[B] Strength. [Butcher x Half Truth]

[lolternative]

Butcher paced. She had been pacing for some time. She had received news and it was not something she was prepared for - thought she had been assured that no one ever is. Still, she was nervous and so she had decided to seek out help from those who would supply it and set her mind at ease.

[Scaramouche Fandango]

She didn't know how she knew, but she knew. Half Truth knew that somebody, somebody close by, needed her. She moved in her hound form, a tail-wagging bundle of fluff and feathers, bounding through canebrake until she found her. The doe gave the impression of someone impressively intimidating, and yet at the same time, there was a vulnerability in her. Through the dog's eyes, she looked at the doe. Sharp teeth set within a skeletal face- and yet she could sense the fear radiating from her. Perhaps it wasn't a hound who could help her. She shifted, still marveling at the ease with which she could, and met the Acha as a Kimeti.

"You seem nervous, friend. I've found that talking can help."

@lolternative

[lolternative]

@Scaramouche Fandango

Butcher peered down at the dog as it came bounding towards her, a brow quirked and the hint of a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. She could be as tough as she liked on the outside, but nothing made her mushier than a hound. She had just about to address it when it shifted and instead she was met with another doe.

A few steps back and the tough exterior returned until she remembered why she was here. She let out a sigh and dropped her guard.

"Forgive me," she said sincerely, allowing their eyes to lock. "I am not used to being vulnerable or weak. Though it is something I should get used to for the time being.."

[Scaramouche Fandango]

"It's difficult, isn't it- but it prepares you for what's to come. It might be a cliche, but it does make you stronger. It lets you know what it feels like, to be helpless." Half Truth circled her, eyeing her up and down. "You're strong, you can tell it by looking at you. Even as this softens you, the muscle and sinew beneath your pelt- it's not going to go away. It'll just be hidden- that's what it does, this thing. Hides you, swaddles you, and when you come out the other side, you're still you with your steely core." She smiled at the stranger's stiffening up; that readiness to fight, should it be necessary, was entirely a good thing.

"Tell me, stranger- what's your name?"

@lolternative

[lolternative]

Her features and disposition softened further and the hint of a smile twitched at the corners of her mouth. Perhaps the doe was correct - and Butcher was inclined to believe her, the words so comforting and reassuring. She was concerned with weakness but from stories she had gathered in her travels, children was no easy feat - particularly for the mother. Her ability to admit her weakness and that she needed help was her strength in this moment.

"Butcher," she said with a dip of her head. "And yours?"

@Scaramouche Fandango