[ P ] Me-Ow

"Go."
The muscles in Elias' jaw jumped as the cat stepped closer. It had been following him at a close distance for some time now. Despite being so slender and unassuming, the feline had stalked them back to Perth with little to no effort. She'd traversed the corn maze, leaped onto river rocks to cross streams, weaved through forests, and munched upon the bones of the kills he'd abandoned.

And now she was poking her head out of his den near Orlaith's home as if she was welcoming him home.

His brow knit as he stared down at the cat's bright blue eyes. Her fur was a completely black as if she'd rolled in ash from nose to tail-tip.

She moved forward to wind around his legs and he gave a sharp bark in response. The cat flinched, paused, then immediately purred as she threw her head against his foreleg. Almost immediately, Elias lifted up his right paw out of her reach and stared down with frustration.

"Why won't you leave?" The frustration was causing him to wonder aloud. "You are useless, you do nothing. Why must you stalk me? Orlaith is the one that finds you cute."

The cat, naturally, did not answer.

@Orlaith

table ; bunny ;; art ; snowbody

orlaith kinnaird

Orlaith carefully stepped along a path newly birthed, leading from her home towards where Elias had made himself comfortable. It was slow going, but soon enough he would have his own den, and she hoped that would help him acclimate to Perth and maybe chisel off some more of the ice that surrounded his heart. A small smile graced the girls lips as she weaved her way through the trees, finally breaking through and glad that the sun shone high above. Spring was just around the corner, and she couldn't wait for all this white crap to melt away again.

Her smile only grew when she noticed Elias being pestered by his little companion - a seemingly reoccuring situation, much to the mans displeasure. Orlaith, however, found it absolutely adorable, and encouraged the little kitty to keep him company as much as possible... out of his earshot, of course. Having a friend could benefit him as well, and the small creature appeared to be making the best of the situation.

"you are useless, you do nothing. why must you stalk me? orlaith is the one that finds you cute."

"What ever do you mean, useless?" the earthen girl came up next to him, her tone light with giggles tinkling from her chest like a soft chime. Her bright eyes danced with mirth as she regarded him, then the kitty. "She protects you from the bugs you don't see; she defends you from all those who seek your demise while you slumber at night." she was being silly of course, but oh how Orlaith enjoyed to rile him up and make him unnecessarily defensive.

"Don't lie to yourself, Elias. She loves you. I think you might need to get used to her now," she teased, tail swaying gently at her hocks as she slowed her steps. An ear twitched as she realized the cat was nameless. "Why don't you give her a name? I think she'd like that." dropping her head down to the cats level, Orlaith gave a quick lick to the kitties head as she came to greet her with vivacious purrs.

@name mcname @name mcname

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"What ever do you mean, useless?"

Orlaith's voice was like a chime, a bell lightly resounding from a passing breeze. The sound was sweet and, unbeknownst to him, had become something of a soothing balm. While it would be indiscernible to most, possibly even to Orlaith herself, Elias lost some of the tension in his shoulders. He turned to look over his shoulder, expression scrunching into one of exasperation and disbelief. "Tell me what she does and I will recind the statement in full," was his weary rebuttal.

To her credit, Orlaith was not cowed by his austere expression or haughty question. As if she'd prepared a bulleted list of points, she rattled off Useless' primary functions: protecting him from bugs and evil, evening apparitions.

Elias rolled his eyes.

"She loves you."
The snipped of Orlaith's voice seemed to echo in his head and his muzzle wrinkled. "I have expressed nothing except for dissatisfaction ever since she arrived. How could she love me?" However, this was likely a question that could not be answered. Ever since they had happened upon the cat in the corn maze, Elias had adamantly avoided it. As if she'd been struck by Cupid's arrow, however, the cat had started purring and chasing after him. Oh, she'd grown to like Orlaith well enough, but nothing seemed to transfer the cat's infatuation to the one wolf that actually liked her.

Maybe Useless just liked a challenge.
The thought immediately filled him with competative vigor... until he remembered that the thought of competing with a cat was miles beneath him.

"Why don't you give her a name? I think she'd like that."
"Useless." Elias answered almost immediately.

"She is useless."
And the more he said it, the more appropriate it seemed to become.

The cat, to her credit, just purred, wound around Orlaith's legs, then rose up to sniff at Elias's cheek and lick him.

Elias looked to Orlaith as if to say case and point.

@Orlaith

table ; bunny ;; art ; snowbody

orlaith kinnaird

Amusement danced within her bright blue eyes as she regarded Elias, having grown accustomed to his icey demeanor and finding a sense of... consistency in him. Her life had changed so much in her couple short years of living, and the tensions that seemed to electrify the air foreshadowed what was to come. She could only hope they would both come out alive and well on the other side.

"i have expressed nothing except for dissatisfaction ever since she arrived. how could she love me?"

Her smile widened; white teeth poking out from under her dark lips as she paused to think for a moment. She knew the prince wasn't expecting an answer, but oh how she loved to be the voice of reason against his resistance. Her head canted to the side, observing the man and thoughtfully considering what it could be that the little cat desired so much of him. He would take no part in thinking it could be the fae at play, so she decided to pick her words carefully.

"I believe that she sees, or perhaps senses, something within you that even you don't know about." she mused, her tone changing from the airy lightheartedness to something more.. prudent. Absently, the young girl bit her lip as a mischievous glint sparkled within her eyes after a moment. "And before you scoff and disregard me - I think she's right! If you didn't have any good in you, you wouldn't be here right now, helping out the older folks here or... even entertaining the idea of keeping me company."

Orlaith really tried to keep the very real fact that he was some kind of prestigious mainlander from her mind. While Elias didn't know who he was, it was apparent enough by his glossy coat and standoffish attitude that screamed he wasn't someone like her. But she genuinely enjoyed being around him; finding his antics amusing and his responses funny. He was so much different than the Highlanders she had grown up with, and it was nice to get a taste of the land in which her father had come from.

Her gaze dropped down to the cat as she wound around her legs; Elias christening her with the name Useless. While it wouldn't be one she would choose for a little friend, Orlaith could only be happy that he cared enough to name her, and she leaned down to lick affectionately at her head.

@Elias

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The notion of this small feline having any intuition beyond where rats were was illogical to him. Preposterous, even. Then again, adoration seemed to glitter in her eyes, reminding him almost of… her, actually. He turned his head to stare at Orlaith. His expression was as outwardly unreadable as ever. However, if she looked closely, she might have noticed more thoughtfulness as he regarded her features. It was a subtle change, and yet it had started to change his demeanor whenever he was in her presence. The whimsical glitter in her bright blue eyes seemed to always lurk there as if every moment was a humorous one. He’d seen her afraid, yes, the banshee had seen to that. But she had found a way to regain her senses quickly enough to jab at him here and there. And, despite his desire to typically leave behind anyone that dared to be a nuisance, he stayed at her side. Initially because he was desperate but that wasn’t the case anymore. Perth could become his home now even without Orlaith… but the thought of that was more irksome than putting up with her. When had he grown so accustomed to her dropping by? To her jokes? To that warmth in her sapphire eyes? When had he decided that it was okay if she and only she yanked him around? He wasn’t sure. In truth, he’d never know and honestly didn’t care to interrogate this reality much. She had quickly become a permanent fixture in his life and he was going to keep it that way.

In some ways, she was just like the cat. Too optimistic for her own good but… cute.

Elias’ brow quirked with wary uncertain as she mentioned his alleged goodness. But he didn’t balk or rebuke her immediately. A sensation of warmth spread through his chest. It battled that annoying voice that seemed to echo in his head, not often but enough, constant in its mission to tell him that he did not have a heart. He felt a tightness in his chest too, as if he’d never heard such a kind word directed toward him before.

And maybe he hadn’t.

” You don’t have many friends,” he said then, his words a statement rather than a question. He’d observed this before but never thought to mention it until now. In truth, he hadn’t been curious until now. It was admittedly rare for him to inquire about others. Some things didn’t change, amnesia or no.

”Why?” his head canted to the side as he watched her. Personally, he didn’t mind her small social circle. It meant he didn’t have to share her with anyone. But… he suspected that she might feel… lonely? At least, one of the older ladies had tutted about that one day while Elias had been pulling weeds in the garden. She’d thanked Elias for being “Sweet Orlaith’s” friend, then gave him a piece of a rabbit her son had caught. Elias hadn’t bothered to correct her and had taken the meal without question.