Mort took his mission very seriously. A part of him wanted to be in on the action, to see the people that called Hana slave and try to understand why. A larger part of him preferred this mission. To keep her distracted, and safe. To be her bodyguard over the course of the next little while. If any strangers dared to approach them, he was going to be a very angry bear. He had no idea, of course, that his father had told Hana that she was to watch him

Today’s agenda included (what a surprise) fishing. The Ashen Empire Islands had always been a good place for it. With the open ocean at their back, and the clear waters beneath them. There was a turtle swimming lazily a few meters to his right, Osiris sat lazily on the shore he had recently departed, and Saph glided easily on the ocean breeze somewhere above him.

The winged yearling took a deep breath, and plunged downwards, beneath the waves. Holding his breeze, eyes open, he swam slowly towards the girl he protected. Her little dainty paws treading water. The Fatalis opened his maw, and zeroed in on the prize.

Hanako still wasn’t sure why she needed to keep an eye on Mortis but she took her newfound duty seriously. Sort of. It was hard for her to stay motivated when she knew for a fact that Mortis was more than able to look after himself and the few times she’s tried to broach the topic Mortis has brushed her off with such a ridiculous show of fake naivety that she’d stomped off in a sulk. Not that it stopped Mortis from slinking after her like her giant, winged shadow. 

As things stood she’d sort of come to accept her new status quo, she liked fishing at the best of times and so far they’d managed to pull in some pretty good hauls. With her companions snoozing by the shore, Hanako was not far from Mortis’ side, twirling and twisting beneath the waves as she checked out what was on the menu. Fish fish and fish, from the looks of it, but not all were made equal.

Kicking to the surface, Hanako breached and pulled in a long lung full of air. She would have dived down and resumed her hunt, were she not reminded by something as she idly watched Ashen’s shoreline.

It was the perfect moment for Hana to fall to distraction. To aid him, Saph did a little twirl through the air in the Wraiths line of sight. Dipping and dancing on a soft breeze with the total freedom that came with flight. As Sophie complete a loop, Mortis struck, chomping his gums down on the exposed paws of his swimming wolf companion, before pulling as hard as he could on the dubious hold of gums to toes. Sucking her down into the deeps of their holiday waters. Spooking some colorful fish into the coves of the reef below them. Fern like bushes brushing with their darting movement. 


Laughter broke free of Mortis as a braver fish darted across Hanas nose. Taking with it his lung full of air. He released Hana, his wings situated like fins on either side of his body as he kicked against the reef and pushed himself back to the surface. His back wiggling as he moved past Hana, offering her a ride up on his back if she so wished it. 


He would have thought keeping someone distracted for days would be difficult, but with Hana it was easy. Everything was easy. The weight of his responsibilities as heir lifted from his bowed shoulders here in their little retreat. His desires to flee his home pack had lessened. If only every day could spent like this.

Completely distracted, Hanako had little hope of escaping Mortis' nefarious intentions. She knew he would never ever hurt her, but she would have been a filthy liar if the squeal of shock that passed her lips wasn't genuine. Tinged with a pang of worry, as though she'd never set foot upon the earth again. She plummeted down beneath the waves, her eyes blurry and stinging as the salt pricked at her senses but even then she managed a disapproving slow, even as a fish whizzed past the end of her snout. He let out a bubble of laughter, forcing Mortis to return to the surface but Hanako remained where she was for a moment, floating free as the distant, rumbly echo of waves called out to her. Like a song she couldn't get out of her head.

She would have remained there forever, her tail dancing in the water like reaching coral but she wasn't a fish and she needed to breathe. Bummer. Twirling to the surface, Hanako shoulder checked Mortis on her way up, only to stretch out her paws across his back as she used him as some sort of resting station. Her hind legs kicked below, paddling gently as she tipped her weight to her front end in an attempt to push him below the surface.

There was a lot she wanted to ask him but couldn't. Not that she really thought he knew anything but..what if? She chewed on her lip, thinking harder than she had in a long time. Not that it was really her fault, she'd settled hadn't she? Her life in the Armada was simple and easy, she didn't need to think, just had to do. But was that okay for the long term? Was she content to just coast along, let the currents take her where they may? Before it hadn't been a problem, she embraced that mentality but...well being a Wraith pushed her to think more for herself, to serve cause she wanted to, not cause she felt she had to.

"You're evil you know that." She gave him a scolding bab on the head with a front paw. "Hey Mort...Do you ever wonder where we'll be next year? If things will change?"

She rested her paws against him, and he gladly took the weight. His powerful feet trading water, and his great heavy wings hanging gently at his side. Dead weight half on the surface as he was. This was one of the quiet moments he looked for in life now. Away from his endless questions and doubts. He wished he could spend forever like this. Just himself, Hanako, the ocean. No pack, no brother that half hated him, no overbearing father. He grinned at the sweet girl across from him, and ducked a little from her blow. There wasn’t really anywhere to go, not without dipping back under the surface, and her gentle bop touched against his noggin. “Alright, I guess I deserved that.” but he stuck his tongue out at her for good measure. At her question, some of his puppy-like ease fell away. That was a loaded question, Hana just didn’t know it yet. Mortis had been pulling against the chains of heir and pack lately. He had been snooping out his options, considering packs he could potentially move to. He hadn’t made a decision. He didn’t know if it was just a pipe dream. Would Sirius ever let him go? He frowned, looking a little older, floating lightly on the surface of the ocean, before looking down at the paws resting on him. “I don’t know Hana. I don’t see myself… here. But I don’t know where else I could be. My future, that’s Seer’s dream, Azure’s dream, not mine, you know? I just want to settle down, surrounded by people I love. I don’t want to compete with Azure, I want.. I want him to believe in me. Him and dad both. I don’t think either of them will ever give me that, not truly.” Okay, so he was a downer. He couldn’t bring himself to lift his gaze back to her. “What about you Hana? Where do you think you’d be? Where do you want to be?”

Lounging against his back, Hanako took great comfort in the company Mortis provided. What they had wasn't serious but it didn't need to be, as long as Mortis was by her side the world felt a little brighter, suffused with colour and hope. Even if their future was shrouded in mystery and was a little daunting, she was sure they'd be okay. But Mortis sounded more worried than she'd expected and she was once again reminded that Mortis had far more on his plate than she could ever dream of. Being a Wraith, whilst important, was a choice she'd made. The role of heir had been foisted upon him whether he liked it or not, his every action scrutinised to the point where even Hanako had judged him- quite unfairly- unworthy of the crown.

Wasn't it only natural then that more than anything he wished to fly free? To shake off the burdens he'd never asked for, to live his life his way and as he pleased. Hanako kicked her hind legs in the water and shimmied closer so that she could wrap her forelimbs around his neck in an embrace. She felt guilty for even asking, for bringing it to the forefront of his mind. What a terrible friend she was, how could she possibly make it up to him? A sigh slipped past her lips as her gaze went downcast, her eyelashes curling across her cheeks as she considered his question.

"I'm happy." Now more than ever, neck deep in her element with one of her two most favoured Fatalis'. "That's enough for me now.""

Which was a lie What else did she want? What more could push her into the deep end of perfection? Or should she just settle for good enough? It was a tough question to wrestle with, and despite her selfish desires all she wanted in this moment was to see Mortis smile again. A silly, pretty juvenile idea popped into her mind as she looked up at his face. Mortis always seemed at his most content when he was touchy feely, snuggled with friends and family. They were already pretty much cuddling as it was so there was only one thing left for Hanako to do.

Leaning forward, Hanako's lips brushed against the side of his muzzle in a short but tooth rattlingly sweet kiss.

She pushed herself closer to him, and he worked harder to keep them both afloat. Grateful for her presence. He didn't mean to be such a downer, but the truth sat there between them. His friend mentioned being happy in the moment, that she was content with her life the way it was. If Mortis did leave, leaving her would the hardest part. He wanted Hana to be a part of his life, always. They brought a smile to eachothers lives. If she wasn't Azures, if his brother hadn't made it clear how important Hana was to him, and if Sirius wouldn't kill him for it, he might have tried to convince her to come with him.

He leaned lightly against his friend, his paws kicking in the ocean water, with the occasional fish nibbling on his toes. This was good, this was a piece of heaven. It was easy. No complications.

Hana stirred across from him, coming closer. He raised his head to see what she was doing, and then - oh! Her lips were on his. He forgot to tread water. With a look of startlement in his gaze, he let out an almost bird-like peep, and plunged down into the water. The first kiss of his life, and he had no idea how to compute. Did he dare face Hana again after that embarrassing display? Maybe he should just stay under the water for the rest of his life. Maybe the fish would welcome him as one of them.

Hanako let out an undignified squawk of alarm as Mortis went under, almost bringing her with him. She kicked hard to stay afloat , her front paws floundering as she slapped the surface, counting the seconds that Mortis remained underwater and out of sight. Why wasn't he coming back up? She knew he could swim, almost as good as she could, so what was taking him so long? She kicked herself aside, circling as she looked for his dark blob beneath the surface. He was easy to spot, right there, just bobbing about like he didn't need to breathe or anything. Unable to bear it any longer, Hanako delved beneath the surface like a harpoon and none too gently grabbed at the scruff of his neck before heaving him to the surface.

She wasn't sure what she was supposed to say or do to make things better but an apology was probably the best place to start, right?

"Mort I- I'm sorry I just- you looked so sad and I wanted to surprise you, to make you happy again!" She rushed out, all within a single breath. She gently nudged his muzzle with her own, desperate for forgiveness."Don't be mad, please."

Thr shape of Hana blurred into his vision, and then there was a tug against his cost. Reluctantly, he helped her drag his dead weight to the surface. Kicking along, and dragging in a great lung full of air as he rose. He was a touchy-feely wolf. He hugged, he invaded personal space, he kissed cheeks. A kiss on the lips was something different. It MEANT something different. As he dragged in breath, his friend made hurried apologies and he shook his head, shamefaced.

It took a lot of willpower to make himself look at her. Sweet Hana, sith her pale eyes and black-orange flecked face. He looked at her, and he pondered. What did the kiss mean? What did he want jt to mean? He wanted to be her friend forever. If Azure caught wind of this, he would take her away from him. He knew he would. "Hana... I.... " he took a deep breath. Treading water for a moment, before nudging her with a wind, directing them both back to land. He was getting exhausted treading water to no end. He needed his breath to find his words.

Once they hit land, he stepped onto the sand and looked at her. "DidYouKissMeBecauseYouWantToBeTheZeeToMySirius?" It all came out in one big explosion of breath. He shuffled his feet, not knowing what he wanted her answer to be. Would he fight Azure for her? If she wanted give, would he turn against the brother whos support he had always wanted in life?

Hanako could take a hint. Kicking her way back to shore, she swam in silence, her brow knotted as she wondered how she could fix this. She just wasn't sure what was with herself lately, it seemed as though her mind was fuddled and she was making all the wrong decisions. If this was what being an adult entailed then she wanted none of it! She would very happily regress back into a yearling, thank you very much! Except she had no choice in the matter, her body did as it liked and dragged her along for the ride. Her fiery paws met sand and Hanako waded up into the shallows, the waves rolling over her shins as though beckoning her back into the blue. She would have gladly swam to exhaustion instead of  this, maybe it was still an option, to just turn tail and dive back beneath the sea.

Pulling in a deep breath, Hanako cast her gaze to the Fatalis before her. When he finally did speak the words rushed from his muzzle like a torrent, barely legible. Her eyes snapped wide as the meaning sank in, she knew that his parents were his role models that their relationship was the shining example of love in his eyes but-well was that what she wanted too? Maybe. But also yes, sorta. She wanted to be loved and cherished, there was no denying that, it was all she'd been groomed for and now that the opportunity was in sight, almost in grasp she found herself floundering. Talk about dropping the ball.

In her mind she'd never really fixated on any particular person, they'd always been staggeringly handsome and kind but beyond the superficial their faces had always been a blur and their voice in her ears a muted rumble. But that wasn't exactly what he was asking, was it? He wanted to know why and fairly so but she didn't KNOW! Besides, was that what he wanted? Or was he just doing his Morty thing where he just wanted to make everyone happy? Hanako looked mostly calm on the outside but rest assured she was screaming herself hoarse on the inside.

"I-" She wavered, quick to turn the question on him. "Well what do you want? No one asks you that so I'm gonna."

He stared at Hanako with big, wide, blue eyes. A little afraid, and treading in deep water. He didn’t know what he was doing, what he was wanting. What he should say. He tried to picture Hanako cuddled beside him in his den, of looking down at her the way Sirius looked down at a sleeping Zee. full of love, and amazement that she was his. Oh raising puppies with her, maybe one day leading the Armada with her. Of taking his fathers role, staying here, having the life his father had, and wanted for him. He thought of Azure, and what he would do. His brother would either leave, or fight him. He would not just stand there and let Mortis take Hana away from him. Would it be a death match? Would his brother be angry enough to do it. He trembled at the thought, of being locked in a fight to the death with the brother he had always loved most in the world. The love had always been one sided, and that would be the final, great, most devastating ending to the tragedy of their brotherhood. He looked at that image, and he knew he couldn’t do it. He liked Hana, a lot. He wanted her to be in her life, but she could never… she could never think he wanted her in any other way. “I want… I want to catch fish with you at sunset, I want to play along the beach with you. Sit together in our tree hut, and huddle by the fire outside my den and talk until night turns to day. I want to be your best friend, forever. But I don’t think… I think… Azure loves you Hana, and I love him.” he looked at her helplessly, the innocent naive, puppy love that made up so much of him gone. Shaken away to show the worried young man beneath.

Hanako wasn't sure what she expected but for the hundredth time that day she wished she could just keep her damn mouth closed. She knew that if nothing Mortis enjoyed her company that they were good friends who shared a lot of memories but what if he wanted more? Could she give that to him? Probably! At the very least she'd try, and given that things flowed so naturally with him she thought- but then he spoke and his words sliced through her silly daydream. That's all her wants and desires were, silly and undeserving, flip flopping between one brother to the next like a harlot.

Ah. So that's how it was. She should have seen it coming and even though Mortis was as gentle as could be his rejection wounded her all the same. In a sense she understood where he was coming from, Azure would no doubt have feelings about this, very loud ones too but- well none of that seemed to matter when Mortis was more or less saying he didn't want her. That he didn't think she was worth it. Except that-well she! Hanako wanted to screech and stamp her paws, demand that he reconsider but what good would that do? This wasn't the first time she'd been turned down, Hattori hadn't wanted her either but now it felt personal. Like an open wound, staining her fur red.

Okay. All right. Very well. Okie dokie. No problem.

Hanako pulled in a deep breath and buried it deep, further down then she'd ever pushed anything before. As though it wasn't even a part of her anymore, like those thoughts weren't her own.

"No you're right. I'm sorry I shouldn't have said anything. Let's just pretend that didn't happen." If nothing she was putting on a rather convincing display, the mask was back on, stuck into place with thorns that pierced at her skin. Her eyes crinkled at the corners as her lips curled into a delicate smile. "Wanna have a race rematch? I'll beat you this time, I swear it."

He saw the devastation in her eyes, before she could patch it back up and place on her people-face. Or maybe by now he knew his best friend well enough to know when she was feeling something. “What we have is forever, Hanako. I will always be there for you, to protect you, to get you out of a situation, to be a shoulder to lean on. You're my best friend, and that means the world to me. I need you, Hana” If she turned to him, and asked him to be hers, flat out and open eyed, he wasn’t entirely certain that he would be able to say no. The devastation it would wreck in Azure hovered over him, a frightening image. Azure could never know that he had turned Hana away for his sake. He would forsake the both of them. And if what she needed was to pretend it hadn’t been said, and to race together, he could do that for her. “You’ll eat my dust!” he warned her.

Hanako wasn't sure why he bothered. He'd said his piece and the rest of it felt like padding, an attempt to soften the blow. Which of course was a typical Mortis thing to do but try as he might it didn't make her feel any better. Not that she really let it, his words didn't sink in cause she didn't want them to and as long as she kept up that mentality she'd only keep falling in a downward spiral. But that was neither here nor there just yet, as bad as things were she had no idea that worse was yet to come. He valued her as a friend and needed her, yadda yadda. Hanako didn't want to hear that right now, it was simply adding salt to the fresh wound.

He was making it hard to hold on to the pretence, to pretend and act and smile away as though nothing was wrong. If he kept pushing she'd snap, so it was a relief that he dropped it and agreed to the race. Had he not she might have run on without him. Rolling her shoulders, Hanako bounced on her paws, spry and ready to kick off into a sprint. She wasn't holding back this time, every fibre of her frustration and hurt roiled inside of her, begging for release in some form. This would have to do for now. She caught Mortis' gaze and got in line beside him and reached out with her front paw to draw a line in the sand. Their starting point.

"To that tree over there. To the count of three." Just as last time. "One. Two. Three!"

And they were off. Sand was sent flying as the pair went from zero to one hundred. Hanako breathed deep, savouring the salty brine of the sea as her fiery paws whispered against the sand.

Hanako started the countdown, and they were off. However, his heart wasn’t in it, he faltered, stumbling, and wasn’t able to recover his timing. Hana had overtaken him, and ran like her life depended on it. He watched her, trotting along behind, as she sped across the sand. She looks like a silver ghost beneath the sunlight, and he knew their vacation here was ruined. She had kissed him, and he had… he had what, exactly? She had never really said what she wanted. But he supposed he had turned her down anyway. He loved Hana, and the thought of her not being in his life made his heart squeeze with pain. He felt like their friendship was falling between his paws like sand. No matter how much he scrambled. He couldn’t seem to save it. Maybe he was overthinking it. He was an adolescent that had just received his first kiss. By the time he reached the end point of their run, his eyes were damp. He lowered a wing, covering his face, as he tried to get a grip on his wayward emotions.

Victory tasted bitter upon her tongue. She didn't leap for joy or keep going once she passed the tree, she simply slowed to a stop and stared ahead, unwilling to look at the mess she'd left in her wake. She heard Mortis stumble behind her and in any other instance she would have skittered to his side to see what was wrong, or maybe even to gloat in his face. But for now she just looked ahead, her eyes lingering on the stretch of beach as though it was the most interesting thing in the whole wide world. The hiss of the waves wasn't enough to cover the sniffles that escaped Mortis' maw and Hanako's ears flicked as yet another pang of guilt slipped between her ribs. She wasn't sure how much of this she could take. Suddenly she was very interested in the sand that clung to her paw pads, as though counting the grains was the most enthralling idea she'd had all day. And then-

"It looks like it might rain. Head back to the den and I'll catch us something for dinner." She said absently, as though talking to the wind.

So this was what a broken heart felt like. He had already lost one friend, the mystery of her disappearance might never be answered. Now, somehow, he had messed up so irredeemably with Hana. he could feel it, the pain in his gut like a cramp from bad fish. No matter how hard he tried, no matter how much he tried to look out and love those around him, he lost them. He was pushing Hana away for the sake of a wolf that would never love him, that would only hate him if he found out. He was losing Hana, who had been the one bright spot in his life in the Armada. She wouldn’t look at him, she refused to, even as he got a hold of himself and pushed the tears away. He let out a soft, shaky breath, and walled up another piece of his heart. He could do this, he could file away the heartbreak. Put it next to the memory of Malalia. He had lost Hana, too. He straightened, mask falling into face, if just a little more serious than before. “Yeah, alright.” "Speech"