The forest should have been familiar; every root, stone, and branch was part of Dawnbreak's territory. Eidola knew this path, she had walked it countless times before. The stream that wound through the trees was only a short distance away, its gentle murmur usually enough to soothe her restless thoughts. But right now everything was off, it brought her to a pause, ears swiveling. The water was speaking, not in words initially in murmurs, half formed sounds hidden beneath the current.

She swallowed, forcing her eyes shut. No.

The stream cannot speak. She repeated the thought carefully, the way one might place stones across a rushing river.

The stream cannot speak.

But when she opened her eyes again the sound carried on, a dozen voices drifting beneath the waters song, some laughed, others whispered secrets she couldn't quite understand, one was her mothers voice, another; Torgars.

Her heart lurched painfully. 'Eidola.' the voice came from behind her and she spun around to find nothing only the trees and the sunlight filtering through the leaves. It made her breath quicken, because the voice had been real it had been right beside her — hadn't it?

Slowly she lowered herself onto trembling haunches, trying to focus on things that were tangible, there was moss beneath her paws...and a cool breeze through her fur. But movement flickered on the edge of her vision, dark shapes slipping between the tree trunks, gone whenever she looked for them.

Eidola squeezed her eyes shut again.

No she whispered softly, pressing both forepaws against the earth as if she could anchor herself there. No. No. No. The shadows were not real, still another voice disagreed. They're watching you. The thought arrived fully formed, as though someone had leaned into her mind and spoken directly into it. They're waiting, they know.

'Eidola.'

The voice came again, bringing her to jerk her head upward and for a moment she saw someone among the trees, their comforting smile brought hope surging through her chest only for them to dissolve into sunlight and leaves. The realization struck like a blade, and a broken sound would rip through her throat as she folded inward curling tightly upon herself beneath the canopy.

—

skill: [none]

---

All had been calm in Dawnbreak. Dalmatia was married and looked as happy as ever. All the sisters, in fact, seemed to be quite fit and happy – and that was always a good thing in Euphemia’s book. Adonis was safe, and even Euphemia was fine, though she had been quietly afflicted with a sour stomach for the past few days.

– but Euphemia had never been known for her ability to focus on more than a few things at once. As an adolescent, Euphemia found it only possible to focus her learnings on botany, while others seemed perfectly capable of maintaining a more balanced education. In another example – once she had gotten to know Adonis, she ceased any ruminations about any other potential partners.

And sometimes, the maiden was so focused on her littermates that she neglected to see after the other members of Dawnbreak, too. Honestly, with such an inclination, it was surprising that Euphemia had been elected as a pillar alongside her more charitable and all-seeing packmates at all.

But, Pillar of Wisdom she was now – and Pillar of Wisdom she must be!

The main job of a Pillar of Dawnbreak was to care for others, and unfortunately for Dawnbreak, Euphemia had been quite distracted from the pink flame, world-ending type of stuff. But now, Euphemia found it necessary to shift her attention, no matter how bone-tired or queasy she was.

The opportunity presented itself when she came upon Eidola, her niece through Archon. To be truthful, Euphemia had never felt so close to them (had it been the generational gap, her own jealousy over Archon’s spectacular individuality, or her eternal distraction?), but it did not stop her from noting the unease.

How the energy around her felt fractured, somehow. The young girl had whispered something to herself, but Euphemia could not hear it. Eidola… she greeted stoicly, walking up, eyes unsure if they should look at Eidola, or at the earth, or the trees.

Wanting to ground herself in some response, some insight into the girl’s state, she then asked simply What's up? Maybe she was tired, or stressed.

or maybe it was something more.

---

The voice came to interrupt the others, and Eidola's ears twitched. Slowly, almost cautiously she lifted her head. Aunt Euphemia; the sight of family should have brought relief but instead uncertainty settled like a stone in her stomach. She had seen familiar faces before, answered voices that weren't there. How was she supposed to know the difference? Purple gaze lingered on Euphemia for a heartbeat too long before drifting to the trees beyond her. There was nothing there initially, just the trees, but once she blinked a dark figure slipped between them only to vanish.

Her ears flicked forward again at the call of her name, swallowing thickly at the question. Think. Respond normally. I'm... her voice caught before she steadied it. ...I'm alright, a lie. One she had practiced so many times. A smile tugged weakly at the corner of her mouth, never reaching her eyes, Just tired... the words were distant, rehearsed and she hated how easily they came.

Another bout of whispers brushed against the inside of her skull. She knows, she can tell. You're crazy. and the girls jaw tightened almost imperceptibly. Don't give it away. Her gaze settled on the ground instead, studying blades of grass as though they were infinitely interesting as she counted her breaths in her head while the whispering continued anyway.

...Sorry she laughed softly, though there wasn't an ounce of humor in it. I've been a little distracted. shadows shifting again at the edge of her vision, but she refused to acknowledge them.

Maybe if she ignored them...

Maybe they would disappear.

—

skill: [none]

---

Euphemia did not know Eidola well; that was true – but Euphemia knew herself well, and something deep within her registered as odd. Usually, things within Frostfang Vale were dreadfully ordinary – or wonderfully customary, as she had begun to see.

Any disturbance in the valley’s energy was nearly immediately palpable. After all, the Vale’s vibration was also Euphemia’s own.

A pit in her stomach beginning to churn, the maiden walked closer. She maintained a fairly natural mien, with her head canted to one side at the occipital. Distracted with what? Euphemia questioned gingerly, treading lightly for unknown reasons. Maybe it was the weak smile, or her distant tone.

Euphemia couldn’t help an ironic grimace when the girl laughed at what they both perceived. Many hands make light work, she suggested, approaching with a curl and a side-step to stand at the girl’s side. If such nearness was not welcome,

Euphemia trusted Eidola to make it known.

---

The question lingered in the air far longer than it should have and Eidola searched for an answer, but every thought she reached for dissolved beneath another. The whispers that threaded themselves between each of those sounds until she could no longer tell where one ended and the next began. By the time she found words, she had nearly forgotten the question itself.

...Nothing, she answered softly. I've just... been thinking, it sounded thin even to her own ears. As Euphemia moved to stand beside her, Eidola's shoulders grew rigid. Not because of the older woman, Euphemia had given her no reason to be afraid. But another presence, another voice, another scent only made the world more crowded. Her attention fractured into a dozen directions at once, each demanding to be believed before the next could arrive.

She found herself studying the grass beneath Euphemia's paws, watching each blade bend beneath her weight. She listened to the steady cadence of her breathing, yet the whispers continued.

Look behind her.

She's hiding something.

Don't answer.

Eidola closed her eyes for only a heartbeat before opening them again looking away only made the pressure inside her head feel heavier. A faint forced smile crossed her face at her aunts next words, I know, her voice faltered there and without warning, another thought slipped into the chaos. Where is Torgar?

It arrived with such quiet simplicity that it almost hurt, she remembered the warmth of his shoulder brushing against hers. The way his laugh settled something restless inside her; flowers he'd gathered simply because they reminded him of her. Somehow when she was with him, the world seemed... quieter. She had never questioned why, only knew that the constant strain of sorting through every sound and every shadow became just a little easier to bear.

She hadn't seen him today and for one foolish moment, she caught herself glancing toward the path winding through the trees as though some part of her expected his broad silhouette to appear between the pines. Embarrassed by the instinct, Eidola lowered her gaze before Euphemia could notice.

...Sometimes my thoughts become a little busy, she murmured after a long silence. They settle eventually, it was easier to say that than to admit she no longer knew which sounds belonged to the forest and which belonged only to herself.

—