Dragoncrest Cliffs came home to a burnt out room
352 Posts
Ooc — Talamasca
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#1
All Welcome 
Indra hadn't returned to the altar since her prayer had been interrupted. She was cagey at the best of times; avoidant in the daylight hours, especially of the adults, and crept across the cliffs at night.

She'd tried not to think of the raven who had spoken to her, or the bear, but not thinking about something with that much intent only made the opposite happen. The girl had begun to have worsening nightmares.

Down in a black pit, some nights.

More recently she'd woken up from a running dream where the stars snuffed out, one by one, as she'd reach the edge and begin to scratch and climb the walls; legs churning so hard that she'd kicked herself awake, irritating the scabbed wounds to her legs.

So, she roamed, wired by fear and unsure of where (or to whom) to turn.
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Ooc — ebony
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#2
the girl indra was unwell.
erzulie had not pressed an approach. she had only watched, and what she saw was a soul very deeply troubled. indra had come from ursus, and there was only one other who had mentioned the name to her.
today her two-toned eyes watched indra wander, her young body tense. "come wit me," she called, tail raised in some small authority. "i need help in de tangle."
she would make up some task or another. for now she smiled encouragingly and waited.
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Ooc — Talamasca
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#3
Indra was too distracted by her internalization of events to pay much attention to faces when she passed them, only speeding up if she thought she caught the eye of a Sapphic native; but when she heard the voice of an older woman she was jolted.

She looked carefully at them, expecting the angry lady, and saw the lightly smiling Erzulie instead. The woman held an authoritative pose as she issued an order. This tugged at familiar strings still proverbially wrapped around Indra's puppet limbs.

The girl acknowledged with a slight nod, her brow creasing; but she then moved to follow carefully behind Erzulie, as she might have followed Merrick or Arielle.
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Ooc — ebony
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#4
indra followed. "dere be a plant dat grows in de weeds an de t'orns. purple wid yellow leaves. have you see any'ting like it?" she asked, falling back alongside the girl. subordinate she might be, omega she was not. someone had taught her to walk so deferentially.
she did not expect words. she had enough of her own to fill the space. "after dat i may take you to de beach. it is important dat everyone in sapphique knows how to swim. de ocean be takin' wolves same as anyone else."
the morass loomed ahead. erzulie glanced at indra and slipped into the briars.
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Ooc — Talamasca
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#5
The woman explained what she was after and described a flower of some kind. Indra listened until she saw the way they dropped back, walking alongside her, and at that point she averted her gaze. Erzulie had not shown herself to be aggressive; Indra was always watching, though, and nervous.

The lady went on to say something about the beach, giving Indra space again. It only occurred to her later that Indra hadn't answered the question - so was the woman angry? Or maybe frustrated after asking for help from such a useless girl. Her pace slowed and she began to listlessly peer upon patches of grass, shadow, and sand, at least to emulate interest.
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Ooc — ebony
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the girl did not answer but began to look around. 
there was unfortunately no such plant. erzulie had made it up, to keep indra close long enough for observation. if it was a sin she believed it to be a small one. the girl was clearly traumatized and hardly verbal; her skittish energy was enough to lift erzulie's own hackles from time to time.
she settled a little ways away, searching between the thorny vines for the leaves she would not see. no plant, but a ripe and shaded bunch of blackberries.
these she un-notched and set down near indra. erzulie turned back to her looking. "you can eat t'ose, if you want."
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#7
She didn't look around for long before becoming disheartened. There was nothing here that resembled what the woman had asked for! She saw some greenery but it wasn't the right shape, or flowers that were the wrong color, and quickly lost interest as her mind began to spiral.

Of course you can't find it. Chastised a malevolent voice in the back of her mind. I bet she lied. She wanted to get you away from everyone else. You're unworthy of being here. Her features set in to a grimace, and when Erzulie returned, Indra made sure to look away so that she did not betray herself.

You can eat t'ose, if you want— there was a pile of berries at her feet.

Indra was surprised by this tiny act of charity. She knew not to trust it as pure kindness, though; the woman was only trying to repay her for the hunt, and she didn't deserve to eat anything given that she'd failed. The girl turned from the berries.

A moment later, realizing how rude it was to dismiss the notion, she murmured: thanks... i'm not hungry. Then, clamping her mouth shut again, she feigned searching again.
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Ooc — ebony
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#8
the girl did not touch the offering. erzulie was not offended. indra went back to searching. the obisidian paused to eat another share of berries. "come on," she told the girl. "we will go deeper into de tangle."
here light was scarce, and would only grow moreso as they went. the woman paced lightly, steps knowing the earth even as the sun went away. here the earth was lit up with bits of mica. she looked at each.