05-14-2020, 04:44 PM
(This post was last modified: 05-14-2020, 04:45 PM by Neverwhere.)
Neverwhere knows that, most likely, Wolfbane was not always what he is now, what he was even on the day that she first met him, because she has spoken with Lepis, and because there is little left in the creature that would recommend him to the Loessian queen or to Lilliana, these days. And, yes, she recognizes that smile, that charm, but it's gone, and as quickly as Pteron smiles, Neverwhere wipes it away with barbs thrown undeservingly.
Her apology, at least, is sincere.
He had warned them. She had already known, of course, because Lepis had come before. But what can you do against a curse? She had known only how to die, and even that went wrong. Perhaps Brennen could exert some influence over the creature that is now Wolfbane - or was Wolfbane - perhaps not. It occurs to her that she ought to have called the magician from the first moment, but these sorts of plans have never been her forte. It is exactly why she had not wanted this responsibility, and had done little with it, yet her people had also not come to her with an alternative to her free-handed leadership, and so she remained queen of Nerine.
For a moment, on her feet again, she feels a flood of resolve, a strengthening that reaches out, from her belly, to her legs, that clears the fog from her brain with a single breath and the dullness from her pale eyes. He is speaking of Healers and waterfalls and she looks at him sharply, ready to decline all such help, but almost as quickly as it comes on, the sensation fades, though she feels herself less tired than before. The dappled mare can only shake her head again, distracted by the mechanism that has triggered her wakefulness, as a wry expression twists sharply into the dull exhaustion of her face. Somewhere in the fever dream she is connecting dots, black dots in the unlit room of her mind, and the picture they form is a joyless realization.
"It's not a healer that I need," she hisses, teeth bared and angry once again. She wants to bite something, but Pteron has rather wisely moved too far away to be within reach, so she savages the rough bark of the tree, baring the green wood underneath and denting that, too, with the marks of her teeth, and when she has satisfied on that front she at last pulls away from it. Without the support, her legs are weak as a newborn's and her steps lack control. She lurches forward, standing parallel to the winged stallion and reaches out with her muzzle for the scarred place he hides behind his jawbone. She does not touch him.
"Do all of Wolfbane's children do that, Pteron?"
Healing. Wolfbane had healed himself, almost instantly, and Pteron had done it, too. I should be dead, she thinks once more, twisting an ear back in thought. It is not a power that she has ever had, except in the most mundane sense, and certainly, she is not healed now, but neither is she lying scavenged in the mud. Her vision flickers to the cliffside of Nerine where Wolfbane left her, where he changed and fled, without even checking to see if she was dead (had he been so sure of his work, or had he just not cared?) Would he bother with the northern kingdom, if neither her nor Lilli were there?
But, of course, there's still Nashua and Yanhua to draw him back to the Taigan woods. And Ama, whose only crime is being close to Neverwhere - and perhaps a tendency to speak her mind when she shouldn't. Neverwhere looks North and sighs. It's a long way back, like this.
Her apology, at least, is sincere.
He had warned them. She had already known, of course, because Lepis had come before. But what can you do against a curse? She had known only how to die, and even that went wrong. Perhaps Brennen could exert some influence over the creature that is now Wolfbane - or was Wolfbane - perhaps not. It occurs to her that she ought to have called the magician from the first moment, but these sorts of plans have never been her forte. It is exactly why she had not wanted this responsibility, and had done little with it, yet her people had also not come to her with an alternative to her free-handed leadership, and so she remained queen of Nerine.
For a moment, on her feet again, she feels a flood of resolve, a strengthening that reaches out, from her belly, to her legs, that clears the fog from her brain with a single breath and the dullness from her pale eyes. He is speaking of Healers and waterfalls and she looks at him sharply, ready to decline all such help, but almost as quickly as it comes on, the sensation fades, though she feels herself less tired than before. The dappled mare can only shake her head again, distracted by the mechanism that has triggered her wakefulness, as a wry expression twists sharply into the dull exhaustion of her face. Somewhere in the fever dream she is connecting dots, black dots in the unlit room of her mind, and the picture they form is a joyless realization.
"It's not a healer that I need," she hisses, teeth bared and angry once again. She wants to bite something, but Pteron has rather wisely moved too far away to be within reach, so she savages the rough bark of the tree, baring the green wood underneath and denting that, too, with the marks of her teeth, and when she has satisfied on that front she at last pulls away from it. Without the support, her legs are weak as a newborn's and her steps lack control. She lurches forward, standing parallel to the winged stallion and reaches out with her muzzle for the scarred place he hides behind his jawbone. She does not touch him.
"Do all of Wolfbane's children do that, Pteron?"
Healing. Wolfbane had healed himself, almost instantly, and Pteron had done it, too. I should be dead, she thinks once more, twisting an ear back in thought. It is not a power that she has ever had, except in the most mundane sense, and certainly, she is not healed now, but neither is she lying scavenged in the mud. Her vision flickers to the cliffside of Nerine where Wolfbane left her, where he changed and fled, without even checking to see if she was dead (had he been so sure of his work, or had he just not cared?) Would he bother with the northern kingdom, if neither her nor Lilli were there?
But, of course, there's still Nashua and Yanhua to draw him back to the Taigan woods. And Ama, whose only crime is being close to Neverwhere - and perhaps a tendency to speak her mind when she shouldn't. Neverwhere looks North and sighs. It's a long way back, like this.
@[Pteron] I feel like this got weird at the end, so enjoy