[ For someone who'd been gravely injured, he doesn't look all that terrible. Morga regards him with a careful look for a time, arms folded under her torso. The chicken that had been pecking at her cloak gains the attention of a second which goes to her boot, pecking at it once or twice and then it tries to scoot past her to slip inside the house. That gets her attention at least and she shifts to slide her foot between its legs, twisting far enough to the side so she can gently "toss" it back towards the yard.
Bad chicken. Outside. ]
Who else would I be?
[ A beat, and Morga frowns. ]
...You look like shit.
[ AKA he looks like something Vlagnagog tried to eat, then decided to spit back up. ]
[ Speechless for a moment, he lets out a strangled laugh at the sneaky chicken and another at her comment. After everything he's been through in the last month... or two... or... maybe more, there hasn't really been much in the way of good news. But seeing Morga here in the flesh, right at his front door? That's a bright light in the dark. He could hug her, honestly, and he might actually have done it if not for his arm and his leg (and also being a shy nard). ]
Heh... it's good to see you, too?
[ Well, he can at least let her in the house before the chickens bumrush the place. There's no point in disguising the clumsy way he limps as he steps backwards to make room for her to walk in, almost entirely unable to put weight on his right leg. But, as has been the case for the last couple weeks, "almost" is not "not at all," and he won't be told what the fuck is up by anyone, including himself or his lousy body. ]
D'you want—uh, come in. I just got home a few days ago and there's not really anything to eat here, but... actually, who cares about that?? Where the heck have you been? I thought— I thought something happened to you!
[ Once she's certain the chickens aren't going to try and sneak in behind her, Morga follows him in and makes sure to shut the door behind her. Gesturing for him to sit back down, she slides her bag from her shoulder and begins to rummage around in it upon his admission that there wasn't much to eat. Honestly, these children-
She shouldn't care, but... Law was different from the rest. Plus it's not as if she could exactly expect him to go out and hunt for himself looking like a chewed up toy, so. ]
...I went looking for my fool of a son when he didn't return after a week or two. As for everything else—
[ Pulling out a cloth-wrapped parcel, Morga lightly tosses it in Law's direction. Bread and still-warm cuts of meat. ]
Eat, and I'll tell you if you truly want to know. You won't recover if you don't keep your strength up, and you look like a pair of animals tried to use you as a plaything. When Jaguar said you were gravely injured I was expecting to find you'd taken a blade to the belly, not this.
[ Don't have to tell him twice. Reaching back carefully with his one arm, Law takes a seat on the side of the bed. There are at least places to sit in here now, for a whole four people! Pretty soon it'll be an even bigger place, but that's neither here nor there now. His eyebrows raise, then he smiles in spite of himself after he's caught the little package of food. He can smell what it is even before he opens it. ]
Aw, you didn't have to feed me. Were you out there this whole time, then, really? I should be the one making you something, in that case.
[ Well, he's about to Find The Fuck Out about that. Unwrapping the parcel, he starts straight in on the meat, just cramming whole pieces of it in his mouth. They didn't say he still had to avoid solids, y'know, so fuck it. ]
Wait, Jaguar told you? About me? "Gravely injured"... [ Huh. Well. That's a phrase, he guesses. ] You're kinda not far off the mark. A wyvern went after my dad, so I jumped in the way and wrestled it off. It got me in its mouth and chewed me up, then spit me back out. That was... I think a month ago, maybe?
I asked who was still here and he'd said you were the only one left from the beginning. He seemed angry about it.
[ While Law busies himself with his meal, Morga occupies one of the chairs and pulls out some sort of fruit and a knife. She's not entirely sure what it is only that it was edible and it didn't stink, so she sets to work on peeling it. Meat and bread isn't going to cut it here, and...
Okay, so she may have developed a Vague soft spot for Law before. And she's still wrestling with her own "demons" as it were. ]
You do realize you could've gotten yourself killed, I hope. Even I'm not crazy enough to jump into the mouth of a hungry beast like that. [ She glances up for a moment, then back down. ] ...It wasn't pointless, was it?
[ The only one since the beginning. How many people are there even here that they can say that about, now? In general, outside of the Jaguars? It's kind of a bleak thought, actually. And it sort of reminds him of Ginger every time he thinks of the people who disappeared and were never heard from again.
Ah well. He probably shouldn't, but Law smirks a little as he's picking out a piece of the bread to eat next. ]
Yeah, I know. It wasn't, though. He's safe and I lived, so it was worth it. I'd... e-eh...
[ Think about that before you say it, Law— ]
No, yeah, I'd do it again if I had to. I'd pay any price to keep the people I care about safe. The scars'll probably look pretty cool, anyway...
So long as you still stand, you can hold a sword. I told Jaguar as much.
[ Reaching over to the small table within her reach, Morga pulls what she's assuming is a plate from it so she can start cutting pieces of the fruit off into smaller chunks. One, two, three... It's easy to focus on that than it is to think about what she wants to say rather what she should.
Her son...
Long, spiraling horns. Plague-red eyes. A monstrous look.
Claws piercing her sternum— ]
...His trail ended around Kiichpan. I know he wouldn't have taken a boat towards the ocean, so I kept going inland. Eventually I... don't quite remember what path I took, only that it brought me back to the other side of the Shining Steppe. To... my homeland. It was as if I never left it in the first place. But... yes, I did find him.
[ Well, he kind of still stands. Roughly. While Morga talks, Law absently pieces together the meat and the bread to make a tiny almost-sandwich out of it. Partway through, though, he all but freezes in place to pay attention. ]
Back... home? You went home? How? You followed a path that you got you out of here, does that mean anyone could go...?
[ Wait a minute, why doesn't she look happy that she found him? (Besides that Morga rarely ever looks Happy.) ]
[ She bites a piece off the end of the knife, head shaking as she chews. ]
I don't think so. I tried returning to the same area as before and all I could find were animal trails. No pools, portals, or gateways that might have connections to the other side. I can't say I tried to find a way back here because I had no memory of it until...
[ A wave of the knife towards the window in the direction of the walls bordering the city. She doesn't know how to describe it save for waking up face-down in the dirt.
When he asks, Morga's expression shifts into something unreadable. A few more pieces of fruit hit the plate, and then she leans out and holds it towards Law. ]
I swore that I'd find him. The things he was doing... I'd do whatever was necessary.
[ and concerning? and... disappointing? and confusing? trying to make sense of it, all he can figure is that somehow, people are finding ways out, but not ways back again? there's got to be something going on out in the mist to make that happen, and if he were capable of it he might suggest putting a team together to go out and find what it is. it makes him think of Ginger, how she disappeared. maybe she found a way out of here like Morga did, after everything...
in the middle of his intense pondering, he takes note of Morga's facial expression and tilts his head uncertainly. it's giving him a... bad feeling. he hesitates and then reaches out to take the fruit from her. ]
[ For her? For Lucio? Hell, really it's probably both of them. On Morga's end it's the whole, y'know, eating dirt thing. For Lucio... She's pretty sure losing your humanity and everything else with it isn't an easy pill to swallow. It's certainly not the fate she'd hoped for for her son. ]
He was a fool, and I made a mistake.
[ That's the hardest thing to say and she practically spits it out, brows furrowing and her attention dropping back to the remaining bits of fruit. The chickens'll love the peelings, so she's making sure to save them for the troublemakers. ]
[ yeah, this is giving him a really bad feeling. here he is with all this free food to eat and he's just sitting there holding it, his expression somewhat antsy. ]
[ That's all she can really say about it, isn't it? At least it's a suitable answer in her mind. There's a faint scowl as she admits it, the remaining pieces of fruit coming out in uneven chunks which, just like the first batch, she winds up dropping onto the plate she'd already given Law. ]
I hesitated, and now I'm back here. I don't know what I expected but it's... a pleasant surprise, I suppose.
[ She tilts the tip of the knife towards the plate, chin tilting up. ]
Now eat. If you want the full story, it'll come once I see that plate clean.
[ he might not totally get it, but if anyone knows the dire consequences that the mistake of hesitation can wind up costing you, it's him. he makes a face, uncertain, as he settles the plate on his lap and starts to pick at the food on it again. ]
Pleasant? Here? I dunno about that, but... it is good to see you again.
[ it isn't very often he gets to say that, after all. at least not without it coming along with its own set of mysteries, like how Rinwell seemed to come and go without any memory of it. maybe she got lost looking for someone, too...
at any rate, as it turns out, he doesn't have to work hard to empty that plate. without warning, one of the bigger chickens from the yard comes sailing in through his open window, clucking and flapping frantically as it lands on his bed. it's so commonplace Law barely looks up, and doesn't seem to think twice about the feathery invader immediately pecking the food right off his plate. like, what is he gonna do, stop him? Nayth does what Nayth wants. they all do. ]
You... missed a lot while you were gone, though. It probably would've been better if you didn't come back. Unless...
[ unless his uncomfortable gut feeling is right, and she's in the same position as, y'know... someone else he knows that can't ever leave for his own good. ]
I don't think I'll ever get used to hearing people say that about me.
[ It's half-muttered, but spoken out loud nonetheless. First Jaguar in his own way, now Law? After sixty-odd years of hearing the opposite, it's weird. Real, real weird. It's almost as if people like her which is... disgusting, frankly.
The sudden appearance of the chicken sends Morga on alert for all of three seconds, immediately flipping the knife around in her hand and tightening her fingers around the grip before she relaxes. As unflappable as she may be normally, things have been a little wild and tense what with everything that happened back home, everything upon her arrival, and then some. She's allowed to be on the defensive for a little longer. ]
If I return back to my realm... It will be in a different capacity. I still have some unfinished business, but I won't be able to take care of it myself.
[ Clicking her tongue a few times to get the chicken's attention, she dangles the longest strip of peel from her fingertips and gives it a little shake. C'mon, you mini-predator. ]
Fill me in on the important things. Jaguar is a man of few words and I was more concerned with that little show of maturity I saw from the four of them.
[ as much as he'd like to smile at that little Stage Aside of hers, Law can't quite keep the stricken look off his face. it... doesn't really get any clearer than that, does it? not really being able to go home. not being able to attend to your unfinished business... yeah. he doesn't even really change his expression as Nayth rudely walks with his dirty chicken feet right onto his plate, then hops to his knee and starts clucking and flapping his way over to Morga and that tantalizing peel.
he just... takes these sorts of things kind of personally. it's hard to help. it's just one more person whose last chance is here, where there's no way for him to ever be sure they'll really have the life they deserve to have. he nearly got himself killed protecting that ideal, but he can't do it for everybody. sometimes he wonders if it even makes any difference that he tries. but Morga doesn't have a son to look out for her here, and in fact it sounds like he was... kind of the problem. which, honestly, Law also relates to, even if it's a very different scenario here.
frowning, Law glances down at his plate as Nayth shakes the peel from Morga's fingers in his beek like the vicious tiny feathered dinosaur he is. at least he can finally make a different face: Annoyed About Coterie Leaders stank face. ]
Hmph. Yeah, that was almost worse than the last time they all talked to us. A few months ago, they found the first of those four relics they were talking about. Viper's turned out to be in Kiichpan all along, and she threw the entire city and everyone in it to the wolves to go after it. Whatever she did to get her hands on it set a whole bunch of the incense and a giant snake loose on the city. One of my best friends lived there, and I... by the time I got there, it was hell. Half the place was destroyed, dozens of people died, everyone alive was going insane and attacking each other or turning into monsters, everything was on fire...
[ for a second he just... kind of bluescreens, reliving some of those memories. Dohalim bloodied and half-crushed under his house, Zelos stabbed countless times and bleeding out in a tree hollow, laying listlessly on the roof with his dad and saying it'd be better if they just died...
god. ]
...Mm. Well, anyway, after that the four of them came out and told us this whole thing was their fault, they sealed some kind of monsters in the relics a hundred years ago and got a curse put on them for it. Now they're trying to undo it. Anyone else who touches the relics also gets cursed, and supposedly they can't touch the relics themselves, so now we have to do it for them, which I think is bullshit. Apparently Salamander thinks it's bullshit, too, because the same thing just happened with her a few weeks ago. She said we should quit searching for them and try to leave the island because it's only gonna get worse. And then they all started arguing and threatening each other, as usual. They're all a bunch of useless idiots at best, manipulating us on purpose at worst. I'm not gonna be doing their bidding anymore, whatever the case. I'd rather look after these people and find the answers my own way.
[ The first look earns a subtle curl of her lip, but she doesn't say anything about it beyond Looking at him. Even with the weeks spent traveling with Muriel and his little companion, she never did get around to understanding why they'd get so torn up over the prospect of people they barely knew (if even that) dying. The memory of seeing that magician screaming and thrashing trying to get to her when she'd had claw-tipped fingers squeezing around her heart... It's something she's been thinking about more than she wants to admit. After everything, they still acted like it was the end of the world.
She'd made a mistake and it cost her, but she also gave them an out. For the first time that foolish boy listened to her without freezing up, and... That was enough, wasn't it?
She keeps her eyes on Law even as he looks down. When Nayth yanks the peel from her hold and savages it like the wyverns of her homeland, she barely spares the bird a second glance. There's another shift in Law's face, and one of Morga's brows goes up towards her hairline. That's- Well, then. Twisted magic, gods of old (or she assumes), and that same magic changing people? It's new. Even old Scourge magics couldn't do something like that. The Ulfhednar were one thing, but on the scale Law describes... There's not much time to dwell on it before Law's face changes for the third time.
After an uncomfortable few seconds, Morga extends her leg to knock a boot against Law's good one. Focus. ]
There are ways to break curses, boy. It's just a matter of figuring it out.
[ Seeing them squabble like toddlers was a disgrace. As much as she hates to admit it, Lucio would've been in a better position to handle it. He may not have done it right, but it'd have been something. Her sternum aches at the thought of it, but she ignores it and shakes her head. ]
It's also unwise to go poking your nose around cursed objects when they have no idea what they're capable of, or what kind of curse that's on it. That's something children know. Honestly, I expected better from Jaguar...
[ A sigh, and she pinches the bridge of her nose. ]
They say once they have all four and bring them together, that'll do it. But I don't know if I trust that so much anymore.
[ that doesn't mean he's willing to throw his lot in with Salamander, either, but... man, the whole thing reeks. there had been a time when he'd suspended his automatic inclination to be suspicious of everyone around him, and now he regrets it. but looking back, he doesn't know what he'd have done differently, really, so it's... quite the conundrum. one thing's for sure, though— ]
I did too, but he's not the leader we thought he was.
[ typical!!
Nayth is carrying on so much that Law glances to the window expecting the others to come soaring in too, but it's suspiciously quiet outside. maybe the rest of the flock is asleep. ]
Well... I don't want to go making enemies of them, either. Starting a conflict with them is just going to put more people in danger and leave us at a bigger disadvantage. I used to—uhh, I used to kinda... let's just say I'm pretty good at gathering information without being noticed. So that's where I'm gonna start. Once I'm back on my feet and everything, I mean.
Starting a feud with the leaders of the tribes you belong to generally tends to end poorly in my experience. Doubly so when those same cocky upstarts try to remove the present chieftain...
[ Also speaking from experience, whoops. It's her, she was the one people tried to remove once or twice. Morga makes a soft sound in the back of her throat as she considers everything he says, paying special attention to that little tidbit about gathering information. Her first guess? A spy. It doesn't matter if he used to be or he still was one, it still counts. ]
You can start now, you know. People talk, and if they see you as you are now they may not bother hiding anything. There's a good chance they'll see you as a non-threat and think you're incapable of doing anything, and that'll be their mistake.
[ Her eyes drop down to Nayth, and after a moment she leans forward to brush the back of her fingers over smooth feathers. ]
An injured wolf is still a wolf, no matter how mangled he may be.
[ now? Law considers for a moment, raising his eyebrows. it's been, uh, awhile since he could pull off the "harmless and ineffectual" schtick, something he was pretty good at as a kid but grew out of fast in his determination to be taken more seriously. probably why he wasn't the best spy in the world, honestly. Trying Too Hard has a smell, and even the biggest dimwits can pick up on it. ]
Yeah... maybe you're right. Damn, I wish I'd thought of that when I was back in Coatepec. I was out of it for awhile because of the medicine they were giving me for the pain, but if I coulda paid attention maybe I woulda heard something useful.
[ ah well. Nayth, thinking it's Petting Time, doesn't hesitate to start trying to hop into Morga's lap. he perceives no threat and knows his true place: as a therapy pet, not eventual food. ]
Ah well. What about you? What're you gonna do now that you're back? Do you still have somewhere to stay?
[ Which?? Makes sense because he definitely looks like he needed it. Morga can only recall one or two instances where she reluctantly took anything to deal with pain, but that had been decades ago. ]
You can use it to your advantage now at any ra-
[ She's cut off by Nayth hopping up into her lap on the fifth attempt in a flurry of feathers, prompting Morga to drop her knife in order to "catch" the bird. For a moment she considers (gently) tossing him back at Law, but... Nah, this is her chicken now. Temporarily, but still. Tucking one hand under his body to support him, Morga lifts him just enough to cross one ankle over her knee so he has somewhere to "sit".
And after a few more moments she buries her fingers into his feathers to lightly touch the soft down underneath. ]
I haven't looked yet. If not, I'll find something. I imagine the place I'd been staying in before has been taken over or repurposed which is only fair seeing as I was away for so long... If there's nothing around, I'll sleep in the lodge until something opens up.
The disgusting stuff, more like. I almost threw it up every time they gave it to me. But after it kicked in, I was pretty... yeah. Out of it.
[ by the time he stabilized, he'd probably barfed on just about everyone that came to see him in the first handful of days at least once, but. he lived bitch. and even if the recovery is slow and miserable, and the scars are kind of wretched, they'll look cool someday and he'll be back up to fighting shape in no time. it could've gone a whole lot worse, that much is for sure.
Law laughs a little sheepishly as Nayth gets comfortable, starts to set his plate aside to rescue one or both of them, only for Morga to actually know how to hold a chicken. apparently a less common thing than you'd think, but she gets him settled and Nayth hunkers down with a contented bawwwwk. instead, minding the weight he puts on his leg, Law reaches out to pick up the knife and set it on the table by Morga instead, and stumbles back into his seat afterward. ]
I'd say you can stay here, but there's no stopping that from happening. [ nodding to that ornery chicken. ] I tried putting up a sheet in the window to stop them, but they scratched through it while I was away.
The more foul the better. I was given something once a long time ago that knocked me out for the better part of a week and I absolutely hated it. Can't argue with the results, though.
[ She'd been more angry about being out for that many days, but on the upside it had been in her teenage years and not when she'd taken over the tribe. Really, it was for her own good too - if she had been conscious she still would've insisted on going hunting and things like that while recovering from a musk bear of all things. Definitely a recipe for disaster, that.
His offer pulls a quiet sound from her throat, and for a long while Morga simply stares at the chicken in her lap even as Law mills about. Part of her thinks about scolding him, to tell him to stay seated but one: Law isn't her kid and two: He'll never get better if he's sitting around all day. The more he moves, the better his mobility'll stay. ]
I... may take you up on that for the night if you have no objections, then. The birds don't bother me - you've seen Jaeger, so this is nothing compared to what I'm used to. [ A beat, and then with a frown- ] One night.
[ at least someone gets it. a measly broken leg isn't about to stop him from doing what he needs to do, and all the scolding just bounces right off his thick skull. chalk it up to how he was raised and the sorts of things he witnessed growing up, people working or fighting until they literally dropped dead, even if they were sick, injured, or both. the world just doesn't care if you're suffering, man. and Copalli, of all places, is nowhere to start going soft and getting complacent.
but also, yeah, actually giving it a chance to heal so he doesn't walk funny for the rest of his life would probably be good? ah well. ]
Oh, yeah, that's fine! Take as long as you need. You can have the bed, I don't need it. Only thing is to make sure you toss the chickens back out the window when it gets dark so they don't start getting it in their heads they can sleep in here at night.
[ yep, just chuck 'em out the window. it's fine, they float. and if you think for one second he hasn't just been too lazy to eject a chicken and had it sleeping on him or his pillow more than once, twice, or five times, so they've already got it in their heads that they can sleep in here, then might i direct your attention to exhibit A: the feathers all over the damn bed. ]
Speaking of Jaeger... are you gonna get him back from Jaguar's place?
You'll need all the strength you can get if you're going to heal that up, so you're keeping the bed.
[ There it is, that Carefully Hidden And Buried part of her that actually takes on a nurturing side once in a blue moon. She's not fond of it, but what can she say? Muriel and that magician actually did have some sort of an effect on her. That and. Okay, look. So she's a little fond of Law and sees promise in him. What's wrong with wanting to see him get better faster?? Sue her!!! ]
As for Jaeger... Of course. He wasn't in when I stopped by earlier. No doubt he's out hunting himself, so I'll just have to pick him up after sundown. I...
[ A frown, her brows furrowing for a moment as she looks at the chicken in her lap. ]
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2022-05-01 08:48 pm (UTC)Bad chicken. Outside. ]
Who else would I be?
[ A beat, and Morga frowns. ]
...You look like shit.
[ AKA he looks like something Vlagnagog tried to eat, then decided to spit back up. ]
no subject
Date: 2022-05-01 09:02 pm (UTC)Heh... it's good to see you, too?
[ Well, he can at least let her in the house before the chickens bumrush the place. There's no point in disguising the clumsy way he limps as he steps backwards to make room for her to walk in, almost entirely unable to put weight on his right leg. But, as has been the case for the last couple weeks, "almost" is not "not at all," and he won't be told what the fuck is up by anyone, including himself or his lousy body. ]
D'you want—uh, come in. I just got home a few days ago and there's not really anything to eat here, but... actually, who cares about that?? Where the heck have you been? I thought— I thought something happened to you!
no subject
Date: 2022-05-01 10:11 pm (UTC)She shouldn't care, but... Law was different from the rest. Plus it's not as if she could exactly expect him to go out and hunt for himself looking like a chewed up toy, so. ]
...I went looking for my fool of a son when he didn't return after a week or two. As for everything else—
[ Pulling out a cloth-wrapped parcel, Morga lightly tosses it in Law's direction. Bread and still-warm cuts of meat. ]
Eat, and I'll tell you if you truly want to know. You won't recover if you don't keep your strength up, and you look like a pair of animals tried to use you as a plaything. When Jaguar said you were gravely injured I was expecting to find you'd taken a blade to the belly, not this.
no subject
Date: 2022-05-02 12:17 am (UTC)Aw, you didn't have to feed me. Were you out there this whole time, then, really? I should be the one making you something, in that case.
[ Well, he's about to Find The Fuck Out about that. Unwrapping the parcel, he starts straight in on the meat, just cramming whole pieces of it in his mouth. They didn't say he still had to avoid solids, y'know, so fuck it. ]
Wait, Jaguar told you? About me? "Gravely injured"... [ Huh. Well. That's a phrase, he guesses. ] You're kinda not far off the mark. A wyvern went after my dad, so I jumped in the way and wrestled it off. It got me in its mouth and chewed me up, then spit me back out. That was... I think a month ago, maybe?
no subject
Date: 2022-05-02 01:54 am (UTC)[ While Law busies himself with his meal, Morga occupies one of the chairs and pulls out some sort of fruit and a knife. She's not entirely sure what it is only that it was edible and it didn't stink, so she sets to work on peeling it. Meat and bread isn't going to cut it here, and...
Okay, so she may have developed a Vague soft spot for Law before. And she's still wrestling with her own "demons" as it were. ]
You do realize you could've gotten yourself killed, I hope. Even I'm not crazy enough to jump into the mouth of a hungry beast like that. [ She glances up for a moment, then back down. ] ...It wasn't pointless, was it?
no subject
Date: 2022-05-02 02:07 am (UTC)[ The only one since the beginning. How many people are there even here that they can say that about, now? In general, outside of the Jaguars? It's kind of a bleak thought, actually. And it sort of reminds him of Ginger every time he thinks of the people who disappeared and were never heard from again.
Ah well. He probably shouldn't, but Law smirks a little as he's picking out a piece of the bread to eat next. ]
Yeah, I know. It wasn't, though. He's safe and I lived, so it was worth it. I'd... e-eh...
[ Think about that before you say it, Law— ]
No, yeah, I'd do it again if I had to. I'd pay any price to keep the people I care about safe. The scars'll probably look pretty cool, anyway...
[ Or not. This idiot. ]
What about you, though? Did... you find your son?
no subject
Date: 2022-05-02 02:57 am (UTC)[ Reaching over to the small table within her reach, Morga pulls what she's assuming is a plate from it so she can start cutting pieces of the fruit off into smaller chunks. One, two, three... It's easy to focus on that than it is to think about what she wants to say rather what she should.
Her son...
Long, spiraling horns. Plague-red eyes. A monstrous look.
Claws piercing her sternum— ]
...His trail ended around Kiichpan. I know he wouldn't have taken a boat towards the ocean, so I kept going
inland. Eventually I... don't quite remember what path I took, only that it brought me back to the other side of the Shining Steppe. To... my homeland. It was as if I never left it in the first place. But... yes, I did find him.
no subject
Date: 2022-05-02 05:46 pm (UTC)Back... home? You went home? How? You followed a path that you got you out of here, does that mean anyone could go...?
[ Wait a minute, why doesn't she look happy that she found him? (Besides that Morga rarely ever looks Happy.) ]
...What happened?
no subject
Date: 2022-05-02 06:52 pm (UTC)I don't think so. I tried returning to the same area as before and all I could find were animal trails. No pools, portals, or gateways that might have connections to the other side. I can't say I tried to find a way back here because I had no memory of it until...
[ A wave of the knife towards the window in the direction of the walls bordering the city. She doesn't know how to describe it save for waking up face-down in the dirt.
When he asks, Morga's expression shifts into something unreadable. A few more pieces of fruit hit the plate, and then she leans out and holds it towards Law. ]
I swore that I'd find him. The things he was doing... I'd do whatever was necessary.
no subject
Date: 2022-05-04 03:58 pm (UTC)[ and concerning? and... disappointing? and confusing? trying to make sense of it, all he can figure is that somehow, people are finding ways out, but not ways back again? there's got to be something going on out in the mist to make that happen, and if he were capable of it he might suggest putting a team together to go out and find what it is. it makes him think of Ginger, how she disappeared. maybe she found a way out of here like Morga did, after everything...
in the middle of his intense pondering, he takes note of Morga's facial expression and tilts his head uncertainly. it's giving him a... bad feeling. he hesitates and then reaches out to take the fruit from her. ]
It... sounds like it didn't go so well.
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Date: 2022-05-05 02:27 am (UTC)[ For her? For Lucio? Hell, really it's probably both of them. On Morga's end it's the whole, y'know, eating dirt thing. For Lucio... She's pretty sure losing your humanity and everything else with it isn't an easy pill to swallow. It's certainly not the fate she'd hoped for for her son. ]
He was a fool, and I made a mistake.
[ That's the hardest thing to say and she practically spits it out, brows furrowing and her attention dropping back to the remaining bits of fruit. The chickens'll love the peelings, so she's making sure to save them for the troublemakers. ]
And then I wound up here. Again.
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Date: 2022-05-05 07:06 pm (UTC)[ yeah, this is giving him a really bad feeling. here he is with all this free food to eat and he's just sitting there holding it, his expression somewhat antsy. ]
What happened? What kind of mistake?
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Date: 2022-05-05 07:49 pm (UTC)[ That's all she can really say about it, isn't it? At least it's a suitable answer in her mind. There's a faint scowl as she admits it, the remaining pieces of fruit coming out in uneven chunks which, just like the first batch, she winds up dropping onto the plate she'd already given Law. ]
I hesitated, and now I'm back here. I don't know what I expected but it's... a pleasant surprise, I suppose.
[ She tilts the tip of the knife towards the plate, chin tilting up. ]
Now eat. If you want the full story, it'll come once I see that plate clean.
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Date: 2022-05-14 02:07 am (UTC)Pleasant? Here? I dunno about that, but... it is good to see you again.
[ it isn't very often he gets to say that, after all. at least not without it coming along with its own set of mysteries, like how Rinwell seemed to come and go without any memory of it. maybe she got lost looking for someone, too...
at any rate, as it turns out, he doesn't have to work hard to empty that plate. without warning, one of the bigger chickens from the yard comes sailing in through his open window, clucking and flapping frantically as it lands on his bed. it's so commonplace Law barely looks up, and doesn't seem to think twice about the feathery invader immediately pecking the food right off his plate. like, what is he gonna do, stop him? Nayth does what Nayth wants. they all do. ]
You... missed a lot while you were gone, though. It probably would've been better if you didn't come back. Unless...
[ unless his uncomfortable gut feeling is right, and she's in the same position as, y'know... someone else he knows that can't ever leave for his own good. ]
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Date: 2022-05-14 03:09 am (UTC)[ It's half-muttered, but spoken out loud nonetheless. First Jaguar in his own way, now Law? After sixty-odd years of hearing the opposite, it's weird. Real, real weird. It's almost as if people like her which is... disgusting, frankly.
The sudden appearance of the chicken sends Morga on alert for all of three seconds, immediately flipping the knife around in her hand and tightening her fingers around the grip before she relaxes. As unflappable as she may be normally, things have been a little wild and tense what with everything that happened back home, everything upon her arrival, and then some. She's allowed to be on the defensive for a little longer. ]
If I return back to my realm... It will be in a different capacity. I still have some unfinished business, but I won't be able to take care of it myself.
[ Clicking her tongue a few times to get the chicken's attention, she dangles the longest strip of peel from her fingertips and gives it a little shake. C'mon, you mini-predator. ]
Fill me in on the important things. Jaguar is a man of few words and I was more concerned with that little show of maturity I saw from the four of them.
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Date: 2022-05-14 09:25 pm (UTC)he just... takes these sorts of things kind of personally. it's hard to help. it's just one more person whose last chance is here, where there's no way for him to ever be sure they'll really have the life they deserve to have. he nearly got himself killed protecting that ideal, but he can't do it for everybody. sometimes he wonders if it even makes any difference that he tries. but Morga doesn't have a son to look out for her here, and in fact it sounds like he was... kind of the problem. which, honestly, Law also relates to, even if it's a very different scenario here.
frowning, Law glances down at his plate as Nayth shakes the peel from Morga's fingers in his beek like the vicious tiny feathered dinosaur he is. at least he can finally make a different face: Annoyed About Coterie Leaders stank face. ]
Hmph. Yeah, that was almost worse than the last time they all talked to us. A few months ago, they found the first of those four relics they were talking about. Viper's turned out to be in Kiichpan all along, and she threw the entire city and everyone in it to the wolves to go after it. Whatever she did to get her hands on it set a whole bunch of the incense and a giant snake loose on the city. One of my best friends lived there, and I... by the time I got there, it was hell. Half the place was destroyed, dozens of people died, everyone alive was going insane and attacking each other or turning into monsters, everything was on fire...
[ for a second he just... kind of bluescreens, reliving some of those memories. Dohalim bloodied and half-crushed under his house, Zelos stabbed countless times and bleeding out in a tree hollow, laying listlessly on the roof with his dad and saying it'd be better if they just died...
god. ]
...Mm. Well, anyway, after that the four of them came out and told us this whole thing was their fault, they sealed some kind of monsters in the relics a hundred years ago and got a curse put on them for it. Now they're trying to undo it. Anyone else who touches the relics also gets cursed, and supposedly they can't touch the relics themselves, so now we have to do it for them, which I think is bullshit. Apparently Salamander thinks it's bullshit, too, because the same thing just happened with her a few weeks ago. She said we should quit searching for them and try to leave the island because it's only gonna get worse. And then they all started arguing and threatening each other, as usual. They're all a bunch of useless idiots at best, manipulating us on purpose at worst. I'm not gonna be doing their bidding anymore, whatever the case. I'd rather look after these people and find the answers my own way.
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Date: 2022-05-15 09:05 am (UTC)She'd made a mistake and it cost her, but she also gave them an out. For the first time that foolish boy listened to her without freezing up, and... That was enough, wasn't it?
She keeps her eyes on Law even as he looks down. When Nayth yanks the peel from her hold and savages it like the wyverns of her homeland, she barely spares the bird a second glance. There's another shift in Law's face, and one of Morga's brows goes up towards her hairline. That's- Well, then. Twisted magic, gods of old (or she assumes), and that same magic changing people? It's new. Even old Scourge magics couldn't do something like that. The Ulfhednar were one thing, but on the scale Law describes... There's not much time to dwell on it before Law's face changes for the third time.
After an uncomfortable few seconds, Morga extends her leg to knock a boot against Law's good one. Focus. ]
There are ways to break curses, boy. It's just a matter of figuring it out.
[ Seeing them squabble like toddlers was a disgrace. As much as she hates to admit it, Lucio would've been in a better position to handle it. He may not have done it right, but it'd have been something. Her sternum aches at the thought of it, but she ignores it and shakes her head. ]
It's also unwise to go poking your nose around cursed objects when they have no idea what they're capable of, or what kind of curse that's on it. That's something children know. Honestly, I expected better from Jaguar...
[ A sigh, and she pinches the bridge of her nose. ]
Where do you plan to start?
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Date: 2022-05-15 06:19 pm (UTC)[ that doesn't mean he's willing to throw his lot in with Salamander, either, but... man, the whole thing reeks. there had been a time when he'd suspended his automatic inclination to be suspicious of everyone around him, and now he regrets it. but looking back, he doesn't know what he'd have done differently, really, so it's... quite the conundrum. one thing's for sure, though— ]
I did too, but he's not the leader we thought he was.
[ typical!!
Nayth is carrying on so much that Law glances to the window expecting the others to come soaring in too, but it's suspiciously quiet outside. maybe the rest of the flock is asleep. ]
Well... I don't want to go making enemies of them, either. Starting a conflict with them is just going to put more people in danger and leave us at a bigger disadvantage. I used to—uhh, I used to kinda... let's just say I'm pretty good at gathering information without being noticed. So that's where I'm gonna start. Once I'm back on my feet and everything, I mean.
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Date: 2022-05-15 07:43 pm (UTC)[ Also speaking from experience, whoops. It's her, she was the one people tried to remove once or twice. Morga makes a soft sound in the back of her throat as she considers everything he says, paying special attention to that little tidbit about gathering information. Her first guess? A spy. It doesn't matter if he used to be or he still was one, it still counts. ]
You can start now, you know. People talk, and if they see you as you are now they may not bother hiding anything. There's a good chance they'll see you as a non-threat and think you're incapable of doing anything, and that'll be their mistake.
[ Her eyes drop down to Nayth, and after a moment she leans forward to brush the back of her fingers over smooth feathers. ]
An injured wolf is still a wolf, no matter how mangled he may be.
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Date: 2022-05-15 11:21 pm (UTC)[ now? Law considers for a moment, raising his eyebrows. it's been, uh, awhile since he could pull off the "harmless and ineffectual" schtick, something he was pretty good at as a kid but grew out of fast in his determination to be taken more seriously. probably why he wasn't the best spy in the world, honestly. Trying Too Hard has a smell, and even the biggest dimwits can pick up on it. ]
Yeah... maybe you're right. Damn, I wish I'd thought of that when I was back in Coatepec. I was out of it for awhile because of the medicine they were giving me for the pain, but if I coulda paid attention maybe I woulda heard something useful.
[ ah well. Nayth, thinking it's Petting Time, doesn't hesitate to start trying to hop into Morga's lap. he perceives no threat and knows his true place: as a therapy pet, not eventual food. ]
Ah well. What about you? What're you gonna do now that you're back? Do you still have somewhere to stay?
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Date: 2022-05-16 12:55 am (UTC)[ Which?? Makes sense because he definitely looks like he needed it. Morga can only recall one or two instances where she reluctantly took anything to deal with pain, but that had been decades ago. ]
You can use it to your advantage now at any ra-
[ She's cut off by Nayth hopping up into her lap on the fifth attempt in a flurry of feathers, prompting Morga to drop her knife in order to "catch" the bird. For a moment she considers (gently) tossing him back at Law, but... Nah, this is her chicken now. Temporarily, but still. Tucking one hand under his body to support him, Morga lifts him just enough to cross one ankle over her knee so he has somewhere to "sit".
And after a few more moments she buries her fingers into his feathers to lightly touch the soft down underneath. ]
I haven't looked yet. If not, I'll find something. I imagine the place I'd been staying in before has been taken over or repurposed which is only fair seeing as I was away for so long... If there's nothing around, I'll sleep in the lodge until something opens up.
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Date: 2022-05-16 03:29 pm (UTC)[ by the time he stabilized, he'd probably barfed on just about everyone that came to see him in the first handful of days at least once, but. he lived bitch. and even if the recovery is slow and miserable, and the scars are kind of wretched, they'll look cool someday and he'll be back up to fighting shape in no time. it could've gone a whole lot worse, that much is for sure.
Law laughs a little sheepishly as Nayth gets comfortable, starts to set his plate aside to rescue one or both of them, only for Morga to actually know how to hold a chicken. apparently a less common thing than you'd think, but she gets him settled and Nayth hunkers down with a contented bawwwwk. instead, minding the weight he puts on his leg, Law reaches out to pick up the knife and set it on the table by Morga instead, and stumbles back into his seat afterward. ]
I'd say you can stay here, but there's no stopping that from happening. [ nodding to that ornery chicken. ] I tried putting up a sheet in the window to stop them, but they scratched through it while I was away.
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Date: 2022-05-16 05:31 pm (UTC)[ She'd been more angry about being out for that many days, but on the upside it had been in her teenage years and not when she'd taken over the tribe. Really, it was for her own good too - if she had been conscious she still would've insisted on going hunting and things like that while recovering from a musk bear of all things. Definitely a recipe for disaster, that.
His offer pulls a quiet sound from her throat, and for a long while Morga simply stares at the chicken in her lap even as Law mills about. Part of her thinks about scolding him, to tell him to stay seated but one: Law isn't her kid and two: He'll never get better if he's sitting around all day. The more he moves, the better his mobility'll stay. ]
I... may take you up on that for the night if you have no objections, then. The birds don't bother me - you've seen Jaeger, so this is nothing compared to what I'm used to. [ A beat, and then with a frown- ] One night.
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Date: 2022-05-17 02:50 pm (UTC)but also, yeah, actually giving it a chance to heal so he doesn't walk funny for the rest of his life would probably be good? ah well. ]
Oh, yeah, that's fine! Take as long as you need. You can have the bed, I don't need it. Only thing is to make sure you toss the chickens back out the window when it gets dark so they don't start getting it in their heads they can sleep in here at night.
[ yep, just chuck 'em out the window. it's fine, they float. and if you think for one second he hasn't just been too lazy to eject a chicken and had it sleeping on him or his pillow more than once, twice, or five times, so they've already got it in their heads that they can sleep in here, then might i direct your attention to exhibit A: the feathers all over the damn bed. ]
Speaking of Jaeger... are you gonna get him back from Jaguar's place?
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Date: 2022-05-27 10:18 pm (UTC)[ There it is, that Carefully Hidden And Buried part of her that actually takes on a nurturing side once in a blue moon. She's not fond of it, but what can she say? Muriel and that magician actually did have some sort of an effect on her. That and. Okay, look. So she's a little fond of Law and sees promise in him. What's wrong with wanting to see him get better faster?? Sue her!!! ]
As for Jaeger... Of course. He wasn't in when I stopped by earlier. No doubt he's out hunting himself, so I'll just have to pick him up after sundown. I...
[ A frown, her brows furrowing for a moment as she looks at the chicken in her lap. ]
Do you know how he's been?
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