//In her birth body, not jaguar

Now that she was no longer carrying children, Aphra could live her life as her birth body. It was the form she was most comfortable in, though perhaps that was because she knew that it was infertile and couldn't bear children even if she wanted to. But of course, having children wasn't the reason that the she-cat was stalking within The Typhoon's jungle - no, she was looking for her daughter, Vayne. Now unfortunately for her, Aphra knew that Vayne's crewmates wouldn't want her leaving, and would probably attack Aphra on-sight; she didn't want to deal with wounds again, and so, the pure white she-cat was attempting to sneak into The Typhoon's territory as far as she possibly could and lure Vayne to her.

She was going to bring her daughter home, whether The Typhoon wanted Vayne to leave or not.[glow=COLOR,1,400] ━ ✧*:･ﾟ[/glow]

Lumia didn't really know Aphra. Despite their relation to each other, she had never met the pure white feline, nor did she particularly have any desire to meet her. Unfortunately, fate always did seem to have a way of being rather fickle, and amusing. Perhaps in another life, Mia would've gone out of her way to avoid Aphra when she noticed the other creeping through the territory. After all, she had been told what the other looked like – pure white cat with scars wasn't a particularly complex description – and she had her suspicions. Still, although Lumia Cipher was many things, she wasn't a coward. She wasn't the type to turn tail and run. Hell, even her "running away" from her father had just been her trying to find somewhere safe, where she could recover and grow. It hadn't been an act of terror, but determination.

It was because of this determined spirit that Lumia decided to confront Aphra, her short tail lashing and twitching behind her as she dropped down from the trees. Before she had just been observing... now was the time for action. With a soft hiss, the wheat colored feline stepped in front of Aphra's slinking form, green gaze narrowed as she spoke, "Hey! You! You're Aphra Cipher, aren't you?" Even though her voice was firm and meant to be threatening, Lu knew that she was at a bit of a disadvantage. Her sister was older, and was a fully grown feline, while she remained only an apprentice. Still, considering the wounds on the other's face and body... she didn't seem like a fighter. Perhaps Lumia would have a better chance than she thought.

— Reggan

If Aphra knew about Lumia and how she escaped Caesar, the succubus probably would have argued that Lumia did run away - not escaping from abuse. After all, how was she supposed to know that Caesar was abusive when he never treated her the same way as her half-siblings?

Aphra let out a hiss as a feline dropped down in front of her, fluffing out her fur as a defensive response. The other feline spoke to her, calling her out by name, which caused Aphra to relax slightly, her icy gaze narrowing at Lumia. "So what if I am?" She responded with a cold tone, her kinked tail flicking.[glow=COLOR,1,400] ━ ✧*:･ﾟ[/glow]

It didn't surprise Lumia that Aphra chose to reply with defensive words, considering the man that had raised her. Frankly, she was even in the right to do so, considering Mia had no intention of being kind to her half-sister. The other feline evidently hadn't even thought of being kind to her own children, and thus the younger Typhooner saw no reason to let her off the hook. It was because of this that Lumia's tail was twitching and lashing back and forth as she took a step forward, voice firm, "If you are, that means that you're not supposed to be here. You aren't allowed anywhere near The Typhoon, or Vayne." Her voice gained a slightly protective edge at the end, green gaze narrowing. Despite not knowing her niece for long, Lumia wanted to keep her safe.

Well aware of what Aphra had most likely come to do, the wheat colored feline took another step forward, eyes scanning over the other. She had every intention of distracting Aphra until she had a chance to strike, and run the other out of the territory. Her voice was soft and vaguely venomous as she muttered, gaze still lingering on Aphra, "You may not look much like him, but the two of you certainly seem to have the same attitude..." Really, Aphra's only saving grace seemed to be that she wouldn't outright physically abuse her children. Just manipulate them and make them feel like garbage.

— Reggan

Aphra lifted her head, lips peeling back in a snarl as Lumia mentioned her banishment from The Typhoon and her daughter. "You have no right to tell me where I can and cannot go." She growled. Her banishment hadn't, technically, been an exile - though of course, Aphra was too much of a coward to go near the gates when the lingering thread of Roxanne, Diya, Roan, and Michael existed. It infuriated her that Vayne seemed like she was hiding between her crewmates' legs, almost as if her daughter didn't have the balls to face Aphra herself. Pathetic. I raised you better. She would have sent this message straight to Vayne telepathically, but she couldn't seem to be able to connect with her.

"Who, Caesar and I?" Aphra's lips turned into a smirk now, an invisible eyebrow raising at Lumia's statement. She should have figured that her father was still getting laid out there somewhere and that she had more siblings out there; who else would Lumia be referring to? Horizon? HA! Her half-brother wasn't nearly as close to her as she had been with Caesar. "I should hope so! I am his favorite, after all."[glow=COLOR,1,400] ━ ✧*:･ﾟ[/glow]

A soft snort left Lumia as she heard Aphra's response, her head shaking from side to side. She took another step forward before she spoke, her muzzle curled into an outright snarl now, "Actually, I do have a right to tell you where you can and cannot go. Because I'm an actual member of The Typhoon, and you're just a pest on our territory." Normally the girl wouldn't be so bold, but... she couldn't help it. Aphra's attitude reminded her far too much of an even more stuck-up Caesar, and she wasn't going to stand for it. She wouldn't have let her father in, and she wasn't about to let her half-sister in, either.

As Aphra mentioned being Caesar's favorite, Mia found herself rolling her eyes, muttering in an annoyed tone, "That really isn't something to be proud of, you know..." She then added on, a faint smile coming to her face, "And even if you are proud... I doubt it's true. Caesar just manipulated you into thinking he gives a damn about you. Just like you were trying to manipulate Vayne." She was just another piece of the disgusting cycle, and that was enough to make Lumia's jaw clench. She and Vayne... they were going to be the ones that broke the cycle. She was sure of it, and she was willing to take Aphra on directly if it would ensure the cycle would be broken.

— Reggan

"You act like I've been exiled." Aphra shot back in a know-it-all voice, her pelt twitching to show how irritated she was getting with Lumia trying to argue with her. This kitten was obviously a lot younger than her and surely, Caesar wouldn't mind if Aphra swatted at her? That was assuming Caesar was Lumia's father, of course, and Aphra had a good feeling that he was, given her yellow fur color. "I haven't been exiled like Caesar has. I can come here if I want to."

The comment about Caesar lying to her made her go silent, staring in disbelief at first before Aphra allowed herself to laugh. It sounded as if it was genuine (or at least she hoped so), but it was definitely forced. "Please! If he was manipulating me, I think I would know. There's a reason why he didn't treat me nearly as bad as he treated Horizon or Fakhira." Since she left before Gordon and Billiam were born, she had no idea they were alive. Hell, Lumia may not even be her half-sister for all she knew, and she was just assuming it because of Lumia's fur color. The mention of Vayne only ticked the white-furred she-cat more, her voice coming in a hiss as she spoke next, "I am not manipulating Vayne. I am only here to bring her back home."[glow=COLOR,1,400] ━ ✧*:･ﾟ[/glow]

A scowl came to Lumia's face as she heard Aphra's words, tail twitching behind her. The young feline's voice was sharp as she took another step forward, claws slipping out, "Oh, really? You can come here if you want to? Is that why you keep glancing around, as if you're waiting for someone to attack you?" She gained more confidence with each step, her golden pelt puffed up in anger. She continued on, green gaze narrowing, "One of the reasons why I joined here was because I was told you weren't allowed here. And I know that Captain Roxie doesn't want you around, and that you're afraid of her. Maybe I should just start shouting for her, huh?" She turned her head back towards the rest of the territory, her maw opening as if she were about to shout for the rather hot-headed captain.

She was interrupted, however, by Aphra seeming to freeze. She had obviously never been directly confronted with the idea of Caesar manipulating her, and that was fairly surprising to Mia. After all, it seemed so obvious. Turning her gaze back towards her half-sister, the beta muttered softly, "Of course he didn't treat you nearly as badly as the others. Treating you like some kind of spoiled princess just makes it easier for him to manipulate you. It's obvious to me, and I'm less than half your age!" Lumia was fairly sure that she wouldn't get through to Aphra, but she still felt anger rising within her. Maybe if Caesar hadn't done what he had to her... maybe Aphra would actually be a sister worth caring about. For now, though, Lumia just shook her head firmly from side to side, snapping in response, "And you're not here to bring Vayne home, because The Typhoon is her home. If you aren't good enough to be here, then fine. Go and live out whatever sad life you've got left. But don't drag Vayne down with you." Vayne had made it abundantly clear just how much she loved her home within The Typhoon. And that was enough for Lumia to want to keep her there.

— Reggan

"What, are you afraid of me?" Once again, Aphra shot back, her own claws sliding out as Lumia stepped forward. The succubus's fur fluffed out, mostly something she did when angry or preparing to attack, but it was also to try and shrug off the embarrassment she felt from Lumia's point of Caesar manipulating her. She didn't want to - no; she wasn't going to accept that. "What, do you think I'm gonna tell Caesar that you're here?" Her voice was mocking now, as if she knew that Lumia had ran off from him. Aphra didn't know Lumia's past, of course, but by the way the girl was speaking, she definitely seemed almost uncomfortable with Caesar. That was something she could try and exploit at the very least.

What really made Aphra angry now, though, was the mention that The Typhoon was Vayne's home. "The fuck it is!" Aphra snarled in a disbelieving tone. "She's just trying to fake her way into making you and the rest of those idiots into believing she's just some anxious little ball of fluff. Her home is with me, her mother." She couldn't understand why everyone was so adamant about Vayne staying here. They wanted Aphra to be a 'better mother', did they not? Here she was, trying to give her daughter a home, and they were trying to act as if she was kidnapping some random child.[glow=COLOR,1,400] ━ ✧*:･ﾟ[/glow]

If Lumia had been a bit more soft-spoken, and Aphra a bit less shrill, perhaps things could have worked out peacefully between the two of them. That wouldn't be the case in this reality, however. Mia wasn't even set off by the comment about Caesar, beyond the girl's gaze narrowing in anger. She no longer felt such an intense fear over the possibility of her father trying to find her. Mainly because she knew that the other members of The Typhoon would defend her, and make sure she was alright. The head Cipher would be ripped limb from limb before he could get close to her, and she was sure of that. Still, what actually managed to set Lumia off was Aphra's words on Vayne. It was painfully obvious that the other didn't understand her own daughter at all. Instead, she was trying to shove words into the other's mouth, and make herself seem as if she were the good guy.

With her tail lashing and twitching behind her, the girl's words finally elevated into a shout, defensive over the niece she had only recently connected with. "Her home was never with you! You were never anything more than a miserable bitch, abusing your children and forcing them around just to get your way! You're not Vayne's mother, you're a ball of scum!" And with that, Lu had snapped. The only warning from her was a short snarl as she launched herself forward, claws out. She knew she had a size disadvantage, but she wasn't about to let that deter her. She aimed to swipe right across Aphra's face, trying to dig her claws into old scar tissue and reopen it. Lumia was trying to cause as much pain and as much bleeding as possible, so that her half-sister would be forced to bolt. Then Vayne would be safe, at least for now.

— Reggan