Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuckfuck, fuck, fuck, fuuuuuck. Tethys was sick, he heard that Mortis was sick, so far he could determine that symptoms were fever, convulsions, hallucinations, and vomiting. Fuck. He needed to make sure all the patients were hydrated. He paced the clinic, Wilder was out there helping to gather the stragglers, including his father. What was it he needed to do again? Talk to whats-her-face, she had experience with outbreaks. Fuck.

The white wolf was pacing pacing pacing.
"Vesper!" He called out, trying not to let the panic rise in his throat. He needed someone to go grab the samples they were collecting. He needed to be more stoic, he needed to be more like Bas! He needed to be strong, and- When he saw the dark face of his Songbird before him he looked from one of her sassy blue eyes to the other. She had already been through so much, and he had made the worst kind of mistake with her. His father's words hung heavy on him.

He shook his head and looked away for a moment. Was there anyone else he could send?
"Are you up to speed? Did you hear from Ignita?" He asked, he had heard Ignita call through the Col but he was busy tending to Tethys at the time.

"Speech"

Who was on the other side? Which wolves were stuck in quarantine? More importantly, Who did she care about? Wilder, and maybe Oleander. She had sat through Ignitas briefing white faced and seriously considered using this distraction to make her escape. She was mostly healed now, she had the energy.


She packed a small bag of pilfered goods and set it aside. A go bag. All she had to do was grab it and go. Why was she wavering over the decision? It was a fucking easy one. Grab the bag, and go. Get out of this diseased hole full of slavers while she has the chance.


When Oleander called she told herself she had to answer or they would look for her sooner. Maybe it was the truth. 

Maybe.

She left her bag and trotted to Oleander. He looked younger than she remembered. Scared. “I heard.” She said, what else was there to say?

When he turned back to her he couldn't read the look on her face. Determined? Neutral? It was a mask, he didn't have it in him anymore. He was too worried and had too much on his shoulders.

He didn't know if he could trust her, he probably couldn't, shouldn't trust her with the daunting task he was about to set her up for. Give it to her straight, he was done trying to dance around it all.

"Wilder is in the woods. He and another songbird are gathering some samples of the blight. I need..." He looked around the clinic again trying desperately to see if he could think up a way to get those samples without using her.

"Fuck, Vesper, you've been through enough and you already hate me. But I have to be here to find a cure and treat the patients. I need someone to get those samples from them." Viridian eyes with flecks of lavender glance back to her, "I'm sorry... but I have to send you." Why couldn't he be the big strong composed figure of Basilisk? He had to get through this first. He couldn't do it alone.

"Speech"

A flash of fear struck her at his words. Fear she hadn't felt for anyone but her mother, fear she hadn't expected to feel here. The selfless fear that told you you were afraid for another. Wilder was on the other side?


His next words took a moment to register. He needed her to get close to the blight and the potentially infected wolves to gather the sample. The samples he  needed to examine if he had any hope of finding a cure. Wilder and Oleander both needed her to do this. 


“As you wish.” She said, her mouth dry. Why not sent Vesper, she was the disposable slave after all. “If I'm dismissed, My Lord?” She asked softly. There was no point delaying.

The news that Wilder was stuck in the woods hit a chord with her. They had become friends, hadn't they? Good, maybe it'll keep her from running off, maybe help her decide to put in the effort to be part of something bigger than herself. Maybe if she really applied herself here she could earn a place with them!

The way she replaced her mask over her face when she processed the task she had before her, made his heart sink. She was really going to hate him forever now. He pressed his teeth into his tongue to keep himself from falling apart. He nodded, "Ye-Yeah. Go ahead. Make sure you don't touch them. Come back when you get it." He was about to turn away to see if he could make a clean area to look at the samples, he turned back to her, "If you see if my dad and my brother- Well...If you see them... Let me know." He wasn't going to fall apart, he wasn't, he couldn't. He could feel his legs trembling.

"Speech"

She turned from him, and paused at his words. She felt herself grimace, knowing that feeling of pain and worry for a family member. She didn't want to relate to Oleander right then. He was her master, and he didn't let her forget it. Her personality was treated with scorn and once, violence. The wolf that treated her like an equal was out there in the blight. And Oleander wanted to work to help them…


She sighed softly. “Your dad. What does he look like?” She asked softly, turning back to Oleander. She tried to keep the sympathy off her face. She didn't want him to see it. Never mind that he had saved her life and nursed her back to health. Everything about them was… complicated.

He saw that she paused and when she turned her composure was still ice-cold and neutral. The mark on her nose was still healing. He hung his head and answered somberly.

"He's the only other one with wings, like Wylan. But he has the big teeth, like Bas." He felt small and weak. His sister Wynter was away, though he couldn't help but feel like she'd never come back either. His sister Zion was around here somewhere, his closest brother and remaining parent were on the other side of that invisible wall. He had to be stronger... for them. He had to find a cure... for them. There had to be a reason the reaper let him live, it had to be for this.

"Speech"

With wings. She could keep an eye out for a wolf with wings. But she wasn’t going to press deeper into that forest to look for him. Just to the edge to grab the samples. Perhaps she’d ask whatever wolf was dropping them off if they’d seen the winged wolf. Her brow had furrowed into a thoughtful frown, and when she concentrated back on Oleander, she noticed how sad and tired and… young, he looked. He looked so much younger than she felt.

She paused, hesitating. Affection wasn’t on the list of their interactions. Sass, eye rolls, and danger was. She stepped forward, a little closer, feeling and likely looking very hesitant. She reached out, and touched her paw to the top of his. A quick, fleeting touch. “I’ll keep an eye out. It’s… it’ll be okay.” The words tasted odd on her tongue.


"Speech"

His breath unsteady, pull himself together, breathe in and out. Close eyes. Breathe. Open eyes. Breathe. Watch Vesper... approach?

He could see her hesitance and her fleeting touch sent a confused fluttering static up his arm. She'll keep an eye out. Was she being... tender? His eyes danced between hers, trying to seek her intentions. The look in her eyes, deep under a mask of forced neutrality... She pitied him. They always did.

He nodded and shifted slowly to pull his paw back, her touch was already gone. The static wasn't as gripping or intense as when his family tried to console him when he was younger. He will not be pitied though, he'll be strong enough to carry them all through this. He'll find a cure with or without the other healers. It will be okay, He'll make sure of it.

"Off you go then." He commanded with a soft but determined tone. He turned away and walked to a table he intended to clean and make into a sterile environment for the samples she was to fetch.

"Speech"

She watched Oleander pull himself back together, and she gave the white wolf an approving nod. Though she was in no place to give it, she did so anyway. If she was going to risk her life with this Blight, she needed Oleander to hold up his end of the bargain and fight for the pack against it.

“Very well then. Delivery, and news of a Winged wolf. I’ll see you soon, my Lord.” She promised him, and stepped out of the Col. she could already feel the change in the pack. Just as she was starting to get familiar with it, the world pulled the rug out from under her

-end?


"Speech"