It was old, such was all too clear. There had once been better days for the photo, paper brittle and thin as time had worn upon it, edges curling in upon themself with small tears here and there. The colour had faded somewhat, little more than a ghost of what it had once been upon the day of its taking, but the eyes, those were still bright. Similar overall the two subjects seemed close to twins yet the differences were there to tell them apart, the slightly larger stature of one and the look which contorted hard features, lips drawn away from teeth grown dull and eyes narrowed upon the other, a glare filled with such hatred it stopped her heart for a second. Bristled along the back his fur was light but rich in tone, a brown so similar to one of her own siblings, a mirror image of the one she called father.

And the other. Blood dripped from his nose – broken or merely bleeding it was hard to tell though she scrutinised the image for some time – and his gaze was down turned, seemingly drawn to something out of frame, the curl of his lips a harsh frown and brow furrowed over those eyes. Her father's eyes. The pair were matched in that, both held the same glacial tone which seemed icy, unwelcoming to the light of warmth or love and yet she had seen how they brightened with such but in the face of one darker, a storm contained in a living being.

Was this her grandfather, a man elusive to each thought, little more than an afterthought as she sought to grow closer to the family present around her, with eyes so glacial it seemed likely to free the very soul if he only turned them upon you with malice? It seemed unlikely to be anything more, a small paw gently running across his face, tracing a line down the crease which cut through him, a slight tear the only thing that stopped her for she had no wish to ruin the photo further.

Gently she placed the photo back onto her bed once more, shaky paws hovering above it for a time, the thought of simply tearing it apart or burning it, pretending as though this never happened, floating to the top of her thoughts. Quickly she pushed it aside, swallowing thickly as she forced her mind towards other things. For some strange reason it had grown important to her in the short time she had it, something about it drawing her in, a reminder that Pincher held secrets just as she did.

The switchblade was less spectacular though no less important to the dark child, gently lifted as she looked it over once more. The handle was wooden, badly scratched up and rather damaged from wear, or possibly time, old if such spoke for anything. Gently she pressed the button, careful to remove her paws from the open space within the hilt, a soft gasp escaping parted lips as the blade flipped up. It was small and skinny, overall it was a weapon for small hands or paws, black beyond the silver of the very edge, yet it was dull from prolonged use, never cared for once it was left aside. Pushing the blade back into the hole she threw it between her paws, wondering at who might have left these here and what their purpose behind such was.

Aita had made no secret of her sleeping arrangements, many of the staple customers of the Capricorn had seen her come and go each morning and night, offering no work nor glance towards any, the rowdy bunch uninteresting to the child, her destination the rooms above. None seemed all that capable of removing these items from Pincher's office, nor smart enough to do so without leaving behind evidence of their passing, and so they were crossed off the list. But what of Pincher himself, had this been some gift or test, a show he thought of her in someway, saw the darkness which was slow to corrupt her from deep within? But then why would he leave them upon her bed for her to find rather than coming right out and giving them to her in person, nothing of the Captain speaking of a more cowardly nature, or he simply hide it well.

Picking up her satchel she gently worked the clip at the end of the blade onto the strap before slipped in over her head, sitting it comfortably around her chest and stomach, the knife a cold fire pressing into her side, refusing to be ignored. It was slow, hesitant steps which drew her down the stairs, the tavern largely empty though some back booths held patrons enjoying their breakfast, murmured words stalled as she slipped out the front door. Briefly she wondered at how smart an idea this was, to confront any of her family on this matter, to go behind Pincher's back and seek any scrap of information of his past, it seemed cowardly but her best bet.

Within silence she walked towards the bay and set herself upon the cool sand, dark gaze moving between those who meandered along with no real purpose to their walk, merely stretched and preparing for the day ahead, enjoying the morning before their work began. “Goldie? Can I... talk ta ya?” Aita called out, voice breaking as she trailed into silence, hoping her sister was present and might hear her call, unwilling to move from where she had settled heavily, ears flattening against her head.

[member=48]goldenluxury[/member]

the tyhpoon — minnow — tags

the girl was contently beginning her work for the morning, her eyes tired as she drifted through the territory. she had spent the last night teaching lynn more tricks, continuing her habit of avoiding sleep. it was bad and she could not do it - especially now that she was doing better. there was so much work to get done and so little time. sleep got in the way, even if she did have the hallucinations no matter if she slept or not. it didn't matter. the panic came less often, at least.

she walked around the territory, steps quiet and careful as she decided what her first order of business would be. she would collect some herbs to help out the doctors this morning. that would be nice and would give her a chance to visit the jungle, a part of the island she seemed to avoid. it made her nervous to go in there alone, but she had lynn now, so it wasn't so bad. the harpy eagle rode along her hind lazily, looking around quietly.

the eagle seemed to have finally picked up on the fact that neither her back nor her head were very good places to sit for her, and instead moved further down, towards her tail. she could appreciate that discovery. her burned back still hurt, though certainly much less than before. of course, it was where the worst burns had been, so it took longer than the rest of her injuries and was still bandages along with her front paws. soon, though, she was hoping she could take them off completely.

nonetheless, she still needed to wait at least a little bit longer. though it hurt from all the movements she made. she refused to stop, though. she couldn't stop. there was no time. she began to make her way to the submarine, going to grab her basket, when she heard her sister nearby. goldie turned her head at the call, looking towards where the sound came from.

she eyed aita, offering a warm smile as she approached, though it quickly grew slightly concerned upon noticing her features. "'course ya can," she said with a nod. she was absolutely always happy to talk to her crewmates - especially her family. she wondered if something was the matter, though. "is everything alright?"