Location: Amron's Castle

Having Gypsy in Indigo's room den was no different than having Cosette in there, and Duchess knew how much it warmed Indigo to fill the room with others. She ignored any deeper intent he may have had, but mostly she saw that he wanted to fix them like he was fixing her. She held no ill will for the ones that stayed with them at night. She was willing to do anything for Indigo, even if it wasn't something she agreed with. She was just teaching herself how to ignore any hurt feelings she could feel.

Duchess came up to the room to take her break like she did every day, though this time Gypsy had been occupying it which she had completely forgotten about after her day started. She was instantly remind when she walked in and saw the pile of pelts on one side of the room. "Oh, I'm sorry Gypsy." She didn't really know why she was apologizing... They did share a room now. "I forgot you were here..." Hopefully that wasn't offensive or anything.

She waited just inside the doorway, speaking out again after a pause, "Well, while I'm at it, did you want something to eat or anything?" She was at least as kind as Indigo, she just didn't have the magnet for broken strays like he did. Or maybe even the strength to want to build them back up.

"Duchess"

Duchess is an !M rated! character for themes of Depression. Please Discord me if you have concerns.

Gypsy really, really needed to pee. She'd been stuck in the room all day with neither Indigo or Duchess to be heard. The poor woman's stomach hurt from holding it for so long, but it wasn't something that she was unused to. Sometimes her father had refused to stop, so she would have to wait and wait and wait until she thought she might be sick. Today wasn't nearly as bad as all that, but she still had to go.

The night had been long and sleep had claimed her quickly. Gypsy couldn't remember ever having slept so well. The furs were just so, so soft. After this, she would never be able to sleep on hard earth again, she imagined. Having slept so deeply, the tiny fae felt refreshed when she woke. Her emotions weren't as chaotic and she didn't feel as frantic. The girl was slowly losing the fear that Indigo was trying to trick her. The castle smelled so clean and there was no screaming and hollering to be heard. This wasn't his scene at all. So maybe... Indigo was telling her the truth. That didn't mean that she would let her guard down. He obviously wanted something from her, but she no longer thought that he was working in cahoots with her father.

Mismatched ears perked as paws approached and entered the room. Duchess' voice met the diminutive woman's ears and Gypsy was instantly on her paws, moving across the room towards her. Duchess offered her food and, while food sounded good, that wasn't what she needed at the moment. "Please," she spoke in her whisperish tones. "Please take me outside." Gods... she needed to go outside.

She was more surprised when the tiny girl was swiftly across the room and at her paws. After appearing like anxiety was the only thing she felt while with her and Indigo, she was taken aback that she was almost begging at her feet. Duchess shook her head to rid herself of the surprise, but would then offer her the help outside.

"Yes, I'm here to help you." She assured, but she had no idea the woman was about to burst all over her pelts. She offered either her shoulder or hip for Gypsy to lean to to follow her down the stairs and into the courtyard. She supposed fresh air was nice, but she was honestly surprised the woman wasn't still sleeping the day away. Duchess thought she might have after whatever life she had prior to Indigo finding her.

"Duchess"

Duchess is an !M rated! character for themes of Depression. Please Discord me if you have concerns.

She stuck close to Duchess as they moved down the stairs and thankfully she hadn't tried to traverse them on her own. In her urgency to get outside, Gypsy slipped and slid down a few steps, gasping lightly as the stone bit into her elbows and pink belly. Pain was nothing. She needed to get outside.

The moment that she felt the stone of the castle give way, Gypsy rushed towards the smell of grass. Sweet relief was soon hers and she no longer felt as though she would burst. She hoped that this wouldn't happen every morning. While she loved the pile of furs that Indigo had given her, Gypsy didn't know if she could handle not being able to get outside on her own.

Coming back out of the grass, the tiny woman moved towards the echoes bouncing off of the stone walls. Ears tucked, she looked apologetically towards where she thought Duchess might be standing. With the wind swirling around the courtyard, it was a little difficult to tell exactly where the other woman stood.

When they hit the solid ground, Duchess was taken away again as Gypsy took off nearly out of her sight. She panicked for a second, thinking she was running away from them. She wouldn't have the slightest idea why, but the thought of her running back to her captor was what came to the forefront of her mind.

She rounded a corner into the grasses, and almost slammed into Gypsy, catching her breath from the quick run. She looked down at the tiny woman, see her release herself, the wind throwing her pee around her own legs but Duchess avoided with a raise of her paw. She didn't linger turning away to give her a moment and peeking to make sure she was done. "We can go wash your paws at the river real quick."

She would start to lead her to the starlit plains just for a quick clean up of her legs, she hoped she wouldn't deny too terribly. She would let her take her time though. She would lead her into a shallow, gentle part of the stream and carefully used her paws to rinse her back legs that were dirty. It wasn't terrible, but the small woman deserved a good clean, healthy, and happy life now that she was with them. "You know you can call me any time you need me. I don't mind coming to help you, even if you just want to talk." She offered her a smile, remembering that she couldn't see it and felt a slight bit of embarrassment before she continued to wipe her legs.

"Duchess"

Duchess is an !M rated! character for themes of Depression. Please Discord me if you have concerns.

Gypsy already knew that she'd made a mess, pissing into the wind, so to speak. There was no time to find a more suitable place. The small woman's head ducked and her ears flicked against her crown as Duchess spoke, offering to take her to wash up. She gave a small nod after a moment and started off beside the larger fae. The water was brisk, nothing like the bath that she'd taken, but it was welcome. The pale and purple lady seated herself in the water for a moment after Duchess had helped to wash her up. She simply enjoyed the feel of the running water pulling through her fur. Beneath the water, her tiny tail may very well have given a swish or two. Back on the bank, Duchess spoke again, offering to be there if Gypsy called. She may not have been able to see it, but she could hear the smile in the other woman's voice. It prompted Gypsy to find her own. The young woman's naturally soft tones closed the distance between them. "I'm just... not used to asking for anything." Again, her ears slanted backwards. "Asking for things, or even speaking out of turn..." A shudder ran through her slender frame. She couldn't finish her sentence, the the dark look that clouded her features should have spoken volumes. Asking for things and speaking out of turn... it had resulted in pain. "Gypsy"

Hearing her speak so much was comforting. She couldn't even remember if she spoke the night she arrived, too much was going on. Of course, what she spoke about wasn't necessarily pleasant. It wasn't too detailed but still gave Duchess just some of what she had been through.

"Well, you don't have to worry about any of that anymore." She tried to brush off the more brutal feelings of the topic, not wanting Gypsy to feel pressured to talk about it unless she wanted to. "Anything you need I'll be here, Indigo too but I'll probably be a little less busy." She was honest, she would be here to help Gypsy. She was here to help Indigo and his cause now that he kept collecting strays. Just as she was for Indigo, she acted like a caretaker for the rest of them.

"Did you want to stay here on the plains or did you want to go back to the castle? I'm not busy right now." She offered, she figured Gypsy may have wanted some fresh air and sunlight. Adjusting to caring for her wasn't exactly easy, but she knew she would manage somehow. With Indigo wanting to create his band, it would be easier for them all to be together.

"Duchess"

Duchess is an !M rated! character for themes of Depression. Please Discord me if you have concerns.

Duchess insisted that Gypsy wouldn't have to worry anymore and the young woman's blind eyes widened. The statement was so far from the truth that a little shudder ran through her. "I'll always worry," she admitted. So long as her father was alive, she would worry. He could come for his property at any time. He could take her back, out of this new life that she'd been thrust into. He could hurt her again. The Hallows wolves seemed genuine with their intent to help, but the tiny fae still couldn't fully let her guard down. She'd been burned one too many times by hope. Literally and figuratively and she had the scars to prove it. The larger woman was kind enough to give Gypsy a choice. Stay on the plains or head back to the castle. Though the day was windy, the sun was warm. She didn't want to head inside just yet, but she didn't want to stay out here in the open. When Duchess had helped with her bath and down the stairs, Gypsy had noted that the other woman wasn't terribly large herself. If her father showed up, Duchess would be no match for him. "Can we go back to the castle, but stay outside?" She gave her head a tentative little tilt and was slightly amazed with herself that she'd made a request so freely. "Gypsy"

A pit fell into her stomach when Gypsy said she would always worry. Indigo was here to protect them, but she should have known better than to just expect the girl to fall into place under his wings. She wouldn't prod on about it any more, instead go ahead with what she requested.

"Yeah, sure. We can do that." She would offer her body again to help guide her back into the castle, the woman's hidden worry of someone coming to attack them and take her away wasn't hinted to Duchess herself.

They entered the castle and Duchess led her over to the grassy areas of the courtyard, letting her get comfortable if that's what she wanted. "Do you have any uh, interests?" She questioned carefully, she wasn't sure if life had allowed her to even think of anything she liked. Or maybe she found something out of all the chaos, she wouldn't know unless Gyspy chose to speak about it. "I like to cook, Indigo likes flowers, and strawberries I hear." She chuckled a bit to the thought of how touched he was on honeyed strawberries, and had secretly wished that one day she could surprise him with them. Or at least the strawberries.

"Duchess"

Duchess is an !M rated! character for themes of Depression. Please Discord me if you have concerns.

Back in the courtyard, Gypsy curled up atop a tussock of grass, tucking her little paws beneath her like a cat. The breeze was gentle and she enjoyed the feel of it sliding through her coat. Right now, at this very moment, she was content. It didn't seem as though anything could go wrong. If things kept going the way that they were, maybe she might actually be happy. Gypsy was beginning to trust Duchess. She didn't believe that the woman held any ill will towards her, though she did note the attraction that she had to Indigo. Gypsy didn't want to come between them, and so she tried to make as little fuss and as little demand upon them as she could manage. With trust came the desire to speak, to share. It seemed that Duchess wanted to learn about her as well and asked about interests. The small woman's ears flicked forward before she spoke. "I was never really allowed to have interests." Anything that she liked was pointless. It was all about what her father liked. What would make him a rich man. Again Gypsy turned her face into the breeze, her milky eyes closing slightly against the wind. "I like to sing. I used to be forced to sing for my supper." If she didn't turn the hearts of the ones with food, then she starved. So, over time, Gypsy honed her craft and sang as though she held angels inside of her. She'd been told that she had reduced more than one wolf to tears in her time. The minuscule fae turned her face towards where she thought Duchess was sitting. "Now that I'm...free," It was still strange to say that aloud. Like she still didn't believe it. "I would like to be more useful." Her ears took on that familiar, submissive tuck. "But I don't know how much help a blind girl could be." It saddened her to know that she couldn't repay the kindness that had been given to her. "Gypsy"

It was hard not to feel tension from herself as Gypsy went on. She wasn't allowed to have interests, she had to sing for her supper. Duchess had hidden the harder parts of her own life even to herself, but she never would have imagined meeting someone with a past such as Gypsy. A past that she wasn't even fully aware of.

She would listen intently as she mentioned being free, like maybe she was unraveling a little bit now. But still her downward attitude as she wanted to be more useful. Duchess would do her best to bring her up, but she had little confidence in herself of doing so. "Your other senses are heightened?" She questioned with an expected answer of being right, "I bet Indigo could teach you about herbs and you can help find them better than he can himself." She smiled with a bit of a joke but she was also pretty serious about the answer. "Or I bet you'd be good at pointing me in the direction of prey." She was offering serious responses, but knew things like this would take time and practice. "I like singing though too."

"Duchess"

Duchess is an !M rated! character for themes of Depression. Please Discord me if you have concerns.

Gypsy mulled over the question for a moment. Were her sense heightened? "I could always hear the men approach long before my father did," she offered quietly, not wanting to relive the memories. Thankfully Duchess continued to speak. Maybe Indigo could teach her about herbs? "I think I would like to learn about herbs and healing, but I don't know if I would be very good at it," she admitted. Again Duchess offered some way for the blind wolf to be helpful and Gypsy gave a faint grin. "I could try, but you would have to leave me to hunt it. I suppose I could be okay with that though." If anything, Duchess said that she liked singing. "When we would travel from place to place, the different leaders would look forward to hearing me sing. I don't think half of them would have let my father within their lands if I hadn't been with him." It had been strange, but it had also let her father realize that she had value. He'd taken better care of her then. On the surface, at least. "Gypsy"