Facing History

She listened quietly. Intently. Not missing a heart beat of a word as Arian told her story. It was sad, to say the least. That they both had so many similarities. Isardis had rent apart both their families, though hers more indirect as opposed to Arian's. Isardis had stolen from her, a home. As well as nearly stolen her spirit when she was forced into a war so young, though that was also the doing of the old witch of Amenti. She had lied down at some point during Arian's story, stretching out her hind leg to a more comfortable position as it had begun to ache. Her tail lay across it, hiding any remnants of the scar that remained. Her gaze remained fixated upon the smaller woman, entranced as well as finding herself returning to her thoughts during certain parts of her story. She remembered the pack Seracia, she had fled there as a refugee during the war. And she couldn't quite recall who was in charge at the time. Had Arian been there as well? It was possible.

She lay her head on her paws, crown tilted in Arian's direction. It was strange, how the two bore so many things in common. Avalon had grown up in a broken home, first with her family, and they had been happy. And then one after another, nightmares began to unfurl themselves like a red carpet being rolled out for a celebrity. They both had trouble with Isardis. Both had been in a pack under the same name, though Avalon unwillingly. Both had lost their homes. Both had lost family. They'd both also been hurt and scarred physically, and mentally as well. And although Avalon had not fallen for someone the way Arian had, she did remember conjuring feelings for a man by the name of Newol...they had connected once upon a time, two strangers who had a story to share. She had cried, and he had proclaimed wanting to protect her. But as fate would have it, she'd be ripped from that too.

It was fate. It had to be, that the girl had been led here. Though she had just met Arian, they already had a connection. A sort of bond. She closed her eyes for a brief moment as the Alphess nuzzled her, and Avalon took comfort in the contact. How long had it been since she had any contact like that? The last time she could remember was with Newol that night in the caves...her tears staining his coat. She licked Arian gently on the cheek, her expression changing to where she wore a kind-hearted and compassionate look. She was grateful that she had met Arian, someone who could understand her and in turn, she could understand as well. She knew all too well what the Adravendi had been through--was going through--and she knew it could not be a battle fought nor won alone. The pair had been through so much, the same experiences, and had been through the same and similar events within one another's range...Avalon couldn't put that simply on the shoulders of coincidence, it had to be something more. But as her life had turned out, she couldn't believe there was anything more out there. Otherwise, wouldn't things have turned out for the better?

"We have been through the same, if not similar fates you know." She looked at Arian, a deep understanding in her eyes. She had never connected with another on this level before. Her sister, Odette, had been one thing at one point in time when she was very young. And Newol had been another, but since then, it was just her. Alone. As if she had been the only one left in the world to face her demons. Though they were hers alone, she hoped that one day that would change. She contemplated for a moment, leaving the world silent for a minute or two before filling it with her voice. At first when Arian had appeared, she wondered why the fae had said what she did. Avalon had never thought herself beautiful after all the torment she had been through throughout her life. But here, a wolf younger then she, had understood her all too well at first glance.

"Arian, I am glad to have met you. And I am deeply grateful for the kindness you have shown me. All my life, after my family disappeared one by one, I thought I was alone...but..." She breathed. It was a breath that released some of her anxiety, some of her sorrow. And above all, some of her loneliness. "I find in you, another soul that understands what I am inside. I am not as strong as I used to be, though I hope to return to what I was someday, and to be someone that my parents can be proud of."

She couldn't help it. She had found another that understood her completely. She was broken inside, her spirit that she believed at one point in time to be unbroken, had been shattered by the events of her life. She turned her head skyward, an unsaid feeling rising through her chest. And as it rose, so did her song. She howled, the melody more haunting then it had been before. It was filled with all she was, for once, Avalon cried in a way she had never had before. She had held everything back, bottled it up, and it had been eating away at her core for so long. Her song contained everything. Her emotions, her heart, her soul. She cried out to the heavens, everything she had lost. The pain, the loss, the longing for what used to be. And as she did this, tears would slowly stream from her eyes, though they were closed, they'd slip through. She knew Arian would understand, and if she wanted to join her, then she was more than welcome. But Avalon's soul needed this. It cried out for release.