Welcome to Gaia! ::

"Very cute." Vilkas only muttered while watchingn the wolf pups jump and lightly n** at each other. Though he could already tell by looking at Farkas his brother wanted to keep the pups, he always had such a big heart. Damn it all Farkas was evengiving him the puppy eyes begging ot keep them!
"Four of us and four pups, one for each of us." Aela commented while crouthcing down to the little auborn one that lighlty licked her fingers. The little wolves peicring yellow eyes were like gold coins. "there small though, for Dire Wolves anyway, not even three months old by the looks of it. Except maybe that one." She titled her head towards the large grey one that seemed to have taken a liking to Zev.
The slighlty larger white wolf had hurdled itself at Farkas and stood on it's hidn legs as if it wnated to play, seemignly oblvious to the possible danger they all posed. The little thing kept jumping up as if it wanted to be picked up while it's slighlty smaller sibling hung back cautiously. "Don't bite me I alreayd got hit once today." Farkas told the wolf who happily likced his hand and bounced around happily.
"It's almost like a twin of you dear brother." Vilkas wathced the bouncing little white puff ball and than at the last one that was giving him an equal suspicious look. "And os are you." He looked at the seemingly smallest of the pups who carfully wlaked up to him, sniffed and than licked his hand.

Being told how Cicero had appanrtly snapped and than being informed SHE would be dealign wiht it, well put Sonja in a VERY bad mood. She was gong threw Ciceor's journels hoping to find somehting, anything, as to were he might have fled. She had five journles to go through and sadly not even a clue as to where she was supposed to go ethier.
Glancing and glazing over the passages well, she started fallwoign his tragic fall into insanity allbecause he had been loyal to the Night Motehr and Sithis, but also because he had been alone for so long. "Lonelieness destoryed you didn't?" She asked the air around her while going over the fianl volume and still fidning nothing.
Astrid had admitted to having possibly driven the Fool over the edge with her constt comments of how the Night Moter and her Listener were just jokes nothing more. Sonja found it harder to belive it took this long for Cciero to fianlly snap and attmept to kill Astrid. "You were patient as hell I'll give you that much Sir Fool."
Dawnstar Sancrtuary. Silance My Brother that was all she needed.
Out by the pool Astrid said was were she would find her horse Shadowmere. Though when she exited and stood out in the dark moon filled night the pool outside looked .. very different. The water was blacker than she remebered and bubbling.
In a sudden eruption of water and balckness the nightmare stead appeared. In all hoensty she was a beautfiul horse blacker than night, with an alluring shade of purple and red glowign eyes. Her mane and tail swirled with an unnatural movments like an unseen wind as the horse looked at her fuly knowing.
"Get me to Dawnstar before our dear dark werewolf brother dies?" She asked the horse while lighlty takign the reings and hoisting herself up onto it's back. The horse gave an acknoldeged snort before suddnely tkaign off at full speed.

"So we get to keep them than?" Farkas asked looking at his brother, looing all to much like the pleading puppy at his side, and Vilkas could only sigh while iwnalryd caving.
"Yes we keep them brother. Just hope they don't eat us out of house and home." Vilkas knelt down next to the white one in front of him and picked it up by the scruff of it's neck. It gave a small whine while it's little tail wagged as Vilkas carefully placed the pup in his arms to carry.
"Consdier this a good sighn, given what's happened." Aela picked the little female up who happily wagged her tail while trying to lighlty paw at her face.
Back at camp the pups were nestled with their perspective owners yet leapign aorudn to meet everyoen and everything they could get into. Vilkas had ot shove Bane off him more than a few times as the large grey wolf was far to interested in his dinner, even after he had got some from both Zev and Farkas. His own wolf, seemingly the run and oddly seemed fitting in some sad way, had climbed up on his back and was danging off his shoulder as if wanting to see what Vilkas was eating. "Off with you." He gently placed the pup back on the ground next to him which it gave a pitiful whine only to climb into his lap.
"And you say your bad with animals Vilkas." Farkas commented next to him while his own little white ball of fluff crawled over his lap and than patriclaly into Vilkas's to get next ot it's own twin.

Shadowmere had run faster than any beast Sonja had encoutnered and she had been able to fallow the sent bette than any hound Sonja had met as well. Dawnstar, the coldest and possilbe one of the most miserable holds in Skyrim, Winterhold was a close second if not the first. The snows were never ending along wth the freezing winds.
She had found Arbjone outside the Black Door of the old Sanctuary. Yes he was even worse than Veezara had been, which made Sonja wonder how well she would handle Ciceor in her wounded and weakend state.
Once inside well, it wad dark, eerie and cold. Every sound was amplified by a houndred it seemed every whisper of air like a howl. Every small click of her boots on the cold black floor a eruption of rock. She could barely see and trying ot keep her breath even despite her injuries well was difficult. she was convinced Ciceor had to hear her breathing, wherever he was in this place.
The ghoslty gaurdiens though, did not seem to care of her eligide rank and came after her over and over again forcing her to expell them.
She couldn't tell where Ciceor was though, behind her, always makign her turn around, in fornt of her she coudlnt' tell he was everywhere it seemed. Her sdides sitll ached and were pained as she held it while pulling herself threw a shattered hodl in the wall into a grozen snowy tunnel.
'Send the best to defeat the best huh? Like I'm going to be able to do much to you looking like this.' She thaught as his words and voice eachoed all around her.

Sonja couldn't stop the startle shriek that came out of her suddnely beign grabbed. She thrashed only to feel her dagger hand gripped and suddnely losing her weapon. The sudden hard pressure on her thraot made her cuahgt and gag but sadly didn't hault her thrashing in the least. 'Damnit!' Was the only thing that screamed threw her mind. It was dark the dyign fire the only source of light as she thrashed depsite feeling her inhaling gettign harder.
'Don't underestimate Cciero. A man like that small and foolish is easy to mock. to underestimate.' Veezara's words range in her head loudly but Ciceor's vocie cut threw her panic like a knife in the dark. He was strogner than she was, faster than she was and she was his prey no matter how much she hated it. His grip was like the beign trapped in the jaws of a saber cat and it hurt almost as much as he was gripping a painful gash on her arm. She feebly kicked backwards hopign to hit him but it was like he felt none of it, chances were that was the case. "Get off!" She forced out while while stuggling to breaht depsite his firm hold on her.

"Big." Vilkas pulled what little of his dinner was left away form the now prayign mouth of his wolf pup, who had already had a sizable portion. "As big as a horse in some cases." His wolf made a pathetic little whine at bieng denied and pulled itself away from its twint o stnad on it's bakc legs, fornt on Vilkas's chest and whined some more. Vilkas wathced the scawny little puff of fur and sihged before giving what he had left to it. "Don't chocke." He said as it swallowed the meat whole.
"We can take them with us when they get bigger." Farkas held his own up when it tried climbign after it's smaller twin only to get a playful n** on the nose form it. The pup simply wagged it's tail happly as Farkas placed him back down in his lap again. "Yours looks like it needs to eat more Vilkas. It's scrawnier than you are."
Aela gave a snort of laughter at that and kept it up depsite the glare Vilkas shot her. "Vilkas, yours is to small it needs to eat. Freezign to deaht will be the least of it's problems."

The pressure on her throat was making it harder to breath, but than again that had been his point. Her vision wasn't fading in and out as badly but he wasn't releasing her. "Your making it very hard for me to see your side! Considering your the one who'd nearly chocking me!" She spat out angelry, though perhapes angering him wasn't a smart move. Sithis damn him! She couldn't even find enough freedom to even TRY moving her wrist. Kicking him had no effect whatsoever so she was forced to more or less cease her pitiful attempts. She hated being described as an errand runner. She was no one's errand girl! No one's lap dog to be used whenever they wished!
And she certianly wasn't Astrid's etheir!
She wanted to throttle him for daring to even restrain her like this! Her blood demanded that she tear his beating heart form his chest and send his soul to Sithis! "I am no one's errand girl!" She hissed out her voice dropping to a such a cold and hateful hiss that she barely reconsized it as her own. "Least of all yours or Astrid's!" She felt it building up inside of her the compulsive want and need to remidn him of all people Him the Keeper that she was His Mistress! The Keeper serves the Listener not the other way around.
Her blood surged and demanded to remind him who he dared speak to! 'You want the Void so baldy I'll send you there persoanlly!' A part of her she didn't reconzied roared in a dark voice.

"That'll be a few months." Vilkas wathced as his pup squirmed eagrly around in his lap after finding there was no more food and began making little yips. It's slighlty larger twin suddnely was in Vilkas's lap giving it's amller brother light nips on the ears and nudging him consalty. Vilkas sighed realziing he was probalby about to become the two wolf pups favorite lap to sit on.
"Think yours is sick?" Farkas asked and sensing his brother's slight destress pulled his wolf out of his own twin's lap. The smaller pup suddenly yipped in sudden disconfort and proably leaped straight into Farkas's lap. "Or looking for free hand outs. Can't tell." Farkas watched as the two white puffs of fur decided his lap was their new spot.
Aela didn't seem to be having such problems as her wolf pup simply curled up in her lap and seemed more than content there. It's gold eyes wathced the odd behavior of her brothers and seemed somewhat amused by it all. Her own scruffy tail wagged lightly whenever she had Aela's hand on her and gave a small growl whenever it was remvoed. "Course naming them is now an issue. I don't think we can get by calling them pups or wolves. Well maybe Farkas can."
"Hey!" Farkas shot with some indignation. He wans't going to name is wolf 'Pup' or 'Wolf'! That was just silly and dumb.

Trying to reign her furry in to actually think her situation threw very carefully, well she struggled alittle with it. Feeling his hold on her neck loosen just alittle made her tense slightly less, slighlty. "Your telling me Sithis decided to have a dragon become his listener and bring the Dark Brotherhood out of it's pathetic current exsistence?" She laughed despite the whole situation. "If that's the case he has a grand sense of humor." ******** hell she was a Dragon for Divien's sake it was laughable! 'Savign the world and I"m the leader of the most ancient cult of assassins. Sithis you are a mastermind!' She hoenlsty coudnt stop herself from lightly laughing, much how like Ciceor himself acted normally it seemed. "And your Madness Fool is contagious!" Why was all this so funny?
She was in no situation to even be laughing let alone to the degree she was, yet there she was. "I kill you, you kill me, we kill each other. I see why you found it so funny!" She breifly wondered if she was also losing her mind. Her furry was there still boiling darkly just below the surface and though laughign her voice was sitll low and dark. "And let's say I let you go? Than what? You jsut stay here and freeze to death?" she asked still chuckling low to herself.
Damn his MAdness was spreading!

"Don't know about the rest of you but .. I'm sleeping." Farkas yawned before going to his bed roll, while caring his feisty little pup. "And your really not gettign anymore food tongiht, porker." He looked at the pup whole kept pawnign and begging for more food, of which htey had none left or none they coudl spare anymore. "Night."
"And he's out." Aela said wathcign as Farkas seemed to have the magically ability to fall asleep on a whime no matter where he was or what he had been doing. "Well Zev we're all wolves here. he knows you for what you are." Aela's own pup had slowly fallen asleep next to her legs while Vilkas's pup seemed more interested in what the warrior had in hsi pack at the moemnt, "Out!" He snapped sternly grabbign it by the scruff of fur and standing up. "Guess I'll be turning in, otherwise this little monster will get in everything." His bed roll was soudnign very appealing at the moemnt.

'Imperials are infamus for their clever words and silver tongue. He's no excpetion it seems, madness or no.' The light laughter that had gripped her still remiand, somewhat. But that braught up a problem or two, lying to Astrid, though perahpes she wasn't feeling to guilty about it, and second keeping something like this hidden from the whole family. "You expect me to just walk out of here, tell Astrid I did what? Strangled you with your own intestents and hoep she doens't come sniffing aorudn perosnally? Or that I managed to acutally kill you without getting a single scratch on me." Also Arbejorn would be more than likely pick up on it, his hightened snese made her uneasy about even consdering what she was. "The Sheepdog, as you call him, will also smell the differance." She flexed her fingers experimentaly while finding hie sitll kept a very tight grip on her, still didn't trust her to not stab him in the throat, smart man.
"So I just leave you here and you do what?" She asked, she wasnt' so stupid as to simply spare someones life when her own life could easily be taken for doing just that along with lying about it. "You don't seem the domestic type no offesnse." She bit out still particlaly strugglign agaisnt him if only out of habbit.

'That and the voices in my head say to not kill you.' Sonja thaught not sure which one it apparently was now. It wasn't female so the Night Mother was out, but it said Sithis did not want the Keeper dead. So what she supposed to do that wiht information jsut sya 'HGey the vocie in my head says you can live so Good Day!" and walk out? Yeah Madness was apparnelty freightening contagious. 'Than again I heard the Night Mother and never queshtoned it when I heard a voice... What's wrong with me?'
Reality was more inportent than ponderign her possilbe decline of sanity, Sonja was for lack of a better word in a very difficult situation and no matter her chocie here .. someone was going to want her dead. 'Life of an Assassin.' "WEll if it makes you feel better, though your the only one in this situation that is, the vocies in my head say killing you isn't a smart idea. Last I checked bodliss voices telling me to do things never went wrong." She considered for a moment a backward kick to his groin for a brief moment of incapcitation but quickly thaught better of it, he ehtier would feel her muscle movemnt befroe she even got her kick out or manage to get just out of the way despite their closeness. Though she tried to understand the point of Ciceor giving her the option of killing him when he was in control of the whole situation?
".... If Astrid finds out I walked out of here without killing you, you understand I wont make it up here I hope?" Part of her felt as though she already made her choice in letting him live, yet simply leaving something as it was wasn't her way. She needed to prob and press into the matter to understand it's bare bones and possibly make everything all the more worse.
It was just her way.

"So," Sonja began feeling Cicero fianlly releasing her. "I just go back and act like I killed you. You stay up here freezing and Astrid is non the wiser?" It felt more like a statement and a queshton all rolled into one. Carefully picking her dagger up again while never letting the jester out of her sights. Her choice was made and they both knew it though how to exaclty handel the depature well .. Sonja made it a habit of never havign her bback to men, more precisly men that could easily kill her. As well for one assassin to have their back to another well, that was simply poor behavior.
"Just so it's clear." She said looking at him carefully. "If I end up having to come back up here because of somethign you did.I will kill you." She was dead serious as well. If sparign him ended up beign mor eproblematic to her own survival well she'd have to fix it.

Vilkas traded look out shifts with Aela as her time for sleep was up. Technially it was Farkas's but Vilkas hadn'tthe heart ot wkae him so he llowed his Twin to sleep. The mouth of th ecave offered enough cover from the snows and wind but gave him enough vantage point to see outward. But a predator always knwos when their being wathced and the hair ont he bakc of his neck stood on end, his hand gripped the handel of his sword whiel both he and his wolf let out a low growl.
the Wolf always knew when it was beign wathced, regardless if by prey or another hunter it mattered not. Vilkas had left the little white wolf pup with his borthe rand it's twin, simply becuase the little creature needed warmth badly. the snows and wind made it .. somewat difficult to find out what was nearby or evne wathing him. 'Better not be the pups mother .. I don't need an angery Dire Wolf Mother comign for my thraot right now.'