Code © Skelle/Witchdogtor DO NOT USE WITHOUT PERMISSION

The woman of slate and obsidian now made her home in Wraiths Woods. It was a place she had always dreamt of and hoped for in secret. The mist swirled around her, brushing against her legs and stomach as she moved through the dense forest. Her bright eyes made it easier to see in the darkness, and despite the cooler temperature, she found it welcoming. Some believed the woods were haunted by the spirits of past travelers, but she patrolled the borders nonetheless, running her body along the trees and brush to help protect the pack and its alpha, Widow.

Mae understood the importance of connecting with the pack members to understand their strengths and weaknesses. Her goal was to support their growth and assist in areas where they needed help. Healing came naturally to Mae, a skill passed down through generations of women in her family. In addition to healing, she excelled at navigating terrain and studying her surroundings in great detail.

In the center of everything stood a towering tree, a gathering spot that Widow had chosen when Hellborn was established. A smile crossed the young woman's face as she observed the ground, which was covered in various herbs. She spotted boneset, shallon, honeysuckle, and pipsissewa in some areas, while Black Walnut, Plantain, Blackberries, lemon balm, and creeping wintergreen were found in others. And scattered throughout were shallon, chervil, comfrey, lavender, and a few other herbs.

Mea made a mental note of each location where the herbs grew, marking them for future reference when she needed to collect some for herself and the pack. Eventually, she discovered a spot that she hoped would become her own den, where perhaps Reaper could join her when the opportunity arose. It would also serve as a storage place for the herbs she planned to dry and store, those that permitted it. Lost in her thoughts, she let out a soft chuckle before unknowingly walking into a fellow pack member. "I apologize, I was lost in my train of thought memorizing were the local herbs were growing."

"Speech!"

The young woman was not the only one making a mental note of the local flora. Crux was taking some of his time away from Triss to start getting a good idea of the lay of the land and figuring out what herbs might be useful to replace the ones he was more used to. It was a sort of culture shock really. Crux had lived his whole life up until only a few months ago in a place where herbs were much less common and he was almost overwhelmed by the abundance of options. Even though many were actually unfamiliar to him. He frowned, lowering himself to furrow his brow at a clump of plants he didn't recognize.

Crux considered himself a pretty skilled healer at this point. Not talented, no, but when push came to shove he tended to drop into the zone and could handle most things he'd been thrown this far. So he wasn't exactly happy to realize he would need to seek the advice of someone more familiar with the local flora. He'd worked hard to feel even a little confident in his abilities and it felt like that work was slipping away right in front of him. He at the very least wanted to find what could be used for pain management, infection and coagulation...

It was these thoughts, and the heavy masking effect of the mists he was very much not used to yet that meant he didn't really notice another wolf getting close until she practically tripped over him. Unfortunately for him, he hadn't been prepared and the sudden weight and his already compromised balance saw him stumbling as he scrambled to stay on his paws. He was only partially successful, his hind legs splaying out from under him. His cuffed leg on full display before he could awkwardly try to tuck it under himself and protect what pride he had left by at least not sitting like a wolf with a bad leg... Which by point of fact would have been accurate but annoyed him nonetheless.

Crux blinked at the younger wolf, taking a moment to catch his breath and then really looking at her. He flashed a nervous smile and shook his head, old habits kicking in almost immediately. Protect himself, protect himself by appeasing. "It's okay." Crux was trying to sound friendly but it came out much more awkwardly than that. He hadn't really grown out of the awkward teenage phase, at least when it came to his social skills around strangers. "This mist make it pretty easy to bump into each other." It was strange... The pressure of his family's reputation was lessened here and yet so too was the protection it had brought. Here he was just a young wolf with a bad leg, to many he knew that made him seem weaker, easier to push around, worthy of their hatred... Here he was more vulnerable than he'd felt in a very long time. Trying to save whatever face he had left he gave her another smile. "I'm uh, Crux. Sorry I haven't gotten a chance to introduce myself to many others here yet." Because Triss had dragged him off basically the moment they were free to do so after the founding meeting.

"Speech"

Art by TheStarvingRaven

Code © Skelle/Witchdogtor DO NOT USE WITHOUT PERMISSION

Mae was embarressed to say the least, she ignored the way the other tucked his leg under himself. He stated that it was okay, but honestly she felt it wasn't. Dipping her head slightly, tucking it against her chest then looking towards the brute. "It does make it much easier to bump into one another. But what an awkward first meeting." Giving a nervous laugh, her tail danced around behind herself. "I'm Mae. And it's nice to meet you Crux."

Offering a friendly smile to the male. Her attention drew back to his leg. Remembering that comfrey from her earlier studies would help when it would enflame, and some lemon balm to help with the soreness if it bothered him. However she did not want to seem rude.

Finding herself batting around a small stone with her paw, making mental notes of his name and apperance. Was he like her? A natural healer? Her tail once more gave a gentle wag.

"Speech!"

The smaller wolf's comment about the awkwardness of their meeting managed to get a soft chuckle out of him. A real chuckle. "Nice to meet you as well Mae." How true that would end up being remained to be seen. Though as her attention turned to his leg Crux stiffened slightly. He always hated it. He knew it wasn't really realistic to hope it wouldn't be something a stranger would notice but he wished others honed in on it much less.

"You said you were memorizing where the herbs were?" Crux tried to draw he attention elsewhere, his tone was friendly but his words maybe a bit too quick. "I've lived in Northern Boreas my whole life so I'm not very familiar with most of the plants here. I think Boneset is the only one I've ever heard of before?" Crux chuckled again, trying to play off his embarrassment. Still, he'd take a blow to his pride if it meant keeping her attention off his leg. "I've been training as a healer for most of my life but with other herbs so I'm a little lost. My kingdom for some yarrow." He tried to look more amused than he actually felt. One of the things he was determined to do was make sure Widow had no reasons to object to his presence here. He was here for her daughter but he wasn't going to neglect his training or duties... But his lack of knowledge had sort of ruined his plans. Hard to do much of anything until he was more familiar.

"Speech"

Art by TheStarvingRaven

Code © Skelle/Witchdogtor DO NOT USE WITHOUT PERMISSION

Mae regretted looking at his leg, worried that she may have caused more harm to her pack mate. "We all are surrounded by a variety of herbs, many of which thrive in the shade and do well in this environment." She began with a smile, listening to his words and chuckling as they fell from his lips. "Healing has been passed down through generations within my family." A sigh escaped her lips as the emptiness within her began to dissipate. Part of her hoped that her family was doing well, but now she had a new pack, one that she hoped would become her family.

"Yarrow is a popular herb, but it thrives in more sunlight than the surroundings here provide. You can also find some comfrey and plantain over there, as well as black walnut."She started by understanding the purpose and usage of each item. With a smile, she stood up and walked towards the snake root, using her paws to dig down through the roots. "This plant is known as snake root, and only the root is edible. The above-ground parts should not be consumed. It is commonly used as a substitute for ginger." The younger woman stated out. A small giggle left, she felt slightly embarressed going on and on about herbs that grew here.

"Speech!"

Crux was glad at least that Mae had taken the bait either because she'd caught wind of the topic he'd rather not discuss or for any other reason, either way he relaxed some as she turned her attention to his less than subtle question. For a moment when Mae stood and started away Crux remained where he was, but as he realized what her destination was he too rose to his paws and trotted after her. Unfortunately there was little he could do about his uneven gait, so that he didn't bother to hide. He could easily position himself in ways to block curious gazes at his leg but the difficulty it caused him in moving was not something he could mask, even if he didn't swing his leg out to the side further than was normal for other wolves it would require either dragging his toes along the ground or lifting his leg much higher than would be "normal" so he didn't bother to hide it. He simply walked with confidence. It was the only way he'd ever done it.

As he drew up closer to the younger woman he peered down at the herb she had dug up and Crux took a moment, dropping into a crouch to really take in the details. The shape of the leaves, the little white flowers and their delicate looking stems. He started connecting it to what he knew ginger was used for, though it was not something he was much used to either, at least he had some basis of knowledge. Finally satisfied he'd squirreled away enough information to identify the plant later he rose back up to his paws, an idea forming and already causing his lips to twitch into a lopsided smile.

"Know if anything around here is good for asthma?" His tone was genuine but the thought of Triss for whom this knowledge would be probably be most used for, had caused his tail to start to sway behind him and his spirits to lift. Of course what she had wasn't quite asthma but most of her attacks presented very similarly. It also helped that Mae seemed friendly enough, certainly eager to help which made it a lot easier for him to swallow his pride and ask for it.

"Speech"

Art by TheStarvingRaven

Excitement of her own raced threw her, as she listened to the male ask a question. Something she was unsure of but remembering her mother speaking of remedies of rosemary, garlic and wormwood. Which could all be dressed upon fish or anything or just plain, but some wouldn't taste the greatest. Mae would be the first to admit. The young lass's nose to the ground, sniffing - tracking. Then the scent of garlic rose, she would dig down into the moist wood, plucking out a bushel of cloves. Holding them lightly between her teeth. Mae would take them over to where Crux had waited, before dragging a leave and setting the cloves of garlic upon it, before she would go and bury the rest.

Wormwood now. It would grow were there was more light. Finding a small patch, picking a few sprigs of it freely. With a tender smile she would place it along side of the garlic, while taking a glance to Crux. "These should help, I can go catch some fish, or make a oil that can be ingested with anything or alone. It might have a bitter taste, but can always use some honeysuckle, honey and clovers to hide the scent and taste to make it a little sweeter." Stating gently.

Crux watched with open curiosity as the younger wolf started to gather up some items, breathing the scents of them in when she finally returned. Mae offered to go find some fish as well and Crux shook his head chuckling. "The offer is appreciated but I suspect if there's any fish to be caught my intended patient would rather do so herself." Then again... He didn't know if she liked fishing all that much actually. Only knew she'd done so with one of his nephews long ago, prior to their meeting. It felt like a lifetime ago.

A nagging thought entered his head and Crux, hesitated for a moment. "Were you born here? Auster or Boreas I mean." He wasn't necessarily trying to pry into any part of her past or anything but as a native to Boreas Crux had heard the stories of the long night. The seasons of endless darkness when mushrooms and crystals had painfully sprouted from then living wolves, when a sickness no one had yet to properly identify had taken hold across both continents... Far as he'd been able to piece together it was only after that time that wolves like him, like his sisters... Like Triss, had started being born. It was before his time, so of course the younger wolf would not have lived through it either but maybe she knew something he didn't... She did seem to know quite a bit about the local flora at least.

"Speech"

Art by TheStarvingRaven

Mae stood there, looking to Crux, happy to actually meet that of a pack mate. A wave of her tail was given as the brute chuckles. A smile brought light to Mae's face, curving the corners of her lips up. Listening to his words flow forth. 'The offer is appreciated but I suspect if there's any fish to be caught for my intended patient would rather do so herself.' The young lady understood completely. As he asked about were she was from, her thoughts trailed to her family. Replaying the words that came from him. 'Were you born here? Auster or Boreas I mean.'

She wasn't from around here, but enjoyed Auster so far."I wasn't. I was born into a pack that roamed lands far from here. To Cheveyo and Doli. My siblings and parents - I hope are alright. I was tossed to the seas at a tender age, and I hoped I'd see that of the familiar faces, but none yet. Well... I have not came across anyone that I grew up with."

Her mind soon went to Reaper, and how he was from a neighboring pack called Seethers Carnage. Wondering if her father had sent him looking for her, she had never asked him, maybe she should. A soft chuckle rolled from her throat. "Although Reaper's family is neighbors of my family's pack. I wonder ..." She stopped mid sentance. As becoming deep within thought.

"Mae"

Talk about putting his paw in his mouth. Crux felt guilt wash over him when Mae started to speak of her own history, though he tried to keep it from his face. Instead offering her a few understanding nods, and then a curious look when she trailed off. He let that silence hang for a moment before he cleared his throat and spoke again. "I am sorry. I hope you can find your family again." Crux gave an awkward smile. His words weren't empty. He knew what it was like to lose parts of your family.

"I also didn't mean to pry. I was asking because I've heard that some years back now there was a strange sickness that affected both continents and it was only after it simply went away one day that pups started being born like..." Crux hesitated for a moment then gestured back to his leg, cuffed in those damned crystals. "Well, like me. I guess I've just been trying to figure out what the connection is..." Why? He didn't know, it wasn't like finding a solid connection would take away the fear he had, the guilt he carried. It wasn't like it'd negate the strong assumption he had that he, his leg, was the reason his mother had never recovered... Was the reason she'd died.

"But," Crux tried to banish that ever present fear for now, "if you're from a different place altogether you'd not have any more information on that than I do." Crux felt like he wanted to say more, wanted to move the conversation away from himself and his whole... Situation. "Tell you what, if you let me know who I might be looking for I can keep an eye out for your family. My own is pretty large, might even be able to get them to help." Nevermind that things were... Complicated with them right now.

"Speech"

Art by TheStarvingRaven

Crux seemed kind hearted and Mae enjoyed that about the brute. He could've been cold but he didn't. Listening to the words falling from her lips and then his own, made a smile although small creep across dark lips. "When the time is right, I believe I will find them." She looked towards the ground then to him. Listening to him speak about a sickness that took over both continents.

"The crystals at least match you and your bright personality. I wonder if there's anyone around that would know what caused them. Even if they found a cure or what not." Mae wanted to ask him if they had hurt, if they caused him pain. But wouldn't dare. Not until they became better possible friends. She smiled softly to the brute. "There's got to be someone...." Anyone even, and now she'd be on a hunt for someone.

"Mae"

Crux was glad she at least seemed to be taking her situation in stride. He could remember what it had felt like to think Dread had been stolen, the fear that had gripped him... He couldn't imagine being completely lost from his family. Though he supposed there were a few siblings he hadn't seen in quite some time, at least a year or two... One whom he didn't miss even a little bit. Bastard. But his thoughts were pulled back to the present and Crux shuffled slightly as the attention turned back to his leg... Which to be fair he had done to himself, drawing direct attention to it.

"Far as I've heard the theory is that the sun was what cured the sickness itself." Crux gave a weak, if a bit strained smile. "Unfortunately that doesn't seem to apply to me, and I'm not sure there's such thing as a cure, at least not for me." Crux sighed and positioned himself so that he wasn't hiding his leg nearly as much, letting it rest slightly further out to the side than his other limbs. "It's hard to tell from looking but as far as we can tell they're probably attached to my ankle joint. Certainly hurts like they're on a bone if hit hard enough. I'm not even sure I have the typical tendons and connections you'd expect there. If they were to be cured there's every chance my paw would be even harder to walk on. Being unable to move one joint isn't the end of the world." Crux shrugged. In truth he didn't know what it was like not to have his disability. It had affected so much of how he acted, how he thought. It didn't define him but it was certainly a factor. The biggest reason he tended to avoid conversation around it was that others never seemed to understand how to handle him. Like he was fragile. Like he wasn't trying hard enough. Like he was an inspiration just for... living... As if death would be a more attractive option. Not to mention the outright aggression he'd experienced in his early life. Like he was broken. Crux was just himself, leg and all.

"There's probably others who might benefit from a cure though." Cryptis would probably be one. Though he would never have thought to even suggest it unless she herself seemed interested. Far as he was concerned she was perfect, and he wasn't eager to insinuate any part of anyone ought to be removed. He wondered how it could affect his sisters. The chance that Kite could be left completely blind didn't exactly fill him with comfort. After all, those were her actual eyes... If she were to be "cured" would she even have them anymore? How many other wolves were out there like him? How many had been afflicted by the sickness in ways he'd yet to even encounter?

"Speech"

Art by TheStarvingRaven

She turned her attention away from his leg as he began to speak, fearing she had overstepped boundaries that she had for another. Respect - it went a long way with Mae as she turned to him and lowered down upon her hind quarters. The woman wasn't going to pry the brutes thoughts that seemed to flood his mind. But her own swimming threw her own like fish in water. "I suppose you are right. And I do apologize Crux for it appears to be a soft subject for you. However it is interesting that you don't seem to care for the idea of these crystals or gems that grow from you and others." Fuck, there she goes. Opening her mouth about something she knew nothing about. In a way she was proud that he was standing and taking the time to talk to her, to actually conversate. It was welcoming which would cause a smile to upturn her lips.

Also knowing that crystals held powers in their own ways, she wondered if the ones that adorened his legs did the same. Or did they always cause him such discomfort. A slow sigh as turning her attention to him. "You don't allow it to weaken you. You appear to gather strenght from the differences we both share and every wolf around you." Mae calmly said, "A insperation for others in a way I guess you could say." They all had differences and obseticals they all had to over come. And with time they would. "I mean, what if they are a sign of strength. I wouldn't be afraid Crux. For being born or anything like that is not a easy task. Crux you appear to have over come many things in your life." Mae offered a kind and gentle warming smile. Hoping that she wouldn't upset the brute.

"Mae"

There it was. It always only seemed to be a matter of time. Crux could tell she was simply letting her mouth go and waited, though there was careful rigidity to his stance. He was walling off, dropping back into a safe sort of distance. His face a well worn mask of stoicism even though inside he was feeling that old bitterness and frustration well up. He knew she was only trying to be friendly, was trying to seem supportive even but it always got under his skin, that living his own life was some sort of story for others to gawk at.

"I am ambivalent to them." He started slowly, his words were careful, calculated to protect himself and not offend. "I don't know a life without them and they are a part of me and who I am. But I also struggle to walk on uneven terrain like sand, they force me to over extend which causes my hips to ache when walking for distances another wolf would consider trivial. I have nearly drowned because they make it hard to swim. My balance will always be more compromised. I do not hate them because they are me as much as any other part of my body but they make my life harder. You'll have to forgive me if the best I can offer is acceptance that they are there to begin with." He bit down on a desire to start getting too visibly and vocally angry, even if the last bit of that had been a little less than cordial. He also bit down on the part of him that tried to scream that they had killed his mother, that if it wasn't for him having them she'd have lived.

He took a moment, forcing air in and out through his nose. The next bit, the part that always got to him. Crux would have almost prefered she'd broken his toes, or shoved his face in a fire... At least his brother hadn't had the gall to make him feel othered while smiling to his face the entire time. He just wanted to live his goddamn life in peace! "With all due respect Mae, I would prefer not to be an inspiration. My life is harder. I've overcome a lot because it was that or lay down and die. I do not consider it inspirational that others live their own lives. I am not some sort of hero, I'm a wolf who was born with a disability that has made my life harder than others, I have learned how to overcome things because the truth of the matter is I had to. Help is not something that is often offered to wolves like me. We're expected to figure it out or drown so I frankly would prefer if my struggle, my survival wasn't used to make strangers feel good. All I'm doing, all I've ever done, is live." He could feel the heat rising in him and Crux knew he needed to leave. If he stayed he'd probably struggle to keep himself calm for much longer. He cleared his throat and started to shift away from her.

"Thank you for the information and good luck in your search." Cordial, the prince he'd been raised as to the end, even if his words were clipped. He started away, trying to veer off further into the woods. He needed to find somewhere to himself where he could just let out the frustration, let himself process the emotions raging through him. The anger, the frustration, the shame... The guilt... The gnawing feeling he had crossed a line, had said too much, had only pushed away someone who'd been trying their best. Even if their best made him feel like he wasn't ever going to be seen as the same as anyone else, made him feel like there wasn't a single thing he could do that wouldn't make him... Other.

-Exit Crux unless stopped-

"Speech"

Art by TheStarvingRaven