Bonesplinter Ravine macabre

the descent was precarious, but they've made it to the ravine. most weren't quite so lucky; scattered all around are the bones of the less fortunate. they're meant to be sleeping, and she's exhausted; the trip over the mountains the most difficult of her life. but surrounded by the bones, she can't.

this place must be worst than blackfeather. she can't stop imagining all the creatures that have fallen here, and, perhaps, the spirits of them that remain here. she manages an uneasy snooze, but as soon as she hears the dull thump of something hitting the ravine's floor, a soft sound that could have been a scream or the wind, she's up, heart thumping and hackles flared. swallowing dryly, she moves closer to @Rowan, knowing she won't be sleeping tonight.

His Mother led them into the ravine, littered with bones and such like.
He didn't care, it was like one of the caves he'd snuck into in Blackfeather. It felt like a semblance of home but certainly was not it.
Even so, he'd curled up with his back against Moonshadow; exactly where she couldn't reach him. He was holding a childish grudge.

A soft thump and his eyes were immediately seeking the darkness. He felt and heard Moonshine stand and come towards him, he lifted his head to see if she was ok. Had she tried to climb a path along the wall and fell?​ His eyes adjusted and she looked more scared than anything.

"It's ok." He stood, looking around, "Nothin' will hurt you." He always protected his family. Everything hit home when Star was taken -- why wasn't he more vigilant about finding his brother? 
Perhaps he can prevent it.
"Come," he walked a few paces from their sleeping Mother, who was probably awake just not letting them know it, "I'll teach you how to defend yourself." 

he's awake. there's sharp relief at that, knowing she's not facing the bones alone. his words are somewhat reassuring but don't compare to the simple knowledge that he's with her. that alone makes her fear bearable, and when he beckons her out, she answers with a soft, "ok," in this place so reminiscent of blackfeather, the dynamic has shifted once more between the siblings; Rowan leading, she following. she's tired but simultaneously wide awake, and her eyes glint in the dim moonlight as she follows his movements.

He was glad she followed. It would distract her from the things that go bump in the night and perhaps tire her enough to sleep afterward.
"Firstly," his voice is low, careful not to wake Mother is she was indeed asleep, "you always keep your chin tucked down to protect your neck." 
He could walk her through the basic things, and perhaps try and get her to defend a hit. 

"Next, you keep most of your weight on your back legs if you're being attacked from the front, then you can charge at them quicker and harder." He learned that by himself, play fighting with Star. His heart panged for his brother. Every the test subject for some new move Rowan had thought up whilst thinking over the fights.
He wondered what his sister thought of the instructions he gave her.

it wasn't that moonshine was a hopeless fighter. no, she followed the instructions her brother gave well enough; they felt easy, natural. it was simply that in the face of sharp words and teeth and the faces of the other children to which blackfeather was a birthright, not a burden, she was reduced to stumbling words and nerves. 

she couldn't find any anger towards them, either. she was the one who was out of place, wrong, and so must attract their ire. she just had to survive the present, never mind about the future. she peers up at him, shifting her weight back. "like this?" 

He nodded with a smile. She took the position easily and looked ready.
Dangerous.
"I will launch an attack and you will tackle me." He was sure she knew how to tackle him, she'd done it before, but gave instruction anyway to perfect it from her position.
"You will hit your shoulder into my chest, your teeth in my neck or shoulder, and you push me down." To pull your opponent on top of you was dangerous, especially if they were bigger.

Once she gave a sign of understanding, he pushed forward, aiming to catch the side of her neck. He knew the retaliation would come though​ so didn't put too much driving force into it. This was only the first practice after all.

she nodded her head as much as she could from the angle at which she held it, which likely looked rather comical. the instructions he gave were clear, and she carefully committed each to her memory. he charged forward then, and she was ready. she remained still until he was near, as she knew charging gat him would take the weight out of her attack. when they were inches apart, she moved; thrusting her weight forward into his chest, at the same time pulling her muzzle back and then clamping lightly around the fur of his shoulder, leaning into him as she attempted to unbalance him.

The blow came, knocking the power from his attack, winding him slightly. Her teeth were there and her weight finished the attack. He toppled sideways, pinned under her teeth and paws.
Perfect.
He grinned, taking in the air and regaining a normal breathing pattern so he could talk.

"That was perfect," he smiled, sitting up and yawning.
He was proud of her. He'd not seen her fight like that in the woods; though he hadn't really instructed her before. Either way, she seemed more comfortable out here, even if the ravine was one of death. He just wished he'd spent more time helping his siblings rather than going on his own excursions. 
"What now?" He gave the reins for her. Perhaps she had another situation in mind or she might be too tired. It was probably past the middle of the night.

smile breaks out across her muzzle, and she steps back a little proudly. her parents are fighters, and it is natural that she should have some skill, too.

moonshine wants to greet his "what now" with a suggestion that they go back to sleep. a yawn slips out shortly after his, but the wind that blows through the ravine a moment later, whistling oddly through the stone and bone, has her reconsider. "what happens after death?" she wonders aloud, not trusting her brother will have the answers but hoping to air her worries. surrounded by so much of it, she can't help but wonder.

His brows raised. It was almost the question he'd asked Maegi.
He smiled softly, like she did.
"Maegi said that our souls go to the Void and Peryite eats out bodies. She told me to have my own ideas though, and I think Sithis eats souls and that's why we die."

He watched his sister, wondering what she thought of what he said. Of course, he believed it completely. He felt the Daedra and Maegi was like them, he thought. 
"Why?" Was it just the situation, the ravine or all, or was she thinking of Star? Surely his brother was not dead.

she knew the factual ideals of death - the way the bodies cooled, decomposed. the way life - whatever that was - left the body. she did not know if she believed what her brother told her, but she knew she didn't like his idea, the helpless, single path that came after death. 

"maybe some souls get away. like how prey sometimes does. maybe, they come back here." she thinks it would be a terrible fate - either eaten, or made to drift around, without a body, in this world. what does a soul look like? to his question, she offers a small shrug, unable and unwilling to explain her reasoning exactly.

Her idea seemed good enough. He hadn't seen a ghost or a soul; not yet at least.
He was sure Maegi had though, so they were probably real and Shine was probably right.
"Yah. Hey! we should look for some!" He grinned, wondering if she'd take u on his offer of ghost hunting. 
Probably not though, she was scared enough here.

He looked to Moonshadow and remembered that they couldn't go anywhere now.
"Perhaps tomorrow while we travel." He thought that probably many wolves died on mountains. So, surely there would be too many souls for Sithis to capture.

"maybe tomorrow," she suggests, wondering if the ghosts even wanted to be found. but attempting to do so in the light seemed better than now. steps soft on the stone, she returns to where she'd lain previously, glancing back to her brother and hoping he would follow. "do you know any good stories?" she asked, not wanting to wake their mother for one but knowing sleep would come easier if she could lose herself within one.

He nodded, confirming their arrangement. It would lighten his spirits a bit. Doing something he'd usually do at home.

He followed her, this time laying close to her and not Moonshadow. She was an adult and didn't really need protecting from ghosts and such.
"I can make one."
He thought for a moment. Not a scary one, she was already terrified.

He thought of the lands they'd seen. It was pretty, he guessed. And so he started.
"There was once a brave explorer that went and climbed a big mountain with snow," shed told him about when she and Mother went of a trip, "but she found something magical. She found a tiny cave and she went inside. Inside, there was a cavern full of blue and green stones and a pool of magical water that could heal anything." He wasn't sure where the story was going, but he was trying his best.

"But then she heard sounds behind her. She'd been followed by some big mean wolves who wanted to destroy the cave. The explorer was smart and she outsmarted the big bad wolves and saved the magical cave. After, the cave gave her magic powers that made her live forever."
Ok, big dumb story. But he wanted to make his sister feel even more excited about exploring and now she could totally fight! He grinned at her, hoping she liked it.

his voice and presence were calming, familiar, and she allowed exhaustion to take hold. she was listening and would see parts of the story he told with sharp clarity. but sleep came quickly, and before she knew it, his story had finished. blinking at him, she offered a grateful smile before shuttering her eyes shut again, drifting off to sleep.