there's fire in your blood
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Fuck.
This one, screeching word was all Maze could form in her mind as she stumbled down the slopes of the mountain with a hollow feeling in her chest. It made sense that she was going to be tested but this - this was beyond what she had imagined.
Her head was filled with the same white noise, the same chaos that she had felt when she attacked Firion. There wasn’t room for any rational thought. Her fire aura flicked around her but it was inconsistent - providing light for flashes at a time as her rage boiled and caused her grip on it to slip frequently.
In a way, this rage helped, because now she is standing by the river at the base of the mountain and she cannot remember much of the trek it took to get here.
She releases whatever tenuous hold she has on the halo of flames and they wink out, leaving her in the darkness. Mazikeen blinks furiously as she tries to focus on the vague shapes of the landscape around her. They are blurrier than she expects and it takes several moments for her to realize this is because she is crying.
The tears are hot and angry and they are not coming gently.
Her breathing grows ragged as she tries to stop herself from crying, livid at the idea of doing something so embarrassing out in the open where anyone could see (even if it is dark) and at herself for crying at all. Naturally, trying to stem the flow only makes things worse. She’s only ever cried once - the night in the forest when she had been torn to pieces, when she lay there waiting for death to come all because she had not been able to defend herself.
It is a different pain that rattles in her now but it’s all focused around the same fear. If she had not been strong enough then, how was she going to be strong enough now with her shapeshifting torn from her?
She wanted a way to protect her friends and her home and now she is not even sure she’ll be allowed to go back home at all.
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@[Sabal]
 can’t stop staring at those ocean eyes.
Sabal didn’t leave Hyaline often, and even less so now that things were extra dark and gloomy. However, the kelpie had a penchant for wandering and an even bigger attachment for pretty, sparkly things. And the collection of things she’d stashed deep within Hyaline’s lake was lacking because she hadn’t left since the world got dark and spooky. But the river always held a wealth of treasures because rushing waters tended to reveal all sorts of fun things.
Since this was a personal trip, Sabal wasn’t intending to see anyone she recognized. However she wasn’t stupid enough to let her guard down completely, not with monsters around. Plus she didn’t know if these monsters could swim. She was hedging her bets that they couldn’t but wasn’t just going to assume. So her leisurely journey downriver continued.
Until she stopped, abruptly, when confronted with a truly disturbing sight.
It was Maze.
And she was crying.
“Ummmmmm,” the kelpie-girl muttered, still partially submerged in the lake. She narrowed her bright teal eyes as she gazed suspiciously at her friend. Because even from this distance she knows something is wrong wrong with her friend. Because Maze doesn’t cry she makes people cry (but not her, of course). That would never happen.
“Who are you and what did you do with my friend?” She said, accusingly. She moved closer to the shore, narrowing her gaze as if to verify what she was seeing was real. Like should she splash water on her? Was this a trap? What was happening here.
Sabal pulled herself onto the bank, ready to spring from the river if need be, before speaking again. This time the words left her in a rush.
“Okay but seriously though. What the fuck happened? Do I have to like...go beat someone up because you know I will. Unless they’re like...way bigger than me. Or have bigger teeth.” She stopped abruptly, realizing she needed to shut up to allow Maze a chance to answer, but the concern was drawn all over her face..
s a b a l . |
manip by squirt
@[Mazikeen]
there's fire in your blood
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If there was a list of those who Mazikeen would Most Hate to See Her Cry, it would have everyone in the world on it but Sabal would’ve definitely been near the top - so, naturally, of course that’s who finds her.
The arrival of the squid is heralded by a gentle glow and Mazikeen turns her head away from the water as she hears her friend.
Mazikeen never did have the instinct to run and it does not even rise up now. She’s tempted to feign an attack just to be left alone, but any desire to do that dissolves when Sabal hoists her whale body onto the riverbank and asks her, in her own unique way, what was wrong. A short, humourless laugh escapes her at the sort-of-offer to help that follows and she tries to calm herself by inhaling deeply but her breathing is ragged and nothing is going to help that.
Though she does not run, or fight, Mazikeen is too ashamed of her current state to look at her friend. So she looks up instead, at the bank emptiness of the sky.
“I… went…” Ugh. This was going to take forever to tell if she kept hyperventilating like this. She takes another deep breath to steady herself before continuing. “I went up the mountain to -” Her head feels foggy and there’s a headache forming and it is not helped by the way she tries to navigate the situation and save whatever little pride she has left. “Well. To be stronger, I guess. And I got a quest - but…” More tears come now as she thinks about it and she angrily stomps one of her dark hooves but does not look away from the sky as she continues in a quiet voice. “They took my shifting until I can complete it.”
This truth weighs heavily on the mare and she closes her eyes, locking herself in total darkness.
When she manages to speak again, there’s a humourless laugh that punctuates the hollow words. “Pretty stupid thing to cry over, right?”
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@[Sabal]
can’t stop staring at those ocean eyes.
As much as Sabal really didn’t want to, she shifts into her fully equine form to make her way closer to her friend. The water was her safe place, but she knew Maze well enough by now to know that it most certainly wasn’t Maze’s safe place. She wasn’t sure if that’s because Maze’s spirit animal was clearly something feline or what, but this really wasn’t the time or place to unpack that now. At the end of the day, Sabal’s friend needed her. Even if that friend happened to also be one of the most annoying and infuriating creatures on the planet, Sabal’s loyalties ran deep once they’d been won. But she’d never admit they had been so don’t even try.
The water dripped off her scaled skin as she made her way to stand next to her friend – watching as Maze fought for the words. A more empathetic creature may have said something reassuring or offered a comforting touch – but Sabal knew that Maze didn’t need a predator’s teeth to tear someone apart. Even if Maze didn’t.
Sabal, for once in her life, waits patiently for Maze to explain what the hell happened. I mean the kelpie is sure she they could have gotten to the bottom of things like, a lot, quicker without the waterworks but here they were. She listens, patiently, soaking in everything Maze has to say. Which, yeah, now Maze’s reaction makes some sense. But it also makes no sense at all.
You know how you have those friends where you can talk to and they offer you a shoulder to cry on and tell you everything is going to be okay? Yeah um so…Sabal isn’t one of those friends.
“You’re right. It is pretty stupid,” she says, finally, in her most matter-of-fact voice. She knows that Maze probably won’t react well to this line of questioning, but the kelpie is not backing down. Maze needs someone to set her straight, and god help her Sabal is going to be that someone. Because if she were moping she would hope someone would do the same for her.
“You said it, not me,” she counters, already countering the attack she knows is coming. ”But seriously, Maze. You went to the mountain. They gave you a task. A task meant to challenge you. And it totally sucks. I get it.” She knows that it will be easy for her friend to assume she really doesn’t get it, but she does. Maze’s shifting is as integral to her as the water is to the kelpie.
“If the mountain took away my ability to swim you know I’d probably do something stupid and dramatic and I’d fully expect you to be there yelling at me as I try to drown myself out of sheer stupidity.” Because Sabal knows she probably would do something so dramatic. And she knows that Maze would be front and center on the shore telling her to drag her annoying anchovy ass back to the shore and get the fuck over it. But here we are.
“But Maze, seriously, I love you but.” She pauses – making sure that her friend has calmed down enough to listen to her because if there’s any part of what she’s saying that she wants Maze to really hear. It is this part. “Get over it. It’s temporary. It’s a challenge. Prove to those motherfucking faeries that you can meet this challenge. Don’t stand here and mope. You’re a badass with or without your shifting. It might not feel like it but fake it ‘til you make it, right?”
s a b a l . |
manip by squirt
@[Mazikeen]
Sabal is a therapist now.
there's fire in your blood
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Mazikeen opens her eyes when she hears movement and is surprised to see Sabal come to stand next to her. It was always a little odd to see the fish out of water, a little unnerving. Crying with someone that close helps to get herself a little more under control. This was already absolutely mortifying. She’s got just enough of her fire in her to shoot Sabal a burning glare at that first little response - true or not, her aquatic friend could have at least attempted not to agree so quickly - and grumbles something vulgar under her breath.
But she falls quiet and listens as Sabal talks.
This was, of course, exactly what Maze needed to hear. Annoyance blends with affection for her dear squid friend as she’s lectured with some kindness. Not a lot but it’d be weird if Sabal had suddenly turned sweet and consoling.
There’s a sweet squeeze of her heart when Sabal says she’s a badass with or without her shifting - something that Mazikeen has never actually believed about herself. Something she never thought she would hear someone say about her. It’s not enough to make her believe it just like that - but it’s ridiculous how much it means to her to hear those words. To realize that she's not viewed as lesser to Sabal because of what she's lost - or this display of emotion. Whether that holds true for her other friends is another matter, but Mazikeen should know better than to doubt them.
She wants to be strong but is often afraid that she isn’t, that though she’ll always push herself to her absolute limit - one day it won’t be enough and someone she cares for will get hurt because of her shortcomings. This explanation does not find its way into words, though. She’ll let Sabal see her cry, will admit parts of this truth, but not all of it. She can stand being mocked for a lot - but not that.
A faint smile appears and she nods. “Ugh, you’re right. I know.” Mazikeen sighs and shakes her head before inhaling deeply. “It just… it hurts in a way I’m not used to. Physical pain I can handle. This might surprise you but I’m not good with… well, you know.” Feelings.
Mazikeen shakes herself to ease some of the tension in her body and groans as she lowers her head to wipe her face on her foreleg. “If you ever catch me crying again please smack me with your trout tail. Right. In. The. Face.”
And then a grin grows that is, somehow, still incredibly feline and a spark lights in Mazikeen’s now-dry eyes as she reaches out to nudge Sabal on her scaled neck. “And I love you too.”
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@[Sabal]
Maze @ Sabal at the end there
can’t stop staring at those ocean eyes.
“Yes. I am right. You should be sure to tell me so more often.” Sabal says, with a little smirk meant to lighten the mood. She knows that this must be impossible for Maze, but she also has a reasonably good idea of what buttons to push to help draw her friend back to the surface. So while Sabal’s quips may seem lighthearted, she knows that Maze is struggling and she’s never been one to abandon her friends.
She wasn’t going to start now. And she can’t help but think that she has made a pretty great case for herself becoming Hyaline’s resident therapist after this little chat. Maze should definitely put in a good word with Breach after this. Honestly.
“Are you telling me you aren’t good with feelings?!” The words drip from her pretty mouth as she allows Maze a few moments to compose herself. “I am shocked by this development.” A jest, but a friendly one. Maze knows her well enough to know the difference by now. But Sabal allows Maze the space to wipe her tears and does not shame her for any of the emotions that she’s feeling. Since there’s absolutely nothing to be ashamed of in the first place.
“Seriously though, you big dummy, feelings don’t make you weak. So yeah be sad and pissed at the faeries and then get even. But crying doesn’t make you weak. Look me in the eye and tell me you wouldn’t have pummeled me into the dirt if I had told you that crying makes you weak. Honestly. Because I probably would have if the situations were reversed.” It really shouldn’t surprise Maze that Sabal was a vengeful little thing. While Sabal was obviously the more emotional of the duo, she absolutely didn’t let her emotions slow her down. She used that as fuel. It by no means meant that she was an expert or never found herself moping at the bottom of the lake. Hell, the reason she made it to Hyaline in the first place was basically because she was running from her problems. But Hyaline had made her better. Maze probably had something to do with that too but Sabal wasn’t going to admit that out loud even if they were having a very touching heart to heart. But in truth, this strange, often grumpy, feline-obsessed creature had taken a role in her life that had once been occupied once by only her family. And truly Maze was a hell of a lot more fun than like most of her relatives since some of them were honestly kind of psycho. (Seriously, the swamp thing? Ew.)
But her heart does lift a little when Maze is comfortable enough to reach out and seek physical comfort - she wasn't going to push her friend, knowing that this was hard, but it did make the little kelpie feel better that maybe she was helping a little.
“You know I’ll slap some sense into you verbally or otherwise literally whenever you need,” she adds, with one of her signature winks that she knows Maze loves, like, so much.
And then it’s right back to business for the kelpie. Because she’ll be damned if she lets her friend sit in this damn place and mope. ”Ummm okay so. Now that we have that out of the way. What did those bastards up on the mountain say you have to do to get your shifting back? Because, obviously, I’m going to help you.”
And it wasn’t really an option. Sabal was helping, whether Maze wanted her help or not.
s a b a l . |
manip by squirt
@[Mazikeen]
there's fire in your blood
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It actually breaks something in Maze’s mind to have Sabal so seriously tell her she’s not weak for crying. Or for her emotions. But she realizes only right then that if she had ever come across Sabal crying, she would not have mocked her for it. She would have offered comfort, she would have teased, and she would have done absolutely everything she could to make things better.
And she would not have thought less of her friend for it for a moment.
So why had she been so sure that her friends would treat her any different?
Her life-long habit of insecurities and wrestling with anything that wasn’t happiness or anger can’t be erased with a single conversation, but the seeds have been planted. Mazikeen cannot even find words to respond, she just looks at Sabal with an absolutely dumbfounded expression and eventually finds the ability to nod her agreement.
And she’s certainly not too far gone not to roll her eyes at the wink Sabal tosses her way - finding a smile again but instead of annoyance, it’s just full of affection.
A long exhale escapes Mazikeen as they get to the task at hand and though she still feels the weight of it, she notices too that it is not what it had been before the guppy had stepped out of the river. “I have to kill a monster - which is fine, of course - but also learn to appreciate this form above all else.” Mazikeen stomps one of her forelegs to emphasize the point. “It feels like I’ve spent most of my life so far not in this shape. So if you’ve got any suggestions on how to go about this, I’m all ears.”
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@[Sabal]
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