Foxglove has been away since CdM freed her, so she doesn't know anything about what's been going on here except that Ulilohi is in charge and Maska and Dawali are gone. I'd like only one or two people, please, to keep the thread faster. c: She and the horse are just inside the border and she's sitting side saddle but they aren't moving.

Sitting atop the champagne mare's back was the gypsy girl wounded so terribly by the war. Szellem flew ahead of the rider and her mount, darting between the boughs of trees they passed through. He was more excited to be going back than the blonde wolfdog was. The spirit bird was pleased that they were returning to the tribe; it was where he belonged, and where he felt that Foxglove belonged.

She, however, disagreed with him. The gypsy girl feared returning to the tribe terribly so. No one had gone to any great lengths to help her when Maska's goons had incarcerated her; it had been her father's pack that freed her when they had tried to free all the prisoners. Dawali had been kind to her, but he was the only one. It had become clear to her that the tribe did not care about her at all. That was without even considering what they might do to her for being away for so long.

Cour des Miracles had offered her a permanent home (and told her the outcome of the war, as well) when she had come south again, but Foxglove had declined. Her father was not even there anymore. Szellem had urged her to go back to the tribe, and so she had. Now, after being away for so long, it felt strange to ride into her home while feeling like such an outsider. Foxglove urged the mare forward and into the territory, inhaling sharply as she crossed the marked line back into the home that she had once felt at peace in.

c: 300+

The gypsy girl ran her lithe fingers through the silken mane of her horse, an action meant to delay her return, delay the inevitable. Soon she would need to go back to her hut and begin to settle in again, but for now she feared moving further into the territory. Once she was there, perhaps it would be easier. Dawali and Maska were gone, supposedly, and so was the wolf that had been assigned to imprison her, the one who had man-handled her so roughly. She would settle in and then find Liliana for the first time since the beginning of the war. That was what her mother would want her to do so that she could belong again.

So much of her life had been spent thinking about what Lolita would want her to do, but Foxglove no longer knew if that was something she should be doing. The blonde daughter had been born with the same affliction and it had created a bond that they could never acknowledge. Poppy had always been her mother's favorite. Magnolia's independent nature had brought Lolita much pride, though the silver puppy's decision to stay with Niro had broken her mother's heart. The fearful, afflicted, wrong Foxglove had been pushed to the side for her similarities.

Jade eyes, once full of freedom and spirit but now hollow and faded, narrowed at the white female's approach. Of course the gypsy girl remembered the fellow scout. Being imprisoned had not taken away her recognition of her pack mates. "I did not denounce the tribe, even when they bound my wrists and beat me," she said softly, clutching tightly at her bald wrists, hiding the motion behind the horse's neck. The tribe had taken her in and broken her, but for now she would only continue to call it home.

"Dawali is gone?" she asked now, with more conviction. That was what mattered to her. Of course she cared that Maska and his guardians were gone, but it was Dawali she wanted to know about. The question might seem like she would miss him, and perhaps Ayasha would think that Foxglove would be upset to find out that he was gone.

This is really a weird post, I'm just trying to toy around with plot ideas and future stuff for her, so it's affecting my writing, lol. 300+

No reply met Ayasha's apology. The gypsy girl was not going to ease her mind by telling her it was fine, because it clearly wasn't, and she had no questions to ask about why Ayasha had not questioned the absence of the only other scout in the tribe. No one besides Dawali had come to talk to her, and she had been set free by her great-uncle and father. Foxglove had come to learn during her time as a prisoner that the tribe did not care about her much at all. If it weren't at her mother's request, would she still call this place home? She had to, for Liliana and Lolita.

"Good," her soft, quiet tones said in a manner sharper than she was accustomed to speaking in. She was so thankful that Dawali was gone that she visibly relaxed, sliding down from her mount. She lifted her hand to stroke the mare's cheek. "I hope he never comes back," she said, quieter now, almost crooned to the horse. Such a statement was not meant for Ayasha, but Foxglove did not consider how she would react if she heard it. Maybe Ayasha would think she meant Maska. It didn't matter to the blonde wolfdog what her fellow scout thought on the matter.

She turned, her brows raised, expression neutral otherwise. "I should think that you needn't my permission to help with the scouting, as it is your duty, as well, and perhaps more so now with your promotion. After all, you are a wolf of the tribe. I'm nothing more than a gypsy dog." That was what the tribe had proven to her, but at least now she knew that they had not stripped her of her rank in her absence or even during her imprisonment. She had half expected them to do just that.

Foxglove looked at the alabaster wolf, so close to her in physical age but so far in other ways, with a wary gaze. The indignant tones were not unnoticed, but the blonde wolfdog found it difficult to want to take back the harsh voice she had used when speaking. There was little here for her now, but there was enough to keep her in the tribe. She intertwined her fingers in the mare's mane, taking a shaky breath. Ayasha personally had done nothing to her, and she could never have expected the girl to save her from her prison when no one else had. Truthfully, she had nothing against Ayasha at all, but she was upset, understandably.

With a small shake of her head, Foxglove spoke quietly. "No," she admitted. There was nothing that Ayasha could do or say to her personally that would make up for the crimes of Dawali, Maska, and the rest of the tribe that had supported them. If she had to admit it, she hardly believed that anyone had missed her at all. She doubted anyone had really even noticed her absence. The only one she expected to notice her absence was... "Where is Liliana? I would like to speak with her, if she has come back from Crimson Dreams by now," she added. That was something Ayasha could do to help her—point her in the direction of Liliana and her two children.

Sure, she'll probably excuse herself in my next post. ^^ Just skip the first two paragraphs, Idk. xD; 447 words.

They were so close in age, but Foxglove saw worlds between them. The two scouts knew such different aspects of the world, and despite their proximity in age and even appearance in the slightest way, they could not have been more different, she mused. If she had stayed with her mother and had not been subjected to the hardships of war, if she had not run with the gypsies for half of her life before coming here, then perhaps she would be more like Ayasha. She did not know the difficulties the white girl might have faced, but she knew enough of her own to know that the pair of scouts were drastically different and had known different lives.

Did she regret leaving with her mother and Poppy instead of staying with her father and Magnolia? No, though she would not deny that such a thing might have led to her having a much more normal life. Just as she did not regret that, she did not regret leaving her mother and sister with the Hungarian pack to run with the gypsies. She even did not regret leaving the gypsies to return to the area and she did not begrudge her decision to join the tribe, even after they had imprisoned her and harmed her because of the blood that ran in her veins. The choices she had made in life had shaped her and determined who she was, and she knew that she was glad to be who she was, even if she was facing so many hardships.

Again came the offer of help or assistance if she should ever need it, but Foxglove replied again with a small shake of her head. There was nothing that the white scout could do to help her, and even if there was, the gypsy girl did not know that she would even want her help. She did not think she wanted anyone's help at all. At least, she did not want the help of the members of this tribe, for she did not feel as if they wanted her there. Foxglove did not feel as if she was a true member of the tribe, and so she did not want anything they had to offer her.

Dead.

The word rang in her ears and she did not hear the rest of Ayasha's sentence. Liliana could not be dead; she simply couldn't be. The girl slid to her knees, her palms pressed against the soil. She felt as if she was going to be ill. "Ó, milyen lehetett ez megesik! Olyan rossz, igen rossz! Én nem hiszek! Miért!" she moaned, forgetting for a moment that Ayasha was even there.

214 words

For a moment after her outburst, Foxglove forgot that she was not alone in where she stood, that Ayasha was right in front of her. As the quiet question reached her, permeated the block she had put up around her mind, the young hybrid stared at her. What kind of question was that? That was not a fair thought, she knew. Ayasha would have no way of knowing the anguish that Foxglove was feeling, and so she would no proper way of responding to the outburst. Foxglove's teary eyes gave way to a dull gaze as she slumped again to the ground. Ayasha had done nothing to her, and she really did not dislike the other scout.

"No," she admitted with a deep, defeated sigh. "Could you please... Help me up?" She did not like asking the other female for help, but she did not feel strong enough to stand on her own. Her horse could help her back to her hut, and she could lay there for a bit and rest. She looked at Ayasha pleadingly. "I would like to go and rest now... I apologize for my prior outburst... The news came as a shock is all." Foxglove felt defeated now, weakened by the news, and she was grasping for composure now.