As soon as the "trial" had ended, Emersyn wasted no time in heading off on her own. She couldn't be around the band right now; her frustration and disappointment was too great. She'd reassured Segin that she was just going for a walk to clear her head since he had become fiercely protective of her since the band's breakdown and then made for the coast. She wanted to distance herself from everyone, to detach from what she'd thought was going to be her new lease on life. Now it just felt like petty politics and backstabbing for personal gain—at least from one wolf. But when that wolf was being sheltered and protected by their leader, it was hard not to feel jilted or disfavored when it was their safety being put on the line. Em felt like she'd been lied to, conned by the man that had brought her here.

Disillusioned by Indigo, she stormed through the woods until the sound of the ocean reached her ears and her paws hit the sand. Emersyn had always loved the beach, stemming from her childhood on that temperate peninsula surrounded by the sea. She came here to think, to clear her mind and reflect on her life, and to be alone. Large paws carried her across the squishy sand until she was standing right at the edge of the lapping surf, occasionally feeling the tickle of cold, foamy water wash over her toes. She drew in a deep breath of air tinged with the scent of salt and seaweed and listened to the cries of gulls while she stared out over the sparkling water. She wondered where in the world she was in relation to her childhood home, how far was she now from where she started. She wondered what would happen if she tried to return there now as an adult. Would she be scorned, driven away, chased out? Would her family still be there—would they even recognize her? Or would she be permitted to live back within those alabaster walls by a golden sea, safe in marble halls and gilded rooms? Her frown deepened on her face. Would she even want that? Was that even the type of wolf she was anymore?

Emersyn sighed and shook her head, strolling slowly down the coast, alternating between looking at the sea and staring down at her paws as they trudged through the sand. She didn't really want to return home, not earnestly. Too many doubts and bad memories hung around that place. But she also didn't know if she could stay with the band. Indigo had cut her deep, broken her trust. He'd saved her life, begged and pleaded for her to stay with him, promised to protect her and keep her safe, romanced and seduced his way between her legs twice. And now, with their safety genuinely in danger from Duchess, he seemed more preoccupied with protecting the scandal children than the welfare of the wolves he'd deceived into following him. Em huffed under her breath, subconsciously starting to pace back and forth, wondering if she'd have been safer out on her own all along instead of letting herself get trapped in this mess. At least with the bounty hunters she knew what to expect and could fight back. Indigo and Duchess had become a potentially slow, painful death.

"Emersyn"

Everything just seemed to go from awful to worse as the days went by. He’d been so high he hadn’t even seen where he was going. He’d been blind to Duch’s intentions and Aslatiel’s needs. He bore the guilt like one of the pack goat, carrying it with him with no idea where its finally destination might be. No idea if any part of his dream was even attainable now. The band was only just staying together, but it was staying together better than his broken heart. He had to thank Segin and Gypsy for keeping everyone together, he had been emotionally distant at best. Indigo had to throw himself into working for the band. He would have waited on every one of them hand and foot if he was able to.

The puppies were becoming more real everyday. The thought of being a father was a foreign one that he hadn’t been prepared to approach. His choice was taken from him. That was the true crime, but what if he had agreed when Duchess first propositioned him? What would the band look like then? Would he have been given the same result with Aslatiel or would everything have played out differently? He would never know, he was given what he had, and Indy had to try and rebuild with what was left. He hadn’t lost sight of his dream because it was becoming what little he had to hold onto.

Emersyn was very much a part of that dream, but he heard the venom in her voice and he had seen the fire in her eyes. Something he’d seen echoed in Duch’s. How was he going to repair a rift like that? It seemed almost hopeless that he could save this little family that had come together so beautifully, but fell apart even more quickly.

Massive paws unintentionally followed Emersyn’s path. She kept her head on during the meeting but he could see the rage beneath as he made his decision. Maybe it was better for him to hear her now, instead of allowing the feelings to fester. Better not to ignore an open wound. He stepped out onto the beach, his form obvious against the forest as he half intercepted her. Em could ignore him and keep walking, or approach and release her anger. Maybe they both needed a little of the latter.


Indigo Arcturus Fatalis

Warning: Indigo should be considered a Mature Character.

Emersyn hadn't expected anyone to follow her after the meeting, least of all Indigo. She knew Segin would give her the space she asked for, Gypsy was blind as a bat, and Duchess would only have come to rub her face in it even more. But Indigo... She'd caught sight of the purple giant lingering a short distance away between the ocean and the forest, just standing there and staring at her. All at once, Emersyn's pacing stopped, a paw held up in the air mid-stride. She stared back at him, feeling a flurry of all sorts of emotions churning inside her, clawing at her chest and twisting her stomach and heart around. So caught was the dusty violet fae that she didn't know what to do right away. She wanted to walk away from him, to ignore his presence and pretend he didn't exist, but she also wanted to slap him across his dumb dopey face and scream at him for all the things he'd led her to believe and the way he'd tricked and lied to her.

Caught between wanting to be in his face and wanting the entire world to be between them, Emersyn settled for staying where she was. Her paw dropped to the sand, but she made no efforts to come closer to him. Her body was tense, rigid, perhaps ready to spring into a run away from him or into a lunge for his neck, she didn't really know yet. Cobalt and aqua eyes narrowed while he stared him down. "What are you doing here?" she snapped at him from across the space between them, speaking loud enough for her voice to carry over the ocean's gentle waves. "Shouldn't you be back at camp, making sure your baby mama is being tended to?"

"Emersyn"

When she turned towards him Indigo found himself hoping that she did ignore him and walk on by, there had been no settling down from the trial, no sloughing of her emotions. This was as raw and real as he would ever see Emersyn. Part of him was thankful for that fact, that she did not fear showing him her true feelings. She froze, obviously sitting and weighing her options as her paw remained raised in the air, her dual toned eyes searing holes into him before deciding to remain there on the beach.

She spit venom at him, her own personal hurt obvious as she used the scenario to try and hurt him. Indigo still didn’t completely understand the tension between them. He didn’t realize how many of his vows had been broken with this, he didn’t see the words she now saw as lies. He cared so much about her, seeing the fire towards him hurt more than he wanted to allow it. ”I came to find you,” he gave his obvious answer, quietly and timidly. Maybe coming after her had been a mistake.

”I’m sure Bertha will keep her comfortable.” He returned, only half joking. Anyone but Gypsy having to deal with the sheep could be quite the unpleasant experience. He knew that Emersyn was worried about the band, but what was the reason beneath that she was so strongly against these babies? He would give anything to change how they came into the world, but killing them because they were inconvenient was the antithesis to who he was.

They were never meant to be, they were unwanted, they were innocent and Indigo had an incredible drive to keep them. There was already a deep protective instinct growing within him, he felt it the same as he felt for everyone in the band. ”I wanted to make sure you were tended to.” He didn’t want the acid in their relationship to eat away at everything that had blossomed between them. Even if she was mad at him forever, he’d give of himself for her the same as he had when they first met.


Indigo Arcturus Fatalis

Warning: Indigo should be considered a Mature Character.

The hard laugh that came from Emersyn when he said he'd come to find her was reflexive, just coming from the angry she-wolf without her even thinking of it. Now that was rich and unexpected! Was he really so daft that he thought he could just come see her and make it all better? Was he that blind that he didn't realize that he was half of the cause for this reason? Him thinking with his cock and not his brain, letting himself get taken advantage of by a mentally unstable woman with baby fever. It was kind of sad, honestly. She'd looked up to him and believed him to be this strong, caring, intelligent man. Oh, how the mighty fall...

”I wanted to make sure you were tended to.” The corner of Em's lips twitched in what might have been a smirk or a snarl, it was impossible to tell. "What does that mean?" she pressed him, still maintaining her distance and tensed to run if she felt he was going to try anything stupid. "I've seen the way you tend to women in your care. So does that mean you're here to try to get me pregnant or lie to me some more?" She didn't want to hurt Indigo, but she wouldn't hesitate to treat him like an enemy if that was what he made of himself. She knew where he was weakest, and she could fall back into her old gladiator habits easy enough. He wasn't any more special than the other wolves she'd left dead or dying in the dirt.

Her walls were back up, and the soft side of Emersyn that Indy had seen was hidden away behind cold eyes and sharp teeth. She would not let him hurt her or take advantage of her again. "What do you want, Indigo?" she asked, plain and blunt. Em was not one to beat around the bush on a good day, and this was a far cry from a good day. Why was he here? All he'd given her so far were cryptic responses and an impassive expression. She couldn't do anything with that.

"Emersyn"

Sadness and pain had become his everyday state, his whole life was crumbling around him and he felt like there was nothing he could do about it. He had made promises and vows, and he was breaking every one of them through Duch’s decision to go behind his back. He had thought his life was sunshine and rainbows, everything was perfect he was finally bringing his self made family together with Aslatiel and then everything had fallen apart before his eyes. His life, his inner self. Nothing was the same and everything was broken. His strength, his confidence, his band.

Emersyn snarled at him as he tried so hard to appease her. Maybe coming out here had been a mistake. Another on his lengthening list. ”I just…” She went on to clarify her own thoughts, telling him exactly how she saw his actions. He had never tried to get anyone pregnant, and he had always tried to be honest. ”I’ve never meant to lie to you,” Not intentionally but with everything going on had he withheld some truths? He didn’t think so. Every word he said to her he meant, how important, beautiful, and needed she was had never been a lie.

What did he want? He wanted everything to go back to how it was, he didn’t want this cold side of Emersyn keeping him away. He wanted to understand why she was resisting him so hard, why she was so vehemently against the children the band would welcome to the world. He wanted to know how he could even begin to fix any of this. ”I want to fix this.” He whispered softly, but as he watched her dual toned gaze even the healer inside of his wasn’t certain this was an illness that would be recovered from. Had he ruined everything so thoroughly? Right now it felt like he had.


Indigo Arcturus Fatalis

Warning: Indigo should be considered a Mature Character.