Maggot had finally lugged the large coat back to her selected den, flopping down into its warmth to try and recover some of her stamina. She had put on a brave face for Sirius, but as soon as he had dropped his attention from her, she had flung the thing down and dragged it backward.

What kind of animal was this big and how in Mount Volkan did they manage to kill it? She shook her head to clear her thoughts, pushing herself into a standing position with a soft huff. She pulled the coat into a corner of the den, tucking it up against the wall. The girl peered around at the den, chiding herself for her sudden need to cry. She decided that could wait until later, a few rogue tears hastily wiped away with her dainty paws.

Her back faced the den's entrance as she closed her eyes and smiled.

"This is home," she mumbled out, her tail thumping softly as it wagged.

The young wolf was running a patrol, which was how he had caught the scent of Sirius and the newcomer. He scented her trail with curiosity for a moment, and knew his father had brought home a new recruit. It seemed like it had been a while now since a new wolf had made their home here. For a time, it seemed like almost every day there was a new face. With an excited bounce to his step, the winged boy followed the trail all the way to the communal space. From there, he could scent that his father had diverged into a different direction. Io’s den, maybe? Judging by the starting point. The newcomer, however, had made her way into the den sites. With a conspiratorial glance at his shoulder-riding-Kea-companion, the boy wiggled a brow, and then followed the scent of the stranger to her den. He did so like to meet new people. He scratched at the door, to announce himself. “Hello?” "Mortis"

Maggot had been so caught up in her thoughts, the scratch on the door had startled the girl. She jumped a bit from her sitting position peering over her shoulder at the door. The girl at first assumed it was Sirius, but his scent seemed altered. As if he had run through a flower field. She was confused.

The girl turned to peer at the door, it was such a strange contraption to her. She gingerly wedged her nose between the small gap she had left, peeking out to where most of the scarring on her ears was hidden. She blinked in confusion at the strange wolf and her eyes were drawn to both his companion and his wings. She had no clue where she was supposed to look and debated on if she was imagining this whole encounter or if such strange and fascinating wolves really did exist.

"Are...are you...imaginary?" she timidly asked the wolf, her gaze locked on the bird with peaked interest. She refrained from meeting his gaze. If he really was some imaginary spirit, she did not want to tick him off.

The stranger poked her nose through a gap in the door, and the pup's tail sped up behind him, smacking against the ground in delight as he grinned at her. The grin slipped a little when he caught just the nearest hint of her scars. She also didn’t look him in the eyes, which was not a trait he was familiar with. He began to frown, just a little, and he tucked his wings against the side, and moved forward, pushing his nose up close to hers at the door. “No, I’m one hundred percent real, I promise. I’m Mortis Fatalis, who are you?” he asked, mentally wondering what her story was. What had happened to her? Everything about her looked painful. "Mortis"

Maggot recoiled a bit at the newcomer’s closeness, purely out of her need for physical space. She pushed the door open with one of her paws, claws gently scraping on the door.

The girl squinted at him again, leaning to her right to peer at the other’s wings. She was fascinated by them, and quickly corrected her staring by moving her eyes to his chest.

“I’m Maggot,” she replied softly, there was no use sugarcoating her name.

Maggot remembered how Sirius had silently communicated his approval of her eye contact, so she flicked her gaze to Mortis’. However, she was still uncomfortable with the idea, so she could only hold brief contact before looking away.

As he moved closer, the stranger moved back, her posture seemed a little unhappy, but he couldn't be sure. She did at least open the door, giving him more space to see here without being in her space. He would really see the damage on her ears then! Wow, that was intense, what happened to her? She gave her name, and flicked a gaze to him briefly, and then away again. The young pup frowned again, moving into the doorframe. He hunkered down a little, so he didn’t lurk over her so much. He got the sense that she wasn’t entirely comfortable. “Hi, Maggy” he said - there was no way he was calling her Maggot! That seemed like a mean name. “What happened to you?” maybe a bit forward, but he couldn’t understand how so much damage could have been done to one wolf. "Mortis"

Maggot watched with appreciation as Mortis shrunk down to closer to her height. He was rather large for someone who acted so young. Though physically intimidating, she could tell his mind hadn't quite caught up with the sheer size of him. The girl chuckled at the nickname, her tail waggling a bit behind her. Though not ashamed of her name, she appreciated the thought.

She supposed that it would be proper to talk about something so..detailed out of the prying ears of others. Maggot had manners, no matter how awful her past appeared. The girl stepped back into her den, eyes roving over the figure once more in apprehension of her next words.

"Well..if you would really like to know, you can come in," it was almost said as a question, the inflection of her voice suggesting she wasn't at all sure how to respond. Her iris colored eyes peered up at Mortis before her gaze once again fell to the bird perched on his shoulder.

"Your...friend can come in too," she chimed, not sure what to call the relationship between the two. Whatever it was, she reallywanted to touch the bird.

He offered her a beaming grin, the frown gone from his expression like it had never been there at all. “Thanks” he was quick to say, as he moved carefully through her doorframe, and half closed it behind him. He glanced at the big buffalo rug, catching the scent of his father on it. He settled down on the edge of it. He glanced back up at her, catching her look to his Kea. “This is Saph, she’s a Kea - an alpine parrot” he explained. Remembering the information Io had given him on his winged friend. He slid his body down until he was settled on his paws, his wings remaining tucked carefully out of the way, and he looked at her expectantly. Waiting for the promised story she had said she would give him on her history.

Maggot moved out of the way of the larger wolf, a swell of anxiety rising when she noticed him closing the door. However, he left it half-open, so Maggot decided she could deal with the confined space for a while. If her ears could perk, they would've as he spoke about his bird. That made two winged animals in her den. The girl still couldn't get over his wings, but with how calm he seemed over it, she assumed it was normal. What strange lands had she found?

The girl cleared her throat, not sure where to begin. Her tail curled around her paws, and she peered at the roof of the den in thought.

"Well, where I come from, it isn't a good thing to be weak or to not listen to your parents. I sorta did both," she began, wondering how many details she must spare the wolf who seemed barely younger than she," and so, you get punished. The more scars you have as a younger wolf means the least behaving you are and more in-eligible you are for future mates as well as ranks. Scars are very common where I'm from, but I don't think many have the same...larger ones that I do."

As she spoke about the larger scarring, she raised a paw to gesture towards her head. She stared at him for a moment, trying to figure out how he was still interested in such a sad tale. No one likes sad tales. They want happy, fulfilling tales. But whatever, he wanted what he wanted.

"And, well, I'm guessing you really want to ask about my ears. Or lack of them," she suggested, a somber smile worming its way onto her maw.

He shuffled a little at first, settling in and getting comfortable. When she began to speak, he stilled, all of his concentration on the other wolf. His frown developed again as her story began, and Saph fluffed up on his shoulders, making a soft chirping noise. “Their punishment for not listening was to hurt you so badly you scarred?” he asked, disbelief colouring his voice. Not that he didn’t believe her tale - she wore the evidence of it. Directed at the actions of her parents. Who in their right mind would hurt their kids so bad? His dad had scared him a few times in his life, mostly when he was putting himself in danger. He had earned a few cuffs around the ears in his time, but he knew deep into his bones that Sirius would never truly hurt him. She gestured towards her head, and he raised his nose, looking at her injured a little more carefully without coming any closer. “They hurt your ears, too?”

She chuffed at his bold statement, she had barely begun! Maggot had to remind herself that he was clearly inexperienced in the cruelty of the world, as she was inexperienced in its kindness. The girl listened intently as he continued, her eyes closed as she formulated an understandable response.

"Well, it's probably more complicated than that. Even my mother had scars from her parents. It was normal, it still is normal for me. They don't just cut deep into you, each time you misbehave, they would reopen the cuts. If they had just ripped me down to bone-like how some of the scars look- I wouldn't be alive," she replied, almost hurriedly.

The girl inhaled noisily through her nose and then began speaking again," From what I can remember the group we belonged to was at war and had been for many years. I think they were losing because after the pups turned half-past one, we were given a month to join the ranks or be useful in some other..ways. They were desperate, and the quickest way to make someone listen is by hurting them. That's all anyone knew, I don't blame them."
[b]
"My father had something akin to pity for me, and so he sold me to a slave master. I think I had two bad options to pick from, but he chose the less painful one for me. The master was the one who took my ears,"[/b] Maggot felt relieved, to be able to share her story with someone. However, she reminded herself to ask him before he left to not tell anyone, or try not to. She was a little uncomfortable telling him how her ears had been taken, but if he pried, she would respond. It was in her nature to not ask twice.
.

“Normal!” he growled, snapping his head off the mat, eyes blazing, before he took in the scarred woman again, and realised she would tell her story or trust him if he couldn’t keep his temper. He shuffled his paws on the mat, bringing himself into a sitting position, and ducking his head in apology. He let her finish, struggling not to fidget, eyes on the ground at her feet. He feared if he looked at her right now he was going to storm out of the den. He cou;dn’t protect her from what had already happened, couldn’t give her back what had been taken from her. He tried to keep his voice gentle, cautiously lifting it to look at her feet, ears flattened to his skull. “It’s not right, Maggy. None of it’s right. Parents don’t hurt their kids. You should be be mad at what they did to you. The way you were raised… it's not normal. My dad needs me to be strong, so he kept a firm hand on me, do you see my scars? My ears?” he was unmarked. None of his training injuries had been deep enough to scar.

The girl physically recoiled, a fearful snarl momentarily gracing her lips. Though he had calmed rather quickly, and she picked up on the fact his anger was not towards her, she still scooted to press closer to the edge of the den. Her eyes warily regarded his form as she listened to him speak. Maggot was a little upset to be told everything she had ever known was wrong, and that her parents were wrong, and that her life was wrong.

The woman took a moment to speak, jaw opening and closing after a few unsuccessful attempts.

"How can I be mad at them when they need help too?" was all she could meekly reply. If she struggled to maintain eye contact before, it was a lost cause now. Maggot moved to lay on her chest, her paws coming to gently feel the scarring around where her ears should be. It was therapeutic for her; she had done the same when she first lost them.

"I-I don't think you can ever understand what my littermates, my family went through. Because you live here, in this nice place, with nice wolves and nice water, and nice big weird animals that you somehow manage to kill.." she trailed off, motioning towards the buffalo coat the two both occupied. Her tail wiggled anxiously, she did notwant to be yelled at again, especially over things she couldn't control.

Ears still flat to his skull, the young boy shook his head. Struggling to come to terms with the fact that parents could hurt their children so badly. Struggling to reconcile Maggot’s words to their actions. How could she not be angry, hateful, at what they had done to her? He watched her lay meekly down, and place her paws over her missing ears. He watched her, and he felt something in his heart that he had only experienced once before. It reminded him of the moment Azure had pushed him off the cliff. When he had looked up at his brother as he fell, and seen… not worry, or shock, just… indifference. The moment he knew his brother did not love and care for him as he did Azure. It was an ache in his chest, that tightened and clenched until it hurt to breathe. He crept close to her, quiet and slow as to not scare her any further. He moved to rest a paw over her arm, looking across at her sadly. “When things get hard, we band together, we fight together, we hurt together. But we never hurt each other.” he whispered softly. It felt important to him that she understood this difference in her family and his. That here she would find support, not pain, should she fail.

Maggot had sat in silence, listening to the sounds of their breathing. She was worried she'd upset him and had ruined their chances of being..well Maggot didn't really know what you'd call it. Friends, probably. It wasn't a foreign concept, but you couldn't get to know someone when you were in constant competition with one another. That was how it had been for her.

"I know," she began, holding back a sob as she took a deep breath," I know it's not right." She hoped he would understand what she meant, as it was too painful for her to delve into the fact that they, her family, hadn't really loved her as she thought. She clenched her eyes shut before she tucked her forelimbs under her chest, effectively pushing Mortis' paw off of her.

The girl quickly placed her chin on top of his paw, her eyes still shut tightly. She was worried she might open her eyes to find anger, even if she logically knew it wasn't her that he was angry at. Maggot was reminded of her first interaction with Sirius, who seemed much more composed. She noted that the two were very passionate, but Mortis' passion was yet to be controlled, due to his age.

“I’m sorry” he whispered softly, hearing her words sound almost like a sob, and knowing then that she did understand how wrong her world had been. Perhaps her denial was her way to cope. She pushed him off, and he didn’t intrude any further. Instead, he put his head to his paws, and looked up at her from big blue eyes. He almost laughed when, eyes closed, she put her head beside his. He gently pried free a wing, raising it up over her, and then letting it fall gently over her side like a soft, dawny blanket. Maggy was an Armada wolf now. Whatever she had come from, she was here and he wasn’t going to let anybody take her back. Not ever. “We are going to be friends, you and I.” he vowed in a soft whisper, tucking his wing lightly under her. She could easily wiggle free, if she was uncomfortable with his closeness.

The sudden warm, soft blanket that tucked around her surprised her a little, her eyes opening to glance around. Realizing it was one of his wings, she relaxed. Huffing softly at his statement, she peered at the larger wolf through the corner of her eye, simply observing him. She was more than glad to be here; she felt as if she mattered. Even if she mattered to a massive bird-puppy, she still valued their newfound friendship. It was a soft warm feeling in her chest that made her feel content. She didn't know it was possible to let your worries just melt away, especially when with another canine.

"Yeah, if you aren't imaginary," she chuffed jokingly, a soft smile present on her maw. It was strange how quickly she had gone from anxious to relaxed in his presence. It was just her accepting the fact that someone cared for her. Maggot thought it felt rather nice.

Her eyes finally found the fangs protruding from his maw, and she turned her head to peer at them. How had she not noticed them before? They were quite obvious.

"You're part snake now, too?" she questioned earnestly, her brows rising in question. What a strange world indeed.

He chuckled softly at her words, he’d never had anybody struggle to realise if he was fantasy or not before. He had gone some interesting interactions on account of his wings, but that was just a fact of his life.

He tucked his head against the side of her body and under her wing, a spot where it was nice and warm. Not that the winter air got into the den much, Sirius had built these dens to fend off the colder season’s chill.

He opened his maw, turning it back to her with a smile that showed off his fangs. “They're just like my dad’s. The claws are like his, too. Dunno where the wings came from” he explained sleepily, yawning into her coat. "I heard there like a dires, more then a snake. but I don't really know what a dire wolf is. Dad, I guess."

Maggot had a very confused look plastered across her face as her eyes roved over his smile. She snorted as she shook her head, wild.

She turned her head as he brushed against her, carefully watching him as he moved even closer. After a moment she settled down, her head curling around the outside of his, but not quite touching. Her eyes remained half-lidded as he showed her his teeth, a gentle laugh escaping her maw.

She had never heard of dires, but assumed they must be great beasts to be compared to his father. Her eyes gently closed, his yawn causing a yawn of her own to slip from her maw. Finally resting her eyes made her realize how tired she truly felt.

The woman was sure she wouldn't fall asleep, but she soon found herself drifting into a light sleep, a snort escaping her nose. She didn't snore but occasionally would scrunch her brow and snort whenever a dream turned sour.

-Maggot is asleep unless awoken, fade to black?-

Sleepy as he was, there was still a little pool of anger in the young boy's heart, that made sleep hard to grasp. Yawning widely, and curling up in her side, head against her coat, he found sleep more elusive then he would have liked. Were there really people out there like Maggy’s parents and pack? People that would be so free with punishments, against their own family? Sirius had drilled into him, that as a future leader, the wellbeing of these wolves would be his concern. That it was literally his job to keep them safe. That's what it meant to be a leader. The thought of tearing apart his wolves because they acted slow, or did fight as well as he wanted… he thought of little Tamy, who had been suicidal before coming to the pack. She had been a little shy, and not much of a fighter. He had seen his dad train her, support her. Now she was a fighter, a general of this pack, and like an Auntie to him. If Sirius had chosen instead to beat her, to rip up her ears… she would not be here today. She would not be strong. Her parents were wrong they had to be. Mortis couldn’t reconcile a world where they were right. He shuffled a little, restless, but not wishing to wake his sleep-mate. He heard the sound of her snort, and felt a soft twitch from her, and wondered if she was having a nightmare of her past life. He kissed her cheek gently, trying not to wake her. The gesture similar to the simple expressions of love he gave Zee, Io, Resin, any the many, many wolves in his life he cared for. “Shhh” he whispered gently. “Your safe” hoping it penetrated her dream, and offered her some measure of comfort.