i was a lone wolf.

thought i'd lost my pack. aurea.

[shewolfaurea]

Aurea: Definitions +1/?

[seriswyn]

Seris’ gaze lifted over Aurea’s shoulders to the wilderness beyond. Nothing of any interest had travelled through the woods, the animals engaging in dull chatter primarily for the sake of hearing their own voices. “They aren’t talking about you if that’s what you’re worried about,” Seris told Aurea, bound to honesty. Then, her expression took on a more skeptical air. It seemed like an extreme exaggeration to call Seris’ stretch of the wilds a neighborhood in any context. “You can come in, but the air is fresher outside the house.” House was also an exaggeration–it was more of a trunk–a thick one, and one magicked into an entire dwelling inside bending the bounds of space and matter. But still, the trunk of a tree. 

[shewolfaurea]

"It's perfectly fine, it's lovely," She feels like she's rambling, like stepping forward is like some kind of dream. When she'd just trusted her gut and ran, she didn't think it'd lead her here, not to someone she thought was far too kind and wasn't likely to turn her away. It didn't feel right, burdening her in such a way and normally Aurea could swallow it down, take it one step at a time. But she just can't then and there, not when she thinks she's in a magical treehouse of a home, miles away from her own. "I'm sorry, can I sit down?" She'd be embarrassed in point two seconds after she stopped feeling like she was going to hyperventilate. It's got to be the adrenaline from the run, from shifting, it was a bad come down from all of those feelings, it had to just be chemicals.

[seriswyn]

It was quiet in the wilds again, which was precisely how Seris liked it. A few of the children who lived far out on the outskirts of scattered settlements seemed less frightened of her–a supposed wretch in the woods who turned out to be little more than a woman–but they certainly weren’t any more social now than they had been before. Thus, it surprised her when she heard a knock at the door. There was no one Seris expected–animals perhaps, but they didn’t knock. Her expression was clearly one of perplexity when she opened the door to find Aurea standing there. “What are you doing here?” 

[shewolfaurea]

And as Seris moves through the house and Aurea stands outside it slowly dawns on her what she's done. She didn't have time to be embarrassed, not when the other woman was looking at her from the doorway. "I don't....I just..." She chews at the inside of her cheek and her face feels hot so she looks over out at the night sky over her shoulder, listens to the noises out there to get her bearings. "I just followed my nose while in the neighborhood." Looking back to Seris, a soft and almost sheepish smile pulls at her lips. "Needed even more air if you'd believe it." Even Haven could feel suffocating, the air felt less thick when she was on four paws in the Wildlands.

[shewolfaurea]

Person: @seriswyn Location: Thee Wildlands It had been a childish decision and if her mother were still alive, Aurea was certain she'd be getting a lecture. But there's no mother for her out here but the moon and there's light at the border and she'd just killed a man and so taken a moment and then taken off into the woods. A run for herself, just herself, that had her shedding boots and her cloak on the path and what had started on two legs had ended in four. She didn't know how long she'd been going, but when she was back on two legs and frantically pulling clothes back in place, she doesn't have to think too hard on where she is. Knocking at the door, she exhales slowly, trying to appear less like she'd just had a panic attack in the woods.

[seriswyn]

“Let me know if it pulls throughout the night, I can always move a pin or change something,” Seris advised Aurea as she dropped her hands from her work. She didn’t mind Aurea’s tone–she suspected either Aurea was tired or just bracing herself for an evening fitting into her role. Seris knew how that could be to a smaller degree. It wasn’t too often that she was expected to trot out a certain level of decorum when other noble Elvhen families visited, but she understood the pressures of being an eldest daughter until she ran away from them. 

Seris sunk into the seat beside Aurea when she made eye contact through their reflections, presumptuous perhaps but Aurea could command her rise if she wanted to. “You don’t need to thank me, I don’t mind doing it.” She quieted again allowing Aurea the space to speak her mind. “You were in the unfortunate position of being what stood between the Arishok and what he wanted. Many would have crumbled where you held fast. As far as I see it, the whole of Taravell owes you their thanks, not the other way around.” 

She was quiet for a moment before she stood. “I’ll allow you to finish preparing for the evening… I should get ready myself. Perhaps I’ll see you later in the evening,” she suggested as she moved toward the door.

[shewolfaurea]

"It's not something easy to do, I suppose. Think of myself as this....Great Queen that everyone thinks I am. To me I'm just Aurea," Her shoulders raise in a slight shrug as she looks down at her hands as she put them in her lap and she can't pick at her freshly cleaned up cuticles. "Thank you though, for this, for the kind words." The tops of her cheeks burn somewhat and she laughs softly, smiling softly at Seris's reflection in the mirror. "I'm sure it sounds ridiculous, to hear that I still feel small." These great feats she accomplished, she didn't do them to get songs written about her or spread her glory throughout Taravell. "I just do what I think is right and hope for the best." Her hair truly does look lovely, she looks like herself and yet still regal. It's a good balance, it's one she thinks she really needs right now. As the elvhen stood, Aurea turned her upper body to watch her, her hand shooting out to gently reach for the other woman's. "I'd like that, I owe you a couple of drinks for this." Her hand squeezes Seris's in yet another thank you.

[celebpicss]

Hailee Steinfeld

[seriswyn]

“You don’t have to trouble yourself,” Seris protested. The tone of her voice didn’t signal that such a gift was unwelcome or rejected, but rather that she hated to see herself become an imposition to Aurea in any manner. “Your ability to succeed earlier today was thanks enough. You fought well for all of us, and the restoration of peace in the Wildlands is as much as any of us should ever hope to ask of you.” She supposed from what she knew about Aurea she should assume if Aurea was inclined to give such a gift, she would. She was strong wield and determined, but still Seris hated the creeping thought that Aurea might have interpreted Seris bringing it up as a sort of request for a handout or payment. 

When Aurea placed the circlet on her head where she wanted it to rest for the evening, Seris began weaving her long, dark hair. Some strands of the plaits were looped around the metal, locking it into place and integrating it into the small, intricate net of interlocking braids that overlaid the length of Aurea’s hair. Seris was quiet as she worked, focused and considerate not to tug or pull. Once she was satisfied, she looked at Aura from the front and carefully centered the circlet for the evening. “Is that comfortable? Is anything pulling or in need of adjustment?” Her own mother used to braid her hair so tightly from time to time that Seris suffered a tension headache the entire day long and her scalp ached at the sensation of touch for days after. 

Seris’ brows furrowed at the question. “Why did I help you get ready tonight, or why did I come to Haven?” she asked, wishing to clarify before she answered.

[shewolfaurea]

Gratitude, it wasn't just about worry, but perhaps a way of showing her own thanks for everything Aurea had just done. It's not like people hadn't said their thanks, handed her gifts, but this felt somehow more personal, spoke to Seris as a person, that she'd offer her own act of service in return. When was the last time someone had taken care of her? Not because she was a queen, but because they cared? Outside of Althea at least. And Freydis, though each in their own individual way. "That's perfect, thank you." It feels stiff, her tone, not her circlet, it sits nicely the braids feeling secure. Her eyes went from the surface of her vanity to it's mirror to admire the way dark strands weaved around white gold and it's far prettier than anything she could have done herself. And for a second she just takes in her reflection, not seeing the tired wolf she felt she was, but a queen, well put together though weary and her chin raises just a little. The smile that pulls across her lips is almost shy as her eyes meet Seris in the mirror's surface. "Both actually, I have to thank you for both, and this is so lovely, I just-" Felt somewhat like she was getting overly emotional over what she imagined Seris must just mean as a small gesture of kindness. Tops of her cheeks tinted faintly pink, Aurea gave a soft little laugh at her own expense after taking a second's pause. "This is so incredibly kind, it has been overwhelming to see the support that everyone has had for my people, for me. I fear I'll never be able to thank anyone enough."

[freydis-freydat]

“Nothing too fine for m’lady,” Freydis responded in a tone of gravitas, punctuated with a flourish of her hand. She was teasing Aurea, the same as she had a day or so before when the queen had arrived in her garden dressed for a portrait to be taken. They both knew leadership, both had to shift their dialect and countenance when demanded–and Freydis was unsure which of the two of them enjoyed poking fun at the other more. But a moment later, she processed the tail end of the look Aurea had given Soren, and her eyes shifted to his face as well as she remained silent. She was a strange mix between chronically oversharing and only revealing her closest secrets to her innermost circle, but she had no idea how Soren felt about disclosure of their attachment. 

“Oh don’t worry, I didn’t wash anything from the garden before making any of the jam or other items, there’s still plenty of dirt in all of that,” Freydis fibbed. Of course she had washed it, and she had only allowed the finest berries and produce to find their way into the pot for the batches of jams and pickled items. On top of this, she was almost certain she’d bored Soren to tears before he finally managed to get Freydis out of the cabin after she had requested his assistance meticulously selecting the most symmetrical and beautifully scored loaves for Aurea. “Perhaps she needs a drinking song,” Freydis suggested.

@shewolfaurea

[shewolfaurea]

Aurea is smiling at the both of them, looking from one to the other with raised brows and they smell like each other. They really smell like each other, not just as if they have been sharing recent company, but close quarters. Frequently. Neither of them had said anything to her about what that meant, but she did know what a motivator Freydis being taken had been for both herself and Soren. The signs had been there the entire time. "Ah yes, some dirt for celebrating." She nodded knowingly and if this was what it looked like, there were indeed logistics, there were hesitations she had. Soren's status was a secret Aurea kept near and dear to her heart, one that she'd defend fiercely if it ever came to light. And Freydis was a friend whom she cared deeply for, one who deserved to know the truth. But for the moment, she is happy for them. Standing between the two, the basket of the blonde's baked good on her arm, Aurea claps a hand on each of their shoulders and nudges them forward closer to the drinking tents and grins outright wolfishly at Soren. "Yes, I do believe a song would get us all in the mood for a party." Oh they're going to have words later.

@rhysxvuldak

[rhysxvuldak]

Many would tell people to suck it up, and decide that the loyalty was owed by blood alone. Aurea wasn't the one who'd done that, though. She'd offered plenty of mercy, and that's why so many had chosen to follow her. As it was, Soren stood there for a moment, reconsidering all that he'd jokingly – and not so jokingly – offered. Joining the pack would put strain on Aurea, would it not? He was blighted, dead, and didn't wish to poison her through a link that would be made. Such a thing was most likely not possible, but the Dark One thrived and took hold of him in death, Soren wasn't so sure he'd ever escape that in life.

"I don't think that's my worry, Aurea," he said finally, like he would have to take this conversation seriously in order to truly decide whether or not he could. "I know I could join the pack, I know that you would take it on but – my mind is so...dark. How would you handle it?"

[shewolfaurea]

"If it is something you want, I can start finding a way." Already she was trying to think of who she knew that might know more. Zeliha came to mind, she might have some sources further out into the Wildlands that had some sort of insight. "There might be some way to ward it off, mask it from the bond." Aurea was just speaking out loud, voice quiet as she flicked through options. "Even if it can't be done officially, it's no trouble to turn over a few stones to get there." She'd rather know, she'd rather try, than just consider such a thing a defeat.

[seriswyn]

Seris knew exactly where the jewelry she had mentioned was, undoubtedly unmoved within her room that had been kept like a crypt since she had left. Her family was not the type that would move on easily, and by Elvhen standards she was hardly more than a child when she left. They were not lost, but they were lost to Seriswyn now. “I don’t have them anymore,” she admitted, though it had been a nice notion on Aurea's part. 

“It always looks nice when you braid it,” Seris stated absentmindedly as she collected the brush and took her place behind Aurea. She made quick work of untangling it, starting from the bottom and taking the time required with each knot or tangle rather than forcing it. Several minutes had passed before she gestured to the circlet. “You may have to hold it where you’d like it to sit most comfortably for you while I do the first few braids,” Seris said, waiting for Aurea to place it. “Just let me know if your arms get tired, we can take a break.” Her fingers worked quickly, careful never to tug or pull. “I could leave some loose if you wish,” she suggested. She had noticed Aurea seemed partial to leaving the long, dark length of her hair down.

[shewolfaurea]

Aurea made a mental note to find something amongst all of those treasures she was sitting on locked away that had moss agate. Seris was kind, what she was doing there was something for kindness's sake, she deserved nothing but kindness in return. "I'll have to find you something then, as a thank you." Reaching for her circlet, her eyes catch Seris in the mirror as the elvhen moves behind her, and she simply wonders. Kindness like Seris's didn't come from nothing and from what she knew of her home, of how the cavern was a place that suffered at the hands of the Cataclysm. Gentle hands moved through her unruly hair and there's something about it. About having just killed yet another tyrannical man and just having spent time scrubbing away dirt and blood from herself only hours ago and yet she is being treated with care. "If you could, that'd be much appreciated." Holding her circlet atop her, the moonstone in the center of it gleaming amongst the white gold crafted interwoven branches that made up the body of the thing, her lips quirked up into a smile. Another thing to add to the list of the other woman's kind deeds, paying attention to little details. "Forgive me if this is out of line, but why did you offer your help to me?" It's something that's been on her mind when it came to anyone who'd listened to her call to aid but she'd been too afraid to voice the question out loud, not wanting to look any gift horses in the mouth.

[freydis-freydat]

who: @shewolfaurea @rhysxvuldak when: toward the tail end of Aurea's celebratory feast where: Haven notes: <3

Freydis had been determined to attend the feast in Aurea’s honor held within Haven as soon as she had gotten enough rest. Unsurprisingly, Soren had managed to stretch the one-more-night’s-sleep Freydis had additionally bargained for into a handful of days–so many so that Aurea had come to find Freydis in her garden before Freydis had come to find Aurea in her capital city. But Freydis was determined not to miss the festivities in whole. Though much of the mirth might have been winding down, there was still no shortage of a sense of victory, pride, and celebration when Freydis finally found her way into Haven several days into the celebration, Soren in tow. The Vuldak was all but forgotten when Freydis laid eyes on Aurea from across the festival grounds and, naturally, took off running to greet her friend. Soren would not be far behind. She threw her arms around Aurea when she was close enough, as if it was their first moment reunited in months, but for Freydis no amount of time spent with those she cared about ever seemed to be enough. “There she is, the Arishok Slayer herself,” Freydis greeted warmly, giving Aurea a brief, tight squeeze. “What festivities does Haven have to offer today?” she asked, transferring a basket from the crook of her elbow into Aurea’s hands and closing the wolves’ fingers around the heavy basket’s handle, all manner of hand-made goods inside of it. 

@shewolfaurea

[shewolfaurea]

To say she's warmed by the sight of Soren and Freydis coming up the path towards the festivities. There's some kind of comfort in knowing the people she cares about are hanging around each other. She pauses in her steps, allowing Freydis to envelope her and had Aurea been shifted, she was certain her tail would have been wagging. Returning the hug, the usual smell wafts from Freydis, the one that's baked goods and some sawdust, remnants of the mill, the forests she'd traipsed through and.... Over the blonde's shoulder, Aurea's brow quirked at Soren, curious but not angry. Attention returning back to Freydis, she stepped back from the embrace and looked down to the braided basket now on her arm and she beams. Well this was certainly a development she hadn't been expecting. "You are too kind to me." It's formal in nature, but she does mean it. "And we're looking at an evening of drinking, snacking, and plenty of revelry." Actually she was going to have to poach them for mead pong at the festival grounds. But she'd have to stop squinting at Soren first to be able to ask.

@rhysxvuldak

[seriswyn]

Seris’ eyes shifted to the ground as Aurea turned to face her more directly, but she nodded to acknowledge Aurea’s gratitude. She attempted to think of something else that would interest or concern Aurea, but nothing came to mind. Instead, she moved further into the room and pulled one of the chairs slightly closer to where Aurea had been left to get ready. 

“I have nowhere else to be,” Seriswyn responded. Perhaps the festivities outside, but she didn’t mind missing out on the throngs of wolves and witches alike. She didn’t quite fit in with either, though she celebrated the accomplishment of a shared goal with them. “Moonstone is a good choice,” Seris encouraged, craning her neck slightly to look at the pieces. “In Varda’s Cove I’m almost certain I had a similar set, but everything with a moss agate inlay.” She gleaned at the circlet and then to Aurea’s hairbrush not far from it. “If you’re interested in a style less traditional to the Wildlands and more customary to Avalon, I think I still remember how to plait around a circlet.” She would not move until Aurea accepted the offer.

[shewolfaurea]

"You'll have to wear them to the next big thing, we'll match." Moss agate would look good on Seris, she thinks, would compliment her eyes. It's something easier to think about now, after everything was over, going to ridiculous events around Lysara with her friends at her side. At the suggestion, Aurea's brows rose and she was taken out of her brief thoughts of the lot of them all dressed up with some ridiculous place to go in Eterna. "It's a bit in a state of constant unruliness, my hair," Althea legitimately always commented on if Aurea had brushed it that day or not. The plot twist was that usually she did, it's just when left loose with all of the things she did around Haven, brushing it was often somewhat of a chore. Aurea's expression is almost sheepish, but she's seen the braids of those that came from Avalon, the intricacies of them were baffling, she herself could do a quick three strand braid, she could pull it around her head. Anything else though was the work of a few unlucky handmaidens. "If you're up for a challenge, I'm up for it." It's a very kind gesture and she thinks that if Seris came all this way, it wasn't just to talk about scouting squads. A little time together might soothe the both of them back into some sort of normalcy after everything that'd happened.

[fxrvernxw]

[rhysxvuldak]

Soren was not the one to thank at times. He played the Game in Eterna, played it well, but he owed the freedom to be what he could be – should have been, perhaps – to his friend. The rest of him was a carefully built lie, stacked so high, he just had to be certain it never fell. "Stop it. You know my ego is already big enough. You don't have to remind me that I'm great," he held one of her hands in both of his, bringing it up to his mouth so he could place a kiss on her knuckles, "I doubted me. Many, many times. But no one else usually does, so I do it just to remain a bit humble."

The Vuldak gave a wry smile, releasing her hand before he hummed and picked up his lute instead. "Did you feel it, then? The pack behind you when you went up there?" He always wondered what that connection was like – if he'd feel the same about it. It wasn't a fix for him, he was still a demon – soul twisted by the blight. But it would grant him a fighting chance, and perhaps that's what he desperately needed.

[shewolfaurea]

"When I first became alpha, no one really knew who I was." She's still smiling fondly at him, tickled as always by his antics, but her voice is almost wistful. "Just a lone wolf who'd shown up with nothing to lose but everything to prove to myself. I remember standing there and looking at all of the faces of the wolves around me and my victory had felt shortlived. Because I couldn't help but wonder 'what if they don't want me'." And some of the pack had left, Aurea had given them the option to, she would not make people stay if they didn't choose to follow her as alpha. Those that had cheered for her, a rousing chorus of howls and celebratory screams, some of them had been there with her in the beginning. Perhaps they'd even doubted her at some point, but they had stayed, the pack had grown, their allies, their had shown up for them. When Arishok fell, she had felt everything, all of their relief and their joy, just as she'd felt their encouragement throughout the each lunge she'd taken at yet another tyrannical man. "It feels like home." She muses, and there's a pang in her chest at the idea that even if he did commit to the pack, that he wouldn't feel it in that same bone deep way. There's a kind of delicate hand to have with a Vuldak joining up, she had to be prepared to fight for him, she had to be prepared to do everything she could to understand him. "It wouldn't make you any lesser in my eyes if you couldn't feel it. We'd make you feel at home anyways." Her smile is softer, trying to offer a bit of comfort. They had logistics to figure out if he was to make good on his word.

[freydis-freydat]

“Would it be rude of me to ask to try that on?” Freydis poked fun at Aurea’s pose, paying special attention to the circlet she wore. The veil maiden liked finer things, but they mostly found their way to her embedded in the hilt of a weapon or in some other sort of resource for battle. She, of course, did not mean to actually snatch the sign of status from atop Aurea’s head. 

The embrace they shared lasted longer than others in the past. Freydis welcomed it–each ache in her back, watch strain of muscle, each gently pressed bruise didn’t phase her. They merely helped ground her and remind her that she was home. She allowed Aurea to hold her at an arm’s length and peered at the garden with Aurea for a moment as well. “Are they anything special?” Freydis asked. Though she was preparing the patch of land for planting, she was not entirely sure this would be the final spot she chose to sew the next iteration of the garden.

She shook her head at Aurea, fully expecting something of a lecture or light admonishment. “I’m just a little battered and bruised, but nothing a few days of rest can’t resolve on its own,” she promised. “I haven’t been in the city yet–I had planned to come to you tomorrow, or maybe the next day. I just needed a little sleep, and to visit with someone else first.” She paused for a moment, and pulled Aurea close into a hug once more. “I missed you–I heard about the battle, I’m so proud of you.”

[shewolfaurea]

"I have tons of them, we should make a day of it." Aurea chirps, still grinning despite her eyes being wet until Freydis speaks again and then the tears actually spill. And she chuckles softly, fondly, at the idea that of course the blonde was only battered and bruised. Of course that's all she'd say after being kidnapped and taken so many miles from home. Aurea envelopes the Veilmaiden again and she realizes she hasn't really had any time to do this, to cry. From the moment she knew that her friends, members of her family, had been taken, she had been moving. The tears that stream down her cheeks are silent, they are of relief and she's still got an arm around Freydis when she draws a shaky breath. "I found kept asking myself what you would do. The entire time you were gone. I was so afraid I was going to lose you." But Freydis was back home on Haven soil and when Aurea stepped back from her this time, she reached into her pocket to withdraw a little burlap bag. "They're seeds for moonflowers, I used to grow them with my mother and I've kept growing them ever since. They've always marked home for me."

[seriswyn]

The room was silent for a few moments save the awkward shuffling of Seris’ feet as she half turned to leave and then Aurea’s voice. Her attendants would have set out her circlet and jewels for the night near the vanity, and would likely return soon with whatever garments were deemed most fitting for the occasion. The feast to honor Aurea’s accomplishment was well underway outside, but if Seris had learned one thing it was that Aurea would continue to hold her breath until she had her satisfaction in learning the fate of everyone she cared for who defended against the Kossith or had been captured by them. 

When Aurea did not request Seris leave, and instead encouraged her to linger, the Silver Elvhen only took another half step or two into the bedchamber. The room was situated with richly colored textiles and finely crafted pieces, but it was not the gilded room of the nobles Seris was used to. It reminded her of what had been considered finery in Varda’s Cavern, of things that suited her just fine even if the elites of Eterna might look down their noses at such things. “I heard the first regiment of scouts is going to look for the vessel,” Seriswyn said, clinging to the idea of making sure others were okay. She could only imagine that Aurea’s mind remained wrapped around such a subject. “They have started to organize a second and third wave of scouts as well.” She stood there lamely, delivering updates like some messenger girl.

[shewolfaurea]

"We're making good time." Aurea's head tips in a nod and she rolls her shoulders back, the sentiment followed by an exhale she hadn't been aware she'd been holding. Turning half around to actually face Seris and not just look at her in the mirror, the world feels a little less heavy. "Thank you, thank you for coming out to tell me." Straightening up a little and glancing around, she's quick to gesture to the couple of chairs near the vanity area, little footstools. "Do you have time to sit? I don't want to keep you from any part of the party while I'm," Her eyes fall on the sparkles set before her and it all feels terribly silly, it always does. Less so this time, this had been a victory, one she'd won with her bare hands. The idea of dressing up and parading around feels less frivolously ornate and more like an actual victory lap. "Pretending I'm not just going to go with anything with moonstone."

[whatonearthisthis88]