I Just Had To Come Back
Meph
She had to admit though, being away from the northern lands was relieving. She hated it there. But coming through the springs here was nearly as uncomfortable. Her coat was built for the colder lands after spending so much time up there after her birth. Maybe she should have liked it because it was all she knew? Nope, still hated it. She was quite picky and ungrateful. Well, at least now a days. Or at least towards her father.
She didn't stop to enter any of the springs, though with the evening passing by she couldn't help but think of the possibility. The nights were pretty chilly with the autumn rains. Maybe she would actually try it out. For now, she was just walking through.
thinking "speech" "others" For no real reason, catching his niece's scent after all that time apart had been enough to divert his course. He trailed the young fae along her path until he eventually caught up to her at the site where they'd first run into one another. Were it not for the simple fact that there was no one else present, he wouldn't have known this was Relm. She towered at a height to rival himself and her father, and draped her brilliantly hued form in a drab cloak. What a disservice to her lineage, to withhold her glory from the world around her. Perhaps it was for hunting purposes? He glanced around, searching for a potential quarry she might eb tracking. He hadn't picked up any scents, but he had been quite focused on keeping to Relm's trail, and it wouldn't be impossible for him to have entirely skipped over the musk of a deer or young bison. This would be a smart area for an ambush, after all. Drowning an animal in the pools that littered the landscape would make a kill easier. When nothing stood out, he decided it might be worthwhile to simply call out to her. "Long time no see, my niece." rich, rumbling vocals rang out with a warm quality. He wanted to build a relationship with his estranged niece, and there was no time like the present to start. |
| Art by Monster |
"Don't think you can take me so easily." She growled, her intent was clear. She was ready for blood, but really only if he came on to her. She liked fights and being bitten, but this was a whole different situation than a little bit of fun. She genuinely believed her life could be in danger had he won dominance over her. Kefka had killed Agria so easily, even with a tear in his eye. She expected the same fate for herself had she crossed him one day.
thinking "speech" "others" In all honesty, he absolutely hadn't bee expecting his niece to retort with a snarl and bared fangs. Her entire body language became menacing as soon as she spun to face him, leaving the man utterly dumbfounded. He understood she might have been a bit traumatized by their first meeting, but surely she would be over it by now? It was in their blood to brawl when they wanted to, and meet insult with aggression. Russet auds tipped back towards his skull as he returned her snarl with a defiant curl of his own dark lips to flash his fangs. "Don't think you can take me so easily." she growled, and the phoenix found himself hesitating. Was she.. accusing him of attempting to rape her? Crown lowering between his shoulders, cerulean gaze swept over her cloaked form in search of some kind of clue. "I can assure you I have no interest in doing that, my dear." he grunted, lowering his lips to cover his teeth. Warily, he took another step closer. "Did your father tell you something about me that would imply I was interested in that?" he questioned, raising a brow at her. |
| Art by Monster |
The brute's more lowered manner had her relax a little, but she stepped back as he stepped forward. She still didn't trust him, and her guard was still up. But she was willing to let him talk or explain himself. She wasn't unreasonable. She was only trying to protect herself.
When her uncle asked, she shook her head, "I ran away." It was an easy confession, she was proud for taking control of her own miserable life. Though she guessed that her life wasn't exactly peachy and on a bright path. Anything as better than under the chains of her father. "You are not with him?" Kefka knew very few wolves so she assumed that those he did know were close companions. His brother she assumed his closest, even after their fight and their catch up. She assumed a lot of things. She didn't know a lot of things. She had really been so sheltered her whole life until now.
thinking "speech" "others" The young fae shook her head, and an iota of relief slunk down his spine to quell the tightness in his rib cage. "I ran away." she said simply, and her earlier comment made a bit more sense. She thought he was here to return her to her sire. Kefka had struck as the kind to be quite possessive, in the brief moments of their last meeting. Even as children he had been rather attached to his things. "You are not with him?" she asked warily, pale gaze drifting over his features in search of some kind of cue. He shook his head lightly, taking note of her attempt to maintain the distance between them. Rather than push his luck with his niece, the phoenix dropped lazily onto his haunches and let his back legs slide out from under him in a lazy slouch. "I have not seen Kefka since the last time I saw you, my dear." he drawled with a shrug. "I simply caught your scent and thought it might be nice to catch up, has something happened with your father that I should be aware of?" he questioned with a quirk of his brow, cerulean gaze searching her face for whatever might be hiding in her head. |
| Art by Monster |
Her eyes did squint a little when he spoke, saying he hadn't seen Kefka since their 'family meeting' and asked what had happened between them. Perhaps interested in more details, and there wasn't really much to offer honestly.
Her eyes closed momentarily, her voice was strong, held nearly no emotion. Because the only thing she felt about her father today was resentment, and maybe that had shown through if anything. "He did treat me like a prized possession, or at first." Kefka had showed great, deep love for his daughter. For his blood. Until he met up with Lurid and while he still held those strong feelings for Relm, she didn't believe it. "He didn't care about me, always left me on my own. Never spent time with me. I guess he expected me to willingly stay content living with him." She couldn't look at her uncle, though she didn't really know him enough to feel deeply personal with him or really open up. "He wouldn't touch me." They were words she had never said out loud to anyone before. Kefka was scared to get close to Relm because of his devilish side, because of what he did to Agria. And Relm never had a single night of her life where she felt loved or protected by her father. He never told her why, but she also never confronted him.
"Agria..." She paused, looking around the springs before looking back to him, "He was raving about how he suffered, about how he was escaping all his life." Relm couldn't speak for Kefka, but she felt like she could. Or at least she felt like it was all bullshit. She didn't see her relationship with her father the way that Kefka saw it, and Kefka never knew how she felt. "Agria, she was my mother too. Or well, she birthed me. I bet you didn't know that."
thinking "speech" "others" Getting the cloaked yearling to sit as well counted as a small victory in his eyes, and he hoped that she might slowly relax if he could keep her talking for long enough. And talk she did, starting with a deep breath as she centred herself, and launching into a winding story of everything he had missed in his separation from his only brother. Her eyes never met his, and he worried for what might be coming in this tale of hers. Though her tone of voice stayed consistently neutral, bordering on monotonous, he sensed something was certainly wrong. He suspected his brother might not have been the best father, having suffered such a traumatic youth, but he couldn't be certain until she continued. What had Kefka done? As it turned out, neglect was the primary concern. It wasn't in abraxas nature to abandon offspring- but then again, Kefka was not Abraxas. Their mother had stolen that opportunity from him, when she had scurried away with the boy in their youth. The longer the story ran, the worse the picture Relm painted of her childhood. It took a moment for the phoenix to clue into what she meant by "He wouldn't touch me." Initially he'd taken it as a reassurance, that he never abused her physically, sexually.. but then he realized she meant entirely. In the early days of his childhood, Kaine had been physically affectionate- grooming him in the mornings, wrestling with him once he got bigger, and they tended to bump shoulders and nip at one another while travelling during his adulthood. He couldn't imagine never feeling any physical affection from his parent. Then the girl mentioned his mother. "Agria..." she said it with the resignation of someone who had suffered at the hand of the one who bore that name. He couldn't know if his mother had been abusive, she had abandoned him too young for the memories to stick. "He was raving about how he suffered, about how he was escaping all his life." she continued, this time turning back to Kefka. He didn't doubt life had been tough, with a vengeful Abraxas on your heels constantly. The pair had hunted the missing wolves for years, and there had been times when they'd only just missed them. It could only have been traumatic, and distressing, for a young man to constantly have to pick up and move to escape the wrath of a god. "Agria, she was my mother too. Or well, she birthed me. I bet you didn't know that." the words hit with a delayed blow to the chest. Like being attacked from behind- no warning, no chance to raise your defenses. They sunk in slowly, poison seeping through the skin and into muscle. Agria.. was Relm's mother. So was... Kefka also her father? Or had he adopted a younger sibling after their mother went mad? No, the universe wasn't that kind. Kefka had fucked his mother. Had fucked their mother. And then slaughtered her when she inevitably lost her mind as a result of bearing the child of such a blasphemous union. Empty eyes trained on the middle ground somewhere past Relm's right shoulder, he felt the horror of this new reality creeping through his veins like a parasite, deadening each nerve along its course, worming its way towards his heart. He felt sick. His stomach lurched violently, forcing his breakfast up into his throat, hot bile spilling onto his tongue. He tucked his chin towards his chest, fighting down the vomit, until a second twist of his stomach brought up more. He retched onto the ground, the meagre remains of a hare arcing onto the slick stone to his left. Lifting one trembling forepaw, he wiped the sick from his jowls, casting it towards the rest of the mess with a flick of his wrist. He inhaled deeply, and returned his gaze to the impossibly passive features of his niece. Sister? He didn't want to think about it anymore. He wanted to bury himself in a shallow grave and let the worms do away with his flesh. "I'm so sorry, my dear." he murmured hoarsely, his usual croon lost to the bile that had climbed up his throat. "You didn't deserve this life." he sighed, eyes squeezing shut as he was struck with another wave of disgust, loathing, rage. Kefka should be put down. He had crossed a line, had abandoned all civility. How had he been so cool and calm when they'd initially met? He wished he'd taken his brother's eyes when they'd brawled. Torn into him properly, the way a monster like that ought to be shredded. Cerulean eyes flickered open once again, focusing on the ebony and alabaster features of the young fae before him. "Would.. you like to travel with me for a while? I can help keep him from ever hurting you again. I can't fix the past, but I can improve the present." he offered softly, brows pinching together with deep concern. |
| Art by Monster |
Relm had actually considered walking away, she tried to give her uncle a moment but it was almost taking too long. Sitting here watching him wrench, it was almost sickening to her. Sickening to see him feel so mentally sick. And she couldn't understand how he was feeling. But he contained himself, tried to be a little more presentable after the moment. And when he told Relm he was sorry, she didn't deserve a life like this, she scowled at him. It may have even been offensive to her. She didn't feel that way. She may not have liked the way she grew up, hated her father or whatever. But she didn't feel like her life wasn't worth living. She was capable for herself, she could drop her roots so easily. And then it felt like the problem was rid of.
She could hear the genuine tones in her uncle's voice, maybe almost pleading with her to stay with him. And she felt almost pressured to do so. But she was alone. Rhaegath had disappeared, she was again in a state that made her feel in danger. Kefka could be around any corner, waiting to kill her like he did Agria. "I don't... mind that." She said, not really confident. But she was getting older, old enough to be on her own even though she already was. But maybe she would never really feel free until Kefka was taken care of, until it was absolutely certain he wouldn't be there to threat her. Though what he was capable of wasn't completely known to her.
thinking "speech" "others" It was exceedingly obvious that his distress was not doing him any favours, but he truly couldn't help it. Knowing what had happened to create this girl, who had neither choice nor agency in her own existence until now... it shattered his desire to call himself Kefka's brother. It devastated him in a very unique way, a new kind of pain he wasn't aware was an option- it hadn't occurred to him that his brother might be that fucked in the head. Relm, to her credit, stood her ground despite the obvious discomfort on her face. Seemed that childhood trauma was good for something, after all. "I don't... mind that." she said, uncertainty lacing her tones. He fought against the desire to be sick again, and instead tried to flash one of his usual easy grins her way. It fell a bit flat, didn't reach his eyes. It was hard to be anything but disgusted and exhausted right now. "If you would like, we can start now, and while we walk I can tell you about the Empire that I was born into." he said softly, rising slowly to his paws. The phoenix pointedly neglected to mention that her father had been born there too, a small jab at the monstrosity that he would no longer call his brother. His joints and stomach screamed in protest, wanting nothing more than to lay in the warmth of the springs and forget that the world around him existed. No, he needed to get the fuck out of this place, forget the conversation- the reality- that had had threatened to tear his heart out. |
| Art by Monster |
When he spoke about teaching her about the Empire, she faked her own smile, maybe more obvious than she intended. Relm had already dropped the Abraxas name, she was done with it. Kefka had taught her that because of her blood, her family, she would one day wake up and feel superior over everyone else just like he did. She was already there, but she didn't let that drive her life. She believed she was very capable for herself. She had made it this far in her life, almost alone really. Kefka catered to her for so long, but there was only so much that he provided for her. And she showed herself she was able to survive on her own, easily.
"Yeah, sure." Kefka had taught her about the religion, or about what he knew. He wasn't raised in it, and in fact only knew from a recent source while she was still in womb. But at this point, she was ready to throw it in the garbage. That didn't mean she wouldn't listen, or be informed. About her uncle's religion, about the way he grew up, or anything else he wanted to talk to her about. She may have been a bit of a rebellious teen, but that didn't stray her from at least learning about what she didn't want to, because she knew knowledge wasn't necessarily for her, but for everyone else.