the sea does not like to be restrained So much has happened here in Amaryllis. There is a part od Revna that almost wishes they had never come. After losing her daughter to the waves, she thought there was nothing else that could bring her as much grief. She was entirely wrong. The war, the loss of the jarl, her husband going missing, her son becoming the new jarl...it is all too much turmoil for her heart to bear. She has come to terms with it. Or some of it, anyways. She has found comfort in her wife and their new children. She has found peace with Reynir's decisions, though she is still worried for him. Time, she hopes, will heal all her wounds, just as her broken paw is now healed. Cool breezes brush against her fur, but she is used to the chill from her homeland. The top of the mountain - the lookout peak - looms ahead of her as she climbs. It doesn't take her paws too much longer to reach the top. Below her, on this clear autumn day, the land stretches out for miles. Maua's gift to those who live here. And she does truly believe in Maua now. More so than in Vellen. Who else could have given them the gift of Eira's pregnancy? She is pensive as she stares out across the world, wondering what it is she wants from this place. She is happy in the Brook, but is that where she is meant to be? @Reynir

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He was nearby in the area when he caught a bit of her scent on the rushing breeze. He had been on the peak, looking for specific herbs to help in cleansing rituals, to keep his den clear of negative spirits and to also collect for rituals in which he planned to contact the dead. He hadn't done so yet, holding off because it was something he... wasn't sure he could do, but talk from others told him of a place hidden in the Labyrinth called Hidden Grotto where many lions went to commune with the dead.

With several dying sprouts clenched in his mouth, he climbed the steep sides of the Lookout, taking care in his steps so he didn't accidentally fall or slide off a slick edge. The air was crisp, and the plants that bloomed in summer and spring were drying up and dying off. Soon, he would not be able to find these herbs any longer; he had to act quickly if he wanted to be productive.

A familiar shape stood at the edge of a peak nearby, and it drew Reynir in closer. Setting his shoots down, and placing a loose rock on top of them, he approached her backside slowly. "Mother?" he questioned, keeping his distance. He wasn't sure if she was still mad at him, or had it blown over? That hadn't talked save for a few necessary words for months, and Reynir wanted to put this Jarl business behind him. "Do you mind if I join you?"

@Revna

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the sea does not like to be restrained His voice cuts through her thoughts like a sharp knife, dredging up memories and pain for a brief moment before the wound closes again. She can almost feel the scars beneath her eye - scars from her fight with @Reynir - begin to ache all over again, before she is finally able to push those memories away with a solid mental nudge. Though she is more at ease with things than she was, her muscles tense, her heart still torn. But things can't go on like this, she knows, so she forces the hurt away, even if the tension never quite leaves her limbs. "If you want," she says with a wave of her paw, gesturing towards the space beside her. It is not his fault that she is afraid, she must remember. He is only doing what he was raised to do, by herself and his father. But that doesn't mean she likes the idea that he could be in danger. The internal struggle has only just let up with the help of her expanding family. "You have met your new sisters and brother?" she questions lightly. At some point she will have to tell him that they are not Sigrun - will never be Sigrun. And neither will she be Sigrun any longer. But...perhaps it is best not to start with such things, lest she upset things further than they already have been.

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She answered him promptly, waving her paw over the empty space beside her, so that they might both look out onto the lands. Reynir quickly accepted the invitation, settling in a seat beside her. He fixed his eyes on the distant terrain below the peak, following a few grazing zebra with his green eyes. "Not yet. I was giving you and Eira your space," he told her, trying to be respectful. He understood that with his father's absence, his mothers' relationship had taken a different kind of turn. They grew closer with the new beginning. He wanted to respect that. "But if you insist I do, I will make it my next priority."

Then he fell silent, and there was a long pause. Things were still... tense between them, but Reynir didn't want to get into another debate about it. "How's Eira? Hopefully I see her when I see the cubs." He was hoping to change things to more light conversations.

@Revna

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the sea does not like to be restrained A part of her wants to reach out, to ask him how being the Sigrun Jarl has been for him, but she doesn't know how exactly to broach the subject that is the source of the tension between them. And there is the other half of her that balks at the thought. Perhaps it is best to let that subject lie silent between them, at least for now. Talking about the little ones is easier. "Visit whenever you like," she offers, truthfully and even hoping that he might. It would be good for them to get to know family, even if they could not know the whole of the family. Revna would shield them from the Sigrun for as long as possible. "Eira is good - shocked, still, but good. We were not expecting such a gift from Maua." As if to punctuate her point she looks up to the sky, as if she can look to the deity by doing so. There is so much gratefulness in her heart, and she has no idea how to express it to the foreign power. Finally she turns her head back to her son, looking directly at him with a firmness in her gaze. "They will not be Sigrun," she warns him, both so that the information will not surprise him later and to make sure he is aware that he needs to keep his religion to himself. She isn't even sure if he knows that she no longer considers herself Sigrun. Though she bears the name, with Eli gone she has seen no reason to consider herself one of them anymore. She may have been baptized, but Vellen had never spoken to her and she would prefer it remained that way. For her and her cubs.

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Reynir nodded, making a mental note to make it a priority to meet his new little siblings. Since they would all live in the same place, and he would undoubtedly look after them, he needed to build some sort of relationship with them. He would, after all, be the one conducting their Drownings when it was time.

"Maua...?" he repeated in less of a question, and more of a confused revelation. Had his mother thought another god had brought this miracle to them? Or perhaps had Vellen seen the pain his father's departure caused his mates and blessed them with something that'd ease the pain for the time being? Reynir was about to ask about their Drownings when @Revna dropped another bomb at his paws -- they will not be Sigrun.

Reynir turned to his mother, though silently his eyes searched her face for some kind of trickery or doubt. Though, her expression was resolute and firm, unchanging. Reynir was silent for a moment; a lot was going through his mind as he was trying to internalize it all.

On one paw, the only Sigrun that connected his mother to the family was his father - and he was gone. This litter had nothing to do with him. And while the family only cared for loyalty and strength, and not bloodlines, Reynir couldn't help but default to recognizing family as those actually related to him. And while his mother was, she was not born a Sigrun. She had come from a different clan, and the only reason for her being a part of the family was gone now. And she was scared; he knew this. She feared their conflict with the Rike and the possible consequences of it all. She was right, in a way, to choose to keep her children out of it.

"I understand," he forced, though a lot of questions swirled in his mind. Truthfully, he was not fully okay with it, but from their standpoint, he understood their choice. He would have to apologize a thousand times to Vellen for their negligence, for their abandonment to his cause. He would get no souls from their births, no potential warriors for his war in the seas. "Was this Eira's idea, too, or just yours?"

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the sea does not like to be restrained Of course the mention of Maua is just as confusing for him as she had first found it when Cassandra had told her of the deity that ruled over Amaryllis. "Maua," she repeats, with a nod of her head. "The god here, in Amaryllis." The statement is simple enough. She will not force the idea onto Reynir, who follows his own god, but she will drop hints to the Sigrun that there is something better than what Vellen has to offer. "We saw Them," she explains, her voice filled with awe. "They blessed us, gave Eira cubs that belong to both of us. Somehow." She does not fully understand it herself, but then she never really understood Vellen's ways either. At least Maua has taken the time to show themself to her. Vellen? He is cruel, merciless, and demanded too much sacrifice. He is not worthy of her worship, or @Reynir's, as far as she sees things. It is no surprise, his reaction to her revelation. Through his life she had been devout. This change in her beliefs has only happened recently, though perhaps the seed had been planted when her daughter had perished during her drowning - the same one that Reynir and Linn had survived. She lets him come to terms with what she said, staying silent as he processes the news, until he speaks again, asking about who had made this decision. "We chose this together," she says, glancing up at the sky again. "Vellen has taken too much from us. I will not let an unworthy god take even more from me. These four little lives are a gift I will not squander." Her voice is firm; resolute. There will be no swaying her, and it is clear that if he crosses this boundary - teaches them Vellen's ways, tries to influence them - there will be hell to pay. She lowers her gaze to him one more time, her eyes firm with a mother's command to her son. "They belong to Maua," she says firmly. "They have no Sigrun blood, as I do not."

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Reynir turned from his mother, even as she kept speaking, and stared forward, down and off of the edge of the cliff to the small, moving bodies below. He did not agree with this... this Maua. It was another God... one that his mother had not pledged her allegience to. Interrupting his silent brooding, he interjected, "Did you ask Vellen for release from his cause?" He didn't want to have to do everything on his mother's part. She had to take some responsibility for her choices, too.

She sounded like a fanatic with the way she spoke about this Maua. There was awe in her tone, marveling at this higher power she could not understand. Reynir made a mental note to learn more about Maua, even if he must ask one of their worshippers to do it. Reynir didn't like any of this, but he would not refuse to understand.

For some reason, Reynir thought of Lilja. And how, this time, there would be no reason for his mother to lose a cub from her litter. No Drownings, no Coming of Age ritual involving stormy seas. Reynir wasn't a parent, and likely would not be for a long time, but... he wanted to believe he understood the desperation his mother felt for keeping her newborns safe and far from harm. Vellen could not provide that. Vellen was selfish and He took as he saw fit without consideration for the parents. Resolute believers could internalize this, but... someone who did not grow up a Vellen follower? It was a lot to ask.

Finally, Reynir nodded, quietly at first. As they grow, he decided, he'd enlighten them, but as a true big brother, he wouldn't force any beliefs on any of them. Though, he kept this thought to himself. "I understand, mother. It is your right as their parents to choose this." He wouldn't deny that. It was her right to choose to keep her children from Vellen's grasp. He sighed, adding more, "Though, please, separate yourselves from Vellen the right way. Speak to the God, hold no ill will, and ask that you be released. Vellen will not waste time on those who do not believe in his cause. He will release you. Eira, too."

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the sea does not like to be restrained His words coax a sharp laugh from her jaws, parting to release the twisted sound. Speak to Vellen, the God that had never once bothered to speak to her, only to take what he wanted from her anyways. She would not waste her time on him anymore than he would waste his time on her, as @Reynir put it. Her sharp yellow eyes hone in on her son, who has turned away from her. But if he can't see the hatred in her eyes then at least he will hear the venom in her voice as she says, "Vellen does not speak with me. I will not speak with him." Let her anger the supposed Sigrun God- she did not care anymore. At least Maua - a God she had not grown up knowing about, had never worshipped - bothered to speak with her, even in passing. There is a twisting feeling in her gut that Reynir will so.ehow defy her. She has invited him to meet his siblings, but...will he go against their mothers' will and teach them anyways? He is a zealot, and it is clear in the way he speaks that he does not approve, even if he says he understands. She already regrets speaking with him on this, but it wasn't a secret that could be kept. Her eyes have drifted away from him, but now they cut back, sharp and bright as before. "You will not try to teach them Vellen's ways," she warns, her voice thick with a threat. She knows her son better than he gives her credit for. "They will already know of Maua, and we will tell them of Vellen's evil ways to turn them against him." He could hate her for that if he wished, but she would protect these blessings with her life if need be. She is surprised that he brings up Eira, who had never truly embraced Vellen's ways. She is family but not quite Sigrun. Not in the way that Revna is. "Eira was never his," she corrects softly, surprised that he seems to think otherwise. But her voice hardens with her next words. "I hold more ill will than I can contain in this body for a God that has no love for his worshippers. May Vellen rot in the hellish ocean he commands."

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Not only did she cut him open, but now she was determined to pour salt in his gaping wound, too.

"Mother, please," Reynir pleaded. She was being stubborn now and a bit extra. "He doesn't speak directly to me either." And he was a priest for crying outloud.

He was only pleading with her to do things right because they not only affected her, but they reflected on him as well - both as her son and the Jarl of the Sigrun. What kind of Jarl would he be if he had his own defecting from the sea god? And how would it reflect on him if his people couldn't be bothered to simply speak out to the god and let him know her plans for turning away.

However, Reynir knew his mother and unfortunately, he didn't expect her to listen to reason.

As his mother turned back to look at him, those green eyes that were his, too, cut into him. He turned slightly to meet her eyes and bristled. He didn't like her tone. It was resolute, threatening. As if she'd cast him out, disown him, or kill him should he defy her. A faint growl reverberated in Reynir's chest as he furrowed his brows. "I said I understood you, mother," he growled. She always had to push it a step further, didn't she? She couldn't let shit lie, always had to drive her fucking nail a little deeper.

"I will not force the Sigrun religion upon them." Did she think of him as some fanatic? Someone who couldn't respect other religions exist and someone who would shove Vellen down anyone's throat? No, he was never like that, and yet, it angered him that his mother implied that it was something he would do... as if she didn't know him at all. "But I will not hide it if they ask me. I will not tell them lies about Vellen. You may not believe in his ways, but it doesn't make him evil for them." Even if the ways involved death. Was it not on the lions that followed him? That carried out these rituals and rites without question? That drowned their own sons and daughters in the name of the sea god himself?

"If that doesn't sit right with you, perhaps you should ask Cassandra for my release from the pride," he stated, standing in place. He was finished with this conversation, but somehow, he knew @Revna would have more to say, more to argue. Was this why Linnaea kept her distance?

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