rattle the cage

ASHE I'm not a girl.    The storm never stopped. It howled in her ears, buffeted her dreams, flashed behind closed eyes -- it. never. stopped. She ignored it in favor of what she got back, pretending for all the world like there wasn't a constant roar in the background, howling at her what she had lost. She ignored it now, when she was left with only herself. Solitude was not the ally it had once been. So, it was in the bustling settlement she chose at the break of dawn. Listening to all the life outside as she trained was more comforting than she'd anticipated.    Dangling from an archway inside what was left of a building, Ashe let out a hiss of hair through clenched teeth as she repeatedly hauled herself up, until her chin touched the top of the stone arch. Sweat soaked her black shirt and gleamed on her pale skin. She'd been going since the sun rose, and her arms trembled as she lifted herself again.    Though she was no longer an assassin by definition, she sure as all hells was still training like she was -- even if every strained muscle wailed for her to stop. She had gotten too out of shape these last months, surviving on scrub roots and a small critter here and there if she was lucky. She couldn't afford to go lax on her training now.    So close to the street and situated not far from the Guildhall, she didn't think much of it when she heard something toward the front of the half-gone ruins. She had made it known where she'd be today to anyone in ear shot - she had no intention of being lost to anyone again. It wasn't until the unfamiliar scent hit her that she paused her workout, dropping down to land on nimble feet. Internal hackles raised, and she rolled the stiffness from her neck and shoulders as she scanned the crumbled walls and doorways.    Ashe called out to whoever wandered in as she wiped sweaty palms on her dark pants. "Can I help you?" I'm a storm with skin.

KIADA

your battleworn tongue doesn't say the truth anymore

that you are ruined

It was recent news to Kiada that Amalia and a few others had braved the storms once more and found a woman alone, lost among them. But it was perhaps more exciting and interesting news that the woman had been the particular one that helped to bring Ronin back, a man she had met a few times and enjoyed listening to the things he had to say, the ideas he had in mind. If he was a good friend of hers, then perhaps Kiada could learn a thing or two about making friends (gods knew she needed them aside from being around Amalia, Deimos, and Jigano all the time). And so she and Auni have set out, after snagging a particularly fancy dagger Deimos made and left for her among many others, to seek out the woman brought back from the storms.

At first, she doesn’t know where to go, but upon asking around — and using Auni as a slight bribe in some cases — she’s learned the location of the ex-Assassin, and strides out to find her with a friendly gift in hand and a Luxere that never had any problems making friends even if his companion did. Winding through the streets of the Settlement, the Harpy stops by the entrance to where someone had told her she could find Ashe, and she turns to step in. Her goal isn’t to surprise Ashe, and she makes her steps slightly heavier and more known alongside Auni’s clattering hooves.

A voice rings out to her, asking if she could help her, and Kiada aims to get into sight before she fully responds. “Ashe, right?” She asks, her tone light and her icy gaze surprisingly soft as she looks toward the direction she thinks the other woman is. “I’m Kiada and this is Auni. We live with Amalia who was among the ones that found you and I thought I might at least introduce myself.” Auni’s antlers pulse with a small amount of a comforting golden glow as Kiada awkwardly coughs laughs, rusty with introductions to those she doesn’t know, especially alone without anyone else to relieve the awkwardness. She silently thanks the gods that nobody else is around (Deimos in particular) to make fun of how awkward the Harpy is.

At least she makes up for it in other ways, the scars along her arms and body are signs of that — especially the giant X that’s etched into Kiada’s neck. Still, the woman waits to see how Ashe reacts to her before offering her gift, just to be safe. She’s never met an assassin before, but she keeps her body language light and easy going just in case.

and you wonder why he lets you

the butcher

touch him,

the sun

Kiada has a large X scar on the right side of her neck.
No permission needed for power play!
Feel free to use magic/force on Kiada, without killing her <3

ASHE I'm not a girl.    A young woman appeared, her voice following soon after. 'Ashe, right? Her eyes narrowed. "Right...."    Before she could demand just who was asking, she caught sight of glowing antlers, a small reindeer -- a luxere. She was fixated on the animal for a moment, memory of quiet guitar strings swept in. Cold air and warm hands.    "Amalia?" Ashe blinkd up at Kiadia, her eyes abruptly drawn away from Auni. "Has she healed alright?" She recalled the scent if singed fur and flesh, but she'd been too out of her wits to ask about the lightning strike at the time.    She glanced away to approach her cloak, vivid blue and crumpled on the ground, her ears straining to listen for movement. She came all this way to introduce herself to the person her friend got hurt finding? Had someone sent her? She dreaded the prickles of paranoia at the edge of her thoughts. She knew what it meant to live with eyes on her back, and she wasn't looking forward to that feeling again. If she was lucky, she would remain blissfully unnoticed by the self-appointed Queen. She could only pray that Zariah did not recall the messenger of Northaven that always ended up in the middle of every calamity.    "Are you from here?" Ashe turned back to Kiada as she fastened on her cloak, a blsck, cat-sized spider creeping very carefully over her shoulder. "A Natural?" She could certainly use a read on the Outlander versus Natural ordeal -- when she had left, tensions had been painfully high. I'm a storm with skin.

KIADA

your battleworn tongue doesn't say the truth anymore

that you are ruined

As predicted, the introduction goes poorly in Kiada’s favor – never having been one that was good at those. Typically her name just roamed around, and when they saw her it clicked and was easy. Thank the gods for Auni as he distracts her briefly and Kiada releases an awkward breath. But at least the mention of Amalia, it captures Ashe’s attention. A small smile breaks out against Kiada’s pale face as she nods. “She’s getting there, yeah.” She offers easily. “Much better though.” She adds quickly, as though the first sentence she’d said were terribly dramatic.

But then Ashe is moving to grab her cloak and Kiada keeps herself planted, watching until she turns back to her and asks if she’s a natural – a question that causes her to raise her brow slightly out of surprise. Nobody has thought she was a natural before, but she supposes the furs and leathers she wears now and everything she’s dealt with in Caido so far would lead her to being close to that. She shakes her head easily, that same smile on her lips. “No, I’m not. Came from a couple different places before landing here last Deepfrost.” She rolls her shoulders a bit casually as Auni’s eyes linger on Ashe as the spider appears and his tail starts wagging.

“Kept my distance for a bit until well, the fall of the barrier and all that. I was captured by the Fae for a time...” She rambles before catching herself and offering another casually awkward laugh. “Actually, I came here because I heard that you were an Assassin before, and I wanted to bring you a somewhat personalized gift. And perhaps a bit to get to know you – fighter to fighter?” She doesn’t know a better word for the similarities between what an assassin had to do and what Kiada did for survival, but she believes them to be the same. The scars that adorn the both of them are stories in themselves, and she can see a few on the shorter woman; the Harpy knows deep down that Ashe likely sees her's too. "I don't have much, mostly weapons, so I figured if anyone would appreciate it, it might be you."

She pulls a small knife, obsidian and slightly jagged but still beautiful in its unique shape, and she holds it out handle first toward Ashe with a raised brow – icy gaze drifting between her and the huge spider that Auni’s doing his best to attract its attention. If it moves, Auni likely wants to be its friend.

and you wonder why he lets you

the butcher

touch him,

the sun

Kiada has a large X scar on the right side of her neck.
No permission needed for power play!
Feel free to use magic/force on Kiada, without killing her <3

ASHE I'm not a girl.    Ashe brought her hand up to stroke one of Soot's fuzzy legs, but the spider had all eyes on the Auni. She let out a breath she didn't know she'd been holding when Amalia was confirmed to be on the mend, and she made a mental note to stop and see the woman as soon as she could.    An arched brow quirked up. "Captured by the fae?" She frowned. "I didn't learn much about them before the storms." How much was known about them now? She let the topic go, however, and she tensed instead. Fighter to fighter.    She straightened, muscles coiling tight. So it was known what she was, then. Spectacular, thanks Jigs. Looking closer at Kiada, she could see the network of scars on her. Her hand hovered just by her hip, close to a knife. Scars like that were marks of survival - of strength, and staying stubbornly alive when Death beckoned.    Ashe looked at the beautiful knife held out to her - dark and jagged and gleaming, something she certainly could appreciate - and then darted electric eyes up to meet ones of ice. She couldn't help it at her smile - her own lips pulled upwards, and she stepped forward to accept the blade. She gave it an experimental twirl or two, admiring the way it sliced with precision through the air.    "A girl after my own heart," she quipped, flipping the blade downwards to tuck under her belt. Soot gave a little chitter and moved to clamber down Ashe's arm, but lost his grip at the last second. He tumbled to the floor with a squeak, and then clumsily staggered toward Auni.    Ashe crossed her arms, tilting her head to Kiada. "You know what sort of fighter I am then," she said. "So what about you?" I'm a storm with skin.

KIADA

your battleworn tongue doesn't say the truth anymore

that you are ruined

The Harpy nods briefly, offering a half smile at the mention of the Fae. “Perhaps I can fill you in on their practices sometime.” She says easily with a small shrug – it took some getting used to, but Kiada has reached the point now where she can openly talk about it without withdrawing, without hiding and thinking of all the terrible things that had happened to her over the years. Deep down she hopes the Tulminhar feels better after their ordeal.

For a moment, though, she notices Ashe straighten and she tries to keep her posture soft and smooth, calm and quiet almost as though she’s trying to be perceived as anything but a threat. And it works, as the blade is stretched out toward her – from one scarred hand to another, she retreats her own hand and meets Ashe’s gaze with her own and a soft smile. At Ashe’s words, she chuckles quietly and shrugs, yet before she can say much the spire tumbles to the floor and squeaks, moving toward Auni who darts toward the spider with his head close to the ground like a bloodhound.

Her gaze lingers on the pair as Auni tries to play with Soot, pressing his nose toward the ground in the hopes the spider might clamber up his face and hang out in his antlers like Isuma had. They pulse a gentle golden glow and his nub of a tail wiggles with excitement. Kiada’s eyes lift up toward Ashe as she asks her own question, and Kiada gives a wolfish grin that she imagines Ashe might appreciate before chuckling. “I’d say survival but isn’t that all any of it is?” She asks with a half laugh.

“The world I was born in died when a corrupt god came and killed all of ours, threw the survivors into a portal to save his world, and not long after that we were just thrown from there. Ended up here amidst all of the raucous.” She says with a small shrug. “Lots of war against terrible nightmarish creatures, not against people really.” She offers it easily, because Ashe hasn’t asked the details. Hasn’t asked how Kiada got wrapped up into it. How the Harpy helped the rogue god gain power and destroy her gods and home, throwing her into a strange world of darkness and destruction, and how she’d howled and screamed at her false god for injustice. Until she had to save him, and still be thrown from his grip. And how she ended up here with friends from her first world, revived and different, and her first love only to watch him perish again.

and you wonder why he lets you

the butcher

touch him,

the sun

Kiada has a large X scar on the right side of her neck.
No permission needed for power play!
Feel free to use magic/force on Kiada, without killing her <3

ASHE I'm not a girl.    Something new passed between them with the smile that found Kiada's face, and Ashe raised her brows. "Some of us have to fight harder for it than others," Ashe said on survival, nodding in agreement. Everything she had become, she became to survive.    As Ashe listened to the other woman explain, Soot scuttled forward to the lowered head of the luxere. The wine spider paused at his nose, reaching a leg tentatively forward to tap against Auni's nose. He hiccuped, and then clambered forward to make his way into the glowing antlers. To spin a web, perhaps?    Ashe shook her head and approached her satchel - the same messenger bag she'd had when she fell through - and slung it over her shoulder. "The gods where I'm from were long dead, or never existed in the first place. We didn't have monsters or ghouls. Northaven had some strange beasts, but Northwind?" Ashe returned to stand before Kiada, her arm resting over her bag. "I've never known a greater evil than human kind."    She pulled her lower lip between her teeth, squinting up at the sun through the broken roof before looking back down Kiada. She... was not what she seemed to be. Her smiles were warm, but there was a sharpness beneath that piqued her interest. "What is it you normally do?" she asked abruptly. "I mean - what is it you're normally doing now, when you're not gifting knives to assassins?" I'm a storm with skin.

KIADA

your battleworn tongue doesn't say the truth anymore

that you are ruined

Kiada nods in response to Ashe’s addition to her statement. It was true, every bit of it. All of it was about survival, and some (as the Harpy begins to believe) like Ashe and her worked their asses off to get where they were. She couldn’t argue with it, nor did she want to. Facts were facts, after all. And for a moment while she explains, her eyes drift toward the spider as he carefully reaches out to tap Auni’s nose. The Luxere sniffs the fuzzy leg of the spider as his pale gaze lingers, hoping (begging) the spider to climb up.

His tail begins to wag furiously as the spider climbs on, and Auni’s ears flicker to make room for Soot to do whatever spidery things he wanted to do – a web, a nest, simply hang out like an ornament – the Luxere didn’t mind. He was just happy to have found another friend. But he is careful as he lifts his head again toward the two that sit before them as they talk, careful to make sure Soot doesn’t lose his grip.

The girl listens to the assassin as she speaks of gods from her own home, and Kiada listens with interest. She hasn’t met many others that have spoken of their homes to her before, and she takes the information with interest and intrigue. Northaven and Northwind. Both are names she’s heard before, but only in reference to the new Queen. Kiada nods in agreement, however, finding it agreeable that human kind wasn’t all it was chalked up to being.

But Ashe asks her a question she’s never particularly thought about before, and she laughs awkwardly. “I’m typically either at the Bakery or out hunting.” She offers it easily, turning toward the entrance as a way to stand a bit more casually. “Or scouting, really. I get bored, shift this skin for wings and fly over the fields a lot.” Suddenly, the Harpy realizes how absolutely boring it sounds, and she stuffs her hands into her pockets and inhales sharply. “Today, however, I was fancying a drink at the Rathskeller but it’s never much fun to drink alone. You’re welcome to come if you want?” She tilts her head toward Ashe with another friendly smile before glancing at Auni and Soot.

Either way, Kiada was sure they’d have to do something together, judging by how Auni was enamored with the spider.

and you wonder why he lets you

the butcher

touch him,

the sun

Kiada has a large X scar on the right side of her neck.
No permission needed for power play!
Feel free to use magic/force on Kiada, without killing her <3

ASHE I'm not a girl.    Ashe looked to Auni as he lifted his head, Soot balancing precariously with his legs stretched between glowing antlers. He wobbled, but remained steady with the luxere's gentle movements. The wolf-girl smirked at the spider as he grappled to hang onto one antler instead of two, a very uneven web building and giving him purchase.    Kiada mentioned flying, and she flicked her eyes back to the woman. She was Attuned, then. What sort of wings did she possess? She resisted asking, if only because she was quite surprised by the offer that Kiada laid at her feet.    Ashe blinked, tilting her head and crossing her arms, smiling curiously. "You're asking me to come and have a drink with you?" She'd drank plenty with friends before. She'd drank too much with friends on too many occasions. She could blearily remember Ronin arresting her after starting a drunken brawl in the Northaven streets, even. But to just.. be invited out? That was new.    Soot let out a hiccup, drawing her attention to the two companions. The wine spider had spun quite the lopsided web through Auni's antlers, one of them excessively draped in the silvery wisps. Soot was chittering happily away, and he slipped with another hiccup, dangling from an antler with flailing legs.    Soot would appreciate a visit to the bar, she said, testing out the mental link with Kiada. She headed toward what was left of a door, jerking her head for the woman to follow. I would too. My mom opened the place, and I think I've only spent any time there twice. I'm a storm with skin.

KIADA

your battleworn tongue doesn't say the truth anymore

that you are ruined

For a moment, Kiada thinks the offer falls flat – that perhaps this wasn’t the way to make friends and that she had never been good at it to begin with. Her only friends were forged from fires and flames, from wars that raged  from world to world. And yet, the Harpy feels a bit lackluster in her attempts and idle chatter – of the attempt to make a friend through drink and company alone. And Kiada spends a moment to think of how dull her personality is after all.

But the girl is wrong, as Ashe’s gaze drifts from Auni (who at this point is content letting Soot make as many webs as his heart pleases, while his tail wags and he stares cross eyed at the drunken spider) to her, and smiles. An awkward laugh leaves Kiada’s lips and she nods, turning to face the entrance from which she’d come. “Yep, that’s exactly it.” She says, bluntly, finding it much easier to say that rather than the other options she had running in her head.

Ashe’s attention slips toward Soot as he hiccups and Kiada’s eyes follow – Auni doesn’t mind what so ever, his ears flickering in an attempt to avoid contact with the silky webbing as he offered a quiet croon of encouragement to the chittering companion, trying to keep his head as level as he could while staring at his newfound friend. Kiada smiles to them briefly before Ashe’s voice interrupts her mind much like Jigano liked to do, and she glances to the assassin with a roguish smile. “It’s a pretty nice bar, give your mom my thanks.” She says, her smile growing a bit brighter.

Then, like that, Kiada begins to follow Ashe toward the bar – watching as Auni precariously tries to keep as even as he can to not lose Soot in the process. Thankfully, the Rathskeller isn’t too far. She knows Auni would feel terrible if he dropped the poor creature. Kiada, meanwhile, speeds up to get beside Ashe and glance over to her. “So you’re Attuned as well, then? I have a vulture form so far, but I've heard you can get more eventually.” She says easily, finding more in common with Ashe than she had originally thought.

and you wonder why he lets you

the butcher

touch him,

the sun

Kiada has a large X scar on the right side of her neck.
No permission needed for power play!
Feel free to use magic/force on Kiada, without killing her <3

ASHE I'm not a girl.    Kaida fell in step beside Ashe as they left the crumbling ruin behind. Ashe stretched her arms as she walked, and with a subtle touch of water magic, quickly dried from her sweaty morning. She glanced back once to the two companions, and Soot was using his messy network of webs to try and climb to the very top of one of Auni's antlers, one of his eight legs slipping every time he let hiccupped.    She was smiling when she turned back to Kiada, and her brows rose. "A vulture," she repeated, resting her arm over the top of her satchel. "That's badass." She tucked an errant lock of hair behind her ear -- it was getting too long again -- as they walked, moving easily through the busy street. "I'm a wolf," Ashe said, and she couldn't quite hide the hint of pride that crept into her voice. Her eyes found th vulture, and her mouth quirked up into a half smile. She almost didn't say it, wanting to keep something secret in her arsenal, but for all she knew, Amalia already told her, "I can change into a hummingbird too. But I am a wolf first."    The way to the Rathskeller was straightforward, though the streets were crowded. Soot was soon back between Auni's antlers and hanging on for dear life, as if the luxere wasn't being absurdly careful with the wine spider. Ashe glanced up at the sun, still high in the sky, and she cast a wry smile to Kiada. "You day drink often?" Her smile flared bigger for a heartbeat, and she let out a huff of a laugh. "I mean no judgement, fuck me if I didn't go through a solid two months perpetually drunk last LeafChange."    Her smile fell then, electric eyes on the ground ahead of them. Kalt had helped her get stop drinking so much. He'd shown her how to remember her life, how to handle it without drowning in alcohol. The wolf girl swallowed roughly and looked ahead, towards the temple, where the bar waited below. "Who runs it now anyways? My mom did for a while, then she passed it to Edrei, and now Edy is... acting queen." She barely contained her grimace. Thinking of them as rulers was a hard pill to swallow. I'm a storm with skin.

KIADA

your battleworn tongue doesn't say the truth anymore

that you are ruined

Auni can’t help but keep a strange fitting lopsided grin on his face as Soot moves about his antlers and his face, having absolutely zero qualms with however many webs the creature spins, nor how beautiful they may be. The little Luxere is excited to have another creature that can perch within his antlers, to hang out and have fun. It’s probably his second favorite game, the first being tag — but he realizes that Soot likely would make a poor friend to play tag with and he’d spend most of his time concerned. And so he’s content to let the chittering spider do what he wishes, watching with wide eyes above him as he tries to keep as even as possible.

Perhaps it’s with the help of Auni that Kiada relaxes a bit, looking toward Ashetta and laughing quietly as she remarks about the vulture shift. “I had one as a companion before I came here, they’re devious beasts. I suppose it fits.” She gives Ashe a rogue smile before listening as she mentions she has a wolf form and a hummingbird shift. Her brows lift slightly, impressed at the choices Ashe would get to make. She wishes she had a form with a bit more bite than a sharp beak and wings. She grins back to Ashetta, another small laugh. “Now a Wolf is truly the badass part.” She adds with a small smirk.

The walk was easy, found easier with the company beside her as they walk. And she listens as Ashe asks if she day drinks often. A laugh slips from her and she shakes her head. “No not usually. I usually don’t drink at all, but things change.” She offers easily with a small shrug. Now in response to the next question, Kiada has to think about it for a moment before she regards the assassin again. “I’m not sure who runs it now, but there’s a pretty boy that’s been working there as of late.” She offers with another small laugh. “He’s too flirty for his own good I think.”

Soon enough, they reach the door and she reaches to open it and let Ashe and their companions within before she follows.

and you wonder why he lets you

the butcher

touch him,

the sun

Kiada has a large X scar on the right side of her neck.
No permission needed for power play!
Feel free to use magic/force on Kiada, without killing her <3

ASHE I'm not a girl.    Ashe raised her brows, her head turning to look over at Kiada. "A vulture companion -- that's something." She glanced back shortly to Auni and Soot, where the wine spider was now trying rearrange the mess of webs that dangled from Auni's antlers. It was good to see him play, and the sight of it lightened the heaviness in her chest just a little. She looked back at Kiada. "A vulture Attuned though, now that's really something," she added with a wink.    It was unusual to talk to easily to someone she didn't know, didn't trust. It hadn't been since Northaven she had tried to really know anyone. She followed Kiada as the door was opened, and her smile turned wicked. "Flirty?" Ashe breathed in the familiar scents of wine and good food that drifted from below as the door began to shut behind them. "The fucking annoying kind, or was it welcomed?"    Before the door could entirely shut, Ashe was sure to hold it open for the luxere and the spider. Whoever the barkeep was tonight would have her to deal with should he have a problem with the companions accompanying them.    Ashe headed for a table tucked near the back of the cozy bar, and her stomach gave a fierce growl at the smell of whatever was cooking as they sat. Their drinks were served from someone Ashe didn't recognize, but she was pleased when they were able to order a strong drink. With some encouragement, Ashe was able to coax Soot into dropping down to the floor, descending upon the dish of wine she set down for him. She took a healthy drink of her own, and she drew her tongue over her lips as it burned through her chest.    "So you don't normally drink," Ashe started. "I never did often, barring my issues last year... She made another compulsive sweep of the room, marking every face, every route. Old habits and all that. Her eyes slid back to Kiada. "What made you decide to today? Bad week?" I'm a storm with skin.

KIADA

your battleworn tongue doesn't say the truth anymore

that you are ruined

Ashe’s compliments make her muddled thoughts even out a bit more, and she finds it surprising how well they’ve got on thus far despite the awkward beginning. Perhaps she should make or find more gifts to give to others she wants as a friend. If she could find any to begin with. Her attention returns to Ashe as she questions whether the flirty kind was welcomed or annoying and the Harpy laughs in response. “Welcome, I guess. I was in a shit mood and he called me Ocean Eyes.” She says with a mock attempt at gushing at the description before snickering after.

They reach the Rathskeller and enter, and Kiada follows Ashe to the table of her choosing, watching as the workers flutter in and out from behind the bar to give out drinks and food. Kiada orders a bit of a snack for the table, to try and ensure they don’t get too drunk, as the tender returns with drinks in hand. Auni wasn’t much one for drinking, and he chooses to lay on the floor at Kiada’s feet, his head angled to watch Soot drink the wine, his tail wagging occasionally before he dozes off with soft snores. Kiada, meanwhile, takes a swig of her drink and relishes in the burn as it descends and she considers Ashe’s question.

Her eyes meet the assassin and she gives a small smile in response. “Well I don’t have any friends really, aside from Deimos and Amalia.” She begins, setting her cup on the table. “And Amalia and Deimos are a couple now and I’d rather not third wheel them.” A small bark of a laugh leaves her. “It’s a bit sad sounding now that I’ve said it.” She pauses, eyes drifting to the glass as she finishes her second sip and feels her head begin to grow a bit fuzzy. “That and God’s know I’m shit at making friends. I usually just push everyone away, but Deimos, Amalia, and Jigano stay.” Kiada admits with a quiet huff of a sigh. “Complicated history and all that.” She adds, looking to Ashe with a small smile and quiet laugh.

“What do you normally do? Or did before you left the Hollowed Grounds?”

and you wonder why he lets you

the butcher

touch him,

the sun

Kiada has a large X scar on the right side of her neck.
No permission needed for power play!
Feel free to use magic/force on Kiada, without killing her <3