He was resting under the All Mother, laying on his side, half-heartedly pawing some tall grasses. He rarely left Eridanus now, rarely left the Eyes or the All Mother, because here, he felt safe. Hardly anyone went this way except for Dove or those she knew, and if it wasn't her, well, he was very good at hiding, by now. He didn't want to come across anyone but her.

He knew she had important tasks to do, vague quests she never really talked about but was always gone for, and he understood that. She had to fix the Eyes, she had to be a Seer, because it was important to her. He was content with waiting, if he knew he would see her again.

He passed the time just remembering her image, clear and crystal cut, in his memory, of when she was leaning over him trying to keep him alive, the light filtering behind her, the edges fuzzy as his vision was failing, her brilliant golden eyes piercing into his heart.

Of course, his demon had to almost kill him for him to see that...but to Basil, it was worth the cost. It was a deal with the devil, and he gladly paid.

After the whole business was over and after Dove had left, having made sure that he was safe, he mulled over what had happened. The demon had taken over and the next thing he knew he was drowning and dying and Dove was pulling him out of the Eyes, but for the first time, the demon had been completely and utterly silent, the presence of him in the back of his head just.....gone.

He was there now, pacing, quiet, but he wasn't then. And it didn't make sense. If the demon had fallen in by accident, then he would be manipulating him to never go near the Eyes again, like he sometimes did. He would've locked his feet and kept him from going near it at all, but Basil had gone to the very edge and even dipped a foot in, and the demon didn't do anything at all.

Basil thought vaguely that the demon might've done it on purpose, to allow Basil to see Dove - to cut himself out of the equation, at least temporarily. But why? Why would the demon do that?

For the first time in his entire life, he wished that he could talk with the monster in his head. But they were like the sun and the moon, sharing the same sky, but never touching.

"Basil Speech" "Dovefeather Speech"

@Dovefeather

The Bleeding Heart of the All Mother dragged herself home, breathless and shaking, fueled by the sticky black ink just under her skin. It made her shake like withdrawal crushing around her chest, but walking these familiar paths brought that rumble to her chest, the one that always sang of her presence to those who listened and waited.

The truth of the matter was that Dovefeather was not a creature suited well to tormenting others, to playing these sort of games. Although she had a quiet, dominating lust for cruelty, actually carrying the actions out felt like pulling out her teeth. She would do anything to serve the All Mother, to become all mighty herself, but Caves it was exhausting. She was thrilled to be home again, where she could check on her Sisters and Brothers, where she could check on the Eyes and her nest full of trinkets and make sure nothing else was gone.

Bad enough to lose her feather. She was struggling to keep control of everything else in her life since, even if the forces were tearing her apart at the effort. Her insides were ragged, rasping, struggling to keep up with it all. The feline, despite everything, outwardly looked rather put together. Occasionally she stumbled, but her curled fur was licked neatly in to place, kept meticulously clean. Her voice rang out in that constant purring buzz, her eyes bright and constantly focused on one thing or another.

After sweeping past the Eyes and making sure her sister's rib and the blue gem were still tucked away, the feline made for the Monarch. It was as good a time as any to check on her supposed God, since the Eyes were as useless as ever. Perhaps it was permanent-- she had yet to come up with any way to fix it. Sooner or later, she supposed, the idea would come to her.

Dovefeather stepped out into the clearing, letting the shade of the All Mother fall across her small, delicate form. As the feline drew closer, her fur began to glisten, an ethereal glow spreading across her coat. It was so good to be back, to brush against the All Mother's gifts once again. Playing with darkness just wasn't suited to her true purpose.

"Basil Speech" "Dovefeather Speech"

@Basil

He heard her soft footfalls on the forest floor and he snapped out of his reveries and looked around, panicking. Where was his blindfold? Where- ah- he'd placed it near the Eyes, didn't he, and fear settled into his gut. Her purring was almost on him, and he looked around frantically for anything to cover his face with but there was nothing but leaves and fungi and really, what did he expe-

His eyes crossed over her paws as they crossed into his line of view and snapped up to her form and instantly Basil was lost. His blind fear turned into a subtle smile, his eyes half-lidded, and he chuckled low.

That idiot would never learn, would he? Sorrel thought.

So when Dove walked towards the All Mother with a soft glow enveloping her, Sorrel smiled and walked towards her, confident and sure.

"Well well," He said, his voice slow and inviting. "Guess you couldn't keep away from me after all."

"Basil Speech" "Dovefeather Speech"

@Dovefeather

The pleasantness of the situation was squashed flat as the voice of a boy she loved was spoken with such a loathsome undertone... Tail swishing, she rolled her golden eyes as her head angled towards the brutish male, her gaze piercing into him. "Hello, Sorrel," she meowed as flatly as she could. "Are you quite proud of yourself?" She asked, the exhaustion hitting her again like a hard blow to her gut, knocking the wind out of her.

The feline held herself proudly, head high, doing her best to keep the fur along her spine down and smooth. Don't let him see your fear, she breathed like a mother to herself, all too conscious of the fact her ears were deaf to the All Mother's words. That would never be her gift. You're stronger than him, and he's just a coward. Yet it wasn't truly Sorrel that she feared, but instead her, herself. The fact of the matter was that she was quietly, irrevocably, drawn towards the bad boy and his pathetic excuse of voyeurism. Oh, he couldn't help himself, and neither could she, and she wasn't sure just how many times she could dive into the Eyes to save their sins over and over... Only that it was too many, she found herself thinking she could play these games time and time again, foolishly. A cat caught in her own mouse trap.

And yet, the All Mother had given them a chance, shown her that Basil was worth saving, preserving. It was a sign as clear as day, but she hated being unable to confirm her visions with the true Word of her All Mother. It made her stomach twist, having only Blackfeather's word that she could trust her heart, even though her brain insisted she was just playing favorites, that she was making exceptions where there shouldn't be.

Things could never just be simple, could they?

"Basil Speech" "Dovefeather Speech"

@Basil

He saw her turn around and watched her expression turn from easy peace to wary cynicism, and he just smiled in return, walking slowly towards her, his dark eyes twinkling in his mask of fur. "Oh, completely," He purred. "I get to keep looking at you, you got to save your loverboy from almost certain death and cuddle him for warmth and he got a taste of what I get to enjoy...." He was right in front of her now, his head tilted, his little fangs curling around his hooded smile, his tail round his legs. "That gorgeous fur..." His voice lowered, rumbling, to match her signature sound. "Your beautiful, perfect form..." His eyes snaked up from her paws to her neck with coiling satisfaction. "And those stunning...heart-stopping...haunting eyes of yours."

His nose was right up close to hers now, his voice a low, seductive whisper. "My whole existence is based around you, Dovefeather, all of me ready and waiting to just see you, and I couldn't bear the thought of that being taken away from me."

"And didn't it all work out, in the end?"

He leaned into her ear.

"Admit it. You enjoyed it, saving us both."

"Basil Speech" "Dovefeather Speech"

@Dovefeather

Those dark, piercing eyes bore into her and she swallowed hard as he answered in a rough, deep purr of a voice that made her heart thud. She hated him, oh, she hated herself for loving him, even like this, even as a monster. Basil would hate her too, and she forced it down as drew his paws dangerously close to her, his teeth glinting under each word of his.

His nose nearly touched hers as he spoke, a sinner begging for the Lord's Mercy, and she found her eyes tugging towards the giant mushroom looming over them, begging for a whisper in her ears, a guidance for her paws. As her golden gaze tore from his to meet the hanging frill of the fungi, she felt his breath in her ear and her claws dug into the soil as she clung to the idea that she had to stay strong and firm. Never allow herself to waiver or flinch in his presence ever again. She had proved herself.

"I'll admit I'm sick of your games,"

The words reached her tongue as her brain was still processing the words. The rest came like an unrelenting torrent as her shimmering stare turned to meet his eyes, his whole face taking up her vision, his snout shoved into her space in a way that made her uncomfortable at best. His scent was all over her, intoxicating and distracting.

"You should be thankful the All Mother gave me the strength to save your sorry tail... That She let me save you before the poison took the breath from you. It is Her Mercy, and Hers alone that lets you even grace my presence, Sorrel, and if I enjoyed anything, it was carrying out her will, not saving you."

And yet they were lies. Even as they broke into the air like the crackle of a flame her fur prickled and she blinked, the toxic truth hanging heavy in the air. He was right, he was right, he was right. She loved him. She could cut open his throat for being so close to her, to owning her heart the way he did, but she couldn't. She couldn't because he was right and she hated that all so smug expression on his face because he knew she was lying.

It was a shame so deep in her chest that the shadows grew thick around them, sinking into a slow and steady darkness that made her heart race. She could feel his breath, hear his body, touch his fur, and everything was so sharp, so much stronger than her own vision. She couldn't escape him, if only because she was too stubborn to retreat from him.

"... And if it wasn't for my Sister, Cayenne, you would have been dead either way."

She mewled weakly, a quiet, budding fear in her chest. She did, after all, almost lose him, him and Basil, and she wasn't sure she was ready for that. As much as her urges and instinct told her to tear him apart, drown him and gouge out his eyes... No, she didn't want him to disappear, not forever. She was too selfish for that.

"Basil Speech" "Dovefeather Speech"

@Basil

A slow smile graced him as he listened to her.

He just laughed in response to her, a low sound. "Her will...." He looked at her, eyes twinkling with mirth. "Haven't you ever just thought that it may be her will that we're thrown together like this, under Her gaze, all the time? Maybe she saves us over and over to tell us something. Maybe she wants us to be together, the three of us, all suffering together and refusing each other for no good reason. Basil wants to keep you safe and can't seem to leave this place, you reject me...for whatever reason you have in your head. Why? What's keeping you from just...enjoying yourself?"

He sighed and gave her a coy smile, eyeing the shadows wrapping around her, then back to her golden eyes. "I would think you'd be tired of playing the good girl by now."

And then, one one smooth motion, as quick as a flash, he placed a strong paw on her chest and turned her to the ground so that she was sprawled on her back, and he was standing over her, his face hooded in shadow, his dark eyes shimmering with amusement and pride.

"Go on...fight me, spit at me, try to claw my eyes out." He said in a hushed, svelte tone of voice, and he ran a paw down her chest to the thin, soft fur of her stomach. "Tell me you'll love this as much as I do."

"Basil Speech" "Dovefeather Speech"

It didn't matter what Sorrel said, and perhaps Dovefeather thought this because she believed she wouldn't give a rat's tail about what he said. Unfortunately, it was precisely the opposite. She dove into his words, drinking them in despite their bitter, sultry taste. Every single word her heart fought against, pushing away, but her mind churned, pulling them close, organizing them. Thinking about them. Such thoughts were so very, very dangerous.

And what do you know about the All Mother, Sorrel?

The thought screamed from the deepest part of her chest, the thudding like thunder racing through the veins in her ears. It was like he had jumped into the water again and she was chasing after him, always chasing, so unable to tear away and let him die. Her heart wanted him, for all that she rejected and fought. Logic told her that her behavior only proved the fact.

The aardwolf's demon-- was he really, though?-- encouraged her to fight, and she pulled back her lips in a deathly silent snarl. The purr in her chest was absent, silent as the darkness seeping into the air around them. His paw touched her fur and she felt electric, her muscles tensing so tightly she was sure to pull something from the effort of holding herself together.

Down the pads went, brushing into her delicate belly fur, and her instinct snapped out. She couldn't help it, a yowl breaking from her throat as light dashed across her teeth, violent and red. She tried to shove him away but the effort was hardly tried, as she stumbled back, hissing and spitting, nearly falling to her knees a single pace away, golden eyes flashing with a shimmering light. She hated this. She hated this. She loved this.

"Watch yourself, you think I wouldn't? I'd take pleasure in taking your eyes, All Mother's Guidance, you dare... You dare keep doing this to me,"

She snarled, an image of feathers fluttering down around her, waves of water splashing against her fur, everything so fiercely, vibrantly red. Her heart beat in her throat. She was choking on the sensation of what he did to her, and she could hardly control herself.

"If this is the All Mother's Will then give me a moment with Basil. You know my word is good, Sorrel, you know-- I'll concede to it, to you, yes, okay, but you can't keep him from me. Me from him. If that's the All Mother's Will then I'll be glad to stop playing by Her Words."

"Just a moment... And then I may change my tune, Sorrel. I can't stand your brutish... dogged ways."

There was a dampness in her eyes. Perhaps it was from the bright light shimmering around her, the dark, inky black that surrounded them just beyond the touch of her light... But between the emotion and the sensations, tears were biting at her eyes. Through her blurred vision, she could see the glowing warmth of crimson-- it was not a shade of anger, of hatred and violence. No, it was something much worse.

She wished she could stop leaving her heart on the sleeve of her coat. He drove her crazy in too many of the right ways.

"Basil Speech" "Dovefeather Speech"

@Basil

It set him on such an edge to see her so frazzled and frayed, and he wanted to do so much to her beyond pretty words and displays of force - he wanted to whisper into her ear and run his tongue along the rim of it and down her neck and make her shiver and hiss, he wanted to lightly rake his claws over the sensitive areas of her ribs and the side of her torso, he wanted to take her to the ceiling and back and fight him the entire way. Seeing her scramble away from him with her normally dignified, graceful and holy aura shattered with flustered heat made him feel like he wanted to feel - in control - but to see the corners of her beautiful eyes glint with tears was the stopping point. It deflated him.

He wanted her to feel like he felt, not...hurt. Or scared. That wasn't the point of any of this.

So he bowed to her with his slow smile, like nothing was wrong and nothing had changed, and he said, "If my lady commands. I'll keep you to your word, then."

Then he closed his eyes.

And immediately, his brow furrowed, his posture changed minutely, but drastically, and all the pompous confidence left his body, and his eyes flickered open for a second, his mouth open, glancing at the ground, and he shut them tight, fiercely. "Dove-?" He asked, his voice tentative and afraid.

He heard her breath from just a few steps from him, and he shuddered. "Are you okay? He didn't...he didn't...do anything, did he?" He didn't coerce her into doing anything, did he? If the sounds coming from Dove were any indication, the demon must've committed his usual horrible acts, and Basil began to shiver.

"I swear, if he hurt you, I'll..." He snarled, blind. "I'll..."

Dovefeather almost thought that Sorrel was bluffing as he bowed, breathing those soft, honestly gentle and soothing words to her. He had the devil's tongue, and she had to force her heart to stay in her chest instead of leap into her throat and aggitate the bees. She swallowed as he closed his eyes, his word his honor, and she felt the ground evaporate underneath her paws.

She felt like she was floating as Sorrel transformed in Basil. She noticed it in his posture, the way fear and hostility drew forth from him. He was a rat in a cage, Basil, trapped by the sly devil in his heart. Dovefeather was pretty sure she understood how he felt, even if she couldn't imagine being put in his position.

His words hit her like stones and she flinched. Immediately, despite herself, she clammered to Sorrel's defense.

"N-no, no, he didn't... He didn't do anything,"

She breathed, nearly choking on the tears that were breaking in her eyes. She reached a paw out towards him as he growl, threatening. Violence of the cornered, of the frightened boy who just wanted control.

They were practically the same damn person.

Dovefeather touched the fur of his chest, long and light and soft. His musky smell was drafting through the air and she inhaled it slowly, trying to choose her words.

"I'm alright, Basil. It's okay. Relax for me, alright?"

She asked of him, a soft begging to her voice.

"You're alright now. Everything's going to be okay."

There was a lot she had to tell the boy she had fallen so far for. After a certain point, you withdrew your claws from the walls of the hole and let yourself fall father.

"Basil, I asked him... I asked him to let me talk to you, okay? He agreed... And, All Mother's Mercy, I've missed you so much."

The words escaped her lips and like a dam bursting, the feline fell into Basil, nuzzling right up into his fluff, as close as she could. It wasn't like she could help it, she just wanted to be near him-- Sorrel or Basil-- but there had to be an understanding. It wasn't right, forcing control over one another. She... All Mother's Mercy indeed-- she wanted to... selfishly... have both of them. She pressed her nose to his muzzle, if he would allow it-- and let her tail curl around her flank to brush at his ankles. A moment of peace. A moment before she had to say what she needed to say.

Dovefeather knew that Basil wouldn't like it, though.

"Basil Speech" "Dovefeather Speech"

@Basil mnmm i love me some dovesil, sorry for the delay but i return to SIN