I HAD TO TAKE LEAD OF MY SENSES // Snowbound Visitor

[ATBASH CIPHER.]

ATBASH CIPHER

is someone else in me,
waiting to break free?

Honestly, Atbash was hesitant in coming here. It has been a while since Vigenere first visited her in Snowbound, but... that had been before The Pitt took over. Actually, did Tanglewood know that happened? Atbash bit her lip as she made her way towards Tanglewood's unfamiliar swampy territory, her one-eyed gaze carefully watching the ground as she moved. Occasionally, the Hailcaller looked up to make sure she didn't run into any stray vines or accidentally bump into somebody. Luckily she didn't have to travel very far to tell where the border was clearly marked, and the savannah paused in her steps and sat down.

This was going to be one hell of a visit, she could tell. With the scars she bore from Stryker, as well as the new ones given to her by Caesar, Vigenere definitely wasn't going to take things well. Vigenere wasn't one to lash out in anger like their younger brother, but that still didn't mean he wasn't going to get pissed off. Atbash worried about his reaction and shuffled about nervously as she waited for somebody to come greet her.

//LINK so I don't forget!

bio | female | hailcaller [leader] of snowbound

© madi

[toboggan]

Whomever this femme was, she seemed frail. Nothing but a single eye lay placed on her face; well, a few additional scars had claimed land on her mug as well. All in all, the stranger’s gnarled, susceptible figure spoke a significant sentence: ”Life was a fucking dick”. Judging by the abundance of wounds she bore, the interloper had been in a fair share of rhubarbs, and arbitrating on account of her missing headlight, she hadn’t been at all successful in those scraps. And, to make things worse, she ends up in these here glades, ripe for sick bastards to take advantage of her.

Suddenly, his form soared upwards, the mutt’s figure revealing itself from a makeshift hiding place of tall weed. Obviously she meant no harm - and due to Leroy’s intentions following the same pattern, he’d promptly introduce himself, preceding him turning her around. "So, doll, wha’ brings ya ta these parts?" his booming tone buzzed, curious as to the reason why. Of course, the possibility of her being a joiner always remained, though he had a hunch that a one-eyed battle-scarred woman whom carried a drastically foreign scent was on Tanglewood’s outskirts to enroll.

[ATBASH CIPHER.]

ATBASH CIPHER

is someone else in me,
waiting to break free?

"Life was a fucking dick." Was definitely one way of putting it. Though if Leroy mentioned this thought out loud, Atbash probably would disagree. She felt partially at fault for the scars she bore, believing that she almost deserved them. After all, she was, despite how she looked, weak. Stryker and The Pitt took advantage of this, taking over Snowbound for a week before she gained courage to fight back. Caesar, on the other hand, hunted her down and purposely attacked her despite knowing the relationship between Snowbound and The Typhoon. Caesar had been punished, or so Jacob says, but Atbash couldn't trust the sea-dwelling group. Not while Caesar was there.

As Leroy revealed himself, the Hailcaller's attention snapped to him and she fought back the urge to ask about Vigenere. If her older brother wanted to show up he would. But then again... perhaps it was a good thing he wasn't here. There was also a possibility of one of his clanmates to mention seeing a one-eyed she-cat that looks like him, she supposed, and that likely wouldn't end very well. Either way, Atbash still was worried about his reaction. Atbash's ears flicked at being called 'doll', clearly not liking the nickname Leroy gave her. "I'm here to invite Tanglewood to Snowbound's Mass Gathering." She stated simply. "Morgan and Vigenere know what it is, but I should just remind you guys that this is a peaceful gathering where all of Snowbound's allies and neutrals are invited." She went on. It didn't hurt to reiterate things, right? "So everyone minus The Pitt will likely be there."

bio | female | hailcaller [leader] of snowbound

© madi

[Morgan]

Morgan showed up just after his name was mentioned.

"Atbash... it's been too long,"

he muttered, looking up and down her scarred body.

"What happened to you? Are you doing alright? Do you need any supplies from us?"

Her physical state worried the samoyed; he figured someone like Caesar must have been the one to attack her, and Vigenere would likely assume the same thing if he didn't know the truth already. He hoped his boyfriend wouldn't blame himself for not being there to help her, but that couldn't be guaranteed.

"I'm sorry, by the way - our group here isn't in the best state at the moment, so we don't have a lot to offer."

It felt like it had been a long time since the last mass gathering; he sighed out loud as he thought about leaving Tanglewood again.

"I think we'll go if we can. If you've not noticed already, spirits of the dead have been invading our world recently. I don't know if we can leave Tanglewood behind for very long."

Padding over to Leroy, the samoyed nudged his side and added,

"That's Atbash, leader of Snowbound. Vigenere's sister, and a friend of Tanglewood."

Indeed, even if the two groups were only neutral with each other for the time being, he personally considered the savannah herself an ally of sorts. Looking back toward Atbash, the canine said,

"This is Leroy, by the way. A member of the Guard here."

"My Vigenere may be on his way here, but I'm not-"

He cut himself off, realizing he never even mentioned their relationship to her.

"Er... like I was saying, I'm not sure if or when he'll be here. Knowing my-- my boyfriend, he's probably helping some Tanglers in need. He's... he's a good Tangler, a brave Captain."

Morgan felt his muzzle heat up a little; he rarely described Vigenere that way when conversing with others, but it felt strangely good to do so.

[VIGENERE CIPHER.]

[Morgan]

At first, Morgan was relieved to see his boyfriend, but that relief quickly turned into a mild sadness. Markedly fazed, the canine choked out a small whine of worry at the unusual sight of Vigenere's rage unfolding in full. He rarely saw his boyfriend in such a mood, which made him oddly uncomfortable... but the feline's feelings seemed all but justified from the circumstances his sister was in. The canine couldn't help but feel a bit angered himself - he didn't care for Atbash like Vigenere did, but the state she was in was dire. Morgan began to grit his teeth; it was beyond cruel to do such things to someone, even if that someone were an enemy. It was awful, and the fact that Vigenere didn't completely snap at that moment was quite respectable.

The samoyed didn't have the heart to echo Vigenere's sentiment, but he nodded at his words.

"I will slaughter whoever hurt you."

Morgan found in himself the strength to turn to the Captain and nuzzle his face, letting out a false purr in an effort to calm him further. He pulled some water out of his bracers, letting the glittery liquid surround the smaller male and warm up like a hot towel.

"You won't do it alone,"

he whispered, giving his partner a firm but caring lick.

"I wouldn't let you go alone even if you wanted to."

He had a feeling that his initial statement would be rejected on the grounds that he could potentially be hurt, but he had no desire to let his loved one find the unknown attacker by himself.

"Let's find out what happened, first."

[ATBASH CIPHER.]

ATBASH CIPHER

is someone else in me,
waiting to break free?

Atbash recognized the next Tangler that approached. He was the one who came to visit when Vigenere came and honestly, the Hailcaller thought the two were pretty close to each other. Vigenere wasn't the type of person to really travel with anybody so the fact that he traveled with Morgan was definitely some sort of sign. It wasn't a surprise to her when Morgan stated that Vigenere was his boyfriend, though she barely had time to respond to the General before her brother made his way over. Despite what it may seem, Atbash had never really seen Vigenere this mad before and the way he stepped towards her made her flinch a bit.

Atbash could understand why he felt so angry and distraught over what happened to her, but honestly she felt quite the opposite. She believed that she almost deserved what happened with Caesar and The Pitt, mostly because of her own weakness. After all, that was exactly the reason The Pitt preyed on her. Stryker knew she wouldn't fight back and took it upon himself to easily beat her and use her as a crutch to keep the Snowbounders in line.

"Vigenere. Vigenere, no." Atbash found herself able to speak despite the small prickle of fear she felt towards her older brother. The way he dug his claws into the ground was terrifying and she worried about the poor creature that may find themselves under his paws. The snarl he held on his face definitely didn't help matters either, and that scar on his muzzle didn't help the appearance of it. "Don't hunt anybody down. Don't hurt anybody." The Hailcaller went on, her words calm. On the inside, however, her heart pounded as this scene unfolded before her and she was honestly surprised at how calm she was seeming on the outside. Atbash's gaze briefly flickered to Morgan as he whined, trying to comfort her brother with his words.

"Please listen to me." Atbash went on, grateful that Morgan wasn't on Vigenere's side with this. "Don't go off hurting somebody because of this. They've been hurt enough." The Pitt suffered injuries from the rebellion, though they were likely healed by now. Still, she didn't want Vigenere going after them. It was Snowbound's fight - her fight, not his. "The Pitt did this to me, mostly." She explained with a sigh, allowing a frown to form on her face as she spoke. "Stryker specifically. He's a white lion with a bunch of mutations, mostly snake-related ones." There was no point in hiding details; if Vigenere wanted them so badly, he could easily just search her mind. "They took over Snowbound briefly but I and the rest of my tribe fought back. There's no reason to hunt them down and hurt them. They've suffered enough." She paused, as if giving Vigenere time to comprehend her words. "It'll come to no surprise that this brand is from Caesar, but please don't go hurting him either." Although Atbash no longer considered Caesar their brother, she still cared about him somewhat. Or rather, she didn't want him harmed by Vigenere specifically. He didn't deserve to be beaten up by his older, more experienced brother. "Everything is fine now. I'm fine. I've recovered."

bio | female | hailcaller [leader] of snowbound

© madi