Basil was sitting at the bank of the Eyes with his blindfold off, staring at the black, reflective waters. The cuts over his nose were almost healed by now, but from what he could see in quick glimpses in pools of water, they had formed scars. He felt like he should be remorseful over having scars over such an obvious spot, but all he could think of was that he deserved them. They were a sign that he wasn't to be trusted, that he was a monster.

But as he stared over the pool, he thought back to Dovefeather. She didn't think he himself was a monster...just the other side of him, the curse. He hurt her badly, and he thought staying away from her would be the best thing for her. But over the days...the weeks...he didn't know how much time had passed; over time he found that the only thing he thought of was her. He wanted to find her, apologize, talk with her....maybe even use their magic together. He smiled faintly. She would have a lot to teach him, something his ego didn't mind in the least.

He missed her. He missed her quiet voice, her soft petite paws on his fur, her big bright eyes that he only caught a few glimpses of, the gentle patience she exuded. He liked being with her, and, let's face it, she was the only one who he didn't chase away with his curse.

She would be upset that the Eyes were like this, he thought. Why they were dark and so deathly cold, why it had this disturbing metamorphoses, he had no inkling, but looking over it gave him some measure of peace.

"Basil Speech" "Dovefeather Speech"

@Dovefeather

Dovefeather's paws carried her back from the conversation with her sister. Talking to Blackfeather had lifted a great weight off of her shoulders, though it left her with pebbles in her feet that made her steps heavy. There was a lot to think about, more questions stirring in her mind than ever before. It was reassuring to know she had her sisters to fall back on, a constant support group she could rely on... But when it came to her heart, she knew that she would simply have to trust her instinct and what the All Mother showed her.

She longed to return to the cool glow of Macawi's stick in her nest. The sight of a saved kyanite gem, nestled in the safety of her bed, too. She wanted to see all of the items she had gathered along the way before she set off, determined to carve her path in life.

... The feline had not expected to see a familiar silhouette at the edge of the Mother's closed Eyes. At first, she simply thought she was seeing things, and went to speak a word of caution,

"Don't touch the waters--"

But as her words reached out to the striped canine, she could taste the scent in the air. The familiar smell of the muck-- just like Cetus. Her body froze up, her tail bristling all the way up to her spine and the scruff around her neck. There was no mistaking it...

"--... I... I wasn't expecting you to be here, Basil."

Her golden eyes lit up, her ears pricking, a fluttering warmth spreading through her curly coat... And then, almost like an after thought, more words stumbled out of her mouth before she could even help herself. The sentence wriggled out and she stepped forward, paws clawing at the earth, clenching her jaw shut as though she could return the words back to her throat.

"I really missed you."

"Basil Speech" "Dovefeather Speech"

@Basil

He heard her voice just as he was thinking of her, and his ears flickered to the source of it as his traitorous body turned - but he stopped himself, scrabbling for his blindfold, quickly shutting his eyes tight. He listened to her while he put it back over his eyes, only feeling relaxed when it settled against his eyelids.

After a bit of silence, he turned to her and said, "I missed you too, Dove."

He wanted to go to her, wanted to feel her fur against his, wanted to see her eyes, but he kept himself on the bank of the Eyes, his limbs stiff with the effort of controlling them. All he wanted to do was run to her, but he couldn't. He kept the distance, even though he didn't want to. "I've been thinking about you. I....I like coming here. It's peaceful." I only like it because it reminds me of you, he thought, but he kept that to himself. "But it wasn't until recently that it turned black. What happened? Does it have something to do with your All Mother?"

He kept his tone conversational, offering the topic, hoping for anything to distract him.

"Basil Speech" "Dovefeather Speech"

@Dovefeather

Dovefeather could feel every hair on her skin prickle as Basil went to move, but she found her strength to hold her ground long enough to realize the fluffy striped carnivore was going for his blindfold. It took a moment, but he fastened the strap to his eyes and she knew, miserably, that she was safe now. Her golden gaze turned to her paws as she stood, quietly, waiting for him to reply. His body turned towards her, silence stretching between them like the eternity she had waited was repeating itself once more.

And then, he spoke. Simple words, small words.

"I missed you too, Dove."

The feline's eyes shut tightly, feeling a stinging in them and an ache that hurt her chest so much that it rose up to her throat. It was like she was choking, but her body felt no need to cough, only to sob. There was a hesitance between them, as though a great river rapid swept a course through the empty air in front of them.

"I've been thinking about you. I....I like coming here. It's peaceful."

Dovefeather raised a paw, holding her breath as she thought about daring to step into the invisible depths that would, inevitably, sweep her off of her feet.

"But it wasn't until recently that it turned black.
What happened? Does it have something to do with your All Mother?"

The words out of his mouth drew her back to reality, away from the pain of what she wanted and what she could reasonably have. She raised her vision to meet his eyes, and instead found a disgustingly comfortable reminder of that strap that kept them together-apart, safe but not honest.

Despite that, she let herself have a morose, weak smile on her maw as she drew closer to him. She walked right on over, knowing her claws clicking on the stone-- she couldn't sheath them even if she wanted to-- would tell him she was approaching. She didn't stop in front of him, however, instead moving to his side, to the edge of the pool.

"The All Mother is sick. I have asked my sister about it, and she agrees... Something is indeed wrong."

Dovefeather replied softly, letting herself feel the warmth of the larger gembound-- inches away, almost touching. She had missed him so much, even if he smelled like he had fallen into a swamp more times than the All mother could count.

"It is my duty to find out, to Seek the truth on this matter, but... To be honest, I've had a hard time thinking about it... Much less doing anything to help Her."

The feline stared into the depths of the pool, its inky black surface appearing more like tar than water. It made her feel ill to even look at, knowing that somehow she was failing the All Mother. Her sister had cheered her up, reassured her, but still the feeling of inadequacy filled her. Truthfully, all she wished to do was enjoy the company of Basil and... Well, forget her troubles.

"Basil Speech" "Dovefeather Speech"

@Basil

He heard her walk towards him, her claws clicking on the ground - good. She should have her defenses up around him. He should say the same, that this conversational tone between them was enough to keep him from wanting, but it wasn't. He listened to her, his ears and his nose pointed towards he voice, but in between her words he only thought of her beautiful gold eyes and how he wanted to lean in close to her and feel her fur against his.

He couldn't - he shouldn't - doing so gave his demon more power over him, and it made it worse. But the desire was there, festering in him, and he couldn't do anything about it.

He ignored the burning need in him to feel her close, and instead focused on her words.

"....Why is that, Dove? I thought the All Mother was everything to you." He frowned. What could keep her from trying to fix this...black sludge the Eyes had become?

"Basil Speech" "Dovefeather Speech"

@Dovefeather

Dovefeather turned her eyes up towards Basil when he asked why, sounding so sincerely baffled. She opened her mouth to speak, but her voice caught in her throat. What she wanted to say was selfish, perhaps even cruel. If she admitted it to him now, like she wanted to, it would only mean hurting both of them more.

"... Basil, I..."

She reached her paw forward, gently placing it upon Basil's own. She could feel every fiber of her being setting fire, but she knew the All Mother wouldn't want her to back away from this.

Or, perhaps, that was just her excuse.

"I wanted to go find you, instead."

She closed her eyes, instead of watching his expression, she mimicked his handicap. It wasn't fair. This world the All Mother had brought her into was cruel and harsh. So much so that She Herself had been poisoned.

"I traveled out of Our Home, pretending to Seek the Truth. I lied to myself, to others, doing my best to See as the All Mother did... But I never forgot. I tried to escape it, to be a good Daughter of the All Mother, but Basil..."

Dovefeather had accepted this. She drew herself into it. The world wasn't fair... But she could be. The feline would blind herself and in doing so, allow Basil to be close to her. It was what they both wanted, wasn't it?

"I don't think I could handle it if you left again... Do you understand?"


"Basil Speech" "Dovefeather Speech"

@Basil

Her soft voice speaking his name and her paw over his sent an electric thrill down his spine, and where it shocked him, his fur rose, his skin prickling. His heart started to race. What was she saying?

"I wanted to go find you, instead,"

His heart lurched in its cage, and felt like it wanted to wrench in two. All he wanted was to hear her say that, for her to want him, for her to never leave him, to always stay and soothe his tired coward's soul, and at the same time he feared it. Why did she want to be around him? He was an ugly messed up monster that had every capability of hurting her, and his one true way to keep her from getting hurt was staying away from her.

She called his name again, asking him, begging him to stay with her, and he shivered with the inner battle raging inside. To stay with her was all he ever wanted; the safety and comfort of someone who cared for him and actually wanted him around for himself. No one had ever given that to him, and now that he'd found it....

....he had to keep her safe. He cared about her too much to put her in danger.

No, a part of him cried, There has to be another way,

".....Dove...I understand. I do. I agree." He leaned into her, his nose seeking her warmth, the soft smell of her. "I don't...I don't want to leave either. But I'm a danger to you, Dove. A simple mistake could get you hurt, and I couldn't bear that either."

He paused. Swallowed. For her, he would...."I...want you to blind me, Dove." He said softly, sighing into her fur. His paw gripped hers. "So I can't hurt you."

"Basil Speech" "Dovefeather Speech"

@Dovefeather

For a moment, the silence hung in the air, and then Basil spoke, so softly. Speaking her name, saying he understood... Agreeing. The feline jumped slightly as his body touched her own, as she felt the stir of his breath on her fur. Her ears pricked as she leaned back into him, keeping her eyes shut tight like a child waiting for a gift that had to be accepted as a surprise.

But there was no gift. Basil spoke of danger, the painful ache in her heart told her that she knew it all too well. There was the devil, the monster, that turned her Basil into something that she could not bare to face. If Basil was a coward, than she too was a mouse of the same tail. As Basil swallowed and forced out his next sentence, asking her to blind him, she felt her tongue go numb in her mouth, feeling his breath rush over her fur once more. She could feel his paw on her own, holding her, keeping her close, just where she wanted to be.

A part of Dovefeather remembered the sick thrill of suddenly being hampered-- of not being able to hear, because of Basil's magic. Her fear of Basil had left her unable to bask in the glory of being blind, but had things been different, the feline thought that she might enjoy being blind. It would bring her closer to the All Mother, the light that glistened through the trees promised with the gentle whisper of the leaves in the wind.

Dovefeather had no intention of telling Basil that if he were to be blinded, she would want to be as well. That even if she had to claw her own eyes out and force her sisters away to make sure it stuck, that she would never see again, she would do it in a heartbeat.

... But another part of her resisted. Another part of her didn't want to hurt Basil, to be so selfish as to keep him from seeing her. He had so loved her magic, and while she strived to be closer to the All Mother, what would he have with his blindness? Only her. Was that good enough? Was it worth it?

It wasn't exactly her choice. She parted her maw, and breathed,

"if you're sure."

The feline rose to her paws, taking a timid step back. There was no fuss, no worry, no anything. She was willing to do whatever it took to make Basil happy, and if this what what it took, then they could be blind together. Surely they could make it work... And then they could be happy together.

"Just... Let me know when you're ready."

Blackfeather spoke of love, love for the All Mother. Love being a good, wholesome thing, something that the All Mother wanted her and her sisters to have. That love was something worth fighting for, that it was likely in line with the path the All Mother willed her to follow. Dovefeather didn't know a lot about love, but she knew one thing.

She was willing to sacrifice anything by the love of the All Mother, and so to was it the same when it came to the love she held for Basil. If it was selfish, then she would let her love be selfish. The rex gathered her courage, and silently sent a prayer to the All Mother, wishing for Her Blessing for their love.

"Basil Speech" "Dovefeather Speech"

@Basil

She told him she would do it, and with an exhalation of his breath, he grew afraid. He didn't want to be permanently blind, to never see her again, to never see her magic, her eyes, her soft smile. He wanted to see her and be himself and not be afraid of losing his tattered mind.

But that couldn't happen. Even her reflection triggered him. The demon in him had to be suppressed and locked away, and if that meant sacrificing a part of himself for her....he would.

He heard her come close, felt her soft breath on his cheeks, her hesitance, her fear, and knew she was ready to blind him. He let her take the blindfold off, and for a split second, he saw her, with her teeth shining, her look of concern.

"Don't." The other voice, the demon voice, said. He just smiled at her, his slick smile giving her pause. "Basil's an idiot. If you blind me, I'll find another way to take control. It'll be his hearing next, just the sound of your voice allowing me to take over. Then when he's deaf, it'll be your touch. And by that point, even the thought of you will let me in. I'm getting stronger already, Dove, and you know it."

He grinned. "I like looking at you, and so does he. Don't deny us that."

"Basil Speech" "Dovefeather Speech"

The loamy shore broke under Dovefeather's hind claws as she pushed back the blindfold and unleashed the beast inside of Basil. He did not, immediately, go for her like he had before. This time, the demon seemed to being trying to bargain with her. She felt a lump in her throat as his deep voice twisted into sultry tones, brushing her fur in all the wrong ways. She swallowed her fears and met his deep, dark eyes.

"O All Mother, give me strength,"

She hissed, entirely to herself, as she thought about attacking the demon. She knew all too well that the wounds she inflicted on him would hurt Basil just as deeply-- and so she sheathed her claws once more, straightening her back and forcing her fur down.

"If you weren't so selfish, demon, you know I wouldn't have to do this. You're a coward, hiding behind your vices, and you will never replace my Basil. He is willing to sacrifice anything... And so am I."

She told him this decisively, but something kept her back, kept her from unleashing her light. A different sensation crawled across her pelt, as though some invisible force was pulling a blanket over her fur. Before she knew it, a darkness had crept over her fur and turned her shape blurry and blackened, leaving only her piercing pale gaze staring out at him from under her shadows.

"Basil Speech" "Dovefeather Speech"

@Basil