Sorath laughed. The sound of it was like teeth to Ontari. Sorath's laugh reached into her and squeezed her heart, but she dared not let a single ounce of that feeling show. What was so funny? Who would laugh when accused of that kind of thing? Ontari did her best to remain passive, watching Sorath through narrowed eyes. She'd been tempted to smirk, as if she were in on the joke, but she couldn't bring herself to because...well, Sorath's laugh was honest.

Ontari was surprised when Sorath actually clarified, though. It was a little less degrading to admit to her surprise, and she blinked hard and frowned. "I know your blood, but not your laws...as you call them." What kind of laws could Demons have? First rule, Ontari thought with a smirk to herself, was not to harm the young...and was that it? Maybe they just ate up all of the family members and left the pups alone, or indoctrinated them. It made her skin prickle to think of such a thing! How wrong that would have been.

She'd been wanting to say something else when Sorath shot back at her. This time, she could not help but wince. Her lips turned up to reveal her teeth but for a moment, and she took a sharp step backwards; despite having only been words, Ontari's instincts told her to stand at the ready. Head low, ears back, she glared hard at Sorath before she realzed she'd been so transparent. Then, she snorted - no big deal! - and lifted her head again. Maybe if she composed herself fast enough, Sorath would somehow forget how obviously hurt Ontari had been...Even if she didn't admit it herself. Of course her parents loved her, right? Arkane and Raz had just been busy...They had to go learn about things, so they could bring back knowledge and wisdom. That was love...Wasn't it?

"At least my mother's..." No, even Ontari couldn't sink low enough to take a jab at Sorath's loss like that. Hepzibah had been a Demon, but she'd still been a mother, right? Ontari wanted to be better than Sorath, and where she'd taken a bite out of Ontari that way, Ontari wouldn't return to the favor. Instead, she bit down on her own teeth and swallowed back the words. "At least my mother's an alpha - a leader. What are lessons about your kind in the face of learning to rule and lead?" She shrugged, but she eyed Sorath off with what might have been the tiniest hint of...empathy, was it? Ontari had been fairly confident in her redirection, after all.

"Spine of Hell...Interesting," she quickly followed up with. This time, she wasn't so cut by Sorath's laugh. Instead, she was more...interested. She observed the girl closely, with much less criticism than her initial appraisal. Her eyes ran the length of the russet fur, realizing for the first time that it was Sorath's only true marking. Was there meaning in just the one? Ontari herself had several smaller markings - two russet brows, the tip of her tail and the toes of her right paws. They were Angel Marks, but they did not differ so much from Demon Marks from what she could tell; even the shade of russet was similar enough. That kind of thought felt...wrong, though. It felt wrong to compare the two of them.

"Your mother's Mark was similar, but not quite the same. She was originally from Iromar, wasn't she?" Ontari's voice had taken a slight shift in tone; her interest was wholly honest now, and no longer did any venom inhabit her voice. "Few wolves come to Iromar and know the paths..."