[IC] Epyllion: Beyond Moonlight's Reach

[XxFellsingxX]

At Skobeloff's comment, Rudrick ducked his head slightly as if in embarrassment. "Is it, err, that obvious?" he said with a small laugh. He starts walking down the corridor, keeping his movements slow so the drakes can keep up with him. "Yes, I haven't really had the opportunity to speak with Garrock in quite some time. I've been trying to meet with him for a while, in fact, but he always seems to be otherwise occupied. I thought now would be a good time to try and clear the air as it were but, err..." He hesitates, and for a moment his cheerful demeanor falters. "I suppose he has just gotten back from a mission, and is probably very exhausted." There is a small strain in his voice as he speaks, betraying the slightest hint of frustration towards his sibling. However, he quickly tries to cover it up with a laugh. "Well, it's fine. I'm sure we'll get a chance to talk properly before he leaves."

[rush99999]

Skobeloff

"Is it, err, that obvious?" Rudrick with a small laugh as he set off down the corridor.

"Yep." Skobeloff replied blithely as he moved to follow the dragon.

"Yes, I haven't really had the opportunity to speak with Garrock in quite some time." Rudrick continued. "I've been trying to meet with him for a while, in fact, but he always seems to be otherwise occupied. I thought now would be a good time to try and clear the air as it were but, err..."

At Rudrick's hesitation, Skobeloff's head tilted just a little as he regarded the faltering dragon speculatively.

"I suppose he has just gotten back from a mission, and is probably very exhausted."

The frustrated strain to Rudrick's voice set Skobeloff's head into the motion of an empathetic nod. He had seen first hand how frustrating Garrock could be when he wanted to, and he imagined being related to the grumpy Warrior only did so much to make dealing with him easier.

"Well, it's fine." Rudrick concluded then with a bout of forced laughter. "I'm sure we'll get a chance to talk properly before he leaves."

"That chance will need to come quickly." Skobeloff informed Rudrick. "Garrock doesn't want to stay for long... What is it that you want to speak to him about exactly?"

[Vertigo]

__________________________________________________

Fellwing nodded politely at Heliotrope's answer, but her enthusiasm for asking questions waned considerably the more she watched the older dragon work. Not because of anything she did, but because of the way she was; clearly exhausted, yet unable to take a break with her laboratory crammed with both patients and inquisitive visitors. So when she once again mentioned lost sleep, Fellwing decided it might be best to let her focus on her work and maybe get some well-earned rest afterwards. She could save her questions for another day — or perhaps even for another drake.

"I appreciate your patience with all these questions and patients, Heliotrope," she said with a small smile. "I won't bother you any further. Please do try to sneak in a nap at least, if you can. My clutchmates will hopefully occupy your, hm, assistant for a while longer."

"Fell, do you want to come with us?"

As the Seer turned away from the healer, he found Shieldwing ltalking to her. He looked like he had more to say, so she waited patiently for him to finish - only for the red drake to retort to pantomiming his point across. Fellwing couldn't help but smile at the endearing effort. She was pretty perceptive; there would've been no need for such theatrics, but far be it from her to tell it to him and ruin the fun. Instead, she offered a brief nudge of her head back towards Garrock's general vicinity in turn. Not that she was looking forward to sticking her nose in the older dragon's business, but if it helped her friends... "You go ahead, I'll be with you shortly."

Before addressing Garrock, however, Fellwing had one more thing to take care of, she noticed. From the corner of her eye, she spotted Kyte. They were deep in thought as they examined their wing, and something about it irked the Seer. They'd seen Stargaze's distress, yet had remained quiet in spite of it, even when Shieldwing had directly addressed them.

"An overdeveloped wing is better than one lost to corruption," Fellwing commented, her voice a little colder than she intended, as she passed the other drake by. "You would do well to talk to Stargaze. Sometimes physical injuries heal faster than mental ones."

With that, she turned to Garrock, her tone back to inquisitive. "You keep mentioning your brother and trouble in the same sentence, Garrock, but he didn't strike me as the troublemaking sort." She tilted her head. "Have I got the wrong read on him?"

Or do you, she left unsaid.

[Digizel]

Shieldwing

Shieldwing couldn't help but allow a slight grin to form on his face as he heard Fellwing's words. Were they being a bit nosy? Perhaps. But that didn't occur to him. He simply couldn't help himself. He felt bad for their situation, and he wanted to help. However, he nodded back to Fellwing in acknowledgement. He didn't say anything more and was quick to follow Skobeloff outside of the room. Hopefully, Fellwing would be following behind shortly if she wanted to come with them. He ensured that he continued to stand by Stargaze's side as they stepped into the hall, hearing Rudrick and Skobeloff already conversing.

'Boy, Skobeloff really doesn't waste any time, does he?' he thought to himself as he fell into step behind the two dragons. For the time being, he simply remained quiet as he listened in while Skobeloff talked; he had his own questions for Rudrick, but they could wait. For now, it seemed like he and Skobeloff were on the same page for once. And he certainly didn't want to derail that.

And yet, he couldn't help but cut in at the end.

"Yeah, Skobeloff's right, actually," Shieldwing added. "He's been telling us since we arrived how he wants to keep moving, and how it's on us if we get 'roped into something'...." Despite how typically formal and professional Shieldwing tended to try to act around older dragons, he couldn't stop himself from rolling his eyes. "It's like he doesn't trust us to make our own decisions or something. As if I couldn't tell if a decision was stupid or not."

Yet again, his clutchmates would probably remember a number of times he may have tried to do something on his own to make himself seem tougher or more capable than he actually was, or even stepping up on his own in order to help or defend one of his clutchmates. Brave and bold acts, certainly. But many of them, undoubtedly, stupid.

As he spoke, he was a bit more animate than he usually would be as well; his neck craning a bit as he shook his head as he spoke some of his mild, mounting frustrations aloud. Finally, though, Shieldwing seemed to have caught himself. He shook himself a little bit and straightened himself up. "Ah...s-so, uh, yeah," he quickly tried to stammer to cover himself. "If you've got something to say, you should probably just come out with it sometime soon, like, uh. Skobeloff said."

[XxFellsingxX]

Heliotrope paused in examining her patients to look over at Fellwing. "Oh, it's quite alright," she said. "It's refreshing to find drakes interested in my work." She gave a small, somewhat dry chuckle at the Seer's suggestion that she try and get a nap in. "Well, if the Moons allow it." However, she did seem appreciative of the concern, and a slight smile remained on her face for a little while after.

Kyte looked a little alarmed when Fellwing addressed them, as if they had been so caught up in their worries they forgotten about most everything else in the room. Tamba coming over to comfort them seem to have brought their attention back slightly, but they still unfocused. They nodded awkwardly in response to the black drake's words. "I'll, err. talk to her when she gets back," the winged drake muttered.

Garrock turned his head towards Fellwing in slow, deliberate fashion. "Your first impression of my sibling was him trying to tackle me while I was carrying an injured dragon," he said. "I don't know, Kebros, does that seem like the actions of a responsible adult to you?" His tone was nowhere near as acidic as it had been when they'd been on the island, more flat and monotone as if the reasons for his annoyance towards Rudrick should have been obvious to everyone.

---

There was a pause at Skobeloff's question, as if Rudrick was genuinely considering how much he should say. "Just family matters, really," he said. "If Garrock hasn't mentioned me, I doubt he's really spoken of family at all. He's not really close to any of us these days." He gives a little shake of his head. "Believe it or not it wasn't always like that. He wasn't always like that but..." He opens his mouth as if to elaborate, but all that comes out is a deep, weary sigh, as if he doesn't quite have the words for what he wants to say. After a moment of just letting that sigh hang in the air, he draws himself back up to his full height and turns his head back to drakes. "But never mind about all that."

He listened to Shieldwing's response and managed a chuckle at his observations on Garrock. "Yes, that sounds about right," he said. "Patience never was a virtue of his."

[rush99999]

Skobeloff

When Rudrick voiced his doubts that Garrock had spoken of anyone in his family, Skobeloff's eyes glinted in the manner which they always did anytime the Trickster discovered a crack through which he could slip. "You know... while he didn't speak of you, Garrock did actually mention three other family members to me during the mission we've come from" Skobeloff spoke up once Rudrick fell silent. "Your uncle Kurkar, your cousin Topaz, and your mother... Sunglow."

[Vertigo]

__________________________________________________

Fellwing mirrored Heliotrope's smile, but didn't turn back to bother her any further. Nor did she get back to Kyte with more than a quick, approving nod. She wasn't sure whether Stargaze would appreciate her meddling, but she also couldn't bear to let any feelings of regret or guilt linger in her friend's mind.

Speaking of meddling, Garrock's response was about what she expected, and this time she couldn't even blame him. She understood him, after all; she would've been likewise irate if someone tried to pry into her family business. But instead of saying that, what came out reflexively was an equally monotonous: "I suppose I haven't had very many responsible adult role models as of late."

... Shoot.

Fellwing tried so very hard not to side-eye Garrock as she said it, instantly recognizing that he wasn't being particularly venomous this time around — and so, neither should she. So she coughed, quickly continuing: "Mind, he only did it because he was so excited to see you. Excitement that hasn't waned despite, what I assume to be continuous, lack of reciprocity. Or, in other words..."

She sighed, looking up at the older drake with a look of genuine sympathy, unwelcome as it would likely be. "You're really dear to him. I'm sure a few minutes of your time would mean the world to him — and get him to leave you alone faster." An almost conspiratory smile visited her features. "That tends to be the way to handle the clingy sort. The further away you push them, the harder they cling. Give them a figurative bone, and they'll be content chewing on it for a while."

[Guardian Angel Haruki]

Stargaze

Stargaze was mostly quiet, listening to the group as they spoke with Rudrick. When Shieldwing brought up Garrock's attitude on the island she called home, she chimed in, "I think he still cared in some way. He seemed worried about you right after landing at Home, Shieldwing," She remembered how Garrock had checked on Shieldwing after he crash landed.

Of course, Rudrick continued speaking, addressing the topic of family. She did find herself a little envious and frustrated. Sure, Echo is a mother figure to her, but she didn't have any siblings. Heck, she didn't even feel like she'd belong in a House. Everyone, except for her clutch and a couple of other older dragons, ostracized her for not being part of one after all.

She is loathe to admit, but she is having trouble understanding or relating to what Rudrick is talking about when it comes to siblings.

She was caught off guard when Skobeloff somehow got the information of family out of Garrock, and she couldn't help but ask, "Wait. What? When did Garrock mention them?"

[Digizel]

Shieldwing

"Oh yeah...." Shieldwing murmured as he thought back to the very beginning of that mission. He considered how the Garrock had originally claimed not to care too much, but at the first opportunity of potential injury, he had come to him and started giving him a quick examination. Even though he had been fine, and the response afterward was rough, he had gotten the distinct impression that there was some amount of care put into that. "I guess he's not all that bad, now that I think about it. I've seen dragons and drakes that are way worse, at least. He's just...grumpy."

He couldn't outright dismiss the idea that Garrock may have just been concerned about his charges getting injured so soon during their mission for the sake of his own image, but he dismissed the thought outright. No need to take out his bitterness on him.

However, as Skobeloff continued, he had to stop himself from continuing on his own mental tangent and focus back on the conversation at hand. His verdant clutchmate was hard to read, but he could tell by now when Skobeloff was beginning to use his little word tricks to get something out of someone. He was bizarrely good at knowing how to say just the right thing; it was almost a little creepy, actually. Not that he'd ever say that aloud.

"Yeah...I don't remember that...or do I?" Shieldwing murmured, tilting his head upward and looking toward the ceiling in thought. Then again, he had been very passive for much of that mission, and a lot of it had gone over his head. And the more he thought about it, he realized the fewer details he was actually remembering. However, after a moment, his head snapped back down and he was looking back over at Skobeloff again. That last part seemed to particularly catch his attention. "Their...mother?"

[XxFellsingxX]

Garrock gave a small snort in response to Fellwing's first words, seeming more mildly amused rather that offended. He didn't say anything until she finished speaking. "I have a strong suspicion that Rudrick wants more than just a few minutes of my time," he said. "He wants to ask me a favour, and giving how much he's beating around the bush about it, he knows it's something I won't want to do." He sounds a little pained as he says this, like admitting even this small detail about his and his sibling's relationship causes him physical discomfort.

---

Rudrick froze in midstep and his face went through many quick little transformations at Skobeloff's words: at the mention of Kurkar's name, there was a slight raise of an eyebrow. With Topaz, Rudrick's mouth started to form the beginnings of a frown, and finally, when Sunglow was named, his eyes widened. His face froze in this weird state between three very different emotions for a good few seconds. "Hmm!" Rudrick said after a long pause. "Well, that's... interesting." There was another pause as the older dragon visibly attempted to get his thoughts and feelings in order before trying to speak again. "Very surprising, actually." He glances over at Stargaze and Shieldwing when they express confusion before turning his gaze back to Skobeloff. "Yes, when did he mention this... and what exactly did he say about them?"

[rush99999]

Skobeloff

"He mentioned this to me during the mission we just came from." Skobeloff said. "While we were making our way to the Treehold to gather reinforcements." Skobeloff decided to leave out the fact that the aforementioned reinforcements were ultimately unnecessary. "As for what he told me. He claimed that doesn't like Topaz very much, he mentioned that Kurkar and Sunglow were close enough that they that they thought to introduce their offspring to one another, and he said that Sunglow is a Semscale elder... Though probably not for very much longer." When Skobeloff spoke that last part, he did so with a notable degree of unease. Due both to the fact that it was likely a sensitive subject for those close to Sunglow and that ascension was a topic he never enjoyed thinking about.

[XxFellsingxX]

There was another pause as Rudrick took in what Skobeloff had just told him, his expression very obviously saddening at the last part. "Huh..." he eventually said, glancing up at the ceiling as he spoke. "So he is thinking about her. That's... good, I think? Might make my job a little easier." He turned his eyes back towards the drakes. "See, I've been trying to convince Garrock to visit Sunglow for quite a bit now. She really wants to talk to him before... well, you know... she can't anymore." He shook his head. "But every time I even try to bring up Sunglow, he just seems like he'd rather talk about anything else." He give a small laugh, which comes across way sadder than was probably intended. "If he even wants to speak to me at all." He look at Skobeloff, almost desperately. "I know we just met, but if Garrock was open enough to tell you, well, any of this, perhaps you can convince him to speak to me before you guys leave. I don't think I'll get another chance, and recent events have unfolded that have made this even more urgent than before."

[rush99999]

Skobeloff

"Perhaps?" Skobeloff asked with an arch of his brow. After a moment, Skobeloff let out a chuckle and shook his head. "If there's one thing you should know about me, Rudrick, it's that perhaps has no place in anything I'm involved with." The Myndoth Trickster said before turning tail and beginning to walk back the way he came. "You three take care of Coryn." Skobeloff told the others as he departed. "By the time you're done, I'll have Garrock ready to talk."

With that said, Skobeloff made his way back to Heliotrope's clinic. Finding the bearded Warrior still present, the raw-scaled Trickster held off on announcing his presence for a moment as he began to plan his opening moves. He studied his quarry, trying to discern any sort of clue as to how he might convince Garrock to speak with his brother. Or better yet, just skip straight to speaking with his mother.

OOC

Skobeloff studies Garrock. He rolls an 11 and learns the answers to the following questions:
- How could I get you to talk to Rudrick?
- How could I get you to talk to Sunglow?