|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 Posted: Mon Apr 17, 2017 10:36 pm
 |
|
|
 |
The tension that had been building in Starling's body eased. "Thank you." Still somewhat of a whisper, but Starling's voice had lost the harsh tone it had before. She gently pressed her forehead against her sister's in a show of affection, eyes closed, and pulled away again after a few moments of silence. "Half a day's flight," she agreed, knowing pushing for more would just raise Nightingale's hackles again. "We'll be fine. There's plenty of water, fish in the river, and I can leave for a short time to hunt if I need to. The trees will offer us shelter. If I truly think my life is in danger, I won't stay. And yes," she added, when she saw her sister open her mouth to interject, "I will make frequent patrols of the area to make sure we're safe."
They didn't talk for much longer -- Starling didn't want to leave the little wolf alone to fret over his soquili, and she wanted to make sure the paste on the mare's injuries was doing its job. Plus, the sooner Nightingale left, the sooner they could get a unicorn here to help. With any luck, they would be back by nightfall at the latest. Once they said their goodbyes -- with a final push from Starling, Nightingale was taking to the skies.
When Starling returned to the wolf, she smiled softly at him before focusing on the downed mare. "My name is Starling, by the way. My sister is Nightingale. She can be... a little over protective, at times, but she's not heartless. May I ask your name? And... how this happened?"
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Mon Apr 17, 2017 10:55 pm
|
|
|
|
Truthfully, Hródolf hadn't been paying much attention to the sisters' little spat. He was hyper-focused fully on Nymphalidae, watching her body expand with each intake of breath, making sure it continued doing so. Knowing his bonded, he couldn't help but worry Nymphalidae would never forgive him for what he'd done. Would she even care to listen to what he had to say, or just kill him outright? He had been so lost in his own thoughts that he startled when Starling spoke to him, looking up at her in surprise when she introduced herself. Ah, that's right -- he hadn't even asked their names yet, had he? "I'm -- I'm Hródolf. My mistress' name is Nymphalidae." He was uncomfortable to say more, not wanting to admit to his faults aloud -- especially not to a stranger -- but said stranger was taking the time to take care of Nymphalidae's injuries, so perhaps it was the least he could do. He could just -- omit some of the details, right?
"She, um... she had a foal taken from her. Still in their basket. A kalona wanted it, because the father is a demon, and he wanted to see if it would have any special powers because of that... to use to his advantage. She trusted him because she thought he wanted to be with her, but he didn't. She tried to protect her foal and lost. We fell," he said, looking further down the river to the higher cliffs on the canyon. "And we hit the water. She threw up a little water when I pulled her out, but I think she passed out right after that, when I went to get help."
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Apr 18, 2017 12:25 am
|
|
|
|
Hródolf looked down at himself. No, he'd been much luckier than his mistress had fared. His fight with Malphas was short lived -- the bat stood no chance against a wolf -- and even his brief contact with Asmodeus had hardly left any damage. Most of the blood came from the back of his neck, and his shoulder hurt, but otherwise he'd only come away with a few other scrapes and bruises. "Some of it was from the fall. Asmodeus' familiar tried to attack me to keep me away from helping my mistress, but I threw her off... she was just a bat. Asmodeus only tangled with me long enough to throw me over the edge. I tried to stop him... but he's a purebred kalona, and he's extremely powerful... huge... there wasn't anything I could do. There's kalona blood in Nymphalidae, and she's really strong," his voice grew stronger at that, subconsciously wanting to make it known that his mistress was not a mare to take lightly. "But compared to Asmodeus... it was stupid for us to fight him. Maybe if we'd just let him go, we'd be okay." But then he would have had to go back to Asmodeus, and after realizing it was Nymphalidae who he was supposed to be with... could he have done that?
No, he thought, staring at Nymphalidae. I would never leave her side.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Apr 18, 2017 1:03 am
|
|
|
|
Facing Asmodeus again? The thought sent a chill through Hródolf's body. If they went after him, they certainly couldn't do it on their own. But if that's what she wanted to do... Hródolf knew he would go with her. He could only hope she would listen to his advice, if she ended up forgiving him. He glanced at Starling out of the corner of his eye, thoughtful. Somehow, it felt... comfortable to talk to her. Her presence put him at ease, and her voice was soothing. She wasn't a spitfire like Nymphalidae was. Maybe it would be okay to confide in her the whole truth; she might even be able to offer some advice. Hródolf had done many terrible things while he had been a servant of Asmodeus, but none of them had affected him until now. Perhaps it was because none of the other soquili he'd harmed were bonded to him. Hródolf took a deep, steadying breath before he leveled his eyes with Starling again.
"I haven't been entirely truthful. I-I mean," he hastened to add, realizing the way that had sounded, "everything I've said has been the truth! But I... left out some things. I used to... work for Asmodeus. When he met Nymphalidae, he presented me to her as a gift... but my job was to be a spy... to keep track of her," he said, swallowing when his voice became too thick with emotion to continue. "I didn't know she was my bonded. Not right away. But even when I did... I knew he was going to betray her, and I didn't say anything." His ears pressed back against his head, the guilt he felt clear on his face, voice heavy with it. "I was too cowardly. I warned Nymphalidae when it was too late, when Asmodeus was already there."
Oh, Gods. He was crying. He really was weak.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Apr 18, 2017 2:15 am
|
|
|
|
Maybe her sister had been right. Maybe they shouldn't have involved themselves after all.
Starling tried her best to keep her face neutral while Hródolf spoke, but when the tears started, she couldn't help feeling the tug on her heartstrings, despite the unease she felt in learning that Hródolf had been a servant of the kalona. Did he deserve a second chance? If Starling had a familiar that had done that to her, how would she had reacted? She would be angry, yes. She'd have the right to be angry. Especially if the result had ended up losing a foal! But as an outsider to this situation, it was easier to step back and take a look at the whole picture. She had to consider Hródolf's side, too. Starling imagined being in his position -- a wolf under the servitude of a large, powerful kalona, who seemed to have violent tendencies. Learning that your bonded was a soquili you were meant to spy on and ultimately betray -- a soquili that was strong in her own ways.
Both soquili could easily kill him for his betrayal. The betrayal was unavoidable -- it was going to happen to someone -- but the choice Hródolf had was who, exactly, he should turn on. Starling didn't know what kind of temperament Nymphalidae had, so she couldn't take that into account. She could, however, see Hródolf's predicament. It had been a lose/lose situation for him, and in either case could have lost him his life.
"I'm afraid I don't have any words of wisdom to ease your pain, but I acknowledge the difficult position you had been in. While it doesn't excuse what you did, the choices you made could have cost your life. I don't think that fact is something to be taken lightly. I don't know any of you well enough to say much more. Because of what happened, your bonded lost her foal. This is also a fact. If you really care for her and want to continue to be in her life, you will likely have to fight very hard for it."
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Posted: Tue Apr 18, 2017 2:36 am
|
|
|
|
Starling narrowed her eyes, frowning at Hródolf's sudden, passionate outburst. The words just sounded -- wrong. How long had he been with Asmodeus? What did that kalona do to him? She ducked her head slightly to catch Hródolf's eye, bringing his attention back to her. "That's... you know that being a familiar bonded to a soquili isn't about what you can do for them, right? It isn't a relationship of servitude. Your souls are connected in a way we mortals could never begin to understand. It's a bond deeper than even that of family. You're equals -- in every way. You fill in each other's blanks. You shouldn't only be there just for her -- she should be there for you, too. Yes, you will have to build up that trust again, but if you regain it, you aren't just some..." she faltered, searching for words. "Slave. It should be enough to be yourself."
At least, that's what she believed. She longed to find a familiar of her own, but knew it would happen when it happened. Starling would just have to be patient until then, and she could only presume to guess what it was like. Still -- she knew enough that it shouldn't be like this, right?
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
