[IC] Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

[EliteCommander]

"I think we have time." Ahnasha commented, taking in a deep breath as she sat herself up. "We are probably going to have a lot of chances to hunt soon, but a swim sounds nice. It would help me cool down, certainly. I just...do you remember the kind of water Meesei said is best to swim in? I know standing water can have a lot of parasites or dangerous creatures, but there are also some rivers we are not supposed to swim in as well. Do you think this river looks like one of the safe ones?" She questioned, staring out over the water for a few moments before letting out a sigh.

"Well, whatever we do, I just want to make sure we do something. Only months ago, we used to laugh and spend time together whenever we had a moment. We had...romance. I don't want that to die so quickly." She said, putting her arm around him and giving him a kiss, this time keeping it up for longer than usual.

"Of course." Meesei said with a smile. Despite the fact that it was ultimately for fighting, she had always felt like she wanted to teach Sabine about magic, both because she enjoyed sharing her arcane knowledge, and because she felt like it would be a good way for them to bond. "As I mentioned, it is helpful to have some training with a blade for emergencies, but magic is...wonderful, In my opinion. There are always mysteries to solve when learning about the arcane, and there is so much more to it beyond just spells used in combat. I believe it is to me what alchemy is to you, though really, magic and alchemy are closely related. I hope you will find it as interesting as I do."

It was not difficult to collect unique samples from each of the plants growing around them, but it was more difficult to catch animals. Most of the insects flying around them were fleshflies, which were essentially useless for alchemy, but she did notice a few fish and other kinds of creatures swimming by her feet. Although the water was quite murky, she did manage to spot a long, eel-like creature closer to the surface. She stood perfectly still and waited for it to slow down before suddenly reaching down to grab it. She just barely managed to grab a hold of its tail and pull it out of the water, but she quickly found that it was slipping from her grasp. As she secured it with her other hand, she noticed that the creature was absolutely covered in a thick, clear mucus, which now covered her hands. It made it exceptionally slippery, so with it writhing in her hands, she could easily lose her grip on it. A quick shock was all that was needed to kill it, but that did not get rid of the mucus. Still, there was a possibility that it could be useful, so Meesei reluctantly stuffed the creature, along with a fair amount of its mucus, into one of her pouches. "Well, that is disgusting." She muttered.

[Muttonhawk]

Fendros certainly welcomed the kiss, returning it and likewise placing his arm around Ahnasha. It was a comfort he always liked. Once it was over, he had a smile on his face. "Come, let's walk some more. Maybe we'll find some water that looks a little cleaner than this," Fendros said as he got up and held out a hand for Ahnasha to grasp. They set off in one direction, sticking to the waters edge, but only for a few minutes. Fendros was looking for cleaner water, but was also thinking. He didn't want their romance to die at all. Perhaps it was his fatigue, but he had trouble thinking of something to share right then apart from just the walk. Fortunately, as they reached a narrower part of the small lake, there was an insight which came upon him as he spotted a somewhat distinct tree on the other side of the water. It reminded him of one thing they used to do. The water at least seemed cleaner and running a little faster here, so Fendros' best guess said that the water would be safe.

"You know," Fendros began in a deliberately arrogant tone, "I wonder if you've regained all of your speed yet." The thought was preposterous and Fendros knew it, but he wanted to rile Ahnasha up for the sake of it. He pointed to the tree he spotted, with about forty metres of water between them and it. "Race you to that tree," Fendros challenged flatly, "Go." Without further warning, Fendros ran to the lake water and dove in, intent on reaching the other side as fast as he could.

There was little more Sabine could really do to refute training with weapons, but it certainly seemed like her training schedule would be booked much further than normal from now on. She didn't seem to mind much. Meesei was a good teacher, and the closest thing Sabine had to a mother. She wasn't sure that her passion for magic would be guaranteed to run as deep as Meesei's, but she would put in the effort.

The eel flicking mucus and water everywhere caused Sabine to flinch a couple of times before Meesei killed it, but the substance it gave off immediately piqued her curiosity. She waded up to Meesei and wiped off a drop of the mucus from the satchel she had placed the creature in, before bringing her hand up to her nose. There were a few possibilities in the scent, but it took dabbing the mucus onto her tongue to get a better idea. Sabine stood thoughtfully for a few seconds before she registered that the mucus was, in fact, disgusting to taste, and turned her head to spit into the water. "That might help against parasites," Sabine commented, wading away to gather other things and fill up the last of her satchels.

Another minute passed, and Sabine got a thought in her head that didn't seem to leave so easily. After taking a portion of sap off a tree that she didn't recognise before, but was certainly not Hist, she turned to Meesei with curiousity in her eyes. "Meesei, will the pack at Bruma be like us? Will there be people...closer to my age?"

[EliteCommander]

Even if she wasn't in a playful mood, Ahnasha couldn't exactly bring herself to ignore Fendros' challenge. She ran after him as soon as she realized it was going to be a race, but he still had a bit of a head start on her. Unfortunately, the particular type of race he challenged her to was not one she had an advantage in. While she was the fastest among them on land, she had no particular advantage in the water, even without counting Meesei or Kaleeth. She was indeed a strong swimmer, but she could only move about as fast as Fendros, and since he had a head start, it meant she could not overtake him.

As much as she tried, Ahnasha could only stay just behind Fendros in their swim across the river. As a result, it was he who reached the other side and touched the tree first while she was still climbing out of the water. At the very least, the water was refreshing compared to the air around them, so she did feel cool for a change. "Don't even start. You...had an advantage." She began defensively, leaning up against the tree to catch her breath. "Now, if you want to challenge me to a race through the trees, you might not have it so easy."

"There may be." Meesei answered. Since there were no more samples around that she could see which she had not already taken, Meesei waded back over to shore and gave a quick shock across her body to rid herself of any parasites. There were still more plants that might be growing outside the water, so she continued to look around. "The pack at Bruma, and others like it, are actually a fair amount larger than our own, but their size can vary greatly, even within a single year. Sometimes, there might only be fifteen or so individuals in their pack, but other times, there could be dozens of werewolves, or even other lycans in their pack. When I encountered a similar pack in Black Marsh not long after I became a lycan, they told me that, at one point, they had just over a hundred members at the same time. You see, the purpose of these packs is to find new lycans and bring them into their own packs. As a result, they are always finding new people and training them, then sending them off to be in their own territories once they are strong enough. Depending on how many members this pack has when we visit, there could be a lot of people your age." She explained.

[Muttonhawk]

"Oh? Let's test that!" Fendros said with a grin, before jumping up and grabbing onto a bough of the tree they were leaning against. He was able to quickly pull himself up to the point where he was squatting on the branch, braced to begin moving at a moments notice. "Pick any tree you can see, let's see who can get to it first without touching the ground."

Sabine followed Meesei out of the water with something of a bewildered expression. A hundred lycans in one pack? Even fifteen was large. Everyone in Sabine's pack was considered immediate family to her. To have that big of a family would be overwhelming. More to the point, Sabine could come across more than she bargained for in terms of people closer to her age. She had expected, maybe, that she could make one or two more friends. People she could connect with without having the issue of lycanthropy be a problem. Now she might meet so many people that it would be difficult to interact with them all.

As Sabine mulled the prospect over while applying a salve to get rid of possible water parasites on her skin, she wondered how such large packs could function. "How do they feed everyone? The weakest lycans would have almost nothing left once a kill was picked through." Sabine asked, knowing that in the pack's group hunts, her beast spirit often got the smallest share since Fendros' spirit eventually outranked hers. It didn't even cross Sabine's mind that the larger packs might not wander as much as theirs did. It even could have been possible that such a large pack might be living amongst Bruma's residents every day.

[EliteCommander]

Ahnasha returned Fendros' grin as she climbed up the tree after him, then took her place beside him on the branch. She took a few moments to look out over the trees to see if she could spot one that stood out in any way. One appeared to be just slightly taller than the others and was about as far away as their original race, so she figured it was as good of a target as any. "You see that tree? The one that is a bit taller than the others." She said, pointing to it with her finger. "That's the goal. Now...go!"

Ahnasha took off, giving only slightly more warning than Fendros originally had. Unlike before, however, she found herself in her element. Even if it had been a while, all of her acrobatic practice and skill was not something that was easily forgotten. It was less like she was jumping between trees than it was that she was gliding through them. At only a glance, she could tell if the next branch would support her and could react quickly, almost without needing to think. There was some water between them and their goal; not that it would matter to Ahnasha, as there seemed to be little chance that she would fall.

"This pack operates quite a bit differently from ours." Meesei began as she walked back over to Sabine. "You see, it is almost more like a settlement than a pack, from what I have heard. They might take residence in a cave, or a more permanent camp. They might even build small cabins to make something like a town deep in the forest. Their homes are not absolutely permanent, of course, as they do move their pack occasionally, but they do not move nearly as much as we do. You might compare them to Kaleeth's village in that they move from place to place, but they still build a settlement at each stop. Although, these packs move for different reasons. Also similarly to the village, they might grow some of their food, instead of just hunting. If times are desperate enough, they might even trade with cities, like Bruma. It is a lifestyle quite different from ours, but I suppose it is a good way to get new lycans used to the idea of living in the wilds more gradually. There is no way to know exactly how many members the pack will have before we arrive, but I would guess that there will at least be a few dozen. Over a hundred would be...exceptional."

[Muttonhawk]

There was no holding back in the previous race, and Fendros didn't intend to hold back here. Once they were off, though, Ahnasha quickly proved that her own agility and coordination had not been lost at all. She flew through the trees as if she was weightless. While Fendros was able to keep up at least some of the way, he took one pause at the halfway point to second-guess himself, which was enough for Ahnasha to shoot ahead without any hope of catching her. Far from giving up then, Fendros redoubled his efforts. He tried to jump from branch to branch with less time and effort dedicated to judging trajectory or the strength of the following branches. It looked as if he was gaining some ground, but he couldn't get to Ahnasha before she reached the end of the makeshift course.

Even if he could have caught up, Fendros' own overeagerness caused him to misjudge the thickness of one of the final branches, causing him to curse as it bent and broke under his weight. He managed to grab another branch to slow his fall, but that broke as well as he fell, scrambling feet first, into the water below with a loud splash. He broke the surface with a deep breath and a sore tail bone, looking a little flustered. "Okay, I'll admit that you were right...this time," Fendros said between breaths as he made his way to the tree Ahnasha stood upon. He looked up at her and tried to plot a way to climb up to her, but the tree didn't seem to have any low branches that Fendros could reach. The lowest one there was was barely reachable with the tips of his fingers when he jumped up as high as he could. Eventually, he sighed through a smile, put his hands on his hips, and spoke up to her. "Am I going to have to finish the race properly, or are you going to come down here so I can tell you how much I love you?"

Sabine's expression was still ambivalent. Meesei's explanation made more sense, but she decided that she probably wouldn't know for sure what it would be like amongst such a large pack until she got there. "There will still be a lot of people to meet," Sabine said without turning to Meesei, "I've not talked to lycans outside of the pack before. I want to make friends, but...I haven't had a lot of practice before I started talking to people again. I feel like I might say something wrong."

[EliteCommander]

Ahnasha gave a chuckle then grabbed onto one of the branches beneath her, then dropped to the ground below. She considered for a moment dropping herself on top of Fendros, but she was a bit too high above him for that to be safe. Instead, once she was back on her feet, she walked up to him and wrapped her arms around him enthusiastically before giving him a kiss. "Okay, so maybe we can still enjoy ourselves. I...don't know if it will solve our problems, but...I don't care. I just want to forget about it all and be with you, like we used to."

Ahnasha released Fendros, then moved to sit down against the nearby tree. From the two back-to-back races, she was a bit winded, so she took a few moments to catch her breath. This was the first time in weeks that anything actually seemed to be going well for her, even if it was only because she was distracted from everything she had to worry about or fear. Still, it was good to have a reminder of what had drawn her to Fendros in the first place. After a few moments, she looked up at him, then smirked. "You know, there is also...something else we have not done in a while."

The eel Meesei found, along with its mucus, was pretty much taking up an entire pouch, so she did not have much space left for more samples, not that she could see anything else nearby she did not recognize. As a result, she simply let Sabine finish dealing with the parasites. "I would not worry, that is not an uncommon issue." Meesei said with a chuckle. "There are many who become afraid that they might slip up and say something wrong, especially around those they do not know. I myself am going to have to act as they expect the Champion of Hircine to act...even if I do not quite know what that would be. I am sure you do better than you expect, though. Remember that many in this pack will be new lycans, so you might even be able to help any new friends you make learn more about their beast spirits."

[Muttonhawk]

Fendros set himself down next to Ahnasha, unable to keep his eyes from her. He didn't immediately respond to her vocally, merely he reached around to her shoulder and leaned in to kiss her passionately. He could hardly have tried to remind himself of the worries they had to face in the future, or the memories that were punishing them still. Today was just like it was in Morrowind and Cyrodiil. Carefree. He brought his head back to speak again for a moment. "Quite, let's continue this forgetful day. I'm rather enjoying it." Fendros leaned forward to peck a quick kiss on Ahnasha's lips before he pulled back and let out a small chuckle, "And this time we won't have to worry about Meesei going missing."

In truth, Sabine deduced, Meesei was the one who had it harder. Sabine didn't know exactly how she was meant to act either, but it would certainly be just as, if not more, challenging than how Sabine wanted herself to be seen. How did Sabine want herself to be seen? She didn't really know, she just wanted to make friends. Perhaps trying to teach some people like Meesei said might help to get along with them? Nevertheless, after all the whirring thoughts, Sabine did appreciate Meesei's understanding. She gave Meesei a quick hug to comfort herself. "Thank you," Sabine said. Perhaps thinking about it too hard was a little premature. It would be months before they reached this pack anyway.

Sabine double checked the satchels she had brought along and found that there was little more to store away. Their business with gathering was probably done for today. "Should we head back now?" Sabine asked.

[EliteCommander]

It was a few hours before everyone made it back to camp, but even if they did not have a full day to travel, they still moved on regardless. The next few weeks of travel were much like the first, though the swamp grew less thick the closer they came to Thorn. It was rather difficult to focus on travel, hunting, and gathering ingredients at the same time, but they managed as best as they could. By the time they neared Thorn, they had a surplus of hides, some of which were actually from rarer beasts. As well, Sabine was able to find some ingredients from which she could make potions that could contribute to their overall funds. As much as Meesei hated it, the mucus from the eel she killed actually proved useful for a few kinds of potions, so she had to continue collecting the vile substance.

Unfortunately for Ahnasha, her nightmares did not subside, or even really decrease in frequency. Just as before, she did not have them every night, but she was forced to suffer through them often enough that she dreaded going to sleep each night. She also found herself having a hard time watching the others skin the creatures they killed, as the sight of their organs sometimes caused her to flashback to the images of her own insides that were burned into her mind. Regardless, Ahnasha spent every spare moment in which she was not caring for Rhazii with Fendros to get away from her torments. They did all they could to recapture what they felt back in Morrowind and Cyrodiil, and overall, they were largely successful. The time she spent with him was the time she enjoyed most out of the weeks of travel, but still, it was less of a solution and more of a distraction.

Eventually, the area around the pack grew familiar until they knew they were on their last day of travel. They prepared themselves as best as they could to enter the city, though their attire was likely to draw a few stares this time around. Although they had a surplus of hides, they had a shortage of city clothing. In order to make sure everyone was at least acceptably dressed, Janius, Lorag, Kaleeth, and Fendros wore their armor, while everyone else used the city clothes they did have. Unfortunately, what they had was made for Argonians, so Ahnasha's tail hole was too large, and Sabine's had to be patched with hide that did not match the rest of the garment. Hopefully, they would be able to purchase new clothes once in Thorn, but given that what they carried could likely only be traded for enough gold to just barely pay for their passage to the Imperial City, it was not guaranteed. In any case, Meesei had already determined that the first thing they would do once in the city was to find Ariel. She would hopefully be able to provide them with some assistance in the form of advice or lodging, and as well, Sabine was of course excited to see her again.

[Muttonhawk]

The rest of the journey was as hard on Fendros as it was on Ahnasha. They found some relief in each other, but each night either one of them woke up from a night terror, Fendros had to fight hard with himself to keep to their agreement to get to Bruma and deal with the pack there first. The wishful thinking that he had about their problems simply fading away was becoming less believable. Time to consult the rest of the pack was not particularly abundant with how busy they all were, not that Fendros and Ahnasha weren't spending their spare time alone with each other anyway. They barely even had time to inspect the tome they had acquired.

Janius continued training exercises with Kaleeth, finding that her progress had improved substantially. It could be argued that Janius' change in instruction to be more strict and less coddling since Kaleeth's outburst in the xanmeer had helped, but there was no denying that Kaleeth's acceptance of herself was playing a big part. By the time they had reached Thorn, Janius was confident enough in Kaleeth's abilities to allow her to ride on a ship for an extended period of time. Unfortunately, the long days of travel, hunting, gathering, and training left little time just for each other. It caused Janius a little concern, but there was not much they could do. Janius figured that there would be plenty of time on the way to the Imperial City.

Arrival at Thorn was met with some relief from Fendros and Janius. The central marshes were nothing short of the worst Black Marsh had to offer, and though it was only annoyances most of the time and wild beasts some of the time, the real reason lay in the anticipation of the fresh coastal air. Once they tasted the salt in their noses, they knew they were close. The walls of Thorn poked out beyond the trees and was slowly revealed to them as they proceeded. Janius was at the head of the group at the time and was the first to spot the ocean. Once he did, he stopped and turned to Kaleeth with a smile. "Don't get dizzy, now," was all Janius had time to say before Kaleeth spotted it in turn.

Sabine's pace quickened as they approached the gate and soon she was setting the walking speed. She would have run to Ariel's shop if she could, but after travelling for the entire day prior, she was the only one with the energy to do so without warrant. The city was largely as they all remembered it, though with less decorative flowers and banners. Some of the whiter walls had yellowed and the other walls browned with weathering, but it hardly looked run down. There were also less people clogging the streets without the festival. In fact, the main demographic on display was more Argonian than ever before. It was all to be expected.

Eventually, Sabine had to slow down momentarily. This was both to allow the pack to catch up and to regain her bearings and the route to her sister's shop. They eventually found it and the shop was one thing that certainly had changed from the outside. The front window was now thoroughly decorated with a wide range of stock to catch the eye. Glassware filled with all manner of salves, powders, liquids and more were neatly lined up with labels and prices. It even looked like the shop's sign had recently been repainted. Montgrave Remedies was written proudly atop the doorframe at an angle easily seen from the end of the side street in which the shop resided. Sabine was so eager to see her sister that she was the first to push the door open, a short distance ahead of everyone else. The bell above the door rang, but there was no one behind the counter, only an Argonian woman Sabine didn't recognise waiting patiently. The rest of the shop's interior was also more thoroughly stocked, but kept neat and ordered. Sabine's smile faded as she walked up to the counter, the Argonian woman giving her a sideways glance.

By the time Sabine reached the counter and placed her hands on the wood, the door to the back room opened and a more natively dressed Ariel emerged. She had obviously bought a dress from Neercana-Rei's shop to replace her old robe to bear the marsh weather more effectively. As well, she had cut her hair shorter. No longer was it long and tied up, but now it was only barely reaching her neck. Again, this was probably for the weather. She held a round wooden container in her hands and was about to present it to the Argonian woman, but her head moved in a shocked double take at Sabine. "Sabine?" She asked as if she was seeing illusions.

Sabine beamed, "hello sister."

"Sabine!" Ariel quickly put the container down and rushed around the counter to throw her arms around Sabine in the tightest hug she could muster. "Oh sister, it's so good to see you again! How have you been?"

The rest of the pack came in to see Sabine and Ariel in such a tight embrace it was like they were trying to become one person. "I'm well, sister. Your shop is very beautiful."

Ariel had her eyes shut and was so emotional she was nearly shedding tears. "Oh wonderful! I received your letter and have been waiting every day for a new one, and now I get to see you in person! Oh, we've so much to catch up on and-"

The Argonian woman, who was waiting patiently interrupted the reunion with a respectful clearing of her throat and Ariel's eyes shot open. "Oh! Yes, Vutamna, my apologies. Here, your violet paint, as ordered." Ariel released Sabine and turned her attention to her customer, speaking frighteningly improved Jel from when they last saw her, "Now, you have enough solvent to remove it when you want to take it off, correct?"

The Argonian woman smiled and nodded, "Yes, this will do for now. Thank you again for your services, Areeal." Vutamna's eyes looked to Sabine, "Is this family of yours?"

"Yes, it's my sister and her...foster family. We don't get to see each other much."

"Well, I will leave you to it. Goodbye." Vutamna elegantly left the shop with the wooden container in her hands. Evidently a woman of high class in the city.

Now that the shop was empty, Ariel got to lay her eyes on the rest of the pack, switching back to Cyrodilic. "Ah, hello everyone, it is so good to see you all again!" Ariel swiftly assaulted everyone with a hug and each naming them in turn. She started with Meesei, then Lorag, Fendros, and paused at Ahnasha to behold Rhazii. "Oh my goodness, look! He's so cute, ooh! Hello there!" Ariel spoke in a high voice of endearment to address Rhazii. In her excitement, she moved on quickly, "I can't leave you all ungreeted. Hello Janius!" She hugged Janius just as enthusiastically, then her expression changed with Kaleeth from excited to curious. Almost by habit, Ariel switched to Jel, recognising Kaleeth's armour to be tribal, "And greetings to you. I'm not sure we have met, I am Ariel. What is your name? Are you a guide?"

[EliteCommander]

As the pack walked through the city, Kaleeth once more became quiet and visibly nervous, but that wasn't to say she was not impressed. Her expression was an interesting combination between awe and fear. just like in Stormhold, it was a new place whose people she knew nothing about. She did not know what the locals were like, what they would expect, or what they would be offended by. However, the city itself was beautiful. Until they entered the residential district, all of the buildings were made of fine white stone, which reminded her of Ayleid buildings if they were not in ruins. Instead of Elven structures, however, they were Argonian, though they were far different from anything Kaleeth had seen. All of this was in addition to the massive expanse of the ocean she had glimpsed on the way into the city. "Endless lake" was starting to seem more like an accurate description. Overall, the city made her feel small, but in a way that made her want to discover what mysteries it might hold.

Once in Ariel's shop, Kaleeth could not help but to smile at Sabine and Ariel's reunion. The others had explained to her who Ariel was and what had happened in Morrowind and Thorn, so she was informed, though Ariel obviously did not know her. When she finished going through her greetings and spoke to Kaleeth, she shook her head lightly. "No, my name is Kaleeth-Rei. I am...like them." She answered. She was aware that Ariel already knew they were lycans, but she had been told to still be careful about saying it aloud in cities.

For Ahnasha, the city seemed noticeably less impressive than before, though her expectations were colored by the fact that they arrived during a festival the first time through. Still, it was a beautiful city, which made her even more concerned about Rhazii and his scars. For the majority of her life, Ahnasha had not been one to care about societal judgements, but now, the idea of being labeled as an incompetent mother deeply disturbed her for reasons she did not fully understand. As such, she held Rhazii in a way that his scars were not easily visible, even once they entered Ariel's shop. She did not see the scars when she went through greeting the pack, but Ahnasha could not just hide them forever. Ahnasha did not understand why she was so afraid of having Ariel see Rhazii's injuries, even though she, out of anyone in the city, would be most likely to be understanding. Nevertheless, her heart raced with anxiety, which in turn upset Rhazii and caused him to whine.

[Muttonhawk]

"Kaleeth-Rei...Kaleeth-Rei, that's familiar..." Ariel took one step back and tried to remember where she had heard the name before. She glanced to Janius again and a smile of realisation came across her face. "Ah, yes! Sabine mentioned you in her letter. Well, that we're all informed makes things easy." Ariel skittered over to the door and turned the sign declaring her shop open around to a closed position for the moment. Clapping her hands together and rubbing them, she found herself pausing, with a loss for what exactly to do. She looked nervously around for a few moments, then addressed the pack entirely. "Uhm, I'm sorry for the lack of space. There are fewer furnishings upstairs, even. Er...might we head to the Wamasu's Nest and find a table-"

Ariel froze and her brow dropped. There was a shuffling sound that she didn't recognise, but as soon as she saw a reptilian tail slink behind the counter, she nearly yelped and scrambled for a broom in the corner. She quickly pinned whatever the creature was to the floor by its neck with an expression that was confused and incredulous. Janius didn't know what was going on until Leaps' telltale chirp protested from behind the counter. "What on Nirn is a monitor doing in the city like this? I don't get rodents in my store?"

"Ariel, wait a minute!" Janius stepped around the counter and picked up Leaps from under the broom. He held the curious hatchling in his arms, but it squirmed to get away from Ariel. "Sorry about that. We tend to forget about this little critter. His name is Leaps-On-Elves. It's a long story."

Ariel was still a little mistrusting, but she curiously reached out one hand. "This creature looks awfully familiar," Ariel noted. Leaps greeted Ariel's hand by jumping a spark onto it from his mouth, causing Ariel to yelp properly and step back. "Is that...?"

"Sorry, he's probably just spooked. And yes, he's a wamasu. A hatchling." Janius chuckled, "How about that table, then? There is a lot to catch up on."

It wasn't long before Ariel locked up the store and began to lead the pack to The Wamasu Nest inn. Despite still rubbing her sore hand from Leaps' shock, she was eager to speak to everyone, not least of which Ahnasha with the new bundle in her arms. It was as if a dam burst when Ariel began to ask questions. "So, Ahnasha, is it a boy or a girl? What did you decide for a name? How was the birth?" Without any thought about the ramifications of such questions, one of the things Ariel asked was unknowingly sensitive, "And, are those birthmarks he has? They seem very unique."

[EliteCommander]

Although it had been a while, the Wamasu's Nest was still familiar to most of the pack. For Meesei, she also found herself curious how the others they had met in Thorn, such as Rukeewei and Neerana-Rei were doing, but she was more focused on Ariel at the moment. Once they had their tables, and Janius had managed to calm down Leaps, Ahnasha was the, understandably, the recipient of Ariel's first questions. She did actually want to talk about Rhazii, but that did not make her any more comfortable talking about the burns.

"His name is Rhazii." Ahnasha answered. "We were going to go to Stormhold for the birth, but we did not quite make it in time, so I had to give birth in the swamp. It might not have been the best circumstances, but it all turned out fine. The marks...they aren't birthmarks, though that might be what I start calling them. It is...difficult to explain, but we found ourselves in danger, and he ended up being burned. There was nothing we could do to avoid it. Luckily, we had a good healer to bring him back to health. His only scars are visual; otherwise, he is in perfect health." She explained, trying not to make his injuries seem too severe. As well, she did her best to hide her missing finger, as she would rather avoid explaining how that came to be.

Now that the most difficult part was out of the way, Ahnasha could be a bit more comfortable talking to her, though Meesei spoke up next with her own question. "Our journey hasn't been the easiest, but we have persevered. How have things been for you here in Thorn since we left?"

[Muttonhawk]

Ariel curved her brow up in sympathy. "Oh, by Azura, that would have been horrible," he breathed, "Thank goodness he's okay." Ariel hardly kept herself from wincing when she looked again at Rhazii and registered his furless patches as healed burns. It was a cruel tragedy that such a thing had happened, but Ariel knew Ahnasha to be a very strong and brave individual. To judge her actions at the time, whatever they might have been, never even crossed Ariel's mind.

Before attempting to let loose another flood of enquiry, Ariel raised her head from where she sat and tried to see if anyone was at the bar. No one just yet, the brothers must be cleaning the rooms, or cooking, or something. Meesei spoke up in the pause, which brought Ariel's attention back. "Myself? Well, let's see, it has indeed been a while..." Ariel stopped and stared at the table to recall a starting point for the last few months. She looked up to the rest of the pack as soon as her thoughts assembled with an energetic demeanour. It was clear that the excitement from seeing the rest of the pack had hardly worn off yet. "Well, after you left, it was quite a rush servicing all of the curious citizens who came out to see my shop. The abundant custom soon wore off after about a week, but not before I had a number of regular customers who placed orders. Most of my customers place orders these days, not many people walk in for something other than a quick browse, or some advice." Ariel began to gesticulate as she spoke, "By far the most popular selection is the body paint. Once the wealthy women of the city caught wind of it, I began to get orders up to my chin. They're a gossiping bunch, but they're as consistent as income can get."

Ariel angled her head upwards and hummed a descending note, thinking of other things to say, "So, yes, the store is well and truly thriving. Neer and Rukee have continued to lend great support." For a moment, Ariel's energy began to fade. "I should mention, Rukeewei and myself had...grown close. We didn't have much spare time between the two of us, but the time spent was always worthwhile. However, things haven't been quite so civil these past couple of days." She took one last peek up at the bar and around the room, still not seeing any sign of Rukeewei, then leaned forward and lowered her voice. Her tone shifted to regret, "Unfortunately, we had a bit of a falling out. A number of silly arguments, I know I was stressed at the time. We said all these petty things that we didn't mean, all as if we were both children. I'm still feeling sore about it, but I don't think he's working until later tonight, so none of you need worry while we're here. I'm still wondering whether I should apologise to him first."

Ariel regained her confidence and her smile just as quickly as she had lost it, "Anyway, enough about such things. Sister, I have been dying to ask you, how has life been since the ritual? You've so much colour in your cheeks, and you came into the shop ahead of everyone else. You've completely changed!"

Sabine nodded. She wasn't sure how she should react to Ariel's apparent relationship hiccup, but it was evident that she wanted to change the subject. Sabine spoke slowly, with inflections as if she was asking a question in every sentence. She just said things that came to mind, "Um, it's been much easier to talk, mainly. I've spoken with strangers in cities, that has been interesting. More things are funny. Less things are scary. No one calls me Runt anymore, because I don't like that name anymore, except Lorag, but he always calls everyone by other names. I still get scared sometimes, but not all of the time like it was before. Still, I missed you."

Ariel beamed and pulled Sabine's head into a hug, "Oh, I missed you too, Sabine. It heartens me so much to see a smile on your face." Ariel pulled back and kept her hands on Sabine's shoulders, but looked to the rest of the pack, "Now, you must tell me of everything that has happened since Sabine's letter. I doubt wandering the marsh for so long has left you with no tales to tell."

All of Fendros, Sabine and Janius wondered what exactly had gone on between Ariel and Rukeewei. For now they decided to let Meesei recount their travels in her discretion. Many themes were probably not suitable for public conversation. Fendros in particular wasn't looking forward to thinking back to the cult and the mercenaries. He shifted in his seat as he tried to blot out the images again.

[EliteCommander]

Meesei glanced around the inn at the other patrons. It wasn't exactly crowded, but it was still a public location. She did not mind sharing the particulars of their travels, especially since they involved her sister, but that was a conversation best saved for private. "A lot has indeed happened since we left. Unfortunately, much of it is related to something I would rather not talk about here. If we get a chance to speak in a more private location, though, I would be glad to explain. For now, I will say that we have been through quite a lot. After we left the village where we performed Sabine's ritual, we tried to make our way to Stormhold, but Ahnasha went into labor just before we arrived. Fortunately, most of the fear we had beforehand was simply from the fact that none of us were experienced in childbirth. Even if she had been completely alone, it likely would have been a successful birth, as the only thing I had to do was to limit her pain to the best of my ability. Afterwards, we stopped in Stormhold briefly, then headed south, to a location east of Gideon. That is the part I would rather not discuss in public, but we were on a task for...well, you know who. That is when Rhazii was burned. More recently, we have been hunting for hides and collecting ingredients, so that we might trade them for enough gold to book passage on a ship to the Imperial City. Our next task is taking us to Cyrodiil."

Ahnasha was glad to hear that Ariel's life in Thorn was going well, though she was even more curious about what occurred between her and Rukeewei. It sparked a thought in her mind about herself and Fendros, as well as Janius and Kaleeth. Certainly, all of them had been through their share of disagreements and arguments, but she could not think of a time where they would not want to speak to the other for days. Thinking about it, however, Ahnasha doubted it was because of anything right they were doing, but rather because of what was wrong in their situation. The pack had been going through all kinds of hardships for months on end, whether it be preparing for Rhazii's birth, dealing with Kaleeth's particularly stubborn beast spirit, or the more recent events with the cult of Molag Bal. And that was not even considering the bandits and dangerous creatures which they had to worry about on a daily basis while traveling through the swamp. With all of those challenges, many of which could very well end their lives, all of the small things did not seem to matter nearly as much. In fact, Ahnasha doubted that either she or Fendros would have been able to get through the past few months without each other for support.

[Muttonhawk]

"Ah, the Imperial City. Yes, I believe there are an abundance of trading vessels that head that way from here. You might find it worth your time to browse around the docks for which ship you take, as some are...safer than others, in a variety of ways." Ariel raised her hands, "But that's just hearsay I pick up from other merchants, I've never so much as boarded a ship since sailing from Vvardenfell." Ariel looked to Sabine again, "Sister, do send me another letter when you get there. I love hearing about what you're up to."

Sabine nodded happily. "If I know for sure where we are going next, I'll tell you in the letter. You'll send one to me, will you?"

Ariel grinned again, "Of course." Having no shortage of further topics of conversation, Ariel moved across the table to a still nervous looking Kaleeth. "Kaleeth-Rei, do you speak Cyrodilic? I don't want you feeling left out," Ariel leaned her elbows against the table and smiled reassuringly, "Tell me about yourself. How has travelling with the group been? It must quite the experience, coming from an Argonian village."

[EliteCommander]

"Yes, I do." Kaleeth answered, nodding in confirmation. "I...was a hunter in my village.It was hard to leave, and it has been hard traveling with the pa-...group. We face danger even more than my village did, and the village was not safe. But...I have learned a lot. Janius has been teaching me to fight. He is a good teacher, and is happy to do it. Actually, we became mates after he agreed to help me with a hunt. That was when we killed the wamasu that I made my armor from. We also found an egg that I was going to eat, but it hatched into Leaps."

By this point, Leaps was familiar enough with his name that he actually perked up once he heard it. He started wriggling in Janius' arms, so Kaleeth reached out to him, wordlessly asking to hold him. As was common for him, he started sniffing her curiously once she grabbed him. Since he was already quite familiar with Kaleeth already, he quickly lost interest and moved his attention to the next unfamiliar thing, in this case Ariel. He raised his nose in the air as he looked to her; forcing Kaleeth to hold him tightly to prevent him from running across the table to satisfy his .curiosity. "Do you want to hold him?" She asked, holding out the hatchling over the table to offer him to her.

[Muttonhawk]

As Janius handed Leaps to Kaleeth, Ariel thought about Janius' previous behaviour with her, and likely anyone woman he met. Ariel couldn't hold back a wide smile of amusement at the event that this Argonian tribal girl had garnered a more permanent affection from him. She must be quite special. The question of how Kaleeth had become a lycan was something Ariel was curious about. She hoped that it wasn't complacency on Janius' part, but had Ariel known that Kaleeth was a different kind of lycan entirely, that theory would have quickly become false. Ariel couldn't really think of a polite and discrete way to ask about it before Leaps took an interest in her.

Holding her previously shocked hand, Ariel laughed uneasily and responded, "I'm quite fine I think. Leaps is an energetic little thing, isn't he?" In that moment, Leaps managed to aggressively twist himself free of Kaleeth and scramble across the table to her. Ariel held her arms between herself and the hatchling, but Leaps only went far enough to sniff at her hands. Ariel opened her scrunched together eyelids and let out a very nervous laugh. Leaps chirped back at her and ran to jump on her front, causing her to let out a small shriek of surprise. Leaps clung onto the front of her dress rather harmlessly and after a few seconds, Ariel's previous fear changed into what was mostly just a tolerance. She was as still as a statue, though.

"Rub him under the chin, he likes that." Janius suggested, grinning at the scene.

Ariel shakily held out one finger and began to stroke Leaps' chin as Janius suggested and eventually her face curled back into a smile. Once Ariel was comfortable enough again, she looked up at Kaleeth and compared the pattern of her armour to that of the wamasu hatchling holding onto her dress. "What an extraordinary turn of events. I am glad things worked out."

This time it was Sabine who wanted to ask a question. "Ariel, what did you and Rukeewei argue about?" The previous mentions of Rukeewei had left her curious, but not quite with the same social pressure to avoid awkward topics.

Ariel's smile faded and she shifted to hold Leaps more steadily as he inspected her and the light perfume she was wearing. "Oh, it was nothing really. It just started off with the entire previous week not having any free time overlapping, and then he insisted that I stop working so hard, then I got angry and insulted his inn, then he got angry and insulted my shop. It was all quite childish. You need not worry, Sabine."

Sabine glanced to Fendros and Ahnasha, then looked to Ariel again. "Ahnasha and Fendros have argued before, but they make up for it. They say sorry to each other and understand."

"I know, I should just go and apologise. I'm just...I'm just worried he's still upset about it." Ariel said, facing Leaps as if she was talking to him.

Being the inexperienced girl that she was, Sabine didn't have the answer. Across the table, Fendros knew that Ariel wouldn't know unless she tried, but he would be surprised if Rukeewei was still upset about something so small. In fact, he was still surprised at how much of a fuss was being made about the whole thing. Fendros looked at Ahnasha, glancing down to Rhazii for a moment and back up to her. "We don't usually stay upset about that kind of thing for very long, right Ahna?" Fendros said, rubbing Ahnasha's shoulder.

Janius leaned back and was about to put it a bit more bluntly than either of them, but it sounded like Ahnasha and Fendros had this well in hand.

[EliteCommander]

Rhazii laughed when Leaps ran across the table. He always seemed to be entertained by the wamasu's antics, which in turn set several member of the pack into a better mood. Even Lorag gave a quick grin. Meesei had started to feel more comfortable letting Leaps roam on his own, but she was sure to remain conscious of what he was. Wamasu, after all, were top predators in the marsh. Even at such a young age, he had a tendency to chase around insects, rodents, and other small creatures.

"Truthfully, I never thought it was possible to keep a wamasu." Meesei commented. "Though we still do not know what it is going to be like when he is older. We will likely have to neuter him as some point, but it seems like it is possible for him to be trained."

The conversation quickly moved to Ariel and Rukeewei with Sabine's question. Ahnasha wasn't certain if they should talk about it, as it was uncertain if Ariel was comfortable with the topic, but on the other hand, she did feel that, with all they had been through, she did have some experience in maintaining a healthy relationship. It did not sound like Ariel and Rukeewei were going through anything serious, in all honesty, but since the conversation had shifted to her, she did have one thought which the subject inspired in her mind. "I...don't know if I am qualified to give advice or anything, but...I think that it is best not to put too much emphasis on the small things. Granted we have a lot more to worry about than most people, but you never know when the big problems and emergencies are going to come along.. If I put too much focus on the small problems, I might end up without someone to help with the large ones.." Ahnasha added, turning her head to look at Fendros and smiling as she looked into his eyes. She placed her hand on his, but without thinking, accidentally used the wrong hand to keep her missing finger hidden.

[Muttonhawk]

"You know what? You're absolutely right. It was silly. I will talk to Rukeewei as soon as I can." Ariel sighed, "Sometimes the stress of running businesses leaves our minds without rational thought." Ariel looked to Ahnasha and Fendros and showed a grateful smile, "Thank you." Ariel blinked, then frowned and focussed on Ahnasha's hand. She was missing a finger. She was about to speak up about it, but it looked as if it had healed over. It was probably something to do with their task for Hircine. Given the apparent sensitivity of that event, Ariel didn't press the issue for now.

Trying to skip over the pause, Ariel looked to Meesei. "So, how long are you going to be staying for? If you need any supplies that I can provide, I would be happy to give you a discount, but I might need to prepare them for you fresh."