Welcome to Gaia! ::

There was no doubting that this conversation would come. It was only a matter of time, and unfortunately for Jerarda, that time wouldn't come for many, many days. Which gave Phenyo time to stew; any moment that her brain wasn't occupied by the trip, the new land, or the new people...she was thinking about Jera, and what her head had come to call "The Great Betrayal".

There was finally a moment of quiet. Everyone had settled, most were getting ready for bed, and the moon was high behind clouds and the giant mountainous formations of Sauti. Phenyo was coming off her turn at watch, passing it off to one of their sisters...and she saw the opportunity to corner Jera with this discussion. She'd keep her bow and quiver handy - no telling what was out there yet - and made sure her carving knife was still safely tucked away as well when she went off to find Jerarda.

It wouldn't matter to Phen what Jera was doing. If she was asleep, Phen would wake her. If she was with the half-breed, Phen would drag her somewhere else. This was too important for anything else to get in their way.

If Jera had looked like a woman possessed...Phen was a living demon. Her dark eyes were burning embers, and while her mouth had started as a thin line, it curled into a snarl when her Sister spoke to her.

"How dare you?" she hissed, hunched in the dark. There were more words that she'd planned on saying, but seeing Jerarda now made her stop and rethink. She'd forgotten; like a Radaku pup, it'd been too long and Jera had completely forgotten the transgression. It made Phenyo sick, her entire stomach flipping.

"You're horrible, Jera. You go off on one of your crazy adventures...without me." Oh, that'd definitely been louder than she wanted it to be. Phen paused, finding her composure again. "Without me, and when I finally find you...you don't show a shred of regret.

"No, rather, you've replaced me...with a half-breed!" She didn't hate Rishima, really; she didn't care about his heritage, and he was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. Had it been anyone else, Phenyo would have picked on them for whatever made them not her.

"And now you've forgotten the very fact you hurt me in the first place."

"That's a lie, and you know it," Phenyo shot back immediately when Jera claimed she wouldn't want to go, pointing an accusing finger. When had there ever, ever, in their friendship been somewhere that Jera went and Phen didn't want to go?

And, for the record, talking Jera out of dangerous situations didn't count. Those had been legitimate 'if we go this way, we shall end up hurt or worse' moments that no one in their right mind should have undertaken. Thusly, those were not labeled as 'places Jera wants to go and Phen doesn't'.

It was while Jera talked, making excuses with this reason or that reason, that Phenyo's anger finally dissipated...only to be replaced with a saddening realization. Ok, Phen hadn't really expected Jera to apologize for leaving...but she had thought she'd be sorry for hurting her feelings and making her feel this way. Yet she wasn't - there was absolutely no remorse in her friend's eyes, and that hurt worst of all.

The fire left Phen's gaze, and her shoulders and antenna slumped. Jer was the only one to ever get this much of a reaction out of Phen...she always would, no matter what their relationship turned into in the future.

"You're so selfish, Jerarda," Phen stated, her voice no longer biting. She was just going to skip all the stuff about Rishima...because really, this wasn't about him. "Do you even realize how much it hurt to know you'd forgotten me?"

Phenyo held up a hand, stopping the protest she knew would be coming to that statement. "Don't...you know that I know you forgot me. In a moment of anger and passion, you did, and I could forgive you all of that...if you were sorry for hurting my feelings."

"You can, and you did," Phen muttered under Jera's statements, arms crossed over her chest in a protective and defensive matter. "And that's why it hurts so much."

Jerarda, sadly, was right; Phen had dealt with her and put up with her for all these years, but never had one of Jera's actions affected Phenyo so deeply. They've gotten into squabbles and disagreements, as all friends do...but this just felt different. Maybe because now Phenyo knew she cared much more deeply for her Sister than just as a 'friend'? It was the only thing different. Sighing, she rubbed a hand against her temple...why did things have to be different?

"I don't want your pride in me, Jera...I want an apology," she said very seriously, but at the same time it was that tired tone of acceptance. It wasn't happening, she knew, but at least she was going to make her wants clear.

There was a pause as Phenyo pushed everything into her mind, squashing her feelings and her anger and her hurt until another point where she could properly deal with them later. The look on her face wasn't completely emotionless - she was still displeased, but it was much less obvious and more hidden behind an empty stare.

"Yeah. Sure," she said, her voice flat.

Grabbing her practice bow, she turned to Jerarda expectantly. Her Sister always picked the direction and always lead them on the next great adventure; even if she wasn't really feeling up to it, even if Jera didn't deserve Phen's friendship right now...she wasn't going to abandon her.

There was no change in Phen's face as she followed, obediently, along behind Jera. Still so unsure of what to expect in these lands, she would take one arrow and hold it at half-ready on the string of her bow, keeping intense focus on their surroundings. The last thing she needed was for something to come out and surprise them.

There was nothing for her to say right now, but that wasn't entirely uncommon, was it? Phenyo was often more focused on what was going on around them, and whenever she did speak it was more so to point out things in Jera's way; branches that could smack her in the face, rocks where she may stub her toe or slip and fall. She was the look-out, it was her duty.

Right now, however, she was not so spot-on. Well, she was...she just wasn't going to mention them tonight. Let Jerarda see how much trouble she'd get herself into without Phenyo to be her eyes.

Here's the deal: as much as Phenyo was enjoying watching Jera stumble, there was also a side of her that felt completely guilty. Jerarda was her best friend, the most important person in her life, and here she was being bitter and spiteful. Especially when Jera got so pouty - which was adorable, by the way, but not in the more exciting way because she was just so sad.

As Jerarda jumped up into the boulder, Phenyo just plain kicked herself. It wasn't right for her to make her Sister suffer. So when she climbed up onto the boulder with Jera, she'd almost be back to normal. Once she'd settled into her place at Jer's side, Phen would nudge her elbow into her Sister's arm.

"It's not like they're not out there," she offered. "They're obviously just not much for the night." Yeah, right, like she actually know anything about these new people. "I'm sure we'll have the time to go on a hunt for them tomorrow."

"Exactly," Phenyo responded, swaying playfully after the hit to her shoulder. She was glad she had a tough skin - any lesser woman would be black and blue from all the 'abuse' one got by being Jerarda's friend. "Especially you. 'Oh goddess!' - or whatever they worship here - 'we are doomed! Ahhh!' Her hands went into the air, feigning fear and shaking before just chuckling quietly.

The little dots of excitement spotted over Phenyo's skin as Jera touched her hair, and Phen had to rub her arms to attempt and hide them as her friend shifted about to sit behind her. The act was comforting on so many levels - but ever since her realization, Phenyo was almost afraid of it. It took every fiber in her being to keep from...responding poorly.

"I know," she responded to the question, her voice equally sober as she played with the wooden bracelet around her wrist. "And you're mine, Jera..." It was like she wanted to say more there. Which Phen did...but that wasn't something she was going to share with Jerarda just yet.