Ravensblood Forest you're by my side, but are you still with me?

merrick did not love caiaphas, and in the days to come, he would realize that he truly only needed astara. she had made of the boy something warmer than his cold flesh, however; caiaphas had presented herself in a motherly way that looked past the handsome charm merrick had cultivated to the monster serpent fitting to burst his skin.
and she had not blinked.
and astara had not blinked.
they must be kept close then, the both of them; to be seen and not abandoned served merrick in a way undescribable. he set off along the trail, inviting the blackbird close with a grin.