Now that Wylan was heir, he was starting to gain responsibilities around the pack. Basilisk had begun to give him patrols, and the occasional guard duty at the Market. He wasn’t exactly the most fierce wolf, but his large size at least was something going for him. He did find the duty rather amusing, having spent much of his life annoying the guards on duty there. It wasn’t that long ago that he’d pinched some maps he wasn’t supposed to touch.

But he was trying to learn about responsibility, so he sat on post at the market, and watched the wolves coming and going. Thinking to himself how boring this job was, and how had the guards ever managed to get through it?


"Wylan Fatalis"

Absinth prowled through the bustling Armada Marketplace, her eyes scanning the crowds for a familiar face. It had been seasons since she last saw Wylan, the young pup she had once taken under her wing to train as part of a deal with the previous Warlord. She could admit that she had thought of the boy a few times, especially after she had offered a handful of lessons to wandering children as of late. How was the winged boy doing now? Still naive? Still not able to understand anything past his cushy life? Well, maybe it was for the better. Wishing ill on children was not her thing.

So she wandered through the market, wondering if she could go as far as to call the boy out when a familiar scent caught her nares and her skull swiveled in search. It did not take her long to find him. Spotting Wylan, Absinth couldn't help but smirk at the sight of him. He’d grown so much.

Approaching him with silent footsteps, Absinth's grin widened before she cleared her throat to announce her presence, voice carrying a purr of amusement. “My, look who's all grown up and guarding the market,” The monochromatic woman remarked, her tone teasing yet mischievous. “Did you ever figure out the purpose behind my lesson?” She circled Wylan, her gaze assessing him with a mixture of scrutiny and amusement.
wormwood

Oleander padded toward the market, carrying some extra salves and herbs for the market stall, and one of Wylan's honey snacks for the boy himself. Ollie knew Wyl was not looking forward to guard duty and the white wolf knew his brother would appreciate the snack on his shift. Help keep his focus going during duty.

He stopped off at the stall first and offloaded the goods then moved on to trying to spot him at the guard posts.

He spied his larger brother being circled by a sultry and athletic black and white fae. Oleander trotted up to the pair and put down his basket and stood at his full height of a full inch taller than her. He was scrawny compared to his brother, his muscles were lean and nigh wasted in comparison to either the woman or Wyl. Perhaps if he had been a healthier pup he would have matched his brother in height.

"Lesson?" He interjected, curious but wary of the woman. How did Wyl know her?

"Speech"

Wylan was pleasantly surprised at the familiar face in the market. His tail picked up behind him as the white wolf approached. He trotted over to her, and wrapped a wing lightly over her, like he was greeting an old friend. Oh! He was bigger than her now. That thought came with some surprise, the honed warrior had seemed a little larger to life in his adolescent eyes.

Ollie turned up with the scent of honeyed treats in a basket. He glanced over at his brother and grinned. “Ollie, this is Absinth, Absinth, this is Oleander, my brother. Absinth gave me a lesson a long time ago in a trade with Grandfather” he explained, and scrunched up his nose as he tried to remember her words so long ago. “It was about the seriousness of learning so you could be strong enough when the time came, right?” He asked


"Wylan Fatalis"

Absinth's grin widened at Wylan's warm greeting, her eyes sparkling with a mixture of pride and amusement. The winged embrace was a pleasant surprise, and she chuckled softly in response, appreciating the growth and confidence radiating from the once-naive boy. Really, how he’d grown! Was this what it was like to see a child become an adult? She had hardly done anything to make it so, but somehow… she felt an odd elation. Noticing that he now stood taller than her, Absinth tilted her head up slightly, acknowledging his newfound stature with a playful smirk. “Hello again, Wylan.” She leaned into his embrace a bit, to reciprocate his greeting.

When ‘Oleander’ appeared with a basket, she turned her attention to Wylan’s sibling, nodding in greeting. “Well met, Oleander,” She said, her voice smooth and warm and somewhat of an impish purr as usual. “Was it a lesson, or more of me trying to hammer words into your head back then?”

As Wylan tried to recall her old lesson, Absinth's expression softened slightly, a touch of nostalgia coloring her gaze. She chuckled again, a rich and melodious sound. “You remember well enough,” She replied, her tone a mix of approval and a hint of teasing. “The lesson was about the seriousness of learning, yes, but also about understanding your own potential and the harsh realities that come with it. It’s knowing when to fight and when to protect, when to stand firm and when to be flexible.”

wormwood

As Wylan introduced them Oleander dipped his head to the lady warmly, suddenly at a loss for words as she practically purred his name. He looked down at their feet with his eyes wide while he chewed his lip and held his breath.

Then suddenly nudged the basket closer to Wylan for his snack before focusing on the conversation they were having with intensifying interest.

Strong enough when the time came? He watched the woman with his viridian eyes as she relayed the lesson she had been trying to teach Wylan when he was a kid. If anyone understood their own potential and the realities of it, it was Oleander. More, his shortcomings.

"What would be a good time to be flexible? What do you mean by that?" He asked seriously. He wanted to catch up to his brother as quickly as he could, he had missed out on a lot of these lessons throughout his childhood.

"Speech"

“I was a little distracted by the idea of guts” he said agreebly, grinning at Absinth. He had grown (a little) since then. Had learned to find other things just as if not more interesting than the inside of a wolf body. His grin was a little sheepish, knowing he hadn’t had a firm understanding of metaphors or a deeper understanding then the present. But Absinth had stuck with him through his naivety.

Ollie piped up then, and asked about flexibility. With his tail wiggling behind him, and a spark in his eyes, he raised a brow at Absinth. “Have some time to go over a couple more things?” He asked her, not just for his own benefit. But because there had been so many lessons that a sickly Ollie had missed out on growing up.


"Wylan Fatalis"

Absinth’s gaze shifted warmly to Oleander as he dipped his head, his shyness endearing in its own way. She gave him a reassuring smirk before turning her attention back to Wylan, who made her chuckle with his mention of guts. “The visceral aspects of life usually do have the youth perplexed,” She teased, a fond glint in her eyes. “But you’ve come a long way since then.” When Ollie piped up with his serious question about flexibility, Absinth’s expression grew thoughtful; amused. She tilted her skull upward slightly to be more at eye level with Wylan’s brother, her demeanor firm and yet still coy in its own right.

“A good time to be flexible,” She began, “Is when you face situations where brute strength or rigid thinking won’t get you through. Imagine you're in a fight, but it's clear you can't win by force alone. Maybe your opponent is stronger, or the terrain is against you. Flexibility means finding another way – using your environment, outsmarting your opponent, or even choosing to retreat and fight another day.” She straightened up, her gaze shifting back to Wylan as he asked if she had time to go over more lessons. Her eyes sparkled with a mix of impish amusement and affection. “I suppose I can spare some time for an old student,” She said with a wink. “Besides, your brother seems quite interested in my teachings.”

With a playful smirk, she added, “And I’m sure you’ve got plenty of new tricks to show me as well. So, let’s see what you’ve got – what questions or lessons do you need revisiting? I’m all ears.”


wormwood

His dark green eyes flicked between hers as she began to explain a few examples for his question. He imagined his recent fight with a polar bear and how he slashed at the bear and then used its own weight against it and hooked the thin flesh between its leg and side to bring it down and rake its belly.
He was fighting and protecting at the time... Was there a difference?

He smiled sheepishly and tried to look anywhere but her as she mentioned that he was quite interested in her teachings, he was, he admits. She seemed particularly capable and strong herself.
"Well... okay... so earlier..." Suddenly he was stumbling over his words about questions as he turned back to her "Um... When you said knowing when to fight and when to protect... What's the difference? When you're protecting, you're fighting, right?" He asked.

"Speech"

Wylans tail wagged behind him a couple times at the compliment. “Thanks! I’ve got a lot more responsibilities now, too” He admitted, and he did a double take as his confident brother started to stammer. That earned a raised brow as he glanced over at Ollie. What had his tail in a bunch? But in the end, what Absinth was saying had his attention.

Absinth went on to explain a little more about flexibility, and the importance of properly assessing the situation. Ollie had a question that he wanted an answer to, so Wylan kept his peace so that could be addressed. While everything Absinth said was lessons he would take to heart, he really wanted to give his brother this opportunity.

"Wylan Fatalis"

Absinth's gaze shifted between the two brothers, taking in their earnestness. She listened intently to Oleander's question, her smile twitching upwards on one end as she chuckled and regarded him with her full attention.

“You raise an interesting point, Oleander,” Absinth began, her voice steady and a touch amused. The boy was tripping over his words, but she didn’t mind; he wanted to learn and she was willing to teach. “In combat, there is a fine line between fighting and protecting. At their core, both actions involve confrontation, but the intent behind them can differ greatly.”

She paused for a moment, allowing her words to sink in with a flick of her charcoal tail before continuing. “When you're fighting, you're trying to overcome your opponent, to assert dominance or achieve a goal. It can be a matter of survival or conquest, maybe you just want to get your hands dirty. I for one enjoy the rush of blood in my veins~” She shot them a feral grin, her admission a roguish purr in her throat before she continued. “Protecting, on the other hand, is about safeguarding something or someone. It's not always about engaging in direct combat; sometimes, it's about standing your ground, shielding others from harm, taking the harm to your own body, or even making a retreat to ensure safety.” Was that the full spectrum? No. But it was to the point, and Absinth did not beat around the bush.

She took a step closer to Ollie, her presence reassuring yet commanding. He had been the one to ask the question, after all. “In essence, fighting may involve protecting, but not all protection requires fighting. Change your approach based on the situation at hand, discern when aggression is necessary and when a more defensive stance is called for.” Her gaze was sharp, like a dagger, and entirely confident in her own words.

wormwood

Ollie nervously exchanged a grateful smile with his brother. He didn't mean to monopolize the conversation with Absynth so thoroughly. He appreciated how Wylan was always so generous and supportive of him.

His focus was overtaken by the woman and he was hanging off her every word while she described the difference between fighting and protecting. He echoed her grin back at her when she described how she enjoyed a rush of blood, he had to admit the sound in her throat sent strange new sensations down his spine for some reason.

The busy market began to fall away from him as she spoke about the idea of protecting and his mind wandered to his battle with the bear again.

She took a step toward him, he stood his ground confidently as she drew nearer. The teen could somehow listen to her talk all day. He drew himself up to his full height, perhaps he'd grow another inch or two by the time autumn came around again, but he showed her he wasn't scared of her. This situation seemed to call for a staredown, no aggression, no fear. His own deep viridian gaze pierced into her emeralds, she might even notice the flecks of lavender on his right iris. Was this a challenge of sorts? A test? He swished his tail back and forth to expel any anxious energy, he didn't like backing down when he was challenged.

"What sort of situation is this then?" He asked, placing his paw forward and coming nearly nose-to-nose with her. He was not like his gentle brother. Ollie was born with one foot in the grave and had stared death in the face many a time before his first birthday.


"Speech"

Absinth’s gaze locked onto Oleander’s with an intensity that bordered on predatory. She admired the boy’s boldness, the way he stood his ground, his viridian eyes unwavering. A playful smile tugged at her lips, revealing a hint of her fangs as she noted the lavender flecks in his right iris and the determined swish of his tail. Color her intrigued. She chuckled, eyes scanning his features intently.

“This,” Absinth began, her voice dropping to a low murmur tinged with something gravelly, “is neither a fight nor a moment of protection.” She leaned in slightly, close enough that he could feel her breath on his face, meeting his bravery with her own impish satisfaction. He was the one who dared to press into her space, nose to nose—what else was she supposed to do? “It’s a test of your resolve. And I like what I see.”

She paused, letting her words sink in, her eyes never leaving his. “Challenges are meant to provoke thought and growth. Right now, you’re standing your ground, showing me who you are. That's a nice look in your eyes, by the way.” Of course it was. The young man looked like he was ready to match whatever energy she gave him.

Her narrowed eyes softened slightly, a hint of warmth and something more mischievous creeping into her gaze. “But,” the monochromatic fae began, a challenge in her voice, “do you have anything to back it up with? What say I don’t back down either, then we are at an impasse, and a move must be made.” Her eyes glittered with a mix of fierce challenge and mischief, entirely eager to see how he would respond to her provocation. Her game was a chaotic one, and she was keen to see how strong his will truly was.

wormwood

Oleander practically glowed under her praise, his grin flickering in and out as he focused again on her words and tried to read between each line.

She gave him the challenge then, what move would be made next. If he didn't make one soon, she would for sure. He leaned in with a knowing grin, not knowing anything at all, but feigning it until it he could come up with something.

"Can I teach you how to use Yarrow out in the field? Annnd maybe you can teach me something else?" He asked with a playful wag of his tail. His mischievous and playful nature coming forward.

"Speech!"

Code © Skelle/Witchdogtor DO NOT USE WITHOUT PERMISSION

Absinth’s smile widened, her eyes glinting with approval and something else, something more teasing. He was so fresh, so new. “Oh my, consider my interest piqued.” The woman purred, her tone layered with subtle enjoyment. “Teaching me about Yarrow, you say? Quite the offer.”

She took a slow, deliberate breath, a sigh escaping her, the puff of air coming in a visible cloud given the season. “But remember, knowledge and skill are precious commodities. If you wish to trade, you’d better be prepared to show me just how serious you are.” Her voice dropped to a whisper, laden with promise.

She let the silence stretch, her eyes never leaving his, wanting the tension between them to crackle like a live wire. Her tail flicked behind her, a playful challenge in her assertive posture. “Let’s see then.” Sure, she could use the little lesson he offered. If anything, at least for the amusement he signified.

wormwood