Another lesson not learned
He had also said that if she went near the cliffs at night without her auntie she was dead... but she was pretty sure he didn't mean that literally. But all that was blah blah blah. If there had been any further rules set, she had been too excited to hear them. She wouldn't know her daddy's reasoning behind this but she also wouldn't hesitate for a moment to make full use of it.
To restless to sleep she waited impatiently for hours in her den for her parents to sleep... even with permission the sneaking was half the fun. Once she was certain and made her bid for freedom she started down the beach just across from her den. She began walking and taking in the serenity of the beach, only half heartedly looking out for her auntie. At least she was making some effort right? She was pretty sure her daddy hadn't said how long she was a lower to look for her auntie before she had to return to the den.
Her punishment had been taken with open arms, and now she sat atop her cliff, waiting to see if the child would come out of their den. She had been pleased to hear that their family was growing, soon enough the beach would be overtaken by the little munchkins. Her purple marked tail swung behind her as she gazed up at the stars, watching them with shimmering orange eyes. It felt great to be back, on this cliff that Voltage had worked so hard to prefect for her. And now that it was summer, the skies were clear most nights. That left the skies open wide for her to observe, taking in the different constellations. Today her eyes fell on Orion's belt, the three stars that shone close together. Letting out a soft sigh, she was about to recount on the names and the tale of Orion, when a flash of movement was seen out of the corner of her eye. Head pulled level, and she twisted her head side to side to loosen her tight muscles. There, sneaking down along the beach was Seraphiel. Caeli chuckled to herself and came down from her star gazing spot, quietly making her way to the growing girl. She paused behind her, clearing her throat to catch her attention. "Are you trying to sneak passed me, little one?" she asked softly. Her coloured ears pulled back slightly, and she looked passed Ray and towards the ocean. She was silent for a moment, heart pounding fast in her chest as she tried to gather her thoughts. "I want to apologize for before, Ray. I wasn't... quite right in the head. It was wrong for me to say such things," Caeli whispered, turning back to try and catch her light blue gaze. "How about you come up to my cliff with me, and I will make it up to you with a story about a hunter who got trapped within the stars?"
She was distracted by the movements of the tide and she was tempted to go closer to the water, and dip a paw in the cool liquid. She wasn't one to be afraid of the cold, but it wasn't the cold her father had warned her about. She found herself hesitating, knowing the trouble she would be in if she went into the water without anyone near by to watch her.
She hadn't heard her Auntie's approach, and she did not feel the presence of the star gazer. When she cleared her throat, Ray just about leaped out of her skin, letting out a softly startled yelp as she whirled around to find Caeli, standing there behind her. “N-no” she stammered, collecting herself. Oh right, she was suppose to be finding her Auntie, not just wondering alone in the night. “I was looking for you. I didn't know where to start, i'm not al- I didn't want to go on the cliffs alone” she cursed her traitorous mouth. She didn't know if her Auntie knew the cliffs was out of bounds when she was alone, and she wasn't going to add constraints to herself where she could avoid them.
“Yes!” Ray instantly jumped on the question, eager for this little bit of proof that she really was allowed out of her den with her Auntie. Plus, she really loved stories. She pranced over to Caeli's side, eager to be on their way to adventuring, even if that adventurous where in tales – that was one of her favourite kind.
Caeli smiled softly as the girl jumped, staying silent as she eyed her thoughtfully. She did not miss her stammered words, making her tsk her tongue softly. "You shouldn't lie, child. The truth will always find you out," she warned softly, but her face remained gentle. It really was obvious that she had calmed down from her earlier years in life, like at last the switch had been flipped. Fixing her with another look, she turned as the girl bounded to her side, making her way up towards the cliff. Silently she led the girl to the best look out spot, turning herself so that she faced north. Looking up towards the stars, she easily found Orion by looking for his belt. Within his belt were two of the brightest stars in all the sky, making it very easy to find the constellation within the sea of white lights. Pointing her nose towards the three large, bright stars that lay close to one another, she tried to point them out to Ray. "You see those three bright stars? Well around those stars is a constellation called Orion the Hunter. If you look closely, he looks like a tall being standing on his hind legs, a weapon that is called a bow in his hands. You see, he was a thing called a human, a tall, funny looking animal with fur just on his head," she glanced down, wrinkling up her nose to the girl before looking back up. "He didn't have sharp teeth or claws like us, so he needed a weapon to take down his prey. They say that he was the most skilled hunter during his time, that no beast could hide from him," Caeli paused again, letting it all sink in before she moved on.
"There are many tales of how Orion ended up within the stars. He was considered a very handsome brute, and caught the eye of many ladies," Looking to Ray, she stuck the tip of her tongue out like the thought was gross. She would be telling her her favorite tale of Orion, and leave out the one where he tried to force himself on a princess. There was no need to tell a child such a story. Looking back up to the cluster of stars, her gaze roamed over the collection of dots that made up Orion. "He boasted that he was the very best of hunters, and that there was no beast that could ever take him down. Hera, said to be the queen of the gods, heard his boasting and sent down a giant scorpion to fight him," Finally taking her gaze off the stars, she dropped into a crouch and stalking around Seraphiel like she was the great Orion, and herself the evil scorpion. Her purple tail curled upwards and around her back like the tail of a scorpion, letting out a gentle hiss. "The great scorpion came at the hunter, and Orion was not scared. It was just another beast, and he could easily slay it with his might! He was not wrong, either. Orion was able to smash the arachnid with his mighty club, slaying the creature," Caeli fell to her flank, paws twitching at her false death. But carefully she reached out with her tail, tapping Ray's front left leg. "But the scorpion was able to sting the great Orion, taking him down with its poison."
Picking herself up off the ground, she looked over her shoulder at the constellation. "The scorpion is in the sky as well, behind Orion. Even though they are both in the sky, you cannot ever see both at the same time. If Orion is visible, the scorpion is hidden. But if you see the scorpion, even it has the power to hide the brightest stars in Orion's form." Drawing her tale to a close, she looked over at the child, waiting for the flood of questions that seemed to accompany Ray at every turn.
Ray's eyes narrowed on her Auntie, she didn't like being called out on her lies, and it seemed to be happening more and more often of late. She didn't let it ruin her mood for long, she was in the grip of night and she was allowed out of her den! Before she knew it, a wide grin was sweeping across her face and she was bounding after her Auntie up the cliff tops.
She settled in beside Caeli, and followed her Auntie's gaze up to the sky. She squinted her eyes and tried to pick out the exact spot her Auntie spoke about. She followed along with the story as best she could, but pulled a face only a few words in. It was when her Auntie wrinkled her nose at her that Ray spoke, “A hu-men?” she wondered, tasting the strange word on her tongue. Her Auntie gave a little explanation on what that was but she couldn't really picture it. What animal had fur only on its head? What a funny idea!
Ray mimicked her Auntie's tongue gesture, pulling a face of her own. Eew! She was quickly lost in the story, loving her Aunties style of telling it. She giggled when the star gazer moved into a crouch and stalked about the pup. She bared her teeth at the 'scorpion' drawing herself to her best height and swiping her paw in the air like a fearless hunter. When Caeli fell to the earth Ray pounced on her, and pretended to rip at her throat, gnashing her teeth together an inch from her fur. When Caeli's tail tapped her leg and she explained the poison, Ray fell to her knees. It was clear she was having the time of her life playing out the tail. She had never had an interactive tale before and it was instantly her most favorite thing in the world.
When the tale was over Ray's eyes roamed back up towards the stars, seeking out the ones Caeli had pointed out to her at the beginning. Those stars held a lot more meaning to her now, and she grinned as she beamed up at them, before glancing back at her Auntie. “Can we do another one Auntie. Oh please?”
Caeli let out a soft chuckle as the young girl played along, but she did not address her question until her tale was over. Looking down from the gathering of stars, she blinked her orange eyes at her slowly. "A human, child. They are stupid creatures, or so I have been told. They died off long ago, not strong enough to endure this world. They are survived only by their stories passed down from wolves that they had kept as pets, but those too are dying off. Not many know their stories anymore," she said softly, leaning down to nuzzle her head. It wasn't long before she was asking for another story, making the older woman hum and she rocked back on her haunches. She looked around at the visible stars, trying to think about something else to tell Ray. She seemed to like tales of adventure, so she glanced across the night sky. Her eyes rested on a large grouping of stars, one called Andromeda. Blinking softly, she recounted the story of the maiden in her head to make sure that it was suitable for a child of her age. "You see that one up there, Ray?" she asked, pointing her nose towards the constellation. "That is Andromeda, a beautiful woman. It was her boastful nature that got her into trouble. She offended the sea nymphs by claiming that she was more beautiful than they were. Now, sea nymphs were creatures that lived within the sea, they were said to sometimes have the lower half of fish and the upper half of a human woman. Other times they were just depicted as beautiful woman, and they were said to be be close to the god of the sea, sometimes even said to be his children. Well, when the sea nymphs told Poseidon, the sea god, he sent a great sea monster named Cetus to flood her home. When the king sought advice from the Oracle of Ammon on how to prevent complete destruction of his lands, he was told that the only way to appease the gods and nymphs was to sacrifice his daughter to Cetus. His daughter was Andromeda," she paused, looking down at Ray to see if she was following along. She would explain what things were after her story, if she had any questions at all. "Andromeda was chained to a rock and would have been left to the monster if Perseus had not come along and saved her. He swooped in to save the beautiful maiden, and later on they became mates. The tale goes that it was the goddess Athena who placed her in the stars to tell about her bravery. She had faced the great sea monster to save her home and her family, even though it meant her death. If she had not been saved, she would have willingly gave her life to save everyone."
Caeli stopped again, stretching out her neck from looking at the constellation for so long. Laying down on her belly, she tucked her paws under one another, crossing her legs. Orange eyes gazed at her niece, a fondness resting in them. "Now, time for questions. Do you have any for me?" The quiet woman asked. This was the most she had talked in awhile, but it was easy to go on about the stars. They truly were her element, and she strove to learn all she could about the pinpricks of white light.
She looked up at her Auntie, with big wide eyes. A stupid creature? But the story had been great, and the human was a part of the night and the stars. Of course, he had let the scorpion sting him and so had died, so maybe he hadn't been that great at surviving just like her Auntie said. “Pets? Wolves aren't pets.” she said, indignantly, she was a proud and free creature! Being a pet didn't sound very fun at all. It was hard enough following all the rules her father set down for her.
She would be distracted by the direction Caeli pointed her in next and her eyes obediently strayed upwards, seeking out the stars she spoke of. She giggled as Caeli started her story. Lower half of a fish, upper half of a human woman? That sounded like a such a strange idea! She couldn't even imagine it in her mind. Essentially the image of a fish tail on a hairless monkey popped into her mind and it was difficult not to burst into laughter. When it became clear that this was a story about the ocean she shivered and leaned in closer. The ocean always fascinated her, she had created a few stories herself about it! Every since her father had first banned her from going near it she was keen to learn everything she could. She had even gotten Ren to teach her to swim... but her thoughts where wondering away from her, she wanted to concentrate on what Caeli was teaching.
She frowned as she struggled to follow along. King. That was another word for Alpha, right? She couldn't help but see connections in this story to what had happened to them. Their home had been flooded too, and Voltage was their king. She swallowed harder, and, timidly, asked. “Is that what happened to Illume?” she knew the story wasn't over, but she had to know. What it she was next. She didn't know Illume, and couldn't mourn her, but Ray wasn't exactly a modest being.
Caeli finished her story, explaining how the human woman had been saved. Illume hadn't been saved tho, that was why her father was always so afraid to let her near the ocean especially when it had flooded the beach. At that point, a toe in the water would have gotten her grounded! What if this was why?
She nodded her head in agreement with her niece, wolves were no pets. She had no idea how the humans had even tamed their wild nature, but the stories of the pets were very hard to come by. She didn't know the true tale of them, if they had been simple lap dogs, or if their relationship had been more symbiotic. She shrugged it off as she got into her tale, but it wasn't until Ray spoke that she realized her mistake. Sputtering, Caeli rose to her paws and quickly shook her head, ears pulling back to her skull. Her heart beat fast within her heart as she looked at the paler coloured girl, mind racing to try and figure out how to explain herself. "No my child, that is not what happened to your cousin," She did not know what Voltage or Glacier had told the children what happened, but she quickly lowered herself so that she was on the same level as Ray. "This story has nothing to do with our family, although I realize the connection now. What a clever girl, you beat me to that conclusion," Caeli said with a small smirk. She did not want to strike fear into her, she had already been through so much already. "Voltage would never do that, and there are no monsters of the sea to flood our beach. The beach had flooded because of the rapid snow melt and large amounts of rain. Illume didn't displease anyone at all, it was a freak accident," she explained, nuzzling the girl's cheek.
Caeli felt like she was trying to cover her tracks here, oh how foolish she had been! Shaking her head again, she looked back up to the stars above them, eyes studying their familiar pattern. "It was just a tale, dear Ray. I know that you are much loved here, our family bond is a strong one," She said, not looking away from the pricks of light. Orange eyes danced with delight as she once again traced the shape of Orion and Andromeda, a soft sigh leaving her mouth. "We are much like the stars in the sky, no matter how many clouds may cover the night sky, we are still shining behind them all. No matter what tries to block our light, we will not stop shining through." Turning back to Ray she smiled, her purple marked head tilting to the side.
Her poor auntie likely had no idea what she had just started with Ray, but there was bright, excitable trouble brewing now in her thoughts. She listened to her aunties reassuring words but they did nothing to sway her. Her smile no was a touch too sweet as she beamed up at Caeli. "Do you know where Illume was washed away?" She wanted to know, then hesitated, wondering if her next words would give away too much of her current state of mind. "Don't you think it's strange Illume got taken and the pack flooded, All very close together?"she mused allowed, her eyes sparkling like a woman challanged.
She blinked down at her niece with caution in her orange gaze. The child's questions were a touch too strange for her liking, and right away she knew that there was something brewing within the girl. The smile that was offered to her was too false, she saw the too sweet twist to it. Caeli was ever the observer, not much got passed her keen eyes. Taking a moment to really think about what to say to the child, a silence grew as the purple marked wolf looked back up to the stars. A small sigh left her maw, the stars beginning to fade with the promise of dawn. "I do not know the exact place, but that it was here on our beach," she started, words slow and cautious as if she was chewing on each one before they left her lips. "And there have been much stranger things that have happened, Ray. The ocean has a wild temperament, there is no way to control it's actions. What happened to Illume may seem to have a connection when you first look at it, but think deeper child. Look passed the simple thoughts that anyone could see," Turning back to Ray she laid down in front of the girl, trying to meet her blue gaze with her own. "Illlume went missing in autumn, and you were born in the winter. The flooding was not until the spring, so there is quite a bit more time between them than you realize. I can only imagine what transpired in this ocean before we even got here, there is so much out there, so much we don't know about," she said slowly, looking between each of Seraphiel's eyes. "We live in constant danger with the ocean, there is no way that we can ever predict it. That is why you must be cautious around the waves, Ray. They could even surprise Locha, our water-born family member. Nature is wild and free, so I do not see too much of a connection between the two." She said honestly, seeing if her words had any effect on the girl.
She needed mortar, he was unconnected to this beach and to her family. If there was something the adults where hiding from her he was not a part of the cover up. He wouldn't lead her astray, he would help her.
Her eyes also roamed up to the sky and looked at the approaching dawn. She sighed softly, knowing her father would start to worry even if he had allowed this. Not to mention she hadn't gotten much sleep and there was going to be so much to do today, it would be a while before she saw her bed again. "Thanks for the stories auntie. I better get back to my den before dad wakes up. He said I was allowed, but he still worries" she rolled her eyes, showing her auntie what she thought of that.
Her burning curiosity and churning thoughts where pushed deep deep down, smothered until she could find mortar.
Caeli let out a heavy sigh, eyes narrowing slightly at Ray. She could tell that there was something going on in that mind of hers, something that would most likely not have the best outcome. Ears twitching she took one last look at Orion's Belt, it held some of the brightest stars in the sky. They would be some of the last to fade as the sun came up. Already the faint deep orange of dawn was touching the sky, before long every last one of the stars would be gone. She sighed again as Ray said she should take her leave, turning her head to look once more at her niece. There was something up in that girl's head, she just knew it. Knowing that there was nothing she could do about it, she nodded at her. With a flick of her tail she rose, leading the girl down the cliff. "Goodnight, sweet Ray. Know that you can come see me with anything." She said softly, flashing her a knowing glance. Waiting until she had started to head back to her den, Caeli turned and looked up at the sky. She stayed at the foot of the cliff until the very last star faded away before she retreated to her own den. It was time for her to rest until dusk.
-exit Caeli-