-for island hopper-

She had been here before.

Deluge trod upon familiar paths, her steps measured and deliberate as she traversed the overgrown trails of the island. Though she had roamed these lands countless times before, today she ventured forth with a newfound sense of purpose. Yeah sure she'd seen the isle, but had she really seen it?

She made her way through the crumbling remnants of an outbuilding of the once-grand resort, keen golden eyes swept over the decaying structure, searching for any signs of change since her last visit. Vines coiled like serpents around the weathered stone, their verdant tendrils creeping ever closer to reclaiming the land in nature's embrace. Small trinkets, relics of a forgotten past, littered the ground beneath her feet, despite the inhabitants' best efforts to tidy it up.

Perhaps she was also looking to escape the suffocating obligation her mother had dropped on her shoulders. With each step, Deluge felt the weight of history pressing down upon her, the echoes of a bygone era whispering through the rustling leaves. She knew every corner of this island, every hidden alcove and secret passageway, yet today she sought to uncover something new, something she had overlooked in her previous explorations.

“Speech”

She was on her way out with not a single item to her name. It would not be good bye for forever, but for now. Unwilling to admit she would miss her siblings and the isle, she would be glad to get some fresh air. Become her own woman. To see the world as it was. But first... one last walk down through the jungle. Around the buildings until she stops. Her eyes land on Deluge, her older sister. The woman appeared to be searching for something? Tilting her head to the side, she peers at Deluge with narrowed eyes.

"Lost yer mind like the rest of 'em?" Calliope asks, her lips toying with a smirk.

"Speech"

Under her feet, a timber board seemed to bend without a creak, the click of timber on timber catching her ear and she turned her attention to the floor beneath her. Barely protected by a shaky metal overhang, she scratched at the board until it lifted, a panel of 4 boards with brittle black plastic holding them together on the back, like a tile. Her disappointment was evident as she discarded the decorative tile aside. It wasn't even real wood, and only concealed more of the flat expanse of stone that had once been called concrete underneath.

Cal's comment caught her ear and she smirked, “Have ter have a mind ter lose it,” she shot back with a cocky tilt of her head, unvoiced laughter clear in her tone. “I jus' like findin' places others might overlook,” she finally confessed. “All these buildin's an' shells o' buildin's have ter hold some secrets yet, right?” The raider's were probably too busy getting pissed to have thoroughly explored the place.

“Speech”

Following Deluge as she searched for something, Calliope watched in an almost curious manner. She attempted to appear disinterested, but it was obvious in the way she tilted her head back and forth to look around her sister that she was indeed interested. "Mm, I fin' not much of 'em have min's," Cal replies a bit too casually. It was her fault after all that she had been booted from the pack, but she still blamed her parents. If they hadn't pissed off someone else, she would've never attacked that little wimp of a wolf. Only reason she'd even lost was because stupid Fizzy had butted her big ol' butt in anyway.

"Ya really think there's some secrets here? No one ever looked before?" Cal asks, still following close behind Deluge. Now that she was coming close to a year old, she stood nearly as tall as Deluge, but not quite as filled out. She still had time to fit into her adult figure.

"Speech"

“Yer reckon these drunken bums look past whats infronna their faces?” She paused to look at her little sister with a tip of her head. “How'd yer do it anyway? I wish they'd fuckin' let me go.” She smirked at her younger sibling, just a little bit jealous of the freedom she found herself with, her eye catching a timber door just behind her sister set in the ground, partially obscured by fallen leaves. She moved to the door, and brushed the debris aside, “I mean Dad's dog'll prolly get bored enough one day ter suss out all the hidey holes, but why giv'er all th' fun?” She reached out to haul on the door that pulled up and away from a flight of stairs that descended into the darkness. She shook out her coat bringing her glow to life before she made her way beneath the ground, certain her sister would follow her down.

“Speech”

Calliope stops when Deluge does, regarding her older sister in the same manner. A laugh lingers on her tongue as she gives Deluge a shrug of her shoulders. "Obviously they look far 'nough past to kick me out," she banters, though it does sting. Why had she been the one to get in trouble when that little shit had trespassed anyway? "I wen' aft'r the kid who tried to brin' 'bout a peace offerin'," Calliope starts as she notices Deluge noticing something behind her. "Mum an' da said somethin' 'bout how it ain' look good if I go makin' matters worse so it's my punishment, I guess," another shrug as she turns to watch Deluge approach the door.

"Jael ain' so bad once ya get to know 'er. She's jus' pathetic than anythin' really," Calliope mentions, a sigh leaving her lips. She hates saying anything nice about anyone, but the dog had been okay company when everyone else seemed far too busy with their own stupid bullshit to give her any attention. Also since when had her sister glowed like that? Calliope's brow furrows as she follows Deluge down the flight of stairs and into the darkness. "Seems like this hidey hole ain' been found," she mentions, feeling no fear as they descend farther down.

"Speech"