She didn't really want to be here, but this hot, barren landscape was so close to Insomnia territory that Star had no choice. What kind of navigator would she be if she didn't acquire as much knowledge as possible about every land on the continent? A piss poor one, that's what kind.

Starchild picked her way along the edge of the crusty lakebed. Her nose wrinkled at the acrid smell of mud and rotting vegetation. Were there fish in there during the wet months? There was no water, so surely there weren't any fish hanging about just now.

There was a crust over the strange silky mud. The black and white lady had tossed a stone into the lakebed and watched as it cracked through and disappeared. What use was a place this like to anyone?

"Starchild Dunamis"

The red brute stepped silently through the underbrush, his muscles twitching as they always did when he moved, his golden eyes narrowing as he caught sight of the newcomer. He was a straightforward young man, he didn’t beat around the brush. He wanted to meet each of these… newcomers, This one he knew not the name of. She had an interest in terrain, in new surroundings perhaps, that much he could gather, but what brought her to this forsaken place? There was nothing to see here. Not even prey. He did not understand.

He paused, his ears flicking back as the scent of mud and decay reached him, a sharp contrast to the usual wilderness smells. It was summer. The lake had possibly dried up. The black and white wolfess seemed out of place here, her careful steps along the cracked lakebed telling him more than any words could. She didn’t belong, not in this barren wasteland. But still, she was here. And he was here. Trailing her like an opportunistic scavenger.

Redrum's breath hitched slightly as he watched her toss a stone into the strange mud. His lips twitched in a faint, almost unintentional smile, though it didn’t quite reach his eyes. Her markings were strange. Not the strangest he’d seen thus far, but strange. He pondered what he might address her as, until he could ask for her name. He could think of nothing. Maybe it would come to him if he heard her speak.

He took another step forward, carefully, silently, positioning himself just within earshot but out of sight. His nostrils flared as he caught her scent, testing it against his memory. Nothing. No relation to the other newcomers? He must have been mistaken... She was probing the land, analyzing it, much like he was analyzing her.

With a soft exhale, he allowed himself to step a little closer, his voice breaking the silence with its halting rhythm.

“Hello.” he greeting, his head tilting slightly as he studied her reaction, opting for simplicity. His speech was slow, uneven, as he fought to control the spasms in his muscles. The predator in him wanted to circle her, to see if she’d tense or flee. But he waited for her response to him, his claws flexing lightly into the dirt as he watched her every move, anticipating what she'd do next. He dropped his skull to eye her from between his shoulders. He did not know what to expect.

"Murder"

Ears and eyes shifted as a brute of crimson showed himself. Dundee, the tasmanian devil, released a grating, raucous snarl of warning as only a devil could. He didn't like others coming too close to Star, which was something that the striped Dunamis appreciated. She wouldn't tell the little creature to back down, but she would give him a nod so that he could be at ease. If the red brute tried anything, Dundee wouldn't hesitate. Nor would Merlin up above, the peregrine circling dutifully.

"Hello," she replied in kind, a soft smile on delicate features. The woman then turned her attention back to the muddied lake. "I wonder why the rocks move," she mused aloud, her gaze following the track marks through the mud. It was a strange thing and she'd never heard of moving rocks before. Mmm... would she have to get dirty? Stepping out onto the crusted over lake bed, even Stars meager weight pushed through. Her paws were muddied, but it was worth it as she made her way to one of the rocks. She pushed at it, half expecting some strange texture, but it felt just the same as any other rock. With one paw, she pushed that rock down beneath the crusted top of the lake and it disappeared into the mud. Only then did she made her way back to the edge, her brows drawn together in contemplation.

"Starchild Dunamis"

Redrum’s golden gaze flicked to the small, snarling beast beside her—some kind of big rodent. It bared its teeth with a sharp, discordant snarl, and for a moment, Redrum’s lips pulled back in a slight, bemused twitch. It was unusual to see a creature like that so possessive over another, let alone a wolf. But he didn’t let it bother him. Even his falcons up above were indifferent to him unless he had scraps to offer them.

“Rocks that… move?” he murmured, echoing her curiosity with a faint lilt of intrigue. He wasn’t much one for taking in the flowers, he mostly made sure he wouldn’t brush past the wrong one and end up itchy. His gaze shifted to the lake bed, following the odd tracks through the mud, his brow furrowing in thought. He’d never seen something like this himself—this strange phenomenon of earth and stone making their own way, leaving trails across desolate ground.

The woman stepped out onto the lakebed, her slender frame barely making an impression on the mud. A ripple of amusement rose in him as she tested the rock, almost as if expecting it to resist. He glanced at the little devil, its eyes sharp on him, then up at the bird circling above. The wolfess seemed well-guarded. But he wasn’t here for violence. He was here to understand, as much as his mind could. Maybe test what and who all this family had brought to his home, sure.

“Strange. But— Rock-girl—,” he asked, his voice slow, his speech fighting against the twitches in his jaw, though he forced himself to focus on continuing. “They are rocks, yes? Not—crabs with—rock shells?” His lips twitched again, an almost-smile, but the expression faded as quickly as it had come.

His gaze lingered on the rocks, their trails snaking through the mud, leading nowhere and everywhere at once. For a long moment, he watched her, curiosity smoldering in his golden eyes as he fought the urge to circle her. He wagered that habit of his would set off her friends, so he settled for moving a touch closer, tapping on a rock to see if little eyes would pop out of any side.

"Murder"

Having backed up onto the bank once more, Star looked out over the oddly flat land. She surmised that the lack of height in the lake kept it eternally muddy and crusty. A flat lake meant little water and little water meant that it easily dried up, as was the case here.

The red brute spoke again, giving her a nickname that sent Starchild's thickly lashed eyes to blinking. Rock-girl? After a moment, she laughed softly, giving her delicate skull a shake. It was... cute. "I am Starchild Dunamis, though I suppose I could answer to Rock-girl just for you," she teased lightly.

He asked if the rocks were actually crabs and again Star laughed, chuckling softly and shaking her head. "No, no crabs under here." She plucked one of the closer rocks up in one paw and tossed it towards him. Just a rock like all the rest. A gust of wind blew, ruffling the fae's striped coat. She mused aloud, "I do wonder if the wind pushes them across the lakebed somehow." Perhaps it had something to do with the air pushing under the crusts of dried mud or something along those lines. Either way... this information wouldn't benefit the Dunamis. It wouldn't only serve to scratch Star's curiosity itch.

"Starchild Dunamis"

Redrum’s golden gaze tracked her every movement, sharp and unblinking as she retreated to the bank. He tilted his head slightly at her laughter, the sound catching him off guard. It wasn’t mocking, nor dismissive, but light and genuine—unexpected even. He had never laughed like that before.

"Starchild… Oded," he repeated slowly, his voice dragging carefully over the syllables, tasting the name as though it were some foreign delicacy. His lips twitched into that almost-smile again, though the name felt heavy and formal on his tongue. Her given name was two odd words strung together, like his own. This, he enjoyed. “Starchild. Interesting. But—” His jaw shifted with a faint spasm before he continued, “Rock-girl is… easier. Suits Rock-girl.” The crimson boy’s lips curled upward on one side, his half Glasgow scar still healing giving him a full smile. “Red is— Redrum Mortem.”

When she tossed the rock, he shifted his weight, catching it mid-air with a swipe of his paw. Brows furrowed, his feline claws scraped against its surface as he rolled it between his toes, inspecting it with a detached curiosity. It was unremarkable, just as she said.

“No crabs.” he murmured, his gaze flicking back to her as he nodded, throwing the rock off into the distance. “Then– why…” He let the thought hang, half-formed. Theories were not his strong suit. He knew how to stalk and strike, how to weave through brush without leaving a trace, but moving rocks? That was a puzzle better suited to minds like hers.

At her suggestion about the wind, his ears twitched thoughtfully. “The— wind?… maybe. Or…” He paused, tapping his claws on the lakebed with rhythmic thuds. His tail flicked behind him as he struggled to articulate his fragmented thoughts, much like a feline watching something enriching. “No. Redrum— does not— know.”

He looked up at her again, golden gaze smoldering with subdued curiosity. “Rock-girl is— always this– curious about— strange things?” His voice was halting, but there was no malice in the question, well—maybe a hint of amusement. For all her delicate features and lighthearted words, there was a sharpness to her—a hunger for answers he supposed. It wasn’t a bad thing.

It was, he thought, not unlike his own gnawing need to understand the world, even if his methods were clumsier and ineffective. Like now, trying to make sense of this Rock-star-girl.

"Murder"