Léonie had never imagined she’d try to aid @Alaric, given her dislike for the bastard, but she’d never before been in such a position. She had news for the Stärke patriarch — and not the kind that she could use as a way to frustrate him, as she wished it was. No, she carried with her a damning story, and its burden outweighed whatever joy she might’ve found in the consequences, which she hoped involved dismemberment. Preferably of the head. Aeistrios and his wife had taken so much from Tinúviel that they deserved nothing less than having their skulls used to decorate the Mire’s border.

She moved on skilled paws, her body sliding across the damp bark of the trees to wash away the scent of the Summit. Mud found its way onto her head and body, until she looked less like Léonie Miroslav and more like some brown, soggy … thing. It did more than conceal the white spotting under her eyes and the back of her ears — it lended her the scent of the Mire, allowing her to cross without worry that someone would accuse her of not belonging.

Blackened by the muck, she wandered along the quiet pathways until she finally found his scent. It led her deeper into the heart of the territory, and once she’d recognized the silhouette of Alaric Stärke, she spoke to reveal herself to him, her tone serious in a way that was unheard of for the dark imp: “Your wife needs you.”

Assassin
Level 2: Able to fabricate pride scents (Ecrosia Mire)

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He thinks he would know her no matter what mask she wore. Smoking and burned, smirking and snarky, half-dead on the ground, or even drenched in muck. The many faces of @Léonie Miroslav known to him and yet she an eternal enigma. Slippery little imp, more enemy than friend, emerging now like the thing from the deep with a prophecy on her lips.

Alaric bore the many scars of war. This one had been more difficult than the last, he now past his prime, but with her voice he is immediately tensed and guarded.

It is such an obvious statement that he wants to tear her to shreds if only for the helplessness he feels. He had not been idle, seeking a way to free his daughter before he can wrest his beloved bird from her cage. Melusina first, if he dared do it the other way she would have his head for it, he was certain.

“Ja,” he agrees, warily watching for any indication that she held nefarious reasons in mind, “as does my daughter.” Perhaps now she will understand the chains that have held him back thus far.

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This content might touch on topics that are sensitive or triggering for some readers. Trigger Warning for mentions of [SUGGESTION OF SEXUAL COERCION]

The patriarch was understandably guarded when he greeted her. Léonie might’ve been amused on any other evening, however her mask remained tense then. No rotten smile answered @Alaric then — not even a flicker of her usual wickedness sparked in her eyes. “Yeah. Your wife made a deal for her,” she informed him lowly. Or, she assumed that was the one they’d negotiated over. Alaric had so many. “Aeistrios and Renfri made her swear her loyalty to them for your kid. They ‘made her a proper Saxe wife’, as Renfri put it,” the dark imp revealed, the taste of it causing her nose to wrinkle in the heavy shadows. “She’s not just a prisoner. They’ve made her their personal fuck-toy.”

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it only takes a moment for his mood to shift. it swings rapidly from guarded calm to tentative relief. it flares for a second until he realizes a few things — namely that the imp seems disgusted and that a deal was mentioned. a deal from his wife, who had little to trade except —

— herself.

an icy rage washes over him as @Léonie revealed the full extent of their depravity, the sludge-black reach of the Saxe. immediately his lip curls, unable to fully rein in the strength of his anger. “I’ll have his fucking head,” he snarled, claws flexing against the chilled muck of his home. his mind spins with a thousand half flung plans, an anxious urgency rising in the Starke beast, along with a fierce need to have his wife home safe in his arms.

“can you confirm she’s safe?” did he trust the bastard to hold trust to his deal? not for a second. Alaric needed to be certain melusina was free before he could take the next step…

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Léonie expected the news to spark fury in @Alaric, and it did. She was not pleased with it, given the circumstances. She’d rather annoy Alaric by her own means, not enrage him through the story of his wife being enslaved by his enemy. The dark imp did not nod when he declared that he’d have his head — there was no doubt there. Her blackened ears cupped at his question though. “I can try,” she offered. “I may be able to help her out. I helped a friend of yours escape her imprisonment once.” Léonie had aided Ghyslaine some time ago. Perhaps she could do it again for Alaric’s family.

“The Oasis is mostly his kids. There’s at least eleven of them. Whatever you do to him, they’re gonna grow up wanting to do the same to your family. I’d like to see you do it, just know it’ll fall back in yours,” she cautioned. “Oh, and he only has several ranked members that could possibly defend his runts.” If he was thinking if taking prisoners, the Oasis had plenty to choose from.

There was a pause. “I’d like to see him removed from his seat of power,” the messenger added. “You know why.” The Oasis was hers. She wanted to return home. “I’ll help there too. If you decide to end his reign once and for all, I’ll do what I can to ensure the bastard stays dead.”

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alaric may not know all of the details of leonie's skills (because shan cant remember what he does and does not know and im too lazy to look) but he knows that she always seems to have insider knowledge. she was small and slippery and he had little doubt she was a valuable creature to be on the right side of. he merely nods, though, and yet the expression carries a weight of appreciation.

"whatever blood feud will come has already been ignited when he dared to steal my wife and daughter. there is no way this ends well for our families." what is done is done, and alaric had plenty of his own flesh and blood that could defend themselves against whatever the saxe may bring. "the starkes are strong, we do not back down from bastards like this."

as for the oasis -- "help me and i will have your back, should you seek to take the oasis again. and i will do everything i can to ensure he loses his power... or his life." it would not end until the saxe was gone, and if that meant alaric aided leonie's side then so be it. anybody was better than aeistrios, in the eyes of the patriarch.

@Léonie

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