one drag for my sorrows ;; joining

[cavalrychoir]

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[div style="background-color:;border:;width:100px;overflowtretch;font-size:8.5pt;color:darkred;text-align:left;text-transform:uppercase;font-family:trebuchet ms;margin-bottom:-10px;margin-left:5px;float:left;"]CAVALRYCHOIR—

Home. It's been a while since he last thought about something as useless as that. It was never something he was used to; the word itself made his mouth feel numb. He's had a house. God, he's had many houses: a tree, a bush, the side of a lake, a riverbed, a burrow, the list went on. Okay, so they weren't really houses in the most technical sense, but they were comparable to houses; a shelter of sorts. But a home? None of that. And he doesn't mean to sound dramatic or over-the-top in his wording, but he didn't have a home. His home was where he'd be greeted with smile and playful banter rather than the clanking of chains and soft crying. Home is where he could close his eyes and be completely at peace without desperate pleas for mercy and degrading tone of voices. The place he was born and raised into wasn't a home. He wasn't sure what to call it aside from a hellhole. It was fitting though... Ironic too. His entire situation was ironic. Going over the nit-gritty details was too troublesome and he'd rather not recollect anything from his origin story, but it was hard not to find it a bit humourous. Perhaps his mental state has decreased so much traumatic experiences are abruptly hysterical? Is this the beginnings of a psychopath? A sociopath? Maybe it's a coping mechanism? Who's to say, really. Aside from licensed therapists and those with a degree in Psychology.

The amusing irony in his life is he was raised to be a killing machine and it would be a fatal mistake to think, even for a second, that he isn't. The snapping of bones, the warmth of blood and teary eyes did not deter him from getting what he wanted. The lynx was compact and build for combat; it appeared as though he was bred to fight. The many scars that littered his large frame didn't help with that. His tribe-like home instilled a malicious mindset in him which ultimately, was their downfall. He ended their life with the teachings they bestowed upon him. Ironic. However, as powerful as he is, he couldn't do it without a little help. Okay, a lot of help. That, in on itself, is another story but for the sake of keeping things short, he struck up a deal with a demon for an advantage in exchange for his soul. With this power-up, if you will, he was able to bring an end to his previous home's demented ways. Now he wanders as a soulless being - a demon - damned for eternity; he'll fade to nothingness when he takes his final breath. Previously, he compared his home to a hellhole and he is a demon. At least, now he is. Ironic. There are a couple more instances of irony that he laughs at, but for now, we'll end it there. After all, he had more important thing to worry about. With that being said, he isn't nonchalant about this ordeal. He didn't want it to end in bloodshed, but it was the only way he knew how to communicate to them, a group of barbaric individuals with twisted values and morals. They preached violence, so he schooled them on it; the student became the master and he decided to hold a mandatory lecture. Does he regret his actions? Absolutely not. The demon's remorse for his actions was more angled at himself for believing what he was being taught was right.

The sturdy figure known as Cavalrychoir found himself once more on the territory of Tanglewood. This time, not for attempted murder. N-not his best moment. In the end, she forgave him and they parted ways after a short conversation. That small encounter is the main reason why he was standing before the invisible scent line, posture stiff and proper as permanent snake-like pupils scanned their surroundings. Maybe joining another group was a mistake after all? He did slaughter the members of his previous group. And, he didn't trust himself around others yet. Who's to say he doesn't revert back to his old ways? He was already struggling with his identity, he didn't want to deal with conflicting values. But, he needed to make some sort of stride to being an overall good person. Cav doubted he'd be given many opportunities like this and after a bit of thought, he decided to act on it. Plus, it'd be a lie of he said he didn't miss the pretty pink feline. He felt a small smile tug the corners of his maw before shaking his head and pushing the thought away. He needed to focus. First impressions were important. Keeping this in mind, the militant lynx inhaled slowly as powerful hind legs bent, lowering him into a sitting position. The cold glint in his eyes and the way his chin was slightly pointed upwards in a proud manner betrayed how he really felt. The turmoil in his mind couldn't be seen from a moment's glance or a couple minutes of observation. He's learned to conceal it, but truthfully, it's not hard to detect. He was taught to never show weakness and now that he has more than a handful, Cav was unsure how to approach it. And until he can get a handle on it, he will continue to hide it as best as he could.

Drawing a pale pink tongue over his muzzle - it was purely out of habit. He was making sure there was no food on his face despite not eating in days - he steadied himself before speaking, tone deep and commanding. "Hello? Is anyone there?"

[DELILAH.]

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DELILAH EVERGARDEN
trans femme ♥ tanglewood ♥ 15 m/o

---

[div style="background-color:#F0B1DB;width:90%; overflow: stretch;text-align: justify; font-size: 8pt;"]Track for when I get home! Feel free to greet him before Delilah does!

[W]isker

[ABATHUR .]

Homes - a concept Abathur was certainly familiar with, a concept that filled people with nostalgic sickness as they cinematically looked away with a sad look in their eyes as they reminisced about the good times, a concept that some people strived for and others didn't even know they needed. He had a home, once - he was living here now, of course, and it was fine, Tanglewood was fine, but it just... wasn't right. It wasn't the place he loved, and he didn't think it would ever measure up. That was okay, of course - he could deal with that, he could live without needing the nice comfort that you got from knowing you were where you belonged, but surviving wouldn't stop him from missing it, from spending an hour of his time thinking of something fun that had happened back in the place he couldn't name, filling his eyes with a quite literal blue, a blue of sadness and dramatic homesickness. He wasn't immune to it, you know, even if he presented himself robotically with his movement and lack of emotive features or an emotive voice.

He was trying to get better with expressing himself, hopefully finding a way to get back emotional manipulation so he could properly emanate what he felt. It certainly did help when he was confronted with joiners, like the strange death machine before him, the one covered in scars that made him even more nostalgic for when his homeclan was considered overly violent, to say the least. Before it turned into more of a safe haven for people above the law, which he also didn't mind, because he loved change, and for his home to experience potential positive change was good at the time. At the time. Now it didn't matter. His home was gone and he lived in a radioactive swamp with a bunch of strange, strange people, and it couldn't feel more alien, even if he, as a relatively large spider, was used to the unknown.

The arachnid, smaller than a cat but only by a little bit, crept towards Cavalry, giving the other a foot or two of space between them to accommodate for potential fears."Greetings," the spider said, staring at the male with placid white eyes, eyes unknowing of potential misdeeds committed against them. "Subject's name,
business with Tanglewood?" His voice seemed to have a slight polite tone to it, despite it being both very deep and very cold, as cold as the phrase "name and business," cold enough to make one wonder if the seemingly friendly spider was some sort of machine. He was trying to sound cordial nonetheless, but...

Well, not all attempts were destined to succeed.

tags - "speech"

[DELILAH.]

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DELILAH EVERGARDEN
trans femme ♥ tanglewood ♥ 15 m/o

---

[div style="background-color:#F0B1DB;width:90%; overflow: stretch;text-align: justify; font-size: 8pt;"]Delilah hadn't seen Cavalrychoir in what seemed like forever, meeting the lynx felt like a dream to the pastel pink feline at this point. He said that he didn't have a home, their conversation was clear at that point. At first, she thought he was going to eat her. She probably wasn't even tasty, to be honest. She knew that she tasted like sakura, but definitely not cherries. People often mistakened her for smelling like cherries, when it was just the blossoms. It was a fruity, floral scent.

It was as if her presence brought such petals drifting through the air, thanks to her aesthetic element. The feline's cherry blossom petals were well-known throughout Tanglewood, after all. It was her signature thing, she supposed. People knew she was nearby because of the beautiful flower petals.

But Delilah had grown disgusted by her appearance. With herself.

Limping forward, Delilah walked on three legs, favoring her twisted foreleg with every step she took. Her steps were slow, unpaced, as the sullen, unawed face of Delilah showed through the undergrowth, devoid of any true emotion. She looked sad, empty. Maybe it was because of the recent event that happened, but Delilah just.. Couldn't let herself be happy. Not anytime soon.

But the pastel girl couldn't contain the faint smile that graced her features as she saw the scarred male in the distance, speeding up her uneven pace to greet him alongside Abathur. She knew Abathur would be able to feel her presence by the hairs on his legs, so she didn't rub up against him, merely flicking her tail next to his leg to signal that she was here. She didn't want to frighten anyone, after all.

"Cav," Came the relieved, soft, but cracked voice of Delilah as she spoke, a tired smile gracing her mussed features. She hadn't bathed herself since she tried to drown herself, she couldn't get herself to. So, mud covered her paws, staining her pelt with browns and greens. "It's so nice.. To see you again. What brings you here again?" Asked the fragile femme, tilting her head as she waited for a response, rubbing at the sleep marks under her eyes.

[W]isker

[VIGENERE CIPHER.]

[Morgan]

Morgan stopped inches behind Vigenere, yawning to make his presence known. The samoyed was excited to greet the newcomer, but held himself back for the sake of Delilah, who seemed to be familiar with him already. "We'll see," he whispered to the yellow cat, his gaze remaining focused on the stranger.

The canine stepped toward Delilah's side next, intending to serve as backup if needed. He sat back on his haunches, tilting his head as he asked, "What brings you to Tanglewood? Are you planning to join us?" He had no reason to believe otherwise, especially if another member of the group already knew him.

[aya]

[div style="margin: 0 auto; width: 55%; font-family: arial; font-size: 11pt; text-align: justify;"]Home was an odd subject for Aya. If you were to ask, she'd dodge the question, or avoid the subject entirely. She'd never really felt "at home" anywhere, not in the place where she was born, not even in Tanglewood. She only felt at home in the den she called a lab, surrounded by her work and projects.

Padding up beside Abathur, the tortoiseshell's eyes flit over this wildcat, waiting for the response to several questions.

[madster]

malphas knew where his home was - tanglewood, of course. he had lived here for a long time, and it was where he had found his happiness. of course... he didn't like to talk about what came before tanglewood. a home of religion and sibling favoritism, and he ran away. he was a stupid runaway, escaping as a child to come to somewhere he felt safe.

now he was here. of course, tanglewood itself wasn't safe as far as the territory went, but here he was anyways. "hi," the medic said, stretching. it was hard being nice, but he was trying his hardest not to say anything rude.

[cavalrychoir]

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[div style="background-color:;border:;width:100px;overflowtretch;font-size:8.5pt;color:darkred;text-align:left;text-transform:uppercase;font-family:trebuchet ms;margin-bottom:-10px;margin-left:5px;float:left;"]CAVALRYCHOIR—

Cav has seen many things:  three-headed snake, a dog with an eye place delicately between their brows, a bird with an extra set of wings- the list goes on. What he hadn't expected was to be approached by a giant spider. It was true Cav towered over him due to him being around the size of an average cat, but if taking the average size of spiders into consideration, Abathur was huge. The wildcat has come across spiders - the largest being a tarantula - so when dull red eyes locked onto him from a distance, he thought nothing of it. But as he decreased the distance between them, Cav inhaled sharply and dug his claws into the soft earth below to prevent himself from flinching away. Okay, okay, what the fuck?! He thought, doing his best to not inch back and instead keep his eyes locked on the arachnid. He will admit, the way he walk was both terrifying and hypnotic and he felt his breath hitch at his throat when he finally came to a stop before him. Cav has spoke to spiders, none of them replied though so it was quite lonely. But Abathur, though his speech was odd, was able to hold a conversation. The lynx couldn't help but wonder if the other spiders were able to speak too and decided to ignore him. That's fine. They're all probably dead anyways.

Choosing one eye to focus on, Cav recollected himself as he dipped his head respectfully. "Hello," he returned the greeting, carefully monitoring the words that come out of his mouth. It would be all for naught if he says the wrong thing at such a crucial time like this. There was a temporary pause as Abatur's inquiry was voiced; hesitation. Now would be the time to back out if he so desired. No one could force him to do anything he didn't want to. The only person who was in charge of him, was him. That was the problem. Cav didn't know how to command himself. He wasn't sure what he wanted either. No, he wanted stability. If he's able to stand on his feet without falling over, he could begin walking down the path to whatever he so desired. He wasn't sure but maybe Tanglewood could provide that. "My name is Cavalrychoir and I'd... Like to join." He finished, feeling his heart rate begin to speed up. This isn't a mistake. This isn't a mistake. This isn't a mistake. He repeated to himself as he stared down at the spider, appreciating the comfortable distance between them. He will grow used to this new environment, he will better himself and he will make the most of the life he was given.

Hopefully. He did his best to remain positive, but there was only so much encouraging words could do.

And then he saw it.

First it was a few, then it was many. Flower petals signaled her arrival and Cav bit down hard on his lip to stop the smile in its tracks. He was happy she was here, more so to greet him upon his arrival. If he was being honest with himself, he had grown fearful that she wouldn't be here, that she'd left before he could join. Now that he thought about it, it was a pointless thought. He could laugh at how foolish he was for thinking such a thing. He wanted to better himself and be with her, hence why he's here. "Miss Ever-" He stopped as the rest of her figure came into view. Okay, okay, what the fuck?! What the fuck?! He quickly rose to his paws as she limped over to them. There was too much to look at- to focus on. Dark luminaries first noticed the harsh contrast in the colour of mud to her pastel fur. It was hard to notice at first due to the slight angle he was in, but once he saw her twisted hind foot, he felt his lips draw back in a soft snarl. Her magenta eyes were lifeless and she looked terrible. He didn't want to jump to conclusions... God he didn't want to jump to conclusions. But seeing her in this state, it was hard as hell not to. "Who did-" He stopped mid-growl, getting a hold of his anger. Delilah had told him she wasn't the most graceful creatures, but Cav wasn't an idiot. He could tell she didn't become this way due to mere clumsiness. He needed to understand the situation better before killing anyone. "I'm joining, Miss Evergarden." He responded, tone much softer this time. "But more importantly, you don't... How did..." He didn't know what to say or how to say it. Swallowing down the lump that formed in his throat, the heavily-scarred lynx offered her a small smile before lowering his head and giving her a friendly and supportive nudge on her shoulder. He wanted to talk, but he didn't want to do it here. Taking this time to lower himself to a crouching position to better look at her, dark luminaries abruptly hardened once more when he heard another voice.

Though the question was angled at Delilah, Cav answered with a nod of his head. "I'm just an acquaintance." He said, looking back at her to see if she had anything to add. They had recently met after all and due to the lack of interaction, he wouldn't call it a friendship just yet. But hopefully they could become friends later on if Delilah would allow it. The demon, however, wasn't confident in himself to uphold such an important relationship without corrupting it in some way. Not to mention, Delilah seemed to be a wonderful person. It would do her good not to befriend an ex-murder. It would also do Cav good not to be integrated back into society but here he is. Breaking the rules too.

Red eyes shifted to watch Morgan fall into place on Delilah's other side with a question of his own. "Yes." He growled, not enjoying having to reiterate himself for a third time. After a second and a quick realization, the lynx blinked his eyes a few times and flattened his ears. Morgan wasn't here in the beginning so of course he didn't hear him. That's not something to be mad about. "S-sorry. That was uncalled for." He closed his eyes briefly before reopening them as he spoke. "I'm Cavalrychoir and yes, I'm joining if that's alright." The annoyance vanished but his deep tone remained even and respectful.

It seems as though the welcoming committee didn't end there. His attention was once again torn from the individual he was addressing to two new faces: a tortoiseshell and a manx. He studied their faces for a moment before giving the two a nod of his cranium, not speaking though acknowledging their presence.

[DELILAH.]

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DELILAH EVERGARDEN
trans femme ♥ tanglewood ♥ 15 m/o

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[div style="background-color:#F0B1DB;width:90%; overflow: stretch;text-align: justify; font-size: 8pt;"]Delilah smiled exhaustedly when Vigenere came to the scene, asking her if she knew the eurasian lynx. When Cavalrychoir replied to that question, she nodded in agreement. She didn't want to embarrass him, not in front of a bunch of other people. But, she knew how it felt to be.. Asked multiple questions over and over again, forced to hear the same ones.

At the mention of her last name, Delilah tensed. The atmosphere around her shifted, and she gave the lynx a stern glare, narrowing magenta hues towards the male. "Didn't I tell you to call me Delilah?" She scolded, trying to keep her usual sheepish attitude up, with a bit of friendliness. She didn't know how to react to his worry, but the nudge against her shoulder caused her to whine almost inaudibly, a purr passing through her throat involuntarily. He had been on her mind for so long, she wanted to see him again. But to think he was joining the tribe? That felt like a dream to her.

Her tail gently brushed against her front paws, and she fiddled with it anxiously as she thought of how to tell him what happened to her. She should tell the truth. "I got stuck in a human cage. Twisted wrong when I tried to get out of it." She briefly explained, pushing her cheek against Cav's own in a gentle greeting. She laid herself down rather roughly, her legs propped up neatly, except her twisted one, of course. The injured appendage laid straight outwards, useless to movement right now. "What, are you going to beat up a non-living item?" She joked, amusement sparkling in her eyes.

His voice was like a song to her, and she loved it. She could listen to the sweet tone all day and never grow tired of it, that was for sure.

She wouldn't answer his question which he stopped midway, and instead just pushed a paw against his lips to shush him for a moment. "I'll.. Tell you everything later. But for now, I'd like you to meet your new tribemates.. Starting from the order when they came.. Abathur, Vigenere, Morgan, Aya, and Malphas.." She introduced her friends- they were her friends, right?- to Cavalrychoir patiently, her voice cracking at the end of it. She really needed to get those antidepressants from Malphas..

"I missed seeing you around, even if we only saw each other once. And even though we met when you almost ate me." She blurted out, a soft giggle escaping her lips. Then, her voice shifted into one that even she was unfamiliar with. "Y'know, Cav? Maybe you were right.. Life does have its ways of screwing us over."

[W]isker