All is fair in love and war

@Sorina <333

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Eldritch had gone with Sorina when they traveled to the Plains, but she had stayed behind at their temporary camp when her fellow shadow met with the Saxe woman. 

It had been a while since then, and Eldritch had kept herself preoccupied by finding a fitting altar for her practices. 
She wasn't sure if they would stay in these cold woods for long, but she'd make do with the tools she had until she was certain this place was to be home. 

She hummed absently to herself now, while trying to gather what plants she could in the harsh terrain while also keeping an eye out for skeletal remains.  Teeth especially would be useful for divination purposes...
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She had family here. Saxe’s. Her Mother’s blood. Perhaps some would say she was foolish not to stay with @a"Reign" and her kin. To be a good second cousin to the whelps that bloomed in The Countess’ stomach… but she could not stomach the idea of being second. With her mother’s blood came strength, power, privilege, sure… but there had never been a claim to the Throne.

She would surely count upon Demonia as an alliance for her true calling: her own pack. Haldis. When it arose here, in the Everfrost.

Sorina had picked this particular site for many reasons. But one stood out in particular: frozen Pines and Connifers. She did not know of her Father’s origins, or much about the Salvatorè’s history, but something called to her within the forest. Something primitive… familiar l Little did she know that this forest was similar to the one Leviathan had been raised in.

Candied eyes scoured the mounds of snow and sparse flora, the drape of snow-laden leaves. It was peaceful here. She was happy. And yet as she strode by, a familiar figure caught her eye.

Eldritch. Her shadow, one follower that seemed to be just that, loyal and a nice companion upon her travels. Though they had spent some time together, it struck Sorina that they truly did not know each other.

Eldritch, The soon Queen barked a friendly greeting to her compatriot, black tail rising to a mid-point, straight with her spine. I trust that you are well? She added eventually, a small smile that was warm, spread across her shockingly friendly features.

@Eldritch
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The spiderling turned her head calmly with that ethereal otherness she always had,  white eyes looking upon Sorina as she approached with her name on her tongue. 

"I am well, yes." She answered, turning back to the snow-covered ground. She took a few more steps and nosed in some foliage before uncovering an intact coyote skull. 
With a gentle smile, the Seer knew what she wanted it for - the teeth. 
She would find a rabbit pelt later to keep them in for storage when not in use for her divination purposes. 
"Do you see?" She asked, pulling the coyote skull closer to herself and holding her other paw over the cranium.
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She had left @ "Rosencrantz" and @ "Blackfoot" After a sharing a small meal. She did not want to over crowd her new friends, figuring that they were the type to need space… as well as Companionship. Paired with Eldritch, she hoped that they would soon stake a claim here in the Everfrost and make themselves strong.


Yet there was a different aura to Eldritch, one that was omnipotent, almost dark. It was intriguing and unusual, that curiosity had lead to Eldritch’s recruitment into Haldis.


Dark ears perked at her words, bright eyes snapped to the frost-bitten skull that was clasped under paw. Dark brows furrowed as her head tilted to the left ever so slightly. She dared to step forwards, obsidian nostrils flared to inspect the object. Confusion riddled her features. I’m afraid I do not follow. The confession was spoken rather meekly. A skull? The teeth? Dare she admit that excitement trilled along her spine in anticipation.


@Eldritch
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Eldritch smiled something soft at Sorina's admittance.
Tenderly, she herself inspected the coyote skull further;
Pristine, almost too much so for the environment. Like it had been placed for her to find by the Gods.

"This is a gift from my Gods. I will use the teeth for the art of Divination." The Witch explained, returning her white gaze back to her companion. 
She would bend to pick up the skull betwixt her jaws, careful fondness in her movement while the shadow lifted her first of many chosen...no, gifted, objects. Her archaic gaze was clear in that she anticipated some sort of response, verbal or not,  as she would begin to move in the direction of which she placed her Altar.
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"This is a gift from my Gods. I will use the teeth for the art of Divination." Eldritch did not disappoint, indeed that dark aura that always encapsulated her companion now came to light. She thought herself a devotee? A witch? Regularly, Sorina would scoff at such notions! She did not believe in gods, or any kind of higher power apart from her own. Though fate, did show promise. Divine intervention perhaps stretching a little. "You believe in such notions?" A genuine question, not mocking or judgemental. "Have you witnessed them? In the flesh or otherwise?" Yet, as she gazed into Eldritch's eyes, she saw something new. Something that compelled her, intrigued her. It was passion-it was devotion, with grubby hands would she latch onto this feeling. It was exciting, new. Not monotonous and regular.

It seemed the Queen to be had an intrigue in the strange and wicked.

"Regardless... show me." Sorina breathed. She wanted to know more. To see exactly what Eldritch would do. Perhaps these gods would bless her. Grant her will? Either that, or it would be one foolish prank that would glean Eldritch in an entirely different light. 

@Eldritch
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Eldritch began pulling out the coyote teeth as Sorina asked, seemingly with curiosity, if Eldritch believed in such notions. 
"It is how I have come to be." She responded, cryptically.
To the next question, the Witch nodded a couple times, gently, before responding further; "The Gods I know take many forms. Odin, for example - The Allfather, He sometimes may take the form of a Raven when visiting our plane of existance. In my beliefs, They all appear however their devotees will respond best to." Eldritch gave an amused smirk as she said the following part: "After all, wouldn't you, or anyone, shit yourself if you saw a God in their raw form?" She chuckled softly, though there was no malice there - only archaic knowing, or so it may seem. 

Regardless, show me. 

Eldritch was happy to oblige, and once she was finished pulling all the teeth out, which was no easy process, she would go to the nearest cache and find a rabbit. Only one of them was recent and still limp enough to skin...

It would do. 

She proceeded to carefully cut and pull the pelt from the rabbit's body while whispering some sort of chant in Norwegian tones. In the Common tongue, this chant would translate to:
 

Gods of Old, Gods of Old, 
I cast this spell before you,
Cleanse my tools of Seeretry
Give them the power of Divine Sight

Once the pelt was free, Eldritch brought it back to the pile of teeth she had freshly pulled - along with Sorina, naturally, and carefully compiled the teeth into the skin before picking it all up and beckoning with her head for the to-be Queen to follow her to her Altar - "Come. You have questions, do you not?" 
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Eldritch's cryptic response caused her head to tilt. It was strange how others devoted their lives to believing in a higher power, the notion of a god-or even pantheon of gods to worship and serve. She could not imagine that in any shape or from, the Saxe's would do such things. The tales from her Mother only showed the Saxe's to be their own gods... and from the limited knowledge of her Father-it seemed that the Salvatoré's were the same. "The Gods I know take many forms. Odin, for example - The Allfather, He sometimes may take the form of a Raven when visiting our plane of existance. In my beliefs, They all appear however their devotees will respond best to."  The stubborn naievity grew in her chest to simply scoff, but alas she could not truly mock her companion. What kind of leader would she be if she mocked her own followers? She wanted Haldis to be a place for all and that, inevitably, made way to... accepting their beliefs, regardless of her own opinions.

 "After all, wouldn't you, or anyone, shit yourself if you saw a God in their raw form?" Dark lips pursed at the comment, mirroring Eldritch's smirk. "Perhaps, yet it would depend on what form they decide upon." 

Yet what came next was chaotic, but fascinating. Blood from bone, tissue and sinew. Sorina, for the first time in her life, stood in awe-incapable of speech. She watched as Eldritch performed what could only be described as a ritual, archaic hums in a foreign tongue. She did not shy away from the gore, for she was not some whimsical fae. She would not stray from the darkness. It drew her closer. Her bright candied eyes watched the pile of teeth grow, she could only form a quick nod. Incapable of responding and followed in silence.

@Eldritch
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Potentially a short reply, apologies in advance if it is <3

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The Witch lead Sorina deep into the woods, where the trees were too close together and the roots and trunks and undergrowth were ominously thick and huddled. 

Eventually, she came to her den, an almost too-large, old weeping willow with a cavern underneath its roots inside the small jut of earth and rock it rested upon.
A small stream emitted from inside the depths, trailing away into the woodland to who knew where. 

Eldritch would glance to Sorina to check that she still followed before nosing aside the long, draping curtain of thin branch and leaf to find a mid-height, smooth-topped stone nestled against the stone just inside and off to the right, out of the way, conveniently so. 

The Spiritualist would gently cross the small stream and approach the rock, setting her rabbit skin full of teeth down and sitting on one side of her Altar. She motioned with a glance for Sorina to settle across from her, ghostly eyes both inquisitive and knowing all at once. "You have inquiries that desire enlightenment." Eldritch stated, as a way to continue from where they had briefly left off when she had gathered the bones in the fur to bring her here. 
She pulled the wrap of divination bones closer to her with delicacy, a gentleness often reserved for mothers with young children. 
"Ask." Was all the Seer said after a moment. In her tones was an encouraging softness.
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Now that Sorina had decided to settle within the Everfrost, the first stages had been deciding den placements. She had given those that had agreed to follow under her command prime pickings and choice-for without them, she would have still been wandering. A ghost, with no true purpose. She had yet to glean the information from Rosencrantz and Blackfoot's den, but she had noted Eldritch's in passing. Often, she would see the woman adorn the leaves and tidy them. It added to the ethereal aesthetic. It was pleasing, almost gloomy. It was a true fit for her ominous companion.

Leaves brushed past plush, curly fur. Her paw-steps were careful, delicate as blunt claws scraped against cold, hard stone. She had yet to see the inside of Eldritch's den and oh how she was pleased to see what was truly within. "Quite the home you have made for yourself." Her tone was light, full of jest. Yet a wry smile could not help but form upon her dark lips. Dare she feel a pang of jealousy twang within her icy heart. It was quite something to behold. There before them stood a moss-covered Altar, fitting with the crumbling rock and trickling of the stream. Had moonlight reached far enough down into the den, she would imagine that the water would glisten and gleam, shimmering waves upon the hallowed ceiling. 

 "You have inquiries that desire enlightenment."  Dark ears swivelled at her comment, icy eyes casting to the frail bones that dangled from her dark jaws. A soft shiver ran down her spine. "Ask." It was a tone that Sorina thought Eldritch incapable, a soft cradling whisper. Yet as curiosity had lead her, it pulled her now. Yet, she did not want to be predictable and ask the obvious... will I be sucessful? Will I fall in love? Oh, will the stars align and make me happy?! Dark brows furrowed as she pondered, before speaking. "What is my fate?" She paused, dark head tilting to the right ever so slightly. "More specifically, what shall befall Haldis?"

@Eldritch
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Eldritch smiled softly as Sorina stood at her Altar and asked her question.
Two, technically, and the Seer had every mind to answer both. 

First, though...
"I must forewarn you, that the future is always changing. Actions and words have the power to alter what happens to us and around us. What I foretell is only the current path." She advised. The disclaimer was important, for it was the truth.
At least, it was the truth as she understood it. 
Regardless, it was not a lie or half-honesty. 

Gently, Eldritch shook the satchet of teeth in her jaws and lightly tossed them onto the sleek surface of her Altar, watching which bones landed where and how. 
It would take some tweaking, but for now, the way the coyote teeth presented themselves without altaration of their appearance would do for the purpose of this reading...

The Witch's eyes gazed at the spread, unblinking for a time, as she took it all in...

A canine and a molar rested close together, and the smaller front teeth lay scattered almost circle-like around the main two teeth. 

The Spiritualist looked up, "The Molar, here, represents you." She tapped a claw on it, and moved to the canine touching it, "The canine represents a large event and/or conflict, and the small teeth, smaller scale events or conflicts." She explained softly, and passed a splayed paw over the spread before settling her forelimb at the floor again. 
"I see slow progression, and an impatience to see success." Eldritch mused; "The fate of Haldis will be a great one. But to meet this, you, my Queen, will need to be patient, and exercise much diplomacy. I think ambassadorship may also play a role in the success of your kingdom. Otherwise, Haldis will risk dispersal." 
Eldritch would pause for a few moments to let Sorina take it all in before continuing. 
"I advise seeking out alliances with other packs as soon as you have a foundation here. If they know of us, they can potentially send wolves our way." She explained in her usual soft tones. 

Here, the witchling would raise her paw onto the Altar, content to either wrap things up or go further, depending on Sorina's desires. 
"Do you have any other questions for the bones?" 
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As Eldritch explained, Sorina hung upon every word. Actions and words have the power to alter what happens to us and around us. What I foretell is only the current path." Ah yes, she suspected as much. Magic was simply Folklore… but a higher power, or god, was the question that hung over all sentient beings.

Clink, the clatter of teeth upon the cold shrine and all seemed to be revealed. I see slow progression, and an impatience to see success." Icy eyes watched as Eldritch continued. Yet she did not like what was spoken. Yes, she was a Queen. With a very small Kingdom. She could be spoilt and vain. It struck a chord deep within her chest, pulled at that ego.

And yet alliances making peace with neighbouring packs. Forging strong bonds so that they may prosper in the North. Indeed this was a good plan, Sorina had no interest in being a conqueror. She was no warlord, she was only interested in her Empire.

A soft nod was given as Eldritch surmised her reading. I thank you for your Council, Eldritch. Her eyes had been opened to a new path. That is all, for now. But I shall be sure to seek wisdom from you again. She rose, then. Indicating to take her leave. It seems I have much to do. A small smile was given, before she turned to make her leave.

@Eldritch
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