Secret Woodlands I slither like a viper

She listened, eagerly taking in the information and storing it as she tried to piece her life back together. She had been well liked... AND SHE HAD BEEN A HEALER! The news had made her feel overjoyed and she grinned. Then Aideen informed her of something she had not been expecting at all. I have a son? She froze for a second in shock before she looked to Aideen. "But if I was in the pack and not a leader then how could I have a son? Who was his father?" She wondered aloud and when she realized she had asked, she turned to her friend with a questioning look. She was glad that she had been a healer before her accident and elated to hear she had guided Aideen down the path, but she really needed answers.

Celeste had a small frown when she realized how nervous she had made Aideen and then she smiled again. "I really wish I could remember everything." She said with a small look of dismay present on her muzzle. She wasn't upset per say but she was a little saddened by the fact. She offered a small smile and looked to her friend. If Aideen couldn't answer the question then she would find Nina and ask her... in due time that was. She wanted to know about him, everything. Was he within the woodlands? Did he look like her? So many questions involving @Bane plagued her. She wanted to meet him but what if he knew of her breakdown? What if he thought his mother was insane?

It was clear that the white woman paid close attention to every word, watching with bright eyes and ears perked. Aideen tried to stay positive and smile back, not letting her worry show; You're doing fine, she looks happy! She really did; Ashanti was beaming, clearly pleased to hear about her past. And then she stopped, starring in shock at the orange girl's last words. Crap!

Learning about her son obviously came as quite a surprise to the former healer, her voice was filled with wonder as she uttered her questions, and Aideen frowned slightly; Of course she's confused... That was to be expected, in fact, the younger fae had expected as much; what made her brows wrinkle was the questions. First of all, she knew very little about the circumstances surrounding Bane's birth, and even less about his father, but also... Well, these weren't the questions she'd anticipated; Isn't she wondering WHERE he is? WHO HE is?! Then again, if she had no memory of the boy, how could she feel anything about him, really it was rather like Ashanti to have one thought and go with it; But still... Poor Bane!

As if aware of Aideen's worries, the ivory dame shifted her own face disappointedly, declaring that she wished her memory had not been lost with a tiny sad smile. The tri-colored lass sighed; Me too... Straightening her back, she met Ashanti's eyes, not trying to smile this time as she cleared her throat to speak; "You... He, the father, he hurt you." She began uncertainly, desperately wishing to help her friend, despite her lag of knowledge; "It wasn't something you wanted, but... Well, you became pregnant and had Bane, your son." Her eyes had drifted to the ground while she spoke, and now she glanced back up with a sad smile; "I think you came here after... Sorry, I don't really know much of it all. It wasn't something you liked to talk about." Hopefully she hadn't done more harm than good, telling what she knew. Anxiously, she waited for Ashanti's reaction, ears and head hanging low; I'm sorry...

Word count: 352

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She gulped as Aideen told her of her son and the unfortunate circumstances surrounding his birth and conception. What Aideen said had clicked, it was the trigger event. It was what had caused her to lose her mind the first time. She looked at Aideen with desperate eyes. "I... I was raped? Where is he? Where is my son?" She asked because she needed to meet him. She needed to make sure he was alright. She was still quite shocked to hear the news. "What was his name? Were we close, do you know?" She didn't want to push Aideen for information the girl did not have but right now the girl was her only source of information to her former life and so she was going to learn everything she could about it from the other healer in the pack.

She pictured him, trying to think of what he looked like but with only information on his mother, being herself, all she could picture was ghostly white fur and a large frame... just like her. She had no idea that it was the real opposite and that her son looked just like his father with a dark chocolate coat and a blazing orange eye in color. She had no idea what to think but her tail wagged slowly as she hoped the woman had some more answers for her. "Sorry I keep flooding you with question. I'm just so curious about what happened." She apologized with her head lowering slightly.

Shock painted the white woman's face, and Aideen swallowed hard, looking back with sorrow in her big, copper eyes. Ashanti had blissfully forgotten all the horrors of her past, was it selfish to try and push them back at her, to force her to confront what had been the reason behind her break in the first place; I just want my friend back... She was being selfish, she was doing this for her own gain! The fox-like wolfess felt a crushing weight on her shoulders, blinking back tears as she tried to remind herself how they had ended up here; She ASKED! She wants to know, to remember..! That was the truth, Ashanti had asked Aideen to tell her all she knew, so that was what she was doing.

So she took a deep breath and tried to keep calm, while her ivory friend asked her questions, desperation in her voice. It was hard to blame her, all she wanted was answers, but still Aideen felt stressed by the wave of inquiry and didn't know where to start. When Ashanti fell quiet, the younger fae simply stared back, a helpless expression on her face as she tried to find heads and tails in all the questions.

Again, it was like the pristine shewolf knew what her friend was thinking, lowering her head remorsefully while offering an apology for her questions; Ashanti... This was why they had become friends in the first place, they were similar in so many ways, they understood each other. "Oh it's okay, I understand!" She rushed to assure her old comrade, and when she said it she meant every word, her voice warm and a melancholic smile gracing her lips. So she closed her eyes for a moment, then looked to meet Ashanti's crystal blues and started: "Bane Aranna, he's here, in Secret Woodlands, though he mostly keeps to himself." There was deep sadness in Aideen's eyes and her voice was quiet; "I think he always did... At least I haven't really spoken to him, not even before..." She trailed off, eyes growing blank again; when she first learned of Bane, she had been excited, eager to meet the boy, but before she had the chance, Ashanti ran off, and poor Bane had become even more isolated than before.

Realizing that she still had one question left to answer, Aideen cleared her throat and continued: "Were you close..?" The words hung in the air for a little while, whilst she pondered how to phrase her response, the she met Ashanti's gaze; "You're his mother, he loves you and you love him." It felt weird, stating it like that, but there was no other way to say it, and Aideen felt sure, that though she may not remember it right now, Ashanti still loved her son.

Word count: 469

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