[PRP] The Silent Treatment (Khul/Itikio)

[MoonKitsune]

The good thing about godhood was the lack of essential needs. He needed no water. He needed no food. He needed no warmth.

But he could still feel thirst, emptiness, and the cold within it.

He did not seek these pleasures out. Not since the day he escaped the pride and traveled as far as he could and crawled into the dark caverns of the rougue lands. And heb sayed there for years and only till his wings managed lift did he rise high still from the reach of mortals into the same caves and laid himself in the dark to rest.

And he did nothing but lay and dream and hope to blot out the dark stains on his mind. Without talking he became weaker until it was hard just to move from one cavern to the next. So he hummed. Softly. To himself.

Lithiasaur

 

[MoonKitsune]

MoonKitsune

Itikio was not too worried about not being able to return to the god haven at the moment, as she spent most of her time down in the mortal realm, anyway. They were more interesting, generally, but they were also much more fun to watch and listen to. Quieter, in most cases.

She was very easy to overstimulate, as far as her senses went. Her eyes were not great, and sensitive to light or bright colors. They were also not super great in the dark. Her ears were very, very sharp, and could hear things most failed to notice. Her domain, of course, also gave her a different kind of sight, that helped her to locate things where her eyes failed. She preferred quiet areas, so caves were naturally appealing to her. Plus, she loved the way she could feel her way around in the darkness and it did not feel like a massive, empty place. Her echolocation was always bouncing off something, rocks or walls, and made her feel more secure in her footing.

This time, though, she felt something bouncing back to her that was not made of stone. In fact, it fact, she could feel a familiar pull toward it, walking into the cave carefully and letting her ears and echolocation guide her. She was able to see the form of a lion, the source of the soft humming she was following with keen interest. It sounded so sad and troubled, she just couldn't stay away.

"Are you okay...?" she asked, her own voice very soft and difficult to hear in louder situations. Here, in the silence of the cave, there was no reason for her to raise her tone. She was not much for speaking, so her words were few and far between. This seemed like a very important question to ask, though, so she gave it her best.  

[MoonKitsune]

He never exoected to hesr a voice and he partly wondered if he had imagined it, but for a god so tied tonl words the life of a few syllables thrummed through him like hands hitting on a dusty drum. His heart swelled with the sound of it. Ears tingled with the hum of it's vibration, and like a thirsting man to an oasis he swallowed the sound deep.

And with itngrew fear. That someone was here, and as the voice stirred within him life, it brought pain and memory. He hauled himself to his feet sloely as he tried to face the voice, but it was dark and he was no god of night.

"It depends." His voice rasped. "Do you mean harm?" His wings dropped small feathers as he hadn't groomed them in sometime and dust clung to his fur. Despite the danger, the taste of voice pulled the cords tight about his heart.

She did not feel like a mortal. What mortal could reach this high?

"Who are you?"

Lithiasaur

 

[Lithiasaur]

MoonKitsune

"No, no harm," she said, as reassuringly as she could. Her soft voice was warm, at least, and she kept her body relaxed and low so he did not think she was trying to intimidate him. She stopped coming toward him, sitting down and tilting her head at him curiously. Her ears were twitching and moving, aware of everything around them, just in case whatever he was afraid of returned.

"Itikio," she said, by way of introducing herself, "of Echo...cholo...cation."

Longer words took her a bit longer to get through, and her domain had way too many syllables in it for her liking. Still, she felt compelled to tell him what it was, so he understood that she was no danger to him. Her domain was very neutral, much like her mother's, and would lend itself more to learning than attacking.

Hearing his voice now, how dry and pained it sounded, her bat-like ears drooped.

"Thirsty? Wait."

She turned suddenly, with a task in mind, and flew off to fetch a leaf big enough to cradle some water from a nearby stream. She carried it back very carefully, patient enough for the task, and returned to the cave. She assumed he was a mortal, and needed water, not conversation, to help him feel better. She had the leaf carefully folded in her jaws, bringing it over to him and guiding herself with her powers to come closer. She stopped, nodding slightly so the water made sound. She could tip it for him, as a portable water fountain.  

[MoonKitsune]

Lithiasaur

He watched her, wary of words. They were daggers too, and could be filled with lies no matter how sweet they were to him to hear. Watching, she said her name, and her domain.

"A goddess.." He said, watching her. Of course - they were too high for a mortal to climb themselves up into, and while it wasn't the haven, it was still safe. Or as safe as he could get in this world. Even Immortals had tempers and vendettas.

But she made no moves to him, and her eyes did not hold the hunger of seizing him up for any misdeeds as far as he could tell. He had gotten used to seeing that cruel intent before among the mortals. The brutality of subserviance and domination. Of coursing body and soul to make it work for your gain.

Noticing his voice, she left, and in her absense he felt the fresh hunger of conversation, and laid down to rest himself. and yet - hopeful. It was nice to hear words again. Any words.

She returned, and he watched as she landed and slowly moved closer to him, a leaf in her mouth as she approached. Curious, he rose up, and from the gesture of her maw he could hear the sloshing of water between the leaf's folds. Head low, he eased slowly closer before accepting the water she poured for him. It was warm from the sun but cool against his dried tongue and throat, and he lapped it up greedily before it was gone.

Tongue wetted, he swallowed, testing his vocal chords again, before he spoke up, his voice more melodic than before. "Echolocation. What is that? You are a goddess? Is this place your home?" The words flowed as easily as the water she had poured for him, and he felt himself weakly pull his own powers in hopes she would answer and feed him some more sweet notes from her voice.  

[Lithiasaur]

MoonKitsune

Itikio was happy that he had something to drink, moving to put the leaf down gently when most of the water was gone. She watched him curiously, leaning in close to try and get a good look at him. The gloom of the cave was not great, and she was having a lot of difficulty making out his features. Even if it was light, she would have to take a while to look at him before she figured everything out, but in the dark it was nearly impossible.

Thankfully, she had her powers to help her. Her echolocation allowed her to paint an image of him in her mind. Of course, it was colorless, and she was not sure she would be able to guess his real pelt colors unless they went out into the sun or he described them to her, but at least she got an idea about him.

His voice and his breathing, his tension and how wary he was of her told her more than she needed to know, anyway. She did not need to see him, clearly, to know how bad off he was. Something terrible happened to him, and she had no intention of adding to that.

Now when he spoke, she found herself smiling, nodding her head.

"Goddess, yes. Home, no," she explained, in simple terms. She thought for a moment, ears lowering for only a short time before they perked back up and then twisted slightly back and forth as she listened, like a radar, to the cave around them. She smiled at him taking a breath. "I heard your song, and felt your pain. Came in to find you. I'm sorry."

She closed her eyes, listening to their heart beats. His was not as calm as hers. She felt compelled to continue the conversation, even daring to ask a question instead of just remaining quiet.

"Why do you hide here? You sound so lonely."  

[MoonKitsune]

Lithiasaur

He sat there but already felt a need to lay again, but the allure of talking was stronger and he didn't want her to leave just yet by seeing him lay down and appear as if he would need rest. She showed clear concern which was refreshing and almost ached in him that there was still kindness out there, even if it was as simple as a drink and a question.

"There is nothing for you to be sorry for. You did not do any wrong. You do not control others."

And the recollection of the pride he suffered from caused him to slowly laid down again, but he kept his head up to watch her.

"I fear the mortals below. Being a God did not make them awestruck but greedy. They took and used me, and it took time to flee. Up here is where i felt they could not reach. I was too weak to go higher, and I wanted no Immortals to find me and destroy me in the Haven. So I rested.I have been resting a long time." He had no idea of the exact date, but he knew from waking and the seasons changing that it had been several years.

"I do not know what else to do." He admitted.

To her own introduction, he decided to give his. "I'm Khuluma. God of Rhetoric."



 

[Lithiasaur]

MoonKitsune

Itikio watched him as best as she was able, though her vision was not the best. It was strangely better in the dark, but maybe that was only because the light was a little painful for her. Her ears took up all the slack, though, and she never had trouble finding her way. Of course, the powers of her domain helped in that area, as well.

She listened to him quietly, sad to know that a God had been cruelly treated by the mortals below. She knew some of them to be very kind, but there were those out there that seemed to be filled with more evil than any God she'd ever met. It was easy to think that Gods were safe and friendly, though even that was being proven untrue.

Being forced out of the Haven was not ideal, then, for anyone who was wary of mortals.

"You can rest, if you're tired," she said very gently, noticing his body drooping. He was very kind, to keep alert for her sake, but she did not find it offensive if he ended up going back to sleep in the middle of the conversation. She would simply wait to continue it, as patient as anything.

"I... will not tell," she said, after a thought, "Safe, here. And with me. No harm will come." She would keep watch, and protect him while he recovered, she decided. There was blood in her genetic line that made her as loyal as a dog, which probably explained the strange tail. "Rhetoric... talking? Bad with words."  

[MoonKitsune]

"No. I feel ..better when I can talk. I have not spoken to anyone since resting here. It's a doubke edged sword that I wanted to be safe but feel weaker for not being around others."

He laid there but kept his eyes open and watching her, his attention glued to the conversation. "Yes. Rhetoric. The art of words. Of debate. Of getting a point across and helping others to see your point." His tail flicked lazily.

"Do you live in these caves? Have you been here all your life?"

Lithiasaur

 

[Lithiasaur]

MoonKitsune

Itikio considered his question, quietly of course, before she hummed a 'no' and shook her head. She was sorry to hear that he needed company to stay strong, but was also afraid of the mortals that had apparently done some very terrible things to him. It was a terrible thought, that there were beings out there capable of such terrors, and they were not even Gods. At least Gods had the excuse of staying true to the domain they were given.

Mortals often just chose to do their worst.

"Not here, no. With Gods, my family." Her mother, the goddess of camouflage, and her father, the god of bats, had been very good about keeping their cubs company, and keeping them safe. She had a brother, but it had always just been the few of them. Once she was old enough to explore she went out to try it, but found watching and hiding, much like her mother, was more her style.

"Can I stay?" She asked, sounding a little sheepish and embarrassed. "I can... help. Take care until you're better. Talk. You can help me... learn... rhetoric."  

[MoonKitsune]

"I would like that. If you would be so kind. Even now talking makes me feel a great deal better." He admitted.

"Do tell me more about your family. I never had one of my own. I stumbled upon the God of Prey in my youth and stayed under his guidance during my cubhood but left when I was a restless adolescent. I have heard stories of gods who detest their families or are even against them. You do not seem to say the word with any bitterness.

Lithiasaur

 

[Lithiasaur]

MoonKitsune

Itikio smiled warmly, listening to him explain how he had grown up. She nodded her head, though her ears drooped a bit at the idea of other gods hating their families. She had never had any reason to dislike hers, though it was a small one as far as she knew. She'd never met her grandparents, so she only had her immediate family to draw from.

"My mom... is the Goddess of Camouflage. She likes to hide, and listen. I learned listening from her. My dad is the God of Bats. He says I am like a bat, a mortal creature, but in a kind way. Very... warm. Loved. My brother is out there, somewhere, but I have not seen him... we were smaller."

She hoped he was doing well. With the world in the state it currently was, it was hard to really know if any of them were safe or happy. She just had to hope they were, too scared to go out and find trouble if she went looking for them.

Taking a deep breath, she did her best to continue, though her struggle with finding words was real.

"I live alone, but not... lonely, when I can hear others nearby. Peaceful. New things happening... are not... hear bad things. Scary things. This is better.I like this."  

[MoonKitsune]

He smiled back at her, setting his head on his paws as he listened, her voice though choppy was cautious, thinking, and soft. She was taking time to say what she wanted to say, and find the best words to describe what she felt. They were not perfect sentences, but they didn't need to be perfect to get her point across. To him, in the dark for years, it was a sweet sip of cavern water after lying in the scorching sun.


"It is very peaceful. You have a soft voice. It's very lovely to hear." He smiled at her. "Did your brother leave on his own? Tell me about him, if you want. I never had siblings. I always thought they must be nice to have that connection."

Lithiasaur