Realistic or Modern A Night Bleeds (Closed)

[Out Of Words]

Ravens Wing
Aria Silver-

Ravens had missed Aria leaving the building, so he had stuck around, waiting. And waiting. Though when Leira seemed to have ushered the last person out, he asked where she was. "She was finished some time ago and left." Ravens swore a little under his breath, but thanked Leira and started to try and track down Aria.

He had swung by the community house, but she wasn't there. Checked at his dad's, but could hear their voices from outside, so doubtful Aria was there. Checked out some of the spots they usually enjoyed, but he nearly hit his forehead with the palm of his hand when it hit him just where she must be.

Ravens had rarely disturbed her when Aria went to the tree on the edge of the forest. Once, maybe twice, both were emergencies. Otherwise, he just watched from a distance, to make sure she stayed safe. Sort of like he did now. He could see her curled against the trunk of the tree, and Ravens slowed his steps. Instead of moving closer, he veered to another spot along the rock wall. Here is where he tended to perch, and wait, always respectful of Aria's space. At least he tried to be.

He would be visible, a figure on the wall, sort of like Bastian. A guardian from afar, quiet and watchful, until they were needed.

A NIGHT BLEEDS
A story by Out Of Words​

 

[Out Of Words]

Augie Ward

Nahla Rhyme

Augie grinned when Nahla caught up to him, but before he could open his mouth to say anything, she held onto his arm and was tugging him along with her. Even before they made it to their house, she was talking but Augie wasn't sure he heard her correctly. "Wait.. wha? Future? Raccoon? What's a pizza? Related?"

He was trying to keep up with her pace, and with her growled words. Only he waited until they were back in their house before asking anything further. "Okay, so uh.. hold on." He ran a hand through his mop of hair before going over each of the points Nahla made. "First, everyone is related to everyone else in some way. Second, the future? I don't understand."

Augie sat down in the closest chair, eyes rarely leaving Nahla. "I know raccoons, know nothin' on pizza. So.. what exactly did the Tamus say?" He held a hand out toward Nahla. "Com'ere. Sit down. Want me to get you some water?" Augie needed her to start from the beginning cause the ending he had so far did not make a lot of sense.

It made as much sense as saying water wasn't wet.

A NIGHT BLEEDS
A story by Out Of Words​

 

[Out Of Words]

Chases-Death
Leif KodakWolf

There was a loud shattering noise, certainly loud enough to wake Chase from what had been a very well deserved slumber. He bolted upright in the bed, immediately throwing off the covers and grabbing the hand scythe he kept on the table beside him. Took him a moment, standing there naked, weapon in hand, to realize the source of the sound wasn't a threat, but Leif, and their now broken bedroom mirror along one wall.

"Leif!" Weapon set down, he grabbed whatever clothing was closest as he moved to Leif. "Leif?" He didn't immediately reach out to touch the man, having had his fair share of nightmares himself, Chase waited until he had some sign that Leif recognized him. Wuffle wuffle. And if the wuffling didn't do it, he'd repeat the man's name a little quieter, but just as firmly. "Leif. It's Chase. Okay?"

There was bits of glass in Leif's forehead, cuts with dripping blood, dark blood. Chase couldn't give two wuffles about the broken mirror, but a broken Leif, he couldn't have that. Soon as he thought he saw recognition in the nightwalker's eyes, Chase rested one hand lightly against the side of Leif's face, wuffling like there was no tomorrow. "Let's get you cleaned up, okay?"

He knew it would heal swiftly, but they had to get the bits of mirror out first. Chase didn't think it was enough to have woken Turid as the sun hadn't set yet. "What happened?"

A NIGHT BLEEDS
A story by Out Of Words​

 

[KodakWolf]

Leif Hjalkarssen
Tags: Chases-Death ( Out Of Words )
Location: Seriously trippin'​

The shrill, piercing sound of glass shattering into dozens of shiny, reflective shards crashed its way into Leif's ears, followed by a crescent wave of pain, as if his brain needed a moment to process both the impact and the resulting cuts and lacerations to the skin.

To say it brought him fully back into consciousness would be an overstatement, however. He knew who he was, and he knew he was no longer an intelligent beast driven only by unnatural murderous instincts, but human (or at least a human form). But as his eyes slowly moved up from the blood stained, shard covered wooden floor to the stained mirror frame where he would no longer be able to see a reflection, the crimson, warm blood he saw and felt run down his face was in fact a lot different than the much darker, almost cold fluid Chase was seeing.

Leif couldn't sense the strange smell that emanated from that almost black, but blood-like fluid: one that felt like some strange, hard to describe mix of smoke, something being burned, and a very strong metallic scent, and he instead smelled ordinary human blood, with its light metallic scent, as sensed by an ordinary human - something he once was, a long time ago.

Something he was back when centuries ago he learned his Kadlin hadn't made it through childbirth. It wasn't an occurrence all that uncommon, especially back then, but that didn't mean it hit any less hard. One day she was there, full of plans and expectations of a whole life that still lied ahead of them, the other she was gone forever with no warning, and he was left with a newborn child and barely any time to accept what'd happened before life had to inevitably, and way too soon, be rebuilt and go on. Or rather, go down, more precisely. It had been a few months after her passing that he, too, had to be separated from their daughter, for the sake of her health.

As Leif sensed someone approach him, he let out a quiet grunt with the breath he'd been holding as the pain gradually decreased in intensity and gave place to intermittent stings where the shards were lodged. He slowly turned around, letting go of the wooden mirror frame, and faced Chase; only he still didn't see Chase, he saw his father. When he first heard the tragic news of his wife's death , Leif'd smashed something too, like he did now - a glass, a mirror, a vase, he wasn't sure what anymore - , and that same shattering sound had filled his ears, along with the stinging pain; it hadn't been with his head though, but with a fist, even though that detail was of no importance to his hazed brain at the moment. His father had approached him, just like Chase did now, although perhaps with a bit less caution.

It was when Chase wuffled that the image of his father before him flickered and was finally replaced by that of Chase. But in his peripheral vision, Leif now saw a room made of stone. An he didn't see it, but he knew, that in the next chamber was something now human, a monster, and it kept Maylee hostage. If someone asked him now who that name belonged to, he wouldn't know, but again that felt like an unimportant detail to his brain. All they could do was be as silent as possible to avoid detection; they couldn't save her. Not now. That was why when Chase spoke again, Leif lunged forward and placed a hand over the man's mouth to muffle his voice. So they wouldn't be heard.

But then eyes scanned the room when they moved away from Chase, and Leif blinked several times as the walls of solid rock seemed to melt into the more familiar wooden walls. Their wooden walls. Eyes focused back on Chase, and Leif gave a slow step back, letting his arms fall to his side as he inhaled and exhaled deeply with a wuffle. Yes, a wuffle. He didn't wuffle nearly as often as Chase did, but after months drinking from him it started happening sometimes, involuntarily, and Leif mostly didn't notice it, usually in situations in which he wasn't rationally thinking, when his brain was overwhelmed, or when rational thought was simply turned off, and it was always when he was with Chase. Like the night before. Like now. His eyes moved back and forth between the room and the man in front of him as his brain seemed to reboot.

"I'm sorry. " Leif spoke quietly, and if the wuffle didn't indicate to Chase that his Leif was back, looking at his eyes Chase would then be sure he was, that he recognized him and where they were. "I... don't know what's happening." He'd of course had bad dreams before, but they'd never affected him to that extent. He slowly became aware of the cold, dark fluid that stained himself and the room, something he'd never expect to see after waking up from a nightmare, especially being anything but starved. It wasn't something he'd never seem before, but certainly not in those circumstances.

As if to reassure himself what he was seeing was real, and not another illusion, a hand reached up to lightly grasp Chase's wrist when the man reached out to touch his face. "I don't know what happened." He repeated quietly, and simply nodded in agreement when Chase mentioned cleaning up the mess he'd made. He'd follow wherever Chase led, still too stunned to take any initiatives.

He was quiet for a good while before his brain could put any logical ideas together to make minimum sense. "Perhaps too many memories returning at once..." He still wasn't able to properly analyze each and every memory. In fact, he wasn't even sure he'd be able to remember everything he'd just seen, or thought he saw, but it was something he wasn't too worried about. Right now, being back in control of himself was more than good enough.

 

[Thropian]

Dwight 'Edwin' Augen
Location: Three body mind problem.
Tags: Loki/Levi​

Dwight took the biscuit and water mechanically, his eyes emptily staring forward. By the time Ashley had finished her test, his eyes had begun to refocus and take in the world around him. Confusion was plainly visible on his face, and as he turned to face an empty patch of wall, it grew worse.

At the first lull in conversation, Dwight stood and nodded to the Tamus and the healer, and left without a word. Things had happened that Dwight had no answer for, but the spectre of himself surely would. No sooner had he stepped outside than he began questioning. He knew of the attack, it was the last thing he knew. It was concerning enough to wake up after a battle in a different place, but to be missing days, to have been a puppet during one of those days? It was a dangerous thing. This Edwin did his best to handle the situation he was thrown into, but Dwight still needed to be sure that damage was minimal.

First and foremost, he wanted to get his things. It felt strange to be out without his satchel and staff. With luck, Loki would be home as well, and he could deal with both at once. Breaking a long blade of grass to chew on, he returned home lost in thoughts.

"Ey, Levi, I'm back. Got some things to talk to you about." He called out, not even bothering to check for signs of his ward. He walked back to him chambers, gathered his things and returned to the main room. He slapped Loki on the shoulder. "Can't believe you fell for some imposter, just because he was in my body. I mean, if you believe Bug, it's just me from some other time and place, but still." He shook his head, "Can't pick me out of a line up could you?"

It took him a second to note what he said. 'Levi'? 'Bug'? 'Line up'? He could only assume these things were from Edwin's memories. "Sorry, apparently I'm sharing my head with someone else now. But we're sharing now, he's not in control. The Tamus and Leira are working on a fix. I thought our spirit knowledge, and that he'd already pulled free, would be enough. Guess I was wrong, and he's still a part of me."

Dwight gestured to a seat, and sat across from it. It would be a long evening, but he knew he'd need Loki to help separate the memories, the knowledges, and the names, for Edwin and Dwight. They really were too similar, too many blended together.

It was a long trip down memory lane, and long overdue. Dwight's own memories were concerningly few and far between. He'd forgotten how often he lived the lives of spirits. Finding himself was more of a challenge than he'd expected. It wasn't just Dwight and Edwin, Edwin's Bear was present too, and an uncountable number of others who were not present to try to argue if it was theirs or not.

 

[Britt-21]

Tags: Out Of Words | Location: All over

Roje followed his verbal steps, nodding with each question that was asked "Yeah, pretty much." the longer she gazed at him, the more she found herself thinking what he might be thinking. "Dusk, no." she said, crossing her arms "If your idea is keeping me in this body till I 'become' Vivian, you got another damn thing coming. Knowing that this isn't my body, bothers the fuck out of me." she turned her face away for a moment, gazing at the fireplace "I feel like an impostor just being in Vivian's body."

Spoiler: discussion

Dusk drummed his fingers on the table, head tilted slightly, just watching Vi-Roje. "I'm just trying to picture the problem fully. Like, if they can't figure out a 'fix', and this body returns to Vi, and your body wherever it is returns to you... What does that mean?"

He gave a bit of a shrug, "Do you suddenly exist where your body was? Do you just stop existing and both bodies are sort of .. reset?"

"If I could answer that question, I would." she bit her lip in thought and shifted her position, leaning more on one leg than the other "Best guess is that we basically reset as you've said. I wont remember that I was a nightwalker, my mind would be filled with the memories of Vivian's lifetime. Where as Vivian wont remember she was once...whatever she is, and will be filled with my memories instead." it was a race against the clock and she really didn't like racing against time. "I really don't like the sound of that now that it's said out loud."

Dusk rumbled but was quiet for a few minutes. Then he stood up, "Sounds like not much to do as long as they are trying to quickly find the solution." One hand ran over his face before he gestured around the home. "It's lunch. I'll find us something to eat."

He was still obviously thinking about the new revelations as he moved to start up the wood burning stove to cook something.

--------


The brunette nodded slowly "Yeah..." with that said, the pair had lunch. Not much was said, just because Roje had been thinking, pondering, trying to remember things on her own without any magic tools or magic in general. Magic comes with a price her own voice had responded to the thought of it alone. Of course, Roje never said this while being here, nor has Vivian from the memories that Roje could recall. Was this something she kept pinned to the front of her mind in her actual body?

After lunch, Roje asked to go out for a walk with Dusk, she didn't care how long it took. She needed to keep going, needed to remember, even if it was for a little while. Despite the cold, it never really bothered her so much, similar to that of a child in a pool for too long that it feels warm but in reality the child's lips are purple. "I keep remembering, but yet forgetting at the same time." she admitted, her hands in her pockets. "I cant remember what I remembered at least an hour ago...Be my memory bank for me will ya?" she joked, smiling a little and nudging him "Anyways... My relation to you... That thread that Bahg was telling us...." there were pieces to a puzzle that she wanted to figure out. Even if those pieces faded after an hour...

Dusk seemed more than willing to indulge her in whatever she needed, if it meant she was not as stressed. For the walk, it served a dual purpose, he used the usual patrol paths, just to keep an eye on things at the same time. They didn't expect another raid so soon, but maybe that was what they wanted.

"I'll try to remember for you." He gave her a grin and wriggle of his eyebrows. Not quite able to turn off what he saw in front of him, the person he was mated to.

"We did have relations this morning." Rumble. "Not sorry."

A laugh escaped her lips "Dusk!" she shoulder bumped him "That's not what I meant you dumbass. But I'm not sorry either." he always found ways to make her laugh. Through Vivian's memories, there were countless times in which he had made her laugh...Maybe that's why they had clicked so well. "I meant in my time. What you were to me then. Who you were to me." her hazel eyes looked around, finding the area familiar, but foreign at the same time. "Anyone would guess lovers. I mean, look at us now. Feels almost like fate or something."

Dusk rumbled as an arm snaked around her waist. "Well, who's to say it wasn't? We can always have more relations. Make the most of the time we have. Live it to the fullest."

He tugged her close against him, dipping his head into the side of her neck with a nip. "Feel to the fullest."

Roje looked toward him, listening to his words before he pulled her close and hid his face into her neck. Feeling the nip she received "Dusk," she said, only to stop in her tracks as a memory resurfaced from the depths of her troubled soul and mind. One that had the pair in some kind of apartment with her sitting in Dusk's lap. It was dark, but light enough to see who she was with. Eyebrows furrowed as she focused back on the man in front of her I...another memory... Dammit I hate this. she thought "I do understand where you're coming from though...Live day to day is what you're trying to tell me, right?"

Dusk grinned, "Best way to live."

"Does Vivian do that? Live day to day I mean." Roje asked, pursing her lips.

"As much as we could." Dusk chuckled content to have an arm around her waist as long as she allowed. "The only true regret should be the things you wanted but didn't get to do. So I try to not have any."

"Huh... I can see how that would make sense, make things easier to live." she settled in his grasp. Finding it odd that he'd embrace the woman who wasn't his actual lover. He knew, but still held her "You know, Dusk... Why do you hold me as if I'm Vivian? You already know that...I'm not really her."

"But you are. At least half. The half that bears my mark." Dusk let fingers slip under her neckline to touch where there was the mark of a wolf bite. It was faded to the point you had to know it was there to see it.

The woman released a small 'heh', getting goosebumps as his fingers grazed her skin. "I guess I could say the same if I was in your shoes." her eyes closed briefly as she drew a breath. "Our Bond, not our love bond but... the other one. Can you feel what I feel?" it was one of the few things that had been stuck to the front of her mind. A bond that could not be seen unless both parties were observed.

Dusk nudged her nose with his. "It's not as strong. Like you're at a great distance. But if I focus, yes "

Roje breathed in his scent as his nose brushed hers, loving it and finding the most comfort out of it. "Wait," she said, opening her eyes and looking at him "You said its at a great distance." her eyes began to widen as she grasped his shoulders suddenly "Dusk, are you telling me your bond is on Vivian's soul?" was this a way to get her back faster? Bring Vivian home faster? "And not her body? If that's the case... It's possible we can use the bond to help pin point everything." hope and excitement filled her. Was this the answer? "We need to tell Bahg." was she over thinking this? Was it impossible? No...With magic nothing was impossible.

Dusk shook his head. "I don't think so. It doesn't feel like that." He paused, just focusing on the bond, eyes closed, forehead against hers. He stood like that for a minute, then two. Then three, before he opened his eyes and looked at her.

"It feels more like half a bond."

Roje had stood still for him, letting him do whatever he may have been doing. Remaining silent as her mind raced quickly with the hope and thought that the bond could be the answer. Once he had spoke, she furrowed her eyebrows "A half bond? But...Wouldn't it still work that way?"

"Maybe. Probably feel it because the body is here. Just muted." Dusk rumbled and nipped at her nose because he wanted to. "We can have relations and see if it gets stronger." Rumble.

She rolled her eyes, the corner of her lips being tugged "I'm starting to think you can't get enough of me." she grinned, tilting her head slightly "We have been out here a while so I suppose us going back would be a good idea." she leaned close and nipped his lip before backing away from him "I'm sure you dont want to waste time."

Dusk rumbled, a hand slipping 'innocently'. Then not so innocently a moment later. "Wasting time is a sin."

But as soon as they were back home, he herded her toward the bedroom. "Let's do a different kind of sin."


Roje rolled her eyes with a smirk “my favorite kind.” She said as she pulled her shirt off and tossed it aside before heading into the bedroom.

After a long while, the sun had began to set. Already marking it as almost her first day in this world. The world that was nothing like her own. With a gentle hand against Dusk's chest, she drew circles with her finger, her head resting against his shoulder "You really are something else, Dusk." she said, smiling softly as she remained relaxed and content. Her hazel eyes slipped shut for a moment, reminiscing of the fun they had experienced not too long ago. Upon doing this, another memory made itself known. One that hit home more than the rest. A memory of witnessing the 'death' of the wolf man. When she opened her eyes, that same man was in front of her, still embracing her. Is that what happened...? she asked herself.​

 

[AsherMasher]

Clementine Holt
"Ashley"
Out Of Words​

The ritual felt like it would never end to her. When she awoke from the dreamlike state, Ashley realized she was gripping the edge of her seat and had to unclench her jaw. All she wanted to do was go home, where ever that was. The ever present feeling in the back of her brain seemed to be growing, but not in an uncomfortable way. More of a feeling of nostalgia that was never fully remembered.

When Leira passed her the vial, Ashley took it with shaky hands. Slipping it into her pocket, she left her place to make room for the next person. A feeling of hope was sparked within her as Bahg reassured the group. Even Leira's comment of lunch made her stomach grumble. The "memory" still left a swimming feeling in the moment, but the clarity of the situation finally began to ground Ashley's thoughts. At east I know I'm not going crazy. I'm not the only one. I can get help resolving this weirdness I'm feeling. And to help me feel home.

Ashley left the building in a daze. The day was continued as though it was a normal, everyday occurrence. The budding feeling inside her mind did not lessen, but did not seem to interfere with any daily activities or chores. Whatever it was was not trying to hinder her, which was appreciated. At the end of the day, Ashley wolfed down her dinner quickly and excused herself from the table. She gave a polite wave goodnight to everyone and slipped quietly into her room.

Laying on the bed in the quiet expanse of the room only heightened the thoughts running through her head. The memory she witnessed during the ritual felt scattered and unaligned through out the day. She tried to not linger on it for too long, but in the dark of the room Ashley had trouble ignoring it. The memory played over and over again as she tried to analyze every piece of what she remembered, only to find the pieces unable to fit together properly. This made her heart pang woefully in her chest. Ashley knew this wasn't going to help in the dream department tonight. Fishing the vial out of her pocket, she looked over it warningly. She wouldn't do that. Leira has no intention to her me, Ashley reminded herself. Not thinking another second, she slugged back the liquid and laid back into the bed comfortably. It was a difficult and exhausting day. Hopefully sleep would take her away and leave her feeling more mentally refreshed than today's ritual left her. Within a few minutes Ashley found the veils of sleep quietly enveloping her into a dark and quiet night.

 

[Out Of Words]

GM POST

Silver- Aria & Ravens (Via Discord)

Warmth floated around Aria as she felt the way her nails dug into her human flesh and sunk past the protective barrier that concealed the crimson liquid that welled easily from her hand. The sensation of fur brushing against her wounded hand loosened her grip as a brief image of a white wolf with familiar markings flashed into her mind, amber-gold eyes burning with concern for a heartbeat before her attention snapped to a pair of footfalls against the peaty earth.

Narrowed, dark brown nearly black eyes emerged from beneath her arms as she looked up to catch sight of Ravens. His face was serious, no longer accompanied by the lopsided grin he normally flashed at her. Had he heard the news even with the Tamus forewarning them of speaking with those of the village about their situation?

Something told her he was merely giving her space because he knew she was upset somehow. Perhaps her choice to settle among the trees was something she shared with his Aria, hence why it felt so natural to curl up here where the wind whistled gently through the canopies. Pain pulsed from the hand she now flexed, letting her heels dig into the loam as she laid her legs out in front of her, her face a bit redder than normal but her eyes maintaining their unwavering, calculative stare.

“I’m not sure if you’ve heard,” she murmured slowly, “...but it seems like I’m not your Aria.” She winced at her own words, betraying her stony facade. “The longer I stay here without returning to my ‘realm’, the more your Aria’s memories will come back to me and although it sounds so very convenient -- I’ll never be the real receiver of your affections.” Exhaustion passed through her features for once as she gradually moved into a standing position, her body suddenly feeling all too heavy as if remaining in her human form felt too heavy a burden to carry. “I can’t fight or shift, I might as well be a walking target at this point and you have no reason to linger around me as I’m not the person you’ve known for who knows how long. I’m a husk carrying broken memories of two different souls.”

Aria looked solemnly to her hand, noticing the glint of scars along the top and palm that matched the same bite that had been given to her in the memories Leira had stoked. The parallels were far too similar for her liking. Her palm showed the fresh marks of her self-inflicted wound that denoted that this was most definitely not a dream but a reality that she knew little to nothing about how to escape from.

Ravens moved from his perch on the wall to move toward her once Aria spoke. He settled against the trunk of a tree a couple of feet away, still giving her space, but close enough to carry on a quiet conversation.

He didn't say anything for a while at first, just picked up a fallen twig and fiddled with it. After a couple of minutes, he turned his face toward her and handed her the twig, now a small stick figure with one small leaf at the top of the head.

"You're still someone. You're still valid. Just means you might need my help more now." He gave her a bit of a sideways grin. "I'm guessing they're going to have some type of a fix for it? Will you get to .. go back home?"

Aria grew silent as Ravens ambled over, watching as he took a seat on the earth rather than stone as she continued to stand.

She had begun to walk away when he finally spoke, the muscle in her cheek jumping and loosening at the words that followed. What did it matter that she was someone, she wanted to say but knew it would only result in an explanation she didn’t want to hear.

“Just because I’m valid doesn’t mean I deserve your help.” She huffed with a bit of irritation, though her eyes betrayed the relief that passed through her. “I don’t know how or when I’ll be able to go back home. I’m sure they’ll find a way but I can’t stand being a sitting duck in the meantime.” Taking the branch, she grinned a little for the first time. “A metaphor for an olive branch, huh? A truce until your Aria can come back.”

Ravens grinned, getting up off the ground and dusting his backside. "Everyone deserves help if they need it. Well.. and it doesn't hurt someone else in the process." He gave her a bit of a wink before starting to walk alongside, waiting for her to set the pace and path.

"So, no sitting ducks here. What do you want to do? How can I help?"

Aria began heading back towards the community house, following an invisible path her gait eased into as she walked beside Ravens now. “I want to learn how to shift. You say I’m of the fae, is that kind of like someone in tune with spirits or something different?”

The ghost of a grin soon flashed across her face. “I should also probably wash and cover up this cut too.” She looked to her palm for a moment before shoving it into her jacket.

Ravens grinned. "It means many things. We can see if you can control that part." As for the wound, "Lick it." His smirk said he knew it would heal. He watched and waited for her to simply lick the cut.

Suspicion gripped her shoulders as she now narrowed her eyes at him, her cheeks growing red as she turned her head away to briefly lap at her palm. The irony tang of blood hit the roof of her mouth but the aching pain that still pulsed from her wound was swiftly dampened, the nail-shaped cuts fading like they’d never been there in the first place.

“What the fuck?” Had this been something she could’ve done all along even if she hadn’t been a realmwalker? “You better not tell me you guys groom each other like cats after going into battle to heal.” She grumbled at him, flustered at the thought.

Ravens' eyes went wide with an apparent mental imagery flashing behind them. Followed by a blush as heat flooded his face and he pointedly looked somewhere else to hide the fact. "Eh-heh. Noooooo."

"It's uh.. just.. eh-heh. A thing I think.. Fae can do. Maybe. I uh.. don't go around asking if someone.. uh.. eh-heh. heals their wounds by licking them."

Aria hummed, not convinced as she abruptly turned to cut him off in order to catch a glimpse of the embarrassment scrawled all over his face.

“Sure, sure. I won’t ask any further about it since it seems like you have no experience.” She pressed, shrugging and turning away now as they ducked back into the community house. It didn’t seem like anyone else was back yet but at the same time if she could avoid any further interactions she would.

Aria could feel the weight slip further from her shoulders at the sight of her room. This space was at least one memory she could fully appreciate remembering on the real Aria’s part. She slipped off her jacket easily, now welcoming the sound of the hearth crackling in her room rather than wanting to escape it unlike before. “What’s the trick to controlling enhanced senses when you get overwhelmed? And what other equally important things should I know about other than being able to lick my wounds away?” She offered him a small grin as she plopped down on the floor closer to the fire to keep warm.

Ravens ran fingers through his hair as he followed Aria in only with an invitation to do so. He settled in a chair near the hearth rather than the floor, leaning forward with elbows on his knees, hands clasped.

He had pushed past the blush and focused on trying to help Aria now. "Well, for me, when everything gets amplified suddenly, I try to muffle them and relax. Like, I'll close my eyes, not tight just close them natural like. Cover my ears with my hands, and start to take slow breaths."

He demonstrated by doing just that now. Talking in between breaths. "Not too deep, but not shallow enough to cause hyperventilation either. Much longer on the exhale than the inhale. Like empty your lungs kind of exhale." In. In. Out, two, three, four, five. In. In. Out, two, three, four five.

Shuffling a bit closer, Aria sat cross-legged as she observed Ravens’s breathing and made mental notes of its rhythm. A few tries passed before she could really allow her guard to lower, even if it was for someone that was familiar to her and Aria. She had to remind herself that there was always a time and place for danger and this was not meant to be one of them.

The sound of the fire drew further away but the warmth it radiated flooded around her as she did her best to focus on the ebb and flow of air leaving her lungs. “Dusk.” She murmured quietly at first, “He taught you this to help with your anxiety.” Her eyes remained closed as memories flared. “And you... taught Aria this when you first met her?” If the images flipping through her mind like a book were correct, then Aria hadn’t been from this village just like her.

She’d pillaged through the village’s human farms when she was younger, having resorted to letting her wolf form take over after running away from her real home just like.. she had? After causing a ruckus during a patrol, Dusk had forced her to shift back to human only to figure out she’d been a child. He then brought her home where younger Ravens, despite her feral attempts to attack or hide from him, found a way to finally tether her back to humanity.

“She ran away from her real family. You and Dusk found her.” After noticing she’d been staring at Ravens, her gaze snapped away, darkening as she watched the images sift further through her mind. “Sorry.”

Ravens gave her a sideways smile, his eyes always a bit brighter when he looked at her. "That's right. Sure, there are some times when it doesn't help as much as I'd like the whole.. breathing thing, but it does always seem to help me to some degree. Enough to let me calm down and think of other ways to try and settle myself."

Aria huffed a bit, flustered by the bright air that he carried whenever they were alone together. “What else helps you? And does it go hand in hand with shifting?” She tilted her head a bit as she locked eyes with him briefly, thinking.

Ravens grinned wider. "For sure. Nothing feels as freeing as just running as a wolf. I mean gotta be careful with the raiders and all, but when I'm really worked up, running helps. Chase will run with me sometimes, Dusk as well. It's best to run with someone else, just in case."

“Chase..”, she tilted her head the other way, her memories offering her nothing but tiring fog now should she try to think through it. “Your wolf, can I see it?” She made a face at how odd it must’ve sounded to ask him such a question but she guessed it was still too early for those memories to have trickled in.

Ravens grinned, "Here? Uh, yeah." He stood up and looked around, then started to move a few chairs against the wall so there was more space. "Luckily, Dusk helped me learn to shift my clothing or uh.." He blushed a little. "Eh-heh." A hand ran over his head a few times before he gave a little shrug. "Okay. Oh uh.. Do you want me to voice what I uh.. think about?" Since they had been talking about how to shift earlier.

"Something tells me I've seen you naked almost too often before, but good to know that you can keep your clothes on." She snickered a bit at the gut feeling, giving him some extra space as well by sitting closer to the edge of the hearth.

"Hm, sure. Whatever you feel is most natural or easiest for you." She grinned a bit. "How to ease into it best, could be a good start."

Ravens tucked his chin with a quiet, "Eh-heh." And didn't comment further on the naked bits. Ahem. "So, this works best when you're not pressed for time. It's completely different when you're trying to change in an emergency."

He sank into a couch, until he was balancing his weight between the tips of his fingers and the balls of his feet. "Try to get into a comfortable position close to the ground. Do the whole close eyes and breath bit, but try to think of your wolf form." Ravens paused for a moment to add, "This also doesn't work as well if you haven't changed or seen your wolf form. It's good to also study your wolf reflection once a month, keep it in your mind's eye."

Back to closing his eyes and doing the breathing in between trying to explain his process. "I try to relax my body, all the muscles, try to avoid tensing up or fighting the change. Took a while to figure out how to just let go but once you know the feeling, it's easier each time."

Also to add, "I'm a skinwalker though, so it might be a little different for you. Like.. I have to uh.. talk to the spirt in the pelt and sort of negotiate and agree to the change. That's.. a different conversation. Okay, here goes." And it took roughly three, maybe five minutes before the man became a wolf. A mostly black wolf, with a small lighter patch on his chest and muzzle.

Aria nodded in understanding, watching as Ravens eased into the crouch effortlessly with the given amount of space he had. She felt it would definitely be awkward for her in the beginning. At the mention of her wolf form, it's image flickered into her mind but blurrier than before for whatever reason. A wave of fatigue hit her when he spoke of skinwalkers, both him and the word itself sounding all too familiar. There was someone else that was a skinwalker that she knew of, but she couldn't touch on who.

Fur soon replaced skin, the inky black fur of the wolf that now stood before her carrying a halo of brownish tones that brightened the white on his chest and muzzle. Part of her was frozen in disbelief at the sight as if she'd never met another wolf before in her life while the other yearned to stroke his muzzle to see if he was as soft as he looked.

"Wow.. I..", he looked almost too similar to the large black dog from her realm's memories aside from the lighter patches of fur. Maybe it hadn't been a dog all along? "Can you speak while in that form?" If he couldn't, she'd simply offer him a tired smile out of amusement.

The wolf shook his head and let out a puff of breath with a touch of a rumble. Tail swished and the wolf nudged his muzzle against one of her hands with a hint of a whine. Like he wanted pets, but didn't want to seem needy.

Warmth spread across her chest as her heart thumped a bit quicker, excitement making her hands shake but her slow movements intending to maintain her composure. Her fingers sifted through the fur on his head, sinking into his coat as she gave him the pets they’d both silently wanted.

“Aria is lucky to have you, y’know?” She moved to rub both of his cheeks, a certain darkness clouding her eyes. “My memory is shit even without all this realmwalker stuff, but I’m pretty sure I couldn’t have come across a support system or .. family, I guess, that would’ve done the same for me but I’m glad that in another lifetime it wasn’t all that bad.” She laughed a bit at the end of her words before patting her lap so that he could rest his big ‘ol head on it.

Ravens sprawled partially across her lap, trail still swishing. There were some low woof like sounds, and general rumblings as he just enjoyed being petted. Maybe they was a licking of her face once or twice.

Aria scoffed whenever Ravens managed to swipe a lick at her face, allowing only her chin to be caught after a bout of laughter left her for what felt like the first time in forever. The warmth that came with his weight was comforting and her more focused pets gradually turned into slow rhythmic strokes as she closed her eyes. She wasn't sure when the last time she'd ever had a moment like this to rest was, but with a brief window of repose opening up, her tired mind slipped through it as she nodded off with her hand growing still.

A NIGHT BLEEDS
A story by Out Of Words​

 

[Rhyme]

Indy (Nahla?)

Location: home sweet home
Tags: Out Of Words (Augie and Indy Encounters compilation)

Indy's mind was whirling, struggling to process the wash of old memories re-entering her brain as Augie stared at her intently. She wanted to ask who Tamus was (that overly serious wizard?), tell him that she didn't mean distantly related, but related, related. Instead, all she could muster was, "You don't know what pizza is?!" She stood from the table, needing to do something with her hands as she began desperately searching the cabinets. "Raccoon stole my pizza, his name was--shit, I can't remember. F-something. Frank? Fucker? Fuck, I can't remember." She needed to get it together, speak clearly--but it was difficult when it felt like the whole of herself was being torn in half between old and new memories. Slamming a cabinet door shut she spun on her heel and leaned back against the wall, letting out a harsh breath. "Okay. The guy, the wizard guy"--she mimicked his serious voice for emphasis--"'I need to do a spooky test on these people.' That guy. He did some shit, him and that other girl? Layla? Whatever, they did some shit with a crystal and I'm not Nahla. I'm not your girlfriend, or anything, I'm probably your great-great-great granddaughter, that's what they said. And those things, the scary things, they bopped Nahla on the head and fucking poof you got me. Here. Oh jesus I am making no sense." Indy ran a hand through her hair, mind reeling. She needed a cigarette--did they have tobacco in whatever fantasy land this was?

Augie remained seated, watching her whirling around nearly as fast as the words were leaving her mouth. He interjected here and there to clarify some points. For the wizard guy, "Bahg? He's one of the village Tamus, the leaders."

For that other girl, "Leira?"

Okay, he was smiling, a little bemused smile, but he was usually pretty easy going and finding humor in all the wrong and right places. "Okay, so, breathe. Do you want to work with some clay?" That usually did the trick to help Nahla focus, but was she saying she wasn't Nahla? Maybe it wouldn't work.

"I really, really don't know if making a bowl is gonna solve this one, Augie." Despite herself, Indy laughed at his response, rubbing her eyes with the heels of her palms. "It's just... I've got a sister here. I've got a sister, I got electrocuted at some point, I don't even remember who did it--I just know it happened, and fuck--" she breathed, slumping down against the wall and leaning her head back. "The only thing I have, the only thing I remember for certain that was there, and here, is this." She reached down her shirt, pulling up the small pouch that held the coin against her neck. Something in her screamed as she tugged the strings and revealed the coin, flipping the cool weight over in her hands as she looked up at Augie. "This. This weird fish thing."

Augie moved from his chair then, and sank into a crouch beside her. When she showed the coin, his eyes widened and he reached for it.

Indy jerked back, eyes immediately flying to Augie’s face as she curled her fingers around the coin. Embarrassment instantly flooded her as she slowly uncurled her fingers and showed the coin back to Augie, carefully keeping it out of reach. “Just... don’t touch. No touchy. Do you know about this?..”

Augie pulled his hand back when she protectively curled around the coin. "Well. I mean.. I've seen those. You have, too. Or.. uh.. Nahla has. Underwater. Usually a bit tarnished, but we found a whole small pile of them before. Near the caves."

One hand ran through his hair before rubbing at the back of his neck. "I 'member when we went back another time, they were gone."

Indy thought back, trying to remember where she had gotten the coin— trying to reimagine the first time it fell into her hands, how the image was tarnished where it now shined. “Did I—she, Nahla, did she steal it then? Did she take them? I had this, I had this before with, shit. I can’t remember his name. Someone had it, in a cave—“ That was right. A cave, some place terrifying and dark, she could remember the emotions better than the exact details, but she could recall the glass that once separated her from the coin. “They had it in a case, like an artifact. Does that make sense? And it followed me. Or, maybe Nahla had it already, and I just... found it?” What the hell was this former iteration of herself doing with the same coin that she had in the future?

Augie tried to recall as well, evident by the way his facial expression twisted this way and that. "We didn't take any. You..er.. she.. worried it would tarnish more once it was removed from the water and wanted to make sure there were things we could use to clean it properly first. And they were gone next time."

A bit of a small shoulder shrug. "Wasn't in any case though. Just at the bottom near the underwater cavern." He lifted one hand in a classic 'oh wait' moment. "Come to think of it, the opening was gone along with the coins. Just didn't really think anything about it."

Indy glanced at Augie with a crinkled brow. "The whole opening? The whole cave disappeared?" She twisted the coin in her hand, trying to think whether it may have been possible for the cave to collapse. Evidently, Nahla had stolen one of the coins--or, it had followed Indy, though that seemed less likely. Nothing else had followed her into this world, so why the coin? And, if there had been more coins, was this the same one that she remembered, or just one of many? There was only one way to find out, though the thought made her stomach turn. "Could you show me? Do you remember where exactly it was?"

Augie put on a thinking expression and was quiet for a few. "If what Bahg said is true, I worry about if you are able to handle being underwater. It's pretty deep which isn't an issue for Nahla."

He wasn’t wrong, though Indy was beginning to get curious about the exact extent of her new abilities. Glancing around her, she asked, “do we have a bucket of water or something?”

Augie moved to the craft room, Nahla usually had some water stored to help her work with the clay. It wasn't very long before he came back, and set down a bucket almost full with water. Not quite big enough for her to submerge her head into it, but maybe her face.

Without prompting, Indy fisted her hair behind her head and shoved her face into the bucket, realizing too late that she forgot to even take a breath. Augie's eyebrows lifted, but he just waited, mentally counting how long before she lifted her head to breathe.

It was strange for Indy. She could feel it, the reflexive panic gripping her chest as her fingers dug into the side of the bucket. Her lungs were empty, she could feel the water seeping up her nose as she fought with the urge to open her mouth and gasp. Everything in her burned to pull her head up, and she grappled blindly for Augies hand as she forced her face to stay below, watching the bubbles rise from her mouth as her heart pounded in her ears. But she was determined, convinced that—if that man had been right, she, Nahla, she could do this. She could feel it, even in this bucket, the cool calm of the water against her skin as her muscles tightened with anxiety. She didn’t try to count, stopped focusing on the seconds and allowing her body instead to feel the water, allow it to ease her terror, to fill her lungs with air that was not needed and she could breathe—

“Holy fuck” Indy gasped, whipping her head from the bucket and coughing roughly as she spat water onto the floor. “fuck! I—“ she gasped between coughs, “how long— how long was that?”

Augie did his best to hide his mirth. "Thirty seconds." He couldn't help but grin and hold her hand as long as she allowed him to. "I couldn't help it. I should have mentioned, I believe you need to have your body in the water. You know. Gills?"

“Well goddammit Oogie,” Indy snapped. “Why the hell didn’t you say that?”

Augie nearly fell over laughing, even had to wipe a tear from one eye when he was done. "Sorry, sorry." Not really sorry, based on the big grin on his face. "I know of an area we can go to. Might want to bring a change of clothing."

Indy glanced at the window, seeing the pink sky and knowing the sun would set soon. As charming as a night swim sounded, the last time Nahla went for a swim she woke up a different person--Indy had no intent to do the same. At least, not tonight. Instead, there was a much more important task to determine. Sputtering water at Augie, Indy pushed the bucket toward him. "Bet I can hold it longer than you can, asshole." She smirked.

Augie smirked and held the bucket in his hands with a quirk of an eyebrow. She never said what he was supposed to hold longer than she could. Two can play that game. The moment Augie placed his head near the bucket, Indy reached over and attempted to push it down into the water with a loud laugh.

coded by: @s e v e n

 

[Out Of Words]

Chases-Death
Leif KodakWolf

Chase wuffled in response to Leif's wuffle. They sometimes had subconscious wuffle sessions, seeing who got in the last wuffle. It was a habit more than anything else by this point. However, when Leif was clearly back, Chase relaxed and brushed a thumb along the nightwalker's jaw before leading the man to sit on the edge of the bed. "Let me get some water, don't move."

He fetched a wooden bowl from the other room and used some water kept in a pitcher by the fireplace. Chase also picked up a small cloth to use instead of whatever shirt he had grabbed along the way. "Okay, going to make sure there isn't any glass first." He would do his best to keep it from hurting, but neither of them were new to pain. Once the glass was removed, Chase dipped the cloth in the bowl of water and started to wipe away any blood.

He worked quietly for the most part, focusing on getting Leif's face cleaned. Blue eyes roamed over the damage, relief flooding in a moment later. "You're already healing up, so that's good. Bad news, I'm not sure we can repair the mirror." He gave a cheeky grin. Chase wasn't worried about the mirror really, but it kept him from dwelling on what might be wrong with his nightwalker. "You clean up pretty good." Chase winked as he finished cleaning up the mess from Leif at least. He'd have to take care of the mirror next.

There was a knock on the door though, "I bet that's for you. I'll get this cleaned up, and check on Turid if you wouldn't mind answering that?" Chase handed Leif a shirt to change into as he 'stole' a kiss first. Wuffle wuffle. "It'll be fine. Whatever it is, we'll get through it."

Sure enough, it was the Tamus at the door. Bahg gave a small smile to the nightwalker. "Greetings, Leif. If you have the time, you're the last of the group we need to talk with." He looked at the darkening sky, the sun past the horizon, "Would you mind coming to the village center? Say a half hour?" Figured that might be long enough for the sun to no longer be a danger.

A NIGHT BLEEDS
A story by Out Of Words​

 

[Out Of Words]

Loki Blackwell
Dwight Thropian

Loki had returned home and did some day to day tasks, like cleaning around the home, checking their supplies, making a list of what they needed, and so on. He even did it barefoot, trying to get more accustomed to going without shoes. He had just set a kettle by the fireplace to get a meal started when Dwight came back.

The name wasn't familiar to him though, so Loki stood there and stared confused at Dwight until he had the thwap to the shoulder. "Uh.. wha'? Who's Levi?" But then Dwight was still talking and a lot of it was going over his head. "Whoa, one sec. What are ya jibberin' on about?" Loki took the seat when Dwight gestured to one, his expression confused and maybe a bit worried about his mentor.

"Ya sayin' yous gots spirits all mixed up like inside again?" Loki relaxed a little, as this wasn't the first time apparently. "Told yas agreeing to be them forest spirits' grounding point would give ya some troubles." He settled more comfortably into the chair, one arm draped over the back. "Okay, what do we's need to sort?"

Loki was eager to help out wherever he could. This wasn't any different, just helping his mentor was more of a learning opportunity for himself. "Does this happen with all druids?" He wasn't a druid, but he was doing his best to learn their ways all the same.

Even if it took most of the day and night, he'd help Dwight sort out what memories were Dwight, and which were not. Loki made sure they ate dinner, and things were settled to Dwight's satisfaction before calling it a night and getting some shut eye.

A NIGHT BLEEDS
A story by Out Of Words​

 

[Out Of Words]

GM POST
OOC
Leif Only:
The testing scene and aftermath will be via Discord and posted after

Other Characters:
The end of your post should be about mid-day, whether they meet at the Tamus' house or not.

Leif KodakWolf

When Leif did make it to the village heart, Leira and Bahg were there to explain what they knew so far. "You're the last one we need to confirm, but it's highly likely the test will be positive. Your essence was drawn into the body you now inhabit, at least partly due to the realmwalker magic used on you. I don't know if there was something significant with, well, where your body was. It's all rather.. new, but so very interesting."

Leira was crushing up the herbs and preparing the crystal while Bahg did his best to guide Leif into the chair for the test. "Realmwalker magic in itself, is meant to cross time, place, maybe even alternate worlds. Every creature is said to have a tether, tying them to their... other selves, to put it simply. That said, we believe you, like the others hit with this magic, are from one of those other times, places, worlds. You're now in the body not truly your own, and they are likely in yours. Problem is, within one or two weeks, who you are now, will not exist."

Leira gave Bahg a bit of a look, so he explained himself a little bit better. "That is to say, maybe you will, but you won't in this body. You'll instead become, well, I guess there isn't a simple way to put this is there? The body will reclaim it's core. Which, we believe means you'll just... sync with this.." One hand indicated the body Leif was now in. "And the same for wherever your true body is. But first, we'll have to test this. So, uh.. think of a memory you had when you first woke up, or.. something you just know is not of this village. Think of it and hold onto it as long as you can while Leira performs the test, please."

Britt-21 AsherMasher Thropian Rhyme Silver-

The nights weren't filled with dreams of the past, present, or future. They weren't filled with anything but a missing span of time when everyone woke up. Yet, everyone had a restful night, a peaceful night where the body felt fresh and awake the next day. For those in the community house, Aria, Ashley, and Ravens, breakfast was steaming inside a closed kettle already on the table. Somehow, without waking anyone up, food had been setup early morning, along with a paper missive.

Meet at the village heart when the sun is at mid-day.

For Vivian, Dusk woke her again and made sure they used enough energy to sleep in a little longer than usual. Their own breakfast kettle was waiting on the table with a similar note. Ravens wasn't around and didn't look like he had slept in his bed all night.

Loki was dishing up their own meals by the time he made sure Dwight was awake. "How's the mind treatin' yas today? Still all mixed up like? We's got a note, but I's thinkin' it's prolly just for yous." Loki would hand Dwight the paper missive they had received with the breakfast kettle.

Augie and Nahla had made plans before going to bed, to test out her underwater capabilities after breakfast. They didn't expect a message calling for a meeting at noon. "Well, gives us a bit of time still. Wasn't planning on swimming too far. I'll get a bag ready in case we find some trinkets while we're there." Though he moved to sit at the table and dish up a bowl. "First, food."

A NIGHT BLEEDS
A story by Out Of Words​

 

[KodakWolf]

Leif, Chase, Turid, Bahg & Leira
Location: Skyrim
Tags: Out Of Words ​

Leif was mostly still and quiet while Chase worked, giving only the occasional wince when one or another of the shards sent a sharp sting of pain up the nerves while being pulled out. He wasn’t thinking about anything in particular, and rather just observed Chase as he worked. Keeping his mind empty of thoughts was a valuable skill he’d learned in the past (or was it the future?), a very useful one when used in the right situations, like this one, when his mind simply needed a break. So he took a bit to process what Chase was saying, but chuckled when he did.

“Sure, I’ll get it.” Leif nodded, the knock on the door bringing his mind back to the present moment, at least partially. For when Chase stole a kiss, Leif slid a hand behind the man’s neck to prevent him from pulling away, and pressed his forehead to his for a moment. “Thank you.” he whispered. There was a strong feeling of gratitude, one that Chase would have no trouble identifying in Leif’s voice tone. Leif didn’t know what it’d feel like, waking up from such a vivid nightmare without Chase’s presence to soothe his mind and bring it back, but it wasn’t only this event that he referenced when he thanked Chase, but all the past moments they’d lived through so far. And Chase would know it, because their communication went beyond mere words. Wuffle.

“We will get through it.” he repeated, and he didn’t doubt it in the slightest. He’d heard that many times before. They’d spoken that many times before. Leif then finally let his hand fall down to his lap, and focused on changing into the shirt Chase had handled him and a pair of pants so he could get the door. There was some nervousness as he approached it. He knew who was on the other side, and at the same time he felt like maybe he didn’t quite know them. He wasn’t sure. And he also wasn’t sure what to expect to hear from the man. But eventually he opened the door and faced the familiar face waiting outside. Yes, he knew the Tamus. And he wouldn’t mind coming to the village center in half an hour. It was all Leif said, and he didn’t feel like he should’ve said anything else. Bahg knew he wasn’t one to talk much, and he hadn’t asked, so Leif didn’t mention the mirror incident, at least not for now. For a second, he wondered whether he’d know the way to the village center, but the thoughts quickly dissipated the longer he looked at Bahg, and as he watched the man leave. It was like the pieces of a puzzle were slowly coming back together, and his memories of the village were getting clearer as time passed.

“What was the last raid like?” he asked Chase when he found him again after Bahg had left. “Feels strange to go talk to him and not remember much about it. If you tell me, maybe it’ll bring memories back, as has been happening.” he paused. “I’ll meet him in half an hour.” he spoke with a nod towards the door to indicate where the Tamus was before he left. Because he knew Chase would want to know why Bahg left after they exchanged only a couple of words.


Chase had done a quick clean up job, setting the pieces of the shattered mirror on top of the dresser stand nearby. Then he had taken a broom and swept the smaller shards onto a small swatch of cloth, which was then placed with the rest.

He had just enough time to peek in on Turid, who was still in the last bits of slumber, before Leif asked about the last raid. Keeping Turid's door closed, Chase patted a chair for Leif to sit in while he checked on fixing himself something to eat.

"It was pretty bad. Seems to get worse with each new raid. We thought we had our own magi positioned well enough, to stay out of harm's way, and still deliver some good ranged attacks. Only, they had more. Well, not more." Chase wuffled as he fixed himself a plate of some dried meat and cheese slices.

"More like.. the magic they threw at us wasn't anything we were prepared for. They seemed... targeted? Like.. it would actually swerve around those in the front. It should have hit the front line based on the original line of attack, but the magic... moved as if it was alive."


"We can't track them down, where they're coming from?" Leif had sat on the chair Chase had indicated. He tried to piece things together, but the memories of the raids seemed to be shattered. More than the others. He remembered flashes, but not enough to make much sense of anything, so he resorted to trying to make sense of what Chase was telling him instead. "And... how did I fall?" Being honest, Leif had memory flashes of a few scenes, of things that had happened to others but didn't remember what he was doing during the raid. What his part was. And neither how he fell.


"Before our scouts knew it, we were flanked on all the land sides. Though, Augie and Nahla reported seeing something in the waters, don't think anyone actually attacked from there." Chase settled in a chair where he could face Leif, one hand reaching out to wipe a missed smudge along the man's forehead before he took a bite of his food and continued.

"You and I were in wolf forms. I was meant to be the distraction, as white kinda stands out at night." Wuffle wuffle. "So it should have been me, who was hit, but it swerved and zeroed in on you." Chase's expression was a mixture of guilt and anger for Leif getting hurt.

"It looked like your shadow wolf form just... shattered." His voice caught slightly as he recalled the scene. "You were left unconscious on the ground in human form."


"It wasn't your fault. No one could've predicted it." A hand was gently placed on Chase's leg to reassure him. Leif meant what he said, because as Chase spoke he remembered the feeling of being caught in a surprise attack. A feeling he wasn't exactly glad he remembered, one he now wanted to let go. He'd kept his attention so fully focused on the white wolf, because he was the distraction, he was the target, and Leif could absolutely not let him get hurt, that by the time he realized the target was instead the black wolf, himself, it was too late. "I'm honestly glad it was me, cause if it had been you I'd be feeling the same way." He winked. He did understand how Chase felt.

So yes, he had a wolf form. But it didn't hit him as news, as something he wasn't aware of before. Only it felt like ages since he last was in it. Strange. But as he predicted, when Chase spoke of the raid, he remembered some of it. But still not what'd hit him.

"What looked like my shattered wolf form?" he frowned as confusion crossed his mind, but he remained strangely calm throughout the whole talk. Even if the memories weren't good, it felt good to have them back. "You mean what attacked me?"


'When you were hit." Chase wuffled a few times. "It was.. like a black and gold streak, swerving until it hit you. Then... your wolf form just.. shattered, Shadow bits went every which way, until it was just you."

Chase gave a bit of a broken sounding laugh, a laugh without mirth, but used to try and keep deeper emotions in check. "At first I panicked because you weren't breathing, until I remembered you didn't have to."


"Oh..." he nodded as Chase explained. Now it made perfect sense why he remembered nothing but darkness after being hit.

"See, you too should be glad it was me." he gave a small chuckle at the fact that he didn't have to breathe. "I don't have to breathe. You do." His voice carried a lighter tone. Not because he didn't see the gravity of what'd happened, but because as complicated as the village's situation was, he was glad pieces of the memory puzzle were kinda falling into place. That had to be the first step to solving the problem, right? Or at least it was how Chase taught him to think. Not unrealistically, but lighter. Praising the advancements, not the setbacks.

"Have we never been able to track them down, strike first?" Still, they had to address the doom and gloom, and the next raid could be a lot worse, so it wasn't something they could ignore. Leif leaned back on the chair. "And has the Tamus ever considered abandoning the village? Just don't wanna ask him something he's already talked about, but is it worth it, losing more people over a piece of land? Perhaps they want something on these lands, nothing to do with us specifically...and land's only valuable while the people on it are alive. From the point of view of those being raided, that is." That wasn't fully aligned with how he was taught to think by his parents, by his people back in the day when he was still human. But centuries of life had taught him other things, other ways to see and think. Ways that also made sense. He didn't remember exactly when he started considering fleeing an equally honorable option, or which people had showed him that. It was hard enough to remember the more recent memories, he'd leave the older ones for another time.


Chase wuffled with a hint of his usual grin. Blue eyes showed more of his relief that Leif was in fact, much better, than words or wuffles could ever say.

"We've had scouts try. Loki and Dwight, myself, others, but we are pretty sure by now they're using magic to cover their tracks. We were close, once, or maybe that's just what they wanted us to think." Snort.

As for moving the village, "There was talk a little while back, even started to made some pretty thought out plans, but.. the next day it just didn't feel right. Several were sick, various things from throwing up, to fevers. And.." Wuffle wuffle.

Chase shifted a bit in the chair, leaning on the table toward Leif. "I don't know. It's like.. we just didn't feel like it was a good idea in the end. Gut instinct, there's something here that's worth fighting for."


Leif was glad when he read relief in Chase's eyes. He wasn't sure what was going on with himself, truth be told he had barely any ideas. But he didn't like having Chase too worried about it. He didn't like being the source of worries, especially when they still had the raids to worry about.

Not being able to track the enemy down, raids getting worse and leaving the site not being considered as an option anymore made Leif feel like they were seriously running out of options. Another feeling he'd rather not have, but that's life. There was a solution, there always was. But it was one they couldn't yet see, and Leif could only hope they'd see it in time.

"Well, if there's something I trust, it's your gut instinct." He spoke with a small smile. It was the pure truth. He could question what Chase had said about them not wanting to leave the place, and perhaps there was something more to it, something hidden no one had found out yet. Something magic, that kept them tied to the place? People falling sick felt strange. But Leif didn't question him, not now. Perhaps later, if something else raised suspicions. But he trusted Chase's gut instinct enough for it to be a sole reason for a decision, so for now he'd keep any other thoughts in the back of his mind.

He reached over the table to place a hand over Chase's, not knowing what else to say for the moment, or not wanting to. He didn't feel like he had to, for the silence between them was a comfortable one, certainly better than any worrisome thoughts about the raids, and they still had a bit of time to enjoy it.


Chase wuffled as he turned his hand over so he could lace fingers with Leif's hand. "I try to not overthink it too much. 'Sides, with you and Turid here, I have everything I want.

Speaking of, there was a bit of sound from Turid's room, she'd be stirring soon. "After your meeting, do you want to go hunting with her? I know she's missed your night hunts together."

It would be a couple hours before sunrise when they used to go out hunting for prey. Animal or the wayward human, sometimes just to feed, and sometimes to sate the need to kill. Even though Turid was 'made' a little differently, she still had to kill now and then, or maybe she wanted to. Chase never delved that deep into it, he had long ago accepted both Turid and Leif for the night walkers they were.

Hadn't chased him away yet.


Fingers laced together, Leif brought Chase's hand closer, and pressed his lips against it for a few seconds, eyes on his. A move that felt more like an appropriate answer than perhaps most words would be. Following Chase's example, he tried not to overthink it too much. Sometimes, instincts were enough. Then a sound was heard from Turid's room, and Leif glanced towards it, lowering their hands on the table.

"So have I." he spoke when Chase mentioned the night hunts. The mere mention of them brought some flashes of memories back. Few enough to make him want to relive the experience to recall it better, but vivid enough to remind him of how proud of her he was. He gave a small smile while still glancing toward Turid's room before eyes moved back to Chase.

"You should come one of these nights. Last time we spotted plenty of deer." Leif spoke, not really having thought about it beforehand. He didn't have many memories of such hunts, so how could he recall having seen plenty of deer? He did know it wasn't only deer that they hunted though, and that was the reason why Chase usually didn't tag along. But like Chase used to do, he too wouldn't overthink it too much. He said what his gut instinct told him to, or perhaps it was a memory he still couldn't consciously recall. But it came out naturally, and he meant it.

"I should go. See what bomb Bahg's about to drop." He spoke in a jokingly tone, although not minimizing the relevance of what the Tamus had to share. Slowly, he let go of Chase's hand and got up, heading towards Turid's room, quietly opening the door to check on her before leaving, and if she was already awake, tell her good evening and that he'd be back soon, that they could hunt soon.


Chase wuffled and when they both stood, he held Leif up a moment more. One hand slid to behind the night walker's neck, while Chase pressed his forehead to Leif's. It was something he did with fair frequency. No words, maybe a soft wuffle, eyes closed, just the physical touch and Chase seemed to always be calmer, or soothed afterward. "Maybe tonight we can do the hunt. When you're done."

Chase let Leif go then and moved to start getting things ready. Their household was active at night, unlike most of the others in the village. It made it feel more serene, even with the hunts and what it contained. It was home and Chase wouldn't have it any other way.

Turid was just stirring, moving out of bed and wiping away the remnants of sleep in her eyes. "Papa?" She had the same enhanced sense of hearing he had. When Leif told her good evening and they could hunt soon, the smile lit up her face, fanged teeth and all. "Oh yes, Papa! We'll have great fun!"

-------------------------------

And what a bomb it was. After Bahg and Leira explained what they could, or at least tried to, their ideas did end up sounding like something viable. Something that could really be possible, and it was only reinforced by the strange, out of place memories Leif still had.

However, other than the weird, dream-like memories, and an amnesia that seemed to be fixing itself the more time went by, Leif had no reason to believe he was in a body not his own. And maybe he didn’t want to either.

“Interesting? That’s what you..." his tone was mostly moderate, although it was clear he initially intended to express sarcasm, but gave up halfway. Not a time to waste any words. He gave a light shake of his head and a sigh, looking away from both Bahg and Leira for a moment before he spoke again.

"Could I be... syncing too fast?" He gazed back at the both of them. "I don't really feel like this isn't my body." Then he shook his head again, realizing he was wasting words instead of taking the test at once. Perhaps deep inside he didn't want to. "Sorry, we can just do the test if you want to. Can you restrain me? I think I might have come close to hurting Chase." Words came out before Leif could consciously decide to speak, but he didn't regret it. The trust in Bahg and Leira came naturally to him, and it felt right to mention what concerned him, although he did look away when he spoke, as if not fully comfortable admiting that. Afraid, or ashamed. "Was sleepwalking. Or sleep-breaking things. So just to be sure..."


Leira did the test only after Bahg restrained Leif. At first, the test didn't give results the deer was satisfied with. "Not clear enough, let me switch crystals. One moment "

She found a larger crystal and went through the process of crushing up herbs and dipping the crystal in it. She changed softly as she wiped it off and focused once more on the Nightwalker.

Bahg spoke quietly, "Think of a memory, and hold onto it. Something you don't feel is of this time."

Leira had tried the crystal 'as is' the first time, since Leif didn't feel like it wasn't his body. Maybe they had hoped to find at least one person who was just as they should have been.


A memory not of this time. Hard to pick just one for someone who's lived so many centuries. So it took Leif a moment to find something he could hold onto. Besides, most of his memories were still fragmented.

His brain skipped from one memory to the next, all of them too blurry for him to be sure which time they belonged to. Chase was in some of them, so was Turid, so was Perrish, so were other blurry faces and names he couldn't recognize or remember. At one point, Leif no longer felt like he was sitting on a chair. Instead it felt like he was an observer, standing within a movie whose undefined, disorganized scenes kept skipping from one to the next every second, in no logical order.

He couldn't move. His body didn't respond, like his muscles wouldn't get the message his brain was trying to send. Slowly, he felt the onset of a headache. It was really the only thing that reminded him he still had a body. And as the pain got worse, it became harder and harder to focus on specific memories. Instead, he managed to focus on a broader one, more like a fact that had thankfully been proven wrong, but had felt very real at some point: Turid had died, had never grown up to become a vampire, and he had memories, faded but there, of a lifetime, actually several lifetimes, centuries lived without her, alone. Perhaps it'd been just a bad dream, minutes that felt like centuries. But he could still remember the emptiness left by losing a daughter. It never really went away, not even after centuries, not even after waking up.


Leif's test took the longest, not just because they had to do two crystals, but because Leira seemed to have a difficult time pinning it down. She moved all around the chair, peering at the nightwalker from various angles behind the crystal.

When Bahg gently started to try and bring Leif back to the present, a good half hour had passed. "Leif. Focus on my voice, the test is done." He repeated himself as many times as needed. And once he could meet Leif's gaze, he just waited, keeping the restraints on until he was certain Leif was back.

"You good?"


Leif's eyes were moving everywhere, although not focusing anything, as if seeing things in another dimension. And when Bahg tried to bring him back, the pair of grey eyes would be quick to focus him. Only, they still didn't see him. Leif didn't strike, nor did he attempt to. But his request to be restrained for the test proved itself valid, for when his eyes first focused Bahg, it was like they were coated with a murderous, irrational glare. It lasted an instant only, and quickly those same eyes showed recognition, and it was like that dangerous impulse was instantly turned off, thankfully in time before it evolved into an attempt at something else.

Leif didn't register the exact moment he returned to his body, or at least felt like he inhabited a body again. The headache was still there, but suddenly he could perceive other stimuli. First, it was the Tamus in front if him. Then other sights, sounds, smells, different from the hazed memories, real. And slowly, as his adrenaline levels lowered, the throbbing headache got more intense, and he closed his eyes and lowered his head a little bit before answering the Tamus.

"Not really." He wasn't aware of that instant right before he awakened back into the present, and now even the memories he relived through the test were slipping away, as if the throbbing pain was hammering them out of his head. "How'd it go?" He asked quietly, eyes still closed in an attempt to ease the pain, counting on his other senses to determine Bahg's and Leira's actions and positions.


Leira was tucking the crystal way and labeling the container with his name. Bahg let Leira do the talking, as she was the seer and he most definitely was not. "Many ties, future, past, future yet to be. Same body, different phase, different time and place, maybe."

Sometimes, what she said didn't make a lot of sense to anyone else, at least not for a while. She gave Leif a small smile as Bahg worked on removing the restraints. "Still same, you stay and you'll become this Leif, here and now."

Leira moved to store the box with the others, "Your choice, tell others, or not. Will research and see what can be done." She was already sitting down in a chair and opening up a large leather bound tome to continue her research.

Bahg moved to walk Leif out. "Sorry, but.. we're going to move fast on the research. I still have those mages I can question further. Now that I have some better idea of just what to ask. We'll let you know when we have something."


Leira. What she was saying would possibly take a couple of weeks to start making sense, now that he recalled. He shouldn't have expected to leave the test with many answers. Regardless, it was all they had, and Leif opened his eyes and nodded at her in thanks.

"Just not sure I can repeat what you said. Perhaps write a note with the results so I can show them." He joked.

Still, it was better than a death sentence. Sounded like if he did nothing, everything would adjust just fine. But with magic, you never know. Perhaps there would be consequences, perhaps not. "Tell me you anything you find out. Please." He spoke as eyes moved to the Tamus.

"Let me know if you need assistance questioning them." He said somberly. Bahg would know what he meant, and while he'd usually never suggest such a thing to the Tamus, special problems required special measures, or special propositions. Leif had yet to find someone who'd resisted questioning that employed his blood. It healed any wounds, regenerated life force, at the cost of extreme pain. In short, it rendered death a useless, unachievable tool to escape torture. They probably had a few vials of his blood stored somewhere, meant for healing in extreme cases, if nothing else worked. Perhaps Leira had never used them, but if she had, well, Leif had an endless supply.

"Do you have something to prevent sleepwalking?" He asked at the door.


Leira tilted her head, fingers of one hand lifted to rub against one another next to an ear as she was obviously thinking. After a moment, she nodded her head. "Yes! Herb of 'shade, twist of lavender and ginger, and a little extra something something or other."

She had moved to find the right vial and then handed the purple potion over. "Just two drops at night, take with food or drink. Though, suppose for you that's the same." She giggled a bit, but then went back to her book.

Bahg had written down what Leira said while she was getting the potion for Leif. He handed it over and walked him out of the room. On the way to the front door, he said, "Well, they're already dead." He waited to see if Leif understood or remembered what that meant.

Bahg was a necromancer, and death didn't stop him from 'questioning' someone.

 

[Silver-]

Aria (Silver Blackwood) | community house > Tamus' house | tags: Out Of Words ​

Silver awakened to weak morning light sifting it’s way through the curtain covered windows of her room. Even with the feeble light slipping in, she could make out everything in the room as if a mental map had already been stamped out previously. How long had it been already? Two days? Three days since they’d found out they weren’t of this time? She tried to recall the past events. Waking up a nearly blank slate of a mind for the first time, the Tamus’ meeting, Ravens teaching her techniques to ease into shifting. Speaking of which, hadn’t she fallen asleep on the floor? Sheets easily slipped off her as she sat up in bed now, noting how the hearth had been smothered and the absence of the black wolf that’d laid in her lap the night prior. Perhaps Leira had pushed some morning duties on him. Taking this as an opportunity, she whisked herself out of bed and onto the cold wooden floorboards, sitting cross-legged for a moment as she tried to remember how exactly Ravens had positioned himself before shifting.

It felt odd, or more so, somewhat embarrassing trying to get into the correct sort of crouch. Distributing your weight onto your extremities became especially difficult as Silver could feel her body struggling to even hold up her own weight, let alone try to stay balanced as easily as Ravens had done. She thumped onto the ground after a few tries, laying on her side defeatedly before rolling onto her back and allowing her arm to rest over her eyes. Her mind told her the effort felt minimal but her body was already feeling heavy, even with the icy ground lapping at her backside tempting her to get back into a sitting position.

Ravens needed to consult his pelt because he was a skinwalker in order to shift, did she have to do the same thing with her wolf? When she’d injured her own hand, she remembered that the wolf had voiced it’s concerns to her through gestures and the warmth it’d embraced her with, so it was obvious that despite the swapping of their souls, she was still Aria in that essence and Aria was her. The biggest issue was how to relax enough to shift. Her mind was always buzzing with thoughts, her body ready to leap up at any given moment should there be a situation. Was that what differed her from Aria, she wondered. Relaxing and figuring out what similarities they might share could help ease the transition to a different wolf.

Silver eyed the closet before rummaging through the various articles of clothing, noting that most of them were dark or neutral colored and long-sleeved so that it covered up. Sleeping clothes were neatly folded within the small chest that sat within with a single drawer in particular holding non-clothing items. Small figures of wood-whittled animals sat within, along with a few particularly eye-catching river stones and rocks. Memories came to light when she held a few in her palm, scanning them while hearing the words she’d shared both with others and to herself. Promises to visit the ocean one day with Ravens, finding particularly restful spots near the village on her own, the thrill of a run. The more she remembered, the less foreign this place became. It would be selfish to stay but it wasn’t like she had anyone waiting for her from where she’d actually come from, right?

Shutting the drawer gently, she sighed, running a hand through her hair and rubbing her eyes a bit. When she reopened them, something in the back of the closet caught her eye—box-shaped sort of crate. Fearing there might be a spider or something considering how it seemed purposefully tucked back there, she drew open the curtains to allow for more light before she pulled it out. Dust burst into the air upon her bringing it into the strengthening morning sun, a thick layer lining the makeshift woodblock of a lid. Drawing it aside, she froze a bit when the contents inside registered to her. Gently, she pulled out a gray and white dog plushie that appeared to have been kept in good hands due to how clean it looked but what showed it’s age was how flattened the fur was. The stuffing in it’s neck was thinner, signaling just how many times it’d been clutched onto and the fur on it’s flanks and head were patchy as if they’d been brushed at one point but then smoothed out quickly to hide the fact that he was balding there. The stitching was rough, highlighting it’s handmade origins but the dog itself looked familiar.

Placing it in her lap, she took the only other thing that had accompanied the dog in the box—a journal. It’s leather-bound cover was well-worn and even without opening it, she could see how yellow the pages had become from age. She thumbed through the pages in silence, blowing away the dust that lifted in front of her face as she scanned the book. The beginning of it held several child-like doodles and small prompts before growing neater with more legible wording. It spoke of Aria’s past, or at least, what she could remember, before turning more so into a journal full of things the real Aria didn’t want to forget about. All the people in her life. The animals that seemed to guide her in her dreams that weren’t only just her wolf, but several ranging from cats to what Aria described as large spotted cats or ancient wolves with many scars. It seemed she had a vow to protect those she considered her family even at the cost of her life. Silver hugged the dog to her chest once the rest of the pages ended up being blank. There was no instruction manual on how to be a fae or how to shift, it seemed. Practice, focus and allowing herself to ease into another form was the only way to begin learning how to do what Aria already could. It was all a matter of attempting it correctly.

The warm scent of various foods had Silver placing the crate back into the closet, leaving both the journal and stuffed dog on the bed as she left to go wash up. It wasn’t long before she was slipping on clothes more suited to the outdoors again, deciding to don Ravens’s jacket once more. Leira’s scent was strong but the woman herself wasn’t in the kitchen from what she could see after she’d peeked in. The table was set with food along with a note to Ashley and her to head to the heart of the village by mid-day. The sun was beginning to sit at it’s peak already so she swiftly ate her meal since no one would be around to scold her for eating too fast and headed out, knowing that if Ravens were to have need of her, he’d be able to find her a bit more easily this time.

 

[KodakWolf]

Leif, Perrish, Chase, Turid
Tags: Out Of Words
Location: Skyrim​

"Appreciate it." Leif thanked Leira with a chuckle, an unconscious attempt at pushing all the worries aside and focusing on the pun. It didn't last long, because shortly after Bahg reminded him of how shitty his memory still was. Now the Tamus being a necromancer sounded obvious; a minute ago it hadn't. Still, that was one more thing being added back to his files, so it was something good, wasn't it? "Right. They're dead." he rubbed his temple, and eventually gave a small chuckle again with a shake of his head. "I can't help with that." he paused, reconsidering. "I guess." He wasn't really in position to assert anything. "I'll await your contact then. And thank you." he nodded goodbye, and soon was on his way back home.

The way home was familiar, as was the way to the Tamus' house. As was the path he actually took, instead of heading home. It was more like an instinct, instead of a thought-out action, but it felt right. It felt like what he'd do, had he not lost his memory, so he did it. And shortly after, he was knocking on Perrish's door. He was about as old as Leif himself was, only he hadn't had his memory wiped out. So perhaps he'd know something helpful.


Soon as the second knock came, a voice on the other side sounded. "One moment!" It was a deep sounding voice, with a bit of an accent. The type of accent one might expect from the 'upper crust' of society.

The door opened, and a dark haired man, who was overdressed for any occasion, greeted Leif with a slight tilt to his head. A smile showing one fang escaped. "Leif, what wondrous occasion has brought you to my humble, but well maintained doorstep?"


Leif stared at the man for a moment or two when he finally opened the door, and blinked a few times before he finally spoke.

"You're old." Perrish's face brought back a whole lot of memories that had been lost, and while Leif's brain processed that, it seemed unable to properly articulate and present any thoughts or ideas. "I might be time traveling, only I don't remember shit. You weren't hit in battle, were you? Perhaps you remember something." It took a few seconds for Leif to slowly realize he sounded like a crackhead, and for the look of anxious confusion to fade off his face.


Perrish raised his right eyebrow, then dusted off a spot on his suit that really wasn't dirty to begin with. "I like to think of it as being mature." Though the rest of what Leif had to say, caused the left eyebrow to join the right in a somewhat intrigued expression.

"Sounds like something to be discussed away from those always listening ears. Please, come in. Have a seat." Perrish did a grand sweeping 'come in' gesture of one arm as he moved to let Leif pass before closing the door.

Perrish's humble abode, was just like him, extravagant. He had several antique trinkets, sculptures, artwork, many things that took more than a few lifetimes to amass. Though his collection had been even more vast before he had to abandon his previous home to flee when the hunters came.

Occasionally, he would still regale others with tales of all his favorite items, and bemoan their loss. Only to state he would do it all again to ensure Turid and Leif survived.

Leif was directed to the dark wooden table covered with fancy lace dollies and quite the place setting. "Would you care for a drink? Or, have you fed already? I do have a rather tasty vintage in the kitchen."


Leif quickly glanced around when Perrish mentioned the 'always listening ears', but seeing no one, as was expected for that time of the night, he shrugged it off and stepped in, taking in all the excessive information spread all over the house on his way to the wooden table. Some of the pieces Leif remembered having seen before, somewhere else. Most of them, actually. In Perrish's old home, in a larger city, one that matched his style more than the village they were currently in.

"Yes, please." Leif spoke as he took a seat at the table. A drink was always nice. He rubbed his temple again, wondering whether the damn headache would go away only after all the memories were back. If so, it could take a while. Downside of being old.


Perrish gave a small bow and nod of his head before he turned and disappeared into the kitchen around the corner. He spoke while fetching the drink, though the sound of clinking chains wasn't completely masked. "The vintage is nearly gone, but you're welcome to the last of it."

He returned, tugging along a chain which was attached to a rather stylish harness worn by an older human male. "Aged over sixty years, quite delightful, it is." The harness ensured the human's neck wasn't covered and thus, blocked.

Human males weren't seen outside in the village past a certain age. It was assumed by most of the population they had been banished, as the village openly welcomed women and children. Because they were weaker and less likely to cause troubles for the supernatural creatures living there.

Perrish handed the end of the chain to Leif before taking his own seat at the table. "Good to the last drop."


To think Leif had alcohol in mind. Come to think of it, it was hard to picture Perrish heading into the woods in that suit of his to hunt for prey, so it only made sense he used other methods to get his fill of blood.

"That's... real kind of you." He spoke with a small smirk as eyes moved from Perrish to the man and he took the chain and held it firmly. He never assumed any prey would behave with docility. "Thanks for the privilege. I can get you a replacement." He shot Perrish a glance before getting up from the chair, the prospect of tasting blood giving him an instant boost of energy.

He tugged on the chain for the man to come closer, and took his time choosing the right spot on his prey's neck, not because he had to, but because it added to the experience. It usually seasoned the blood. And eventually he delivered a bite from which the victim would likely not survive. Probably for the best, anyway. Leif didn't usually dwell on thoughts about the lives and emotions of people and animals he preyed upon, but some cases, like that one, felt like mercy killings. He was in no position to question anyone's methods, but he wasn't really fond of keeping long term prisoners.

He supported the man's weight until he was placed on the floor, knowing Perrish would likely not appreciate a bloodied body falling with a thump on his shiny floor. "You got good taste." he admitted with a nod, moving back to sit on the chair.


Perrish gave Leif a little wave when he offered to get a replacement. "I already have a new one scheduled. Put it out of your mind." He observed Leif's manner of picking a spot, and subsequent feeding. When the body was laid down, he gave a grateful smile.

"My gratitude for the concern of the floor. It does take quite a bit of polishing some days. Oh my, when Turid was a fledgling, what a mess she could make." He chuckled a bit, letting Leif settle in.

"So, what brings you to my doorstep? You're too calm for it to have to be about Turid, or Chase." He held his fingers together and pressed the tips of to his bottom lip as he waited.


Leif chuckled at the sudden thought of Perrish frantically polishing the floor. It turned into a small smile at the mention of Turid. He'd missed most of that early fledgling phase for not knowing Turid was alive, let alone that she'd been turned. He actually didn't remember quite well the correct sequence of facts. But he knew he owed Perrish (and his father, although there wasn't much he could do about it now) a lot for that; not simply for turning her, but for being there for her during that difficult phase.

"They're fine." Leif started. "Everything seems fine but... I woke up with barely any memory of this place. Like I'd woken up in the wrong place, perhaps even wrong time... had some strange memories I can barely recall now, but they felt real as I woke up, and now the longer I'm awake, the more they fade. The Tamus spoke of realmwalker magic. Said perhaps I was in the wrong body. They tested me and the results were something along 'wrong time', which doesn't help much." He pushed the piece of paper Bahg had handed him over the table to Perrish. "Got anything on it? They seem as lost as I am."


Oh, now all of this most definitely caused the 'I'm intrigued' face again. He stared at the paper for a moment, not wanting to appear too eager or curious, even if he was. And he so, so, was.

After a minute, he casually reached to take the paper from Leif. Held it in front of him, with one finger lightly tapping against it. "Hmmmm." Perrish said in a rather noncommittal way.

Only Leif's memories gave him some insight as they had been around each other long enough to be able to read the other fairly well. The 'hmmm' sound was Perrish making a sound so he could test the stability of his voice before speaking, lest there be a crack in his polished demeanor.

The way he tapped the paper lightly was testament to how thrilled he was inside. The slower the tap, the more excited. And the way Perrish finally slowly pushed his chair back a bit before standing, meant he was doing his best to keep his calm, aloof but oh so sophisticated manner, under his control.

If he let himself lose control, Perrish would likely be squealing like some young girl with as much glee as he felt inside.

"Let me check my bookcases."


Leif'd known Perrish for centuries now, so that was why instead of dragging him to his bookcases to get moving sooner he instead waited patiently, observing his display of self containment with an amused small smirk. Because he knew Perrish was invested, as much as he tried to mask it, and Leif would be able to count on his assistance.

"Ever heard anything about it?" he asked with a raised eyebrow, getting up and following Perrish. His tone was moderate, as he really had no need to rush the man, for now at least.


Perrish kept his tone neutral with a smidgen of that aristocratic flair he loved so much, complete with the occasional grand gesture of a hand or arm. "I believe I might have something regarding such. My collection is only rivaled by your daughter's. She has just a hair less." An important point, and one he planned to maintain as much as was inhumanely possible. He prided himself on his vast collections of, well, anything he considered important.

He led the way to another room, where it looked like some small, but no less grand, library. Bookcases upon bookcases lined the walls, and there were two rows in the middle, leaving a square path wide enough for single file tours.

"I do so miss having my secret passageways. I need to find a new castle sometime." He started to slowly walk through, examining the shelves. "I believe there was some spells allegedly allowing for travel between planes, and more, if one had the capability to think outside normal paths."

"Wrong time, you said? Hmmm." A finger began tracing down one particular bookshelf, trailing along the spines of tomes possibly even older than Perrish, but well maintained. "Did they say if it was the right body?"


"I'll make sure to check her collection too." It was times like those that made Leif wish he had spent more time poring over books than he actually had. He wasn't the scholarly type, and while he did know much, most of his knowledge was more related to practical things than old tomes. Thankfully, he did know where good sources were when he happened to need them, like now.

"Planning to leave here?" he asked when Perrish mentioned finding another castle, like his old one he had to leave behind.

"Same body, they said. Doesn't really feel like another one. But many ties, to the future, to the past, to another future, I don't know..."


"Well, a castle is the epitome of sophistication. It would be perfectly splendid." His finger stopped on a dark red colored tome with gold lettering. "Hmm." He slipped it off the shelf, and then opened it to peruse the contents.

"Same body, wrong time. Same body, wrong time." He quietly repeated this as he looked through the pages. After a minute, he closed and replaced the book, and continued looking for another on the same bookshelf.

"Not that one, but maybe... This." Another book was freed from the bookcase, and opened. This was a muted black leather cover with only symbols on the binding.
"Tell me of what you've experienced since waking up."


"The secret passages are cool..." he spoke absently as he observed Perrish attentively as he browsed the books.

"Well I woke up with no memory of the raid or of this place. Or of everything that led to us being here. Was like waking up in a completely strange place and not knowing how you got there. I had other memories that I considered real, but then as minutes passed I started remembering this place, but not completely. I still don't, I've been remembering things and people as I see them, it's strange. And the memories I had as I woke up, they started feeling like a very vivid dream. And started fading more and more as time passed. I can barely recall them now." he paused, trying to assess whether what he spilling out made any sense., but ultimately decided to continue anyway. "When I woke up I remembered Chase, though he was a bit different. But I thought Turid was dead and I didn't remember you at all. Now it's like things are getting back on track, but these memories, or vivid dreams, and this amnesia just can't be normal."

And then he remembered something else. "I had another weird dream today. More like a hallucination, maybe... first, me and Chase were in another strange place, then suddenly I'd turned, was no longer human, you know? And Chase was gone, there was a woman there instead. Not Kadlin." he added that last bit because Perrish knew he used to dream of Kadlin now and then. He then leaned against one of the shelves and crossed his arms over his chest before continuing. "And I had to kill her, but before I could, I started hearing things and feeling pain and... when I woke up I'd slammed my head in the mirror. Curse was stirred up to. Can't be just a dream. This continues and I might just sleep-kill someone." he was still calm, but his tone was more serious.


Perrish listened as he tried to find what he was looking for. There were moments when he paused to give Leif a glance, or a raised eyebrow, or an expression of concern mixed with undisguised intrigue. "Interesting. What truly draws my curiosity, is the melding of memories. Ah, but first things first. I think I have something here. Let's return to the sitting room, more room to move."

Perrish let Leif lead the way as the other was closest to the door anyway. It was only after they were seated and the book was opened on the table, that Perrish began talking again.

"Now, this section here, is supposedly transcripts from the Mesopotamian era. True or not, there is definitely something relatable." All the text was in Akkadian, and gave Perrish pauses now and then as he translated. "They spoke of what they believed as dreams, or even visions from their gods. A secret sect believed it was possible to dream walk and wind up somewhere else. Possibly even becoming someone else if you were to walk into their dreams and wake up in their body."
Perrish looked up at Leif, "And that sounds... similar, yes?"


"It does, but..." he frowned, glancing at the opened book only to find a text he couldn't read. But it sounded promising for once. "...winding up somewhere else would be fine, but I've been here the whole time. Yet I just woke up here. And I'm not someone else. So two versions of me?" He shook his head at the confusing thought. "What else do they say?"


Perrish clicked his tongue with a fanged grin. "Only two? Think broader, much, much broader." He turned back to the text, reading over until he found more that might relate. "The Walker sect, that's what they were called. They believed dreams were doorways into other realms, and there were as many realms as there were dreams."

Perrish kept his finger at the spot so he wouldn't lose his place, giving Leif another glance. "So, quite possibly an infinite number of versions. How tantalizing!" He did nearly squeal with delight then, cutting it off just in time.


If Leif was about to forget he had a headache, he was now fully reminded of it. Of course he'd heard about paralel universes and such, but he never expected to et caught in such a mess.

"Right... I guarantee you it sounds a lot nicer when you're not going through it yourself." He wasn't really annoyed by Perrish's delight, and the man would know it. "Can I go back and forth? I'm stuck here? Not complaining, but... any consequences?"


Perrish made a sound and looked back at the book. He mumbled here and there, finger moving along the text to see if he could find the answers. A page was turned, then another and one more before, "Ah!"

He tapped the page, "They theorized.." Heavy emphasis on the word. "Theorized one could learn to go back and forth willingly, by focusing on dream waves. That one might learn how to tell what moved forward or backward, or .. sideways? Interesting. Let's see.. consequences are a bit more obtuse. As they don't state any experiences with actual practical application of their theories."

Perrish gave a bit of a scoff, "One should always try their theory before writing them down for others to peruse. How irresponsible."


"Fuck." Leif mumbled at the word 'theorized'. Still better than nothing, but if they didn't state any experiments, meant it wasn't easy or simple. "There has to be something newer, that can't be he only mention... if only there was a faster way to browse..." he spoke as he glanced at the vast collection.

"Leira said that if I stayed I'd become 'this' Leif, or something. Guess that means I don't necessarily have to do anything about it. Maybe." Now that sounded irresponsible. Maybe.


Perrish let out a snort, something that rarely happened around Leif, and never with anyone else. "Well, it would be interesting. Do you lose everything you've gained between here and wherever there is? Then there is the reverse. If you do find a way back 'there', what would you lose from here?"

Perrish was already examining more pages though. "Perhaps Turid can look in her collection as well. At least we sort of have an anchor, the name, the Walker sect. Hmm, suppose I should share this with the Tamus."

He gave a little shudder, "I just despise working closely with necromancers. Had a nasty sort in the past who used their abilities to control vampires. Nasty, nasty chap."


"Exactly... what's on the other side?" He mumbled. "We'll check her collection too." He spoke, and stopped before he could agree about Perrish sharing their discoveries with the Tamus. "You don't trust Bahg?" He asked with a slight, interested frown as he watched Perrish closely. Leif trusted Bahg, but could he trust himself with everything that was going on? Perrish was an outsider just like him and Turid, and his opinion was definitely worth hearing.


"Oh, Bahg's been fine, thus far. Just.. a general malcontent I possess with their type as a whole." Perrish gave Leif a bit of a smirk, "Never hurts to always keep up some of your guard, hmm?"

He dusted off his jacket, "I'll do some more digging into my tomes. And.. clean up around here a little." A vague gesture to the form on the floor. "I'll come by before morning, or in the evening, depending on what else I may find."

Perrish started to lead Leif toward the front door. "The night is young, go and enjoy it." He chuckled. "I have a new drink to taste, anyway. Standards must be maintained."


"Right." He nodded, observing Perrish a little longer before concluding there was nothing else between the lines. "Thank you." He spoke on the way to the front door. "I'll be sure to enjoy it now that I know I can skip between universes." He gave a bit of an ironic chuckle. "See you soon."


-----------------


"Realmwalker magic. That's what hit me." Leif spoke as soon as he entered the house to whoever he saw first, be it Turid or Chase, as he had no intentions of keeping any of that from either of them.


Chase and Turid were in the main area, getting ready for a hunt. They both looked up, Chase wuffled and Turid happily said, "Papa!"

Chase waited a moment to see if more was coming before he asked, "In the raid? They used realmwalker magic?" The way he said it left the impression he didn't truly know what it meant, aside from the conclusion one could jump to buy its name.


Leif didn't really expect them to know what realmwalker magic was, so he wasn't too disappointed when Chase made it kinda clear he didn't. He just really had to get that first bit out of his chest right away, and now he could start elaborating more. He moved to sit next to Turid and briefly stroked her hair before starting to speak again.

"It's like... perhaps I'm travelling between paralel universes, and that's why I had different memories when I woke up. So I'd be a different, or a paralel version of myself, only I'll sync with this universe the longer I'm here so that's why my memories are coming back progressively." It still bothered him how delusional he sounded when saying all that; but it was all he had for now, what could he do? "It's... the best guess we have, at least. Here's the test results." He added, clearly with less energy to his tone. And he held the piece of paper he'd jokingly asked Bahg for, but now was actually glad the man had taken it seriously, for Chase and Turid to read. And he waited for them to read it with a certain expectation. Not because he thought they could offer magical solutions, but because he felt like he had to hang on to whatever little information they had, even if it offered no visible solutions at the moment.


Turid was confused, so she just studied the paper a while longer than Chase. Wuffling up and down, he settled in a chair and tried to make heads or tails of it. One hand had moved to touch fingers with Leif, wanting some physical kind of connection.

It was Turid who spoke up first, with the most important question on her mind. "So, are you not Papa?"


Leif instantly laced fingers with Chase as if by instinct. And he gave a small chuckle at Turid's question, because as valid and well placed as it was, to him the answer was obvious, and the question bordering offensive, although he wouldn't take anything coming from her the wrong way. He never took anything she said the wrong way, she had that power. How could he not be himself, though? Of course he was himself.

"I am. Just..." he paused for a moment to think of a way to put his thoughts into words, and then continued even though he wasn't sure he found one. "I think I've been to different realms... places... Perrish found some book that theorized that maybe one can learn to control it and travel between realms or something, but it's just a theory... he's still looking, perhaps we can find something in your tomes." He glanced at Turid. "After the hunt." He was quick to add, knowing she would likely not be happy to have to browse through books instead of hunt. Truth be told, he felt the same.

"You were there too." He spoke to both of them, although this time he looked Chase in the eye. He never lied to Turid, but omitting sometimes happened. Even if she'd died, she'd been there, althought briefly, right? It didn't feel necessary to tell her he'd thought she was dead as he'd woken up, at least not right away. "I'm not sure about the others in the village... I remember them now, of course, I'm just not sure they were on the... 'other side'. But you were. Pretty sure it wasn't a twin." How could he clearly put into words something he only felt? "Only... we were somewhere else. I don't remember much anymore. Should have written it down. Or not. Maybe it doesn't matter. Feels like a weird dream now." He paused. "Maybe in the morning I'll look for the others who were hit. See how they're faring."


Chase wuffled, though he had a touch of a smile at Turid's question. And it stayed there through the rest of Leif's explanation. His voice was on the soft side when he finally said, "Okay, Turid, make sure you have everything you need for the hunt. It's going to be a family adventure!"

Turid giggled and hugged Leif, then Chase before she scurried back to her room to double check her bag. Blue eyes focused on Leif with more than a handful of wuffles once Turid had disappeared into her room.

"Let me know how I can help, if I can help. I may not understand it fully, but I have your back, always." His fingers curled a bit tighter to emphasize the truth of his statement.


Leif placed a kiss on Turid's forehead and watched as she scurried back to her room before turning back to Chase.

"No one understands it fully. No one understands it." He chuckled. "You're helping already. I love you." He gave a small smile.


Chase wuffled with that sheepish grin of his. "Love you too."

And Turid appeared, she did have enhanced speed, after all. "Love you two, three!" She giggled, something she said many times. "I'm hungry now, can we go hunt?"

-------------


It wasn't a usual hunt, because this time the prey were exclusively animals, yet that didn't mean it was any worse. Were it not for the need to be back at the village to continue the search for answers regarding the realmwalker magic, they'd have stayed in the woods at least a couple of days. Nights, actually. Even though it was a one night hunt, it yielded a few carcasses, from which the village would profit more than the hunters, or at least two of them, to whom the hunt itself and a bit of blood was all they claimed as rewards.

To say the prey were exclusively animals would be, however, not entirely true. The focus was on animals, but that didn't prevent them from tracking down suspicious human activity. An unlucky scout. No time was wasted with questioning, as hte Tamus had more than enough means to question him back in the village later. Instead, it was invested in ambushing and killing the man, an honor granted to Turid. Leif had never encouraged her to kill, but because it was something she occasionally sought, he'd been sure to teach her how to sate that need whilst showing respect for the victims. For animals, most importantly. Humans sometimes earned themselves more painful or unnecessary deaths, as would be the case of the unlucky, defiant scout. However, he still earned a quick death. It was like Chase's presence kept Leif's darker instincts more in check, made him less likely to cross certain lines, and that also transferred to Turid.

They made it back to the village before dawn, and everything they brought with them was promptly delivered to the right people. The now-zombie-informant to the Tamus, and the extra carcasses to whoever would make good use of the resources they provided. For Leif, it was now harder than ever to remember anything from the realm he'd supposedly come from. Going out to hunt with Turid and Chase had been a fantastic remedy to all his worries. Of course there was still much to be researched, discussed and figured out, and he was aware of that, but nevertheless it felt like the world was definitely settling in place.

 

[Rhyme]

Indy (Nahla?)

Location: Lake
Tags: Out Of Words (Augie and Indy Encounters compilation)

Indy sat down beside Augie, still feeling a bit awkward in meeting his gaze. Granted, she supposed she had been acting with what information had been available at the time, but as memories continued to flood her brain a dark bitterness had followed. It sat in her gut, an angry thorn that threatened to grow alongside her memories. She didn’t want it, hated the way it stroked pain with every second. In a weird, impossible way, losing her memories—the happiness she had felt this previous day, it was a reminder of something she had forgotten in her true life.

It made the prospect of returning to that furious drunken life unappealing. The food, once sweet and hearty, now made her stomach turn with the first scent.

“What do you think they’re planning?” She flicked at the note, watching it skit across the table and flutter to the floor. Good. She didn’t want to look at it. She wanted to go back to waking up, being the woman who made pottery and stole treasures from under the waves.

But that’s not who she was. Who she is, is it?

Augie could sense Nahla wasn't feeling all that great. Or.. had he even asked? "What.. do you want to be called?" He could do that much at least, right?

Augie had made sure they both ate, and had packed a bag for some early morning swimming. They could still get in some good testing by noon. If she still wanted to go of course.

She paused at his question, pursing her lips. It felt odd now, knowing what she did, to go by Nahla; but “Indy” felt particular and sour in its own way. She wasn’t sure she wanted to hear that name from Augie. She needed a name from then and now, something between Nahla and Indy.

“Indigo,” She said. “Guess I should start calling you gramps?” She grinned, standing from the table.

"Oh seas, no. No, no, no. Augie or Oogie is just fine." He gave a bit of a chuckle, moving to stand up as well. "So... Indigo." Feeling how it felt to say the name, and he wound up grinning. "Got your bag? I know of a shallow area just past the fences which should be a good area to see what you can, and cannot do."

He would lead them past some of the 'horse men' on patrol, and Augie had to stifle a laugh or two, remembering what she had said the morning she woke up.

Past the horse men patrol and down a small naturally worn path to the shore. It was a quiet little stretch of 'beach' area, the waters mostly clear, save for the foam of the occasional tide washing in. He started to strip off his shirt, and sandals.

"Anything you want to try aside from how long you can hold your breath?"

She followed, realizing too late the stupid coincidence of her name and her nature. A fish-girl named Indigo, it was like something out of a poorly written children's book; but, seeing the grin on Augie's face made her realize it was too late to go back and pick some other ridiculous name, so she just heaved a sigh and followed him. As they passed the creepy horse-men, Indigo found herself wondering how they might wear trousers; would it cover only the two back legs, or all four? Frankly, either option seemed positively disturbing and she gave a shudder as they passed them.

When they reached the beach, she paused to take a deep breath of fresh, summery air. Her lungs filled easily and for a moment she was inexplicably shocked, before she realized--she had been a smoker, before. But these were new lungs, untainted and ready to breathe and it felt wonderful, though it also only served to remind her how much she wanted a goddamn smoke.

Indigo kicked off her own shoes, tightening the knot of the bag the coin was held in around her neck. She smirked at Augie as she tied a knot in her shirt as well, securing it tightly around herself. "Always wondered what it was like to be a fish, how 'bout we just dive in?" That was a lie, she never wondered what it was like to be a fish--but she had enjoyed tapping on the glass tanks whenever she happened upon one. "Do I just... grow some fuckin' gills or something once I step in? How does this work?"

Augie laughed softly as he moved to take off his pants, leaving himself in only his underwear. "Well, sort of. You still have to focus on the water, and.. well.. relax?" He started to wade into the water until he was waist deep.

"If we shifted as soon as we got wet, well, it would make it hard to hide when we needed to." He held out a hand toward her to take, trying to beckon her into the waters with him.

So it worked by choice? She supposed it would be a bit inconvenient turning into a fish every time it rained. Or if she drank water—imagine, trying to have a nice drink and accidentally growing fins.

Indy smacked his hand away, charging into the water and swearing loudly as the cold waves soaked through her clothes. “I am going to turn into a goddamn icicle before I ever become a fucking fish.” She hissed. Now chest deep in the water, she turned and raised a brow at Augie, her teeth chattering. “Alright, now what? Just think water-y thoughts?”

Augie couldn't help but chuckle, though he did try to politely hide it. "Well, sort of. And it isn't really a fish. Think more... mermaid like? And you'll probably need to completely submerge yourself." He was already moving a little deeper himself, water up to his chest, but he didn't seem to feel the cold in the same way.

"Can see how long you can hold your breath too, but.. uh.. don't focus on that part of it?" He ran a hand over his mop of hair as he tried to give her pointers. "Try to just, meditate?"

She snorted. Even without her memories she knew meditation would probably be a bust—she had always been terrible at it, sitting still and counting her breath until she died of boredom. “Fine,” she muttered. “If I drown, don’t bother saving me.”

Best to get it over with. Taking a quick breath, she dropped below the water and surged her arms against her side, pushing forward to the deeper center of the lake. She kept her eyes open, feeling the slight sting as the water pressed against her skull. Her chest began to ache almost immediately, just as it had when she’d tried to hold her breath in the bucket. She focused on that pain, let it center her and fill her body as bubbles escaped her nose. It wasn’t quite a desire for death that filled her, but an indifference to it, which allowed her to exist within the instinctive panic of drowning.

It came suddenly. She didn’t notice until it was over. Until she realized the pressure in her body had subsided, retreated to make way for a balanced sensation— as though she was part of the water, rather than some awkward girl battling for control. Her eyes were clear, suddenly able to see through the cloudy silt. Tentatively, ignoring that innate sense of panic, she attempted to take a breath.

Deep under the waves, against the soft sandy lakebed, her lungs filled with her.

Her screech of surprise most likely scared every bird in a ten mile radius.

Augie was beside her, well, she knew it was Augie from her memories, because it didn't look like he had before she went underwater. Instead, he was part seal, part humanoid, and his toothy grin was full of humor.

When he talked, it was reminiscent of the sound whales made underwater. Deep, echoing pulse, but something Indigo could understand, or rather, the Nahla part of her could.

"Not too shabby, fish girl."

She screeched, her voice coming in even, irritatingly bright tones as the demon-Augie and all three-thousand of his teeth swam toward her. Bubbles exploded from her mouth as she gawked at his humanoid form. “You look,” she wheezed, clutching her sides as she laughed. “You look like an otter had sex with a chainsaw!”

Around her neck the coin seemed to grow heavier, hanging against her newly ashen skin as they floated in the water. It re-centered her, reminded her what they were here for. “The coins,” she raised a hand to lay on the small pouch around her neck. “Was it this lake you found them in?”

Augie just grinned wider and chomped his teeth together a few times. "All the better to keep the waters safe." Chomp chomp. He swam around her a few times, once making like he might 'nip' at her tail, not sure she registered she even had one yet. As for the coin, "It was deeper, is that where you want to go?"

She had noticed her tail, but, frankly, after spending most of her life as a cat, having a tail was suddenly the least fucked up thing considering current circumstances. Still, as Augie attempted his swim-by chomp, she flexed her new limb, making at attempt at slapping that terrifying grin off his face. “Lead the way, not a chance in hell I’ll be turning my back on you, Cthulhu.”

Augie gnashed his teeth and did a quick circle around her for fun, slapping her tail with his own. "Let's see how well you swim." He did a quick undulation with his tail and started speeding through the water. Though to be honest, he did go slower than he might have otherwise, just to keep an eye on Indigo and make sure she was faring well enough.

He led the way toward deeper water, where the light didn't penetrate as much, and they had to rely on their own eyesight to see through the darkness.

It was about a five minute swim before Augie slowed to a stop and gestured to what looked like a pile of rocks at what could have been a tunnel at some point. He patted a spot on the sandy floor, causing a little bit of a disturbance in the silt. "The coins were here."

She followed him, awkwardly fumbling over her own limbs as she adjusted to moving with the tail. The Little Mermaid was a crock of shit, Disney movies made this look so easy when in reality Indy felt like a kitten in a washing machine. Still, she managed to grit her teeth and keep up with Augie as he effortlessly—Goddamn him—led her to the dark seabed until he stopped to float above a collection of stones.

Indy carefully pulled the coin from her pouch, clutching it tightly as she laid a hand on the rocks. Something had been there, some entrance to deep caves or tunnels that had since collapsed— she could tell by the way the stones curled and caved inward, as though there was nothing to support the center of the pile. Shoving the coin back in her pouch, she grabbed one of the stones and pulled it away, tossing it aside on the ground. She grabbed another and glanced at Augie. “Well? Let’s open it back up.”

Augie grinned, and moved to start removing rocks. He began at the top, not wanting to have more just tumble down upon him. "We can see how much we can move."

Two hours later....

They made some progress, but it looked like the whole entrance tunnel had collapsed, or been filled in. They made barely a dent, just enough where they could 'sit' on the floor of the opening to rest. "This might be a few days' project." He was sitting and taking a rest himself, tail flipping like a kid kicking their legs back and forth. "What do you expect to find?"

Her arms were aching as she chucked one of the smaller rocks, watching it roll lazily across the silt until coming to rest among the other discarded stones. She heaved a breath, still feeling that instinctive burst of panic as water filled her mouth. “Fuck if I know. Could be anything. Pirate treasure? Booze?” If only they could be so lucky. She watched the sunlight far above, the edge of the rays dancing above their heads. “This coin followed me. It was important before and important now. Aside from the others, this is our best bet at figuring out some sort of connection between the past and present, or whatever time we’re in.” It was a lead; a stupid, underwater lead that required heavy lifting, but a lead nonetheless. “I guess we’ll have to finish this later. Maybe bring a hammer or something next time. Do you think we need to head back for that meeting?”

Augie did a little figure eight in the water before gnashing his teeth on purpose. Chomp chomp. "Yeah, probably need to dry out a bit, might take a little to get your land legs back. Literally." He laughed and made sure he was out of arm's reach.

“Come a little closer and say that again.” She didn’t know if she had sharp teeth now like he did, but she still rolled back her lips in a false sneer. “Lead the way then, Jaws.”

coded by: @s e v e n

 

[Out Of Words]

GM POST
OOC -This is the end of Season One: The Ravening - A Night Bleeds

Dedicated to the players who made this RP a great experience. Thank you for all your contributions to building lore, the world, and more. In a year with a lot of stress, you helped make this RP an adventure, kept me a little bit more sane, and gave me an outlet for those 3AM dream ideas. Hope to see you back in a few months when Season Two begins. If December Freezes

Thropian AsherMasher Britt-21 KodakWolf Rhyme Silver-

A family hunt in the night wound up being as close to perfect as perfect could be. Even for Chase, who bagged himself a nice deer, which would provide fur for Augie to make use of, meat for many stews to come, while the bones would go to Leira for her potions. There wouldn't be anything wasted.

They were enjoying their outing so much, time passed and they barely made it back before sunrise. Turid had no time to help comb through her tomes for more information on this Walker sect, and Perrish had left a note indicating he would meet with Leif when evening came around once more. Chase had enough time to help Leif tuck Turid in, and then enjoy a repeat of the night before. Wuffles, and soft groans gave way to quiet snores well past sunrise.

Loki had spent the morning trying to go fully barefoot, asking Dwight for tips on how to better commune with nature. He hoped after Dwight's mid-day meeting with the Tamus, they could go on a patrol around the village and he promised he'd do his best to be barefoot the whole time. Loki was excited to prove he could do it.

Drayden had delivered a note to meet at the village heart to Jeanine. He'd watch Shia during the meeting, and afterward they could go with Bastian and maybe see if Shia was up to some small flights yet. It was important to build up his wing strength early on, especially with the attacks on the village. Shia could then at least fly to safety if the worst came to pass.

Nahla and Augie had spent the morning diving for treasure, and Augie worked on calling her Indigo, not Nahla. While they didn't find any real treasure, before Indigo left for the gathering, Augie pressed a small shell into her hand. "When you doubt yourself, look at this and remember. The sea will always be good to you." He added they could go back after her meeting and see what else they could find.

Ashley woke to not just one note, but two. The other had fallen to the floor, and took a little bit to find. The name stirred memories of another time and place, a strong bond that couldn't be erased. Meet tonight where the shore teases the water, I'll share truths that will not falter. Lew

Ravens caught up to Aria just before she made it to the Tamus' home. "Hey. Uh.. You wanna try hunting in the woods after your meeting? Maybe a good run will help you wolf out." He grinned wide, eyes bright and hopeful. "Don't have to answer right now, I'll wait outside for you."

Dusk walked Vivian to the village center, pausing out of sight just around the corner. He pressed her against the exterior wall and framed Vivian's face in his hands. "I'll wait here for you." A kiss sealed the 'deal', and he chuckled as he had attempted to cause a little extra flush to her skin before the meeting. One hand slowly trailed away as he let her go, watching the whole while.

Those who had been asked to return made their way to the Tamus' home, the heart of the village and Bahg was there to greet them and allow them inside. "Welcome back. Please, have a seat, or stand if you wish while we wait for everyone. Leira will join us in a moment." He made eye contact with each of them as one by one, those affected returned, save for the nightwalker, Leif.

When everyone was present, Bahg spoke to the gathered. "One of our villagers has uncovered enough information to give us a hopeful resolution quicker than expected. Leira?" He knocked on the door to the room they used for the testing. It took maybe a minute, and another knock on the door before it opened.

Leira came out and looked at everyone, reciting their names quietly, mostly to herself just in an out loud kind of way. "Ashley, Nahla, Dwight, Jeanine, Aria, Vivian..." She paused, almost frozen in the moment, until Bahg reminded her the nightwalker couldn't make it during the day. "Oh, oh yes. That is okay. This will still work, I'm sure of it."

There was a period of silence until Bahg gently prompted Leira to explain with a soft clearing of his throat. "Oh, yes. Yes. So, walkers, of time, worlds, everything. All around us. Dreams are portals, portals are dreams. It's all tied together, past, present and future. And.. and.." It looked as if she was listening to a thousand voices at once, and took a touch to her arm to be centered again.

"Sorry, sorry. I think this will work. What we've found. With the crystals as a focal point, the core attuned, we believe we can return, switch back, reverse the magic that has befallen upon you. At least on this side." She gave them all a small smile. "One moment." She turned and headed back into the room where the sound of a drawer could be heard opening as the door slowly swung closed.

Bahg picked up the slack. "Using the crystals as, sort of an enhancement beacon, we found..." He stopped when there was a sound of shattering glass, at the same time Jeanine suddenly collapsed and slid to the floor, eyes closed. Another glass shattered, and Ashley fell unconscious. "Leira?" Bahg moved to the room, only to find the door was blocked on the other side. He started to ram his shoulder against the door, but still the crystals were broken. Each time a crystal was shattered, someone else fell. Dwight. Vivian. Aria. Nahla.

Like a movie suddenly stopped, they were left in darkness. Even Leif, when the last crystal was shattered, fell into the void. One could best describe it as being asleep, without a dream, and yet still being aware. It wasn't warm, or cold. There wasn't an up, or down. At first, there wasn't any sound or smell. After an indeterminate amount of time, of moments spent in this void, a sound registered.

From far away, it was like the wind, a soft whooshing to indicate travel. It lingered in the distance, but as soon as one could tell it was getting closer, it zoomed forward with a vengeance. Wind could be felt through the hair, pushing against their form, returning a sense of self at last, followed by a sense of flying. Weightlessness felt different from being formless, it restored an awareness of where their limbs were, though the definitions of up and down were still blurred. And time was still a measure that felt foreign and out of place.

Eventually, even a rubber band snaps when stretched too far, and that's just what happened. The void snapped, any sensation of motion ceased, and the sound of the wind broke apart to be replaced with water. Sounds of a small waterfall, a river, a babbling brook, something. The water was gently streaming and moving nearby. Sunlight filtered through the surrounding trees, warm but not burning for the one susceptible to such light.

Eyelids lifted to reveal the group gathered in the woods. Natural rocks cultivated a half circle waterfall, the sounds both soothing and grounding. They were all dressed in something they would have worn normally before the moon bled, before they were called to save the world. Leif had an extra ring on a finger, magic pulsing within it. And that's when knowledge flooded in, flowing as swiftly as the water beside them.

Everyone was 'back', they knew without a doubt who, and what they were. Vivian was Roje, Dwight was Edwin, Leif was... Leif, and so on. The when was modern day, the year as if they never left. The where, now that was a little more complicated. While they did return to the correct bodies, the correct time, it was not the place they recalled leaving. Or was it?

A certain coin still lay resting against Indy's chest, tucked underneath the shirt she wore. It felt warm, alive with a heartbeat, it was home. Indigo knew this place from long ago. Her adoptive mother lived here, Annabeth was here and likely waiting for her daughter's return to Marasong Harbor, a village just on the other side of the trees.

Indigo Sanderson has returned home, and brought some friends along for the ride.

A NIGHT BLEEDS
A story by Out Of Words​

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