If he felt ill it was because of the sun, which was now crisping the back of his neck into an even sear. They had nursed him back to health and he had repaid them by throwing up all over their bedding and leaving without a word of thanks. It was the way things were and the way things would be. He supposed that he would miss them, though, especially Sister Alma - she was the prettiest of the group and always had a brilliant smile on her face when she greeted him in the early hours of the morning. So much so that he could still envision the weak light glinting off of her teeth. The visual sequence looped on a movie projector against the backs of his eyelids. Sweet Alma, clement Alma, with the freckles. He'd always had this fantasy of whisking her away with him to the world outside of the convent. In his dreams she would always oblige him but he could never quite muster up the courage to hold her by the shoulders, both of them very much awake, asking, Don't you want to come with me...? He was scared she would spit on him and say no, or worse, she would laugh. Though he guessed that someone as pretty as her couldn't spit on anyone, not without the world exploding in on itself in the face of such a paradox. Sweat rolled down his back.

ulla longs for the heavy breeze of the salted air and the thunderous clap of waves upon the outcrops.and the whisper of vellen is all that it takes to make her want to go home. even so, ulla's persistence keeps her here under the heat. her back is half-backed with its daunting heat, causing ulla to dart into the shades for quite some time before she can go out again. she's inclined to believe that the fall season will be a blessing this year with so much heat going on. so it's a strange yet wonderful surprise to find other lions around. a sleek black lion who looks just as uncomfortable among the baking air comes into her sight. he's young, no older than magnus's older children. but he's old enough to know his place and what he wants. surely. greetings, i am ulla of caladan cove. my pride is new but it has a place for you to call home. would you care to accept an invite and join me? she says, preferring now to get to the point. @Anselme

image © argent 2021

"Or if gratuitous amounts of water isn't your thing then Vermeda Brook has a manageable amount, fresh water even." The quirky offer was tossed out there as the bronze lion made his approach. There was a grin upon his maw showing that his banter was all in good nature and he had nothing against the Cove itself, only the water it possessed.

"I want to thank you for taking care of Parvati." Caligula spoke to the Cove representative as he came to stand within the middle of the Passage, keeping well away from the water. Of course he couldn't know that she hadn't been the ruling party of the Cove when his child had been there. He hadn't ever had the chance to meet the High Sovereign of the time, though he also had to thank Drakon should he come across him again.

@Anselme @Úlla

Caladan Cove. Like everything else, it was vaguely familiar, but there was no true recognition in his head. He kept waiting for the puzzle pieces to fall in, for his memories to reorganize themselves as if by magic. Entropy and childhood tragedy kept this an impossibility. "I'm Anselme," he said, full of nervous energy. "I'll join you, but—" He couldn't help himself. He had to know. He was the type to pick at scabs. "—Do you know of Obsidian Hollow? What happened to it?" He posed this question with a rueful smile. He smiled a lot these days, although he was not very happy. The voice of another stranger had him whirl around. Male, easy-going. Intimidating, even; he was always nervous about jokes, sarcasm, wordplay. This made him somewhat of a conversational robot. He spared a brief chuckle and took advantage of the pause before anyone else could squeeze in something irony-tinged and clever. "The leader - Magnus? If you two know him? He took care of me when I was a baby," which was a lie, or at least a half-lie. Him and Mercy had mostly been left to their own devices, until she too had disappeared. Or at least, that was how he had remembered his days in the Hollow: long, pained, and slothful. He cleared his throat, boyishly self-conscious. @Úlla @Caligula

a smaller bronze pelted male comes, speaking for vermeda. ulla nods in greeting to @Caligula, before listening to his words. ulla remembers parvati, but only vaguely; yet still, she responds with a slight nod of her head. finally. her attention is turned to anselme again. at first, ulla wonders if @Anselme had been a member beneath her when she was the hollows sovereign. but then it clicks that he meant the hollows of another time, the time when magnus was still the sovereign. he became the lagoon sovereign and left the kingdom to his wife, who later gave it to me. rogues invaded and i had to leave the hollows. ulla's response is quick and to the point. there's much to talk about, the tinier details of how she and nadia challenged each other for the hollows throne and her becoming nadia's co-ruler. at the same time, ulla's not surprised to hear that her brother took care of this boy. he looks so much like his and is even the same age as his first litter that magnus will undoubtedly care for him like his own. she always thought of her brother as a man with a caring heart underneath the stone. he still lives in the lagoon, which is just a walk away from the cove.

image © argent 2021

Ulla was able to provide the boy with a great deal of information in relation to his question. Caligula was glad that someone was able to inform the boy. "The Hollows are under the rule of the Hodari at the moment. They are a good and peaceful sort. Loyal to those they form bonds with." The bronze male filled in the last bit of information. He had friends within the Hollows and knew the Hodaris from the time before.

"I suppose you will be wanting to seek out the Lagoon now. I am certain that Ulla can help you in that regards as it is just a short walk from here. Water isn't really my thing so..." He would be more than happy to leave the task to someone already heading in that direction.

@Anselme @Úlla

A rogue invasion. He didn't know what to feel - dismay, maybe. But the emotion failed to come to him and he had to force his face into a thoughtful frown. Anyways, it looked like his times of being footloose and fancy-free were soon to be over. "If you could take me there I'd be beyond grateful." He had never heard of the Hodari either. Not a surprise, given that he'd left when he was barely over half a year old. Admittedly he had no desire to acquaint himself with politics so early on. Empires rose, empires fell, and Anselme floated through life like a blimp aflame, suspended, halfway to crashing. So it went. "Thank you both," he said, comforted by the prospect of escaping the sun, his tailtip skittering against the ground with anticipation. @Úlla @Caligula

Haven't I given enough?
Always the fool with the slowest heart

Hrefna lingered on the outskirts of the scene, trying to blend into the shadows where their protection was offered. She had been learning to take in what information she could before barging into a situation, trying to understand what awaited her. Perhaps it was the way her aunt kept barreling into fights for the death on seemingly mundane occasions that had the girl intimidated by any outings, but she was determined not to allow these feelings to paralyze her.

It was the rogue in question in this particular scenario that perplexed her. His coat was even darker than hers, his eyes a midnight black and a tousled mane only atop his head. He reminded her of her father in obvious ways, though the prickles of familiarity running down her spine went deeper than this.

"I know you," she blurted suddenly, attempting to approach from behind the other two diplomats (one of whom was her own prodigal aunt.) "I... I do not remember your name, but you were a boy in the hollows when I was just a girl." While Hrefna could not recall any particularly groundbreaking interactions she had with him, it would have been impossible for them to be mere strangers when they had been raised within the very same walls. She knew this litter to be that of regular lions when her own was that of royal lineage, subjects just a few months younger than them. It seemed a silly mindset then, looking upon his shadowed and chiseled figure as something akin to equals. Her mind wandered back to what her aunt had been saying about Magnus living at the lagoon.

"We all lived in the lagoon, but I have moved back to Obsidian where our allied family now rules. I am Hrefna Sigrún," she remembered to introduce herself despite their acquaintance, knowing it had been over a year since they would have last seen the other. She glanced between the rogue and the other two pride lions, wondering if what she had to say would change anything.

---

|| july y7 | one year | OH Gentry | at maua's passage
@Anselme @Úlla @Caligula ||

@Anselme asks for úlla to take him to the lagoon. it's good that she will also need to see saga there for pride relations talk. yet still, this would mark the second time she was asked to escort a rogue to another pride. it does wound her as much as it frustrates her to not gain a new member. at least, the young man is polite and her kin will have a new member among them. before úlla speaks, her niece @Hrefna arrives. she smells of the hollows and confirms that she is with them. úlla looks to the dark girl, raising an eyebrow for a second before turning away to the rogue again. perhaps hrefna and i can both escort you? she asks, now with the idea that hrefna and anselme may have much to talk about. she also hasn't been with her other family aside from her own children lately. it'd be good to catch up with her niece. despite her question, úlla knows the sun is still up and no one here seems to favor its warmth. so she turns and beckons for anselme, and if hrefna wants to as well, to follow. [exit]

table by ferus

Another appears on the scene and seems to know the young male. There was nothing more for him to say or to do here. The boy seemed to be in good hands and he was glad for that. It was even better that he was to be escorted by those who know him and of whom he wishes to find. Caligula could want nothing more than that. He had always been the sort to want someone to go where they would be most happy. For the yearling it was to be with those that he knew.

"Have a safe trip. Perhaps we will see each other again." The bronze male said before he headed away to make his own return back towards the Brook.

Caligula Exits

@Anselme @Úlla @Hrefna