[ AW ] ⚕ Won't You Come

Hydra

black hole sun

How often was it that Hydra actually went out on the town?

Not as often as it could be, for certain. She did enjoy wandering these stony fields, taking her time to wolf-watch and see what strange things other wolves got up to. Her ears were ever-peeled, listening in to the whispers and shouts of the rowdier bunches.

This was not the farlands, and for that she was glad.

Despite this, simply being part of Ildhrune did not mean that every wolf here was a quiet cleric, a whispering soul. Far from it! Taverns and brawls went hand-in-hand, for even the most noble and devout could become victims of their own vices when alcohol was involved.

She entered one such place of drink without fanfare, shifting around bodies as she made her way to an empty table. Thereupon she sat, breathing deeply of the scents around her and considering her surroundings as she waited for the barmaid to approach.

Thoughts - English - French - Latin

TO THE WOODS AND WATERS WILD

The journey began on an uneventful spring morning like any other, christened by the gently falling blossoms of a dozen different trees. Professor Arthur’s offer to stay in the cabin was generous and welcome, but it couldn’t last forever. There was something about the forest of Perth that made Arythmetik ache in his very core. It was a simultaneously empty and agonizing feeling. It lessened somewhat when he visited the lowlands, but the ache was still there in Melrose, lingering in the crumbling ruins of the college. It drove him north once more, but further west still, to lands unknown and perhaps to adventure.

It took days, but the endless walking was a comfort for a restless and wandering mind. As long as the russet male’s paws were moving, he was satisfied. Of course, he paused at midday to rest, letting the sun warm his speckled pelt. At midnight, he laid in the grass or sand and watched the countless stars above until sheer exhaustion overtook him. All the while, his constant companion was the crow that appeared with him in the Fae Forest. Most of the time it flew overhead, watching him like a silent guardian. Other times, particularly when Aryth’s pace slowed, it perched on his back quite comfortably. And as usual, Aryth did no more than offer it a faint smile or a glance. The crow was simply a part of him; no explanation to its presence was forthcoming, and none was needed.

Just north of Mirror Lake, the wanderer discovered the land bridge to Ildhrune. He did not know the place names or where he was going. It didn’t matter to him. It didn’t even matter that for days, there was nothing but sand and sea as far as the eye could see. It might have been Hell that he arrived at on the other side; and judging by the sulphuric smoke and distant fire, it likely was. If not the afterlife, then it was hell of another kind. In his former life, Aryth would have avoided a volcanic region at all costs, but curiosity and aimlessness drove the creature forward. His reward on the other side was a city of strange wolves with unfamiliar accents. Perhaps they would accost him for intruding on their land.

Perhaps it didn’t matter.

He wasn’t quite sure why he ended up in a tavern of all places; perhaps because he could disappear amidst the crowd. The male was sure that he had never seen a black wolf with shimmering, golden fur. He was drawn to her like a moth to light, his emerald eyes gleaming with an uncanny sheen. The crow companion hopped up to his shoulder, utterly silent, as if it knew it might not be welcomed in an establishment. “Excuse me,” he said as he approached the female, “Could you tell me the name of this city?”

code by claerie

Hydra

black hole sun

A stranger approached.

She surveyed him as he came, the russet hues of his coat unfamiliar to her though not unseen in these parts. Her eyes lifted to his bird, a crow that made itself quite at home.

His scent... it carried the wilds and a hint of a foreign nation, as well as something deeply familiar. Books. He smelled of them, and of the forest, while she herself carried the former.

He looked older, smelled older, and she wondered where he was from and what had brought him so far from home. Still, he approached her and spoke, his voice ringing accented but certainly English.

This is Avignon, the capital of Ildhrune. Certainly none would condemn her for answering the foreigner's questions with such common knowledge. She could sense the eyes of other tavern visitors in her periphery, though she did not focus on any of them. You aren't from around here, a statement, though not an accusatory one by any means.

Outsiders were rarely tolerated, especially so deep in the heart of their land, but lucky for this stranger, she was not so zealous as others in her bloodline. She preferred to watch, to learn, to observe, and to allow herself to see where things went.

She was curious.

Thoughts - English - French - Latin

TO THE WOODS AND WATERS WILD

Ildhrune… It was like a waking dream, and he walked through the lands of make-believe without a second thought. Here there were mountains on fire, cities on the edge of waterfalls, and wolves with red eyes and starlight fur. The female was even and calm in her response, and it did not occur to Arythmetik to be wary of the other players in his reverie.

“No,” he agreed, his voice somewhat distant. “I am from very, very far away.” Just how far, neither of them had any way of knowing. His tone was somber, but not unfriendly. Something deep within the male was broken, cracked like the slivers of a mirror. Slowly, he took a seat beside her, lucid enough to give her a respectable amount of space. The crow, no longer able to hold onto Aryth’s shoulders without clinging or slipping, landed with a flap of feathers between the two wolves. Tilting his head curiously, the former professor murmured, “You have a touch of Arianrhod about you. Were you blessed by the Night?” Arianrhod was the Goddess of Moon and Stars. It wasn’t something he remembered studying. Yet he knew.

code by claerie

Hydra

black hole sun

For one like this stranger, the world of her birth may have been some mystical place, with oddities and magics. To Hydra, however, it was home. She knew well of the gods, of their worship and blessings.

From very far away, indeed, she considered as she shifted to observe him comfortably from her reclined position on her seat.

He seemed... strange.

She knew of the eccentric, of the devout, and of the mundane. Yet, this man had something different about him. Perhaps a grief, deep within, something that carried in the way he moved, how his words felt like they came from over the sea, where his mind still wandered.

It interested her.

As did what he said next.

She held herself calm and firm, though she leaned in to speak more quietly, so their voices would not carry to the surrounding tables or the wandering barmaids. I do not know that name, she murmured in a hush, her eyes flashing with intensity and meaning as she added: My fellows often take offense for the mention of gods of other lands, as it may be seen as heresy. She could not be certain he spoke of a god, but she inferred it from his mention of blessings.

Then again, if it was a god of the night, perhaps it was one of the stars by another name. Still, it would not be good for him to speak too loudly and offend the wrong wolf, like her cousin.

She leaned back into her comfortable posture, offering a patient smile, All faithful are blessed by the stars. While she could not speak much of the extent of her own faith, pure information could do this man well. There are... she swallowed hard. Five constellations, and each wolf is born under one. It is from their birth star that they receive a blessing. Perhaps he would pick up on the shimmer in her voice, perhaps not.

Another approached, light footed and amenable.
A barmaid.
She asked the pair whether they would be dining.

Yes, please, she said amicably up to the lass, One rabbit and an ale for me, and... she looked to the traveler, pausing to allow him to answer with his own request. Her eyes flicked to his bird. Perhaps some grain for the crow?

Thoughts - English - French - Latin

TO THE WOODS AND WATERS WILD

Aryth’s emerald eyes glittered with recognition as the woman whispered her warning. Heresy. The word burned into his brain like hot metal on flesh. He nodded slowly, finally glancing around at the other patrons of the tavern. Not a single soul in the place was familiar. But this was beyond his shaky memory. The russet male had never crossed the land bridge, and for all he knew, he was in another dimension, not another country. Smirking softly, he whispered, “There was a time when I did not believe in the gods at all… Now there are even more to contend with.”

The russet male listened with keen interest as she explained the constellations. He wondered if there was any way for a wolf to tell which star oversaw their birth. Was it based on the time of the year, or location in the land? Could wolves outside of Ildhrune receive these “blessings?” But before he could ask more questions, a server padded to their table. Aryth quietly watched his counterpart order, and then he glanced down at the crow. The way he looked at it, it was as if he were considering the corvid for the first time.

“Yes,” he said evenly, “grain for the crow, and a rabbit and blueberry cordial for myself. Thank you.” He nodded politely, then looked back at the starlit she-wolf.

“And thank you, for the information. My name is…well, I am told that my name is Arythmetik. What should I call you?”

code by claerie