raging waters

W

ar was over, but she could not heal the lands. There was a great divide among the wolves, seemingly more so than there was before. Calla did not like it, but she had picked her side, and she would continue to stay tight to her beliefs. The female wandered from the barracks, after checking on some of her patients. They needed her, some still needing help with physical therapy. Some of them returned with worse wounds than others, some came back with barely a scratch. War was this way, it was ugly and sickening. The healer needed a break, time to be away from the horrible memories of the world's implosion. Calla took careful steps, making sure she did not accidentally stir any of them awake. The last thing she wanted was for one of them to wake up and stop her from leaving.

Deciding to take a trip to the water, she did just that. Her steps were casual, though she could not free her mind of everything she would need to do in the coming days and weeks. Work would never end for her. She enjoyed saving lives, and she liked to know that she was actually helping. As the salty smell of the ocean's breeze crossed her nose, her eyes shot up - alert. This was what she had come to see and she was about to miss it. Gone were the worries of tomorrow, now that her eyes were gazing upon the sea. The large waves crashed themselves against the rocks, and she wished that she could be closer. She wished that she could feel the chill on her skin. She stood on the edge, closing her eyes and sniffing the air delicately, finally feeling at peace if only for a second.

anyone can join!

code by Yahtzee-Penguiduck

TIAMAT Sethos had returned back to the Tiamat Manse, where he was doted on by the resident medics and other personnel to ensure he made a speedy recovery. He had his siblings, and their spouses, and the children as well. It was nice, but Sethos still felt... alone, despite being surrounded by family. Everyone but his mother, it seemed. And it was her company that he craved the most, especially now, as the face of the woman he murdered flashed in his mind in his nightmares every night. And so he left, his stiff body limping along through the streets until he was far away from his home. The loud sounds of the merchants made his ears ring, and he found himself almost irritable. He felt so unlike himself, like a shell of the man he once was, and now as he roamed the streets he wasn't exactly sure what he was searching for. He walked and walked and walked, until the streets disappeared and the crashing of waves instead replaced the yelling. A reprieve. There was a figure standing near the edge; her form pale and monochromatic, nearly blending in with the blanket of snow upon the ground. He knew who she was immediately - his own personal nurse, one far better than any who had tended him back in the Manse. Approaching her slowly from behind, he joined her side in silence, letting it hang over the both of them as he looked out over the cliffside into the vast ocean. "Beautiful, isn't it?" he asked then, loud enough to be heard over the roaring of the crashing waves below. He sat, unable to hold his hind end up for very long in a standing position, already feeling the ache of his injuries in the depths of his bones.

art ▸ ashon ☓ table ▸ bunny

T

he male's voice pulled her from the silence around her. Yes, the waves were crashing loudly, but she had been able to lock them out. But his voice, she could not stop it, nor would she want to. Their first meeting was not only of chance, but a purpose. She had helped him to heal after a hard battle, but more would come after that and she did not see him for a while. She told herself that their interaction was nothing special, trying to sway her from the feelings of it possibly being something more. How could an officer like him like a female of her status? The Tiamat name was well known among the ranks, and they had a special superior air about them. But she did not get that from Sethos. He seemed to be different from the others. Calla turned her head slightly to the side, so that she could see the honey-kissed male beside her. She gave a soft nod of her head at his question.

She had noticed him sit down almost immediately, and the way that he lowered himself, it was something she could not ignore. She couldn't turn it off. "Sethos... what ails you?" It was a silly question. He was a champion, a fighter, a soldier. She had also heard of the passing of his relative, though she did not know how they were related, just in sharing the last name. "I mean... with sitting down..." she said sheepishly. She didn't want to pry into his personal life unless he wanted to share that information with her. She was good with bodily wounds, but healing a heart that had been broken was something she was not familiar with. She had never felt such a feeling before. How could she help another with such a thing? "What beckons you to the ocean?" she asked curiously.

@Sethos

code by Yahtzee-Penguiduck

TIAMAT Thankfully, he didn't spook her. Instead, Calla greeted him as if she was expecting someone to approach, though he knew that most who came here were doing so in an effort to clear their heads or wash their paws of whatever was troubling them. The roar of the crashing waves from the ocean provided a therapeutic static while one sorted through their mind. Calla, however, simply answered his question with a nod before responding with a stumbling question of her own. So his new impairment hadn't gone unnoticed - he shouldn't be surprised, being that he decided to seek the company of a medical professional and not someone less... educated. A sheepish smile graced his features, breaking through the sorrow that had frozen a mask over his sculpted face. "The battlefield has taken part of my mobility, Calla." he explained, loud enough to rise above the waves but still quiet somehow, as was typical of the Tiamat man. "I... suffered a spinal injury. Sometimes I wake up a paraplegic, sometimes I just have pain, sometimes I'm fine. It's a guessing game with every new morning." he breathed in, letting out a sigh as he processed his own words. Each time he said it, it was getting easier to accept... but not by much. He wasn't even sure if he'd be able to remain in the military, but that was a thought for another day. "What beckons you to the ocean?" she asked then, and he shrugged. "This is the farthest I've walked from the Manse since the war - I figured I should find somewhere beautiful, in case I couldn't go out again." he paused for a moment, turning his head - somewhat stiffly - to look at her face with glittering, fiery eyes. His smile broadened a little; shy still. "I'm pleased to have found such a scene with you here. I was wondering when we'd see each other again - the battles must have kept you quite busy." he tried not to think too much about it all - all the deaths, both around him and caused by his paw.

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TW: Mentions of drug use

L

istening to his explanation of things, Calla could not stop herself from turning her head to fully examine him now. The softness that was in her eyes before was now replaced with concern for him. That was not the life designed for a war hero. She knew that it was because of his efforts, they had won. Her eyes moved to look at his legs. It had seemed the muscle density had changed since the last time they had been near one another. His body was proving his words to be true. She felt terrible for him, and partially as though it was her fault. She should have been the one to help him, and maybe - he would have been better off. But then she did not want to slight the ones who had been able to save some of his mobility. What if they had done their best? She could only imagine what sort of injuries would be able to do this kind of damage to something so talented.

"Sethos..." her voice was soft, barely louder than the waves beneath them. "I am so sorry. I wish there was something I could do. Do you feel pain?" There was something she could do for that in the very least. There was a special flower she knew of with very special properties. If they consumed this flower or even just smelled the smoke of it burning, they would feel no pain. It could be a peaceful existence that Sethos might need, and Calla, as a medical professional, would be more than happy to assist him in such a manner. As he continued to speak, he would tell her that the reason she had not been seeing him, was because he was living in their manor. He was home with his family, which after such hard battles - it made sense.

Their eyes met, and Calla could feel her cheeks warming beneath her winter coat. His fiery eyes were a beautiful contrast to the muted green tones hers possessed. She could not help but to smile to him, and her eyes locked onto his. "I came her to find solace, but it seems fate had other plans for me." She gave a soft chuckle as he mentioned finding this place with her, not that it was funny - but she was nervous. Give her a body that was bleeding out, and she would be calm as a cucumber. But this was a new situation she had never come across before. "It is a pleasure to share in the beauty with someone like you." She gave a gentle nod of her head. "Yes, I was very busy. I went through a lot of my supplies, so most recently, I have been bulking my stock back up. I am just glad the outcome was positive on our side of things."

Her words said one thing, but her mind pulled her to the male and female in their jail that she assisted. He never really did come to trust her, and really she could not blame him. They were supposed to be enemies, but she believed that many of the younger Jacobites were sucked into an adults' war that they did not understand what they were truly doing. They were fighting in the name of some male who said he was supposed to be king. It wasn't right. She wasn't sure if she should speak about politics with him, or her ideas. He had given his body to the fight, given his body to the crown. She could not simply trash talk what he had done because she felt the war was not all that necessary. "Things should be slowing down. If you want help with physical therapy, I would be more than happy to help you."

@Sethos

code by Yahtzee-Penguiduck

TIAMAT She spoke, her voice soft and calming. An apology left her lips, and he had to stop himself from wincing. All he had experienced since returning is others' pity and sympathy. It was beginning to grate at him, and as much as he knew Calla didn't mean it, it still spurred a small flare of anger. No reflection of this emotion flickered across his face, however. He was steady; careful to paint a mask of casual indifference or quiet amusement. Calla mentioned wanting to be able to help, or be able to do, and he simply shook his head. Nothing could fix what was now broken. "Do you feel pain?" Wasn't that obvious? Sethos blinked, startled at his own thought. The voice that spoke it wasn't.. exactly his, either. Not the one he usually heard at least when he thought to himself. Panic threatened to clutch at his heart, but he exercised his training to shove the unwanted thoughts away, at least for now, and instead force a smile to his lips as he nodded. "Yes, more often than I'd care to admit," he replied, his tone a tad too strained. The man would pay no mind if she showed any suspicion though, instead listening intently in an attempt to forget what he had just experienced. And Calla obliged, even if she didn't know what he was seeking. He focused on her words, nodding here and there to show he was listening. He could just imagine how quickly she would have ran through her supply of herbs and ingredients, of how many injured wolves were tossed her way to bend back together. He wondered if she came across anyone he knew. "I am just glad the outcome was positive on our side of things." Another forced smile was upon her lips, a stiff nod accompanying it. Because yes, of course he was also glad for this positive outcome; that the Imperial Army had decimated their enemy and sent them running back to the Highlands. He should feel victorious, like the hero that Calla saw in him. And yet he felt empty, as if his heart had left his ribcage that was torn open back on the battlefield. He figured some would call this PTSD. All he could think about was how he had murdered a woman out there, only in an effort to save his own life. Was she any different? Did she have a family, like he did? Did she know what or who she was fighting for? Sethos swallowed, blinking again to erase the distant, foggy look in his eyes before she noticed. Her voice pulled him back to reality with the offer of physical therapy. "That would be nice, Calla. I don't know if I'm in a state yet to start, but perhaps soon. Maybe give me a couple more weeks, and come by the Tiamat Manse when you get a chance." another smile, this one more genuine as he paused. "Are there any supplies you are still short on? Wherever you get them from, tell them to bill me. I'll cover it - it's the least I can do in repayment of you patching me up last time. It helped me... be as strong as I could have been for the following battle." The following battle, where he had dealt a fatal blow to a woman that ended in her death. The weight of her body falling limp against him, the smell of her blood as it gushed from her body in unholy amounts, the way her eyes immediately glazed over. They were all memories still so very fresh; so vivid that he had a hard time remembering where he was at night.

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H

er question was deeper than she let on. Yes, they were speaking about his physical pain, but she meant emotionally as well. Had he been dealing with the losses his family had suffered? She was not sure. She didn't know the way to ask him without trying to trudge through whatever was hurting him. It was good to speak of things, to get the pain off your chest and out of your heart, but it could not completely heal what was taken far too soon. If he wanted to talk about it, he would.... right? She was so unsure. She had only seen him a few times and in those times, it was to do a service for him, to help him heal and feel better. She was there at the funeral for his mother. She knew he was hurting deeply from it, though she had never lost either of her parents. There was no denying it was a terrible thing to go through. Calla looked to him for a few seconds and then back to the water. "If there is anything bothering you... internally... I can help with that as well..."

Something was off with Mr. Tiamat. She could tell from the few interactions they had been apart of. Her eyes watched him carefully, trying to pinpoint exactly what was wrong with him. She had to wonder if he was re-living the fights he endured. PTSD was a real thing, and something she had seen in a few others before. It was a terrible thing to suffer from and she felt that it was one of the ones she truly didn't know how to help with it. "Of course, when you are feeling a little better. But try not to wait too long. If the injury prevents you from being able to walk and it stays like that for a long time, the effects could be...." Saying the word was not something she really felt like the right time to say. Just thinking of the effects that would have, him being removed from the Army, forced to retire, and all of the issues he would come across not just physically - but socially. She was very worried for him, but talking and thinking about that was not going to fix his situation.

"I would greatly appreciate that. I can get a list for you. I don't want to put you out, so it will be short." She smiled to him. Coming out here and clearing their heads was nice. She had ruined it with her occupational talk. It was hard for Calla to shut it off. She was trying her best to think of a light-hearted thing to share with him. Her paws gingerly pressed and released on the ground as she thought of something nervously. "So ummm, what have you been doing in your free time?"

@Sethos

code by Yahtzee-Penguiduck