The Archer-Lyall had been meaning to check out the mangroves for a while now. Knowing that soon it would be too cold to enjoy it. Far too restless to sleep, despite the height of the moon, she had crossed the river near her den and woven her way through the willows and to the east. Her muzzle twitched up in the ghost of a snarl at the thought of that. It wasn’t like she could go any other direction. The Armada was effectively hemmed in on all sides now, pinned between the Empire and the sea. No matter what was said about Habari, you didn’t share a border with a pack you didn’t have ties to without them moving against you, and that was all the confirmation Sedna had needed to roll her eyes into the back of her skull. She didn’t like feeling so exposed, but claustrophobic at the same time.

As always, Otis trotted along at her side, his stark white face standing out in the moonlight, and as the ground grew softer and more root-ridden underfoot he scrambled up to ride on her back. She wondered if maybe she would be too late to see the water lights? Winter would be on them before they knew it.

"speech".

we wear red so they don’t see us bleed

Barracuda had thought himself mad, launching into the sea as he had. It was more than a swim to get here. What were the chances the princess had drowned on the crossing? For all her name sake, he just wasn’t sure she was a strong enough swimmer to make it this far. Sure, she probably hadn’t had to contend with summer storms like he did. But there were still big things in the water that would swallow a wolf whole. He had taken a few days to recover once he finally hit land, but he hadn’t strayed too far from the mangroves. There were fish to keep his belly full and plenty of cover if he needed it. But it was time to start searching for real. She’d already had such a big head-start.

The irritated click of his tongue behind his teeth was cut short as an early autumn breeze blew a familiar scent his way. Speak of the devil, and all that nonsense. The sly smirk that pulled at his lips wouldn’t be seen by the smaller monochrome wolf, his brows drawing down as he took in the opossum draped across her back. Did they carry snacks with them here? Or was this some strange land where predators were servants to prey?

Never mind though, he could deal with a possum if he had to. It was definitely Sedna, even if she did smell all wrong. But he could fix that. Shadowing the monochrome woman was easy enough, it was a dance they had danced since she was born, and he wondered how long it would take her to notice.

"speech".

the horns are blowin’ louder, the bailiff’s drawin’ near

Sedna was exhausted. So exhausted that she didn’t notice the way the shadows in her left periphery shifted in the moonlight, following her with a distinctively larger wolfish shape. She was wrapped up in the now familiar weight of Otis on her back and the scent of brackish waters that drew her closer to the shore. There was a familiarity in the scent, just as there was in the willows. It smelled like home.

Foolish feeling, homesickness was, really. After all, she’d left of her own volition. In her exhaustion riddled brain, she almost imagined she smelled the underlying wolf scent of the Scowle too. A small huff of a chuckle was released under her breath, now she really was losing grip. Vareth had promised to follow and he hadn’t. Sigrun was gone. Who else would have ever come looking for her? No, they were all too busy, safe and secure. Knowing exactly where they stood, while she? Well... She felt like she had as much control as a twig caught up in a current.

The trees seemed to be stretching further apart, stars visible in the sky above and reflected on the water below. Was this what he had meant? It certainly wasn’t like the times the lagoon lit up... although there didn’t seem to be any large fish under the water to stir any luminous critters to light... Maybe it was only a warm weather thing? Otis scrambled down from her back and she sat, a sigh leaving her chest.

Loneliness did not suit her.

"speech".

we wear red so they don’t see us bleed

Silver eyes squinted, it wasn’t like he was trying to be sneaky, and yet she didn’t round on him. There were no bared teeth, no snarls or tackles. Something was wrong. Sedna Archer (he didn’t see a need to add the Lyall, she was her mother’s daughter through and through), had always been so sure of herself, and never had any fear of punching above her weight. But it wasn’t even that. She hadn’t even noticed he was there. A frown pulled at the corners of his mouth, brow creasing as his eyes grew narrow. He was impatient for a reunion, and as much as he wanted her to spot him, to run to him, there was something vulnerable and sad about the way her shoulders hunched over. Her sigh was the final straw.

Instinctively stepping silently, the man moved forward, using his greater height to shove a shoulder into the grey coated woman’s neck area. She wouldn’t be able to see the waving of his tail, but she would feel the rumble of a growl in his chest, the way teeth came to drag across the top of her skull, no intention to harm but hoping to at least give one ear a solid tug as retribution for her complacency. Barracuda did not like to be left waiting for acknowledgement, even from one so haughty as Sedna.

"speech".

the horns are blowin’ louder, the bailiff’s drawin’ near

Weight collided with the side of her body and she was back on the black sand beach, her answering snarl to the tug on her ear was far more murderous than her opponents as teeth lashed out blindly in the dark. She tasted blood on her tongue and her senses were overwhelmed with the scent of damp earth and cedar, white pine and salt. She adjusted her grip to grab onto flesh that had not been punctured by her teeth and threw her whole weight into shoving the larger wolf off. Her eyes were squinting defensively, as her brain fought to catch up. Nearly all the Scowle wolves were taller than she was, but most were heavier than she was too. The way the teeth had dragged across her skull had the fur down her spine tingling in a way that wasn’t related to fear, but a dark coat was no real give away either. Which one was it? And why were they here?

"speech".

we wear red so they don’t see us bleed

Barracuda huffed a laugh under his breath when the burn of her bite sunk into his shoulder. Well, he’d pay for it tomorrow, and should have known better, but it was worth it to feel her adjust her grip and shove back against him. He offered little resistance, hoping her grip on the side of his neck and the willing way he folded against the ground would be enough to bring her with him. A paw lifted to throw across her back and bring her to the ground with him. A distant hissing and the sharp pain of teeth in his rear leg only bought his laughter into the open, hoping at least vaguely that in his fall he might take the damn possum out with him. "Now, now princess," he teased, knowing once he spoke the ruse would be up, but also how much she hated the pet name, "I came all this way an’ yer try ter take me out? Not very hospitable of yer. What would yer mother say?" He knew very well what her mother would say, but he wanted to get his digs in while he could.

"speech".

the horns are blowin’ louder, the bailiff’s drawin’ near

The laugh gave him away before his words did. She followed him to the ground, allowing the leg to rest across her back and pull her closer to his chest now that she knew who it was. Her face burned beneath her fur that he had managed to sneak up on her like that. And his jab was met with teeth bared in the moonlight and very un-princess like snort. "She’d say I should’a ripped our yer throat ‘for yer had a chance ter open yer mouth." The Archer-Lyall spat back venomously, trying to ignore the butterflies that were building in her stomach. Why was he here? Was he going to try and take her home? She wouldn’t go. He had to know that.

"’Cuda, what’er’yer doin’ ‘ere?" Some of the heat had left her voice, and she had stopped her attempts at squirming out of his grasp. The weight across her shoulders felt good, and the familiar scent of home left exhaustion washing over her. If she didn’t get away soon she would fall asleep.

"speech".

we wear red so they don’t see us bleed

It was worse than he had expected if she was willing to give up on her attempts to get away from him already, but he would make the most of her uncharacteristic compliance, resting his head across her neck and allowing a low humm to fill the silence after her question. She didn’t smell like pups, didn’t look that much different to when she had disappeared and so he would keep his purpose from her for now. Though a small, smug, possessive part of him was secretly glad. Instead of answering her at all, he took a moment to groom the slightly longer fur at the back of her ear.

In the distance, a wake wave was moving towards the shore, the spray of water from a blowhole betraying the dolphins as they herded a school of fish into the shallow mangroves. He watched with some interest as the water came alight underneath and around them. It should serve as enough of a distraction from her questions, or at least he hoped it would. "Not quite yer ma’s sturgeon, but I suppose it’s pretty enough."

"speech".

the horns are blowin’ louder, the bailiff’s drawin’ near

He was ignoring her question, trying to distract her by pulling his teeth through the fur behind her ears, and as much as she hated to admit it, it was pulling her eyes closed with a grumble, leaning back ever so slightly into the touch to direct him to just the right spot... her toes twitched, her leg wanting to kick out instinctively to show just how much she was enjoying it, but she had more self control than that, and managed to limit her response to a curling of her toes in the dirt beneath them.

She was so close to sleep, that it took her a moment to realise what the other wolf was talking about. She opened her eyes enough to watch the dolphins, and the way the luminescence trailed off their fins, swirling up in clouds behind them. He was right. It wasn’t the same roiling, thrash of the ancient fossil fish. It was just as otherworldly, but not nearly so... ominous.

Her unanswered question still hung in the air between them. Until he answered, she wasn’t going to say any more.

"speech".

we wear red so they don’t see us bleed

He took the opportunity while she was distracted with the dolphins to really look at her. She seemed to be in good shape, the scent of other wolves clung to her fur, so clearly she had found a pack, but judging by the haggard look on her face, she wasn’t finding pack life terribly reassuring, or at least comfortable enough to sleep... which meant she was probably in a den on her own. The scar over her eye made his lips quirk down in a ghost of a grimace. When (no if) her mother saw it, she would no doubt give him one to match her. After all, he was her assigned guardian, had been since his acceptance into the Scowle. That it had taken him this long to find her was a measure of failure on his part. He had a lot to make up to her, and he was still in two minds about whether or not he would complete his assigned mission or ever even bother returning to the pack they had both left on the other side of the sea.

He offered a smirk in response to her silence. The girl could out-wait a stone if she ever put her mind to it. "Yer look like shit. We’ll talk once yer’ve had some rest." He rested his chin on the top of her head, attempting to force it down to her paws. He didn’t need to say the words for her to know that she was safe with him. He tried to ignore the possum that had scaled his back and was now grumbling as it pushed through the fur over his hip, curling itself into a ball on the newly established sleeping pile.

Not that he planned on sleeping mind...

"speech".

the horns are blowin’ louder, the bailiff’s drawin’ near

She snorted when he said she looked like shit. She had gone out of her way to avoid catching sight of her own reflection. So when the gentle, familiar pressure pushed down on her head she only grumbled a minor complaint, noticing the way Otis was making himself comfortable on the large man’s hip with a smirk. "Don’eatm’possum..." she muttered out with a yawn, finally allowing herself to relax into the warmth of another wolf pressed over and against her. The familiar scent of home wrapping her up as her eyes drifted shut.

Hopefully nobody at the Armada was looking for her.

"speech".

we wear red so they don’t see us bleed