[p] born on snake hill
#1
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(434) tl;dr -- Ithiel be on a strawberry roan horse, talks to his vulture, sends him back to Inferni.



Ithiel is by me!

Ithiel's crimson eyes scanned the expanse of the marshes, but saw nothing. His nose twitched, and he inhaled deeply of the pre-dusk scents. Spring hung heavily in the air, pollen and nectar and all sorts of sweetness tinging the winds, but little else caught the dusky coyote's attention. His ears listened, waiting for the noises of charging horses or even the quiet snap of a twig as some careless would-be assassin made himself known. Nothing happened.

And so it had been for some time. This was frustrating to the dark coyote. He wanted to see and face his foes then and there, and perhaps this was why he had deviated (however slightly) from instructions, striking it out on his own in attempt to find whatever secret lairs their foes kept. He had no idea where to begin looking and, predictably, his efforts were thus far completely fruitless. The Caelum had seen neither hide nor hair of the contingent of wolf attackers -- not so much as a wisp of a scent.

Bairre moved beneath him, for Lystra was still wounded. It was healed enough to ride her without consequence, but Ithiel did not like the thought of riding a wounded horse that was not too fast on her feet even when uninjured. He might need to retreat quickly into Inferni, and so he had taken the strawberry roan horse. Friendly as he was, the sure-footed equine was equally as fast, and he could quickly carry the drab coyote back to Inferni, should he encounter undue trouble.

Perhaps he had gone the wrong way altogether -- perhaps he should have gone east, to the sea. The western lands were easier to secure, however -- there was only so much space before the land narrowed, and Ithiel did not think their attackers were crossing the isthmus from the mainland. At first, yes, but they were encamped somewhere now. Now, Ithiel was almost certain the wolves were to the east or south of Inferni -- somewhere within the peninsula. He was not certain whether to feel relieved or worried about this.

Zedekiah swooped low, startling the coyote, but he moved his arm up to catch the deadly-sharp talons of the vulture. They sank deep into the leather and Ithiel grimaced from the impact, which had rattled his very bones and shaken old wounds. The vulture murmured his lack of news, and Ithiel offered a piece of meat, instructing the creature to return to Inferni. He would return, in due time, too, but not yet. Night was coming, and night might offer a more productive search.

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#2
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She was close now -- too close to pretend that she was going elsewhere, and too close to continue telling herself that she might still just go around. Cassandra had yet crossed over any definitive borders, skull-marked or otherwise, but the air was thicker with canine musk, predominantly coyote, though there were others, and the feeling of the marshes had changed. These lands were more lived in -- no houses or huts to be seen, but there were subtle trails worn into the ground -- it was near enough to the pack that its members passed through the area often on their way to and from. She knew she was almost there.


A gentle evening breeze reminded her that her hood was down; the sun was still visible, but darkness was falling around it rapidly. A small piece of the moon was already out, but it would not give much light to the night.The colorless hybrid pulled the edges of her cloak closer, inhaled, then paused. There was a horse nearby. In all her travels, she had not encountered a single wild beast, and she doubted that was about to change. There were many unfamiliar canine scents in the breeze -- some recent, some not -- but though she did not detect it immediately, she was sure the rider was amongst them.


An Infernian, perhaps? Cassandra slunk on through the tall grasses with only her ears showing at the top. She heard a quiet snort from the horse before she saw its silhouette on the distant horizon, complete with its rider. Near a lone tree, she paused again, unsure if she wanted to approach.

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#3
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Ithiel is by me!

The dusky coyote watched his bird depart, big wings flapping to catch the updraft of the day's escaping heat. It was not yet hot enough to provide Zedekiah with optimal flying, and he was near-useless in the dark in any case. He was a bird more suited to the lands surrounding Scintilla -- hot and arid and dead, dangerous and far more foreboding than the flowering fields of the Waste and the bay. The granite-furred hybrid was not fooled, however -- even the prettiest grottos might hold a dangerous enemy.

Bairre gave a snort beneath him, and Ithiel snapped to attention, one lip lifting in frustration at his distraction. He was tired and it had been a long day -- it had been long weeks recently. The thought of them made his head ache all the more, and he nearly turned back and toward Inferni in pursuit of his bird. It was Bairre's reaction which made him hesitate -- the horse seemed more alert than usual, his friendliness still apparent, as if there was someone to greet. The drab coyote's mouth set in a thin line, and he eased the horse forward, more alert himself now that his horse seemed to have noticed something. His bow was still on his back, but he was ready to grab it and the necessary arrow all the same.

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#4
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It had been some days since she had spoken to the Salsolan leader, but she imagined that not too much would have changed since then. Cassandra had not asked for many details, but she could guess easily enough that in such times, packs would be keen to patrol areas further out from their borders. It seemed hilarious to her somehow that their enemy should be wolves, prejudice wolves, set in their ways and beliefs -- exactly the sort of beliefs that her father had said Inferni held, a cycle perpetuated by the cycle before it. The children growing up in Inferni and Salsola now, if their families were murdered by wolves, then what else were they to do but hate them?


The albino woman stiffened when the horse and rider began to move, coming down along the gentle slope of the hill towards her. They moved at a cautious, leisurely pace, and Cassandra thought that it had to be some sort of patrol. Someone going somewhere would not ride like that, even if they were feeling relaxed and casual. Decisively, she stood apart from the tree so her slight and slender figure was more obvious. Pale red eyes watched the rider carefully, waiting for him to come near enough to make eye contact. Better to say hello than to be thought someone she was not.

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#5
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(371) Figured Ithiel would notice the necklace quickly because he is a perceptive + attentive SCOUT THING, but he would be too sterpidz to actually recognize it (outside of being a man and paying no attention to WOMANLY ADORNMENTS). First paragraph = skip, just babble about how TALLLLLL Ithiel is. @_@



Ithiel is by me!

The grasses were not yet to their summer height, but already they provided good concealment for a foe without a horse. Ithiel, by contrast, stuck up sorely against the mostly flat ground, and would not be hidden even in the midst of the hot season. Though he hunkered over in the saddle somewhat, an awkward position exacerbated by the size of his horse, he was still tall. This tallness was an advantage and disadvantage both, particularly in land such as these marshes.

He gave a visible jerk as a canine suddenly stood. He saw only a pale white head and a loose cloak, and his hand was around his bow, two fingers around the end of an arrow in the nearby quiver, before he saw just how much of a coyote she was. His hand dropped, and he moved the horse toward her purposefully, reigning the eager roan in when they were near enough for him to be absolutely certain. She was a coyote, though perhaps queerly colored. Where his brother's coat was as pale as a silver moon, there were patches of coal and smoke in Aemon's coat, as well. All parts of this coyote's fur he could see were white, and there was a strange scent hanging about her, too.

You are in a dangerous area for a coyote, he remarked. She was a coyote, a woman, alone, and -- as far as he could see -- without a weapon; she deserved warning. Are you coming to Inferni? The question was mild enough, and he displayed little outward interest in this prospect. Recruits were nothing new to Ithiel, though encountering one while not actively patrolling one's borders might be out of the ordinary. His red eyes fell to her throat and spied the necklace there, though he gave it no more than a passing glance at first. Then, they were drawn back there a moment; again, he dismissed it, but found the thing would not leave his mind. The dusky man knew no symbolism behind the flower nor the coloring it bore, and it was meaningless to him -- he did not recognize it as anything he'd seen before. So why wouldn't it leave his mind?

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#6
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I approve of Ithiel's dumb manness. ♥


Cassandra's ears swept back and her eyes narrowed in the same moment the stranger startled, reaching for his arrows. As always, she was ready to flee at a moments notice and had already mapped out a mental path of escape. Her finest asset as speed, but while the tall grasses were in her favor, her cloak and her pelt were not. She was sure, also, that the patrolman would know the area far better than she, and she would become disadvanaged if she ran into wetter areas or thicker weeds she had not known about earlier. There was, of course, always the head-on approach. Fleeing outward would make things easier for an attacker with ranged weaponry; fleeing inwards would limit their arrows and would possibly spook their horse. Her cloak was lined with hidden daggers, and if she closed the gap between them efficiently, she would then have a true advantage.


But the stranger's hand dropped, and these thoughts passed. The coywolf was still tense and cautious, but she next wondered whether the young man was another relative. Her own pale red eyes were a result of her condition, but her father's eyes had been a deeper, truer red -- not the same as the patrolman's, but perhaps related.


"I've heard of the wolves' attacks," she said matter-of-factly, then shrugged in response to the question of Inferni. "I don't know." Cassandra took a few steps forward, quietly, and almost instinctively drawn to the horse. "Should I?" It was a loaded question, to be sure.

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#7
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(--) TO THINK, I was gonna be a good girl and save this post for last to motivate myself, but I gave into the temptation. Thanks Kiri. 8B Also just realized in the last post, I superdashed in a sentence and had like three dashes because abuse abuse abuse, I like to abuse dashes.



Ithiel is by me!

Ithiel had accustomed himself to meeting all sorts of new cousins, though it had been a jarring experience, and not one he enjoyed reflecting on. It had been foolish to think he and Aemon were the only sons of Gabriel de le Poer, and more foolish to fail to consider more ancestral branches of the familial tree. Such thinking was childish, and Ithiel did not like to be reminded of his youth.

Bairre practically trembled beneath him, straining to greet one he no doubt already saw as his best friend, but Ithiel held him easily enough. Eager as he was, the stallion was also obedient, and he remained where Ithiel bid him to stay, though his extended head and pricked ears were evidence enough of his friendliness. When the woman spoke, Ithiel cocked his head and lifted a brow just slightly. As she stepped forward, Bairre did, as well, unbidden, and Ithiel had to rein him in again.

If you know of the wolf attacks, then you should know they attack coyotes. You should go somewhere that will protect you, the dusky coyote said. Inferni would do such a thing, but something about her made Ithiel uneasy. Perhaps it was the flower and how stubbornly it stuck in his mind, a meaningless symbol of nothing known, or perhaps it was the ghost-paleness of her complexion and the queerness of her eyes. They were red, like his, but also unlike his -- strangely pale, and almost clear, as if he was not seeing an eye but the deeply red flesh beneath. This unnerved him more than anything, but he retained control of his face, all the same.

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#8
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Other threads, what other threads. ;D Also I'm pretty sure I picked up my abuse of dashes from you. ♥


She had never considered herself a coyote, but she saw no reason to belabour the point. She looked the part and it was in her heritage, and that was all that mattered here, she knew. And for a moment she imagined what she might do if she found herself suddenly surrounded by wolves of judgment and prejudice, armed and mounted, aiming to kill. Truthfully, she knew she would probably die, but she was still arrogant enough to believe that they would never manage to surround her, to catch her so thoroughly off-guard.


Cassandra had learned well to escape before she was trapped, if nothing else. Time had passed, but she did not intend to ever find herself in such a situation again. There needed to always be two ways out, and if those options narrowed to one, then she would not linger much longer.


"Why Inferni then?" she asked plainly. The ghostly woman paused in her step, also reigning herself in. She wanted to touch the horse, but if his rider did not approve, then she would refrain. She did not like admitting to even herself how much she missed Lady, but she knew it was the truth. "I imagine there are more packs to the east and south. I could have stayed in Salsola too, if I'd wanted." Cassandra shrugged and looked up to the patrolman. "Have you been with Inferni long?"

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#9
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(301) And hilariously I only dashed once in the last post without intending to avoid such overdashiness. I am now apparently also abusing the word dash and putting it places it was never meant to be. I'm so sorry, dash. ;_; Also I agree WHAT OTHER THREADS THEY DO NOT EXIST. Except for a VesMyri you might enjoy because omfg adorbz. BETTER GO STEAL YOUR SISTER CASS, ANOTHER WOMAN BE MOVIN IN ON YOUR TERRITORAYYY



Ithiel is by Kitty!

Because you are a coyote, and Inferni is where most coyotes go. Family, he said, shrugging the covered shoulder and averting his eyes from her, instead choosing to inspect the ground between them. He supposed he had family in Salsola, too -- hadn't someone said that, once? In any case, that branch had not reached toward this one, and as far as Ithiel was concerned, they were more wolf than coyote. I've served Inferni since just before the winter. I am Ithiel de le Poer, a scout, he said, introducing himself with a nod. As a coyote and a woman, she was entitled to his courtesy, of course, and Ithiel could not deny her this on some nagging feeling.

There are packs to the south, yes. Is that where you're going? he asked, rather boldly. She had asked questions, however, and he thought he was entitled to one in return. Salsola was not to your tastes, but there is a pack of traders to the far south -- one of them was friendly with me. Cercatori d'Arte, he said, remembering their name and the blind woman Hotaru. Or go into the mountains. There are two packs there, and you've already passed the third, said to dislike coyotes.

These bits and pieces were gleaned from Inferni meetings, fleeting conversations with cousins, and altogether secondhand information -- but Ithiel did not think it mattered much. Inferni was more important, it seemed. Though the subject was first broached by the Caelum himself, it had continued in seeming mutual interest. Still, the dusky scout had provided enough information on other enclaves of canines she might like to join, and did not wish to see her impaled on a spear. Would you rather ride than walk, wherever you're going? he asked, more pointedly.

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#10
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OH SNAPPPP. Cass will go smack a bitch. ALTHOUGH I was also thinking that SiriCass would be hilarious~. 8D


Family, the patrolman said, and her ears swept back for a moment, betraying some emotion she could not register or describe with a word. Truthfully, she did not know what to think about it anymore. She had been alone a long time, out amongst strangers, out amongst devils and demons, men and women mortals that gave all their kind a bad name, like her family had always been described to her as. Distantly, she wondered if her father could have guessed that such tellings and such stories would have instilled in his daughters this confused, half-hatred, half-fear, and awkward sense-of-self. He had meant well; everyone did. Even the devils. Maybe especially the devils.


"De le Poer," she echoed. Cassandra looked up from the horse and back to its rider, now picking out what features he shared with Ezekiel. They were not too obviously similar though, and she wondered how close or distant they were to each other on the tangled family tree. "Of Inferni, but not born there?" A Lykoi, too, presumably. Were all de le Poers also Lykois anymore? Was this a safe assumption?


The ghost woman took in the scout's, Ithiel's, information gratefully, but hesitated to respond immediately. In the end, Inferni was her destination, but she remained unenthusiastic about it. She wanted to see her sister. But she didn't, really. But of course she did. She didn't. "My name is Cassandra Asylum," she told the male. Would he recognize it? Ezekiel seemed to have, but he had recognized her before that, too. The necklace still hung at her throat, and she knew Ithiel had been staring, but in general she assumed that strangers gawked at her coloration.


"I'll walk," she added, walking forward again. "Would I be able to stay a while at Inferni, without joining?"

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#11
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(308) UH YES? ALSO BECAUSE ERIS WOULD BE ALL, "ASJDAJSDIEFEFKF /STOMPS FEET." Actually, fuck it, she's like that at most things right now because Larkspur ded. 8|



Ithiel is by Kitty!

Perhaps his surname was familiar to her -- she repeated it, looking at him. Ithiel thought he might know that look as comparison, but he did not know what he was being compared to. He did not know how to comment or ask, however, and he remained silent and still for her appraisal, nodding his head at her question. Not born there, he affirmed. Born in far west of Inferni. I came to find my father, and did not, he said, drawing up a little bit in the saddle, straightening and exhaling half a sigh. Found a lot of cousins and half-brothers, though.

He nodded at the name, his nose dipping toward the earth in acknowledgement. It was as close as Ithiel came to "good to meet you." She surprised him with her wish to walk, but his surprise did not keep him from turning his horse after a moment of hesitation. He kept the strawberry roan to a slow pace. It was easy, for Bairre seemed to wish to walk at her shoulder. The Vigiles kept his horse distant enough, however, for he did not wish a hoof to accidentally clip the pale coyote or some other mishap at the stallion's eagerness.

I don't know, he admitted truthfully. That would be up to Ezekiel, the Aquila, to decide, I think. Or Vesper, the Optio. The wolf attacks -- well, they might expect you to help the clan anyway, he said, shrugging. Perhaps that was not joining, but it was close enough. In either case, though, it certainly was not Ithiel's jurisdiction -- he was Caelum, scout, and not even the head scout, at that. Why would you stay without joining? he inquired, ears pricking up with curiosity. The horse's plodding pace was not an uncomfortable one, but he shifted in the saddle all the same.

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#12
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Actually I could see me some IthielCass too. SO MANY POSSIBILITIES. 8|


Family was obligation. Obligation to love, to trust, to protect, to believe in. Ithiel was probably family. He was of Inferni, had plentiful blood-relations there, and he was young. The chances they shared some ancestry were good. But he was a stranger, too, if one that appeared earnest and sincere. Cassandra was accustomed to lying, to telling tall tales, and of not intending to ever stay for long. Personal details rarely mattered. She had adapted to the life of a ghost, and it was disquieting being confronted with other possibilities. The lonely grew to prefer loneliness.


They walked and she was quiet for some moments, thinking. She doubted Ezekiel would turn her away after asking her to come, even if she was not commited to staying, or anything else. She was here to see for herself, to learn to observe, to satisfy the quest she had embarked on years ago, little more. She had no reason to stay. (Family was a reason; Myrika was a reason, but these were nebulous things that she did not know or trust. They were all strangers, even her sister.) But she had no where else to go, or to be, either. Even true ghosts had their graves.


"I have never been a part of a pack," Cassandra said eventually. "I'm not sure yet I want that to change." The night was quiet; she felt exposed somehow, walking alongside the stallion, whose heavy steps parted and crushed the grass with no subtlety. "Did you know you had so much family in Inferni before you came?"

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#13
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(--) That would totally work until Ithiel figured out they're cousins, then he would want to go dunk himself in fire or something. 8B



Ithiel is by Raze!

The dusky hybrid was not disturbed by silence -- he needed certainty his words were truthful, and he did not frequently speak quickly and without considering the words first. Anger was an exception to this, as with all creatures, but anger was a rare emotion for Ithiel. He was not angry with the wolf attackers -- he understood them, in a way many others in the clan did not. He hated them, but there was no mindless red rage to accompany that hatred. Even that was buried deep, a low and smoldering coal rather than a blaze.

Bairre seemed to have finally calmed with something else to occupy his mind -- namely, walking. The pale coyote spoke up at long last, and Ithiel looked at her, though he could see only the side of her face and the back of her head, the long cloak she wore. The dusky coyote considered her answer with a tilt of his head, nodding. He supposed he could see the sense in that -- Scintilla had been a place full of coyotes, and Ithiel had known nothing else.

I understand, he said, simply. He could offer no advice, having no familiarity with such situations himself, and he though such advice, unsolicited as it was, might not be wanted anyway. Instead, he focused on her question, responding at length to this instead. Not at all. I thought my brother and I were my father's only sons, and I never even considered other relatives. My mother only ever spoke of my father, so that was all I thought I had. He fell silent a moment, considering. Does your family wait in Inferni? Among mine, maybe? It would not have surprised him, either way.

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#14
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Both of them would have one helluva time trying to find someone they weren't at least a little bit related to. :|


She had always been aware of her distant family, but more than that, she had always been aware of the barrier that separated her from them, them from her. It had been miles and miles of hills and forests and mountains and rivers; it had been an invisible wall she knew her father had worked hard to construct, and which she had duly inherited. In many ways, she had always felt that Kharma had more personal and emotional ties (severed ties, but ties nonetheless) to Inferni than her mysterious mother, even if he did not have the blood relation -- why else would he be so adamant about keeping away?


And the wall remained in Cassandra's mind, though now the metaphorical distance was compacted into the real, physical distance, and the fog was thick in her head. She still knew too little about Inferni, and the reality was that she had already disappointed her father in so many ways, it undoubtedly made little difference what she did now. The pallid woman had long ago come to terms with the possibility that she might never see him again as anyway, though she had come to similar terms regarding her sister as well, and now Myrika was not so far, so she'd been told.


"My mother's mother was Kaena Lykoi," she said slowly. Truthfully, she'd almost said 'my father's mate's mother,' so much was the distance between Rachias and herself. "I suppose that means I share blood with many in Inferni, but I'm not sure either that I would consider them family." There you go, darling. Be picky with semantics. Justify the disconnect. "I've been told my sister is there, too," she added, then shrugged. "But it's been longer since I've seen her than all the time I'd known her." The truth sounded more sad outloud, and for a moment she pulled her ears back, feeling ever more vunerable with all the not-lies she was revealing.

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#15
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(362) Actually Inferni currently has a ton of people they're not related to! |: ITHIEL ALREADY HAS A HELPERLADYFRIEND AND SHE SHARES 0% OF HIS DNA AWWWWW YEAH. Cassie and Myri, otoh, have LIEK BILLIONS of distantfuck relations because of Daituki's kids pooping out tons of kids and their kids pooping out tons of kids and more kids being pooped out and oh god.

Also fun fact: Myrika and Cassandra are simultaneously third cousins once removed and first cousins once removed to Itachi... and that is without taking into account any inbreeding (Myri/Cass, Firefly/Haku, wtf ever else happened omg). @_@



Ithiel is by Kitty!

The dusky hybrid understood her predicament perfectly well, or so he thought: he had not trusted any of these cousins upon first arriving in the coyote clan. They had been -- and many continued to be -- meaningless to him. If one held every third cousin twice removed in as high esteem as a brother, one might never run out of new cousins to discover. The coyote assumed most families were like this, with hidden branches and entire unknown roots leading off to other trees entirely, whatever blood relation they once shared growing thin and weak.

She was my father's mother, he said, nodding. We have many cousins in Inferni, but blood is meaningless after a certain point. Parents are one thing, but... the dust-colored hybrid hesitated, wondering how he might phrase the idea. His brow furrowed, but he continued to speak, though it was laborious speech, slow and careful. I judge them friend or false and go from there. We should not look on every cousin as a brother, or treat him as such unless we are treated so in kind. There was madness in his blood, and he would deny his familial tie those who were afflicted with such. He did not like to think of these things, much less speak of them.

Sometimes we even have to treat siblings in such a way, he added, thinking of Ezekiel and frowning toward her back and folded ears. He did not recognize her surname and she had not offered her sister's name -- would it be insensitive to pry? Ithiel thought so, and did not. If you want to see her, you should go. If not, stay away. The rest of us don't really matter. This last was stated plainly, though not harshly -- he thought she might share his detachment anyway, but he wasn't certain and erred to caution. One could carve a life out anywhere in the world, it was said, and Ithiel didn't believe cousins and other distant relations ought to anchor a coyote in place. He was with Inferni because he had sworn an oath to it and Ezekiel, not for love of its members.

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#16
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There's madness in the blood, was he had always said, and it was a madness that would have them cannibalize one another. Distance and the wall would keep them safe, keep them happy, and it had been so. They had been safe and happy together, with an absentee mother and two halves madness between the three of them. Perhaps her father had been right, there. In her time alone, with hundreds of nights to think about her family and her life and everything she had ever been told and had ever discovered on her own, Cassandra had considered the way Kharma had spoken of madness and the name 'Lykoi.' There was a poetry about it, a man surnamed 'Asylum' keeping his family from the disease, even when it flowed in their blood.


Naturally she wondered if this madness would be as easy to observe as her father had sometimes made it seem. They had been stories, and folded over and retold in her head so many times now, she could not quite remember how they had been told the first time. Ithiel appeared perfectly sane, but she had surely encountered madness in her wandering, and by now she knew that those that were most dangerous were those that did not realize just how mad they were. Ignorant of themselves, they could easily convince others of the same.


"Anyone we spend time with and grow close to becomes family," Cassandra said. "Blood has little to do with it. Unrelated friends become brothers while real brothers, raised apart, are strangers." She tried to place the conversation more distantly in her head, to think of it outside of a personal perspective -- all topics were easier this way -- but it was impossible. The invisible wall was crumbling; she had been pushing against it for weeks now, but now she she walked alongside this horse and this relative towards Inferni, it seemed to come at her all at once. Madness in the blood. Relevance. History. Family.


"I'll see Myrika," the pallid woman said, voice oddly passive. "Everything else can be decided after that."

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