It was a quiet walk back to The Hallows with Deathbelle. He had attempted to make a couple bits of small talk to try and get to know her, but he could tell she wasn't really in the mood. He couldn't really blame her - heartache was a hell of a thing and from the sound of it she had experienced more than her fair share. He sympathized deeply with the woman and he wondered if perhaps once things settled down and she had a chance to sort through some of her emotions if they might get along well with their shared experiences. For now though, his biggest concern was getting her settled in to the pack and getting her the help she obviously needed whether she wanted it or not.

As they neared the border of the pack he glanced down at Deathbelle, telling her, "I know Sirius had said that you had submitted to slavery, but... We don't keep slaves here." He hadn't felt like bringing up the subject in front of Sirius, feeling as if it was better to separate the two sooner rather than later. Now that she was here though he felt like it was better to start laying some kind of ground work for her to adjust to her life here. "We're in need of healers at the moment. I'd like to place you in the ranks with our healers and you can help our lead healers Gwynevere and Syanna with their work. I hope that's okay with you." He wasn't sure if she already had knowledge in that area or not, but if nothing else she could help the Seneschals with organizing and collecting herbs with a bit of guidance.

Once they reached the courtyard in the middle of the castle walls he lifted his head, calling for Tamsyn. He knew that Tamsyn had lived in the Armada for a long time and that Ashen and the Armada were closely related so a small part of him hoped that the women already knew each other, but either way he felt like they would be good for each other as well as needing to deliver the news about Zee's wellbeing.

Ulric Adravendi

Tamsyn had been in the middle of finishing up the last bit of rearranging and decorating in their room while Kane was out hunting when she heard Ulric's howl calling for her. Her ears perked curiously and she turned to leave the room, not in the middle of anything pressing that might require her to finish it without pausing. Ever since she had asked Kane to move in to her room with her she had been spending a good bit of time getting everything arranged just right. She didn't like feeling as if she was changing everything from how it had been with Resin, but in a way she needed it to be. This was their space now and she needed to personalize it for them so she could continue to move on and erase the bad memories that lingered in parts of the room.

Shaking off the thought as she moved out of the castle and through the large doors that led into the foyer, she looked up and saw Ulric standing beside a wolf that she hadn't seen in several years and almost didn't recognize right away. She blinked with surprise as she moved closer, glancing between the Aegis and the former Empress. "Deathbelle?" she asked with a bit of confusion. "It's been so long... What are you doing here?" Not only was she confused as to why Deathbelle was here with Ulric instead of in Ashen or one of the packs associated with it, but she wasn't certain why she had been called in particular so she just waited for one of them to fill her in.

Tamsyn Carpathius

She hurt all over, every step and every breath was painful as she followed after Ulric, deeper and deeper south to the Hallows. Exhaustion lingered in her eyes and her limbs long before the approached the border and she had said little to the man during their trip. There were only a few wolves that were worthy of her thoughts now, and she hated thinking about the young wolves she was leaving behind in Habari. Her two almost yearlings and Veigar. The one light in her life. Nothing but darkness lay ahead now and that fact overwhelmed her and further restricted and broke down her spirit.

Ulric told her she would not be a slave here but she didn’t react to the news, slave to Sirius, warm body placed in a foreign pack, there wasn’t really any difference to Deathbelle. He’d expect her to help the healers of the pack and she just nodded slightly so show that she had heard his wishes, and they would be met out. She tried to memorize the names he said because they would be most pertinent.

She stood, waiting for her next order, or maybe he wouldn’t call it that since he didn’t consider her a slave. Either way Deathbelle was silent and still as the next wolf was called. Her face was vaguely familiar, after so much had happened over the last few years she very nearly didn’t recognize her at all. Tamsyn, a wolf that made up the very young Ashen Armada. She obviously recognized her far better than the other way around.

Deathbelle lifted her gaze only slightly, Tamsyn questioned her but really what hadn’t happened? This was far too similar to the first time they met when Belle had been mourning Archon. Had there been any tears left to cry they would have spilled over her cheeks in that moment, as it was she quietly averted her gaze without answer.

Ulric settled onto his haunches while he waited for Tamsyn to appear and luckily the former Seraph answered his summons quickly. He spotted her as the main doors into the castle opened, the black and white woman showing her obvious surprise at Deathbelle's presence as she questioned the other woman on why she was here. So they were at least aware of each other, but he could tell from the difference in their reaction that Tamsyn recognized Deathbelle more easily than the other way around. Either way, he at least didn't have to go through introductions and he could jump straight into explaining the situation. He paused for a moment, glancing toward Deathbelle to see if she would want to say anything, but when she glanced away he took the lead.

"Sirius asked me to bring Deathbelle here and give her a home and make sure that no harm comes to her." He hesitated, unsure of how much he should say or explain about the situation that had led them here, but he trusted Tamsyn and that she would keep the information in confidence if she knew. Oh, but there was other news that was more important, wasn't there? "First things first... Zee is alive and she is back in the Armada." He let that sink in for a moment, seeing the shock that painted Tamsyn's face, before he continued. "In the time that Zee was gone, Sirius and Deathbelle began a relationship and now that Zee is back..." That was probably more than enough to paint a picture. He still didn't like that they had been pulled into this mess, but he wouldn't blame Deathbelle for this. Sirius had created this mess and now Ulric would repay his favor to the Warlord by helping to minimize the damage.

"If you're willing, I would like for you to be Deathbelle's companion while she gets settled in. It seems like you two might have some things in common and I think you can help support one another." It was hard to tell if Deathbelle was even willing to attempt to build this new life for herself like Sirius wished for her to, but he had no doubt that Tamsyn with her infinite patience and kindness would at least put in a good effort toward helping her.

Ulric Adravendi

Tamsyn wasn't really all that surprised when Deathbelle didn't recognize her right away and when she didn't have a similar reaction of surprise. She had spoken directly with the former Empress once and her own appearance had changed significantly since they last saw each other. It was strange to think that so much time had passed since then. The entirety of her relationship with Resin, founding The Hallows, birthing and raising her children, the sudden appearance of her face markings, the scars that now maimed her face, Resin's death, and now her new relationship with Kane had all happened between their last conversation and now. She was a completely different wolf than she was then. No longer was she the timid, traumatized wolf that had been too nervous to cross the Ashen and Armada border on her own in order to explore the pale forest. But she had seen Deathbelle from afar many times and that one conversation had certainly left an impression on her back then so she recognized her right away just from a glance.

Deathbelle looked away from them and she ended up lifting her gaze to look at Ulric as he began to explain the situation. Hearing Sirius' name fall from his lips made her brow crease even before he finished his first sentence. Nothing involving the Warlord had turned out well in her life as of late and hearing him come up now didn't really bode well. However, as soon as the Aegis explained how Zee had returned and was alive it felt like time stopped. Her eyes went wide with shock and her mouth gaped open as she fell back onto her haunches. "But... How...?" She whispered, the memories of finding that burned up piece of forest flashing through her memories and the painful fallout that came after. Dragging those bodies back to the Armada, injuring and exhausting herself to do it while Sirius spiraled into madness. There wasn't much time to process this news as Ulric went on, telling her how Deathbelle and Sirius had been together while Zee was gone. He didn't even need to finish the sentence. Pained sympathy touched her gaze as she glanced toward Deathbelle. It was Zee. It was always Zee. It was a lesson she had learned very quickly after she admitted her own feelings for the Warlord and it made her jaw clench seeing Deathbelle this way now that she new the cause. Fucking Sirius, destroying everything around him without even realizing it, scorching the world in his wake and finding nothing but innocence in himself...

She had half a mind to charge down to the Armada and tear into Sirius to give him a piece of her mind, the anger toward that man she had been holding back bumbling to the surface, but when Ulric spoke again she forced herself to remain sitting and focus on him and his request. Be Deathbelle's companion, help her settle in. "Of course. It would be my pleasure," she replied easily without a second thought. She already wanted to pull Deathbelle under her wing and shield her from this world that had done her so wrong even without Ulric asking her to. She got to her paws, focusing all her attention on Deathbelle. "Come on, let me show you where the guest rooms are. We can get you settled into a proper room tomorrow. You look exhausted." She gave Ulric a glance and the Aegis gave her a grateful nod, stepping away from the pair of women as they started moving toward the castle.

Tamsyn led her into the foyer and through one of the corridors to the right, passing by the pharmacy and infirmary to one of the guest rooms that was across from the bath. "There's a bath this way if you feel like cleaning up or soaking your muscles," she explained on their small tour, pushing the door open to reveal the tiled space with a pool of water in the middle. "You can stay here for the night," she added, pushing open the room across the hall. It wasn't much, just a small room with a bed, but there was several plush furs piled on top of it and it would be comfortable if nothing else. "If you go back the way we came there's a large dining hall and through there is the kitchen and pantry. There's plenty of food, please help yourself." It felt a bit like she was going through the motions like she would with any other guest, showing them around and guiding them to the necessities, while her mind was far away. She stopped now that her quick tour was done, glancing at the floor between them. "I'm sorry this happened," she said softly before she could stop the words from slipping past her lips. She lifted her mint gaze back up to Deathbelle's again, her ears flicking uncertainly. "I know there's nothing I could have done, but... I've been hurt my Sirius too many times and seen him hurt so many other's and I just..." She sighed, shaking her head and looking away again as she sat back onto her haunches.

Tamsyn Carpathius

She looked away and she didn’t look back as Ulric relayed all the information to Tamsyn where Deathbelle couldn’t. Her chest ached with the pain of it all and part of her wished to just feel numb. That wasn’t to be her fate. Every breath, ever step, every glance felt like shards of broken glass grating together where her heart should have been. She’d given it to Sirius, and he had destroyed it. Belle was no longer the wolf she once was, not anymore. She was forced into a life she no longer truly wanted to live. Everything hurt, happiness was an unachievable concept.

She heard Tamsyn agree to be her escort for the time being but she didn’t react, nothing really mattered anymore anyway. Then the woman was at her side, offering all the hospitality the Hallows had to offer but the once might Empress couldn’t express gratitude she knew she should feel but did not. She was led away, into the castle’s cold embrace beside Tamsyn. A bath sounded nice, one of the few bright moments she felt since being discarded. Food didn’t sound appetizing, but a warm bed and a long sleep would do her well. She still felt a morbid longing for the long sleep she would not awake from, but the support of this sweet woman would get her through the night and the morning when her senses were more clear.

If Tam thought she was going through the motions Deathbelle was doubly so. Like she was on some kind of automated movements her body followed after her of its own accord. She felt almost lost when the tour came to an end and Tamsyn spoke candidly, her apology reaching deaf ears, but the broken woman looked up all the same. ”It’s not your responsibility to apologize for him.” She returned softly, and it wasn’t. Tamsyn couldn’t have done anything. ”I should have known better.” She shouldn’t have ever been so foolish to try and give herself to him, it had always been too good to be true.