AND HE SANG ABOUT WHAT I'D BECOME ; private

[Beatrice]

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Her moral confusion was higher than ever these days, it seemed. Her ties to Lilyspoise because of Eli's and Lissa's souls had caused her to view the other as a sister and friend, and she half hated it. Though Beatrice desperately craved friendship, she was so terrified of it. What was more was that Lil should only be seen as a job; Beatrice needed to steal her soul, not befriend it. These thoughts weighed heavily on her heart, but if she were upset, she certainly didn't portray these emotions. Not in the slightest.

The red heeler huffed a sigh as she padded into the jungle. Her dark honey eyes searched for distraction, but nothing seemed to find her save the singsong of birds. Having once been a bird, she knew their songs all too well - she knew the sadness, the joy, the anger, the accusation. It made her head spin, and she couldn't help but think of her family. Had they been cursed again alongside their wayward daughter and sister?

Beatrice sat down in the midst of a clearing, peering up at the trees. Birds flew in and out of the canopy, and her heart almost stopped when she thought she saw a bluebird. The girl quickly shook her head, simply believing it was the cruel island tricks instead of reality. Then again, perhaps or was her own guilty subconscious.
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[Ilijas]

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Ilijas had been stuck in a permanent state of confusion since he first awoke on the Typhoon border. A part of him longed to return to the impenetrable black from which he could only assume that he originated, but the more rational side of him was always quick to inform him that he had been dead before he had come here and that returning to that void of oblivion was a far from wise thing to do. He supposed that that was a true statement, but that didn't erase his strange longing nor did it make living this new life any easier. He had a personality, a very defined one at that, but he didn't have a past nor did he have previous friends and family. The only thing that held the power to ground him was the face of a lovely girl in which he could not decipher as a relative or a lover.

Presently, the young man found himself wandering absently through the jungle in which he guessed was now his new home. He wasn't so sure though... the shadows were foreboding and the scent of the sea made him sick. [b][color=gray]"You'll adjust," He told himself confidently, ignoring the obvious uncertainty that laced his accented tone. He had been so occupied by his own thoughts, confusion, and distress that he hardly noticed Beatrice until he had almost quite literally stumbled across her.

He caught himself before such a thing could happen though and, embarrassed, extended a reserved smile in her direction. [color=gray]"My apologizes, my thoughts often times have the capacity to transporting me to another world. I don't believe we've had the pleasure of meeting before, my name is Ilijas," He introduced politely, dipping his head. He wondered what the girl was doing out here, occupied by seemingly nothing. Oh well, she could ask the same thing of him.

[color=gray]"Who might you be?"

[Beatrice]

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The same bluebird perched on a tree above her head, and she watched it intently. The bird stared at her, black eyes unblinking, headed twitching left and right. It sang to her, and the notes were soft and bittersweet sounding. She tried very hard to piece together the words, but something was stopping her from that and she didn't know what. She knew their songs, all of them. Didn't she? Was she slowly losing touch? Regardless, the girl whistled back, loud and confident yet pleading.

The sudden prescence of Ilijas frightened the creature away, but Beatrice had not noticed the young man yet. A sad look flashed across her features as the bird took flight, flying far, far away from the island she was just starting to call home. Her heart was bruised as she watched it disappear above the trees. She had never felt so alone.

When he spoke, she jumped. The red heeler whirled around, lowered into a defensive stance. She bared teeth and growled, but this facade slowly dissipated when he continued to speak. His tone was soft, welcoming. He was more polite than most of the pirate-folk she had come into contact with the past few days. She took a breath, steadying herself as she stood up.

[b]"Sorry, I jumped. You scared me," she explained, as if it weren't painfully obvious. "My name's Beatrice. It's nice to meet you." Dark eyes scanned him, momentarily, searching for what his soul consisted of. She furrowed her eyebrows for a split-second when she saw the cloudiness within him. How curious...

"You must be the guy that joined not too long ago. Some were talking about you in camp. All good things, don't worry." Her words, for once, were actually sincere. [color=#D87821][b]"Are you from around here? The Clans, I mean?"

[Ilijas]

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Ilijas watched the bluebird flutter away, idly wondering what it was like to be a bird and have the ability to take off into the sky at any whim. He decided, after some brief consideration, that that was far from the lifestyle he desired and returned his attention to Beatrice, caught off guard by her suddenly offensive stance. What succeeded in shocking him even more was his body's natural reaction to such, his claws escaping their sheathes and his lips pulling back to reveal his own teeth bared and ready. How.. how perplexing. He was mild-mannered at most and hadn't really entertained the idea of engaging in fights. This was new to him. New and alarming.

He willed himself to calm as the female his opposite did the same, though there was no hiding the distress that embraced his gray features. [b][color=gray]"My apologies," He began, his voice distant, [color=gray]"I don't know what came over me." Perhaps the old him, the him that was currently hidden under the fog of amnesia, had made a startling reappearance for a mere second. Or perhaps he was just weary and more on guard than he thought he was. Whatever the reason, he apologized and could move forward from his embarrassing blunder.

[color=gray]"I'll confess that it's mildly disturbing that they're already talking about me but if you're sure that it's all good things..." He rumbled, halfway to himself, [color=gray]"And the clans? I'm not sure that I know what those are nor do I know exactly where I came from. I suppose I'm looking for my family." He was a man of truth and refused to lie unless doing so was direly needed. [color=gray]"What all have they been saying about me?"

[Beatrice]

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Though the male beside her had to wonder, Beatrice didn't. Not incredibly long ago (though it felt like lifetimes), she had occupied the body of a bluebird. Adelaide of the Pasture, the Good Woman of the Woods had seen to that. Granted, it was a punishment for something childish Bea had done, but she still cursed the old hag for it. Being a bird was stressful: she was small, weak, and not well-liked by most - especially that strange tavern keeper. 

As these thoughts played in the back of her mind, she focused on the boy before her. She was not shocked to see him become defensive as she growled and bared her fangs, but she was glad to see him stop the moment she did. After all, she would be quite displeased to have to dirty her paws today. Granted, perhaps she could gain more information about the whereabouts of her friends, but... well, Ilijas was interesting. She would hate to smudge him off of this plain of existence by robbing him of his soul. As the Beast began whispering in her ear to do just that, she trained her ears only on the feline's speech.

He was prim and proper, a true gentleman. This surprised her more than anything because all the boys she'd met as of late were brutish and disgusting. He was a welcome break from the locals. She even found herself smiling gently at his apology. [b]"No, it's okay. You were just defending yourself."

At his next words, she laughed. "No, it's a good thing, really. They say that you're very nice and well-spoken. A good guy all around." Beatrice seldom trusted what others said, however, so she would need to know him a bit more before she dove into any opinions. "Whoa, you're the first person I've met who didn't know all about these Clans either... Basically, there are just four main groups of creatures living around here. They're all connected in some way, shape, or form. A lot of people in the Typhoon have come from distant places, so I guess I shouldn't be shocked. Especially because I'm not from around here either."

She perked her ears as he mentioned he was searching for his family. Her mind immediately went to all the recent souls she had secured, yet she could make no connection to this male. From the souls, she gained knowledge, but there was no words about him. He was a blank canvas in every sense. Funny, considering she knew most. [color=#D87921][b]"Have you lost your memory? And if you need help finding your family, I could try to help. Who knows? Maybe some of them live here. This is a pretty big island."

[Ilijas]

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Ilijas observed her in silence for a few seconds, his expression morphing to resemble idle curiosity and, of course, reservation. He was careful to never reveal too much of what he was thinking or feeling, unsure of why he felt the innate urge to stay walled up behind cordial smiles and polite nods but devoted to appeasing himself regardless. He was not an emotional creature by any means anyways, for him to resemble one probably would be more of a theatrical performance than anything else. Nobody seemed to have a problem with his natural distance either and so he maintained his signature behavior knowing (or rather, rationalizing to himself) that to get close to people would most likely hurt him in the long run. For some reason, he knew that he had been hurt before. He didn't know by what or by whom, just that he had to ensure it never happened again.

But back to Beatrice.

The female his opposite certainly was intriguing and Ilijas, typically opposed to establishing friendships without well-developed history, had to dismiss his sudden want to befriend her. [b][color=gray]"Nice and well-spoken?" He paused to chuckle, obviously bemused, [color=gray]"I believe that's their simple way of confessing that they know nothing about me. They shouldn't worry though- I admittedly know nothing about myself so I suppose the entire clan can wonder together." A tiny smile followed his words before it faltered and inevitably faded away. [color=gray]"Four clans indicates a vast population, does it not? How friendly are we with these other places?" He inquired, capable now of thinking only of the girl who's face was still fresh in his memory. Was it possible that she occupied one of the other clans? Would finding her provide him the answers he so desperately craved?

[color=gray]"Am I that obvious of an amnesiac?" He mused, that seemingly light-hearted attitude returning as he forced himself to dismiss his thoughts on her. [color=gray]"All I woke up with was the name 'Ilijas M.' and the rather shocking knowledge that someone had managed to kill me in a past life... quite brutally I might add, I have good reason to suspect it was from fire or some other element." He didn't know why he was openly sharing what many would see as a very personal part of him. People died all the time though and he, desensitized to that fact, could easily talk about the death of anyone- including himself.

[color=gray]"I don't believe anyone related to me can be found on this island. I'm not sure if I possess a single living relative. I have no clues, no basis, not even the slightest of inclinations to steer me in the right direction. It's absolutely dreadful," He supplied with a sigh, shoulders rising and falling in the form of an absent shrug. He appreciated the gesture nonetheless though; offering such had been an incredibly kind thing for Beatrice to do.

[Beatrice]

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[wheezes this is so long?? idk why,, also i didn't proofread bc it's 12:35am oops]

The girl titled her head to one side as he spoke, and Beatrice found herself chuckling a bit. His words were true in all honesty. He was new. No one knew him. For the moment, he was a blip in the normalcy of Clanlife. Ilijas was an anomaly. Well, perhaps she couldn't give him that much credit. He was just a new face in the sea of new faces that was the Typhoon.

Her mind immediately told her none of this was important. Everyone in this Clan was unimportant in her mind; there was nothing she needed from any of them. She was here for a job, and that was all. She was stealing a soul -- maybe even souls -- and that was it. She wasn't here to make friends. She wasn't here to chat up the locals. She was here to get her fucking job done so she could see Greg and Wirt again. That was it. That was all it was.

Right?

Beatrice's chest and mind stirred in unison, and she could not explain anything. The girl was so confused. She didn't want to be gravitating toward Ilijas like Lilyspoise. She did not want to become attached to him because, in the end, all he was was a possible source of energy for her benefactor. Nothing more, nothing less... So why did she feel the need to be friendly with him like Lil?

A sudden realization came upon her: perhaps she had stolen the soul of one of his loved ones, or at the least, someone who knew him relatively well. All the souls she capatured, she was forced to store inside of herself. She was made up of all the creatures she'd taken down. Mentally, she was like a chimera. 

[b]"Well, we're all here to help each other out, aren't we?" Lies. Easy lies. "And yeah, four Clans. I'm not sure how big the other groups are, but I assume they're like us. They have to be to be recognized, I think. And we're pretty friendly with the Ascendants and Snowbound. Tanglewood, on the other hand... Well, let's just say they're bad news." For those who did not know how to handle themselves maybe.

She would nod at his next words, a smile upon her maw. "Ha, yeah. Some things I can read like a book from you, but others things aren't as easy." She had a knack for knowing others from first impressions. She was always right, never wrong in these situations. Reading others was easy. "God, I'm sorry about your past life situation. I've heard that can be pretty rough... I mean, I can sort of relate because I used to be a human. But that wasn't a past life though." She shrugged lightly. "I hope you get to figure everything out though. I'm sure it'll just take time to process your old memories. Death's pretty tragic, I've heard," Beatrice barked, amusement in her tone.

The canine thought over his next words carefully. Hm. He truly did not know anything, it seemed. Somehow, that saddened her. She couldn't imagine living life knowing she didn't know her loved ones... Wait, she did know that. More or less, anyhow. She knew not if Greg and Wirt were alive. Her chest ached momentarily.

[color=#D87921][b]"Maybe you could start by asking people in the Typhoon if they have last names starting with M. You'll probably hear a few different last names, but maybe one will jog your memory?"

[Ilijas]

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Ilijas, though desperate for friendship (and on a deeper level, companionship), had reservations of his own about getting close to others. He was not here on a job nor did he have any intention to steal the souls of his clanmates- he was simply afraid of opening himself up and permitting anyone to see perhaps the vulnerable, frightened child that hid behind his polite smiles and eloquent disposition. He had this innate knowledge that he had allowed a single person in before his memory had been claimed and that that process had been one laced with anguish. He was not meant to be known by anyone save his family. It was too complicated if anything but that was the case.

And yet here he was, gazing idly at someone whom he wished to be friends with. How strange. How new. How absolutely foreign. Amnesiac or not, he still realized how almost uncharacteristic this desire of his was and it admittedly succeeded in making him rather uncomfortable. The more people somebody loved, the weaker they were. He could love no one save his family and, because they were nonexistent in his life, he could love nobody but himself. It was how things had to be. His face hardened at the thought. He didn't want that. He didn't want to be alone. He craved the presence of others just as fire craved oxygen or a flower craved sunlight. This fate Ilijas was writing for himself would only make him unhappy.

He didn't want unhappiness, not in this life riddled with so many inexplicable mysteries.

[b][color=gray]"Not exactly," Came the bengal's quiet response to her first inquiry, [color=gray]"Sometimes reality isn't as sweet as that." He wasn't saying that nobody helped anyone but... it was not something everyone committed to doing. Especially not him anyways. Family above all, always and forever. He didn't even know his family and yet he was blindly loyal to them. [color=gray]"But regardless, the other clans sound fascinating. Perhaps I'll take a visit to each of them simply for a change in scenery," He continued, almost to himself. Tanglewood was obviously the name of their enemy but despite that, he still wished to travel there and witness their savagery for himself. Perhaps one of his family members lurked within their dangerous swamp. Who knew.

[color=gray]"Good," Came Ilijas' quick response upon being told that she read some parts of him like a book. She couldn't do that. He wouldn't let her. [color=gray]"While it's been a lovely experience talking to you thus far, I unfortunately have no interest in revealing my innermost self to you. Remaining in the shadows of mystery both soothes and amuses me. It's best that you know as little as possible," He explained nonchalantly, though there was no denying the distinct edge to his words. Curse Beatrice, he thought to himself, Why would she say something like that?

At least she proceeded with something more general and in relation to a statement about himself that had already been made. He couldn't stand to dwell on the topic of himself being somewhat an open book any longer. [color=gray]"Perhaps I had been a human, perhaps I had not. It's hard to say when you have hardly anything to base your life on. As for death, well I suppose it's inevitable. I'm a bit perplexed as to how I'm standing before you if that statement is true, admittedly, but I'm far too confused as it is to ponder that mystery right now."

He paused, contemplating her suggestion for a brief moment before casually shrugging. [color=gray]"I suppose that it wouldn't cause any harm, but I feel as if I'd recognize a family member despite it all were I to come across one. So far, I have yet to encounter anyone within the Typhoon that's caused me to believe that we might be related."

Except for Lilyspoise and that member of the Ascendants... that feeling was so, so incredibly strange. I'd write it off as pure coincidence if it hadn't been for that little tug. I suppose some further investigation is in order, if anything.