Bonfires, poetry, and livin' life right and there's
Beaches, boats, sailing, togetherness
The feelin' like you're smilin' even brighter when the weather's shit
My heart hurts as I gaze upon the desolation of my birth home, and I ache knowing that the paths walked by myself and Rodrik and Rayelle will never be there for Kagerus to walk. A part of me rationalizes that she will forge her own path, as she should; but as my amber gaze makes love to the despondency that has become the Jungle, I simply cannot bring myself to be glad. She is my home, and when she burns, I do too.
Although I sight the iron mare approaching first, Kagerus is not far behind. Her little dished head reappears from under my gray-flecked barrel, nostrils flaring when she scents the woman. She turns a nutmeg eye to me, as if to ask, ‘are we safe?’ I say nothing to that; instead, I step just slightly closer to my daughter.
It’s not terribly surprising that the pair of us aren’t thrown a party upon arrival - we, or at least I, stink of the Chamber, which just so happens to be their very recent enemy. Complications, complications. Still, it is more than I hoped when the intimidating mare only questions us, instead of outright killing us on the spot. I would certainly empathize with such a reaction, but still, it’s a great relief to be doing some explaining, rather than some running.
“My name is Kavi,” I reply in my whisky tones - aged to perfection. “And this is Kagerus, my daughter.” The little overo girl watches the unnamed woman fearlessly, clearly unphased by the muscles and the scars and the tattoos. I smile at her before continuing. “We come in search of home - in my case, I am returning home to retire. I was born of Kagerou, a long-ago queen; and as you can see here,” I gesture with my salt-and-pepper nose to the rose-gold chevron tattoo which encircles my right fore-thigh, “I have been joined to a sister of yours, Pomona.” My leopard-tattoos are just behind my ear and are less easily demonstrated, so I figured one was enough. Kagerus, curiously, only carries the heritage mark of Kagerou, just behind her left eye; I have yet to find a chevron tattoo. But back to the matter at hand!
Clearly my throat in a very acceptable grandpa way, I look kindly upon the even-toned woman. “I am more than happy to become a manservant to the Jungle, as she was very kind to me as a child, and I would like to return the favour. Furthermore, I think it would be appropriate for Kagerus to grow up here, as I did.”
A warm smile floats to my lips, but staggers slightly when Kagerus unglues herself from my side and approaches Lagertha hesitantly, but not in fear. I hold my breath as the child creeps into the woman’s bubble of space, and gingerly attempts to nudge her soft flank.
By this time, my smile has turned into something of a grimace, and I try haltingly to excuse the dear child. “I’m terribly sorry, she’s just - well, she’s hungry.” My tail swings anxiously behind me. “It’s not your responsibility to feed her, I’m sorry that she doesn’t know better yet.” My amber gaze drifts unconsciously towards Kagerus, and I look upon her with pity. I know that Pomona is somewhere in this Jungle - it is simply the matter of finding her that may very well be her downfall. But I refuse to allow harm to come to her.
Snapping my elderly eyes back to Lagertha, I figure I might as well add a little tid bit of information that could very well sway her towards our cause. “I took no side in the war. I don’t believe in war as a rule, never mind fighting against my home... I hope you can believe me.”
Kavi ☼ Kagerus
No worries, I'm a Lagertha-sass veteran
