Kongen followed the trail of Tethys' gaze and the skies to which it strayed. Shadows hovered above them, silhouettes belonging to avian heralds whose shrill songs filled this forest with life. He usually found peace in the coos and caws because their presence meant that it was safe. Fear only where the birds do flee. A wise memory recalled. Danger guides their little wings. Their journey drew them eastbound far beyond the mountain peaks where rivers met the ocean's edge. He'd been there only once to feel the sand between his toes and the cold waves crash against his shins. Is that where this stranger had been destined?

His icy stare returned to her when the lilt of her voice offered answers. Answers that he found soothing to the tangle of nerves that thrummed throughout his being. She was alone - alone like him.

A tragedy, in all consideration. Their kind harboured an almost archaic longing to reside in like company. They longed to be with other wolves. To lead, to follow. To hunt and to thrive. It'd been so long since Kongen scratched that primal itch that would - in turn - fester beneath his claws. Rankling lacerations filled with treason, tears, and blood.

It was becoming a dangerous place, these reminders, and so he'd turn from them with a grave grumble. "Good."

He watched the way the whisper of a breeze played with her human clothes, her human hair, and it reminded him of the anger. Anger at himself. Anger at them. A rage that threatened to consume the world if he'd let it. But he didn't. Despite how his lip twitched, how his body prickled at the sight of this human pretender. They were in the woods now; did she really need to keep up the appearance? What sense did it make to dress up like them, here, where no one but Kongen and the trees would see?

"Why?" He'd start with a disgruntled huff. "Why keep that face when you're out here? You're safer beneath the fur - you should know that."

She disregarded his comment on her lifestyle that didn’t involve a pack life. There was underlying resentment that remained bottled up and shoved deep, deep into a black abyss, chained and confined. Time could not be reset and events that had happened could not be undone. Decisions were set and there was nothing she could’ve done about it. A word that was final despite whatever pleas that fell upon deaf ears went unheard was spoken. Nothing would sway it all because apparently apples do not fall far from their trees. A stupid analogy and even more stupid comparison. It was something she’d rather not linger on despite the efforts to try and resurface.

Why? her own icy gaze blinked with mild confusion, her thoughts reeled away from their senseless wanderings, back to the maned wolf. Why keep that face when you’re out here? You’re safer beneath the fur – you should know that. She shrugged her left shoulder this time, a little more mindful of the stiffness and sore ache in her right, Tethys let the question linger a little longer allowing nature to sweep against her in mirthful jest.

“The world feels different against skin compared to our coat.” She mused. “I like the way the water feels, the way the grass tickles my feet, or the warmth of the sun,” She paused for a moment to allow her thoughts to collect a little more, “Maybe I like treading dangerous waters from time to time,” she said with a wolfish smirk. She lived in the little cottage that wasn’t much further from here, either. She hunted in her canine skin, but she lived on two feet. She didn’t feel the need to explain herself. “Have you tried it yet? It’s not that bad, really.”

!

It felt different. Did it truly vary so greatly? Skin against grass, skin beaded with sweat and droplets of cold water. A chill weaving between the valleys of goose-pimple riddled flesh. He felt the way the grass brushed against his legs; felt how the wind tussled throughout the tangerine locks of his matted fur. Sensations individual that could be experienced regardless of face or form. Then she spoke of danger. The true reason - he presumed - towards her adamantly retaining that girlish face as opposed to the wolfish howl.

Kongen furrowed his brows. "Weirdo." The cerebral murmur held a tinge of jesting.

And with one question, he fell to silence. A long, unsettling quiet that nearly had him rising from the cold ground, rising from his seat to return back to the forest that called him like a sputtering moth to a flame. He stayed. He spoke.

"A long time ago." The revelation was a stoic admittance, one that nearly made his stomach churn at the memory of it. Memories of how the wind blew through his hair, how it teased the cotton hugging his body, a veil devoted to modesty. Of her fingers hot against his skin, down the plane of his abdomen that sucked in a sharp breath beneath that adoringly curious touch. Her blood was warm against his earth as it dripped from the jowls of their proclaimed alpha.

He almost laughed, almost surrendered to misery. That sharp pang stabbed its way into his heart. Instead, he'd stand and begin walking towards the rush of the river's edge just a few minutes walk from their current settling.

"Cold of the river might help. Your shoulder, I mean." He murmured.

The silence was a familiar one. Far too quiet with the bubble of tension boiling over like a kettle shrilling for sitting upon heat longer than it should have. It was an unsettling quiet, one she was all too accustom to. A long time ago. the admittance came with a bitter twang upon her ears. It was enough that may have caused ones eyebrows to rise in the sparking revelation that the outward anger façade was all that it was. The rage and fury that this one may possess could’ve easily been a mask to guard and shield potential vulnerability. There was a story there, perhaps. A tale she had no business prying into lest they be so willing.

Tethys let out a soft humorless chuckle, hardly a sound while she lounged seated upon the earth. Digits combed through strands of grass, grains of pocketed dirt. Glacial gaze would lift at the motion of his stance where she brought her knees close together, arms locking and resting her head upon her kneecaps. Cold of the river might help. Her head lifted, momentarily puzzled until he’d clarify. Your shoulder, I mean. Tethys couldn’t help but offer an amicable smile, finally rising to stand upon two feet, making her way to the rivers edge, before sitting again. “You’re probably right.” she hummed, legs hanging off the edge while the water swept against them.

“Though just having the moment to sit is just fine.” She admitted with the tiring hint in her tone. “Especially by the water, it’s a great listener if you think about it.” Tethys paused in the sober moment. “How long have you lived out here, if you don’t mind me asking? Is it just you too?”

!

Kongen became this unpredictable entity, the flowing river, the evanescent ripple in the sense that he lent an attentive ear. He took in the quiet melody vibrating from her lips; he listened to the way her feet toyed with the water. A good listener, she claimed. Of course, the ragged wolf couldn't understand the nuances of it - anything could listen if you talked to it. Trees, grass, people. Even those who shunned the concepts of communication could open an ear to the voices around them.

Since he'd returned to the feral grounds of the woods, he hadn't been much for conversation - or listening for that matter. Truthfully he avoided it like the plague. Trees were easier to understand - they were simple, humble creatures. People... not so much.

"Is it just you too?" She wondered and he'd cock a brow in her direction.

"You ask a lot of questions." Kongen grumbled.

It could be a trap. Don't let down your guard for a pretty face. They were always the deadliest. Such sweet, saccharine smiles and coaxing words being the shovel to the grave. Ebony hackles rose along his back as he took in the scene around them. On all fronts, it appeared that they were, indeed, alone, but he could not brush past the thought that she may be a decoy. That somewhere, an armed bandit waited for him to slip. Still, he entertained her with an answer and a heavy, leaded sigh.

"Not long enough." He refused to turn his back to her, settling instead to sit at her side. Close enough to hear, but far enough to be out of harm's reach. "Why's it matter if I'm alone or not?"

It was easy to be angry. Something her mother had taught her once upon a time. It was much harder to not just explode something she would have told her tempered father if someone so much as looked at her mother wrong. It drew a sobered smile upon the huntress’ lips in absent thought while she watched the rolling little currents of the water. He was interesting – perhaps finding him a little humorous despite the serious bitterness in his words. Or, she was just oblivious to them which was also a strong possibility. She never was one to pick up on social cues well either. You ask a lot of questions. Her icy oceanic eyes would turn with a risen brow a light shrug, minding her shoulder this time.

“Yeah, I’ve been told.” she mused almost ruefully. How long had it been since her mother and sister died? During those darker times where she begged and pleaded, constantly seeking answers it led to a brutal beating just days before the excommunication. Tethys watched the water tease her toes while she tucked a stray chocolate and blue-tinted strand of hair behind her ear. Not long enough, his answer would come through which sounded almost forced. The distance between them was still stretched. Why’s it matter if I’m alone or not?

She would ensure the mood remained lightened bringing her index to her chin in teasing thought. “Well, it doesn’t matter really I guess.” She laughed. “Just trying to keep the conversation going really.” She kicked her feet idly, watching the water splash and for startled fish to scatter. “I live alone too,” she mentioned while looking at the trees. He probably could have guessed that she thought. “It was kinda hard at first but,” She finally rolled back allowing her back to meet the soils, stretching out her arms along the damp soils and grasses. “I don’t know if it got easier, maybe more tolerable I guess.”


!

What events could lead to a woman housing in these ancient woods and tethering herself to the trees with ropes of isolation? The cities welcomed her kind and embraced those willing to settle among their streets of worn-down cobble. She smelled of it - faint traces of civilization and smoke. She looked far more suited to a life of sophistication instead of the savage nature of the untamed wilds. Wilds that were as unforgiving as they were beautiful. Nature held no allegiance to kings and queens, it cared little about your status or your wealth. If you were foolish, you were dead. He knew that law far too well - did she?

"I live alone too," He listened as she continued and he felt a twinge of pity plucking at his breast. It never did get easier to be alone. One simply adjusts to the solitude. Kongen wouldn't admit it, but he was partially happy to have stumbled upon this strange woman.

"It gets better," He lied. "after a few years or so."

The weirdo seemed so content to lay in the grass, to spread her arms out as if there wasn't a care in the world. As if they weren't in the middle of the forest where beasts lurked in patient wait. Maybe he could be like her for once and let down his guard, enjoy the way the sun warmed his back and the grass cooled his paws. Then he was reminded of her, of them and his body stiffened. A low growl of frustration hummed from his throat as he stood. That's how it all began last time - a little trust and a runaway thought. It wouldn't happen again.

"Go back to the city, pup." He grumbled lowly, crudely, as he began to venture back into the depths of the forest. "You don't belong here."

It gets better after a few years or so. She listened despite the want to fight back crude laughter. Even she knew that to be a lie. Almost a decade now, if she was keeping track right. Instead, only responding with silence as she allowed her weight to fall back carelessly into plush soils. One of the many reasons why she preferred the more human-esque appearances as she stated previously was to feel the way the grass tickled her skin. The dampness of the soil felt different than it did comparatively from paw pads. The breeze sweeping against her tanned skin was much cooler than it was combing through mottled furs.

His muffled growl pulled her focus, dark brows rising upon her features as he began to take his leave. She pondered for a moment, wondering if she had said something to upset him. But then again, he’d seemed rather grumpy from the get-go. Tethys just barely managed to catch the end of his demand which she then sat up right with a push of her arms to the ground to hoist her weight forward. You don’t belong here. Feet splashing into the water again as she stared down at the reflection of herself staring back. That certainly sounded all too familiar. Though such insults were followed with a few brutal punches and stinging whips. Left arm while not able to reach to touch her back, she could absently allow her palm to trail her blouse-covered stomach. “He’s probably just having a bad day, I guess.” She muttered quietly. Icy gaze lifted to see if there was any other trace of him before realizing she’d been left alone again.

The hunter stood, stretching and nearly cursing under her breath, forgetting the strain she’d put on her shoulder throughout the day. “Oh well,” she chuffed half-heartedly, retrieving any of her things that had since been abandoned, and begin her way back home for the remainder of the day.


Tethys Exits 

!