TRIGGER WARNING
Mention of Suicidal thoughts and actions.

It had been two days since she had staggered back to the den, and two days since she had left it. The cool darkness offered little solace to her as she lay there, her fur disheveled and stained with the blood that had trailed from her nose after bashing her face against the rocks. For two days, the echoes of her desolation reverberated within the stone walls, a silent testament to an unsuccessful attempt at escape. Her body ached with the aftermath of a desperate leap from a cliff, a leap that destiny had denied her. The pounding headache, a brutal companion, throbbed in rhythm with her shattered spirit. She had been robbed. How could she have possibly survived?

As the sun began its ascension on the third day, Aurelia stirred from her slumber- immediately scrunching her eyes at the unrelenting drumming in her skull. She shifted, her body protesting as she moved. Slowly, she opened her eyes and greeted the darkness. The girl knew she had to leave the den, she had basic needs to attend to that couldn't go on being ignored. Aurelia pushed herself up onto her paws, shaking off the remnants of sleep and the pain that still gripped her body. She took a deep breath, steeling herself for what lay ahead, and staggered her way toward the entrance of the den. As she emerged, the brightness of the morning light made her wince, and she had to steady herself against the steadily thawing terrain. At least it was spring.

"Aurelia Veratti"

Impulsive and a little forgetful, Sephiran had lost track of how many days he left Aurelia alone. One, two, three? He hadn’t thought about it until right now, in this random moment, when he was following the scent trail of a bobcat he intended on killing. A blue flower was sprouting from the ground, appearing in the grace of spring. The color was similar to her markings, and it made him think of her. It brought on a whirlwind of emotion- primarily obsession, grandiosity, mania. Eyes became wide, the sound of her screams, pants, moans, playing inside of his head. Creating a symphony he just had to hear in this given moment. Abandoning his hunt, Sephiran loped up into the forest. Making his way to Aurelia’s makeshift prison.

As he neared the entrance, he was expecting her to still be asleep. Or, holed up in the corner, playing with her herbs and little monuments. Talking in that weird language he didn’t understand. Only, she wasn’t doing any of those things. As he approached, she was emerging from the den. And Sephiran moved forward to intercept her. “Where are you going?” His voice was already accusatory, but the expression on his face was stoic, cold even. He just wanted to know what her intentions were. So wrapped up in the possibility of her trying to leave, that he didn't initially notice the blood caked on her face.

"Speech"

Code by Shelby

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Merely standing up against the entrance of her den was proving to be more difficult than she had anticipated. For whatever reason, her pupils were not adjusting to the daylight. Everything was glaringly bright- to the point of her hearing Sephiran’s approach before seeing it- even the cadence in which he walked sounded unnecessarily brash. As soon as he entered a conversational distance, she heard his voice- insisting on knowing where it was she was going. After a few moments of hesitance and a sigh, she tried to clear her throat to speak. “To tend to myself.” She answered him softly. With the rhythmic pounding rattling her skull, she didn’t have much of her usual fire at the moment. Aurelia used the tone of her voice gingerly to try and alleviate some of the vibrations that came along with talking. Even still, her voice was fairly broken and dry- having been the first time she had used it in the past two days after going without water.

It was only then that her sapphire gaze had begun to adjust, allowing her to open her eyes a little further to take in their surroundings. Her attention settled on him then, trying to search his expression for the kind of mood he was in at the moment. She couldn’t help but wonder what she looked like.

"Aurelia Veratti"

Her voice was gruff, dry, lacking any real emotion. Yet the tone was soft and shallow, which was odd coming from Aurelia. Especially after he approached her so brashly, making accusations with his questioning. Her usual spit-fire attitude had finally simmered down, it seemed. And, whatever be the reason, didn’t particularly matter to Sephiran. Because he would always assume it was due to his authority over her. That he was finally breaking her.

“Tending to yourself?” He said, questioning her again. Only this time, it wasn’t so accusatory. It was curious, if anything, because he wasn’t exactly sure what that meant. “I’ll be joining you.” Whatever she was trying to do, he wanted to be there to supervise. Especially if it was something erotic, like bathing herself. And so, Sephrain would linger closer to her. Destroying the space that kept them apart, until his shoulder was pressed against hers. That’s when he noticed the blood on her face. “Blood?” He said, bringing his face closer, sniffing at it. It was blood alright. Which made his face contort into a sneer. “Why were you bleeding?” He asked, shoving his shoulder forward into hers, wanting to pull information from her.  

"Speech"

Code by Shelby

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Whether or not he wanted clarification on exactly what it was she intended to accomplish, she didn’t offer it. She was in desperate need of cleaning herself up. Whether he participated or not was the least of her concerns. “Mmm hmm.” She answered hazily. No matter what her original purpose had been, she quickly accepted that she would no longer be doing it alone. And once again, the fewer words she could manage, the less she felt like her head was going to explode. But even that act of self-preservation was thrown to the wayside.

As he shoved his shoulder in hers, she couldn’t help the sharp, gasping inhale at the sudden infliction of pain from the ache that encompassed her entire frame. In a jagged, uncoordinated way, she staggered away from him as she surrendered the space and instilled a short distance between them once again. It seemed that he wouldn’t be happy until they were at each other’s throats again. “Another one of your indulgences told me that I needed to do a better job trying to meet my goddess.” She began, recounting the words spoken by the nosey-passerby she had encountered. She couldn’t imagine that he would take the disclosure of information well. But part of her wanted to see his response. Looking at him with a slightly tilted head, she tried hard to read into his expression as she went on. “And I thought, you’re absolutely right.” Did he want to know exactly what she had done to herself? Or was the implication enough? She would soon find out.

"Aurelia Veratti"

To his comment, there was no retaliation. Sephiran found it a little odd, because Aurelia rarely wanted him to accompany her. Especially if she was going to tend to herself, or perform whatever religious ceremonies she believed in. She did stumble away from him when he shoved his shoulder into hers. Gasping, shuddering, taking a few moments to recollect herself. Some time had passed since he realigned her leg. It should have been tolerable now. So why was she acting so battered and uncoordinated? Indulgences… better job at meeting her goddess… being absolutely right. As the words left her mouth, creeping into the labyrinth of his mind, sending it into a whirl. Sephiran’s mood quickly started to change. His expression was the window into his thoughts- eyes hardening, lips twitching, brows furrowing. What in the hell was she talking about? Of course, he had assumptions. Sephiran wasn’t an idiot. But if his assumptions were true… Closing the gap between them, Sephiran ascended into her space, pressing his chest against hers, almost bringing their faces together. “And what came of it?” He looked her up and down, searching for further injury. Aside from her face, nothing really stood out. Pitiful. “Nothing. Absolutely nothing.” Lips peeled back, contorting into a sneer. Using her same verbiage, mocking her. “To think you fell for that. Tried it even! And failed.” A snort, which almost morphed into laughter. “How many signs do you need, Aurelia?” Shoving his weight forward, he wanted to make her stumble back. “How many times do you have to be reminded- your goddess condemned you. She gave you to me.” And then, he closed the distance he created. “There is nothing more than that.” He fell silent then, tail flicking behind him. The tone accompanying his words, they weren’t taunting anymore. They were matter-of-fact, truthful in nature. Because, Sephiran believed it to be true.   "Aurelia" & "Sephiran"

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As she spoke, she could certainly see the shift as it happened before her eyes. Though he took very little time to process it before he moved to pressure her. Forcing his chest into hers as he brought his face within inches of hers He took a half second to look her over, and proceeded to laugh in her face. She grit her teeth as she evaded meeting his dual-colored gaze.

As he forced himself against her- she was too sore to not relent. Catching her weight to keep herself upright was a hard maneuver for her to make- but she did it. Gritting her teeth to keep her voice contained. He continued to berate her- mocking her for trying and failing. But to an extent he was right. And she hated him for it. She didn’t have an answer for him, or a retaliation. He had shoved her back, and still continued to advance on her- and as quickly as she could manage, she shuffled around. Turning her back on him as she made an attempt to head in the direction of the water. It wasn’t an attempt to escape him. Just to move on to something more productive. Something where she didn’t have to look at him. “You asked, and I told you.” She answered lightly, though she didn’t turn to face him as she spoke, trying to keep a firm grip on the blank expression that she had instilled to protect herself as much as she could.

"Aurelia Veratti"

Even with his advance, Aurelia didn’t put up a fight. In fact, she hardly reacted at all. Being pushed back, stumbling to the side. Not trying to shy away as he descended back into her space, shoving her, mocking her, testing her. And yet, there wasn’t much of a response from her. Sephiran had been waiting for this. He’d been trying to instill fear into her, wanting to morph her into a submissive puppet he could play with and then store for later. But now that she was acting more docile, he wasn’t sure if he liked this behavior so much. But of course, he wasn’t going to voice any of that to her. Perhaps this was their way of meeting in the middle.

And so, when she turned away from him, trying to head down to what he assumed was the Polar Sound’s harbor. Sephiran was quick to place himself at her side, pressing his ribs into hers, making sure to be one step ahead of her. As if he was leading her down there on his own accord. Bumping into each other along the way, stumbling over each other's feet because Sephiran couldn’t bring himself to leave her proximity. And once they reached the water’s edge, he stopped at the shore, allowing the water to lap at his toes. “Who told you to do this?” During their walk, he was trying to figure out who it could be. Certainly not Aresenn. Absinth came to mind, but was she really that forward? Hell, could it have been Rhazien?

.

While he didn’t attempt to prevent her from her intended goal, he wouldn’t allow her to leave him behind. It seemed that he needed her attention. Even more so as he tried to sway her path by falling in step with her- but only slightly ahead. She didn’t care. Occasionally their bodies collide, or a stumble would occur. Grit her teeth as she must, she kept her attention fixed on the path ahead. It wouldn’t take long before the inlet came into view, and she could carry on about her business. Eventually his mocking did fall away- he didn’t seem to press her on it any further. That was a small mercy.

As they broke the treelike and crossed over the sand of the beach, something else must have crossed her mind. Who told you to do this? They never exchanged names, and with a subtle shrug, she kept walking. Only stopping when she was waded out into the lazy tide to her knees. “I don’t know who she was. But she professed herself to someone who chose to follow you- she made that very clear.” Aurelia answered, slowly lowering herself to her haunches as the brackish water soaked into her coat and aching muscles from about waist up. “Mostly white with black markings … I don’t know how much that narrows things down. She didn’t name herself to me. Nor I myself, to her.” He could have dozens of brainwashed lackeys for all she was aware of. But in the end, she was just answering the question. It had nothing to do with challenging her accuser- which she refused to devote one single thought to the fate of that crazy bitch. She had enough of that one’s games to last a lifetime.

"Aurelia Veratti"

Well, it seemed Absinth was that forward. The wolf she described sounded just like her. Especially if the taunter had professed loyalty to him, was white and black in appearance, and around their age. He couldn’t help but scoff, mind whirling as he tried to think of why Absinth would provoke Aurelia. And why the fuck Aresenn allowed this to happen. Was this a reflection on his method of training? Was he not being sufficient? Aside from that, no real reason came to mind. Perhaps she was trying to irritate Sephiran. But then again, why do that, if she intended on helping him build a kingdom? None of it made sense to him, especially with the little information Aurelia gave him. There had to be more to the story. But he didn’t  care to hear it all from her. He wanted to hear it from Absinth. In the end, would their stories align?

A gruff scoff resonated from him, paws shifting beneath his weight as he moved into the shallows. Coming to her side before encircling her, Sephiran aligned his gaze with hers. Even as she washed herself, slicking down her coat, exposing the curvature of her body. He didn’t look away from her eyes. “She helped you then?” He questioned, wanting more information. What did Absinth do, exactly? Did she dare to touch Aurelia, after he made it explicitly clear, she was his toy?

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As she acclimated herself to the water’s chill, she prepared herself to submerge even further. However, as he circled in front of her, her task was interrupted. Clearly annoyed, she still met his gaze. Looking up to him as he clearly wanted more information, thankfully she wasn’t left to infer what he was looking for on her own. She helped you then? “I don’t know if helped is the right word.” Aurelia mused aloud, finally meeting his eye contact as she did her best to recall the conversation. “She advised that I be more effective, or stop shitting out my mouth.” She explained with an amusing cadence, but it was the truth all the same.

In all honesty, she didn’t remember much of the conversation. Only bits and pieces of it here and there. As her attention drifted down toward the water that covered her lower body, she licked her lips- ultimately reminding her of another thing that had been said. “She also recommended ‘biting off my own tongue to bleed to death’ but of course, you and I both know that is simply impractical.” Bleeding to death from biting the end of her tongue off albeit not impossible was highly unlikely. Sephiran was medicinally inclined as well. She didn’t feel like she had to explain the likelihood of fatal consequences for such an injury. Blinking for a moment, she realigned her attention. “But no, she did not push me off the ledge herself.” The action was meant to be a sacrifice, one that seemed to have been rejected.
"Aurelia Veratti"

The words Absinth used to provoke Aurelia were foul at best. And the method she suggested was illogical and improbable. But, at least she hadn’t dared to lay a paw on her. That would have resulted in far more hostility from the boy. He couldn’t help but scoff though, shifting his gaze to follow the movement of her paws. Trailing them, waiting to watch as she began to wash her body. But she hadn’t started the process yet. She may have been acclimating herself to the water. It was quite cold after all.  “I see.” His response was simple. But the expression on his face gave insight to the anger whirling inside of him, as was already thinking of suitable punishments for both Absinth and Aresenn.

Letting out a sigh, Sephiran gravitated closer. Wanting the tips of their pelts to touch, and the heat from their bodies to intertwine. “I still can’t understand why you would allow this.” And by this, he meant,  allow someone else to decide it was time for her to end her life. Someone other than him. “You’ll never be free. Not completely.” Looking into her eyes, he suddenly became more stern. “Better to belong to a King, than a nobody.” Her life was already forfeited. She was forsaken. That had been proven to her. Couldn’t she be grateful that Sephiran Saxe had claimed her?

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The scoff he answered her with resonated disbelief, but she wasn’t interested in making the effort to try and convince him. Or perhaps, it was still an attempt at mockery- she wasn’t certain, nor did she care. He mused an acknowledgement, and it was only then did she pay close enough attention that she saw him turning something over in his mind. She could practically see the thoughts behind his eyes. But even still, it didn’t mean she had any desire to know what they were. Besides, she was fairly cognizant of the fact that she could likely guess without too much guidance.

Sephiran drew closer to her, invading her space, but not necessarily shoving her out of it. “What can I say, I’m easily tempted.” Aurelia answered him dryly, peeling her attention away from the brute and back to the water as she gingerly lowered herself down into it. The chill seeped through her skin and into bone. And as she tried to concentrate on pulling the strength to scrub away the blood that stained her coat, she could feel his eyes boring into her. Still, she wasn’t particularly bothered by it. It was nothing new by any means. He rattled on about how she would never be free. Which she accepted in part, but only until death. The fact that her previous sacrifice hadn’t been accepted was a bit confusing. But that didn’t mean she wouldn’t try again. At some point in the very near future, she would make another attempt and succeed. So rather than argue with the king now, she chose to remain silent. To busy herself in the process of cleansing.

"Aurelia Veratti"

Easily tempted. That was her excuse. His lip twitched at it, threatening to curl back into a sneer. But it didn’t. Instead, his focus stayed on her movement. Entranced by the new, lustful thoughts whirling inside of his head. Maybe it was the possessiveness. Hell, maybe he just needed a good fuck. Or, another attempt at asserting himself over her. The urge became raw, carnal in nature. The realization that she almost escaped him again, sitting in the forefront of his mind. The way she dipped down into the water. How she splashed it over herself, wetting her fur, slicking it down. Leaving nothing to the imagination. How the matted blood disintegrated into the water, leaving coppery strings of color. And the smell on her, it was different. More fragrant, and hormonal. All of it was playing into the favor of his ever changing mood.

Driven by impulsivity, he came closer. Pressing his shoulder into hers again. Not with enough pressure to push her over. But enough to show that he wanted something, and was going to take it. “Bend over.” It was a simple command, and for Sephiran, a different approach. Usually, he would have just shoved her down. But right now, he was in the mood for a little game of cat and mouse. Maybe it would help calm his nerves.

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There had always been a thin line separating them, but as he leaned in, pressing his shoulder against hers, she did her best to ignore him. He wasn't necessarily an immediate threat, until his next demand came, more forceful and insistent than before - bend over. Aurelia's spine went ramrod straight at the command, though she remained seated, refusing to give in to his power play. As she turned towards him, her piercing sapphire gaze burned with a mixture of anger and disbelief. Her heart rate quickened as she braced herself for what was to come. “Why?” She had a pretty good inclination as to why. However, she certainly wasn’t going to consent to whatever it was his intentions were. Her heart raced as anxiety gnawed at her gut. She knew he had the power to force her into submission, but her pride wouldn't allow her to give in without a fight. Despite her weakened state, she would not go down without a struggle, even if it was a futile one against his overpowering desires. Despite the agonizing pain that shot through her body with every strained movement, she tensed her muscles in anticipation. Every inch of her being seemed to ache with exhaustion, yet she refused to succumb to weakness. With her sapphire eyes narrowed, she met his piercing dual-colored gaze, her mind racing as she carefully calculated each move and pondered the potential outcomes of this critical turning point.

"Aurelia Veratti"

Of course, Sephiran expected there to be backlash. She had never allowed him to pillage, even when she was beaten and battered. Always trying to defy him, wanting to preserve whatever self-worth she had left. And that’s what made it a low-stakes game for Sephiran. In the end, even with her defiance, he always got what he wanted. And that’s all that mattered to him.

So, when her question came, accompanied by glaring eyes and an angered expression, he wasn’t surprised. “Why?” Mocking her, while adding more pressure to his shoulder. He wanted to make her budge, but not tumble over. Disturbing the surface of the water, creating ripples around them. “I want to fuck you. And you’re mine to fuck.” Twitching lips pulled back into a sneer, vulgar in appearance as Sephiran licked his lips. Like a hungry beast readying itself to feast. He raised a paw from the water, wanting to drizzle some of it over her back, as he tried to place the same paw on her chest. If she didn’t pull away, or hell, try to bite him. He would feel the pounding of her heart, which sent waves of excitement rolling down his spine. Are you scared?

With each guttural word that he spat at her, Aurelia's ears flattened against her head. She tried to maintain her composure and push back against his aggressive advances, but the physical strain was taking its toll on her much smaller and weakened frame. The words that fell from his lips were like daggers, piercing through her with their vulgar intent. I want to fuck you. And you're mine to fuck. She could all but feel his breath hot against her skin as he pressed his body closer to hers. Aurelia's heart raced with a mixture of fear and defiance as she stood her ground, refusing to succumb to his dominance. But deep down, she knew that she was no match for this brute

No matter what he said, she wasn't going to allow it to happen- not willingly. She simply refused to submit to being taken advantage of like that, and she was about to make that very clear with every fiber of her being. The sheer thought of giving in left a bitter taste in her mouth. With fire blazing in her eyes and a determined set to her jaw, she braced herself for the coming confrontation. "And you thought I would just... accept it? That's laughable," she spat out, a sneer twisting her features into an expression of pure disdain. The mere thought was preposterous to her, and she made it quite clear with every word that left her lips.

She was barely conscious of the looming danger as she felt a slight movement from his paw. In an instant, she propelled herself forward with all her might, breaking through the water's surface and plunging into its deeper expanse. It wasn't an act of escape, but rather a desperate attempt at evasion. Despite the weight of exhaustion dragging her down, it was still a better option than trying to fight in her current state. The water embraced her, enveloping her in its cool depths as she struggled to swim away from her pursuer. But even as she pushed on, she couldn't shake off the feeling that he was hot on her trail, ready to strike at any moment.

"Aurelia Veratti"

The chase was on. As expected, Aurelia was going to disobey. But, she didn’t do it in the way he expected. Lashing out with her fangs, trying to push him off, hell, even trying to slip past him to race back to the shore. Those he was expecting. But propelling herself towards the expanse of ocean, trying to evade him by going into deeper waters. That was something he didn’t foresee happening. Laughter bubbled from his jaws, mocking and venomous. Did she really think she could outswim him? Now that was laughable.

Letting her gain some distance, Sephiran wanted her to tire herself out a bit. But after a few minutes, he was ready to chase her. “There are frightening things out there!” Lunging forward, Sephiran went out into the ocean, pushing against the tide until he couldn’t feel the sand underneath him anymore. “Won’t you let me save you?” More laughter followed, as he effortlessly caught up to her. Swimming directly behind her, snapping his jaws at her tail.

The sinister ocean stretched out before Aurelia, its dark, frigid waters pulling her in every direction. With every wave that crashed against her body, she was tossed about like a ragdoll, no longer able to find solid ground beneath her feet. It was a cruel game of cat and mouse that he had no intention of allowing her to win. Aurelia refused to give in. Her teeth were clenched so tightly together that they threatened to shatter as she spat out her defiance against her current situation. “I'll … take my chances”, she snarled while struggling to keep her muzzle above the surface. She was already at such a disadvantage - had she not thrown herself off a cliff after recently setting her leg, maybe this would have been different. But it wasn't. He simply laughed at her in contempt, his laughter dripping with hatred, mocking the hopelessness of her situation. Yet, amidst the venomous mockery, there was a glimmer of amusement. It seemed he couldn't resist relishing in her hopeless situation, even though it was of her own doing. But she refused to beg for mercy or ask for forgiveness. She didn't care about his feelings towards her anymore. All that mattered was putting up a fight.

"Aurelia Veratti"

Snarling and struggling, Aurelia kept wading farther from the shore. Neither of them could feel the sand anymore. And, the water was so cold, his legs were starting to go numb. It should have been alarming enough to send them both back to the beach. But Sepiran was too enveloped by his game, and Aurelia, was trying to avoid it. He didn’t answer her with a taunt. Instead, his jaws closed around the tip of her tail, deep enough to draw blood, threatening to chew it clean off. Pulling his head back, he wanted to create resistance. Stopping her from moving forward, even as she paddled. And then, he suddenly let go. Allowing the blood to stream into the ocean, feeling its minuscule warmth tickle his skin. Pumping his legs harder, pushing himself to swim faster. Sephiran came up beside her and threw his leg over her shoulders, jaws snaking to her scruff to grab it.