(Untitled)

[not_the_s]

Kon groaned softly when he woke up. It was still that time just before dawn when the entire world was quiet. Except that Kon could hear the chittering of squirrels and the calls of birds. He tried to roll over, but his feet tangled in the sheets and he kicked something off the bed as he was trying to get them out. That woke him up completely

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[curiously_cora]

Coraline's eyes were red from crying. Lucy was gone and she felt horrid. She felt sick and tired and clingy. She couldn't understand how anyone was so happy when she felt so sad. She'd followed the sheets though because even upset she was still a curious girl.

When she'd found the party she hadn't smiled like normal or even asked any questions about why they were throwing a party- she had just took her catbag and sat by herself. Alone. Knees pulled up to her chest, she sat staring out at the water. Lucy would have loved the party.

[sadiablo_witch]

Graysfang saw the young lady crying. She hurt, but he couldn't smell any injuries. She needed help, and she was alone. The wolf wondered where her pack, her family, her father and brothers were, to leave her alone like this in such pain. Padding over on silent paws, he came over to her, giving her shoulder a gentle nuzzle of reassurance. Human cubs often found animals to be better companions than other humans, and he wouldn't be a proper warlord if he left a female of any race in pain.

[curiously_cora]

Coraline wiped her eyes, sniffing as the wolf came over to her. For a moment she had thought it was one of the direwolves, another painful reminder of Lucy but it wasn't. Or if it was she didn't recognise it. Coraline held her hand out for the wolf to sniff.

"Hello," Coraline said quietly, wondering if he'd let her stroke him.

[sadiablo_witch]

Graysfang sniffed the hand politely, giving a soft whuff of greeting. The child wasn't injured, or really afraid, a good sign. He nudged her hand with his head, using actions instead of a psychic thread of speech to say it was all right if she wanted to pet him. Being brushed by humans was one of the nice things that came of having friends outside the kindred wolves.

[curiously_cora]

"You're nice," Coraline said half smiling when he nudged her hand but the smile didn't last very long. She stroked his head quietly and let her knees drop down to the side so she could cross her legs. "I mean everyone thinks wolves aren't nice but they are. It's dogs you have to be careful of, the other mother keeps other dogs and they're not nice at all. Cats are nicer but there aren't any other cats just normal ones. I wonder if there are other wolves."

[sadiablo_witch]

Graysfang puzzled over this speech, understanding the words, but not really their meanings. But the girl seemed a little better, and that was important. He lay down beside her, half-leaning into one leg, but ready to be on his feet in a heartbeat if anything happened. The wolf held mostly contempt for dogs, unless they were also kindred. They were the tools of men, and used to hunt wolves, among other prey.

Surreal had noticed her companion's absence, and decided it might be better if she headed over as well. "His name is Graysfang," she offered, quietly, intending to return to her time in the sun if the child found her presence too much. "He's a warlord, and it's the duty of a warlord to take care of ladies when they hurt."

[curiously_cora]

"Graysfang," Coraline said quietly, stroking the soft fur of the wolf. Coraline looked curiously at the wolf, wondering if there really were Other wolves and if she could trust all wolves because of it. "I'm not-I'm not hurt. Is he really a warlord?"

[sadiablo_witch]

"He is," Surreal said, remembering his fierce protectiveness in Dorothea's camp. "Sugar, he saw you crying, so he wanted to help as he can. Wolves don't seen things the same way humans do, but protecting and caring for cubs is the most important thing to them. Even if you're too old to really be considered a pup."

She hesitated, considering. Her experience with children was rather limited, since nobody really wanted a whore around their kids, retired or not. She didn't like children, either, since they whined and made trouble. "Would you like to talk about what happened?"

[curiously_cora]

"I'm almost a grown up Mister Graysfang, you shouldn't worry about me." Coraline said looking down and brushing her hair infront of her face to hide her red and teary eyes. She shook her head, swallowing a sob in her chest. She thought it would be better surrounded by all these people but it wasn't- it was worse. "My-my friend is gone."

[sadiablo_witch]

Graysfang nuzzled the girl again, trying to help as best he could with the limitations he had. She shouldn't be hiding like this, it wasn't right.

"Oh, honey," Surreal said, all of her usual attitude slipping away, leaving only sympathy. "Is she...? Did she vanish or is it something else?" Because if it was something else, she planned to find something to do about it. Not killing who was responsible, because there was that barbaric law against proper retribution, but something.

[curiously_cora]

"Both. She vanished but I know-I know it's the work of the Other Mother. Why else would she leave me? She promised and Lucy never breaks a promise, she would never leave without saying goodbye not even for Aslan." Coraline said upset and angry. Everything felt so wrong, so grey and unhappy without Lucy. She had accepted easily leaving her parents behind because this was just another adventure and that one day she would go home and see them again. But she would never see Lucy, Lucy was fictional where she was from and even if she wasn't then she would have been dead.

[sadiablo_witch]

"Sometimes, you don't have time to say goodbye, no matter how much you want to," Surreal said, quietly. "I was about your age when my mother died. She didn't get to say goodbye, and it was centuries before I found out she'd become a demon and I could still see her from time to time."

Strange to think of how resistant she'd been to the thought that her mother was a harpy, even the Queen. Now, she would give almost anything to see her again, even though she knew that she had burned the last of her power out in the greatest battle ever, and to protect her and the rest of the Blood that honored the old ways.

[curiously_cora]

"Your mum is dead?" Coraline asked quietly, she wiped her eyes stubbornly and drew short little sniffles before she finally looked at the woman properly. There was a question that needed to be asked even as miserably as she felt- she had to make sure she was safe from villains. "Your mum is a villain?

[sadiablo_witch]

"No, she's not a villain," Surreal said, smiling softly. "She's the Harpy Queen, and an amazing witch, a lot like her daughter. And no more evil than I am."

[curiously_cora]

"What's a Harpy Queen?" Coraline asked curiously stroking the wolf carefully. Witches weren't necesarily bad- Bill wasn't and neither was Mildred in the Worst Witch books. Only some of the witches were bad. "You're not evil are you? Only I'd have to defeat you, that's my job."

[sadiablo_witch]

"A harpy is a special type of demon. My mother was the queen of them all," Surreal said, smiling softly. "Some people might say I'm not very nice, but I'd never, ever hurt a child, or someone who wasn't trying to harm me and mine."

With children, the line between good and evil was so clear-cut, but she hadn't seen the world like that since she was the girl's age. Since her mother was murdered. "Where I come from, there are people who will do mean things just because they can, and they don't think anyone can do anything about it. I'm one of the ones who can."