrance, one that struck dumb fear into her spirit. for it was overlaid with the aura of the dark weald, but not truly one of their own. 
her step carried her to the cave-mouth, and there like fire
blood fire end
wreathing through stone mouths was a she-wolf relmyna did not recognize, and an anger began to grow in her weary heart.
who are you? came her soft mouthing, but the hardness of her gaze did not invite dissuasion from her question.
mouthed words | thoughts
[Image: bfw2.png]
a determination so powerful it could turn the sky storm black
683 Posts
Ooc — Athena
Offline
#3
This must have been the wolf that Wintersbane had told her about.  She strode clipped on quick, furious limbs, and she could imagine the tone of voice that should have accompanied her mouthed words.  Ceara's eyes take in the Listener's anguished form and then move to her bright, hard eyes.

Nobody had asked for her name yet.  She hesitated for a moment before she mouthed back, Fire Blackthorn.  It was true and untrue, but giving away her truename seemed too dangerous.
killing is the most natural thing in the world; we're created for it
651 Posts
Ooc — ebony
Offline
#4
wanted to spree but i think this will be my last tonight D:

the woman answered swiftly enough; relmyna noted the stance of her body, the rigidity of it. the scents that interlaced here were bitterly familiar. but she would not question that now. blackthorn. the name was unrecognizable. passing a tongue along the ridges of her teeth, the patchwork wolfess regarded the voiceless stranger with a silence born of an unwillingness to know.
you must
and broke it with  from where did you come? surely she knew, surely, surely, sure — please let her be a vagabond, a wanderer; anything.
once more, her stare was implacable, unwavering.
mouthed words | thoughts
[Image: bfw2.png]
a determination so powerful it could turn the sky storm black
683 Posts
Ooc — Athena
Offline
#5


its ok i fell asleep

There was an energy that crackled off the patchwork Listener.  She didn't know the authority this woman held, but she felt it.  Ceara did not want to be honest, but Wintersbane knew.  Mou knew.  It would do her no good to lie, but oh, did she want to.  Redhawks, on the Plateau, she resigns, hoping that this interrogation will be over soon and she'll be left to have some peace in the sun.
killing is the most natural thing in the world; we're created for it
651 Posts
Ooc — ebony
Offline
#6
redhawks. 
in that moment relmyna’s awareness broke forth — how long had she been here? why had the listener not been summoned? but her lack of address was her own failing, not that of those whose scents wreathed the den.
a cold fury built in the patchwork woman; she turned away from the captive to face the gloom of cold blackfeather, mind working furiously. with no details, she could only assume redhawks would come for this fire-wolf, and she knew the woodland could not withstand it again.
she had lost once
cicero, oh —
she would not allow it to happen a second time.
lifting her muzzle, relmyna demanded the presence of @Mou, @Maegi, and @Wintersbane. in her tones there leapt a fire that suggested those ordered come swiftly, for her anger was greatly kindled as nothing had done so before. seafoam eyes burned then toward the stranger, but the listener did not speak again, standing with a rigid ardency near the denmouth.
mouthed words | thoughts
[Image: bfw2.png]
a determination so powerful it could turn the sky storm black
683 Posts
Ooc — Athena
Offline
#7

She thought that perhaps she has felt real fear before her.  But no, no, she'd felt nothing like this.  Her stomach turns when Relmyna's silence becomes prolonged, then when from her throat echoes a howl with more conviction than she'd ever heard before.

Her stomach turns and her ears falter, her breath beginning to quicken.  No, no, no, no.  They'd kill her now.

She was sure of it.

ring the bells that still can ring
forget your perfect offering
there is a crack in everything
that's how the light gets in
1,335 Posts
Ooc — torvi
Master Warrior
Offline
#8
the listener's summon is a command and it is not meant for only him, he notes. so, he thinks. the dark priestess has found her. there is no doubt within him as he makes his way to wolfskull cave where the listener waits near the mouth of where the redhawk woman is kept. his steps slow as he draws nearer, studying her. "listener," he greets her, smoky voice low and respectful; ignoring the captive for as long as he can. ...he can't ignore her forever, however; it's because of her he's been summoned. the tundrian has not gotten over his annoyance at her and gradually it grows to kindling of anger: the cinders that still glow hot, that the slightest stir might ignite into flame.

he played no part in the cause of this; only seeking her out to protect those that have become dear to him. he frets internally, if only because he does not wish for the listener to be angry with him; but knows he deserves it if only because he had not sought her out immediately after.

only then did his glacial gaze settle upon the flame-kissed woman. cold and unyielding as the lands his mother hailed from. wintersbane's posturing of his body is submissive before the dark priestess as if he might appease her ( building ) ire. aside from his greeting though he remains silent. he only knows what the captive's told him but it should be mou that answers for it. it is his fault that the redhawk woman is in their possession in the first place, if the captive's words are to believed.
1,293 Posts
Ooc — Talamasca
Tactician
Seer
Offline
#9



The call comes and isn't surprising exactly, but it does send a nervous shiver down his spine. Mou thought they'd have more time to come up with a plan, but after fighting with Maegi over the situation it seemed like he was alone in his efforts; really, the boy had merely begun to understand the danger of his actions and their effects on those close to him. He knew enough to dread the eventual discovery of the captive but once she'd been found out, and Relmyna's voice called for him, he felt much more at peace. Frightened too, in the way a child might be afraid of facing punishment, but there was relief there too. She knew. Whatever happened next was unavoidable but he would do his best to plead his case - if the moment rose where it was necessary.

Mou crept through the dark. This time he arrived at the cave without any sort of offering; perhaps he should've carried something, a gift for the Listener or a sign that he was tending to the captive. He paused in his approach suddenly, realizing that at some point Fire had gone from patient to captive in his mind and that worried him a little. He could not linger outside of Wolfskull Cave for long; he was soon sliding in to the cool dark of the corridor and trailing after the heavy scent of Wintersbane, and once his path emptied out in to the hollow of Fire's confines, he found his attention drifting between those already gathered. The young man; Relmyna, whose gaze he couldn't match; then inevitably, the autumnal girl who held his eyes the longest; and then he watched the dirt, unable to say or do anything.

He could fix this, he thought.
Ghost
1,738 Posts
Ooc — mercury
Missionary
Master Toxicologist
Offline
#10
Here it was. She walked slowly down through the tunnels, face set like someone going to the gallows. Her breathing came hard and uneven, shuddering with every step; she feared everything that this summons entailed. What it meant for Mou, the girl, their family. . . Even if they managed to avoid danger, they would be punished, Mou most of all.

Oh, gods, her dear Mou! To have him exiled from the woods would tear her apart.

Maegi dipped her head to Relmyna upon arrival, flashed Wintersbane a kind look, then turned to Mou, horror in her eyes. The fiery girl and the Listener had clearly been conversing; what had she said? What had she implied? Her presence here alone was bad enough, but if she had opened her mouth. . .

Who was she? Who was coming for her?
killing is the most natural thing in the world; we're created for it
651 Posts
Ooc — ebony
Offline
#11
they arrived in varied shades of annoyance and of supplication. wintersbane was first to arrive; his imploring silence earned him a cool lingering stare from the listener, one made impassive by her rage. it had not been him to bring the captive here; this she knew. but it mattered not to relmyna, for a redhawk was in their midst, and it spelled danger for blackfeather.
mou next, and the woman trained a colder stare on him. had it been a mistake to give her stone to the scarred boy? she did not know — she hoped fervently it was not so — but it remained to be seen. he kept his eyes upon the ground, and relmyna pulled her stare from him to rest it upon maegi. beloved melonii child, her chosen heir — a fool.
the way all three of them had glanced to the flame burning with fear in the den provoked a growl from relmyna, a sound designed to refocus their attention on herself. for the present, the she-wolf did not exist. the patchwork woman's tail arched over her hips in a rare display of her rank; she enforced it with a thorny sweep of her gaze. mou was not gifted the ability of clear speech; wintersbane could for the present wait.
maegi —
before you tell me what has taken place here, the war that killed your father was with these wolves. there was no desire in relmyna to be kind, to be gentle, to choose her words with warmth — they must know inherently the threat posed by the presence of this redhawk woman. and she had been too lenient, far too lenient.
he left a trail of blood through the woods, maegi; no one could have survived what was done to him. in truth, relmyna did not know who had killed the toxicologist; she had not seen him depart, only drew up the scarlet trail of his ruined scent once he had gone. the redhawks had scattered them, driven blackfeather out, and it was them she blamed for his death, knowing not the name of drageda. i will not have war again.
she straightened, turquoise eyes burning toward the indigo and fire of the melonii gaze. speak.
mouthed words | thoughts
[Image: bfw2.png]
1,335 Posts
Ooc — torvi
Master Warrior
Offline
#12
skipping @Fire this round with permission.

the dark priestess' stare was chilling and impassive and wintersbane accepts it out of a continued and simple effort to appease her. perhaps, the tundrian considers, it does not entirely go undeserved. he should have went to the listener as soon as his failed attempt to siphon information from the redhawk woman had been only half of a success ( he was going to need some work; some feral edges still needing smoothed out to make him a lethal spy ). her gaze does not linger long for it is not long before mou and maegi approach.

a growl comes from the listener and wintersbane's glacial gaze and attention snap back to the dark priestess, turning from the captive redhawk in their midst. she speaks largely to maegi though, stating that it was the war that had killed her father. there is a twitch to wintersbane's ear, a jump of a muscle in his jaw as the listener's words — though not meant for him — reminded him of mallaidh's words to him: lotte died looking for you. it wasn't the same ...relmyna was not accusing maegi for the death of her father but the implication of use: to inspire something from the girl was kind of similar. or perhaps, wintersbane, still fresh from that failed second attempt at a family reunion, was quick to draw a similarity where there was none.

because the listener's attention seems focused solely upon maegi and because wintersbane wasn't present for the kidnapping of the redhawk woman he remains silent until he is required to speak. having already heard the flame-kissed woman's side, it cannot be denied that wintersbane's curious to hear mou and maegi's side of the story: to find out what in all of the void they were thinking.
1,293 Posts
Ooc — Talamasca
Tactician
Seer
Offline
#13


He had spoken to the Redhawk girl himself, and what he had learned from her was jarring. That they were friends, maybe, and that his home might have been among them, both seemed like such detachments from reality and he was loath to admit their potential as truth; but Mou couldn't deny anything either. He stood there in the cave, dark and cold and familiar, feeling like he was about to earn himself a greater punishment from Relmyna than even the sea had bestowed upon him. He could not watch as Maegi stepped in to the cave behind him, could not look at her at all, and remained silent while the Listener addressed the girl. The tone of her voice made him tense—he did not like the way that Relmyna focused upon Maegi like that. It wasn't her fault the Redhawk was here. It was his. The boy's jaw clenched and he finally drew his gaze up from the soil and focused upon the conversation fully, unable to stop the defensive edge that entered his expression.

She spoke of war. Of death, of loss. Mou had not heard of such things from the captive and wondered if he had been lied to. Maybe it had been one long manipulation—maybe she wanted to be here, investigating the woods and learning its secrets. No, he thought sharply, I did this, I wanted to help her. Sithis told me how. We are safe. But he didn't believe everything that ran through his mind. He was distracting himself because if he didn't, Mou was afraid he might lash out on behalf of Maegi—and that would've been the greatest mistake. There was no telling what sort of outcome this conversation would have. If it meant they were in trouble then they would fix it. But the boy did not know how long he could contain himself on Maegi's behalf.
Ghost
1,738 Posts
Ooc — mercury
Missionary
Master Toxicologist
Offline
#14
She would have rather had Relmyna cut her open, leave her bleeding. This. . .this was worse. Every word was a wound; she cringed like a wolf flayed, caught between bursting into tears and ripping the Listener apart. This wasn't her fault--she had wanted to leave the girl, to avoid another war. To keep the Woods safe. And Cicero--

How dare she? Maegi was just about to open her mouth to retort when she caught the defensiveness in Mou's gaze, and knew at once she couldn't hang him out to dry.

Mistakes aside, Mou was her best friend. He was the only one that truly understood her. This was his fault, and she wouldn't shrink from that truth, but she also would not use him as a shield against Relmyna's wrath. This would be solved without betrayal. She just had to stay calm.

Stay calm.

"Mou and this girl knew each other once," Maegi began, the fury just barely simmering under her tone. "I don't know when--it was before I met him. He washed up on the beach with no memories; I found him there. They ran into each other again recently." She glanced over at Mou, face drawn. "Mou was trying to help her. I think. . .I think he gave her the wrong plant. I wasn't there."

She cast her gaze toward the Listener, fiercely insistent. "I want war even less than you do," she declared. "I lost everything because of what happened last time. And I tried to stop this--but it would have been the same result, if Mou had left her there. She would have gone home and told her family, and they would have come for us.

"This was a mistake, a misunderstanding,"
Maegi finished. "This is between Mou and this girl--not Blackfeather and her family. Relmyna, I don't think he meant any harm. We can solve this, somehow."
killing is the most natural thing in the world; we're created for it
651 Posts
Ooc — ebony
Offline
#15

a sweeping wave of regret — the rage in maegi's face could only be born from pain. an agony relmyna had wrought in the child she still so loved with the silent lash of her words. but still she did not move from them. she had uttered them, brought the sentiment of bloody cicero into the world between them, and now the listener must take charge of what she had said. even if
it will cost you maegi
so it was mou. the woman did not pull her eyes from the young melonii's features, but the sithis-touched boy held parts of the story back. it was not a solid knowledge, merely a strong insistence within the priestess. and yet relmyna was weary from holding the fiery reins of such a rage she had not before felt. she wished to demand proper submission from maegi,, rout mou from the wood for his stupidity
they are so young
and it was not the fault of the scarred boy nor the scarred girl that the redhawks had come here.
yes, relmyna murmured silently. it can be fixed. her gaze, still hard with the force of her ire, swung between the pale pair. i believe you meant no harm. it is still important you understand that redhawks must never be trusted, must never be approached. unable — yes, she could not stop them from hating her, but if she could engender the smallest mistrust of the entire wretched plateau clan, it would be of sufficient worth to the listener.
her wolves will come for her sooner or later. if they have the smallest scent of us, they will return to blackfeather. a pause; relmyna's jaw tightened. another plant; another poisoning? did she wish to know? etching a mental note to interrogate mou at a later time, the listener went on.
as of this moment, wintersbane, i am posting you as guard here. the two of you, mou, maegi, are not to come near this cave again, so long as she is here. halting again, this time to scrutinize their expressions, though some glimmer of feral awareness told her she must not glance from the yearlings yet, despite the fact it was only one of them she did not trust.
if she ingested something, she will need tending. i will see to it from now on, until she is strong enough to travel. and then, relmyna breathed, steadying herself on the edge of mephala's voice, whispering gently as her skull began to throb, i will escort her home.
if she allowed what had gone on to continue, she would lose face, not only with herself but kove. and still compounding, the growing belief she had been far too lenient. confusion; pain in her temple. fire was not to be trusted; the flame would not be allowed to roam free. but neither would she be harmed. 
relmyna would glean whatever bits of info from mou she could, she decided, unnerved by the cold regard she had in this moment for the boy. and then she would bring the redhawk back to whatever rat-chewed hovel her pack called home. the chance of her own death was high, but there was no one else to do it: she could not sacrifice anyone else on the altar of this foolhardy decision. 
kill her.
the voice rang clearly, loudly enough that relmyna was hard-pressed to put it aside. silent now, she waited for their responses, wanting only the darkness of her den.
mouthed words | thoughts
[Image: bfw2.png]
a determination so powerful it could turn the sky storm black
683 Posts
Ooc — Athena
Offline
#16
It is the tundrian prince who is first to arrive.  He cows before the voiceless woman but his eyes eventually fall, and she meets the iron of his stare with a steely coldness perhaps too bold for her situation.  She has no business to look at him that way but there is something about him that causes her ire for Niamh to pale in comparison.  She cannot stand him.  But she doesn't have to, not for long.  Mou is quick to show, then Maegi.  They are all looking at her in defiance of their listener; she corrects them swiftly with a ferocious growl that fire did not think she was physically capable of making.
The crackling energy of Relmyna's building ire does not go unnoticed.  Fire cannot see the words that she mouths but she know that they have hit their audience to the core.  
It is not Mou that speaks, but Maegi.  She isn't surprised.  But the young Melonii is wrong.  This stopped being about herself and Mou as soon as she'd been thrown into captivity.  There is no misunderstanding in taking prisoners.  Fire would have war, and she would take their blood herself.
But for now it would not be wise to speak of this.  She can still see nothing of Relmyna, but she can catch the husk of her voice.
I will escort her home.
A shiver runs down her spine as she settles her gaze on Maegi, pleading.  There was one way and one way only she would conspire with the young Melonii — she and Mou would have to escort her to the Redhawks, not the listener.
ring the bells that still can ring
forget your perfect offering
there is a crack in everything
that's how the light gets in
1,335 Posts
Ooc — torvi
Master Warrior
Offline
#17
maegi launched into explanation and wintersbane kept his silence, playing his own conversation with the flame-kissed redhawk in his head. maegi did not mention what mou'd done to the redhawks ...or perhaps, the tundrian considers, she didn't know. mou didn't appear to remember but that didn't mean the pack didn't ...if the words the redhawk woman'd spoken had been true. and though he's not sure — toeing that line of trepidation because relmyna didn't trust them — he had a feeling the things that fire'd told him were true. it was little more than tuition feeling but she'd spoken those things before he refused to help her and called her demanding at the pinnacle of the downfall of that meeting ( because for a captive she was definitely demanding and mouthy, in the tundrian's opinion ).

wintersbane waits, accepting his role as the woman's guardian with internal reluctance. he has no choice and he's always eager to appease the dark priestess; and shifts uncomfortably and tries to ignore the chill that pools in his stomach like ice as relmyna states that she will escort her home. his information to share briefly tucked aside, "let me go with you, listener," he implores in suggestion. "i'm owed a favor. it might help if things begin to go poorly." a favor that, honestly, until this whole mess started he'd never meant to bank in on because he hadn't saved tywyll for any reason other than his soft spot for cubs.

"it might be useful to know when dealing with the redhawks," he sees the opportunity to slide what information he'd managed to collect into the conversation. it seems like something to consider, at least. perhaps it would mean nothing to anyone but it might help the listener, at least, when dealing with redhawks ...especially if she refuses wintersbane's offer to go as her guard. "that when i spoke with her," he gestures slightly to the redhawk woman with a slight incline of his muzzle. "she told me mou attacked their alpha and killed her cubs and that one of the surviving cubs might be disabled for life." he looks to mou then, glacial gaze calculating for a split second before it turns back to the listener, where it lingers. "the redhawks tried to drown him by throwing him into the ocean."

wintersbane isn't sure what to objectively make out of this other than a web far too tangled for him to see a clean way out of. someone was going to get hurt, was going to suffer and pay for this. perhaps someone who didn't deserve to in lieu of someone who did. was mou worth that potential sacrifice? was he worth the possibility of losing relmyna? their listener? wintersbane didn't personally think so; and while he considered that they could lie and say mou was dead by their own jaws fire could dispute it and wintersbane does not doubt they will believe her words over their own.
1,293 Posts
Ooc — Talamasca
Tactician
Seer
Offline
#18



For a long while Mou didn't partake in the conversation; he was fuming, boring holes in to the side of Relmyna's head as she made her otherwise silent comments, and then when Maegi began to speak her piece he found himself floundering. He looks to his friend and the ire that once held firm in his features has evaporated; his heart hurts, hearing her defend him — and then to witness what came next, as the silence was suddenly cut short by the interruption of Winterbane's voice; he speaks up after a plan is set in place, and what he says is jarring. More than that—Mou feels his blood run cold in his veins.

Mou attacked their Alpha,
—killed her cubs—
drown him——into the ocean,

While the tundrian spoke Mou staggered back, collapsing to his haunches, to his belly, hearing everything but not believing it. Not remembering it. His eyes were watering at the mention of cubs—and then when he mentions the sea, he feels the familiar-but-distant memory of the tide sucking at his body, wanting to drive it in to the void. He shakes his head, teeth grit in a determined frown as he refuses all these claims—but he knows he cannot, he knows, somehow, that there must be truth there.

Sh, sh, shhh... She, she call m-me Screeh, he managed, unable to stop the waterworks as he's overcome by images of a black wolf with her children—but its Seelie and her small ones, and the thought of anything happening to anyone's kids has him wanting to vomit. I, I noh... I am nodd Screeh, I deeden do et.

But at this point, did it matter? The captive was here; the Redhawks would be looking for her. She knew him from somewhere, had reasons to hate him, and thus they'd want him dead too. He was the biggest threat to the forest, not her.

In realizing this, accepting it, a calm began to descend across Mou—he levels his leaking eyes at Relmyna and states, Mou go. Trade Mou, an.. An stay save. I... I can'd let you go if I can hell. I fiss, I fiss it.

He's trembling; but he looks away from Relmyna for only a second and stares at the captive, pitiful and filled with regret, and he remarks to her: Pees, if Mou go, you... You not tell any 'boud Bleckfedda? He can see Maegi in the corner of his eye but he can't look at her, can't dare, because maybe it'll be the last time he gets to see her.

Ghost
1,738 Posts
Ooc — mercury
Missionary
Master Toxicologist
Offline
#19
omg im so fucking tired but i HAD to respond to this bc sobbing

It didn't help. Nothing she said had helped. No, perhaps she had made it even worse. Now she wasn't even allowed near the girl, to help treat her, even if the treatment wasn't appreciated. She was about to open her mouth to argue this when Wintersbane spoke up, and her blood ran suddenly cold at his words. She took a stumbling step back, staring at Mou, her jaw trembling.

You. . . It came out only as a tremulous whisper; perhaps he couldn't even hear it. All she heard was her heart pounding in her ears, choking her, and her vision blurred with sudden tears--

It couldn't be. It couldn't! Mou wasn't a killer, he meant no harm. . .he was an innocent, troubled boy that had been marooned on an island without anything from his past. No memories, no family--nothing. It had been too good to be true, right? Mou. A killer.

But Maegi was a killer too, right?

She met the fiery girl's eyes for a split second before Mou's mournful pleas cut through the buzzing in her brain; Maegi turned her gaze to him, mouth still hanging slightly open. Mou go. They would kill him; she knew it. But perhaps, if they took his blood, that of Blackfeather's would be safe.

Gods, what had happened? Everything had been so perfect. Too perfect.

Mou. Relmyna. Mou. The Woods. Mou. Mou. Mou.

I'll go with him, Maegi said, her voice preternaturally calm. To make sure they know that this is on him, not on us. I'll go with him. She avoided looking at him, instead staring straight at Relmyna. They won't hurt me. I'm a little crippled girl. If they claim to be as good as they say, they won't hurt me. Let me go, Relmyna. We'll fix this. Please.
killing is the most natural thing in the world; we're created for it
651 Posts
Ooc — ebony
Offline
#20
it was wintersbane who first spoke, and finally relmyna drew aside her gaze to regard the northerner. the reactions of the other wolves assembled went unnoticed. a favor. though her stare remained impassive, unreachable during the rumble of his plea, only his promise of a trade saved the gamma's offer from being outright spurned.
mou.
what have you done?
her eyes moved to the boy's scarred face, to the stone she had given him lodged in its empty socket of bone. never had she heard him speak so much before, and she was silent until he had finished. it was a worse thing than she had imagined: there was a bounty upon the sithis-touched creature, and more than before was she convinced the redhawks would seek to drench the wood in blood once more.
he offered himself to be slaughtered — would his price be paid if she sent him with fire back to the redhawks? his transgression was great, and the listener knew if she ordered it, mou would never return to them.
but relmyna did not care for those who had murdered cicero, and a dark feeling of gratitude for mou's ending of the alpha's litter welled sharply in her heart. he did not know he had done it, however — screech was not a name she knew. only mou, and whatever had been done, he belonged to blackfeather now. he was not a trade for the wretch they had brought to the cave, nor a payment to murderers.
and then maegi, and finally the cold in the listener's gaze faltered — maegi melonii, follower not of the old gods, heir to the throne, pleading for mou in the face of his offer. relmyna's jaw tightened, and for a long moment she said nothing.
you are not a sacrifice, mou. i do not care what you did to the redhawks; this is your home, and your place is here. with maegi, she went on, turning her gaze back to the girl she still considered her eldest in spite of herself. you have nothing to offer if i send you. all they know is blood. they will see only that you are blackfeather.
a breath; a pause, during which relmyna glanced toward the silver-cloaked warrior, if only for a steadying moment. no one is going to the redhawks except for myself and wintersbane. it falls to me to protect blackfeather, and i am not sending the young to do my work.
kove was their dark master; naught must befall him. the pack would go on without relmyna if the redhawks took their pound of flesh. her choice of companion in wintersbane was twofold: the strength of this favour, and his own might, his ability to perhaps escape where she would fail.
enough. what i have said will stand. do not come near her. relmyna glanced between mou and maegi again, her heart sundered. sheogorath had been her master, cicero her lover. her affection for the dead man was not affected by the actions of what he had done when he was not himself. a boy named screech had hurt her enemies — that was all.
it is safer this way. her stance was definite, heavy with the tension of the moment. 
presently, the woman's gaze burned toward fire, and there was no kindness there. she would not warn the redhawk wolfess of what would befall her if she attempted escape, but sithis was a god of blood, and would gladly purge mou's sin with the cut throat of another.
mouthed words | thoughts
[Image: bfw2.png]
1,335 Posts
Ooc — torvi
Master Warrior
Offline
#21
skipping @Fire with permission!

as mou speaks the tundrian's glacial gaze flickers to him and settles, waiting for him to dispel his words. he does, in some way or another. stating that he wasn't screech and the name jolts something hidden deep in the recesses of wintersbane's memory. his gaze hardens and he looks at mou again, intensely this time because he's met him before. he'd been less scarred last time they met and wintersbane swears mou's fur hadn't been so ...washed out but the markings are too unique for it to be anyone else. it hadn't been an overly important meeting at the time and the spar they'd agreed on ...for whatever reason wintersbane couldn't even remember now hadn't ended up happening; and even as realization dawns on him, wintersbane does not bring up their past meeting.

it didn't matter, really. mou clearly didn't remember and his willingness to give himself over to the redhawks for what he'd done in regards to fire helps to soothe something in the tundrian even if the dark priestess does not agree and vehemently will not allow his sacrifice. the listener's word is final: she would go and he would accompany her — there is a certain relief that wintersbane feels knowing that because he can protect her if he goes along, if the ace up his sleeve fails him.

wintersbane shifts his weight, preparing himself for the task of becoming the stalwart sentinel to the prisoner, his gaze touching each of them in turn: pack-mate and prisoner alike before it settles back upon relmyna.
Ghost
1,738 Posts
Ooc — mercury
Missionary
Master Toxicologist
Offline
#22
skipping mou with permish

Her shoulders sank; her whole body, really. All seemed lost. Calamity had been brought into her forest once more, and she was powerless to stop it. Relmyna had effectively shackled her; she would play no part in the outcome of this twisted affair. She thought to revolt, to react--but she remained quiet, giving the Listener a quiet, dejected nod.

"I understand," Maegi muttered, looking down. With the smallest of sighs, she gave the assembled group one final collective glance before turning and padding out of the tunnel, her heartbeat pounding in her ears.

Oh, gods.

Why?
1,293 Posts
Ooc — Talamasca
Tactician
Seer
Offline
#23
OK now i have a chance to reply weoo, he's gonna jet.


There wasn't anything else they could do; Relmyna put a stop to any counter-plans that the pale wolves were making, and it seemed as if everything was outside of their control now. Mou couldn't deal with it right now. He had too much new information to work through, and while he wasn't certain it was all truth, he had to investigate it. Would he ever remember such a life? Could he ever become that person again? He didn't want to; but if he did those horrible things, perhaps he deserved to be put down — there was at least one pack that thought as much, which was a harrowing thought.

As Maegi accepted things and took her leave, Mou watched her shadow drift in the dark, tracing the shape of her retreating shape as she exited the caves. The boy took one last glance at the wolves gathered and, with a frown still plastered on his features, dragged himself after her. He wouldn't pursue Maegi right now — and if someone moved to stop him, he'd likely collapse on the spot. Otherwise he made to leave, to get as far from the Redhawk as he could, to follow the decree of the Listener.
killing is the most natural thing in the world; we're created for it
651 Posts
Ooc — ebony
Offline
#24
last post from me <3

maegi took her leave, followed by mou; there was a satisfaction there, albeit a bitter one. they had listened, but she did not trust them to continue that. the princess melonii and her scarred consort; sithis breathed there was more to come, and the listener knew she could not stop it. 
when they had gone, relmyna gave a long blink, a sigh swelling her slight sides. watch over her, please, the woman murmured to wintersbane of the prisoner. seafoam eyes searched his own, foolishly wanting the security he alone had come to offer her. and if she attempts to escape, make short work of her.
she would not venture to the redhawks for such an ungrateful person. a glance to fire, and then the listener turned, melting into the underbrush in the opposite direction of where mou and maegi had gone.
mouthed words | thoughts
[Image: bfw2.png]