What We Are.

[lavish raven]

Location: Skagon's Peaks, "Battlefield Skagon" mission, roughly a week ago

The mountains were unusually kind for it being winter in Daaloon. Snowfall and windchill were not the heaviest nor strongest, but not altogether absent. Akx has... been enjoying being out amongst the snow, ignoring the cold thanks to whatever fire inside kept him moving. His thicker coat and additional protective clothing were necessary for the nights.

'I hope the others are finding things out... not the best for that type of work...' He thinks to himself as he moves along, keeping an eye out for another horde of undead to break apart.

The suns seem to move quite rapidly as he travels, making the next night ebb closer. Cresting a ridge, he spots his next group of targets and in moments they are sundered, leaving scraps of putrid flesh clinging to shattered bones. For a moment he considers collecting them, but judging from the smell, even the marrow would long be spoiled.

"Almost time to stop for the night. Just one more cliff..." He barks to himself in Gnoll.

As he forces himself along the ridge, he is surprised as he finds himself running into one of his guildmates who are on the job with him, not really expecting them to run into each other as they had a lot of intel to gather and a lot of ground to cover. "Roe...?"

"How is... mission going? Akx has not been able to find out much..., but Akx has been keeping the hordes down." He shares, a little excitedly, closing the distance between them with several strides, gesturing to the rotten blood that splatters his clothes.

[outer moth]

The climb up along the mountain slope was cold and burdensome for the rabbit in turn. Not only did she have to contend with her lacking physicality against the treacherous terrain up the ascent, but also the frigid and cold altitudes themselves as they pricked at obscured her already shallow breaths. Although she had her detours to Skagon's Peak in the past before, having already accustomed to the winter season since, there were just some places she'd fare better and rather be in right now than here.

She didn't have the luxury of an "inner flame" to draw heat from unlike her travelling companion. Only the warmth and protection provided through her fabrication, and her spiteful will to push on. They have proved reliable so far in guarding her against the elements, but for how much longer? She couldn't say for sure. It's a miracle she even survived this long with them. These conditions aren't exactly forgiving to the foolhardy and the unacclimatized... Yet, for as long as she was on the clock, she must persist. Freezing heights be damned, she will endure...

For the past couple of days, she had spent her ample time treading across hundreds of miles of snowy acres to get the best lay of the land and defend it from the ever-expanding horde of undead. From negotiating with the local clans to arrange barricades along the territories, to setting up mass cut-off points lined with pitfalls and spikes. She had thought of everything and anything within her power and ingenuity to keep them at bay. So far, the most efficient method she had came up with was to intentionally cause avalanches along the slopes to flatten out whole areas of them approaching. It's unbelievable what people can come up with and get done when left to their own devices and sanity sometimes...

[outer moth]

Not too long into her ascent, she was once again reminded of the peace that came with absolute isolation. Loneliness that only the harshest environments could provide. The lofty thought of being the only person around for miles onward crossed through her mind quite often these past few days. Sometimes it reminded her of her hopeless state of relations. Other times it came to her as an imminent threat to her existence. But ever so often... it came to her as a source of jubilation. To think... she had forgotten what it was like to experience solitude at a height like this... To have your silent thoughts be the mirror that drew out your reflection. To have your body lay bare and be witness to the world around. To conquer and stand at odds with one's place high above what lies below. To tread where no one dared tread before and invoke the spirit of challenge. To be content with every step of one's life having lead to this very moment, and to that it can all conclude with one more step...

To surmount the mountains... was an ephemeral joy.

And as she stood a scant distance away from the edge, she presented herself wholeheartedly to the heavens. Eyes lidded and arms extended out. Slowly raising up to convene at the plexus, before lowering into a fold. That tranquil state would've remained for a while longer if it weren't for the sudden intrusion in her ears. A voice calling out to her where there should be none. The myth and sanctity of solitude now broken. And as she turned to face the identity of onlooker, her heart filled with many colorful, yet saddened emotions.

_ _
"You... looked like you had some fun without me..." She promptly quipped out, meeting him in the middle as she slowly approach the gnoll. She takes off the wooden mask she had on to get a better view of the man in front of her, the stains made evermore apparent up close. With a quick tug of her gloved hands at his hood, they lifted right up and made scarce.

_ _

As relieving as it was to experience true solitude once more in her life... she was ultimately glad to no longer suffer to loneliness again.

[lavish raven]

Akx takes sharp breath as the harengon approaches him and exhales it slowly, allowing the warmth from within him to radiate out.

"Mm... Fun? Not really... though...," His words catch for a moment, before he thinks back to what others have told him in regards to keeping secrets, "Akx has been able to work... some frustrations out..." Though, now that he is no longer amidst the mountains on his own, both joy and concern paint his expression.

As she reaches up, not quite touching him, but his clothing, his stance softens a bit. "Thank... even Akx thinks it was starting to smell..." *He gives a short, singular, quiet chuckle.

He takes another deep inhale and lifts his head up, tugging the hood from her hands as he surveys the surroundings, watching the sun as it hangs low near the horizon, before turning back to face his company.

"Is... getting late for travel. Akx was going to camp here... do... does... would Roe like to stay... with... Akx?" His words very clearly stumble out of his mouth and there is an ever so subtle recoil by him towards the end.

[outer moth]

"Frustrations? Whatever seems to be troubling you so?" She spoke out mindlessly, adjusting the folds of his coat properly before stepping away to give him a good look. A cleanly sight, just as it was meant to be. Already her expression begins to liven as well, on top of the sudden wave of warmth that graced her so. Her gloves wipe away at the sides of her own coat in turn, a moment taken to process his words and behavior.

There was nothing for them to rush over, aside from the coming of dusk drawing closer and closer. It was odd that he would feel the need to hesitate over something so genuinely kind as to offer a place to stay. It's like they haven't been working for a while now, where their travels have often landed them camping together. Perhaps he was just not used to inviting people over. A likely assumption given what she knew of his past. Or... maybe it was just being with her? It's not like she would've objected. She found the invitation rather considerate, as expressed by the patient smile and nod she had for him.

"Of course I would like to. We can talk about it and the current states of things on the way there.... now that we're here anyways. It's probably best for us to group together for now and be at each other's side until the situation calls for it. I... don't think I have much choice or benefit to going on my own from here right now... And if it's somehow with you I'm sharing sleeping bags with, I would only have a lot less to worry about moving forward." She chuckled out brightly with smile, expressing the sense of trust she had for her companion.

"You mentioned making a camp out here, ye? Is it... already set up somewhere, or do you need some help getting it in place? I could show you some of the ways I've been keeping myself alive and hidden out here if you'd like." She offered excitedly.

[lavish raven]

There's an immediate withdrawl, a step back, as he realizes 'oh, we haven't had... a good moment to talk in a while,'

"R-right... Roe does not know. Akx... did something not good..." His face drops any semblance of happiness, a soft, sad look taking its place. "Was supposed to tell you... maybe a month ago? A little more...?" A shaky, frightened breath is exhaled as she straightens the coat and he pulls a slight smile back to his face, though the eyes remain full of worry.

"Okay okay. Just need to find a good spot where wind will not be too much of an issue while setting up... should not be too hard. Ridges are everywhere..." He reaches into a flat bag at his side and withdraws a crudely drawn map of the surrounding mountains.

"Hard to get away from this area... but maybe ten minutes back that way..." He looks back the direction he just came from, and as the rabbitfolk jokes about sharing sleeping bags, he visibly sinks about three inches into the snow on the ground as he and the air immediately around him very rapidly heats up. "H-hrm!? Akx means if... Roe is serious? Or is teasing?" His tone is baffled, whatever melancholic thought pushed very far away from the front of his mind.

"Not yet. Akx was scouting before setting up tent for the night, but if Roe has something better... smarter? Then yes." He says with an enthusiastic nod.

[outer moth]

"Oh... right. I remembered you wished to speak to me about something. I... didn't know it was that troubling and important... I'm sorry..." She bowed her head down in remorse. Whatever sins he plans to confess and confide with her did not seem to weigh well on his mind with how he was sulking about in front of her. Her own worry and regret lied in leaving him to wait in her absence and allowing herself to be taken away by her own... burdens...

"i'm... sure that left you with enough time to think about what you committed and wanted to say by now, so whatever you wish to impart on me, you'll have my full, undivided attention once we get somewhere private. We'll get through these troubles of yours together, alright? Now... ease up that sorry look on yourself! That's no way someone as sweet as you should smile." She reaffirmed him, reaching behind him to give his large back a few pats down to hope to straighten him up a little.

As he brings out his crusty map, the shorter harengon fights to see a better view of it from his side, hopping onto his arm just to accomplish that. She immediately recognizes the landmarks and routes written down on his own version of the map, along with the "dead zones" that surrounded the area. Her hand barely reaches over to the set of ridges they were now occupying and traces around to the surround areas.

[outer moth]

_ _
"You see those areas I pointed out? They are currently littered fortresses, walls, and traps protecting against the waves of undeath up north and to the east. All done by me within the span of a few days on route to here... What I was going for is to do same thing but on a smaller scale. A wooden shelter or a bunker of sorts. I just need to find a flatter area along this side of the ridge and some wood, and I should be able to make one of those for us again. It'll stand better against any sudden blizzards, and it won't stand out us much from underneath the snow compared to a normal tent... Much roomier too..." She eagerly explained as traced along the map some more, gesturing out other components of the shelter she plans to do. In the middle of her rambling, she begins to notice her height of view slowly go down, watching the map begin to warp before being hit with the sudden wave of warmth coming off from his body.

"Woahwoahwoahwoah! The map, watch the map! Akx!" She hurriedly pointed out "It's just an expression, Akx. I didn't... I was just making a light comment out of fun. it wasn't a suggestion. I wasn't going to actuall... I mean... nevermind... We... don't have to stay that close together if you don't want to... I understand if... you want some space... between us... first... Do you?" She awkwardly mumbles out through her hands, hiding her face away from the embarrassment and severe blushing she just caused.

[lavish raven]

"No no... it is not something to be sorry about. Akx... was avoiding it, but others insisted Akx tell someone and only one that made sense to Akx was Roe. Besides... Roe has her own concerns to worry about. Akx is not Roe's problem to fuss over..." His breath steadies and try as he might to push them awat, the thoughts of 'she's going to leave once she knows' linger.

"Akx... thinks so. It is not a lot on its own... but might be longer... talk about it." His mouth opens for yet another saddened sigh, before her complement reaches his ears and a genuine grin takes hold in its stead. "Okay, Akx will... smile better?" He says with a playful smirk.

As she bounces up, he braces his arm so that neither of them end up laying in the snow and watches her point out the ridges that she seems to have traveled from.

"Mm. Is very good idea... keeping dead out rather than... what Akx has been doing." He nods in approval, preparing defense, traps and more temporary structures was not something he had never seen, but hearing that she had managed serveral, alone, while still traveling, it was simply amazing.

He very quickly opts to drop the map, rather than incinerate it, which seems to have been a possibility, given there are scorch marks at the edges where his paws were holding the page. "Errm... Akx-" He rubs the side of his neck as he sets her down off his arm, as he lowers himself just a bit further to make eye contact easier. "Akx wants Roe close, but it is Roe's choice to be close or not... and how close if so..." He tries his best to hide his flustered demeanor, but it is painfully apparent. "So no, Akx does not want... space, but... Roe might after talking..."

[outer moth]

"I suppose you are right... I do have more on my plate than I let on admittedly..." She reluctantly agrees "But with the way you've been handling it yourself from what I hear, it might as well be my problem now too and add it to the pile... You may not call yourself my responsibility, but you are still my friend. As long as you don't intend on stopping me, I will continue to care about you, and I will see to find the best way that I can to help... That's how friends are, after all..." She stated whilst bending over to reach the lightly charred and discarded map on the snowy floor, gently rolling it up before sliding it right between his arm. Smiling back to him in a placid way before moving on to more muddled emotions shared between them.

"Look... let's just see where the night and conversations take us before we worry about any of that, okay? I may or may not be that easy to sway emotions with..." She simply stated, setting her expectations and deeper desires straight for the both of them in lieu of what's to come. She found it rather amusing that he was so forward, yet respectful in wanting her company, but... how she was meant to take it in from there... she didn't quite know yet... "Now come on, let's go before night falls on us first.... Can't share the prospect of a talk and cuddle without anywhere to do those things, can we now?" She smirks, before tugging away at her scarf and getting a move down along the slope

[lavish raven]

"Hrrrm... More to talk about... If Roe wants to share?" He suggests, taking a high step to get out of the small hole in the snow layer, leaving a decent divot behind as he tucks the map back into his bag. "Akx does not want that. Akx very much likes being Roe's friend... and it is very nice for Roe to care."

"Yes, yes. Worries, wants, wonders, can wait. Travel and shelter first." His voice is full of excitement and uncertainty, as he pulls a grin on and moves forward, catching up with a few long strides, before slowing his pace and falling in beside her. "Only a few minutes this way..." He gestures with a simple point towards his tracks in the snow, guiding the pair back the way he came for a short time before they come to the base of a curved ridge, with a large stone outcropping above that would cause any snowfall to slide off to one side while blocking wind from the north and west. "Here... should be best spot for... a good distance." He says, retrieving the map for a last glance, before nodding. "Another hour to the next good spot..."

[outer moth]

"Eh. We'll see if I'm am in the mood to..." She lightheartedly responded back, giving a shrug before turning back to her upbeat pace. Though it seemed like she just glanced over the suggestion, it was something she was paying close mind to after saying too much on it. There's... a lot she probably needs to get off her chest eventually, but whether or not Akx would be the right person to unload all that unto, she could not say for sure. Does she even feel the need to let him know? Would this even be the right time for that given the focus falling to him first? She can only that when ball gets rolling later on, she would not be swayed so much to find out...

Once they arrived to the spot he had marked out, chasing after the heat he left behind after electing to let himhim to lead the way, Roe immediatebly began to survey and inspect the area right in front of her. She pulls out her multi-tool begins measuring the dimensions of the space under the outcropping, projecting gridlines along the surface of the wall to trace and mark down for later. All she is essentially doing here is figuring out how large the walls need to be to completely surround the room, how far into the snow she needs to dig in, and how much wood is required for a shelter of this scope. Once she got her estimates down, she turns back to Akx with a rather determined look as she steps forward with her hands on her pack straps.

"Alright, this spot will do nicely. Let's now go find ourselves some trees and collect our wood from there. You still have that crimson ax on you? I'll need some help chopping some of them down to return here later while I pick out some branches and pines. Only go for the thinner ones though. We don't need to come back here with a whole log. That being said, we should be able to carry more between the two of us now thanks to you..." She chuckles out, tapping him by the arm as she guides Akx along to the small forest clearing she spots down below.

[lavish raven]

"Mm... only if Roe wants. Akx will not pry. Just do not want to... feel like Akx is only getting help and not giving any." He gently remarks, putting emphasis on his desire to help. "Just know... Roe can ask and Akx will try."

Akx gives her time to work out the structure as he leans up against the wall off to the side. "Roe has been building these alone? Every night?"

He withdraws the weapon from it's spot in the bundle on his back and gives a quick nod, the vermillion blade catching what light was left in the day. It lacks the spikes that usually line its edge when drawn in combat, but is otherwise the same. "Yes, yes, can do." He affirms, as he follows down into the small outcropping of trees. "How many?" He asks as they approach the treeline, examining the smaller trees that dot the edge.

[outer moth]

"Every night." She affirmed, stating it ever so bluntly. "And these are just the ones I sleep in for myself... Haven't said anything about the ones I spend every day building thus far just yet." She smirked right back at him before crouching over to collect the scattered branches she finds half-buried in the snow. At this point, she sends Vee out to fly out of her pack, who had been staying hidden and close to her this entire time to serve as a source of heat. One by one, she hovers near to any scattered sticks and vegetable matter to collect, going so far to carve them out right from the trees themselves with the guided laser installed on her, should any of them be of the adequate size and length or the area begins to be scarce of them.

"I haven't done much reconnaissance or bartering with the other tribes at all because I've been too busy trying to fight for territory. It doesn't help that our forces are scattered so thin, and the hordes are getting much larger by the north with every day... I haven't even gotten word from any of you until recently, where one of the settlements I passed by made mention of C coming to supply them with aid and making deals with the local authority. I assume he's been handling the trade of information fine so far. Would be better if we had a clear way communication to between us all to know for sure. Message by foot doesn't work too well in this case, and silence on the other end of the wire is never good... All it means is that Arwen and the others will have to put their trust on us out here on our own, which... I don't mind. Means every more reason to do my job as well as I've done so far onwards..." She sighed out, beginning to tie the growing collection of sticks, branches, and pine leaves into bundles that she can carry around, using some twine to do so.

_ _
"I'd say we cut about twenty? We need enough to barricade the front and support the roof over our heads. Not to mention saving some for any firewood, traps, or other necessities we might need out here..." She huffed out, getting up from her knelt position to stretch for a moment. She then takes out her multi-tool and reforms it into a survival ax, walking over to one of the smaller pines to begin cutting it down. Aiming the edge by grain of the bark before swinging with her whole strength into it. It barely takes two strikes from her before it is cut cleanly in half and left to drop down safely to the side.

[lavish raven]

"Is really impressive... Akx has just been using a tent... with some extra wood... for bracing against wind." He grunts out, a solid CHOP filling each break his speaking as he levels the axe and swings it into the trunk of a more meduim tree topling it rather quickly, before he transitions to stripping the branches off once it is on the ground.

With the tree reduced to just its trunk, Akx slides the branches all into his bag, before moving on to the next tree and repeating the process. "If Roe has been... doing this... every day... be stronger than Akx... in no time." He calls out, as he fells his second trunk.

"Good to know Can-ay-deeus is okay, but... Hrrrmph... nothing from Kitsune...? Kitsune can be hard to find sometimes... Hope is doing good."

[outer moth]

"You'd think so? Even stronger than someone like... you..." She'd look up to entertain the thought, only to have any feeling of pride falter as she watches him outpace her easily with every swing after saying that. It's impressive that he can chop down trees as easily as that, but it only goes to show the immense gap between their strengths as they stand now. A truth that she can't seem to overcome and surpass. An unsettling feeling that she channels through more aggressive cuts as she removes the branches and divides the log into manageable sections. All in a vain attempt to keep up with him.

"Nothing from him either... Like I said, information doesn't move fast on land. We'd have to stumble back to Banestone or be lucky enough to catch the others in the area to know at this point. But the man has faced some harsher things before. I'm sure he'll do right on its own... Hey, how are you fitting all of that wood inside your bag? How... where did you get an item like that?" She inquired briefly as she walked to towards another tree to cut down. Channeling more arcane energy to the swing as she levels the ax head to the bark, before coming down with a clean, diagonal chop that sends it sinking down nigh instantly.

[lavish raven]

After his third tree is rendered little more than a pole of wood, Akx pauses to catch his breath. "Yes. Is very good for arms! Core too if putting some extra spin in." He calls back, rubbing his arm for a moment, regretting not taking a moment to stretch before starting.

As he takes his axe up again, he listens to her swings grow heavier and quicker. "Roe is not worrying about keeping up with Akx again, right?" He asks, worried about her potentially overdoing it and exhausting herself.

"Oh... mission in Eeeder Wastes two weeks ago. Village had their water supply cut off... had to go into a cave, find out why, found a large plant... thing... in the cave, it was drinking all the water... Found bag down there and was told Akx could keep it. Holds lots of stuff... though... Akx does not have lots of stuff to hold most of the time." He shares, as he slides another batch of branches into the bag. "Does Roe want to use it? Akx would say keep it, but... Queen- errr Leader Basha seems to know who should have what..."

[outer moth]

"What? No... of course not. I'm just trying pick up the pace before sundown." She deflects, shaking her head in slight resentment as she starts separating the branches from the main body once more. She feels somewhat awkward after having been called out like that, before discarding that thought and getting back to work. Redoubling on her forceful motivations as she cleaves into the third tree. If this is how she's going to get her mojo back, she'll cleave through a hundred thousand more trees to get through if she has to.

"Yeah, Basha and the other staff have records like that. They take notes of what comes in and out of the guild, have people declare any findings and items they have with them, along what is handed out as payment between missions.... Making... hah... sure to not let anyone have what they're not supposed to and bringing any unwanted danger to the guild than what it already attracts. I... often take charge of that at times. Especially with auctioned items branded by the guild. It's best that you keep it with you for now. I'll just let you know if there's anything I need stored in there... Thanks..." She sharply exhales, moving on to the next tree after dismantling the third.

[outer moth]

_ _
"I used to have one myself, some... time ago. It's... no longer with me due to some pretty unfortunate events that led to it being torn up... I think, along with everything that was inside it... which sucks, but what are you gonna do? In theory, I could make another. I've been... dabbling in similar kinds of magic to that which allows it to hold so much space, so it would not be too difficult for me to apply that in crafting one... But, then I would have to reallocate what few resources I have into creating another live infusion recipe, and I'll be finding myself spread thin on when I can reasonably use it half of the time because of having to exchange it in for another item I'll be forced to use on the job. Then there runs the problem of having to decide the item and recipe I will even sacrifice for scraps on this project, and not having it anymore at my disposal... Not to mention how long and hard it is to make in turn... It's just... too complicated and troublesome for what it's worth. It's better for me just to find a permanent bag... or barter off the recipe for one..." She huffs out after chopping through the tree in front of her, driving in each point of her rant with a frustrated swing into the bark with her axe.

"That's... why you should keep it safe on you whenever you'll be out there in the front. A single tear or puncture is enough to render the item useless, and make scarce of whatever wealth and belongings were once stored inside..." She turns back to face him as she dispenses that knowledge, before carrying over to drag the medium sized log to the pile for dismantling.

[lavish raven]

"Oookayyy. As long as Roe is not thinking is like a competition... Go at a pace Roe can keep up for a bit... unless Roe wants to be carried back to camping spot." He playfully teases, before grunting as his axe bounces off a stubborn knot while trimming the fourth tree.

"Hrrrmmm... is very odd pack- guild makes a big deal of owning things... should just be able to give things to each other..."

Having felled his fifth tree, he listens to her warning as he goes about breaking down the first five logs into more manageable pieces. "Akx will be careful with the bag, though not much in there usually. If Roe knows... and does not mind sharing... what happened? Or is a maybe later, maybe never?"

[outer moth]

"Hmm... perhaps a maybe later? If I can even remember to tell you later... That was... a long time ago. I don't recall much from that time... Maybe when my mind is not on logging right now? And when I have the time to prepare... I don't know..." She sighs out, her expression welling up with unease and uncertainty; hesitation over divulging that stain on her past. It all comes off as she turns back to him with a more stern look. "Also don't think I'm going to pass out on myself so easily, you mutt. Let me remind you that I have been doing this for days, all on my own. I know how to work my way around wood... And don't think I haven't caught that last bit either. Don't get any funny ideas... You don't get to carry me around unless I allow you to, got it?" She barks back as she points the axehead towards the gnoll before quietly laughing under her breath, taking his offer into consideration as she makes a few glances to see how that would play out.

"I... suppose it's odd if you were someone who came from a more communal upbringing and community. Here in Daaloon, we take after the concepts of property, trade, and material gain and wealth... to a point where we've made an innumerable amount of laws about them... The one's in enforced at the guild are just to prevent any theft or illegal trades for the most part. Again, control what comes in and out of here... I suppose there could be some merit to having easier access between items for the general good of the guild, but... sharing could lead to conflict if not supervised. Who gets what thing for how long? Where and when can they take this? I suppose that's what the rental system is for, but... hrm... Not everyone is willing to do so to begin with either. People... will be naturally greedy. Especially Mercenaries..." She frowns, feeling rather bitter about her own statement as she drives her axe into the fifth tree coldly with each strike.

_ _
"How do you... handle things back there in your old pack with resources and belongings then? How do you decide who gets to own what.. if at all? Do you all have a shared amount of coin between you all, or is it only for outside business and trade?" She spoke out in inquiry, watching the tree fall slowly before releasing a small could of snow from below.

[lavish raven]

"Maybe maybe later..." Akx gives a short chuckle, before sighing. "Sometimes Akx wishes not to remember what happened for Akx to be here..., but those memories will not be going anywhere anytime soon."

"Okay okay! No need to be pointing tools at things they are not going to be chopping..." He says, turning away, moving towards the next tree he needs to fell. His ears perk and the undamaged one flicks just once as he hears her quietly laugh. "Akx will only carry Roe when asked then. So no passing out, because then Akx would have to leave you out here." He retorts in a devilish, playful tone as he returns to bringing down the next tree.

"Akx knows coin is important for dealings outside of pack, but... should be able to work together, share, or give things within pack. Greed hurts whole group though... is not a... hrrrm... smart thing to... have? Do?"

"Old pack..." His voice becomes soft with just a little remorse as he speaks, "Food, tools, were shared... would not be 'Akx's spear' or 'Roe's bottles', just spear or bottle. Coin was... owned, but very loosely, pretty much only for trades in the cities when hunts could not provide enough to replace broken things. Very simple, if need thing just ask who had last."

[outer moth]

"If you actually did that, I'll make sure to haunt you and this mountain you left me to freeze in." She threatened out jokingly, giving him an intense look as she waved the axe around in her hand. Her bluster all but fades moments after as she comes to awareness of what she just had just done. Normally, such proclamations made in jest would be avoided out of the unpredictable consequences they held in contempt to the other. But considering they are nowhere near where those words would ring true... she could rest easy knowing she's now at a liberty to say such things again. It... still felt weird catching herself off-guard like that. Perhaps she had gotten too used to the mortal soil once more. Whether that's a good or a bad thing, that remains to be said...

She didn't forcefully mean it at least... no need to worry about anything wrong coming out from there, save for potentially going too far and hurting his feelings...

"Well... I suppose it might have to do with something about the guild being too large for that kind of that communality to benefit from, where there's virtually enough resources spread between everyone that sharing is rendered unecessary... or I guess irrelevant? Either of those two... We are also only expected to operate cooperatively as a team, but self-sufficient individually outside of missions... in fact, it's largely expected that things are largely left to the individual. That kinda circles in to the belief of being entitled to ownership probably being based on the sole person to begin with... It's... a whole mess that I need more time to think on to explain, and even then... I doubt I have the right idea of it in my mind..." She frowns, stuck on the thought of dismantling the systems and conventions she took for granted in a way that Akx could understand. She leaves it at that for a moment as she works to pile the separated logs, before coming back to it after standing up and approaching her next spot.

[outer moth]

"That's not to say that sense of shared ownership is not found here in Daaloon. If you look at some of the more smaller, rural, and closer knit communities, I'm sure you'll see some semblance of that practice being done in a situation where it's more likely. Where... it's needed more. It's not like everyone forgot how to borrow. It's just that there's an expectation to return it because it belongs to someone else... I suppose calling it greedy is a bit too much. It's really.... whatever. I can't really say the system is smart or not without being educated on the matter. It's just... the one that happened to work best for the longest time. People have and can do fine without strict ownership and communal sharing. It's just that most settlements here have outgrown that notion... Do you think it would be better if people here were encouraged to share what they have? Don't you think you deserve something for yourself? Something that no one else can have?" She posed, curious to see his further take on things while working on getting the sixth tree stripped apart. Much of her thoughts going into this are largely based on snap assumptions. It would be nice to see someone else's to compare and work off on.

[lavish raven]

His swing falters as he belts out the full cackle of a giddy gnoll. "Well, then at least Akx would always have Roe around." He retorts, as he watches his seventh tree fall, before pausing in place, thinking about what was said before turning to face the rabbitfolk. "Roe knows Akx would never do that right...? Would rather Roe be mad at being carried than turned into a bunny-sicle."

"Guild is verrry big, is true and people usually have what they need... hrrrmph... and Akx guesses that important things are shared... Tee-ahc did use some very, very, verrry, expensive gems on Akx and the others..." Once more he pauses, stretching his arms and places a hand under his arm, against his ribs, pressing ever so slightly before making his first swing into the eighth tree. "Is not that different... still would like to give things to people..." He huffs with a sigh.

As her question is posed, the rhythmic thunk of chopping ceases for a moment as Akx lets himself think. "People... should share if someone needs and they do not... Akx... already has new home, new pack... is more than Akx deserves... as for things Akx wouldn't want anyone else to have...?" His head begins to shake from side to side before he hesitates, uncertain about something.

[outer moth]

"As with most things though, there are exceptions... We are allowed to distribute our goods and equipment among ourselves on jobs when it is most needed, as long as it returned to whom they were borrowed from... and people offering their services here have every right to decide a price that fits with how they view it's worth... even if that price is no charge whatsoever... I understand wanting to freely gift around items, and there are some people who would greatly appreciate and benefit from it if it were commonplace... but we have to work with the rules given to us... even if they sound unfair..." She huffed out as she ran her thoughts in the middle of stripping away the branches once more. A harsh, resolute conclusion she had made for herself long, long ago. Her temper remains scattered and low during the moments after, thinking on how his claim would've held up in her time. It's not that she disagreed with his ideals entirely, far from it. She would've liked it if people were more altruistic in their ways, and she found the fact that they don't reasonable detestable, but... she knew early on that she can't expect kindness and generosity from the common man and stranger... not anymore.

It is then she comes to notice the hesitation from his tone and words. A denial of any so desires for himself; an exception. Of course, such beliefs would come from a selfless mind like him, but... it appeared there was something more for him to think and reconsider about affirming to such sentiments. It is then that Roe slowly lifts away from the ground to walk over to a closer tree to where Akx is, holding off from her swing to pose another question to him.

"Does Akx not want to have anything in his life for himself at all? What... do you think he deserves then?" She simply responded, softly speaking this passage for him to reflect on, feeling some sympathy for where this might lead to...

[lavish raven]

"Well yes... Akx knows things can be borrowed, things have been offered and Akx has offered weapons to others... just would be nice to give things not needed or that others want, but Roe is right, rules are rules... oh well... can at least try with the auctions..."

"Now... wants... wants are verrry different from things that are deserved..." Akx's stance softens as he listens to her steps crunch closer over the snow. "Akx has... wants..., not many are things, but... yes, Akx has them." His words are wary and timid, as if it is something that might be taken away from him. "Things Akx deserves... depend on who is being asked..., but Akx thinks Akx deserves...," And for a second he becomes a bit more rigid, if he were facing her, his eyes would become dark and harsh for a moment, "...nothing kind." He growls, punctuating it with a heavy swing, causing the wood to gouge rather than chop, before he returns to his softer stance. "Ah... hm... too hard..., sorry... sorry... should still be fine to use..., right...?" His head turns towards Roe with an expression of slight concern and a mixture of regret from maybe having overshared something.

[outer moth]

Roe flinches at the sudden show aggression with her ears stooped low, shielding herself behind her hands from any splinters that might've flown her way. Once he's let it all out, she slowly lowers them down and walks over to inspect the damage, placing a hand on his shoulder to assure him that everything was fine after seeing what tension slipped through.

"It's alright, no harm done. I'm not asking for perfect pieces of wood, just that we have some. We can just use it as it is or cut away where it tapers off. It's no big deal, though... Do you want to save that thought for later, or do you want to talk about it now and hear what I have to say?" She looks over to him with a worried, yet forgiving smile, not hard pressed on any choice either way. If he feels like he needs more time to explain, or if this isn't the right place for that now, then she will not object.

[lavish raven]

"Akx is... sorry... that thought was not supposed to fall out of mouth... Akx... errrm.... does not really want to talk about that one..." He says quietly just above what could be considered a whisper. "But... if Roe wants to say something about it... now is best time... Akx does not want to bring it up again." He says, embedding his axe into the tree, leaving it there as he turns to fully face her and whatever judgement, advice, or whatever other words might be thrown at him.

[outer moth]

"I think you're being too hard on yourself..." She simply responded, staring back at the gnoll with a cold and stern look, before putting her sights to the piece of lumber she was about to fell.

"It's often that we feel undeserving of the good things that happen to us or dream of... due to a feeling of inadequacy, lack of worth, or remorse over the things we have done or don't have... among other things at least... Sometimes we mask it as selflessness, when in fact it could be an unresolved state of longing... Often those self-perceptions are misguided, misplaced, or overinflated. Self-imposed because we see no possibility for ourselves where it isn't the case. No where is it written in stone that we truly aren't deserving of anything more. We can still allow ourselves to have good things in spite of how deserving we are of them, but only if we allow them to happen to begin with..." She pauses, thinking on what next to impart to her troubled companion. Every mindless swing into the bark has been forceful with every point made, contempt clearly behind every strike. All as a result of feeling dishonest for having to be the one having to spell this out to him. A flaw she knew too well as to have no right to speak on...

"There's only two ways I can see you remedying that I believe. You either learn to appreciate and accept all that's been given to you in spite of what you may feel is deserved, or you work yourself up to become a person worthy of those things. Either that, or you could always let the stubborn cycle of self-deprivation and resentment go on... Your choice really..." She concluded, stepping out of the way to let the tree fall unimpeded. As the cold dust settles, she allows herself to take in the air, long before turning back to Akx with a soft frown, and another question to answer.

"If you truly believe that Akx doesn't deserve anything kind... why didn't you stop me from doing all that I have done up until now? Why do... you still let me stay?"

[lavish raven]

His face flips through several emotions over the next few seconds: an initial confusion, not sure if what she has said is true or not... it had been years, maybe he could let up on himself, her cold eyes dug deep and made him actually think about it. Then came the regret, holding back the event that lead to him leaving his old home those years ago... it would clear so much, maybe then she would understand why he thinks like this. A form of contempt follows, as if it would simply be that easy to decide to become worthy of any kindness, to think the price of such a thing would be something readily payable. As she asks her question, his face settles into sadness once more.

"Like Akx said... wanting... is different than deserving. Can want to have someone to care for or someone to care about Akx and not deserve it... is... bad to want for things that are not deserved... is why Akx waits for things to be offered rather than ask."

[outer moth]

"And yet you asked anyways... It's like I just said... We work until we feel that we are ready to ask, to want, and to receive. For as long as it is needed... For god's sake, what will convince you that your fate is not as bleak and helpless as it seems..." She sighs, sporting a defeated smile as she shakes her head away. It's seems right to assume that she'll leave it at that for now as she walks away to collect and drag back the fallen log. Whether or not there is more to discuss further, it will be now left for the gnoll to decide.

It's odd... Seeing so much of herself in him was something she did not expect to encounter, let alone internalize and consider. How he disregards himself... how he longs to yearn for something more... how much he resents, how much... he is hurting...

_ _

It's... all too familiar...

_ _

If only he knew where it ends up... If only he could see past himself for just a second... If only there was more that she could do say in this moment... But alas, she can only go as far as he will allow her to listen... Let's hope there's another chance for them to talk this out of him...

[lavish raven]

As fate is brought up, his thoughts drift back to last time his fate was made apparent to him: the days his soul was stranded in the Death Dells. "If Akx knew... Akx would tell Roe so Roe could tell Akx and then maybe Akx would listen." He says, signing off the sentence with a weak laugh.

"Okay, okay... there will be enough time for talking when there is a safe, warmer, place for it. If Roe still wants to... talk about this, Akx will." He saysfirmly, as he returns to felling the damaged tree, watching the gouged out section crack through as the weight distributes on it unevenly before it sends a puff of snow upwards, before he sets to once again removing errant branches.

"Nine Akx thinks..." He huffs, turning to count the pile of logs, before looking to the sky and noticing the color has drifted further and further from the red of sunset and has settled into the purples of twilight. "Is enough or should we get the last couple? Suns are almost gone..."

[outer moth]

"Alright, we'll leave it at that then..." She smiles back, before turning to the slowly fading surroundings around her at the mention of dusk rolling in. "Hmm... Let's just hurry getting the remaining few down from us both and we can start packing up and making it back to the clearing." She instructs, tapping a piece of equipment by her ear to signal to her homunculus to return right away.

"I'll call back Vee to start tying the branches and leaves into bundles. Once you're done with the last one, you can start tying them up too... or put them in the bag. Whichever you prefer... It will be hard to fit them all on just your back or inside the bag, so probably split them evenly between the two..." She directs him with her axe pointed at the currently assembled pile, before jogging towards the last few trees in her reach to line up and watch fall one after the other after speeding through her chops with a sprint. Leaving her rather exhausted by the end of it as she rushes to drag them all back to the pile.

[lavish raven]

Akx nods, moving towards the last of the trees to be collected and levels the axe blade at it. One..., two...., three... CRACK! and the tree comes down. He elects to drag it to the heap with the rest before stripping it down to the trunk alone, stowing smaller, shorter limbs into the bag, and setting longer ones aside for bundling.

With last tree finished, he begins to tie the twine around the ends of longer limbs, forming somewhat sturdy frames that should be able to hold a good portion of the remaining branches. "Should hold..." With the frames set, he stands from the kneel he was in to help her gather the logs, but is a little surprised as she deposits them nearby so quickly. "Oh! Okay, okay, take a moment to breathe. Akx can get it all together." He stands, lining some of the closest sized logs together and lashing them into a flat row, making a rudimentary sled that should be as easy to disassemble when they need the wood. "That should make moving most of it easier... hrrrm..."

[outer moth]

Once Vee comes back with her payload of foraged items, the two of them work together two wrap the twine around the other pile of branches and pine until they are all secured in a large bundle. Then, she starts affixing a small frame and platform onto her backpack for all the wood she tied up, before securing the bundle there as well. From there, she looks at the remaining logs and how he's handling them and wonders. A sled wasn't the first thing she would think of, but admittedly it was a rather practical and clever idea. One that suited him and his enduring physicality quite well. She walked over to some of the lighter logs and started tying them all in the same manner, taking after his idea. Right until she has a sled bundle of logs of her own, albeit weigh considerably less than his.

"Alright, I think that's everything checked... Good job out there." She walks over to congratulate him with a soft pat on the back, before strapping on her pack with the bundles and slinging the sled ropes over her shoulder. "Now let's get a move on before anything finds us here."

[lavish raven]

"Roe is good to move, yes? Back up the hills just a little, but the weight will make it feel further." He stands, tugging the basic rope harness he has looped around himself, ensuring that the load does not topple as he pulls it forward. "Good, good. Roe did good too. Trees fell very quick. Could have been done sooner if Akx did not... bleh.. does not matter now. Time to go."

As her hand pats him, his tail gives a single satisfactory swish before he waves her ahead of him. "Roe first, Akx will follow, just in case log gets loose." His grip on the ropes tighten momentarily when thoughts of ropes snapping cross his mind, but he releases a huff of steam into the air, relaxing his grip, as he plods forwards.

[outer moth]

"You saying that it will? I assure you... I know my way around knots..." She scoffs, before shaking her head to the sound of a slight chuckle escaping her breath. With the straps and harnesses secured, she sends Vee forward to light up the way before following along a short distance away.

The short trek back remained relatively uneventful for the both of them. The dark, snowy backdrop beset by the low howl of the northern winds made it look out to be a perilous march, but no such threats arose along the way. She might have overestimated how cumbersome it would be to drag along so many items all at once, as she often finds herself sinking in rather than plowing through or walking across the snow. At one point, she almost trips over her own weight when a loose section of snow falls under foot, but she manages to catch herself right away and move on as if nothing happened. Pushing herself further with her so much more endurance left to show.

At least while she's huffing out steam and breaking her back out, she can rest her eyes on the natural beauty ahead of her. She could've sworn she'd never seen the stars this far up before, away from any polluting light or clouds that obscured the heavens. Cosmic brilliance free to reflect across her eye as she gazes upward to the depths unknown. She... had forgotten to consider how emptying it all felt, now that she thought about it. How small she was compared to the grander world... how her own existence stands only to be outshone by wonders far beyond her reach... how... little she actually mattered... It was heavily sinking to have to come to gripes with this thought once more, all over staring at some petty stars no less... Paired with the unforgiving nature of the peaks that see no end in sight... It only drove into her further that she wasn't meant to be here...

_ _
Once they arrived at the clearing and saw that everything was relatively untouched, Roe got to work right away on taking apart the bundles and stacks of wood she had lugged all this way here, sighing out a deep sound of relief to finally have them off her. One by one, she starts untying every thread of twine until all of her building materials are spread out for her to pick one. With her multi-tool, she begins projecting the set of blueprints and measurements onto the surface of the area once more, having Vee float in the middle to properly illuminate the workspace. With each branch, she starts staking them into the dirt one by one as the begin to form a semblance exterior frame. Should Akx step in to help, she'll guide him along the plotted lines to do much of the same.

[lavish raven]

"No no! Is just in case rope does not hold, not knots." He retorts as he feigns panic at slighting her, before delivering his own laugh.

As Vee floats ahead, Akx at first tries to train his eyes on small glowing automaton, much like about a month ago on the way to the garden, but his eyes decide to wander over the minutes the journey takes. First, it is the sled before him, just as a precaution, but it holds perfectly well, not even much jostling of the material on it. Then the surroundings, barren for the most part. Just snow marred with tracks from their earlier trek down. Third is his companion, as there is the sound of a stumble, but she recovers quickly, wordlessly, and not even a glance to look if he had seen. His eyes linger a moment, before moving towarsd the direction she is often glancing. Upwards, towards the sky. It was, as it always was back on Acrelund, a beautiful sight, though he did not recognize any patterns, nor constellations. Too much of the night was spent resting inside the mines to have given Daaloon's night sky a proper study, that and the lack of needing to rely on it for travel. He makes the mental note to visit the library for a local star map. Finished with stargazing, he pulls his mind back to what matters in these moments. Again his eyes try to focus on the homunculus guiding the way, but are instead drawn back to the harengon. He opens his mouth to say something, but decides against it as the base of the ridge comes into view.

As she leaps to action, he brings his own batch of materials forward, loosening each knot and allowing the logs and branches to spread out. He observes for a moment and getting the general idea, joins her in the construction effort, following her instructions where he is uncertain.

[outer moth]

"Alright... I'll go ahead and start making the support beams walls. Once I roll them over to you, start hammering them into the the holds I dug out. Make sure they're all standing upright and that you firmly pack the dirt around the base." She carefully instructs to him towards the perimeter of the clearing as she sat down to a better position to work at. With her multi-tool at the ready, she begins carving away at the logs at a pace quicker than most would imagine is possible. Effortlessly, she takes out chunks of the wood in very automated and precise manner more befitting a machine than a master craftsman. It's almost scary how clean she is with a chisel and hammer alone.

Each of the logs rolled out comes with certain sections that have gaps and joints, which she explains makes them easy to interlock without needing any nails or other construction supplies which are currently not at their disposal. Just the very same wood is needed all throughout. Not only is it more resourceful and efficient, but it will make the structure more sound and secure in general. She makes a good demonstration of this by sliding one of the augmented logs against two support beams, locking them in place and starting the basis for the wall. From there, she starts hammering in wooden pegs into the intersecting gaps that she fashioned from the smaller branches, further strengthening the hold of the joint. All of it seems to stay in place without any worry. With her example out of the way, she calls him over to his side try it out for himself, and for him to start working on the other empty walls.

[lavish raven]

Akx watches her carve, in awe at the rapidity of her movements. "Akx still cannot believe Roe has been doing this alone for the last... three... four... days? It takes... so much more to do than what Akx has been doing. Is amazing..."

With her example given, Akx sets to work with each notched log that comes over, setting the pillars into their holes, repacking any loose spaces within and adding and additional smaller raised mound around each on the sides where the supports won't be locked into. He pushes a support into the notched grooves and follows her lead of tapping in the carved dowels to strengthen the supports. Not so different from reinforcing a burrow when the pack would get stuck on a hunt for a while and a more permanent place needed to be established. Once he has a good portion of the wall done, he nudges one of the support beams, just to test his own handy word it holds and nary a wiggle from it. "Is good, Akx thinks. Okay." He briskly repeats this process several times over, giving the walls their first row of logs, before working upwards.

[outer moth]

"Well, I try to exercise putting the most effort in everything I do... even if it ends up being a little unnecessary at times... I will say, I do have to thank Vee over there for some small help in part, and it's not like I got it down perfectly going into this. Designs had to come from somewhere, and even with what I knew about woodworking and construction, I am still found myself having to do it over again until I got it right... which was not all that good to had dealt with considering how limited I am with resources up here... I am glad though that I have another set of hands to work here with me right now." She smiles warmly in appreciation, looking over to the progress he had made so far and nodding. Everything seems to be right in order, all the more reason to carry on with the rest of the work.

After the wall on her side has been fitted with all the logs that in can support, she then reaches for the twine and starts tying through the gaps to secure the logs further. Namely at the corners at which they intersect when looked from the outside. She wraps the crossed over ends until they seem to be bound together nicely. From there, she ties through the upright branches to hold them in place, all while slotting in the discarded pine leaves to use as insulation. With the front frame now fully completed at this stage, she can then move on to constructing out a simple door and barricade to affix to the front and seal them off from the outside elements... and potentially any undead if they're unlucky enough.

_ _
"Alright, we're almost getting there... now we just need to get the roof installed." She states out, holding her fingers out into a frame to scan around the nearly finished interior, stopping at the two beams posted in the middle of the room. Significantly taller than the rest. "Could you start working on the ridge and rafters... the frame of the roof I mean? I'll start piling the snow outside so I can have something to stand on while I do the thatching... You need a ladder, or do you think can reach just fine from in here?"

[lavish raven]

His eyes follow here gesture to the poles in the center of the frame. Not too tall for himself to work with, especially if he forces himself to stand fully upright. "Errrm... Akx should be able, but... if Roe has a ladder... why not use that while thatching, instead of the snow?" He asks, tilting he head off to the side curiously before heading over to the remaining logs to start framing out the roof.

Hefting the first beam up and getting it set was tricky, requiring him to do just as he thought, stretch up and stand at his full height, earning a slight grunt of discomfort, to ensure it found the spot to hold tight. As it slots into place, there is a light wince from the gnoll, but he hurriedly shakes it off, going to gather a second piece of lumber and repeats the process to establish a pair of decent starting points for the rest of the roof supports. The next minutes are filled with an assortment of huffs and grunts as he hoists the wood up to the height it needs, works awkwardly to make sure the joints line up, and then lashing them together. By the time he is finished, he is finally showing a bit of exhaustion himself as his pants and holds a spot on his side for a bit as he waits for his breath to return to him.

[outer moth]

"I'll kill two birds in one stone if I did... and I think you'll need it more than I do if that means anything. I can just take it from you once you're done..." She shakes her head in a pitiful way, clicking a button on her multi-tool to cause it to shift its form into that of a sturdy metal ladder, complete with the rails and steps that just seem to magically pop out from out of nowhere. She sets it over one of the support beams in the middle and heads outside with a shovel in hand.

The next few minutes are filled with heaving grunts on her end as well as she works her way with shoveling the snow around the shelter. Each scoop and drop adds to the ever increasing pile until the sides begin to match with the slope of the ridge. One she's gotten herself enough masses of snow to work with, she begins patting them down with her hands and the back of her shovel until its compact enough for her to have solid steps walking on top of it.

With that done, she heads back inside briefly to collect the remaining piles of branches and pine leaves, lifting them all in her arms as she piles them all across the mound of snow outside. Patiently, she sets down the branches in a row along the frame of the roof, tying them down with the twine before adding layers of pine on top. Arranged in a way that the snow won't start melting through or collapse through outright. After carefully thatching down the roof, she then proceeds to cut a hatch on one of the sides. Allowing them access to another form of air ventilation... and a potential escape route. And when that's all done, she then piles the remaining snow on top much like before, making sure to leave out the section where the hatch was uncovered.

_ _
With that, she walks out in front to give it a final look-see, holding her hands to her hips as she takes it in as a whole. A whole fortified shelter, hidden away under the ridge with no clue to what lay beneath. All done by the hands of two people, and a foxbot. She gives one last look around the dark, frozen expanse for any onlookers or undead, peering through countless feet of nothing before heading inside. Once there, she heads over to the small fire pit she dug out early and begins piling some of what few remained of their lumbering trip into a criss-cross stack. With a tinderbox in hand, she strikes the flint quickly with the steel hoop and with that-

_ _

"Click............... Tsshh~~"

_ _

The shelter was now complete. Rest and respite was now theirs to claim.

[lavish raven]

Akx looks around at the small shelter they raised, feeling a bit of accomplishment. His smile only widens as she steps in and lights the flame within. "Is done!" He gives an ecstatic giggle, seeming to have forgotten the heavy discussions that lay ahead.

He plods to across the fire and sets himself down with a heavy exhale. "Thank... for this. Is a just a little nicer than a tent with just the wind for company..." He says with a coy grin as he fishes his bedroll from his bag, leaning onto it like a cushion. "And also..." His eyes look towards wherever the foxbot had hovered to. "Thank Vee too. Very helpful."

[outer moth]

"Yeah, it is.... I don't think I could've done it better myself without you... so thanks..." She simply responded in kind. Sounding very much tired from her exertion, but nonetheless open enough to show her appreciation. She takes the gratitude very close to heart, happy to just see him find comfort in himself once more, and... not stand another moment alone. Vee, on the other hand, is more direct in her ways of welcoming her praises as she flies on over and simply gives Akx a few light baps on the snout, before flying off somewhere to power down and reserve energy.

After boarding up the door, Roe walks over to a corner to get rid of the cloak and armor that has been weighing down on her since this morning. Sliding off the arm braces and letting her chest and body breathe after having taken off her ashened breastplate. Much to her relief. The obstructive toolbelt around her waist comes off as well, making sure to take her multi-tool out of there before hopping right out of it and throwing it over to where the rest of her belongings were piled up. She gives herself a moment to think, tapping the tool against her palm and staring at the fire before speaking up.

"Say... what kind of rations do you have on you?" She inquired Akx, pressing a button on the multi-tool that causes it to transform into an ebony wood suitcase, setting it down on the floor before she takes her seat alongside it.

[lavish raven]

"Hrrrm? Roe has already been doing it just fine without Akx... doubt this would have been too much worse off..." He grins, reclining into a stretch before shedding his own winter clothing. A heavy cloak and a pair of fur-lined greaves fine their way to the side of the fire, to dry from any snow that has found its way into them.

Seeing her start to remove pieces of equipment, his eyes awkwardly lock onto the flames dancing in their little pit, realizing just how little privacy the shelter had. Not usually an issue for him, but in this instance he was feeling a like an intruder in someone else's space.

It is only when she speaks that his eyes break away from the fire, looking back towards her, "Oh, errrm... is mostly jerky and hardtack. Just things that last a while... and some dried sunmelon..."

[outer moth]

"Hmm... probably not enough to use in a stew... maybe the hardtack... nah..." She mutters to herself for a bit, drumming her nails along the edge of the briefcase before quickly opening it up. A whole slough of items come out of there in quick succession. A pot, some knives, general cooking utensils, and then a small, foldable table she places over on the space beside her. She might as well had the kitchen sink somewhere in there with how excessive her preparations are seeming to be. And all of this... somehow fit in that small rod of hers.

"I know I promised you something more substantial, meaty, and riddled with dessert the next time we were able to meet like this, but... your going to have to bear with me for now. At least for tonight. We'll see if we can hunt ourselves an elk or some deer. I don't know about you, but I feel like someone might enjoy trying out some venison..." She lures him in with the idea and a wink, as the most unamused grumble skates across her mind and ears from somewhere out reach. From there, she slings her heavy backpack closer and starts clawing through her supplies for her own set of rations and ingredients she picked up along the way.

[lavish raven]

"Oh if Roe wants... something else to add Akx could go try to find something? Usually can get enough to feed a whole group, might be able to find enough for two out here..." He offers, beginning to pull himself to his feet as she unloads the cooking supplies, earning a quizzical look as more and more utensils are withdrawn.

"Akx would say... this is not like last time, so Akx will let promises slide... this time." He says with a low chuckle. At the mention of a potential hunt his ears perk up and his tail swishes. "Would be nice to hunt together... though Akx has not seen many larger animals around the mountains... the dead might have scared most of them off..., but will not hurt to try!" His voice eager at the prospect of chasing down prey. "Hrrrrm..."

[outer moth]

"Ah, no... that's fine. We can just do it tomorrow. Dragging a whole hunt back in will not only take time finding it, but also take too time to prepare... and I was hoping we could get to dinner soon so that we'll have something to gnaw on as we... discuss things... It's already late out too, and I wouldn't want to bother you sending you out there alone. I assure you I can make that would still leave you full out of this, just... hrm... Actually, could you maybe collect some of the snow outside? I need some water to cook the rice in." She requests, gesturing towards with a knife she quickly sets down. She seems quite frazzled to not trouble him with any more work to do, after seeing him exert himself throughout the whole day. She was finding any excuse not to have him go out of fear of what may happen to them on their own... And... whether she was aware of it or not... she had grown too used to his company for her own good...

Settled in from her position, she begins to set up the rack where the pot will be hanging from, placing the stakes on either end of the fire and leaving the pot to rest and heat right over it. From there, she cleans through the vegetables and her utensils before placing down a wide chopping board on the foldout table, making light work of the garlic and onions as she peels through and masterfully slices right through them. Making precise cuts as she dices them through a steady rhythm. She goes to slide them off to the side with the back of her knife, before proceeding with the large button mushrooms she had just cleaned out.

[outer moth]

"Keeping track of debts now, are we?" She smirks, glancing him over with a coy look before returning to her work. "I doubt the undead would have any reason to attack the wildlife. I don't think it was mentioned that they were commanded to... or seen doing so... They get harder to find the higher up we go too anyways... but I did manage to see one on the way here, so there's hope..." She shrugs, sliding away the thickly cut mushrooms to the sound of a sharp graze of the knife.

[lavish raven]

"Okay, okay... Akx will worry about that tomorrow, Roe is right, should... prepare for that..." Almost immediately the wind is pulled from his sails as he is reminded what needs to be said, fully pushing himself up to his feet. "Watch pointing knives, no need to cut Akx's tail off..." A soft chuckle escapes his throat as the knife is placed down while he pulls a mundane, empty pack from within the magical bag as he pushes his way outside.

He takes a look at the exterior of the building, still partially in disbelief at how the two of them were able to put such a structure together as quickly as they did, as he stoops to shovel snow into the bag. It only takes a handful of minutes, but as various thoughts, worries and hopes swim through his mind, it feels like much longer, before he returns to his companion with a pack full of snow.

"Hrrrm? Roe is the one that brought it up again... besides... if thinking about things owed... Akx owes Roe for lots of bandages and lollipops and sandwiches and-" He goes on, listing every instance of kindness in recent memory as to things that he believes should be repaid by him in some way. "-if keeping track, Akx owes Roe so much more, even if Roe does not want it."

[outer moth]

"Relax, you're going to be safe with me behind the counter and these in my hand..." She dismisses his false worries with a soft chuckle of her own, shaking her head at even the slightest thought of that happening. Once left to her own devices, the thought resurfaces to face on the contrary, before it is quickly snuffed out in fear of her own intrusive conscience.

In the few moments that he was away, Roe already got her start with peeling away the carrots and onions, skillfully carving the knife around the surface to minimize the loss of mass around the peel. Soon enough when he returns with the snow, she takes the bag out of his hands right away and dumps the contents into the other pot she has placed on the portable burner stored inside the briefcase. Letting the snow slowly melt in the meantime as she goes back to her cutting.

"I'm the one who started this now?" She flares up her brown upon being accused the instigator, following it up with a smirk as she lets the claim fall over. She then thinks about it some more in between portions, realizing how much of this cycle of returning kindness is all her fault. And as he begins to list down every single act of good she was kind enough to bestow upon him, the fact really begun to sink in. Her whole expression falters, along with her rapid workplace as her knife comes to a slow halt. A pensive, thoughtful frown emerges as every indebted deed weighs down on her heart like sin. The fact that he remembered so much of their little interactions said enough. It felt... undeserved that she was getting this much appreciation all at once, likewise to how he must've felt believing in the same thing. And for what?

It... wasn't right for her to take advantage of... to accept it in return rather...

_ _
"I... didn't realize how much of a meaningful hold I had on you... Look, it's.... it's nothing really. You don't have to prostrate your whole life onto me as repayment. Just... hearing you say that it meant that much to you is enough. If you have something you want to surprise me with in the future, I... probably won't say no, and I'll see what I can think of as well... But please... don't make yourself feel that you're indebted to me. That's too much for me to ask for you to be burdened with..." She selflessly pleads refusal, facing him once more with a wavering, yet heartfelt smile. For a moment longer, she ponders on the possibility of what she might've or could've gained, before shaking her head free of that thought in strict denial.

"Speaking of bandages... Do you need me to patch you up or give you an examination after that tossle you had with the undead?"

[lavish raven]

"Hrrrmph... Akx does not think is a burden and Roe did not ask. Akx just really... appreciates these things." *A genuine smile of gratitude spreads across his face. * "Besides, list is just for if Roe wants to start keeping track..."

His grin falters a bit as she asks about an examination, a slight twinge of embarrassment is exposed. "Errrm... okay... Akx should check bites and scratches anyway... think... one might have started to bleed again... Roe might want to wait until done with the food?"

[outer moth]

"Yeah, that might be for the best... But it isn't something that hurts badly enough for you to need healing right away, is it?" She halted whatever she was doing on the board, reaching with her hand out as the instinct to help first came to the forefront of her mind.

[lavish raven]

"Akx has not passed out, so assume it can wait. Besides, Akx can at least stop the bleeding..." He turns away from her, seeming to be all the privacy he needs as he pulls his shirt up to reveal a mostly furry mass, save for various spots along his sides that seem to have had the hairs ripped out, leaving several patches of skin marked with shallow scratches, already scabbed over. There is a crisscrossing of roughly day-old bandages that wrap around his chest, where fresh crimson can be seen having spread down the right side of his ribs. Gentlely, he peels the bandages away revealing a deeper wound, which seems to have reopened rather recently. One hand presses a clean portion of the old bandages up against the wound, just to staunch the bleeding the other pulls a fresh strip from with his pouch.

It looks a bit awkward as he affixes it to himself, wrapping the wound thrice over, nice and snug to prevent further bleed through, but he does get it done. He turns back to face her a faux smug look on his face, "See? Akx can handle a few scratches."

[outer moth]

Right as she goes back to her business with the celery, her focus is taken away somewhere once more, glancing at the gnoll out of the sudden commotion he makes from turning around. For a moment, she is caught off guard by the sudden reveal of his lower waist and torso, only to catch on what he meant to do by that with the words he muttered right after. She easily gets lost in the rolls of fur and muscle in front of her, staring down at the pockmarks and scars she had grown all too familiar with between the countless sessions of medical aid she had serviced him with. Some she had seen and intervened in the recovery of. Others remaining a mystery locked behind his lonesome past. All... serving her reason to feel pity for his well being ever since...

That look of worry on her face is soon replaced by bewilderment as she stood by to watch him mimic... or rather truthfully attempt to reapply the bandage on himself. He did a rather decent job all things considered, but there were just some parts that were done rather clumsily. It did not help that he only one hand to work with at a time, with the other loosely holding the wound down and getting in the way of being wrapped. Leaving the tension inconsistent between the layers.

Her expression remained tense throughout this short ordeal, biting down on her lip in suspense. When he finally comes around to getting it done, presenting himself in such a proud voice, she couldn't help but hopelessly stare back at the gnoll, collapsing onto her arms to rest as she stuck the knife into the chopping board. For a moment, she stayed like that a while longer in befuddlement, before coming to her senses and walking her way out of there.

[outer moth]

_ _
Making a quick trip to her bag for supplies, she comes back to his space with one of her medical kits in hand. She sits right in front of the gnoll at an ordely pace and wastes no time in undoing the faulty wraps he made. With his body and fur now exposed once more, she begins cleaning the surrounding area with a clean rag and disinfectant soaked inside, careful to not drag through any more wounds that hid behind his coarse pelt. Then, she pulls out a vial of jade colored liquid from within her sleeve, rubbing the contents through her palms before suffusing the residue into his fur and underlying skin. She instructs him to hold tight should he feel any sudden stinging, as there was kick and burn to the cold menthol that washed over. From there, she applied what seems to be an adhesive patch over right over where the reopened wound was. It had rows of tabs that when pulled, mimicked the tug and tightness of stitches, without any of the unnecessary pain that came with applying and sustaining through them. Once she sees that the wound is shut closed, it is then she can finally put back the work he did with the bandaging. Rewrapping the binds in a way that fell in the right balance of rigidity and comfort.

When she reaches the tail ends of the wraps, she makes a simple tie out of them and tucks it right under the lower layers. Her hand then lightly runs across the surface of his torso and chest, lifting away any and all dry stains of blood and dirt that were stuck prior. With him now being sparkly clean there underneath, she grabs the lower hem of his shirt and briskly tugs it down to cover him up, before walking away without another word more. She simply sits back down to deal with the unwashed lentils she had left behind, as if the whole transgression never happened at all.

[lavish raven]

"What? What is the staring for? Is not like Roe has done it but... works... right?" He words drift off as she detours towards her bag and sees the kit being withdrawn.

He gives a quiet sigh, internally chastising himself for thinking he should show off the most absolute basic medical knowledge he had as she dabs at him with the rag. He looks at the odd vial curiously and gives her a nod in response to her instructions. Even expecting the sting, Akx instinctively growls, clenching his teeth as the liquid does its work. With the patch applied, he thinks about potentially messing with it, but given Roe's demeanor, elects against it, focusing on the sensation it provides instead while it pulls the wound closed. As the bandages are wound around him once more, they definitely felt better... firm, but not restrictive.

As her hand crosses his chest, specifically anywhere around the heart, feels hot , like being as close to a fire as one could without actually touching it or getting burned.

When she finally breaks away, returning to the vegetables without saying anything else, Akx sits there dumbfounded, asking himself a few different questions mentally.

[outer moth]

"So... you figured out what causes that fire in you yet? And why it leads you to sprouting three heads? I swear... it gets hotter every time I go and touch over it to work, don't it..." She spoke out after some time, her eyes still largely focused on her work. Adding the rice to the smaller pot and shifting it around in the water to clean it. Her hand still radiated some minor heat after coming in contact with his body. Nothing painful or bothersome, but it got her to question the nature of the furnace inside his heart, and what seemed to be the trigger for it act up like that...

[lavish raven]

"The fire... Akx thinks is from Kossuth, Tee-ahc's god. Part of the magic that brought Akx back... changed something, but only in Akx, none of the others .

At mention of him growing extra heads he pauses, looking confused. "What does Roe mean? Akx only has one head." He says with an extremely helpful point to his head.

[outer moth]

"Kossuth... Wait, you don't know?" She barks up in surprise as she closes the lid on the rice pot, not believing for one second he wasn't even slightly a bit aware of what he transforms to. It was shocking enough for her to disregard Akx's fate as a divinely influenced person completely in that moment. She could've sworn with all the fire he's been forced to bathe in every combat she'd seen him fight with, he would at least bother to see his hands becoming molten red like hot iron As she gave it some more thought, it could've been reasonable to assume that he couldn't, given the mind numbing states of fury these outlanders were known for probably putting him out of a state to think about the small details like that. With how frequent he went into that form, she was swayed to think otherwise, and yet...

"Whenever you turn yourself into a larger size... you often wreathe yourself in fire and have two heads of the same shape as yours form on either side of your neck... almost like a cerberus. I... don't know why that is, knowing how Kossuth is known for his distaste for fiends, and you taking on the appearance of... Have you ever looked at yourself whenever you do these sort of transformations? The one time you invoked a different element, you had a different appearance as well. Horns this time for that one to go with your lightning... What is it like for you anyways now that we're on about it?" She pressed forward, slowly starting to put contents into the cooking pot as she stared him over in concerned interest. Sliding the onions and garlic inside after slathering the inner walls with some olive oil.

[lavish raven]

"Akx has seen the fire, is very hard to miss when Akx's axe is coated in it, but did not know about extra heads. Hrrrmh... Roe is being serious, right?" There is an inflection in his voice that he would rather he tell him she is only joking, he'd really rather not have to think harder about himself than he already does.

"Cerrrberus... Ah Akx read about them when looking up Kossuth... after Tee-ahc had suggested Akx find a god to keep. One of Kossuth's favored creatures... good at guarding exits from the lower planes, but Akx is not... hrrrm..."

"N-no... Akx usually only does it when fights look like they are going to be bad... and then Akx has to focus on enemies... not Akx." His voice is tense, almost like glass ready to fracture. Something about learning something new about himself, from someone else, has him almost immediately on edge.

"Like... how?" He asks, his mind a little too preoccupied with reassessing himself to properly understand her question.

[outer moth]

"To... be overflowing with that kind of power I mean..." She elaborated, her voice faltering the moment she began to sense his worry from the revelation being piled upon him. To have the truth be stripped right of him with ever having known it was within him all along. If these severe changes happened to her with her knowledge all along, she would be deathly afraid too. In fact... she knows it oh so well at this point in having to be constantly on guard over how her benign sources of power behave... how they wreak changes and alter her own flesh and body at times...

"I am not making this up, Akx... This really is a thing that happens to you. It's not a bad or a harmful thing; I want to make that clear before anything... mostly... I can't really say for myself. Just that it does happen and none from our side has been hurt from it so far... Do... do you want to know what it looks like at least first? You don't seem to be convinced that it's true, and you look terribly distressed about finding out if it is... Do you want me to show you a picture, or... would... you like to see it live for yourself? I understand how that might be scarier, but... maybe it's for the best you see it in full..." She offered kindly, though not at all understating the severity of the matter, and the reaction that may follow from him..

[lavish raven]

"Ah... it is something hard to describe... especially the new things, the fire and lightning and cold and others. The best way is like... releasing a latch on something being pushed on and watching it go flying? Pressure! Pressure is the word. All the extra feels like that... Akx really did not know about changing though... three heads... fire, horns with lightning? Is strange..." He settles his chin onto his own palms and let a gruff sigh.

"Okay... as long as Akx is not hurting any friends..." Those words alone subdue a lot of his concerns, but still the news is jarring. A sharp inhale prefaces his next question, "Does it scare Roe... o-or others when Akx does it? Akx is sorry if it has..." There are cracks in his voice and worry in his words. "Either... either way, Akx would like to see, yes... know how different it is."

[outer moth]

"Like a latch, huh?" She muttered out, internalizing the description said as something completely foreign to her. No amount of power she currently has would be able to match that for her, give her the rush and release in the same way he supposedly had. A few more more seconds were left in contemplation before she has the chance to face him once more, a nervous look and a knot in her throat.

"Well, I can't say for the rest, but... I was rather worried the first time it was hinted to me back at the harpy's nest that something more was going on with you... and when I got to see it in the first time in full, I was terrified at first. Felt smaller than I normally do... hells, even then before you had those transformations too... But, I think learning that you were still behind whatever form you took put me at ease. I could at least trust that... you were in control while in that state. So, no. You do not scare me Akx, not anymore. Not until you try to at least. If anything... I'm rather jealous that you could turn into something like that... It's impressive... and alluring in its own way, you know?" *She nervously chuckled out, finding it hard to stifle her more sincere emotions as she hid behind the cuff of her sleeve. "But um... Let's get to that then, shall we?"

Roe stood up from her seat in a rather awkward rush, trying her best not kick the table from underneath. She gives her limbs a few stretches in preparation before standing firmly before him. With a soft exhale, she extends her arms outward and closes her eyes. Channeling the inscribed spell in her left arm to grant her a new visage, invoking its name in silence. [Disguise Self]

[outer moth]

Right away, her form begins to fracture and sublimate into smoke around her arms. The surface of her her clothing peels off gradually in layers and float away like petals in the wind. Petals that quickly crumble into ashes as they leave her reach. It is not long till the rest of her body follows along as this transformation ripples across her form in massive cascade, leaving behind only a charred husk of someone who once was. From there, it begins to crack and crumble away. A feverish, yellow glow that seeps through every growing fracture.

It is then that she emerges from this husk to reveal a larger, more muscular, masculine form that matches the size, dimensions, and proportions of Akx. Only this time standing a foot taller than what Roe currently is measured at. Only the upper body is exposed in this visage, fully displaying the coat of hellish red and black fur that periodically glows with deep-seated embers. On the other hand, her arms and chest glow and burn more violently as hot-red lava and slag assumes their shape and slowly drips onto the ground profusely. Her head does take the form of a hyena as one looks up to meet her, sporting sharper teeth that glow similarly to the molten core in her chest. A fiery mane runs down her back as well from the looks of it. It appeared incomplete for a moment without the other two heads on either side of her shoulder. The spell almost breaks in her effort to push limits, as only a loose wreath of flames spirals around her head at first, but soon enough, the hazy flame around her coalesces to form two more snarling heads at her side, leaking molten lava around their eyes and mouth as they yawn out. The last of her transformations take place in her tail growing out to be this large brush of fire, which gently sweeps across the floor right after. She waits a moment for the whole visage to settle down before coming forward to face him once more.

[outer moth]

_ _
"So... how does it look?" She spoke out with a much deeper growl to her voice, the other heads speaking with her in unison. She raises her arm up to inspect the changes herself, before slowly turning around in place for Akx to get a whole view of what he's capable of devolving into. Admittedly though, she seems to be enjoying herself this borrowed appearance, more than she would let on anyways. How it lined up with her original intent of doing this in the first place in turn...

[lavish raven]

As with what feels like every sentence out of the harengon's mouth, a whole array of emotions sweep past Akx like a wave. Guilt, at knowing she once feared him which is rapidly replaced by relief only to be chased by a little indignation at her thinking he might 'try something', in whatever way she meant it and yet again a fluster as she calls him, or more directly, his transformation enticing. The only answer to her question he can muster is an affirmation in the form of a nod.

As her visage begins to crumple, there is instinctive fear as his friend begins to fall away before the realization that he quite literally asked for this connects and the whine of concern that was forming cuts off as the glow starts to emanate from within the smoke. As the form comes into full view, Akx is immediately put off by a copy of his own face staring at him, though different as it is with the burnt black fur and under glow of the cinders, and the feeling only worsens as the other two come into existence.

As she begins to turn, Akx takes a step in the same direction, not wanting to break eye contact as a result of some base instinctive reaction as if he was about face off with this doppelganger before he reminds himself who is under the guise.

"It looks... hrrrm... like Akx, but definitely a lot more fiery, not quite scary, but unsettling...? Then again... Akx would be twice as big which would probably be... more scary. Very slowly he raises a paw and reaches to tap one of the side heads on the nose.

[outer moth]

"That is something I can arrange as well... but I fear I might break through the roof if I did." She cackles out through all of her heads, which all release some small amount of cinders out of their as a result. She seems very content and occupied in this new form of hers and all of its quirks. Enough so that she doesn't notice him circle around her and reach forward for one of the heads. Naturally, she couldn't see or feel through them, yet the illusion still tracks his movements and acts in the way you would expect a... gnollberus to react when being pet, wincing away at the first move of contact. But only there is no contact, as it is merely a make of illusions. Akx would find his hand phase through the disguised head and grasp at nothing but empty air, seeing that the illusion breaks apart into its individual leaves and layers before reforming around his wrist. Only then when her ear gently flicks against his fingers, she is made aware of what he was attempting to do.

"That's a... yeah... It's not real unfortunately. It's just an illusion I conjured up. You... can't really touch those normally. There was another way I could've done this where you could actually feel what you're reaching for, but... I don't think spawning two other functioning heads is something within my purview yet... or really, something I would want to deal with..." She pitifully sighs out with a smile.

"So, uh... am I good to go back to our dinner? Or do you need a moment more to come to terms with this side of yourself?"

[lavish raven]

When the cackle breaks out, Akx cannot help but grin, even with the three heads still being off-putting. "That would not be good. Worked too hard to do that..."

As the face collapses away, he withdraws his hand quickly, feeling only the barest touch of the ear, Akx huffs. "Okay, is not so bad. Is still Akx mostly..."

He takes one final loop around her, looking at all the details, watching as the flames, sparks, magma all leap, jump or pool before disappearing as they leave the area of the illusion. "Roe can... get back to dinner. Akx is going to, well Akx does not know... probably think a lot about this." He says, gently batting at one of the illusory heads again. "Is Roe going to keep it... on?"

[outer moth]

"Only if you let me~" She spoke out provocatively as she leaned in close to whisper, before walking over and away to her small station as she sat down once more, watching the magma tail swish back and forth and leave a small trail. "As much as I like looking like this, it's still your body and appearance I'm borrowing after all. It wasn't meant to be mine to mess around with, and I don't want to wish you discomfort in doing so. How you want it to be used on me... is up to you, if at all... Is there a reason why I should, though?" She teased, sticking out her tongue with a coy smile on all her faces as she worked to get the tamari and mushroms into the pot. Hopefully that would get him to lighten his mood in face of whatever thoughts and emotions he may need to confront with, and not... cause him more problems... by accident...

[lavish raven]

Akx recoils slightly as she leans in, for as much as it is her beneath the illusion, the exterior is still him and he still is not on the best terms with himself. Her tone is tantalizing though... as the words wind their way through his ear, it feels like some kind of offer? Maybe a request? "I-if Roe wants to for a while... is okay, just not... all night, please?" He begs, a small whine punctuating his own ask.

Once more, an appaled expression takes over his face. "Roe likes looking like Akx...? Why? " He throws the question, with a perplexed tone, to pull himself away from an endless row of what ifs that were forming in his mind.

While she continues to taunt him, he opens to speak several times, only for no sound to escape. This situation truly has him speechless for a bit before he finally finds his words, "Akx does not... think Roe should for too long, Akx much prefers Roe's face to Akx's own."

[outer moth]

"Ah... then say no more. That can be arranged." She simply spoke out in compliance as she raised her hands up to either side of her head. In an instant, her outer form becomes inanimate and begins deconstructing much in the same way it was birthed into existence. The illusion begins to peel away into a growing swarm of ashened petals, before dispersing away to reveal the harengon hidden within, back in her original form once more.

"I didn't know it bothered you that much. I'm sorry... I never should've considered asking more out it than what was needed in the first place. It... wasn't going to last long anyways, and I wasn't going to do it again once it fell through. Not... without your consent of course. Seeing... that you prefer me as my own anyways, I don't see any point in turning myself back into that thing anymore. You... need not to worry. It'll just be the face of this rabbit you'll be staying with and dealing from tonight onwards, I promise." She reassured him, giving him a cutesy wink before returning to her work. Sliding all of the chopped up vegetables off the board and into the pot.

As the table gets cleared of everything else that needs to be added in so far, she pulls out two different jars: one filled with preserved tomatoes and the other filled with some sort of stock. Carefully, she takes off the lids on both of them and tosses whatever contents were inside into the pot to join the remain ingredients. She gives it all a powerful stir to mix everything in, before slowing down to reach over with some spices and herbs in hand. Adding them all with a crumble in the right amounts to give the stew a little kick and harmony.

_ _
In this brief moment of monotony and silence, she is given room to think over his previous, averse reactions and her own fronted intentions. It was rather saddening to know that he felt that way about himself. You would expect that people would naturally be perturbed after staring at their own reflection reflection coming alive, but... with the way he explicitly said so right after... That's why the question he threw right after sunk twice as deep, causing her to halt her stirring on the dot. Being called out on that left her in rather flustered state. Made aware and embarrassed by her own prior actions and behaviors... ashamed of what has become of herself... Afraid of what hurdles she must go through to say everything right and honest between them.

_ _
"It's... not like I want to become Akx necessarily... I... I don't, no... There's already enough for one in this world. I just... I... There's a difference between "liking" being someone and "wanting" to be somone in this case... I enjoyed looking like you back there... because I think it's simply fun having to look like that. Because I got to experience what it's like to have what I don't... to see what it's like being you. I... didn't realize how fun and different it would be, and got somewhat carried away. I don't know... You... I'll admit, I... like the way you look, and there a some things about you that... I wish I could have for myself... I think it's fun, being... someone who you're not for a change, at least for a while. I mean, who wouldn't want to be a titan of mighty fire for even just a little bit? It's just... man I feel so weird having to explain this... I don't... I don't know why I'm saying all of this to you. I'm... being weird, I'm sorry..." She buckles down and covers her face, loathing herself for having these debasing and embarrassing feelings, and having to confront them in front of someone else. It takes her a moment to fight out of this fit of contempt, calming down with a light exhale as her expression relaxes into something more solemn... yet resentful. Too ashamed to even face him at this point as she simply continues with her stirring.

"Just... forget I said any of that, I'm sorry..."

[lavish raven]

"Roe did not have to stop right now, but Akx appreciates it. Was just... a lot." The tension in his face melts away with the illusion, a soft smile replacing it. "Roe can do it again... just, don't... tease Akx like that with Akx's face. Felt weird, very weird in a few different ways..."

While she carries on with the meal preparations, he falls back into his thoughts. The winks and whispers had caught him off-guard and left him with an uncertain view on how genuine those actions might have been or if they were just her teasing him.

His train of thought is derailed and scattered as her confession is released. "Akx can agree. Being someone else, something else sometimes, has crossed Akx's mind and-" What she said sinks in and his words being to pile up in his throat, a few syllables escaping as stammers before he rises to his feet.

"Roe does not need to apologize for wanting..." He walks around the small cook station between them and, if there is no resistance gently attempts to pull her away from stirring the pot, into a tight, warm in the way laying on the grass in the afternoon sun is, hug.

"Roe said something Akx... really wanted to hear. Even if it was not about 'Akx Akx'... please do not tell Akx to forget it."

[outer moth]

For a moment, she stirred awake from her sorrow to watch over the gnoll approaching her space, wondering what was he about to do. As he went down to her level though, it all became clear his what his intent was. There was some hesitation from her at first, some small fight in trying to reach back for the ladle as she is being whisked away. Too married to her work for her own good.... But in the end, she simply allowed him to do as he pleased. She was in no power to do so anyways with him, as she accepted her place within his strong and caring arms and hummed out a soft whimper in return.

For how many days she stayed out in the frigid, unforgiving cold alone in isolation, she had forgotten how much warmth and connection one could share in a companion... how much she was starved for meaningful contact... no, even that has persisted long before she set foot in here, and it shows. It doesn't take long for her walls to crumble away and for her to give into his hug fully, melting right in his grasp. Her whole face is a heartfelt, yearning, and flustered mess, with her trying their best to cover it up as they sink to the wayside. In that clouded mix of tumultuous feelings, there... was soon some doubt that began to form. Doubt if this was even deserved after such a painful and off-putting confession. Quick to second guess herself, she was about to pull right away, until... she had remembered his words just an hour or so ago, that... it was alright for her to want these things in return in spite of how she feels it was deserved. If all he was intending by this was to make her feel better about herself, how... could she turn that down for him...?

[outer moth]

_ _"I... I know..." She quietly whispers out from below. "I could... and would never take that away from you, even if I tried... so please, allow me to apologize for even considering instead... allow me... to say sorry for making you feel uncomfortable, for... choosing to want you like this..." She pleaded out, reaching for one of the hands that held onto her with both of her own. Desperately clinging onto him out of fear that he may just slip away forever if she didn't try hard enough...

_ _

Her hands... were so cold, painful, and empty... it was no wonder she longed this much for his unrelenting warmth and kindness to stay...

_ _

"Thank you... Akx..." She spoke out once more after enough time had passed. "I... didn't know I needed that. I appreciate it, thanks... You should really stop letting other people make decisions for you though. It's worrying... and it's not good for you... Someone could take advantage of that one day..." She spoke out teasingly, as a coy, yet teary-eyed face looks up from below to reach out a hand to place on his cheek, gently... petting him by the side...

[lavish raven]

"Roe is saying sorry for things that Roe does not need to. If... wanting this is something to say sorry for... then Akx is sorry to." The words warble with emotion, a doubtful happiness from expecting her pull away, but instead she clings to him and he wraps his arms tighter for a second just to let her know this does not have to end until she wants it to.

His hands tense as hers touch his, the chill a bit more than expected, but he can fix that... as he adjusts so that she is pulled close against him with one arm, while his other hand clasps hers, sharing the warmth his body so readily generates.

The quiet moments were filled with the sounds of the pot bubbling and the wind blowing, these noises immediately fade from his ears when she speaks. "Thank Roe for... letting Akx do it. Could have- could still stop Akx."

When her hand makes it to his face, he leans into it, a gruff satisfied sigh escaping. "Oh? Who would do that...?" He retorts, a smug grin spread across his lips. "Would... Roe like Akx to make a decision right now?"

[outer moth]

"I could've, yeah..." She frowned, slowly turning away. "I was about to, but... something in me told me to stay. I don't know what exactly... Maybe I just didn't want to turn down your help, and distance myself more than I already shouldn't have... Maybe I just wanted it to happen... Maybe I just wanted to trust in you to help... Who's to say? All I know... is that I don't regret it now... and it's not like you turned away the first time we held hands and arms together. I... think we're past that point between us when needing each other's company already..." She spoke out in assurance, tightening her grip on the hand holding onto his as she stared longingly into his eyes, before yawning out softly into his warmth.

"Hey now, don't start giving me ideas..." She grinned back with the same energy, gently tugging him at the cheeks before letting go to consider his request. "Alright... If Akx has something he would like to do for himself, could he at least move me closer to the fire first? I need to check on the pot again after being so "rudely" distracted..." She pouts, provoking him to act as she patted him by the neck. Making a grabby gesture towards the abandoned ladle.

[lavish raven]

"Well Akx is very happy that Roe listened to whatever said to stay." Her yawn proves contagious, as he turns his head away releasing his own in turn. "Hey, none of that... not yet." He jests, his eyes becoming bleary for a moment.

"Ah, so is Roe who might take advantage of Akx, hm? Ooooh noooo..." His voice feigns terror, but the smile simply cannot leave his face right now, not yet anyways.

"So Roe wants to be moved now? Is that permission to carry Roe?" He asks both playfully and earnestly, but before even finishing the second question he had lifted her up and moved back to the fireside, delivering her grasping palm back to the ladle. "There..."

[outer moth]

"Okay, when you put it like that... it just sounds like you're taunting me to do it..." She rolled her eyes, begrudgingly letting him move her closer to the pot. She would've scolded him for acting before she could even a response in... if it weren't for her promising herself not to be cross with him for now.

"Thanks... Alright, you had your fun, now what was that decision you would like to make?" She glanced back at him before turning over to the pot. One hand still latching onto him on her torso, while the other taking out the lid so that can peer inside. Immediately, a plume steam erupts out of the pot, amplified by the colder temperatures around them. It takes her a moment to swat it all away with the lid before she could see that things have been cooking rather smoothly from within. The fragrances and heat easily carrying over for them to sample through smell. All that was up to her now was to continue mixing, so that everything gets their equal chance to cook evenly.

[lavish raven]

"And if Akx is?" He replies with a chuckle, as the scent hits his senses, the mixture of herbs and vegetables awakens his stomach, making him realize he has been doing a lot of physical labor, without stopping for much a break. "Smells... very good..."

As she stirs the stew, he brings his head down, off to the side of hers, "Well Akx can ask... but still is Roe's choice since is not just Akx... but can...," His voice shrinks as he speaks, even despite everything going great so far, still anxiety finds its way to his words, "...can Akx kiss Roe...?" The request finished itself out as a whisper, something that probably would not have been heard had he not been as close to her as he is.

[outer moth]

For a while, she remains stirring the pot to a steady rhythm while in his grasp. Humming out a soft and barely audible melody for both of their ears. Everything seems right as rain up until this point; however, it is when that he leans in to make his request that she suddenly loses her grove. The moment he asked if he could grant her a kiss, her heart audibly jumped from her chest. Her hand instantly lets go of the ladle as it gets carried along by the current of the stew, too shocked to even go grab it. Her ears even shot up in a rather comical way. But... the most jarring reaction he gets from her... is watching the left side of her face and neck suddenly bloom a small wave of leaves and flowers that travel upwards. White, crisp, and delicate as snow and her fur. All of it she is seemingly unaware of as she is too focused in and blown away by his outlandish desire.

"M-me?! Roe?! Y-you?! I... D-Don't you think you think we're getting too ahead of ourselves with that?" She cried out in a mix of outrage, bafflement, intrigue, but mostly bumbling fluster. Eyes facing him completely wide open in her distress. In hindsight, the moment would've be ripe for them to lead up to one, but hearing him profess his desires this way something she could've never expected, let alone prepare for. Yet, even in the blushing mess that she is in, she is quick to recognize her overreaction, and opts to slowly calm down in his somewhat weakened grasp.

"I... mean... Look, Akx... I like you a lot, and... I think you deserve at least some consideration from me... even if that was a little too bold of you to say... I just want to know... why though? Why... gosh... why would you even consider wanting to do that with... someone like me..." She whispered out softly in indignation, feeling quite insecure and uncertain about herself in this moment. The flowers and leaves on her slowly wilting away in turn.

"Do you... really like me that much...?"

[lavish raven]

When he feels her chest leap, his hold around her immediately loosens as she reacts to his question for two reasons. First so that she can step away, push him away, do whatever she needs needs to in order to feel better without him keeping her in one spot. Second is his brain trying to process the sudden fur...? No, plant growth that has spread along her face. His head tilts curiously, the odd bodily reaction pauses his mind as he looks them over.

That is until she begins to stammer and he is immediately pulled back into the scene he has caused. "Sorry, sorry, Akx is sorry for asking... N-no? Yes...? Felt okay to ask, but... seems like maybe Akx was wrong." His words have an underlying whine to them as he realizes that he pushed whatever bond was forming between them too hard. Whether or not he had just broken it or merely bent it out of shape remained to be seen.

"Why...?" Something he had not given thought... why did this rabbitfolk make him feel like this? "Akx... does not know. Just-" As he looks at her, trying to read her expressions and seeing the plant growth wilt, he just whines. "-Akx feels... better, safer... being with Roe..." A selfish answer in his eyes, but it is the only one that seems to escape his mouth. "What does Roe mean by 'someone like Roe'?"

"Yes... Akx would not have asked otherwise, b-but... if Roe does not feel the same, Akx can st- try to stop it, or l-leave if Akx cannot..." There is a deep aching sorrow on his face when he offers to leave.

[outer moth]

"Someone pitiful... pathetic..." She whimpered out. A terribly selfish misperception that she took upon herself. "I mean, compared to you, I'm not all that... you know... I mean, just look at me..." She spoke with resentful intonations and a tired smile, gesturing her hand around the big, blaring blemish on her face: a crossed out scar and blind eye. There was... more she wanted to say in this moment. Being past her years, too weak for her own good, not being quite up to shape. In her mind, not being as attractive as he was to warrant such affection out of the blue. All things some might say are superficial, on top of what she already stumbled the gap with earlier. But seeing how tense and sorrowstruck he already was at this point, and... given the fact he never cared about those things and only expressed as much, she... opted not to burden his mind with those thoughts for now...

"I... guess I'm just surprised is all... I'm sorry..." She shrugged. "Look... I don't think I am ready or in the mood for a kiss from anyone just yet... but... maybe if you just leaned in to rest your head on mine... and placed your lips right over there..." She gently falls back onto his chest, bridging the gap for him to do just that. "Perhaps that will be a good place to start... then maybe, we can... discuss this growing thing between us later... You don't... have to leave... I'm not telling you to forget about me again... not yet anyways..." She calms him down, reaching for his hand to hold on dearly.

[lavish raven]

The gnoll freezes at her first self-inflicted insult and winces at the second. Both words that had echoed in his skull for a long time. "Akx would say otherwise. Akx does not pity Roe and Roe is far too capable to be pathetic."

As she starts in on the physical, pointing out her scar, the snowblind eye, his left paw gently reaches and gently strokes her face much like she has done for him. "Roe cannot be serious... Roe probably knows about scars Akx has that Akx has no idea about... and will probably get many more... so Akx is going say that is a poor comparison... besides, shows that Roe is tough."

"Roe should not be sorry... Akx should have waited... or not asked at all or..." Her colliding with his chest is enough to halt his ramblings. "Okay..." His arms wrap back around the harengon, pulling her in, as he lowers his head atop hers and tenderly kisses the top of her head. The ever-growing list of things to discuss gains yet another new entry...

[outer moth]

"It's not about how many of them are on me... It's about that they're even on me at all, what... they mean... If I told you the reason behind these scars, I'm sure you would no lomger think the same way... It's because of them I never stopped to feel like I was less than whole..." She softly whispered out into the air. Needlessy choosing to wallow in her own sorrow once more. It's all that only ever came naturally to her at this point after all that she's been through. To reject and refuse all good words that come to her name, as she could never hope to live up to them. It is... why it pains her that much more whenever he kept on insisting that she was better than who she saw herself as... because that forced her to face the possibility for hope once more. A possibility she could never see herself believing in again...

[outer moth]

_ _
"I am not as great as you make me out to be... I'm not capable at all, unlike you..." She concluded with her voice sounding bleak and resolute. Pulling his arms closer as soon as they regained their hold on her. What she didn't expect was for his hand to reach for her right side of her face, which she immediately reacts to by shifting away in fright. A response spurred by the sensitivity and negative attachments that part of her had. But... seeing that he only intended to reciprocate what she had dealt, she slowly warmed up and encouraged herself to the idea as she gently leaned back into his palm. Minding not the smallest tinges of pain that it delivered, as the were all soon washed away by the comfort of his touch. Like before, she gave into her own misery and need almost immediately, sinking back into his tight grasp as she allowed him to lightly pepper her with his tender motions from above. Eliciting a low purr from the harengon that... one hasn't heard come out from her before. But with the way things stand, it... probably meant something good...

_ _

Despite wanting to wanting to deny everything good coming to her out her own self-hatred... despite it being so easy for her to do.... her heart remains difficult... yearning for more that it could ever ask... for things to be made so...

Yearning reason to love once again... when there is none...

[lavish raven]

"Akx knows that scars can hold shame... Many of Akx's scars do that," He spreads the fur on one of his forearms apart revealing several overlapping scars that appear to be bite marks, from various not-quite canine creatures. "...but just like what made the scars... is important to survive that as well. Roe can share what happened or not, how or why, but Akx will not change now over what happened in the past." His demeanor is soft and vulnerable, sharing a product of his own history in hope that it will either pull her out of the pit of her past or ease her concerns about sharing it.

"Roe has been building cottages, defenses, and traversing mountains alone for the last few days... how is Roe not more capable than Akx? Because Akx can lift more or get hurt more? Those are the only things Akx can really do... Roe can do a lot more. Make others better in a fight, patch them up after, and still pack a good punch..." His hand tenses back at her flinch, but as her cheek finds its spot in his hand he gives a small smile and when she starts to purr there is just a barely audible, surprised 'hrrm?' as he learns that is something else she is capable of.

[outer moth]

"Sure, what I do has been helpful so far. But... that stuff... I'm not valued as much for it here. I'm not being recognized for being a carpenter or a craftswoman... or whatever. I'm making my worth as a mercenary... not any of those other things. Those skills mean nothing in a grander sense, when you're down on the count and on your own in a fight. They don't... truly matter..." She regrettably sighs out, feeling a sharp pang in her heart for having to discredit herself in line with the truth.

"I don't have the kind of raw power that you have, Akx. The kind... that truly gets things done here. The kind of strength that only matters... If I had an ounce of what you were capable of from the start, there would've been... so many things in my life that I could've made up for... so many things I could've saved... but instead, I am forced live with the consequences of my weakness, and having to spread myself thin to make up for it... What's the point of being able to do all of those things in small parts anyways, when you'll just be easily replaced and outclassed by someone more capable at those individual skills than you are... What I can do isn't enough..." She harshly remarked, tensing her hand slightly through the fingers he held her by. Visibly upset by this state of being of hers. There is a short whimper that followed as she sunk deeper into his other hand, before a barely audible sniffle is heard.

"If I was just... stronger... I wouldn't have these scars in the first place... I... wouldn't have to be here in this mess to begin with... I... wouldn't have to be so... far from where I am supposed to be... so far from home... so far from family... so far from... her..."

[lavish raven]

There is a long pause from the gnoll as he opens and closes his mouth a couple times, but he struggles to finds the right words. "Akx really, really does not... know how to make Roe see that they do matter. If they have helped at all then clearly they mattered in that moment. Does not matter if someone or something else could have done the same, because Roe is the one that did it." He says, an affirming tone, having found some words to be sure in.

"Roe has to stop comparing with Akx... unless Roe was raised in a place where it was either be strong or die... it is not right to expect Roe to be like Akx." He says, once more placing a kiss on her head, forehead this time, and pressing his own to hers, before gently wiping away any tears that were attempting so for along the sniffle.

"If... Roe had not ended up here... then Akx would never have made it this far... if not for Roe, Akx would have died in the snow on his first hunt." Mention of family and her sister, he assumes, makes him go quiet.

[outer moth]

"But that's the thing! Every place your are expected to be strong or die in some way... If you do not make your claim in the world, you get left behind. If you're not worth anything, then you are as good as nothing... Any of those ends can be just as bad as death... If you're not strong enough, you can't protect the things you love dearly in this world. If you're weak... you didn't deserve to have in the first place..." She gritted her teeth, overcome with frustration as her eyes sharpen and the petals begin to violently bloom. "If there is one thing I have come to known... is that you don't get praised for being weak. There is no place for weakness like mine in this world... And as much that I want to hope that isn't the case... I have suffered... suffered too many times to know that will never become true... It's... it's not fair..." She sobs out in pain, before letting the remaining well of her emotions go unrestricted as she proceeds to cry in his arms. Months... years of pent up grief and anguish now making themselves known in this moment. Desperately, she tightly latches onto his hand and arm, out of an irrational fear that he might just slip away and she'd be stuck with having to lose him again. Pushing her to hold on tighter as she fought to speak through her tears once more.

"I'm... so sorry for lashing out and bringing this all unto you. I didn't plan for tonight to go like this. I- I... I didn't mean that... I wanted to take back what I did back then... I'm sorry... If it were up to me, I... would've wanted to meet Akx in my old life too... I would've never wanted to think of a world where I would've left you in the snow instead... please... don't take it that way..." She whined out, feeling regret swelling up from her own selfish statements, and her denouncing all that she has done for him by mistake.

_ _
"Please... I want you to understand... I am only so angry with myself... because I care too much for my own good... I don't want to stand another moment where I have to watch someone I care about be taken away... I don't want to have to fault myself again for being weak. I just... wait... OH SHIT! THE RICE!" She shouted out in shock mid-cry.

"No no no no no no no!" She cried out, scrambling out of his arms and across the floor as she rush to reach for the smaller pot, begging desperately that she doesn't have to add a ruined dinner to the list of failures too. How she missed the timer is beyond her, but... perhaps it can be excused with how preoccupied she was...

[lavish raven]

His mouth shuts, because he had nothing to say against her words. They were true, everywhere he had been had demanded a need for some form of strength. Physical, mental, or even in ways there were less about what a person was capable of, such as wealth or nobility, the Kadtanach-Feasters would leave pups that had just come of age behind if they failed their Eka Hunt, so on most levels she was right...

As the tears fail to be held back, he pulls her in closer, pressing her head to his chest. "Is okay... is okay... Akx did not mean it like that... just saying because if it was just 'pure power'... Akx would not have gotten this far." His words are in a soft, hushed tone as he holds her as closely as she will allow. "Akx will not be being taken away by any means..."

When she starts to break away, he wants nothing more than to continue to hold onto her, help her continue to empty this overflowing well of grief, but he knows better, that once more instance of 'failure' would only add to, maybe even refresh it all, so he releases her to tend to the meal that seems to have slipped both their minds.

[outer moth]

Thankfully... she had nothing to worry about all this time, as the rice in the pot was completely... alright. It wasn't overly sticky or overcooked in the slightest, or in the worst possible scenario burnt. Somehow her internal timer pulled through and got lucky this time. With an exasperated sigh of relief, she slams down the lid back onto the pot and turns off the burner from below. Grabbing what seems to be a wooden pot coaster for her to place the steaming pot on.

"Okay, okay... sorry... I think this should still be fine... gah... Let's... try to get through dinner first at least before I bawl my eyes out again out of nowhere..." She sniffs, carefully wiping what remained of her tears she crawled over to the other pot by the fire, which... seems to be much in the same way untouched and unharmed.

[lavish raven]

He watches her scramble for the pots, his ears flicking at the loud sound of the lid being slammed. "Akx does not think it was out of nowhere. Were talking about... difficult things... is okay to let emotions out." He says as tries to discreetly wipe away his own tears that had started well up. Carefully he brushes his fur back to cover the scars on his arm and he looks at the mess of tears on his clothing. He looses a sigh of relief as she seems to pull herself back together.

[outer moth]

Skillfully, she tosses the rice up in the pot to fluffen it all up, watching the massive steam clouds rising in the midst of the colder temperatures around. With the rice paddle, she scoops equally large servings into sizable bowls that she pulls out for the both of them. Setting the paddle inside and closing the lid on the first pot, she moves onto uncovering the second, larger one as another updraft of steam rises into the air. Filling the whole space with the smell of fragrant spices, sweetness, and heat. With the ladle, she mixes the stew around evenly before serving out the first scoops to their bowls. Watching as the vibrant, red liquid spills over and into the rice with all of its contents piling up to the side. She pours more into them until the other half is filled as well.

"Here... don't... be afraid to ask for seconds if you ever finish before me. Between the sparse resources we have... I still managed to make enough for the both of us to share plenty with..." She carefully stated as she handed him over his hot bowl of steaming tomato stew and rice, her throat and voice stil hoarse from all the crying she had done prior.

[lavish raven]

Patiently he waits for his bowl, but as soon as he has it, the day's events weigh on him, the roller-coaster of emotions end in a mental fatigue and any etiquette in regards to eating is put to back of his mind as he elects to forgo a utensil and instead hungrily brings the bowl to his lips. He slurps down about a third of the stew from around the rice before taking a breath. "Is... verrry good." He says as he licks a mess of tomato from his lips.

With the first rush of hunger sated, he looks to her a bit sheepishly as he actually grabs a utensil and begins to scoop the rice into his maw. "Is... Roe gonna be... okay? Like... for tomorrow?"

[outer moth]

At the sight of him going to town on that bowl, Roe just stares in awe and disbelief, before following up with a weak-winded chuckle and snicker. Raising the bowl to her height as she digs her spoon into the meal and shook her head at his act of mild-manner(less)ed mischief.

"Didn't know it was that good... but glad to know that I didn't screw it up in the end, thanks... Eat it however you want, no one will be judging us from here. I just have one request that you don't waste any drop or spec of it and make more of mess than what's already on you..." She patiently demanded to him with her calming voice, taking that first spoonful as her heart and mood warm up right away again. Rushes of sweet and spicy tones of flavor spreading across her mouth. She takes bites much in the same pace as Akx, though it soon becomes slower than his as the state of her well-being is put into question.

"I am going to have to be I suppose... I am still on the clock, ain't I? I can't... let my feelings get in the way of the job, no matter how burdensome they become... If I'm somehow not frozen by tomorrow morning, then there will be time for me to forget and move on... And if I ever do somehow feel down, I can just count on you to fix it, can I?" She joked around, gently nudging his arm with her shoulder. "Roe is going to be fine... She'll just have to find a way to. Don't you worry about it..." She said to reassure him, even if there is some uncertainty to be said if whether or not she will be.

[lavish raven]

His own pace slows just to keep from spilling any more as he releases his own quiet laugh. "Sorry sorry... between the dead, moving, and all this, Akx has not eaten since waking. Got carried away... Akx does not like to eat like that anyway... too... messy." He replies apologetically, before giving his bowl a light stir to better spread the stew through the rice.

"Is true, but... Akx would say to put Roe first. More important to come back with only part of a hunt than not come back at all..." A lesson he has already had to face twice... once in an arena being peppered by archers and then the time with the goblins... "Well, if Roe gets cold tonight, Akx will be here... or well, there. he finishes with a little laugh of his own as he points to his bedroll, still rolled up, thinking back to her joke from earlier about sharing sleeping bags, only to realize just how close they were moments ago and it does not seem like such a distant possibility.

The nudge pulls him from that thought, "Akx will try and try and try... and if Akx cannot, then can still be here to cry on." he says with a playful, light elbow back. "Akx will... try not to worry. Lots of trying, hopefully some amount of doing..." He mutters quietly, hoping that he will actually be able to help with any further emotional issues that crop up.

[outer moth]

"What? Are telling me to stay in my own side of the room that I built for you?" She chided out, looking rather riled up and humored by the suggestion... rather the negation of one. "Look... whether or not you want us to be that close for the night, I'll leave that to you... I for one... want to... go back to where we were a moment ago... but I understand if you want your space back or feel that it might be too soon for that just yet... I think you'll be warm enough to stay around even with your back facing away, but... I'd prefer if I could be held like that again... it was nice..." She assured him with a chuckle, saying that she does not mind either way how he wants for things to between when it comes to sharing sleeping spaces.

"You know... you were surprisingly gentle and tender back there... You ever comforted and consoled someone like that back at home before?" She asked out of curiosity, staking down a whole spoonful of food as she stared back with wide-open eyes.

[lavish raven]

"No no, Akx meant... Roe would be welcome to... join Akx if Roe got cold..." He covers his embarrassment by stuffing another spoonful into his mouth and chewing rather slow, to gather his words. "Akx would like that too. Verrry much, but... should at least wait until after food, " Between the delicious meal and her confirming she wants to be in his arms again, his tail begins to sweep the ground behind him rapidly as he picks up the pace at which he eats.

He swallows his current mouthful and looks over with gloomy eyes. "With pack... no one like that. Sometimes a pup would be spooked by a noise or... a bad dream, but was verrry different. He sighs out, as he lightly rubs his arm. "In Zetrican... no. No one would come running into the big scary gnoll's arms to feel better... Most of... just now was just things Akx wishes someone had done for Akx in some worse times..."

[outer moth]

"Hm... Would you like it if we switched places then later? You in my arms this time?" She offered, openly putting out there but not making anything more of it as she gnaws on a tougher bit of mushroom in her own time. Staring at the crackling fire ahead.

[lavish raven]

He once again pauses, eating rather another rather large bite, before looking over to her and giving a small nod. "O-okay... Akx thinks... might like that a lot." He mutters, joining in simply watching the flames dance as he scoops the last bit of sauced vegetables from his bowl and into his mouth.

[outer moth]

"Don't worry... I promise I won't be too rough with you." She playfully joked about, holding her hand outstretched by her mouth as she whispered in, before giving him a wink and moving on with her business with a quiet laugh following her along. Seeing that he's nearly done, she gestures over to the stew pot lid and gently opens it back and forth, letting him know that should he wants more, he can always ask her to serve.

"So uh... I guess about that thing, huh... What is it that you wanted to speak with me about?" She looked at him with some hesitation, wiping at her eyes once more to rid of her previous sorrows. She found it hard to follow anything up after that crescendo of hers, and it would only be natural for her to be led to this as their next point of discussion between them.

[lavish raven]

Akx cackles along side her, appreciating how easily she was able to dissuade his nervousness. "Roe can be as rough as Roe wants. Akx can handle it." A big toothy grin plastered on his face.

He initially goes to raise his empty bowl towars the pot, but when she mentions that... he looks at the remaining flecks of red in the bowl and pulls it back, setting it beside himself. "R-right..." This is where all this comes crumbling down, he can feel the meal in his stomach turning to ash. "Roe has seen other gnolls... yes? Not like Akx... a pack from Daaloon?" His voice has returned to the being tinged with concern and sadness, as he gently scoots a little away from her.

[outer moth]

"Ah... well... You were the... first one I got to meet in person actually." She nervously runs through her fur, finding no resistance from any overgrown leaves as they have long since withered away without her awareness. "There have been others I have come across not long after... completely unlike you in their manners and morals though... Funny you mentioned Daaloon, since... I had to deal with a pack of them on the job... not in a... rather peaceful way..." She explained with a rather deep sense of shame and unease as struggled to get her food down, making the sudden realization that she had to come forward with the fact that she had committed mass murder against members of his own race. Against not well-regarded individuals who have done a number of hurt on her as well. Facts that she had pushed aside and forgotten in light of his presence being the only impression she sticks by.

"Why... do you bring that up? You got business dealing with them or something...?" She humored out, yet her face remained dour. Unsure about where he was going with this and trying her best to leave an open mind for him.

[lavish raven]

He exhales heavily and digs his claws into his arm, not enough to draw blood, but to keep himself speaking. "Akx had to do the same... found them on a job, Counter Spell and Akx tried talking with them, but... they were eating anything with meat... people..." He makes a retching noise which turns into a moment of actual dry heaving given how his stomach feels talking about feels speaking about this.

After a few seconds and winning the battle to keep his dinner down, he continues, "Akx... did not like this pack..."

He goes on to explain the gist of the job, finding the destroyed caravan, killing the first few, and finding the full encampment. "The den was... the worst... corpses everywhere... all being eaten off... a net for some game where they were batting around a head..." He shivers in place, sharing the memory made him feel like he was there again... listening to the barks, inhaling the smells... tasting the flesh... "Not all of them wanted to fight... most just gorged... the few that did, did not last long. Their... packmates started to devour them as soon as they fell..." A small part of his mind is telling him to hold it back..., but that is not right, it is not fair...

"During one of the fights... one kept saying mean things, calling Akx bad... it all got to Akx... bit that gnoll's throat... hard and... pulled and then... chewed." He is looking anywhere in the small space where he cannot see her face when he says this.

"They were not like Akx, but Akx was like them..."

[outer moth]

For the entire moment he was delivering this harrowing tale to her ears, Roe sat silently still and facing away. Not a word or expression to be garnered up front. Her bowl having been already emptied out and left to her side in preparation. She seemed... relatively peaceful taking all of this in. At least at first...

As the details and events become ever more gruesome and clear, and the tension and resentment in his voice begins to spill over, Roe began to act more... agitated in her seat. Leporine signs of aggression show through her raised ears and swishing tail. And strangely enough... a set of hackles that run around and begin to rise from her neck. And yet... not single show of outward emotion comes out of her or turns to face him...

But when he finally confessed for his sins... when the image of him partaking in the flesh finally came to the forefront of her mind and formed a vivid scene for her to haunted by... something in her... snapped. Remorse? Anger? Horror? She could not truly discern what was running through her in that moment. It all but manifested in eerie, yet subtle sound of roots beginning to twist and crack that she fought to keep tame and controlled. All writhing under the sleeve that housed her arm as she sat nearly silently throughout all of it, breathing restrained breaths through gritted teeth in between whilst still faced away. The moment that they ceased, she first gave pause to flush out any emotions that remained, before breaking the silence with the harsh, but dead calm voice of a disappointed woman. One without malice or or contempt, but simply with the intent of wanting to know more.

"Were any more... hurt, as a result?"

[lavish raven]

When she finally says something, he winces, even without any hostile intent to her words, the sudden shift to a lack of emotion stings like a lash with a length of brambles. "N-no! At least... no one said so... Akx has a hard time remembering after, like looking in fog... Akx thinks the others were scared for a bit though... Shilien and Talzayn said they lost sight of Akx for a bit... during the... eating..." His face is a twist of self-loathing, guilt, and shame and he still seems to be absolutely incapable of looking at her. "Only ones that were hurt after, that Akx remembers is pack leader and hyenas... no friends."

[outer moth]

"Do you feel compelled to do it again?" She simply pressed forward in response, albeit in a much less strained tone compared to before... after... hearing so much of the reproach for his own actions that he conveyed with his voice alone.

[lavish raven]

"No*!*" He exclaims before taking in a shaky breath, "Akx hates it... Akx hates having done it... h-hates thinking about it... hates how-" It is now that the tears he was holding back earlier make their way out as an involuntary sob interrupts his words "-right it felt." His face scrunches a bit as he tries to fight back the tears, but now that they have started it was like a dam being opened.

[outer moth]

"-But do you believe that any of what you did was right?" She sharply interjected, sounding more scornful this time around. Her voice becoming ever more detached with each moment that passes with her out of his sight.

[lavish raven]

"No! Is one of the worst lines to cross..." The disdain hurt just a bit less than the apathy. Very much like an animal being scolded, he rubs the tears from his eyes and takes a glance at her. "Even if starving... people are not food. Does not matter, human, halfling, gnoll... none of them..." There is a sniffle as he tries to steady his breathing, unsuccessfully.

[outer moth]

Once there was nothing more to be said in that exchange, nothing else much happens between them. Nothing, until... she wordlessly gets up from her seat, and walks right in front of where the gnoll was crying not too far away from her. She stood there for but a half moment longer before kneeling down to get to his level. Gentle hands come to cup him by the cheeks, wiping each tear that falls on them before carefully guiding his sights to her face. Coming to terms with what he feared and avoided all this time.

There was no hatred or apathy as he would've liked to believe, no... sign of rage or animosity on her at all. All this time... she was hurting. Hurting as much as he was in this moment. Hurting as she stared into the face of her misguided friend regretfully... with nothing... nothing but deep concern, disappointment, and sorrow for him...

"Then why... why did you do it? What made you give in...?"

[lavish raven]

The pained look on her face only made his sadness deepen. Who was he to cause her so much hurt? He did not deserve her care, she did not deserve to feel his pain.

He closes his eyes, wanting to stay there in her hands forever without having to speak, because he knew his answer would not be good enough. It was not good enough for him even. "Akx does not know... so much and so many... and seeing another pack of gnolls again... Akx just lost grasp on self and stupid gnoll would not stop... taunting, had to make it stop." He whines and there is deep frustration in his words. Angry that whatever managed to drag him down to that level seemed to have come from a lack of maintaining self control.

[outer moth]

For a moment, she hummed quietly in thought... unsure how she wanted to feel about his answer... or about him. She couldn't decide if she would put it past him to be provoked and angered to a point of being broken down and acting in ways that he shouldn't. Could she have it in her heart to say that it was a failure on his part? If she was standing right there in place of him, having to contend with the cacophonous, undoing image of her own kind, taunting her at every moment to fall prey to her own primal urges... could she really have stayed firm? Would she have been just as accountable?

Her comparison doesn't quite hold up when she is reminded that her own image is that of an animal preyed upon and with no sense of savagery to fear. The same cannot be said for Akx. She... can't deny the possibility that this was within him all along. It was always a part of him. He is... a gnoll after all, as much as she having having to degrade him to just that. Fiendish blood has, and will continue to run through his veins. The wolf has warned her many times to be wary of him for this, and for once... she fears that she finally has a good reason to do so. Already, she can hear her taunting her for being so foolish in believing he was anything more than that...

And yet, the troubled man who sat there before her was not anything like the beast they feared to be, nor was he trying to. Seeing him so distraught about his own own actions and self, seeing his willingness to confess and repent... That alone was enough to convince her that he wasn't.

[outer moth]

Gently, she carried him over by the back of his head in order to be closer with hers. Letting him rest between the crook of her neck and her chest while she rested just above. Delicate whispers and pats soon followed, doing whatever she can to get him to calm down. To spell it out for him that everything was going to be alright... and that there was nothing to worry about.

"Has this been what's worrying you for so long? Is this why... Why you have trouble seeing yourself the way you do? Why... you're so certain that you don't deserve anything at all?" She hushes out. softly running her hand right behind his ears.

[lavish raven]

The gentle pats were enough to pull his heavy sobs back into more contained whimpers as he tries to bury his face in the crook of her neck. "Yes... almost two months... people kept saying to tell someone..., but was hard, verrry hard..." He says turning his eyes upwards to her, apologetically, feeling so sorry to have shared his burden with her.

He grows quiet a moment to think about what he perceives himself a1t of discussion and the display of what he had been unknowingly transforming into leave him feeling like a a distorted reflection. "Akx... has felt that way for a lot longer than... this, but did not help..."

[outer moth]

"I understand why that is now, I'm sorry... I'm going to be honest... some part of me wishes that you had never told me that... or had that happen at all really... especially after bearing so much of my heart onto you in such quick succession... It's jarring... I don't think I was the right person you could've come to for help either, but... I guess we both have no choice. You'll have to bear with me and all I can give for now as we find a way to work this out..." She chuckled pathetically, trying scrounge up any sense of positivity together to dissuade him from feeling any sense of fault by dragging her into this.

"When... did it start then, if I may ask? Tell me in full... how does Akx truly see and feel about himself? And what do you believe led you to those assumptions and observations?" She whispered out, pressing her head against his to help ease him in with being more open about how he has perceived himself all this time.

[lavish raven]

When she says that she wishes not to have known, there is a sharp twinge of pain in his chest and he physically becomes a little bit colder. "O-oh. Akx is sorry... should not have... Roe was just the only person that... guess it does not matter. Akx is sorry..." He whines these words before lightly trying, but not really trying, to pull himself away. "Roe does not have to help Akx... Roe does not have to listen..."

"When Akx was exiled by Kraach-Rhuul for failing the pack...and getting... a-almost two dozen hunters killed..." His paws fidget as he begins to tap long ovoid shapes on his arms, tracing scars that are currently hidden by his fur. "Akx... should not say that... none of it is good. Too much is wrong with Akx... and Akx does not know why other than made bad things happen or has done bad things so must be bad..."

[outer moth]

"Hey, hey... you don't need to apologize." She caught up to him with a whisper. "A part of me is glad that you sought the need to confide in someone for help and right your wrongs in the first place. I'm glad that you're making an effort to reach out and do what is right... and, I appreciate that you trust me enough to handle this with... And no, I don't have to help you. I don't have to be the one who gets you back on your feet. Nothing is stopping me from letting you work this out on your own, and yet... nothing is stopping me from choosing to get involved either as far as I'm concerned. And... after seeing you suffer so much pain and turmoil at the hands of your own actions, I have no choice but to help. I may not have to, but I will choose to and continue to anyways... It's what's required of me, it's what's right, and it's only fair that I do... It's my duty after all. If not as a medic, then as a friend... As long as you are in need, I will be there to do what I can to help... you can always count on that Akx, I promise..." She assured him greatly with hushed tones and more gentle pats. Lightly pressing her lips against the brow of his head before letting him have the space she felt he was asking for from below.

There was a slight twinge of pain in her chest when he called himself out for having too much things wrong with him. Words that were all too familiar and always too hurtful to hear. It... didn't help that it was preceded by something so tragic that he can't help but fault himself for. Not to mention being slated as a failure and an outcast for it. She... couldn't help but see some part of herself in him in this moment as a result. And yet, this is not what they needed to hear, what... he needs to hear.

_ _
"There is nothing wrong with you Akx." She spoke out resoundingly in the wake of being moved by her own sympathy, holding him by the cheeks once more as she levels herself to face him directly. "Only that unfortunate things end up happening again and again, or finding themselves in you... Only unfortunate and unresolved things... Even if you are directly at fault for all those bad things, or if there is no separating what's wrong in you... they don't have to define you. It's okay to feel regret, to feel grief or remorse... to be aware of your own mistakes and wrongdoings... but you don't have to be bound to them always... Tell me, do you truly want to live the rest of your life seeing yourself as a failure? As a monster? As unworthy? As... someone who is only known for being wrong?" She posed the question firmly, all while maintaining her soft gaze on his eyes. One of her hands sink away from his face, sliding down his arm until she could grasp and intertwine with his own hand once more.

"Or do you want things to change? Right what is wrong... give yourself another chance..."

[lavish raven]

"Akx does have to... shared too much, or at least too quickly... not right. Should have waited until Akx was sure it would not be too much after earlier..." There is a bitterness in his voice as he speaks of things he should have done, before he takes another deep breath. "Akx would not blame Roe if Roe decides otherwise at any point... Akx has gotten used to not being worth the trouble." It only worsens how he feels when he says it, but it had to be said. She needs to know he is okay with being given up on.

As she pulls her lips back from his head, there is the quietest swish of his tail in the dirt and for that moment he does feel like her next words are true. If only a moment could last forever... "Is... very kind, but Akx knows that is not true. It all cannot be coincidences, so... Akx has to look at the only thing connecting the bad... which is Akx." He says with a faint, pained smile as he sits himself upright before her, finally meeting her gaze. "As long as Akx is scarred... Akx will be bound to the past, as Akx should be... a fair price for the pack members lost." His voice is remarkably stoic given the emotional ride he has put himself and her through. "Akx does not want to be those things, but... if Akx is then Akx is..."

There it is once again... the premise, the offer of change, and he remembers what he had already said last time they spoke... "For the better... Akx will keep trying." He says with a light squeeze of her hand.

[outer moth]

"Then you do not know me as well as I would've thought... I for one am used to working with things that aren't worth the trouble. That's just how it is... being an alchemist. If... there is one thing I can attribute from all my years of studying, is that... even in the most worthless of things, there is potential to be found. There is value, there is meaning, there is reason to be... I am willing to go the distance with you, because I only know there is so... so much more for you to gain... and it will be all worth it in the end... As much as you hear about me cry and whine about me being hopeless and weak... I am not one to see myself giving up. And if there is one thing I don't give up on... it's the people that I truly love and care for. And if that's not reason for you to do the same after seeing me try and try again... then I don't know what will..." She slightly shuddered out when the weight of her words finally caught up to her. It would probably do her good not to give him too much hope, but... what was one to do when hope is all that they can give? She can only hope that he understands... understand why and what she is doing this for...

She can't live with having to give up on someone again... she can't... she mustn't...

[outer moth]

"I must ask you this again then... Who is Akx Titanmaw? The man before me, or the monster he claims to be within?" She spoke out calm, but sharply to him. Ripe with emotion and meaningful intent. "If you truly are a man bound to the past, by the scars that have cursed you so... then endure and be at peace with the burden that they carry... and strive for a future where you have learned from and outgrown them. If you truly are the monster that you were meant to be within, then..." She pauses, coming down from an emotional high. Her hand goes to comfort his cheek one last time, before withdrawing it away. With the same hand, she pulls it close to her chest at first, staring down at it in indecision before looking back up to him with a wavering, yet hopeful smile as she raises it to the space between them. Sitting down in front of him as she extends her pinky finger out. All but asking him to do the same.

"We shall do our best to reform ourselves as lowly monsters together. As found, kindred spirits in this cold, cruel world... As people... with nothing else to lose but ourselves... and each other..."

[lavish raven]

Akx's free hand drifts to his chest, feeling the flame the crackles within from the last time someone told him of his potential. "Okay, okay. Akx understands..." He says with a genuine, pleasant grin, "Let us hope Roe can find whatever miniscule thing of value is hidden in here..." He chuckles quietly, hooking a thumb in his own direction.

The important question... it is not about what he thinks he is, but rather what he actually is and still at this point, between those two options... he does not know which one he would fully call himself. There is a hesitation to make that decision until she says those last words. All the hesitation leaves as he mimics her gesture, looping his finger around hers.

"Man, monster... even beast... Akx can handle being anything as long as Roe is there..."

[outer moth]

"That's the thing, I already have... It's only it's up to you to find it and figure out what it is..." She riddled out to him, presenting an amused smile and a coy wink that just exudes proudness. Wrapping her finger around his in turn as she comes over to pat him by the shoulder. Hoping that this would be enough of a hint to hook him into seeing and cultivating that value for himself, apart from what anyone else thinks or has imposed upon him for themselves. And with how determined he was in accepting his promise... she could only hope that this would be enough to start him back on the right path. A future challenge that she openly welcomes with wide arms, wide as the ones that come to collect him back into a tight hug.

"Yeah, as long as I'm here..." She whispered to him gently with a smile drawn on her face, before fading into a torn frown away from his sights.

One thing she does worry about though... is that he might grow to become over-reliant on her for any meaningful change he will make for himself. His other end of the vow does not spell good news in that regard. What can he handle on his own when she isn't there for him? It's an uneasy thought for the both of them for sure. Soon, he will have to realize that this is something he must face and resolve independently, and that... he can't always count on her to be around to make things right for him. As... much as she hates to admit that will have to be the case... It will be far away still until that problem becomes relevant, and it doesn't have to be something they have to talk about just yet, but... this thought won't evade her for a long while.

_ _
*Perhaps she shouldn't have bound their futures so close and so soon with the fruitful and sentimental words she peppered throughout her promise... Wound his leash too short... given herself up to be indebted to... placed too many expectations... Perhaps she's not ready to be beholden to another responsibility, as much as she believed to have yearned for. Perhaps... she should've known better to set aside her desires first from what rightfully must be done... A foolish, selfish mistake, upon realizing now, she might come to regret... *

But...

Perhaps this could've been the best thing they could've done for each other. Marking themselves both to start anew for the better, with nothing but themselves pushing each other along the way. Could... she really find fault in wanting good for the both of them this way? Perhaps... her intentions were clouded and not entirely selfless in thought of this. Perhaps it is still too much to ask that from him... but should this mean anything to her right now? Not while the moment feels this right and her heart for him beats so fervently still. She could be done and away with worrying about any more hidden intentions or justifications right now, for she knows that this enough can become sincere. That this is something they are willing to work towards making right...

_ _
She... knows it's too late to turn back on her word now anyways. Whatever consequences she will have to face in taking him in under her charge, she'll deal with them eventually... But they can wait. As far as she is concerned, there is only one thing that matters. His responsibility is on her hands now... and she was not about to make regret of that...

Whatever comes out of this... whatever this thing between them is... she will find a way to make it all work out in the end...

"Come, there is more for us to discuss, and more in the pot for us to share..." She quietly urged him on as she pulled away from him. "I am going to need all the help I can get, and there is no one else I can share this with on my own... Besides, I think it'll help you feel better once you get another serving. Just to remind you what good there is for you out there again and get those bad tastes and thoughts out of your mouth..." She calmly spoke out, rubbing him by the cheek once more before stepping away to tend to the pot and reheat what's inside with what little magic she has left.

[lavish raven]

"Fine, fine... Akx will try to find what Roe sees. Akx has not... been very good at hunting that, but-" He lets the sentence fall off as she embraces him and he returns the gesture, sweeping her up in his arms, holding her fiercely tight.

"Okay okay... with hopefully all of the tears out of the way, yes, more sounds good." He says, grabbing his bowl that had at some point in all of their shuffling been knocked to its side. He watches her work to bring the heat back for a few seconds, before speaking up. "Would Roe like some help? With the fire?"

[outer moth]

"Oh... no. It's fine. I got this covered." She assured him, reaching over to the lower side of the stew pot to place her hand against. Out of nowhere, a flash of vibrant indigo and black flames erupts from her palm, flickering back and forth before it settles down into a low, orange glow that gets the pot steaming again. Presenting herself with a cheeky smile as she turns back to show him. [Prestidigitation]

"Here, let me get that for you..." She guides him over to fetch his bowl for her to pour into a few ladles' worth of stew. As she goes to scoop a sizable ball of rice for him, her expression steels and furrows before it is shaken off when she comes to face him with the question:

"So... how did you get those scars?"

[lavish raven]

He watches her own flames with curiosity, the initial colors earn the raise of an eyebrow before they fade to the typical oranges. "Hrrrm..." He tenses his hands, feeling them grow warm but he does not let them ignite. Instead he looks at the flames and with a clench of his fist they return to that black and purple coloration. [Thaumaturgy]

"Sorry, Akx just wanted... to look at the colors... black fire is odd..." He takes a moment to stare at the flames, mesmerized by the odd coloration and their resemblance to untethered shadows billowing around.

He is snapped out of it by her question. He had hoped they would let the past rest for a moment, but he does only have himself to blame for her inquery. He was the one to show her after all. "Ah errrm... Pack... did it. Akx said something earlier... Kraach-Rhuul. It means... well... closest meaning is Ill-Blood... is one of pack's worst punishments."

[outer moth]

"Black fire, huh... Ah.. hm... maybe there was some residues left on me that caught fire... it usually looks like that if there is at first..." She explained briefly, if a bit falsely, wiping away at her waist to give in to the idea that there was something on her.

As she got around to serving her own bowl, she turned over to Akx with a very apologetic look. Having her heart sunk one stage upon knowing that it was a punishment harshly imposed upon him. Pain inflicted needlessly. As she slid back over to the space right next to him, she gave a look and pity at the faint markings that hinted towards where those scars would be. Remembering what she could from him pointing them out earlier. A discontented sigh would come forth as she hooked her arm around his lower back for a hug, leaning against his weight once more.

"What does Ill-Blood mean then? What did they do to you..."

[lavish raven]

He sets his bowl before himself and one more spreads the fur aside, revealing the rings of teeth marks. "Bite. Bite deep, one for each of the fallen... No tearing or ripping... just... to draw blood and leave it open. Meant to make culprit... get sick when left behind..." He sighs softly, leaning lightly on her as well. "Very... particular... punishment." He brushes the hairs back down to cover the scars once more before reaching for his bowl. His appetite was lessened a bit now, but the meal was still good and given he had a job to continue tomorrow, he'd need the extra food to keep going anyway.

[outer moth]

"I don't care what anyone says... I think that was too unnecessary... I'm sorry..." She hummed out in sympathy, sliding her hand across till it reaches him by the wrist. Gently moving it around as her hand comes to rest inside his palm. "If it were up to me, I would've just left you alone... or not punish you at all... But I guess it's too late for that now..." She sighed out, finding the thought him suffering through that just unbearable.

"I may not be able get rid of them entirely just yet, but if you want... I can try to make them less sickly. Make Akx healthier than what they left you behind with... Not now, but perhaps tomorrow?" She calmly offered as she stared right back at him from below.

[lavish raven]

"Is... a nice thing to say, but it was a massive mistake, Akx thinks it was a fitting price... left Akx with just as much of a chance as the ones that died."

He sighs somberly as he takes spoonful of the stew and places it into his mouth only to lurch and gag himself on the spoon as she offers to remove or at least fade his scars. After coughing for a moment and composing himself, he meets her eyes... "Roe could...?"

[outer moth]

"Hey, easy... easy..." She patted him on the back, trying to get him ease down and swallow his food. "I can only fix up what was left marred by any infections... Healing the scars away completely is not something I can do. At least, for now... I plan to have a way for that at some point, but... that'll take time and resources that I don't have right now..." She sighed out regretfully, wishing there was more she could've done in this moment for him. She thought about the possibility of concocting something similarly potent with what she has right now, but... the only thing that could reasonably stand in for that is...

Wait... she has an idea...

"Even the weaker treatment is going to take me the morning to get prepared, but... there is a way for you to know how it would feel like without them. Mask them away completely, but only temporarily... Would you be interested in that in the meantime?" She meekly offered, already having one hand inside her bag to fetch something.

[lavish raven]

"Hrrrm.... Hrrrrrm..." He takes a good minute to just think about it. They would not be gone, but the bindings of the past would be weaker... easier to be rid of when he was ready to. "Roe can... make them fade? Akx would not mind that... as long as is not too much work."

His ears do perk up at mention of a temporary fix, something to see if he could live without them. "Oh? Would be... really gone? Or like illusion earlier?"

[outer moth]

"As far as the outer, physical appearance is concerned, yes... they will be gone in a way unlike the illusion... but only for a while..." She clarified, producing a small, circular glass bottle. Filled to the neck with a vibrant pink liquid that has an subtle glow to it. Clouds of colors constantly swirl and emerge along the edges, before fading into the centralizing hue of the solution within.

"This here... is what one might call a potion of transformation. After ingesting enough of this liquid into your body, you'll have the temporary ability to freely shape your form into another... within reason. You'll be bound to the general structure of your body, but... if you're just going to hide away a few marks, then there's no need for you to worry about it... Just... visualize and materialize the change, and your body and the potion will do its best to sculpt to your desires..." She carefully advertised and explained to the gnoll, holding the bottle lightly in her hands.

"It's only enough for ten minutes... so make it count... Do you want to still take it then after knowing what you'll go through? I promise it won't hurt, but... it will be weird for someone taking it for their first time... I doubt it's the same as the kind of growth and form-switching you can already do... I don't know..."

[lavish raven]

Akx's eyes lock on the phial, the pink glow reflecting off his eyes before he glances down at his arms before slowly reaching forward to take it. "Just... drink then... think of them being gone, yes?"

"Ten minutes... not very long either way... if is bad it will be over quickly and if is good, Akx will have more reason to want them gone."

[outer moth]

"Alright, it's all yours... Just, if anything wrong suddenly begins to transform, try your best not to think of anything about yourself immediately... then slowly come back to what you remember looking like, okay? I don't think you could mess that up even, but... just in case..." She guided his hand by the wrist as she handed over the bottle, carefully giving him a look around before letting go.

"Just... focus... and let the change come naturally..."

[lavish raven]

He gingerly lifts the bottle, giving it a alight swirl before removing the stopper and downing the liquid. The sweetness makes it quite easy to empty the bottle quickly, before he returns the empty vial to her.

For a moment, nothing really happens or feels different until he is suddenly very aware of every party of his body and how pliable it currently feels.

"Okay... okay... no scars..." He whispers allowed to himself as he focuses on them being gone. It is very hard for Akx, who has been trying very hard to avoid looking at himself, to properly picture himself differently than as is, so naturally his mind drifts towards the easiest way to not have the scars, which is to be the same as he was before getting them, and his body begins to shift to do so. Outwardly he shrinks a bit, losing about 3 inches of height while his fur darkens and retracts to a shorter length. The white patch on his shoulder follows suit, becoming the same darker brown. Even his muscles atrophy a bit, becoming slightly wirey rather than bulky, as there, in clothes that are just one size too big, with Roe is now an Akx that is visibly slightly younger.

As he feels his body stop changing he does repeats the same motion as before, parting the hair on his arms to get a look at the flesh beneath to find it unmarred by teeth. "Hrrrmmm..."

[outer moth]

"Hmm... I suppose that's one way to go about it... Do you think you can go forward without the scars? Well, hmm... What do you think about it first?" She asked, curiously looking at the snapshot of his past self before her. Wondering what he once was like this, and what it must've took to get him to where he was now. Even in this form, he still considerably dwarfs her. Perhaps that's just how gnolls are...

[lavish raven]

He stares at his arm for several moments, flexing and unflexing them, turning and looking at the pristine skin before giving a deep sigh of relief, "Does not... hurt... at all." He whispers, primarily to himself, before her question pulls him back to the current moment.

"Is... good. Smaller, but no scars. Not exactly what Akx... meant to do, but... worked." He takes a moment to examine give himself a once over, before turning back to her. "What does Roe think?"

[outer moth]

"Of course it didn't... You know I would never cause you any harm like that... What kind of a potion maker would I be if all of them did?" She humored out sarcastically as she stored away the vial, coming back to him with a pleased smile as she stares him and his amazement over. It's like he seems happier like this... almost... The thought doesn't last long as she's taken away from her gaze by the sudden question dropped onto her.

"Well, it's not what I expected to happen, but... I guess it's only telling. You didn't do anything wrong unto yourself, so that's good too... I am starting to miss the older self a little now that I'm looking at you... But I think you look lovely like this, all patched up and free.... As long as you are content... as long as you're happy with yourself, I'm happy too, Roe thinks." She assured him as she reached for his hands, feeling the callous-less paws that were free of any toil... free of any burden. A fond smile springing forth as a result.

"You still have around nine minutes... so if you ever wanted to mess around with something, now would be the time..." She bluntly stated, all while fixated on trying to comprehend the image of a war-less Akx before her.

[lavish raven]

"Hrrrm... well Akx did not think the potion would hurt... but everything feeling all... stretchy and moving... maybe." He jabs back playfully. "No... just sometimes... scars would hurt, ache... not all the time, but... when Akx thinks about it."

"Is a little surprising is true, but Akx just thought about the scars going and remembered... not having them." He says, giving her hand a squeeze with the softer paws. "Lot of ahu-ahu... feelings like this, but is okay..."

Despite knowning, or at least having no evidence to indicate otherwise, he is safe and wanted here, a small grin spreads across his face at her statement. "Old Akx will be back soon enough. No need to worry about that..."

The grin grows into a full playful smirk, "Mess around...? Mess around how?" He teases before stopping to think, he actually does not know how far he could go with this. "How... much can Akx change?"

[outer moth]

"As far as your imagination can take you... within reason of course." She purred out. "You're still bound to you general shape, so you can't just sprout four legs or arms, and it's not advanced enough to replicate certain traits found in other races. Like, you can't suddenly breath fire or sprout wings to fly... But pretty much any physical and visual characteristic is fair game for you to alter. That alone should be enough bases covered for you to mess around with..." She smiled impishly, pressing the ends of her hands together in acquiesce.

[lavish raven]

Akx takes another moment just being this version of himself before releasing a longing, but content sigh. "Okay... no new legs, arms, or wings..."

An idea comes to him; a devilish smile spreading as he closes his eyes and reaches for that feeling of being as malleable as clay as he begins to work the form smaller. Ears move inward just a little and stretch up while his muzzle shortens and nose shrinks to fit it. The bulk of his build shifts a bit and softens while his fur becomes a a bit softer and colored like snow. His right eye clouds over as scars that cross over it form and while the rest of the form settles into her shape, albeit with a lot of guess work, he instinctively pulls his now, much too big, clothing a bit closer to himself so it isn't loosely hanging about, feeling rather smug. "How is this for messing around?" He delivers in her voice.

[outer moth]

Roe sat patiently with an amicable smile on her face as she awaits the potential shifts he will get up to, if at all. At first she raises a brow at receding changes that pop out at first, wondering if they were specific to this brew or to each person, as she usually defaulted to more direct and transient shifts. Then, when the ears and muzzle begin to take shape, she knew what he was about to go for... only to be thrown a nasty curveball by seeing him transform into the only harengon he knew (or at least, the closest to for reference). Herself. Fair enough considering she was rightfully in his shoes just an hour ago, but that still got her to put on a grouch, if a little flustered one at that.

"Alright, I should've seen this one coming, you asshole." She huffed out, reaching over to playfully tug him by the cheek. "You really are a funny guy, huh? I hope you're not trying to get me to fall for myself, because I would be very angry if it worked." She swung back sarcastically before letting go, calming down considerably as she finally took a moment to inspect the mimicry that took place.

"I can't believe you actually went for the whole deal, down to the last detail... well, almost. These should be a little grey at the end." She stated, lifting both of his arms up before moving on to observed the other details he might've missed or included. It's impressive that he managed to manipulate the transformations that accurately. Just goes to show that he pays a lot of attention to her and the little things. Whether or not that should be something admirable or concerning still remains to be answered. In fact, him being in her body is something she should start thinking about with discretion.

[lavish raven]

He gives a short giggle as the face is pulled on. "Is only fair, no? Besides, is that not what Roe was trying earlier? Getting closer... felt like an offer..." He whispers, jokingly trying to mimc her tone from earlier while leaning in closer.

He withdraws with a second giggle and watches as she begins to examine him, leaving him feeling oddly vulnerable, but she did the same for him earlier, so he holds still as she gives her notes on the replication. "Feels... definitely stranger than the last though..."

[outer moth]

"Alright, you have me there... If you put it like that..." She begrudgingly admits after being called out, rolling her eyes and sighing out.

"I don't know how I'd take it being called strange in my own body... but please, tell me why." She blithely threw out as she came back to her bowl to finish what was left. Curious to know his stance in being within a form completely diametrical to his, and whether or not some choice words would come up from those thoughts.

[lavish raven]

"Is just teasing... Akx can stop, if Roe wants. Not... the best for Akx to do something Akx did not like done, hm?" He offers weakly, realizing how hypocritical of an action it was as the ears sadly flop down, before popping back up, "Though if Roe is worried about it, that means Roe thinks it is possible."

"Strange... maybe a bad word. Different is better? Fur is softer, feels nice... can hear better? Things seem louder. Oh, can be upright without straining! Not as tall, but..." He pauses to stretch, leaning back causing several popping noises as the back cracks. "Ooo... very hard to do that as Akx. Then there is the... obvious... different things," Said with a quick glimpse downwards before feeling his cheeks flush. "...though Akx is trying to not to focus on that. Is just a lot of differences. Taking a moment to... figure them all out."

[outer moth]

"Yeah, they do go upright like that." She smiled, seeing him how much fun he's having emoting through them. "The height advantage that I take back with them is something I'll never take for granted, though... I suppose the hearing advantage is something I usually dismiss. Being able to hear at all directions like I do is something that may take time getting used to, especially with all the tunneling. And... I need find a way to get something for your back when you revert back, because that is concerning if it sounds like that after getting a stretch done. I... suppose the other glaring changes could be a little uneasy getting used to. I know for one that I was a little overwhelmed when I first tried transforming myself the other way around..." She quietly admits, looking a little flushed as well as they both become aware. She slides over to give his tunic shirt another adjustment, before letting out a sigh.

"If you really like being me that much... ehhh... I suppose you could stay like that until the rest of the duration. Just to figure out those other differences. I... suppose it's only fair after you offered me the same chance. Just... don't do anything weird with me that I wouldn't do in front of yous, okay? And... what do you mean be what Roe thinks is possible?" She questioned, raising a slight brow.

[lavish raven]

He twitches the ears individually getting accustomed to the sensitivity. "Oh is because Akx cannot stand upright too too long, back is not... right for it. Is why spend Akx is always hunched forward. He mimics his usual stance, with the head forward, close to shoulder level, before lightly rubbing his neck. He raises a brow at the mention of her experience with the opposite, but awkwardly looks away before allowing that train of thought to continue as she fiddles with his clothing.

"Hm... is nice and does not bother Roe... right?" He queries, tilting his head to one side and allowing the ears to droop lazily.

"Oh uh... just if Roe was worried Akx would make Roe like Roe- er... Akx as Roe? Gets weird to say out loud..." His hands nervously fidget about for a moment before sighing. "Was just to get back for earlier... Akx is sorry."

[outer moth]

"Oh, uh... Well, it's something I haven't considered that deeply until now. What I said earlier really was just a joke... I rather not dwell on it too much, I don't think I should..." She shrugged as she got around to making sure his shirt fitted nicely around his new form in the meantime. "There would be a lot of cases where I would be bothered, or even hostile if I saw my own appearance on someone else... but since I allowed it to happen to begin with, I guess I can let that slide... just for you... So no, I won't be bothered by you borrowing me for a while longer. Not until you give me a reason to be." She added, lightly tapping him by the cheek.

"Hmm... would you like me to hook you up with a massage someday then?" She offered, having taken in the fact that his posture usually leads to a lot of stress building up in his back from all the time he he spent hunched forward and upright.

[lavish raven]

"Akx understands... if Akx just saw another Akx randomly, would probably be upset too." He shivers in place, picturing a random encounter with someone or something that looks like him, causing his ears to fall back in a moment of fear which passes as quickly as the thought. "Hmm... Akx would never... and if Akx did, would deserve whatever Roe saw fit."

"Would be nice, but... Akx does not think it would really do much since that is just how Akx is shaped... do not want to waste Roe's time or energy..." He shrugs, stifling a yawn as he finally finishes off that bowl of stew he has been picking at between sentences.

[outer moth]

"I suppose that's a good point... But, if not for treatment, then out of leisure. It would feel good regardless I assume. I know I would, and I wouldn't mind doing the kneading myself... And like, it doesn't have to be now, or by me. We can like... go to a small spa or bathhouse. Some sort of small spring. I recall that some of the peaks here are volcanicly active and littered with unfrozen pools of hot water. Maybe someone had the idea to build a small keep around it. Maybe we can go somewhere on the way back? I don't know... Think of it like a thing we can like... hang out together on. Get ourselves pampered and stripped free of the toils our unfortunate job had placed upon us. I think we deserve it as much anyways..." She gestures out the offer lazily, resorting back to her musing and thoughts before hearing a light, barely formed yawn coming from the faux-harengon.

"You still got room for one more... or should I get started with fixing things up for the both of us?" She asked, lightly tapping on the rice top with the paddle.

[lavish raven]

"Mmm... probably would... Akx would prefer Roe to a stranger, but obviously Roe should be allowed to relax too. Ooo, but a bathhouse... always nice.~ Akx does not know any out here though..." He sighs, not even sure if they would let him into either type of place in his normal form.

"Akx has had Akx's fill for the night. Thank Roe very much for the stew, loads better than just tack and jerky." He says with a soft chuckle.

[outer moth]

"Alright... I suppose I should try and work around a way to get this preserved... or finish it all... Thanks for enjoying it..." She smiled back, before turning her sights to the workstation left unclean.

"We could always go to one in Vaskala, as a small detour. I don't think we'll be in much of a rush to report back once we're done here anyways... They have bathouses for you around back at home? Or was it always light on washing when you were on the move?" She threw out, wiping away at the knives and utensils that were left discarded, storing them back into the briefcase that they sprung out of.

[lavish raven]

"Could tie the lid down and pack it into the snow outside... cold would help it keep until reheated." He offers, a thing his pack had done when they would run low on salt for preserving foods in the colder climates of Acrelund.

"Zetrican had some, but when with pack, yes, harder to find places, not that it mattered as much then... being stuck out here kind of reminds Akx of those times..." He mutters quietly, a bit of a melancholic nostalgic tone as he makes sure to scrape his bowl clean for any last bits of rice or other stew ingredients before passing it over.

[outer moth]

"But then we'll have to deal with frozen stew in the morning... and wolves might gnaw through the twine and get what's inside... eh. I suppose it's worth a shot." She shrugged, tapping on the rim for a moment for as she made a second guess, before proceeding to scrape the remaining clumps of rice into the stew pot in preparation to tie them both down in the same container.

"Yeah, being stuck out here reminds of a few times as well..." She sighed out, collecting the cleaned out bowl and spoon given out to her. "Thank you... Well, we don't have to turn the night over feeling dirty and rough. Not when we have some magic to share between us. If you want, I can brush you down again like we did in the library. You seemed to like it a lot." She chuckled out, following it up with a sharp and short huff as she firmly tied the lid down onto the pot of leftovers. Hooking it by the loop as she rose to stand up.

"I'll give you a little to think about it. I gotta store this outside first." She hopped forward, taking off the wooden barricades before stepping through the door in a hurried pace. Disappearing right away into the dark...

[lavish raven]

"Options are cold, hot, or lots of salt usually or magic. Though salt is for long preservation..." Absent-mindedly he begins to trail off, muttering about survival practice and managing food in the wilderness. "Animals could dig it up but snow and pot should hide the scent... should not try too hard to get into the pot..."

While she steps into the night, Akx stands and stretches, actually trying out the leporine legs, finding them somewhat springy to walk on. After securing his legwear in a similar fashion to his tunic, he takes a couple hops around the space, just to handle how the body moves.

One thing he finds a bit odd is the independency of the ears, as they oscillate in different directions at the different sounds. One towards the fire crackling, the other towards the actual harengon crunching off into the snow. Nothing to do but move a bit, wait, and consider grooming offered... and think.

The first thought is being suddenly very aware of being alone... gods how he hated it, even for moments it was terrible. Those first days without his pack were the worst and it is all he can remember in moments like this.

Following that was the amount of trust he was being shown, even if she was not far, he was out of sight in an almost perfect duplicate of her form... something he still was not sure how he felt about from a 'should I have done this' point of view. It was certainly not his best moment, but she seemed okay with it so it should be fine, so why was something in back of his mind telling him otherwise...

Lastly, her actions, tones, words... these have been leaving him befuddled about how this night should go... from her provocative behavior while wearing his form to how she almost jumped into the pot of stew herself when he asked if he could kiss her to the constant playful back and forths... it would probably be better for him to let her take the lead on moving forward... if she would want to at all anyway.

[outer moth]

Right in the middle of the frozen wastes, it was seen that Roe did not venture far from their encampment. Just far enough and away to be out of reasonable earshot of Akx. She carefully and covertly trudged through the snow, trying her best to leave her footprints as misguided and light as she can. Right until she finds a reasonable mound of snow to burry the rather light pot in.

She holds the iron cast container outwards and in front of her, a nervous look staring down from its. Her actions seem rather hesitant for such a straightforward task, until the reason for so comes forth to be revealed by what she comes says next.

"Alright, I'm sorry for making you wait for so long while having to sit through all that. I just... can't let him know about you yet, much less see you gouge away at the whole pot... I managed to save enough for you though, and... I can assure you that I'll find something to hunt down tomorrow. Hopefully, this... will do as a peace-"

In an instant, the pot gets pulled downward with a light tug from nowhere, followed by the sharp snap of a large animals jaw. The contents of the pot were no more, the stew and rice mix completely consumed. All that remained was a lighter container in her hands, and a slightly damaged ribbon of twine loosely holding the two parts together. A nosy, but content remark is then whispered through her mind about being rightfully fed, before... a reasonably long line of complaints followed suit. Leaving her ashamed, speechless, embarrassed, then suddenly... shocked.

_ _
"Petals... Wait, he saw!? Why didn't you say anything about that?!" She cried out in frustration, before being immediately turned down for the fact she was too busy being swept away and emotionally distraught. She combs her hand through her neck and collar for any remains of that uncontrolled bloom... only to find a single, withered leaf of white that got left behind. Immediately, she buckles inward out of fear, before slowing gaining her composure in trying to think of what to do.

It was explained to her that he did not react in any particular way come the change. Possibly mistaking it for her own "magic" leaking through. Whether or not that was a better assumption for him to believe and them to follow was still up in the air. She did not wish for tonight to be the night where she had to explain this all to him, after all that had been revealed and processed through their shared anguish and remorse. Yet, she couldn't be sure if she could stand another day lying about this to him after all the sincerity that he has given. She didn't want him to burden him... she didn't want him to become upset for what she was underneath and dealing with...

It was then reminded to her, by her very own words no less, that these things are better remained unsaid. How she wishes to continue from here after being put under suspicion is up to her. Whether she can control what outcome and information comes out from him being hinted at something undergoing with her, if she can trust him to keep his mouth shut and forget... if she can trust him to accept her now...

[outer moth]

"I'll think of something to say soon... before it becomes too much of a concern... or maybe it's just better for me to be oblivious... I don't know... Let's see if I find another moment of no control with him and let the opportunity present itself..." She concluded, admonishing the curse blighting her left arm for making things so difficult right after. Burying these thoughts for later like the pot she was about to pile under the snow. Course, the thing was emptied out already, and there was no point in leaving it here other than to cause less questions to arise. She'll have to leave it out here like it had already been dug open and ravaged through, which... wasn't that hard to do. Leaving her nothing left but the task to return home and plan...

...

"Alright, I'm back..." She called through the door after enough time had passed, knocking through distinct rhythms that... she probably had to brief with him first before applying. "Did anything happen while I was away?" She spoke through, peering through the corner of the door after it would've been opened for her.

[lavish raven]

After the sound of wood scraping wood and a deep grunt, the door opens to reveal a normal, gnoll-shaped Akx. "No, no... just some thinking is all... Did Roe find a good spot for the pot?" He asks as he pulls the door wider to let her back in fully.

[outer moth]

"Yeah... somewhere exactly fifty paces from here... Did it run out already when I was gone?" She pointed out, barricading door once more as went back to store what remained outside the briefcase back inside. Shutting it close and giving the handle a click, turning it back into her multi-tool in a flash.

[lavish raven]

"Errrm... no. Just figured it would be better to already be Akx for when it does. Should not be too much longer anyway, but Akx can still feel the... stretchiness. Nothing bad outside, right? Akx knows it was not far, but... does not seem like anywhere is far from a lot of the danger here..." He turns towards and tosses a little bit of kindling to the fire and gives a low growl in its direction to give it brighten just a bit. [Thaumaturgy]

[outer moth]

"No, nothing bad at all. Don't think anyone or anything saw me either." She quickly dismisses before having to divulge any further over what truly happened out there.

She crouches back over to the pile of belongings that they had placed in the corner in search of her side bag. Rifling through the pockets, she pulls out a small pouch filled with toiletries and some medications sealed in parchment. She pulls out a small tube and holds out her multi-tool up to it, springing forth the head of a toothbrush as she applies a bit of paste from it. From there, she begins the menial, but soothing task of cleaning her teeth out. Even in the cold heights, nothing will stop her from maintaining good hygiene. Especially after such a spiceful meal like the one she just made.

As she watches him tend to the fire while in a squat, she notices something strange coming from the flames edge. Outer forces at play causing it to rise and grow in slight power. Her expression quickly jumps up as she pointed over to him.
"You cand dou magjsic?" She gurgled out, mouth still full of foam and fluoride.

[lavish raven]

"Hrrrm? Ah, Akx mentioned some of pack could do just some, back in the library when Roe made the butterflies. Has Roe never seen Akx playing with the bonfire at the guild?" He asks confusedily, feeling certain that this small trick of his has been put on display before.

"Is not like magic magic, like Roe does with the flowers or Shatig with the time stuff.. More like... hrrrm... " He has never really analyzed this small grasp over primal forces. "Akx just... asks and fire does."

[outer moth]

"I remum... khack... sorry." She coughed, whisking away the foam paste and spittle she spat and gargled out with the use of her magic. Wiping away with her sleeve before coming back with a free mouth to talk through.

"I remembered what you said back at the library. I just... didn't know you were one of those lucky few... or recalled that you ever said that you were. And for the record... I've only seen you stick your hand in there like a madman. I haven't seen you "play" with fire... at least, not in the way you were doing now, no. I don't really notice or take count of that... I figured that it would just be under the same vein of whatever that hearth in your chest lets you do..." She gestured forward with a stick-like object in her hands, right over to where she remembered to core of magma was usually placed.

"But, I guess it's not then... hrmm... Ask fire and does, huh? It's... really that simple?" She hummed out rather pathetically, finding it rather bothering that even Akx could cast more spells than she could do on her own. It was not something that she could grasp; the principle of druidic magics. Persuading and giving influence to nature and it's forces, rather than just forcefully bending it to her to her will. It was so different from the arcane conventions, and so far removed from the principles of artifice and invention. She couldn't possibly imagine herself performing such a hands-off approach to magic... nor rationalize a way for her to do so without her implements. Not with who she was and who she is now. Even after being taught and showed time and time again with those who knew that truth as second nature... it was beyond her completely...

At least, until now... she hoped...

"You... think if you called to the fire to turn blue, would it do ask you requested?" She walked over to him by the fire, placing the dental stick between her teeth as she passively chewed and watch him go at it.

[lavish raven]

"Hrrrmmm maybe Akx did not exactly say Akx could..." He pauses to think for a moment, trying to recall all the details of that conversation and comes up blank for him mentioning his own little bit of primal magic. "Akx was able to do this... before that." He, somewhat defensively, pulls his hands to his chest, feeling the arhythmic crackle of flame that sits where his heart was.

"Simple is maybe not the best word? Almost like learning a different language."

He turns to the fire, in place of the growl from before comes a soft, but deep, bark, "Please, blue." The flames settle from their heightened state as a deep, sapphire blue radiates from the base until their entirety is the same consistent color. As he pulls away, his eyes are a similar state, glowing ever so lightly with the same blue light that suffuses the cabin around them. "Like that...?"

[outer moth]

Roe watches in amazement as the whole campfire erupts into a deep azure, watching as the whole room darkens under this blanket of dim light. Her eyes reflect much in the same way as his, her face illuminated by a monochrome hue that took over the shock of white she was stuck with. It was... rather fitting of the mood all things considered.

"Yeah... just like that. It's nice..." She murmured out, finding herself leaning against her once more as she got back to chewing. "Wish I could do the same with my own hands... best I got really is to throw some salts into it for a lot less effect and duration... Perhaps I was wrong to think it was only danger that came forth from this. You could really impress someone like so..." She lightly hummed out in humor, find the novelty of it quite appreciable.

[lavish raven]

"Mean... it will not stay like that unless Akx keeps asking it to, but fire has been easier to ask since..." He grips the fabric of his top that rests over where his heart should be "...being brought back. So just needs a little reminder for it every minute or so..."

"What does Roe mean...? Danger from where? The fire?" His voice still that same, soft, asking tone as he stares into the flames, watching them dance and paint the shadows around the room.

[outer moth]

"Ah, then do not strain yourself more than you need to. Just having the fire on is enough." She held onto his arm from below, tugging gently to get his attention and agreement. Appreciative of having being able to have seen it in the first place.

"Well, this the first time I've seen you use your affinity in a passive manner like this... Fire is still fire after all... and I've only seen you do big things in an offensive context. That's not to say you're a danger with them. Far from it... Perhaps for your enemies maybe, but... you do alright defending folks with it... It's nice that you lend yourself to smaller and more pleasant applications of it as well is all I'm trying to say..."

[lavish raven]

"Just a few words every now and again is all... not effortless, but... not too much effort either."He gives in to the pull, smiling in doing so, glad to know she wants him close. "Just ask and Akx will do."

"Hrrrm... Akx usually does not have a reason to... usually just when useful... which is often fighting is true." He slightly shakes his head, sighing. "Is what Akx is best at it seems... not that Akx does not like being good in a fight. Is very nice to be able to help, to protect, be hurt so others do not have to, but... thank Roe."

[outer moth]

"Alright, I'll keep that in mind... thank you..." She sighed out blissfully, happy to know that she has someone reliable and amenable to count on. She then pushes away and turns to him with an offer at hand, holding the multi-tool with the other. "Now, does my righteous warrior want his made braided and brushed again for the night? Or should we just get right into rest..." She lightly yawned out.

[lavish raven]

The yawn proves contagious as his head drifts lazily back. "As nice as would be... today has been looong. Mostly good... but long." He gives the blue flame another look, something about its color and the lighting it provides beckoning him closer to rest as he fights a second yawn. "Maybe tomorrow though... unless Roe reaaally wants to now?"

[outer moth]

"No, it can wait... we'll just do it first thing in the morning before we go out to scout and hunt over breakfast..." She taps him by the shoulder before standing up and walking over to her bag to fetch something. Inadvertently, that single instance of contact proved more impactful than one would think, as the gnoll would find himself clean of any dirt and grime. Partially refreshed... and some might say, purified... [Prestidigitation]

As she goes to unstrap her own bedroll, she stops midway to think on something. Her ears betraying her thoughts as they drooped down, she herself finding hesitation on what to say before caving in.
"Hey... I know I've been joking around about it a few times today, but... is it really alright with you if I can stay that close with you for tonight? I know what I said earlier about doing the same in return, but... I'm not really sure where we stand together as people is right for that yet honestly... or if you're really alright with it... I'm still shaken by what we both revealed and went through earlier, and I don't know if I can really see you the same way, but..." She pauses, lips trembling as she fights for something to say next as second thoughts begin to arise.

[outer moth]

"I just... want to go back to where we were before after tonight. Before all this mess we now have, and with... whatever this thing between us is... you know? I understand if you need some space, and it's probably best that we should put some distance between us before we figure out ourselves first. I won't fault you for saying no, and I don't want to discomfort you more than I already have, but... I just want nothing more than to be in your arms again. I... don't really feel safe anywhere else tonight. It's just... been so long without someone by my side... can you forgive me for wanting to indulge in that again?" She turns around to face him, albeit for a brief moment as she stares down in embarrassment and in gloom. Clutching her arm nervously as she whines out.

"I just want to know if being together is something we both want... and if you're willing to have me to hold on to... I want you to tell me if this alright for us or not, because I don't think I can..."

[lavish raven]

"Mm, Akx would like that..." The spell pulls any remaining mess away from him, though anything other than that is unnoticed by him as he began to prepare his bed roll for the night.

He had already, in a not-so-subtle way moved closer to wherever she had began to set her's, leaving space should she want it. As she makes her request, he cannot fight the smile that spreads over his face as he lifts the bedding again, "Ak-Akx meant what was earlier... is up to Roe. Akx... would like it verrry much, but if Roe does not want to, Akx is okay with that too. As for where we are... Akx can hold a friend if that is all Roe wants to be... or if Roe does not even want that because of what was said," There is a bit heartache in his words as he offers the obvious out, she could decide to simply discard whatever semblance of a deeper relationship was building between them, even tear down the foundation of friendship it was being built on, in his eyes he would deserve to have had to hope for more given just to be lost. "Akx would understand that too, but no matter what Roe chooses... Akx will be okay with it, not that that should matter to Roe."

"Akx cannot... help with that, nor would Akx really want to... think tonight has been good for both. Stressful and heavy, but good." He takes a step back away when she says they should have space to figure it out, just for him to immediately reverse that when she says she wants otherwise. "Akx does not blame you. Being lonely and alone... is terrible." As she turns, his arms are already open wide, waiting for her to fill them, his bed roll tossed haphazardly away from the fire.

"Akx wants that... badly, but does Roe?" He takes a step forward, leaving enough space for her to do the same. "Why would it not be?"

[outer moth]

For a moment, she ponders deep and hard about where she wanted to go with Akx, now that the choice was swung back and left entirely up to her once more. It was now in her favor to know that he won't mind whatever outcome she will choose, not just for tonight, but for the remaining days they will be in each other's company for the foreseeable future. She could choose to either be reasonable with herself, or true to her wants. A difficult choice that leads to both consequences and guilt on either end. Guilt in having to let him down and sever what few ties she had with him left... or guilt in having to be fully aware of the situation she's taking advantage of and living with consequences being responsible for and choosing to be with someone who has caused and suffered through that much harm. Whichever way she goes, it will leave their relationship together irreversibly changed moving forward...

[outer moth]

It... was not long until she made her choice as suddenly, she began to move up from her seat. Slowly walking towards to where he was standing all this time. A sad, uncertain face goes to look over his invitation of open arms, before... falling right into them to return the favor. Her head sinks right into his chest, as her hands places themselves on the opposite side of his back. Fighting... not to let go...
"I... still want to be friends with you. I think... we should just stay friends for our own good, but... I would not mind working something out between us... someday... I... want to open up to the possibility of there being more between us, but I think I need more time. I want to get to know you more, and know myself if I'm sure this is where I want to take things... and if I'm ready to put myself out there again. Not to mention... all of the things we have to resolve between us and on our own first... I need to know if this is right for me, but for the time being... I want nothing more than to just be with you. Because... fuck... I really like you a lot Akx. And... I want you badly as well... more than you could realize..." She said with a sensuous and fond smile, before it falls into another hopeless frown.

"I know... that this might be wrong on some level, after everything we just been through... But if you're going to be the only one left I can rely on in this world, I... want to make things right between us. I am not going to turn back on my word either. Not while our paths still cross... not while you're still my responsibility to hold... If you will have me, then... I will have you as well..." She whispered out, slowly moving her arms up to hook around from behind his neck. Trying her best to be at level with him to nuzzle him by.

"Now come, there isn't any point in delaying this further... Let's get ourselves settled in. I've been looking forward to this, and I'm not changing my mind now..."

[lavish raven]

His arms close around her, one paw finding its way to her head to hold it closer. Inches away, his heart crackles softly like a hearth welcoming someone after a long day. "Friends is good," He mutters softly, his head perched above hers. "...someday... sooner would be nice." He presses his lips to the top of her head once more. "Akx can wait though, we can get to know more, wait for Roe to be ready..." His words have the same tinge of restraint to them as a chain growing taught, holding his wants back for her. "No no... do not... do not tell Akx to wait... and then say that...,please..." He whines out with a pathetic chuckle at the end.

When she pulls his face in, he hits the end of that imaginary chain and for a moment, he pulls on it further be allowing it to go slack. "Akx still does not see what could be wrong... and would have Roe in a heartbeat and give Akx over to Roe in the same one, but Roe has just said would prefer otherwise... so unless Roe wants Akx to forget that... will wait." He stoops himself lower, to be level with her and lets her pull him into the nuzzle, reciprocating it with his own soft motions.

With a small grin, he releases the rabbitfolk so that they can each prepare their bedding. He gathers the components of his, from where they had spread out a bit from being tossed. "Akx has too... both have earned it."

[outer moth]

Already, she could get a glimpse of what the rest of their night is going to be like as she is lifted up closer to him, feeling the warmth of his unyielding hearth close by and smiling right at it. But through the thrums and rumbles of his voice, she could sense that something was still troubling the gnoll. As if something is catching him by the throat and preventing him for saying what he wants to. As she is set down and let go, her expression falters for a moment, waiting for a moment to speak up again.

"What do you mean by not telling you to wait? Did... I say something wrong? I'm confused..." She said out worriedly. Matching a light laugh to his, though more nervous. She hopes that she didn't throw him into another loop more times than she already had.

[lavish raven]

"No, no nothing wrong... Akx is just... figuring out words... Roe said wants to wait, decide if this is right for Roe... is fine, Akx understands that. He takes a deep breath to center himself, to make sure he does not say the wrong words. "But... saying the Roe wants Akx afterwards, smiling then pulling Akx closer..." He slightly shakes his head. "Maybe Akx's head is still scattered from earlier, but words and actions... confusing Akx just a bit."

[outer moth]

"Ah... I see..." She nervously chuckled out, getting down to his level on the floor. "I suppose I was getting too hasty for my own good... Being with you is something I desire deep down, but... I want to make sure that these feelings come from good reasons and intentions before acting on them first. Making sure that my actions are unclouded and my mind is sound... you know? I just... don't want to get into this with wildly different expectations. Does that make sense? I don't know..." She sighed out, focusing on folding her bedroll into a pillow while she continues to make an awkward mess of herself.

"I just... don't want to come off as shallow and superficial. Over easy and needy... I want to make this meaningful between us, but I don't know.... It's like I'm at odds with myself around you sometimes. Putting the horse before the cart and shit. Maybe I'm thinking about this too hard. Maybe my head is still scattered too... This all too soon to think about. We could just... stay as we are, and just let things roll on onward... hrmm... Man, you're making me feel guilty and difficult for being so amenable about this, I'mma be honest. I don't like how easy it is to toy around with you..." She whined and teased out, a flustered smile plastered on her face as she clutched apart the blanket she was holding onto in play anger.

[lavish raven]

"Yes, yes... Akx understands wanting to be sure, be sure is safe, but then Roe did not act like that. Which Akx does not mind if playing... joking, but... did not sound or look like that. Again, maybe Akx did not understand right... and if not then sorry for extra worry... He lets out a huff of warm, dry air as he spreads the tarp of his bedroll out and begins to layer his blankets into some semblance of a pallet wide enough for the two of them.

"Hrrrm... Akx does not think that... but Akx also does not know when something like this is not meaningful. Is okay... we can stay like this for... well as long as Roe needs to choose. " He glances over to her, a patient look before a slight smile creases it. "Oh would Roe like Akx to be more... uppity or pushy?" He retorts playfully.

"Akx does not think that's true, if Roe did not like it, Roe would not do it so much..." He lets off a short giggle.

[outer moth]

In an instant, Roe gets herself in a fuming mood after being teased and called out like that, as her face gets flushed with red underneath. A sharp glare pierces right at him, before she lays it off and cools down. Crawling closer to him, she lightly tugs him by the collar of his tunic before leaning in with a tense smile.

"So what you're trying to say is that I should stop then? Hm? Had enough of me playing with your heart and pushing you around? I'll let you know... you haven't really stopped me before, big guy. What makes you think you won't let me do it again? What do you think you're going to do about it now?" She teased back, provoking him to take his chance to be more assertive with her as per his retort in offer. Excited to see where this goes as she can't help but chuckle right after him.

[lavish raven]

And in an instant, that chain is taught again, only... from the other side. He wants to give her the time, the space she requested, but she kept either intentionally or accidentally pushing all of the buttons that make him want to ignore that request.

A flustered, panicked look crosses his face as she pulls on the collar, one he is not able to cover up as he instinctively gives in to being tugged along, before he firmly grabs her wrist, not enough to squeeze, but hold it. After a moment of composing himself, he gently pulls her hand away from the tunic. "D-do not... do that again... until Roe's mind is made up." His voice is embarrassed, but serious, but it becomes more mischievous he continues, "If Akx wanted Roe to stop... Akx thinks it would be quite easy." He attempts to playfully push her over.

[outer moth]

For a moment, Roe is taken out of the bit as she felt something firmly make contact on her wrist. Driving up her spine like it was an innate fear almost. Seeing him resist and show unease was enough for her to be filled with remorse immediately and end her playful antics as a result.

"Sorry, sorry... I'm still trying to figure this out. I should take a step back..." She replied back in apology as she weakly chuckled out, before it falls as guilt upon her. Feeling that she might've crossed a boundary that she set herself. Testing him through more than what he allowed.

"I... Wait, wha-" She gets cut off, finding herself immediately back flat against the bedding and blankets as a small "oof" escapes her. She stares back at Akx with mild annoyance, before her expression returns to something more playful again.
"No fair... That's no way you're supposed to treat a bed mate and a lady, Akx... You're lucky you get to be born with your large, dumb, and overbearing muscles to boss people around with.... Is this where you really wanted me, you brute?" She pouted back, before it turns into a more inviting smile as she chuckles out what air she has left. Fully aware that she might've deserved that at some level.

[lavish raven]

"Is okay... just... that was... is... errrm-" His face grows warm and he looks away flustered. "Just.... not that again... not now anyway..."

His gaze returns to her laying there for a moment, trying to put up a serious facade, but his dopey smile simply will not leave his face. "Oh is it Lady Roe now? Akx did not realize there was a noble here." He bows his head jokingly. "But yes, now Akx has Roe right where Akx wants." He feigns an evil laugh as he flops down beside her, and pulls her closer to him. "Right... here..."

[outer moth]

"Heh, I wish I was that important and privileged... then I wouldn't have to scrape for gold out in the mountains and get my hands always dirty..." She chided out, allowing herself to be dragged closer to him and be collected into his possession. "But if I can get the same kind of adoration and treatment as one here, as lowly-born as I am in your grasp, then I am more than happy to resign that fate to the wayside..." She purred out, hooking her arms around and behind him until her hands find their way to the back of his head. Guiding him closer to her neck and chest to hold dearly as to what was promised earlier.

"You know... I like how funny you can be sometimes... and how you're not afraid to mess around a little or be too clever for your own good with me... I think this sort of bluster suits you better than your own loathing... You seem happier like this at least..." She whispered out sweetly to his ears as her hands slowly go around to comb through his massive mane.

[lavish raven]

"Bah... Nobles usually think they are too good for most... well anything. Akx much prefers worked hands... can tell so much more by them..." His hand snakes towards her own, slipping his fingers between hers. "Though if Lady Roe is okay with being doted on by such a lowly peasant... maybe be too bad." He laughs softly as he gives in to her pull, gently nuzzling the crook of her neck.

"Akx... will try to keep it up. Should be easier with less things bottled up... He mumbles into her fur. "Though happier... that is because of this..." He croons, following with a deep, content sigh while his arms squeeze her closer.

[outer moth]

"You don't have to force it, of course... If you don't feel like it, then don't... I'm just happy to know that you're feeling better at the end of it all is... all I'm trying to say... and I'm glad you're enjoying this as much as I do... even if... we had a bit of a rocky start getting here... As long as you are, I am too..." She sighed out with a slight chuckle, finding it a little ticklish to have him grumble out his words that close into her. As his hand goes to collect hers, she returns the favor by lightly rubbing her thumb across his. Counting out all the knuckles in a mindless manner.

"I too like them rugged and muddied... someone who has a a lot of grit and character to them... especially if all that work paid off in more ways than one, you know...? I know it might be hard to tell from the gloves getting in the way, but... would you believe me if I said that these hands have seen work and nothing but work?" She grinned. Blissfully smiling as she settled into the warmth of her partner's body and the smell of fireplace and ironed clothes coming from him, enjoying the fact that she's simply free to relax now and not have to deal with that anymore... at least until sunrise comes...

[lavish raven]

"Mmm... cannot think of annnyone who would not like this..." He responds, lifting his head just a bit to look at her face with half lidded eyes. Is okay, what is important is we got here..."

"Roe always seems to be doing-" His words are interrupted by a sudden yawn while he settles his head back into its spot. "-something with them... so makes sense... When the gloves are mentioned, it does finally dawn on him how little actual contact they have had before this and even now how limited it was... "Is it... colder than Akx thinks it is? He gives her hand a gentle squeeze pointing put the source of his question.

[outer moth]

"You... could say that..." She responded back to him, a bit gloomily at that. A sharp pang of guilt hits her heart over having to hide this from him still, especially after all that he'd laid for her in honest... Even if there's already a chance that he already knew from what glimpse he saw, the moment was too good for her to risk ruining with another worry to burden him with. A longing desire that was made evident by her returning squeezes back.

"I just... like having them on. I just feel safe when they're in my mitts you know? And I've been so used to needing them to protect my hands that they've... just become second nature to not take them off. I just... don't want to wear them out more than I need to with all the work I do... And it's not like I have a live furnace for a heart unlike you... where heat just somehow finds its way everywhere. Cold probably doesn't mean the same thing to you anymore. I still need to protect myself in any case... and who knows what might happen if I hold onto you for too long while we sleep... You won't spring up a hot spot on me now, would you?" She playfully whined out as she met his gaze from below, shifting her other hand around to pet him by the brow.

[lavish raven]

He senses the drop in her mood and funnels warmth into one more squeeze. "Is okay... Akx was just curious. Roe should do whatever is needed to feel safe."

His own smile slips a bit. "That is... true too... is kind of sad a little. Akx can still feel the cold, but have not felt cold since. And the heat.... hrrrm..." He thinks back to his restless nights of sleep in the guild hall, not recalling waking up to any scorch marks or burnt spots. "Heat should be fine... Akx has gotten good at keeping it in check..." A flash of him almost reducing his map to ash earlier crosses his mind. "...mostly." He adds quietly, leaning into her touch.

[outer moth]

"Okay... I trust you..." She whispered back, slowly rocking his hand back and forth once she felt the redouble on his grasp. It's... not like she's going to get reduced to ash come tomorrow morning. Even for her, that's a ridiculous outcome to expect. But given how even her blighted powers come loose out of control and leave her in a petal-filled mess in the morning, she can never be too sure...

But that's a thought she could never have the heart to pin on him... And since she's already here, she might as well take the risk... and enjoy it while she still lasts...

"Hey.... I know this might be too late to ask for tonight, but... have you found someone to put faith in yet? I haven't heard you made mention of that all day... Felt... like that was something you had enough time to search for between our meetings..." She hummed out, slowing shifting around to hook her arm under his, just to get to where the rest of his back is to rub down gently.

[lavish raven]

His tired tail thumps a bit quicker against the layers of blanket. "Akx would never hurt Roe... not on purpose... not by choice."

"Hrrrm... is not... Akx does not really think about it..., but Klang, little dragon, suggested Ilmater which... feels right, but Akx does not really understand worship or prayer...." He sighs out, too tired to muster up frustration he has felt in trying to figure out how religion works.

[outer moth]

For a moment, there is surprise and recognition that comes out of Roe's expression, having to hear that name come out from a searching soul after so long. Soon after, all the muddied and harsh memories tied to him and his order begin to resurface in her mind. All bittersweet imaginings of a life that once was. All of which then gets discarded out with a sigh, reaffirming that his inquiry is far too detached from her own experience to influence him by. This... was something that he had to figure out on his own, not for her to bring down with whatever scathing remarks she had reserved.

"I suppose it can be quite foreign for someone who had no need for it before... What part of it do you not understand? Do they not have things worth deifying and revering back at Zetrician to compare with, or were they different to how you were exposed to things here through and through? And... what has he taught you about so far through your search and readings? Did anything align with you or strike you wrong?" She calms him down through gentle brushes behind the ears. Choosing to hear his side of the problem before feeding him with more than he can take down at once.

[lavish raven]

"In general... all of it? Prayer... asking a god to help, do, provide, even if there is no reason? Worship, offerings... give thanks even if there is nothing to do it for?" His brow furrows as he boils his understanding to what most things in his life have been, transactions for blood, time, coin, something to be given for something in exchange. "Zetrican has temples, followers.... Akx never went, never had a need. Never something... Akx was this scared of." His voice gives away that this is not something he wants wholly, but it is something driven by desperation. "No one has taught Akx anything... Akx has just read about his titles and... portfolio and felt like Akx could follow that... Akx already tries to do that anyway. Be hurt so others do not have to..."

[outer moth]

"People often turn themselves to a higher power in times of need. Someone who stands above it all and can do what no one else can. They need something to rely on and find insurance in. A god often finds themselves in that place where many choose to look... Some often seek a higher sense of purpose, believing that there is something larger than them that they can work towards. Often those people find themselves aligning with the duty and order of such gods, much like many have done in your place before... Other times, they do so because they have something to gain. Worship, in a way... is like a transaction. Given enough time, devotion, and conviction, you may garner yourself the protection and favor of a deity. It's... how they maintain that power in the first place. Through that cycle of worship. The more followers a deity or being obtains, the more that they are believed in... the more that they live up to that divine status and grow in power. All of which they are free to grant downwards in any way they wish... often times through their more faithful and deserving followers, through which they are able to enact on their own duties and prayers... Prayers serve many purposes and meanings, but often times invoking a god's name through one is one way to do it. Some are content with offerings as thanks for making things right with the world, other times people prefer to do more direct deeds in their name. Some people work through countless days and strive for a fraction of that power for whatever be their reasons and end up with nothing by the end, but... often times that favor gets placed onto other people, seemingly at random at times... either because they are worthy in their eyes, are destined for a great task, or other profound reasons they may keep to themselves...

It's... really a lot..." She sighed out, finding it a tough topic to sift through all its nuances at once, all without displaying any of her biases or her lack of knowledge beyond assumptions and what she has read or experienced through. In this case, she might've felt that she'd given a rant instead of a proper explanation to his queries, so in her mind, a change of pace is in order.

"People... choose to follow deities for all kinds of reasons, is all I'm trying to say. There are many ways people approach faith in that regard. It all really depends on the circumstances around them and what they seek in their lives. Some people are content with serving a high power in their lives because it makes them feel fulfilled and have meaning. Some are seeking answers in the world and wish to find them through their faith in something. Some people do it because of the power that's tied into it. Some... just do it out of blissful ignorance, because that's what they were taught and raised to do and without further question. That it is right and simply take it for granted... Others... do it out of fear of ending up in terrible places, both in the current life and after it, and want to avoid it in any way that they can. Seeking some sort of salvation from something... much like what I'm guessing you're trying to do with what fiendish ties that seemed to have resurfaced and are taking a hold of you... It's... what all of this is for to begin with, right?" She whispered out slowly, trying comfort him through the disconcerting reminder through more gentle rubs behind the ears.

[outer moth]

"It might not be of any concern for you for all I know, but... I think it's worth analyzing what your search for faith and favor truly means for you. If it's just for your own ensured safety, or if it's something that you want to pursue with more depth. I think either path is relatively okay. It doesn't take much work to scurry yourself through someone's divine domain in the end, especially if it's from the Man on the Rack out of all people... I just think that... the relationship you have with something that you believe in is more important than what you can gain, at times. At least for me... It's not something that I would take lightly, or for granted... mostly... What is it that you want out of this endeavor, and what are you willing to give and receive? It's... not something you have to answer now, but... I think it's something worth looking into... After all... faith is not just blind following, but instead a form of conviction... a tempered trial... a question of your own belief and resolve..." She frowned, feeling much undeserved to be talking about this for him right now. Worried that she might've instilled the wrong ideas again. A quick look downwards and a hand on his cheek come after as she tries to check on his worried state and mind.

"Did... that help in any way? Or at least make any sense? I know... it's a path not meant for everyone, and it's not something you're forced to do, but... I hope that gives you some clarity of choice in the matter..." She spoke out unconfidently, seeking some sort of approval or correction from him. "I just... don't want you to go into this half-heartedly, you know?"

[lavish raven]

"Hrrrmmm..." His expression shifts between comprehension and aloofness throughout her explanation. His grasp on it why people commit to worship, but it does not really do much for his want to partake himself. In the end, she called out the reason he would ever have even began to consider it: avoiding a worse fate. "Y-yes, but when said like that... makes Akx feel... not good about it." He says somewhat glumly.

"Does not feel... right to go begging to be let in somewhere else, begging to be seen... guess all Akx can do about that feeling is put more in without knowing whether or not it will mean anything..." His words seem distant as she carries on, weighing the information presented against his own initial thoughts.

"Yes, Akx thinks so... understand a bit better. Akx will... make sure to do it all the way if Akx is going to do it." He gives a heavy sigh as mentally the path towards 'salvation' as it was so properly put becomes a much longer winding road. "Akx should not ask probably so do not feel like have to answer... but does Roe keep a deity? Or did?"

[outer moth]

"I agree with you..." She whispered back to him in a dry tone "It doesn't feel right having to beg for one's freedom... or having be placed in that misfortune in the first place without so much as a say... I don't feel all too good about the whims of the world being controlled by those so far above... so far attached from it... Much rather prefer if we could take charge of it ourselves, but... what are you going to do..." She shrugged out in place, looking quite distant herself as she stared blankly in thought. Only when a question is brought upon her once more does she turn to his attentions. For a moment, she seemed hesitant to answer, before her response gets her stirring around in place. Reaching for her wrist to take out something from under her glove.

"I did, once. The very same one that was suggested for you to look into. In fact... I used to be one of those very people I so described. Used to be wrapped up into the dealings with one such church in his name as well... That was a past that has long since fled me, but a part of my past nonetheless. It doesn't hold much meaning to me now... but I guess some things from it have left me changed in the way I am now... for better or for worse, can't really say..." She hopelessly smiled out, placing something within his palm once her hand reunites with his. Should he take a look for himself at what was given, he would find a braided prayer bracelet made from red rope and silver spiked beads and charms. Well worn, faded, and well loved, it appears to have gone through a couple of fixes over the years being in her possession. The whole thing looks considerably tiny in his hands, but that may be given with who was wearing it prior.

[lavish raven]

"Hrrrm, is a good question... one for maybe tomorrow..." His maw stretching wide once more, but he himself was not quite ready to give in to the exhaustion, despite her constant touching lulling him there. "Is not like we can be telling gods how to run things..."

When their hands connect once more, he attempts to squeeze here's again, only to feel one the spikes press against his hand. Carefully he pulls away to peek at the small object, slowly turning it over in his hands. The beads an adornment to the most recognizable icon of Ilmater, the red cords. He cannot help but to weakly chuckle a bit before glancing up at her. "Is very funny... the coincidence." The reverance for the item is not lost on him either. It may be well worn and the red faded, but the silver still shines, maybe something easier for someone with her alchemical knowledge, but still impressive if he is guessing the age of the item correctly. A few questions come to mind, but the loudest one is, "Should... Akx ask why Roe left? Or is that too much? Seems... personal."

[outer moth]

"Perhaps it's our shared suffering that pulls us together so... maybe I am still haunted by people who are in need of my past duties... I much prefer the former if that were the case, but it is a funny coincidence, yeah... a sick one at that..." She chuckled alongside and into him, which lasted as long as you'd expect with such a question following up on her right after. "It's... complicated... Let's just say I had my fair share of disagreements. I had a falling out with the order that I was a part of... and decided to part ways. I just... I was not happy with the ways things were being run there back then. There were a lot of things that I was not happy with in general... I perhaps grew tired? Maybe... I just thought at the time there was more for me to do that the abbey could not provide me the right means to attain... It's just... whatever really... Bittersweet, but mostly whatever..." She frowned, fighting to hold back some of the embarrassment held within the truth of what happened to her during those times.

[lavish raven]

"Is okay... sometimes things happen... lose good things... find others, like this." He gently nuzzles into her neck. "Sometimes life makes things, plances, people to change or... sometimes a person needs change too and that is okay." He takes one more look at the bracelet, the care that was put into preserving it, and the fact that there is a piece or a twin missing, and offers it back to her. "Thank Roe for sharing. Helped quite a bit."

[outer moth]

"Yeah, that's what it's all for... for good things like this... Don't... mention it... I'm just glad that you listened, and that my words managed to help someone for once..." She calmly voiced out, slowly trying to get her bracelet back inside the arm of her glove, all while snugly held in place by his lumbering arms. As she settled herself in, a melancholic thought begins to re-emerge, following after what she had just discussed outside.

"Do you think if I changed... would you still like me the same? As Roe?" She whispered out, idly twirling around some loose end of his mane as she went to voice her worries. The scent of petals, bark, and snow coming forth once more as he dug closer to her neck and fur.

[lavish raven]

"Roe's words have helped Akx quite a few times just today... should give a little more credit than just once." He nudges her neck playfully with his snout, glad to hold her as she settles in place.

"Hrrrm... if is still Roe but different... then without a doubt. It gets... harder to guarantee if is not Roe anymore... Is not a no, but a having to meet that person, but Akx would certainly try." He closes his eyes a moment, letting that smell wash over his senses. "Mrrrmm... Akx would like to just say yes though..."

[outer moth]

"Have they now?" She plays it up to being contrary out of humor, once again getting the jitters and giggles as he trails across her neck. Seeing him lavish her so unabashedly right after, she pauses out of surprise, before allowing him more room for affection as she settles back into his grasp. Right with another question to follow.

"Then tell me... what is it that you see in me? Who is Roe in your eyes? Tell me... so that I will never forget..." She whispered out longingly, pleading for some more form of affirmation or acknowledgement back from him.

[lavish raven]

"Yes, you silly bunny. Lots of nice things helped Akx feel better, helped Akx understand some things." He allows himself to relax a bit more, maybe a bit too much so as he gently leaves a smattering of soft kisses along her neck.

"Mm...," He pulls himself away from her neck and moves his head to stare into her eyes a moment before settling it back atop her's near her ears. "First thing Akx thinks of... is Roe is kind. Then how smart Roe is." A large paw finds its way to her face once again, the thumb rubbing her cheek a moment, "Is pretty and before Roe says anything about them, yes even with the scars. Maybe not physically, but Roe is strong, and verrry determined." A swooning sigh exits his lungs, spreading the smell of a fresh lit campfire while he arms squeeze her just a little, while he describes every little trait of herself she has shown him in a positive manner. "In short... Roe is wonderful..." He punctuates this with another kiss on the top of her head.

[outer moth]

In that moment, her heart wanted to believe that all of those things were true. She wanted to do those qualities right, to do right by him. She hadn't opened herself to this much tenderness and praise for so long, and it shows. Completely melting into his hand as his caress springs another well of tears from her eyes. All the tiny traces of his lips on her neck, for how bold of a move that was, left her feeling treasured and sated with affection. The last kiss placed on her from above tops it all off, giving her the slightest hint of hope that perhaps... this was all genuine.

"Such a charmer you are, you handsome mutt... making it so hard for me not to just take you right now..." She quietly exclaimed, shifting her hand around to rest on his cheek once more. A tired, but content expression now befalling her face. "Thank you for making me realize that... I truly do appreciate that a lot... I'll... try and work on the physical part a little, but rest assured... as long as you are in my care... as long as you are around... I won't forget... I promise... Thank you for giving me reason and reminder for who I'm meant to be again..." She whispered into his neck as she slowly craned over to land a kiss on his other cheek, right under where his jaw was. All while hooking her leg around him for a more wholly-encompassing hug in return, trying her best not squash over his present injuries underneath.

"You know... I think Akx is also wonderful too. I think it's worth saying in return... do you want to hear why I think so, hm?" She offered, peacefully dreaming right in the space below him, where all the fur seemed to amass the most.

[lavish raven]

"Roe should be more careful saying that... will not take much convincing for Akx to give in." He gives a burst of quiet laughter before his face settles into a similar look, quiet contentedness. "Roe asked, so Akx told. Is all true... Akx did not mention the physical thing because it needs to change... and Roe does not need to try and stay those things if something else feels better..." With the kiss on his cheek, his tail thumps loudly once again, and as she swings her leg over him, he pulls her as close as can be, doing his best to fully envelop her with his arms and torso. "Roe does not need to worry about forgetting. Akx will be here to remind."

He gulps a bit nervously, worried that it might be his turn next, but after his swallow of air, he loosens his hold and nods slowly. "Roe probably does not have that much to say..., but sure. Let Akx have it."

[outer moth]

"You'd be surprised..." She chuckled out playfully before settling down to a more sincere smile, preparing herself to recount all the good things she's seen from him.

"The first thing I am reminded of when I look at you... is how strong you are. That you're this mighty and powerful person with no compare. You don't lord over anyone with that strength, rather... you choose to use it for only good things. Protecting people, even at your own expense... you're courageous for that... You're selfless and loyal to a fault. Always willing to step down and help those in need, be a guiding hand, or a shoulder to cry on... You're someone a friend could depend on... You're caring, gentle, and very sweet. Surprisingly so. All the times you've made me feel comforted and loved are all too much to count... and I like how soft you can be with others too. Seeing you smile and blush back in return will never not make my day... I like that you are patient, understanding, and have a heart large enough to forgive. You're friendly, amenable, humorous, and fun to be around... and just a joy to be with too... There is brilliance within you that needs to be recognized. There is depth to you that words just fail to ascribe..." She acclaimed, gently brushing him down with loving pets with each virtue and point being made. Making it seem like he is rewarded with each one listed down.

[outer moth]

_ _
"And... most importantly of all... You're kind. Kinder than most people expect of you... Too kind for your own good... You've been through so much hurt, so much hate and suffering... and yet... you still chose kindness... and I just find that admirable. That's... what I love most about you. That's why I think you're worth saving... why I think you deserve more than what you say to yourself.... because I see no fault with you but the kindhearted soul that you are burdened to carry." She concluded whole heartedly, pressing his hand against the pillow he rested on so that hers fall right into place and lock with his once more. Blissfully purring right into his neck to let him know that all of this is what she feels so. That this adoration should be returned back tenfold for being given in the first place.

"I also think you're one smoking hot, thick mountain slab of a man, but... I think that's besides the point..." She playfully tapped along his waist before breaking into a funny sounding chuckle over her own absurdity in admitting to that.

[lavish raven]

*It is now his turn to be teary-eyed as he finally silences the voice in the back of his mind telling him that these things are not true. There is no reason for him to believe she is lying or simply showering him more undeserved kindness. He sits there in near silence, taking pet after pet and praise after praise, giving little 'mrm's after each.

The sound that he has to actually open his mouth for is a burst of loud cackles, followed by a sniffle in response to her final comment.* "Hahah! Roe! He reigns himself back in a moment, wiping the tears from his eyes as he pushes his hand against hers. "Well if Akx is a mountain... Roe can be the peak. " And he playfully attempts to pull her atop him, though if she were to shoe any genuine resistance he would cease.

[outer moth]

A small gasp escapes the harengon as she is suddenly hurled upwards, across, and over his body. Rather effortlessly so as she might add. It takes her a moment to realize where she ended up after being lightly rattled, only to find herself in a blushing conclusion as her touch fell right over his warm heart. Awkwardly, she tries to set herself upright and off him, which naturally leads to her hands finding themselves sinking into his chest and shoulders again. Quickly retracting them away, she leans back into a sit and looks down at Akx in return. Staring intensely at him with startled confusion and burning desire. All before a smile breaks through as she starts to laugh at her rather risky and awkward position.

"I'm the peak, huh? Can't say I've been called that before... though I won't object to being called a pretty view from someone like you in return. 'Specially if I get to see you enjoy it from down there below. A view worth its own really... haha... In all seriousness, please warn me next time you're going to do stuff like that. I nearly had my heart sink... Are you... even alright having me like this? I know I probably weigh like bread loaves compared to you, but... aren't you still hurting underneath those bindings below you? I don't want to accidentally press down on something... or seriously make you feel discomforted..." She nervously voiced her concerns out, slowly pushing the rest of herself off him and slowly rocking back and forth right above as she awaited a response.

[lavish raven]

He winces little as she pushes herself upright to find some sort of balance atop him, but not really out of pain, just bracing. For a second, he looks up at her with a deep yearning smirk, very much enjoying his view, before he shakes that thought and look away with a laugh. "Sorry, sorry Akx was just playing... Roe should not hurt Akx really, unless Roe goes poking and proding them. Most are small, shallow, scabbed.. just the one deeper one hurts and not much after some... more qualified care, but if Roe wants to get down, is okay. Akx did not... really think about... how Roe would stay up there..." Watching her indecisive sway for a moment, he wonders just how much longer either of them were going to be able to hold themselves back.

[outer moth]

"I think it doesn't need too much imagination, don't it?" She smirked. "But, uh... here... let me fix it up for the both of us..." She spoke out nervously, stopping her rocking as she got off and shifted over to his right. Sliding herself down until her head is resting on that side of his chest, all while her right hand reaches across and holds onto the other side, right under where his arm would be. Her leg goes about hooking itself over his, all to just get in the middle as the rest of her moves up and closer. Here, she is still in some ways right over him, but now her weight is mostly off to the side and away that it shouldn't bother anything that didn't needed to be.

"There... much prefer this than just lying flat... at least for now... Let me know if you need me to get off or if something's starting to hurt... but I think I'm rather content to just staying like this for the rest of the night if it matters to you..." She whispered out, gently guiding his other arm over to completely hook around her in a hold, asking him to just cradle her like this.

[lavish raven]

His first instinct as she begins to shift around is for an arm to go up and steady her there, wanting so badly for her to stay there, but as he realizes what she is doing he stops moving, gently squeezing her into him once she is settled. "Mmm... no, no... Akx thinks this is perfect for where we are..." He says as he gives in to her moving him about and nestles her between his arms.

A swell of air escapes as he releases another yawn. "Any other questions, teasing, or talking to be done...? Still more work to-do tomorrow... and a hunt." His voice becomes this excited whisper. "Should be fun if we can find something to track... Elk, deer... moose maybe? Might be too high..."

[outer moth]

"No... I think this is fine... Unless you want more words or moves from me, I'll just be content to staying silently over here until I fall asleep..." She blissfully whispered out, feeling some sort of carnal excitement as the mere act yawning out causes her whole body to sink down with him, melting at the cavernous rumbling she can hear deep within him.

"Yeah... I don't think I've hunted with someone in quite a while... so forgive me if I'm not up to your level yet, diiiiiino wrangler... haha... I think tomorrow will still be fun, even if we don't manage to find something. Plenty of ways to kill time still... and you know what's also good about tomorrow?" She smiled daintily, shifting forward just to face him once more from below.

[lavish raven]

"Akx definitely wants more..., but Roe has asked that Akx wait and Akx will wait until Roe says it is okay..., but this is verrry much enough for now." *He murmurs, both as an admission and understanding. *

"Hahah! Little hunting rabbit hrrrm? No worries, if Roe is not, then Akx will get Roe ready to take down Tyrants and Stompers in no time! He cackles a bit loud for the winding down to rest that was just occurring as he tilts his head with a curious smile. "Care to tell Akx what is going to be so good tomorrow?" He pulls his gaze to meet hers.

[outer moth]

"Tomorrow... marks the first day of what's left of your life as a new man... so don't forget to live it well." She simply stated back, reaching over to caress his cheek one last time before it slides back down onto his chest. A transcription of an old saying from her faith. A simple request to remind himself of the second chance now in his hands, and to promise with her to make the most of his time not only of his own... but with what was being shared with her as well. For however long it may last...

"So eager are we now, hm?" She tiredly chuckled out, following a yawn that she stirs up from. "If you continue to play your cards right like this, I might just be pressed to make a choice sooner... but... I think I'll just have to limit myself to this for now... I think we're perfect like this anyways. More than enough than what I could've ever bargained for... Thanks again for allowing me to indulge with you tonight... thank you for everything really, Akx... I'm glad to have you as a friend, and I want nothing but to wish the best for you in return... Don't... ever think otherwise..." She admits wholeheartedly, blissfully sinking into his encompassing warmth and softness once more, drifting further away from consciousness until she's soon fast asleep. Content and happy, as all things should be...

"Goodnight Akx..."

[lavish raven]

One of the few things read about the following of Ilmater, past the basics, was some variance of this phrase used to welcome new members of the faith, which earns a short lived chuckle from him. "Akx will make sure it is lived good and hopefully Roe will be there for as much of it as possible." His voice beginning to fall off into slumber as well.

"Akx has been... maybe since this afternoon, maybe since the garden..., but do not let Akx's wanting push you along... wait for it to feel right for Roe, please..." He begs softly, wanting her to be sure before either of them can end up hurting the other in hasty action. "Roe is verrry welcome and thank Roe for... all of this night..."

"Goodnight... Roe." He nuzzles the top of her head, slowing down over time as sleep claims him, his last words beforehand being, " please, blue..." As the flames blossom into that same deep sapphire blue, Akx fully allows himself to fall into rest, never more comfortable than now, clutching the harengon close as can be throughout the night.