The siblings slogged through the mud and water, chattering, laughing and bickering in equal parts. Their family was a close one, and they were all glad of that, but it could get exhausting quickly thanks to how large of a family it was. Their litter was nine in total, and they had more cousins than they could count, and their cousins had cubs and their cubs had cubs and so on and so on. They counted themselves lucky to not be related to Aesir (only because of how common his blood was in the pride — it would make finding mates in the future that much more difficult).
"You really think you'll ever become a reaver?" Surabhi asked Nandī, scoffing.
"You really think anyone will ever marry you?" He shot back, defensively.
Auðumbla laughed at his siblings, but that only served to draw ire from the both of them, they leapt on him together and bowled him over onto the ground and into the thick mud. The orange male buckled under their combined weight and let out a yowl that became a roar as he sought retribution, but his brother and sister were unencumbered by mud and beat a hasty retreat. When they slowed enough to let him catch up, all tempers had cooled enough.
Hecate stuck close by.
The siblings, like their litter and their parents, were all thralls. Naturally, that did not sit well with any of them. Plans had been made for the process of 'claiming' them as family by some one of their kin who was a freeborn or reaver, but that process could take a little bit of time and even a single day in bondage was too much for them. While they were treated well for slaves — compared to other prides' practices and even their own home — it was far from freedom. None of them had ever left their home and seen the rogue lands. There was concern among them (mostly the lionesses) about getting to choose their own mates, or would they be slighted and made salt wives?
The din the siblings caused made them oblivious to the stealthy specter who was tailing them. In her mortal guise, she had the same rank as them. It took much planning to be able to coordinate her rogue land encounter with Siavash so he could 'capture' her, but she had devised it to be the best plan to be discrete and unassuming so as to not arouse any suspicion or questions of her real identity or intentions. Of course her primary motivation in this life (and any) was fratricide. She had lived enough lives and died enough deaths that the reason why she was so driven by this was becoming unclear, but at least she really enjoyed it, and some days that was really all that mattered. She had tucked away her cloak before entering the lands of the Stormborn, but it was the hide and hair of the God of Ashes — in one of his past lives. Did it feel a little bit unfair at times? Sure. But that didn't diminish her pleasure. The hunter had to hunt. So when her familiar Saw what he thought were some of Fleance's spawn in the lands of the Myrsky Syntynyt, she quickly charted a course. During their observations, it was simply a matter of finding flame-marked bellies; eyes that same sad, muddy red; and that distinct, dull gray that was so ashy. She only recently discovered what a glut of descendants it was, and also that they now came in bright colors. She wondered what else could be revealed. She decided to show herself.
"You're all thralls too, right?" She called out to the bright pack.
The trio wheeled around (which was easier said than done in the muddy terrain), first exchanging glances with one another and then sizing up their company. They all felt they'd seen her before, but wordlessly, through their exchanged glances, none of them were sure where at. Surabhi spoke first. "We are... What of it?"
She had her mother's bluntness.
Hecate closed the gap between them, her mortal form looking small and shrimpy before their bodies that were clearly boosted in size by a few drops of gods' and goddess' blood. "Can you help me find my way back to the dens? You all seem like you were born here, and I'm still fairly new. I don't want my master to be upset with me if I'm too late getting home." She looked down at her paws. This was probably the most she'd spoken to anyone since her capture. Her downward glance was supposed to feign an emotion she assumed was something like fear or humility when she'd seen it in other animals. Her dark purple eyes peeked through her forelock that was slicked down to her forehead.
"Sure!"
"Of course!"
The brothers cheekily offered their assistance and Surabhi sighed loudly while rolling her eyes in an exaggerated manner, but they were blind to her now (not that that was uncommon whenever there was a pretty lioness around).
"That's pretty sharp of you to know we were born into the pride. What gave it away? We don't really have common colors for Stormborn," Nandī said while sidling up beside Hecate as they began to walk back toward the pride. He made sure to shoulder his brother off to the side and ignored the daggers in his stare.
"The hair, actually. I've mostly only seen lions and lionesses who were born here wearing their hair in that style... though I guess I'm an exception to my own rule." She walked alongside Nandī until Auðumbla flanked her on her other side. She smiled at them both and shrugged.
Surabhi fell back to the rear and she tried to puff her own forelock out of her eyes in another dramatic eye roll, but the water had made it too heavy and it just slapped her in the face. She snarled, but was glad that at least no one saw.
"Have you been here long?"
"Who's your master?"
Auðumbla and Nandī were speaking at the first time and barraging her with questions so she was unsure of who said what.
"Uhm, not long, a few moons... And a reaver. A dark male. He's not unkind, but he's still my master..." She trailed off and the boys nodded sympathetically.
"Maybe you'll be lucky and someday another reaver will marry you and you won't have to be a thrall anymore!" Nandī chirped happily, puffing out his chest a little. "We're about to be freed, you know!"
"Oh? I didn't know that was possible?" She asked, playing dumb. Only Surabhi was keen enough to sense that this lioness was more clever than she seemed. But to what end?
"Oh, sure. You just need a family member to claim you — that's the easiest way. And lucky for us, we have a whole bunch of family in the pride!" Auðumbla answered.
"I'm sure they must be easy to spot if they're as bright as you are." She said, trying to lead them toward what she wanted to know. Hopefully it would be new information, but she supposed she'd be fine with confirmation on intel she already had.
"Actually they're from our mom's mom's side. Theyr'e mostly gray, it's hard to pick them out. But we had a family member who Saw we were related. When they talked to our mom about it, they figured out who we had in common — a god, of all things! — and they're going to go before the Warlord to plead our case." Nandī was now walking funny for trying to stick his chest out so much.
Surabhi narrowed her eyes. This lioness was very deliberate in the questions she was asking and the things she was saying. She was growing to distrust this small female.
"A god! How impressive! Which one? Do you know?" Hecate asked, her purple eyes boring into Auðumbla's.
"T-the God of Ashes..." he answered, intimidated by her intensity.
"How special!" Hecate cooed, rubbing against him.
"Y-yeah!" He replied, suddenly unsure. Nandī envied the attention.
"Yup! He's our..." he had to stop and think about it. "Great-grandfather. But none of us ever knew him. Our mother barely knew her mom, and our grandma barely knew him before he died, I heard."
Before Hecate killed him last, he meant.
"Tell me more, if you can..." She purred to Nandī.
"Well, it looks like we're here," Surabhi interrupted and pushed her way between Nandī and Hecate. She glared coldly at the lioness. "You can go back to your master. Bye now!"
Hecate stood still for a moment before turning to the males and bowing her head in "thanks" to them. "Till we meet again, boys."
the end
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1,722 words
