Haunted Wood be strong sweet little one

hoping for a 1:1 thread for ves and @Blueberry!

assuming at this point, they are members of the caldera; but keeping it vague in case the thread does a 180.

her (perhaps unwarranted) loyalty to mou and maegi was rewarded with some trust in her, at least— as she entered adolescence and independence became more important to her, the adults allowed her freedom to roam nearby territories without supervision. they were only a howl away, and despite everything, they knew she would return. and so, ever the dutiful daughter, she informed them that she was going out and she'd be back before dark.

exasperated sigh. roll of the eyes.

the only downside of not being in the midst of a fucked up situation, surrounded by fucked up family, was that she had the space to really think about it. vesper dealt with her aggression through hunting small prey and picking fights with smaller creatures she knew she could ultimately take, but that could also rough her up a little bit. it felt cathartic, in a way, to release her pain on something else that was alive. and to feel pain on the outside instead of deep on the inside where it made no sense.

now, she lay under the canopy of the haunted wood, licking blood from a small scrape on her muzzle. a tussle with a wolverine gone awry, both of them deciding a fight to the death wasn't worth the energy, and vesper thought it likely the creature was licking wounds of its own. but she hadn't wanted sustenance, only for the tension in her body to be released, and so she had gotten what she had been after.

she would feel the bruises tomorrow.

She knew she probably wasn't supposed to, but she followed Vesper from the territory—albeit at a distance. And the distance grew with time, for her still-growing legs weren't enough to keep up with her older sister's more developed frame. Blueberry was panting as she reached the edge of the forest, and she gave a little whine as she approached.

Hey, she said, her tone caught between sullen and shy. Without preamble, she settled next to Vesper with a deep sigh, ribs rising and falling with great (if feigned) drama. 

Hey, she repeated in a different tone, squinting at her sister's face, you're hurt. What happened? Her own face, normally slack and disinterested, furrowed in worry. She hadn't seen the altercation, and so she assumed the worst.

she should have anticipated that blue would follow her. vesper's heart leapt to her throat as she heard her sister's soft, shy voice— orange eyes snapping to her pale face as she settled in with a heavy sigh. had blueberry seen the altercation with the wolverine...? surely not, or she would have leapt in at the time. something vesper never would have forgiven herself for, because the goal of these activities was only to put herself (and her targets) in harms way; no one else. she gave an exhale of relief as blue's next words confirmed she hadn't seen.

i'm okay, vesper assured her sister, sweeping her tongue over blue's worried brow to comfort her. wrong side of a wolverine, she explained in as few words as possible. her sister could fill in the rest— vesper was here, the only visible injury on her muzzle, and the wolverine was not. you shouldn't have followed, she wanted to say. or, it's not safe for you out here. but she remained silent, jaw tight. vesper figured they were both sick to death of being told what to do. of having no agency of their own.

eager to turn the conversation away from herself, she noted with compassion in her voice, that was a big sigh, boo. an invitation for her little sister to speak what was on her mind, whatever it was, now that they were finally out from under the gaze of their family. she still wished she could protect her pale sister from all of this, but she promised herself now that she would no longer dance away from the subject. vesper knew what it was to be stifled, and she didn't want that for boo— who, of them all, was the most innocent.

She didn't know quite what a wolverine was, but it sounded similar to "wolf," and her upper lip curled back in thinking that her sister had befallen some foe. Nevertheless, Vesper was here and safe, if bleeding, and Blueberry merely nodded, finding no input to add to this scenario.

Of course, then Vesper weighed in on her own mindset. Another deep sigh, then. . . I hate it here, she admitted, voice dull. I hate everything. Mom just lays around all day, dad doesn't talk much, and I don't know anybody else here besides them and you.

And Peregrine, sure. . .but she'd never been close to her older brother, and he'd been withdrawn, anyway. 

I wanna go back to the island, Blueberry added. She grew somewhat wistful at the thought. It was pretty, and everyone was happy.

Instead, their parents had dragged them here, and there was apparently no going back.

their island was slowly turning into a mythical place to vesper, like it had never been real at all— it felt like a lifetime ago that they had turned to say goodbye to it, and she could feel her intimate memory of it fading. what she could still remember was bright and happy, a stark contrast to their lives now. peregrine and prevost rough-housing. father bringing meat to the den for them all to share. teaching blueberry to run. mother's milk.

a month ago, the darkling might have found plenty of encouraging words and thoughts to share with her sister, but now... all she could muster was: me, too.

Actually, it was good that her sister didn't give her some shlocky spiel or words of wisdom. She wasn't in the mood for it. At the agreement, she felt a little better, and nestled closer to Vesper with another sigh—this one a little less heavy.

We should start our own pack, Blue said, a wry chuckle escaping her maw. But she was only half-joking. Things would be better with just the two of them, and maybe a select few others.

She glanced around, taking in the dimly-lit surroundings. Maybe not here. But somewhere.

The island. But right now, it seemed like the moon would be easier to reach than their birthplace.

back on the island, vesper said immediately, seriously— but when the gut reaction faded, she flattened her ears in disappointment. it would be a long time before either of them were ready to lead a back, and they both knew an elongated disappearing act of either of them would not be tolerated by the adults in their lives. if they hadn't a choice in coming here, escape was surely impossible.

it was the darkling's turn to sigh, now.

i think... things are going to keep changing, vesper finally told her, bitter. she couldn't bring herself to sugarcoat or find the bright side of these familial situations anymore. she didn't know what it meant for the two of them, but the darkling knew that if she was brought to phox's home— it was because she was expected to form a relationship with him, and in order to do that, she would have to distance herself from her adoptive family. or so her teenage mind believed.

over my dead body. that sentiment hadn't stopped them from forcing her away from her birthplace. how could she hope it would stop them from leaving her behind at the caldera, too, and taking blueberry with them?

but this next statement she believed with her whole heart: you'll be okay, boo.

Yes! she exclaimed, latching onto Vesper's idea. But when her sister backtracked, she, too, looked cowed. They were fools were thinking of anything else. Their lives were ruled by their elders; it would be forever before they could determine their own fate.

Her momentary hope faded, and her shoulders sagged, even as the other wolf offered soothing words.

I dunno, she mumbled, shaking her head. I mean, yeah. But. I hate it here. Everything sucks.

She hated to be so negative. She remembered a time where she wasn't so negative. She flattened out with a sigh, forelegs stretching out, nose laid upon her lanky ivory limbs in defeat. Love you, Ves, Blueberry replied, deep-set eyes rolling up to meet her sister's gaze.

vesper planted a gentle kiss upon her sister's forehead as the pale child flattened to the earth, and the darkling settled in beside her protectively. i love you, too, boo. there was nothing more for either of them to say, but for now it was enough to be away from the caldera, together. a moment and place just for themselves, even if they would need to return before the sank too low on the horizon. at least they would be together.