their journey back to his childhood home had been fraught with unfamiliar sensations. heat, had been searing all throughout his body; he always was and had been a creature of he cold, of shadows and moonlight. so much has changed, this was not the same pisces he remembered and it hurt him. the waterfall room grew dark, tainted with the ash of what seemed to be a thousand years; opened up by cracks in the landscape. once pisces had been filled with vibrant energy and now it was completely devoid of life, the gembound could not help but find some amusement in all this, life sure is strange. quintus's presence here was unwarranted. caught like the slick back of tar against a sea wash, he dwelt in that same spot as though he was compelled to stay there, "home sweet home," the words would come out of his mouth without emotion, absolute, as he had promised himself so long ago, the quiver of his throat would not be addressed. taking a moment to collect himself, the gembound would turn his head to the side hoping to find reassurance in his companion's gaze but he would find none for this had been something he had decided to do by himself. fortune, even now, after so long he remained grateful for all that she had done for him. if not for her he doubted he would have been able to hold on to his sanity for this cave had a way with messing with an individual's mind. fuck you! even now despite all the research and theories, he had no idea who exactly this insult was supposed to be directed at, surely not the fates but who else could have caused this? despite his faith he could no longer remain sure. "shouldn't be too far from here," with that said, quintus would continue towards their destination.

Buried. Trapped. That's where the memories of old lay, the ones that had caused her pain and regret. With her second crystallization her mind had woven a thick cocoon around them and protected her from what would only bring heartache. For now, she lived in a state of bliss. Untouched by the harshness that the cave had brought to her family. Even being back in Pisces, she knew that the memories should be suffocating but her mind wouldn't bring them up. The tawny cat knew that there were ghosts here but she only chose to view the future and of what it could all mean that she and her Leon were back. How could they have been reborn again?

The All Mother... Did she have plans for the future? Bright things to help wash away the mistakes of the past? Only time would tell. It was a conversation to be had but not yet. Now, was a time for feasting!

The lioness had wandered briefly outside of Pisces and found a cave deer, a Tunnel Runner to be exact. The gray beast was clasped in her jaws by the neck and with her powerful muscles she was bodily carrying it back to the cave of waterfalls. Oh, how lovely it would be to share it with her husband!

With her nostrils full of the scent of blood and deer she didn't smell the new scent on the wind. So, when she reached the main area of the cave and saw for the first time the brown coat of another lion she stopped with eyes opening wide.

Memories rushed back into her mind of the sweet young lion that she and Leon had adopted. The young lion who she'd taken into her home and raised like her own, even going so far as to give him singing lessons and teachings on how to be a lion. This couldn't be a figment of her imagination... Could it?

The deer dropped from her maw with a "thud" as she opened her mouth to speak a single word,

"Quintus?"

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345 | notes | @Quintus @Leon

"I talk."
I think...

"quintus?" upon hearing his name he would freeze in place, the first thought that came to mind was fortune after all, who else could it be? everyone he had never known had perished one by one, just like bevy. then again the voice didn't exactly sound like that of his companion and there was something eerily familiar about the voice. not again, he began to regret coming back to this place and the fear he was feeling was evident in the features that laced his face. the cave continues to haunt me, there was no mistaking her charming voice. how could he forget? not after the constant nagging and the enchanting songs she would sing to him. mother? memories of the fortunate childhood he had lived would suddenly be at the forefront of his mind, could it be? something told him to not turn and continue to look away but temptation would continue to prick at him. eventually quintus would gather up the courage to turn around and gaze towards the source of the voice, there was no bracing for what he saw, it was none other than the same benevolent gembound who had brought him into her family, "mother?" despite how much he wanted to approach her, he would stand and continue to stare at what he assumed to be a cruel illusion, look away! tag: Makyna

When she called his name, the large male lion seemed to freeze. His movements stilled and he seemed to be contemplating something, or at least that was what she could garner from her place from several feet behind. While she waited she pondered all of the possible things that could have gone wrong with finding her son. Would he be upset with her for leaving for so long? Even though she couldn't change fate and couldn't rewrite the course of time she still felt like there was something she could have done. Instead she'd previously sank into a depression and just assumed the worst for all of her children. The memories had been repressed since emerging this time but now it was all starting to flood back and the only thing she wanted to do was to search the entire caves and find all of the babies that she'd left behind.

Her poor children...

What felt like an eternity passed and finally her child turned to look at her, those blue eyes that were so like her own almost broke her heart. A strangled sob escaped her maw as she took one step forward, "Quintus..." Another step. "My child..." And then she was running to him, head aiming to bury itself in his thick mane as she felt tears in her eyes. "I am so happy to see you, my son." Part of her that believed the caves were just out to destroy what it could, the leftover from before, wanted to believe that this was all some cruel trick but here he was! Flesh and blood just like she was! It was real just like both of their beating hearts. Her son was back... He'd come back home!

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289 | notes | @Quintus @Leon

"I talk."
I think...