The demon frowned at her little speech, and he prepared to really pour on the sugar-coated lies; he didn't want his vessel damaged, and these idiots were planning on ruining it. "Now, Dove, just listen-" He started.

But then she was readying something neither of them had seen before, and the fur on his hackles rose, his claws sinking into the loamy ground. She was going to blind him, and he couldn't look away, otherwise he'd give control to that cowering idiot, Basil.

He backed away from her a half-step, grinning, his mouth twitching. "C-come on, can't we just talk rationally about this? I'm telling you that blinding us is a bad idea for the both of you."

He clutched to the idea like a drowning man at sea. "And if you block his eyes and start him down that slippery slope, he'll eventually be lost entirely to me. Do you want that? He loves you; would you really do that to him?"

His muscles tensed, his claws ready; if she really was going to blind him....

"Basil Speech" "Dovefeather Speech"

Where once Dovefeather felt fear, now she brewed animosity and strength. A sick, twisted smile twitched across her muzzle as he backed away and she took a step forward, feeling a surge of bravery through her body. She felt safe, protected by the All Mother, as the demon hesitated and begged.

"I don't know, would I?"

She asked him, her tail twitching. Her lips drew back into a wild grin, her pearly teeth glistening from under the shadows. She wasn't afraid of a coward like him-- he held no power over her. She would tear him away from her Basil and feed him to the depths of the All Mother's poisoned eyes.

"You forget he asked me to do this. Moreover, your lies are meaningless to me. If you really could take control when he was blind, the blindfold wouldn't work. You're powerless before me and you know it."

And she reached with her magic, trying to spread the blanket of darkness around her and plunge them into darkness... But for now, the All Mother held her back. She twitched, power slipping through her paws, but then a gentle purr rose up in her chest. She began to rumble, a gentle laugh coming from her throat.

"If you were smart, you'd let Basil back in control. It's the only way I'll ever let you stay. If you refuse, I'll blind you forever."

"Basil Speech" "Dovefeather Speech"

@Basil

She was getting ready to take his eyes, and the demon hissed, his face scrunching up. He would never give up control to that idiot! All he did was run and hide and whine about his pathetic life, getting himself into stupid, life-threatening situations and constantly blocking him out! He wanted to live, he wanted to make his own choices, not sit in the backseat to a driver that constantly crashed.

No, he would treat this body right. He would take a bath, for one, he would take care of his fur and his eating habits rather than eating ants off of logs in a hurry to be somewhere, he wouldn't constantly starve the both of them out of fear that someone would show up; he would live.

He would flirt outrageously with every woman he saw, snuggling up to them with his smooth words and his sleek coat, and all the ladies would love him and swoon whenever he walked into the room.

And this woman dared to take that away from him!

"Never!" He swiped a claw over her face, lightly grazing her nose, making her flinch, and he scrambled away backwards, sure to keep his eyes on her, his head low, his fur completely on edge.

"You get away from me, you hellcat! I'll never let him go, never!" He saw the pitch black pool out of the corner of his eye and he started walking towards it. "And if you persist and blind us, I'll fight with every ounce in me and drown the both of us. There is nothing to live for if not to see."

He took one step in the black waters and instantly cried out at the stealing cold that leached every ounce of warmth from him - but he took another step into it, then another, all the while keeping eye contact with her. He actually had no idea if blinding him would keep him from taking control; but he knew that if he couldn't see a pretty woman, there was no point in living, and if he could, he would take Basil out with him.

"Basil Speech" "Dovefeather Speech"

@Dovefeather

There was a low, quiet, boiling disaster at the core of Dovefeather. A sickness that spread through her veins and infected her with the poison that the All Mother's Eyes were drenched in. For a moment, she reveled in it, almost manic with the sensation of power. Go on, she whispered, let me destroy his eyes, All Mother, let me show him we are devoted to you. We could become as you are.

... But the All Mother did not react to her prideful, vengeful whispers. She called her bluff, snickering, telling the Demon Basil she'd blind him with ease. The aardwolf lashed out in response, and she stumbled, falling back a step. Blood seeped on to the flesh of her nose, but although it stung, it was hardly a wound at all. In fact, a tiny part of her told her it only brought them closer. They were more alike now.

His words, however, grounded the feline. She blinked her pale eyes, a spell breaking and releasing her from that quiet, floating high.

"You're a coward!"

She hissed those words at him again, stepping away from the eyes. His paws were in the water, and she knew all too well that if he fell in she could not save him. He would drown, and she would have to watch.

Had the All Mother held her back, knowing the demon was going to kill him, had she succeeded? She almost didn't want to give Her enough credit for that, but she swallowed the rude thought and focused. Dovefeather had to save Basil somehow. The words escaped her, the blood dripping down her muzzle. It was hardly more than a pinprick, but it distracted her.

"... Why are you doing this? Just let me... us... be happy,"

She breathed the words, her fur prickling, an ounce of frustration away from just running away. She couldn't have her Basil, and he couldn't have her. This thing... If it wanted women, why didn't it just compromise? She wished she still felt afraid of the demon, fear was easier to come to grips with.

The emotions running through her now were confusing, overwhelming. Elated, savage, confounded, raw, precarious... Drowning. She felt like she was drowning. Even with the All Mother guiding her paws, with all the strength in the world, she couldn't save Basil. She simply did not know how.

And it hurt her worse than any cut.

"Basil Speech" "Dovefeather Speech"

@Basil

He looked at her in sudden disbelief, shock from her softspoken words distracting him from the biting cold in his feet.

"Why am I doing this..." He laughed, cold and cruel. "How would you feel if the person in control of your body was a complete and utter idiot? Here you are, threatening to destroy my only access to the outside world, and you ask me why?! I tell you that life isn't worth living without my eyes, and you ask me WHY?!" He roared, snarling, ready to fight.

"I HATE Basil, don't you understand?!" He took two more steps into the water, the bitter cold reaching up to his shins now. "He's a filthy, mindless, gutless coward with no redeeming qualities, and let's face it, Dove, the only reason he fascinates you is because of me. I should be the one in control, not him! I have to watch him flail around and fail and squander every gift he's ever been given and run from everything like a cave rat, and when I try to take control, suddenly I'm the bad guy!?"

He was panting now, finally letting his grievances and his frustration out into the world. "My name is Sorrel. And I will either have my eyes intact, or die."

"Basil Speech" "Dovefeather Speech"

The thing about drowning is that the reflex reaction is to scramble for a surface. Once the water gets in your lungs, everything goes from bad to worse and Dovefeather couldn't get her paws to tread water. Instinct and cowardice told her to flee, to break line of sight and hide, so Basil could save himself where she had failed.

But how could Dovefeather face him again, having failed to blind him for a second time? Having failed to give him that peace? Her pale eyes were locked on his legs, water swallowing up his limbs. There was no way they hadn't started to go numb from the icy, toxic water. The All Mother would take him.

The cat was torn. In the end, she didn't know how to save Basil from this-- not now, anyway. Her mind took hold of the devil's words, forcing herself mechanically to listen and comprhend. She had to find a way out of this, at least temporarily. Sorrel. Of all the things she had learned growing up, the most important moral was about not placing your trust in others fully. There was one thing she did trust about Basil and Sorrel, however. Basil was mistrusting, fearful, but in the end kind and warm. When she looked in his eyes and saw Sorrel for the first time, there was none of that. The aardwolf devil was liar (though even liars could tell the truth, and she was sure when he said he hated Basil that he was being truthful) and dangerous, unafraid of killing and hurting if he had to. She knew this, deep in her gut, and she reminded herself of this firmly as she swallowed his words and did her best to understand him.

There was no way of getting out of this without pulling the devil closer, letting him have something. She did not want to let him win-- and she still wasn't scared of him so much as she was scared for Basil-- and in turn she didn't even want to let him think he had won. Something told her that if Sorrel thought he had won, then Basil might think the same. They shared the same body, after all, and some thoughts must cross. How else would Basil have had any idea about the devil in the first place?

"Sorrel, please,"

She mewled at last, ears laying back on her head. She shrunk down, taking another timid step back into the tree lines. She forced herself to meet his eyes once more and felt her stomach twist. If it hadn't been a life or death situation, she might have tried to coax Basil out... But even with the All Mother's help, a man on the edge was still just one gentle breeze from toppling off of the cliff side.

"I don't want you to die. Please, don't do this... Just... Come out of there, okay? If you stay in much longer you'll... You'll... Sorrel, you don't want to die like that! It's awful. Please."

"Basil Speech" "Dovefeather Speech"

@Basil

His teeth were chattering by now, and he couldn't feel his feet at all. He would soon start to convulsively shiver if he didn't get out, no matter how bravely he pretended to act.

"Stop your whining," He bit off, disgust in his squinted eyes. "I don't buy it for a second. You want me mutilated, you were enjoying this - this powerplay not a few minutes ago. You just want me out of this water and then you'll claw my eyes out, won't you?"

He spat at her, his teeth bared. "Well, go to hell! Your words mean nothing to me...." He grimaced. "But they mean everything to him. Swear on the All Mother, swear to Basil, that you won't take our eyes and I'll let him go."

Is she promised it to Basil, Basil with his old, youthful notions of chivalry would never let her back down on her word. Sorrel knew this change of hands, this hostage situation, was only temporary, and he needed to know that Basil wouldn't screw it up again when he wasn't in control.

"Basil Speech" "Dovefeather Speech"

Dovefeather flinched at Sorrel's first biting words. She didn't know how much she was trying to play him compared to how much she was playing herself. The feline didn't know what feelings and words were real or false-- she was willing to say anything to save Basil, but to what end? Everything in her body and spirit wanted to take the aardwolf's eyes, perhaps simply out of spite now. It almost wasn't even about Basil anymore... Or was it?

Why did Dovefeather want so badly to believe that somehow, someway, both Basil and Sorrel were truthful, honest creatures? Sorrel had lied to her but now he sounded sincere as he bitterly and stubbornly waited for his paws to fall off. She was sure Basil was going to die of hypothermia if nothing else if she didn't act fast.

The cat didn't even think. She didn't have time. She simply hissed her words at Sorrel, desperate as though she was the one being shoved under the icy water of her Mother's closed eyes.

"Fine! I swear, Sorrel, I swear on the All Mother, I won't take your eyes."

Dovefeather raised a paw to the feather at her ear, accidently clawing at the tattered, faintly glowing trinket in her ears.

"I will swear to Basil if you give him back to me; I swear on the very feather sign the All Mother bestowed upon me."

"Just, All Mother's Damnation, get out of that water!"

Did she mean it? She didn't want to mean it. She felt as though she had no choice in the matter, forced to take the paw of the crazed man on the cliff, hoping he'd pull her up instead of tossing them both down the ravine. It was incredibly uncomfortable, and her whole body shook from the effort to keep from breaking down.

"Basil Speech" "Dovefeather Speech"

@Basil

As she was speaking, he took another step back, just in case she would lunge at him, and the distance between them now was such that she couldn't reach him in time for him to kill the both of them even if she wanted to, just in case she was lying or planning to take his eyes anyway. He felt something with his back paws, though, and he stopped abruptly.

But then he heard her, and he nodded. Good, this was - good. That was enough. From what he understood of Dove, for as much as they both had known her, both her All Mother and her feather were important to her, and she wouldn't forsake them both. Neither would Basil let her. The demon relaxed visibly, her muscles going slack, and he let loose the bravado he was showing and let the cold shake his limbs violently. He had almost lost feeling in all his legs now completely, and his breath was coming short and ragged, like he couldn't get enough to breathe.

But he looked....odd, now. At peace, it seemed. His face wasn't scrunched up in disgust or slick and seductive - it was different than Basil's tired, weary wisdom. It was....pure. He smiled at Dovefeather, drinking in every last drop of her, then said, controlling his clacking teeth for just one sentence,

"Then come and save him, now,"

Then he closed his eyes and fell back into the Eyes where he had previously felt the shelf below him drop into the abyss.

Save him from me.

"Basil Speech" "Dovefeather Speech"

Her body screamed. She was pretty sure she was screaming too, physically, verbally, straight from her vocal cords, piercing the forest. If she was paying any attention to anything else, she might have heard a flock of the All Mother's birds scatter through the forest canopy. As it was, her yowls shook through her body and everything in her screamed to run away.

Let the waters take him. Give him to the All Mother, sacrifice him for Her, give her your everything and get one step closer to Her Glory. In was more than that, however-- there was a wild, feral panic that drove her to scatter into the brambles, and when she finally let the urge to run away and flee like the cowardly feline she truly was underneath it all...

... Dovefeather wasn't sure why she was plunging into water.

Her whole entirety, sense of preservation, loyality to her All Mother, told her to flee into the forest. The icy liquid swallowed her whole. Somehow, the sensation of drowning melted away, even as her jaws parted and she let the sickness of her aeonian parent rushing through her teeth. There was a clear disconnect from what she was doing, what her body wanted her to do, what she thought she was acting upon and what was actually happening.

And yet at the same time she could clearly See everything. She knew that she was running away, and somehow this meant charging into the depths of the closed Eyes. She knew that she was leaving Basil for the All Mother, yet surging down to... To join him.

As her teeth sank into the scruff of Basil's fur-- she hoped it was his scruff-- she could already feel the urge to give up flying through her. The sickness of the Eyes took away her sensation of touch, replacing her nerves with a frozen wasteland inside her husk of a body. A purr ruptured through her body, a laughter that she couldn't quite carry out because she was clutching on to his pelt. Dovefeather kept running, kicking against the suction of the pool's seemingly endless depth.

The cat clung to the idea that she was running away from everything. She gently brushed up against the idea of sacrificing herself along side Basil. The idea that for better or worse, she would run away from everything and somehow end up bleeding into the edges of the All Mother while clutching to the one thing that sent her mind in a state of psychedellic high after high. She could have both. She put all of the images together in a soft, fuzzy edged puzzle, and it was this that she clung to in her attempt to save Basil. Perhaps she could fix things-- but in that moment, a peace washed over her-- if this was how she died, then so be it.

"Basil Speech" "Dovefeather Speech"

@Basil