THOTH & MORVEREN
Tensed, defensive, and wound up tighter than a yo-yo in anticipation of the telling-off he thought was forthcoming, Thoth heard exactly what he expected to hear. He scowled heavily at the merlin when he appeared at the window, his expression so closely mirroring the one Joel used to often wear that, for a moment, he looked like him. Arthur didn't antagonise the situation by agreeing with his familiar, but he didn't help. Unable to read tone, Thoth didn't understand the comment the way it was meant and took it instead as a criticism and a type of blame. So it was his fault, because he couldn't control Morveren? Who the hell in Shaman could? Not only was Morveren a free spirit, she didn't understand English. Her ability to comprehend what Thoth told her was low enough to merit treating her as a pet, but she wasn't she was a familiar. Didn't she deserve the same freedom to roam around as Pendragon enjoyed, and Celidon, and Avalon?
The old, familiar sense of anger started bubbling in the pit of his stomach. Thoth stared at Arthur with an expression which clearly indicated how close he was to blowing up and then turned away. He focused on the floor instead, memorising the pattern of the bare floorboards. The process from angering to attempting to self-calm as always with Thoth, was clearly visible in his facial expression and body language, which hid nothing. Only a year ago, he would have started shouting. The change was prominent, and marked not only a greater sense of self-awareness, but a distinct and commendable effort towards self-control.
He took Morveren back silently, his fingers appreciating the familiarity of her cool, scaly hide. An amphibian, Morvern was ectothermic: she regulated her body temperature externally, by moving between hot and cold places, rather than internally like mammals. The corridor had been drafty, and her body temperature had dropped; as if to prove the point, a small shiver ran up her spine. Thoth automatically put her inside his shirt where she squeaked delightedly and pressed against his warm torso.
It would be nice to say that his attempt at self-calming worked and it did, a little but in reality his anger only really ebbed away when Arthur spoke again. Thoth's shoulders relaxed, although he did shoot Pendragon a dark look when the merlin started muttering. Fortunately, the bird flew off before he could try Thoth's temper again, and Arthur neatly defused the situation. The teenager obligingly crouched down to start picking up more of the papers.
Oh yeah, he replied vaguely when the king brought up the wardrobe, completely missing the bite in his voice. Thoth's tone indicated that he'd forgotten about the no-taking-apart-furniture rule with the same absent-mindedness he applied to basic survival routines such as sleeping and eating. It was the right size for my board. The statement was more informational than excusing.
As he picked up the papers, random words from the texts jumped out at him. Pirates... Apeliotes... attack... He blinked twice in quick succession and shook his head, batting back the unwelcome memories that those words raised. Shoving those papers a little forcefully onto the pile, he reached out to grab another one and hesitated a little as another world jumped out at him: wolf. Curious, Thoth picked up the paper and skimmed it when he thought Arthur wasn't looking. It was a report outlining the behaviour of a particular wolf pack which had been harassing farmers near Augury Vale.
A wolf pack. The memory of the freezing yellow eyes of the wolf who had held his gaze in Macabre Marsh all those years ago seemed to burn through the page. Of all the animals in Shaman, Thoth had made a conscious effort to stay away from wolves, since...
Did you know my father? The words tumbled out of his mouth before he could stop them. Once out in the open there was little he could do about them, so he stooped up slowly and held out the paper for Arthur to take. There's a wolf pack in Augury Vale.
Adonis had left civilisation to join a pack of wolves. That was about the only thing Thoth really knew about him.
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