With Malalia's promotion and subsequent adoption, Azure felt his father would never forgive him for the way he'd treated the Reaper. He definitely did not regret a word, though he did feel the sting of his first strike with every step he took. If he received a second and then a third, he'd be out of the race for heir. It was not a possibility he could allow himself to contemplate, and so in his attempt to be a good-boy he'd decided to go on search for Malalia to give her an apology. Did it matter if it was a real, genuine apology? Azure wasn't sure, but he hoped he could be a good enough actor to make her believe it. "Malalia?" He called out as her scent grew stronger. "I need to speak with you." Perhaps it wasn't the best phrase to begin with, but it allowed Azure to feel like he still had some control - some real power - before being forced to grovel at her feet for her forgiveness. "Speech" "Thinking" "You."

Malalia Fatalis

Well, this was a surprise. If she'd had to guess, she would've bet anything that she and Azure would carry on for the rest of their lives silently glaring at each other from across the crowd. And after Aslatiel had stalked away, she certainly didn't think that Azure would want anything to do with her, now. It was just her luck, that she would be adopted into a family and immediately garner hatred from two of them for it. Boy oh boy, am I a winner...

Be that as it may, the surly boy was calling for her, and she was going to find out why.

Mal was unbothered by the phrasing -- it seemed fairly neutral on its own, and he'd addressed her in worse ways anyhow. She did wonder, though, what he supposedly needed. With a swish of her tail, the Reaper made her way to Azure, slowing her pace as she neared him. The tawny fae eased back to sit; her tail flicked irritatingly behind her, green eyes slightly narrowed, but she was otherwise expressionless as she looked up at the taller boy. "You called?"

"Speech"

Malalia's expression gave nothing away and Az narrowed his eyes slightly in response. How frustrating. With an audible intake of breath the boy steadied himself, he held it in a moment and then exhaled his annoyance away. He had to tread carefully, especially with how much favor the yearling had acquired from his - their? - father. No more strikes, not for him. "I wanted to apologize for my behavior when we first met." The heir's voice was steady and professional and he emulated the formality his alpha parents could draw upon as best as he could. "You've earned Father's favor, you are my superior and now also my sister. So I begrudgingly offer you my respect." A flicker of annoyance touched his face once more but he forced it down and swallowed hard to collect himself once more. "If you know me at all you understand that this is hard for me, so that's probably the best you're going to get." It was an honest admittance, and his chest puffed out a little further as he huffed a sigh. "But you don't get to choose your family, right? Something you learn to live with." Except, she had been allowed to choose her family. The fact bothered him - though not nearly as much as it did Asla. The family name was not something he was protective of, after all how else were the Fatalis' to spread to conquer Boreas in the Empire's name if they did not have many more to bear new generations? No, Azure was protective of his throne. Defensive of his position. Threatened by how fast she'd rose already, though he'd never admit it to her or anyone else. "Where are your aspirations from here on?" He asked, though likely not with as much subtlety as he'd of liked. If she could only say that she did not admire a crown he could dismiss her as just another sister, a non-threat, someone who would not get in the way of his dreams.   "Speech" "Thinking" "You."

Malalia Fatalis

Her ears swiveled forward, and she fixed her gaze more intently on Azure. Apologize? Well, that was an interesting turn of events, though a part of her understood the reason. She was his superior now, and his sister. At the very least, he would have to play nice, though judging from their last -- and first -- encounter, Mal wouldn't have judged him to be the nice type. Too, she didn't expect him to name her 'sister' so readily, either. That gave her pause, made her reconsider her earlier beliefs. Maybe taking the Fatalis name was not as devastating as she'd initially believed.

Perhaps the most surprising thing was his candidness. Upon hearing that this was the best apology she was going to get, Mal snorted faintly, breaking from rigid stoicism into a kind of guarded humor. "I suppose not," she agreed. The Warlord's adoption was an offer she could take or leave -- but she would have to take all of it. It meant that Azure was her brother, now. Far from her first choice, if he was ever a choice at all, but as the boy had said, she'd learn to live with it.

"Well.... I appreciate your honesty," she returned. She had to roll her eyes at his transparency, though. "And I'm not after your throne, so you can calm your tail." To tell the truth, she hadn't even aspired to the rank of Reaper until Sirius opened up the competition up. It was as high as she ever planned on climbing, within the pack. "Leading a pack is a kind of headache that I'd rather avoid. Working behind the scenes is enough for me,"she said simply. To provide for and protect the pack, to the best of her ability, was all she wanted to do.

Her head tilted slightly. Depending on who's leading. She wasn't going to throw a fit if Azure won instead of Mortis. But she wouldn't blindly follow anyone, and Azure had already given her plenty of reasons to doubt his potential as a leader. Maybe this meeting could prove otherwise. "And what about yours, should you win the competition?" What did he intend for the Ashen Armada? A heavy question, maybe, but not so for a hopeful leader.


"Speech"

So far the conversation was going better then he'd planned, and Azure was able to breathe a bit knowing it wouldn't devolve into an argument where he may earn yet another strike from his father. She was behaving well just as he was, and the boy was happy to hear at least that she was not going to be petty. He'd fought her, she'd won, he insulted her, he was disciplined accordingly. If they could just get past that Azure was determined to keep hold on his emotions and not escalate it further. He'd have to accept her for what she was now - as his adopted sister and his mother and father's right hand wolf she at least deserved that much. The heir nodded, uncomfortable with her agreement. Did that mean she forgave him? Did he even care if she forgave him? Publicly, he supposed he did. It would do nothing for his image to be locked in an eternal argument with the Reaper. Privately it mattered much less to him how exactly his siblings saw him. Malalia seemed to at least get along with his brother, and if anything that might help Az stay on her good side. She was not shy about admitting that she'd not aim for his throne and Azure nodded slowly at the reply. The gears turned in his head, and he wondered whether one day he might be the voice she spoke for as Reaper. While Malalia wondered about his potential as a leader, Azure was unknowingly wondering about hers as a follower. It felt like it could be problematic, but that was a problem for another year. Who knew? Perhaps by that point in time they'd see eye to eye. "Good." The boy murmured, eyeing her carefully. While he wasn't sure if she was being honest or not, at least for the moment she was not trying to snake her way into his spot as heir. Malalia prodded further, and Azure cleared his throat. "To be determined." He gave in reply, casting his gaze over her shoulder into the distance. "Though rest assured my goal will always be to bring glory to the Empire, the Armada, and our family name." It was subtle, but he was including her in the vision for the future. Gently reminding her that they shared the Fatalis name and thus were on the same side. "There's no point in planning for a future that's uncertain, Mortis may win the throne. He is the firstborn, after all." Of course, Azure did not believe for a moment that Mortis would win out over himself. It was merely a way to shift the conversation while also assuring Malalia that he could be reasonable and not only ego-driven and proud. "What do you think of our brother?" "Speech" "Thinking" "You."

Malalia Fatalis

To be determined, he'd said. A nice, vague sentiment. Malalia was under no delusions that Azure would be satisfied, losing out to his brother. At least behind it all, though, lay the ambition of elevating their status. His emphasis on their shared background did not fly by unnoticed. And even so, Mal was beginning to believe him, if only a little bit. They might not see eye to eye, but the goal of uplifting their family and the Empire? She could get behind that, if even in the most general sense. The Armada was her home now.

"And?" The snort she gave was a touch incredulous, though not derisive. For one thing, all manner of things could happen between now and the end of the competition. Her own blood-brother had been heir. Now he wasn't.

For another... "If being firstborn mattered that much, you wouldn't be an adversary heir to begin with. You've clearly got merit." It was less of a compliment and more of an observation. Of course, the boy probably knew this himself, and his words veered a touch too much on the side of humble for her to think he really believed it himself. Thinking back to their encounter, she frowned inwardly. The utter entitlement, the condescension... that didn't go away in a couple of weeks. Perhaps they did have one shared vision, but Mal soon remembered whom she was dealing with.

She was not surprised, then, that the conversation shifted to Mortis. "He's been a good friend to me. He's empathetic. Determined. Works hard." She shrugged. "Nothing you don't already know, I'd guess. You've known him longer," she pointed out. If he was asking after what she thought of him as a potential leader, she didn't have an answer for him. She believed in and supported Mortis, but he was still pretty young. Time would tell.


"Speech"

Her unconvinced reply brought him pause and Azure raised a brow in question. He could not deny that it pleased him to hear her speak of him having merit, regardless of their rocky history and the fight he'd lost at her paws. "I'm heir because our father chose me to be." He told her firmly. "Mother chose Mortis." The boy's voice took on a sour tone as he mentioned Zee, his gaze falling to his paws. It frustrated him that the half of his blood that belonged to the powerful Warlord was spoiled by the slave-queen he'd chosen to wife. Azure respected and admired his father while he did his best to ignore his mother as anything more then the woman who'd birthed him. Maybe it was her fault he wasn't first born, perhaps he would have grown even larger and stronger if his mother could rival his father in size. "She's his weak point, and if she does not find me fit to lead... well, it doesn't take a scientist to figure out why Mortis' chances are higher." While Azure had began his explanation as an off-hand explanation on why he was right and she was wrong, it had devolved into something more. He'd not discussed with anyone his reservations about his mother, nor his worry that her influence might lose him his throne. Not even to Asla, whom he adored. Az bit his lip, tasting blood as his flesh was pricked. He focused himself back upon the thought of Mortis, about her kind words describing him. "Did he tell you I pushed him off a cliff?" The heir asked casually, eyeing her out the corner of his eye. "Speech" "Thinking" "You."

Malalia Fatalis

The corners of her lips dipped in a light frown at his words. So it wasn't as cut and dry as she'd assumed, then. Malalia didn't know about the inner workings of the family before she'd been adopted. If Zee really did favor Mortis over their brother, and Sirius was as pliable as Azure suggested, he had a point. Mal just didn't believe he was. "Why begin a whole competition between you two if you didn't have a chance? Seems like he's already willing to go against her."

Then, she shrugged. "But hey, fair enough." Maybe he was right. She trusted that he knew Sirius better than she did, at this point, though she quietly retained her doubts.

If she would read the boy's thoughts, she would've been sorely disappointed at his opinion of his mother, though. Sure, anyone could be anyone else's weak point. But to believe that she was less capable, less worthy of respect? She would've laughed for days had she not been so busy chewing his ear off about how wrong he was. Mal might not've had many encounters with the woman, but Zee was formidable in her own right. She had to be, to lead the Armada with their father.

She raised her brow points when he spoke of pushing his brother off of a cliff, and held his gaze for half a heartbeat. Amazing. Incredible. And not at all surprising. "You know, you're an edgy little shit," she finally chuckled, her tone halfway between humorous and incredulous. She was shaking her head in answer. Ohh, what a mean thing to do, but Azure probably knew that as well. She was curious, though. Maybe the boy was evil incarnate. Maybe it was just a stupid prank. "Why?"


"Speech"

Azure shrugged, the gesture regarding the situation looking more relaxed then he really felt. "We'll see. He's not happy with me." The boy resisted the urge to send a pointed glare her way - a declaration of 'it's your fault I got that first strike' - though he really was committed fully to being good today, even if his thoughts didn't exactly match his intention. She dropped it quickly however, and Az nodded his agreement. He was curious at what her reaction to his admittance may be, whether Mortis had already told her the story in some twisted way to make him out to be the bad guy or not. Something had happened to his brother the season prior, he'd changed. It was like he'd forgotten the cliff entirely and Az wanted to know if he was simply hiding the fact he remembered or truthfully had some change of mind. "I know." He agreed easily, tossing her a grin. If anything it was a compliment, Azure enjoyed being an edgy little shit. The grin upon his face did not last long and he grew more serious as she asked him why. That wasn't an answer to his question, and it frustrated him that he still did not know what Mortis may or may not have said. He considered for a moment, thinking hard on how important it was to him to keep his reputation as an edgy little shit or if he could let her in on the truth. "I was trying to teach him to fly. I'd seen birds, they jump out of the nest to practice or gain confidence or whatever. We tried some boulders for him to jump off and a tree, but I figured he just didn't get to fall far enough to catch the air. I don't know how flying works. When I suggested the cliff he agreed, but he started to chicken out." Azure paused and took in a breath, letting it out in an angry rushed huff. "We were best friends, I wanted what was best for him and that was to learn to fly. Could you imagine being the only wolf in the world who could fly? So I pushed him because he didn't want to jump anymore. I thought he could do it." Both boys were quite young when it had happened, for all Az knew maybe if they'd waited longer his brother would be able to fly. Maybe his wings weren't strong enough yet. Regardless, their mother quickly explained that Mort would never fly and to never try again. "It was the worst day of my life, the next thing I knew I was being dangled over the cliff by Resin. Except I didn't have wings, I could have died. I ran to our father for help, to tell him what she did and expected him to protect me. Instead he told me 'If you do not like to be pushed around, learn how to be strong enough to stop it.' so that's what I did. I think he regrets saying that now." An emotionless laugh punctuated his words, the sound short and clipped. The heir let out another sigh, this time slower and more grounding then his angry huff had been. There was something freeing about being able to talk with it about someone who was not an adult, but also not one of his siblings. He'd given Indigo the cliff note version of the story, and for that Indigo took the flesh from his ear. Asla he'd been too afraid to tell at all out of fear of losing his closest friend. "That's why I was mean to you. I'm mean so I don't get pushed around." Azure added hastily. Somehow, his half-assed apology had turned into something a bit more. He worked his lip harder with his teeth, looking over at her to see what she'd think of his story. "I'm not all bad, and sometimes I can be a good brother." Why was he still talking? Why did he care at all what this new sister felt about him? He forced himself to stop talking before he could go on further. "Speech" "Thinking" "You."

Malalia Fatalis

Her eyes rolled skyward at that grin of his. Of course he would be proud of it. At least he's aware of himself, I guess? If anything, it told her that he knew how not to be one. Perhaps this was one of those times.

She listened, without comment, as Azure revealed that he didn't pull a stupid prank, but he hadn't set out to hurt his brother, either. She chuckled inwardly at the image of Resin dangling him over the cliff, how bewildered the younger Azure must have been in that moment. He'd been trying, in his own way, to help him. Encourage his brother -- his best friend -- to step out of his comfort zone, to literally fly. So maybe Mal wouldn't have pushed him off, exactly, but more than likely, she would've shared the same sentiment at that age. As unconventional as winged wolves were, it was easy to make some wrong assumptions about it. Malalia certainly had, when she'd seen Mortis for the first time.

A frown tugged at her lips. Mortis called her his best friend, now, but she'd never actually considered that he and Azure had once been that close, not really. The whole event, it seemed, was one big, messy mistake, and yet it had rendered the bond between them. Tack on a reprimand from every adult, and the competition for heir, and they were effectively pitted against each other. That... that couldn't have been a good feeling.

She smirked in kind, at the backlash from Sirius's words, but remained quiet, thinking. She hadn't been the biggest fan of Azure. She still wasn't, but there was undoubtedly more to the boy than insults and petty fights.

Finally, she cleared her throat. "It was an accident," she offered simply. "You didn't mean to hurt him. I mean, it probably wasn't fun for Mortis, obviously, but it doesn't mean that you're bad." Had someone actually told him that? It had sounded like all the adults had only admonished him, when he simply lacked understanding. She shook her head, finally answering his question. "He never told me about this. I don't think he holds it against you, though." From her conversations with the winged wolf, it was clear that Mortis loved his brother, even if they didn't see eye to eye on things.

"Kind of a shit reason to be mean to me, though, I gotta say." She fixed her gaze on the taller boy, tail thumping behind her. "Resin dangled you over a cliff, and now you're just gonna be mad about it forever? Come on. You don't have to act that way to keep from being pushed around."

She shook her head. "But hey, if you're dead set on being mean, picking fights, at least try to have a good reason for it. Not.... hmm... stealing your training style, was that it?" She may have been a little irritated, but there was a hint of amusement there, too. Gods, that was probably one of the dumbest fights she'd ever gotten into...


"Speech"

Azure wasn't sure what he expected from his confession, though her opening statement of it being accidental pleased him and he confirmed it with a nod. "Accidental." He repeated "But, I am sort of bad." His shoulders shrugged once more, as if to say 'nothing I can do about it.' There was no way he was going to spill everything that made him what he was - he doubted the new Reaper would approve of his killing methods, his enjoyment of torture or anything else he considered a hobby. Defending his actions was not his intention, only to explain to her a bit of why he'd attacked her that day. When she mentioned Mortis hadn't told her the story, Azure's brow raised in question. A part of him still did not believe that Mort had had some mysterious change of heart, though perhaps this was further proof on it. After all, it was an easy way his brother could garner sympathy from [/i]anyone[/i] and they were practically campaigning for the right to lead. Or, at least Az was. His brows furrowed, confused. "Well, now you know I guess." A shit reason to be mean to her? When Resin dangled him over that cliff, Azure tried to kill her for it. In multiple, premeditated ways. It mattered to him more than Malalia knew. His head shook, the argumentative reply he had dying in his throat. He had to be nice. If only for today. "It's a shit reason but it's still my reason." The boy insisted after a moment. "Every wolf I defeat is one less wolf who will try to push me around. The reason doesn't matter, just the outcome." Except he'd lost, and now he was apologizing to her rather then towering above her in victory. His expression morphed into a frown. She didn't think his reasoning was good enough, but Azure was six months old - younger when the event had happened. The things that mattered to pups didn't always make sense to adults, and Azure was still firmly on the side of 'stealing a training style is wrong.' He couldn't say that though, not unless he wanted to risk another argument. "Speech" "Thinking" "You."

Malalia Fatalis

A brow point rose high. It's not like she disagreed with him, exactly, but the helplessness in his tone, his shrug -- she simply wasn't buying it. People were capable of changing their behavior. Still, if Azure had accepted his own 'badness' as fact, as necessary, there was little she could do to change it.

Malalia could only stare as he further insisted that any reason was reason enough, as long as he deemed it so. It didn't matter that she wasn't Resin; every wolf he came across would suffer for the older woman's actions. She sighed, turned her eyes to the plains with a flick of her ears. Let him challenge everyone he pleased, and find an army of disgruntled wolves at his throat just when he relied on them the most. He couldn't best them all.

...And a frown tugged at her lips at the scene. It seemed lackluster, and frustrating. It wasn't necessarily disappointment that washed over her, then -- rather the annoying acceptance that Azure would stick to his guns, with little regard for anyone.

Did that make him fit for the throne? Had she known of his other, unsavory inclinations, the attempts on Resin's life, the answer would've been a firm no. As it was, he simply appeared to be a mulish boy with some wayward ideas. He hadn't set out to harm anyone for the sake of it, as far as she knew. And one fight didn't determine the whole of his worthiness to lead, as petty as the reason was.

A shit reason for an adult was a shit reason for a pup, too. Younger wolves were more intelligent than people generally assumed. More importantly, she simply didn't care to tailor her conversations with either group. Mal had hoped that, as reflective as he seemed, he might at least acknowledge her reasoning. I guess that's not happening. With a shrug, she rose to stand, stretching out her back. "If you say so." With no more words for him, the fae leaned upward, and turned to leave.

--attempted exit--


"Speech"

Azure was the last pup who would ever let someone walk away from him and as his now-sister frowned, shrugged, and turned to leave he struggled to keep composure. This whole 'being good' thing was a hell of a lot more difficult than he'd expected it to be. Where his instincts told him to demand her attention - to fight her if need be - logic told him how terrible of an idea that was. He'd told his story, hopefully Malalia did not look down on him as far as she might have prior to hearing his side of things. If he wanted to continue to drag her to his side, he'd need to bite his tongue and try again later. Whether he was being good or not, Azure couldn't help his annoyance from flooding into his tone. "Okay, bye I guess?" He spoke to her departing form, huffed, and then turned around himself to stalk away in the opposite direction. It was a step-up from the way he'd 'dismissed' her in their last interaction. -also exit-   "Speech" "Thinking" "You."