[private] until the night turns

[Mazikeen]

m a z i k e e n . Noel places herself between Gale and Nashua and a flicker of approval passes through Mazikeen. She can find no fault in the mare and it is Nashua who continues to draw all her ire. She doesn’t miss how Bolder looks to both his mother and herself for support and it takes almost no effort at all to rally herself to his defense. The polite tone she’s been using remains, but it’s begun to fracture when she tosses back at Nashua after his accusation. “That was an accident.” Mazikeen can imagine well enough what Gale’s shown him - the rabbit, Bolder’s first kill. Mazikeen does not know why Bolder’s distress inspires her to speak, it should not matter to her any more. Or maybe her annoyance with Nashua is simply strong enough that it overrides even the shadows in her heart. She has a vision of transforming into a giant snake and launching herself at him, coiling her white length around his chestnut throat until his eyes roll back into his head and she snaps his vertebra. Mazikeen restrains herself and she knows it is only because of the colt with them. She still wants him to see her as a protector, wants to feed the idea that his father is the unreasonable one here. And it should not be hard to do, because Nashua is the unreasonable one with his prejudice, with the pained look he had given her when his son had shown an aptitude for shifting. When he had tried to temper Bolder’s excitement over such a wonderful thing. Mazikeen’s entire body is suddenly alive with glowing markings but her voice is ice as she locks her red-orange gaze on Nashua. “The only one upsetting your son right now is you. If you so much as cause him a moment of distress in the future I will make you pay for it.” She provides quite the contrast next to Gale’s polite and charming air as she radiates fury, and though she appreciates Gale’s inclusion of your kind are not welcome here she’s too aggravated at one of their guests to even cast a glance his way to let him know. An idea comes to her and she straightens up, her shoulders relaxing. A few of the bright markings on her coat even fade, but the anger has its talons in her and it is unwilling to let go completely. “Actually.” Her head tilts towards the white mare, warmth returning to her voice as she speaks almost conversationally - as if she had not just threatened Nashua, as if this was just an ordinary day. “You can come visit your son whenever you’d like, Noel.” When her eyes glide back to Nashua, there is nothing but icy venom in them and the words that follow. “But you, Nashua, will never cross these borders again. If you do, I will skin you like the spineless rat you are and hang you to dry in Taiga.” The Curse was banished from the northern lands and now Nashua would find the same treatment here in the east. He will have to suffer as she has, knowing exactly where his child is and being unable to visit. Unable to so much as see that they are okay with his own eyes. Maybe he will blame her, or Gale, but she hopes he blames himself too so he can also bear the weight of knowing it is his own fault as she does. A flash of fire arcs around her and there is only a very short pause before she snarls “Now get the fuck out of our home.”

 

@Noel