Alana: *trudging through the snow, ignoring the chill on the back of her legs from her dampened sleeves. An annoyance, really, Alana hated the snow. As much as she loved her sleeves... well, times like this make her wish they weren't there. They were more of a hassle in these situations, really.* ...... *Her mind was still wandering, remembering that pair of twins from the other day, not that it mattered. Maybe it'd do her some good to avoid public eye for a while, as it didn't seem to be going to well-- wait a minute who was that?* ...! *This herla surely looked familiar...* .... *Remembering the last time she approached a familiar looking herla, yes... That was Royce. Maybe this herla was familiar because of family relations too; she surely had the look and resemblance as father did... her ears perked, then flattened* ......... *No, who cares, she was doing this. She was making this happened and dammit she approached the mountain herla with a casual, but underlying fierce determination* "You..." *the tone of her voice wasn't harsh or mean, not even accusing... not nessesarly started, but definitely unsure.*
Hollis: *my, that black certainly does stand out against the snow. Hollis pauses, meeting Lotus' gaze with a wary, questioning look. but then a wild Alanna appears! attention diverted, Hollis' already heavy-lidded gaze further narrows into a not-quite-glare but certainly miffed look* Yes. Me. Can I help you? *this herla looks so much like mother that Hollis is instantly on-guard, mind reeling to remember the relation, if any*
Alana: *Her ears remain flat, a small frown on her face. She ought to of been used to the negative responses that seemed to find her like magnets on metal* .... "You just..." *she fumbles awkwardly with words for a moment, mumbling a thing or two to herself: just absentminded musing really as she tried to figure out a coherent response. Why did she seem so afraid suddenly?* "...Seem oddly familiar, is all." *...But she took negative response as a good thing, in these cases: if they responded harshly to her, it was probably in due to her appearance... and why? Because she was a spitten-image of her. She could feel the cruel smile showing itself slightly. Yes, it was a good thing after all*
Hollis: *obviously impatient, Hollis shifts on golden hooves, tone brusque, rising slightly as though trying to illustrate to this hind to speak up* As do you. You resemble my mother, in fact. I always hated that side of the family. *all business, this herla, speaking so matter-of-factly, expression as weary as ever*
Alana: *Ah yes, that seals it for sure. Was that a spark of indignation in Alana's eyes? She was a pretty weary hind too, mind you. Guess it goes to show how difficult a broken family really can be* "Better to loath one half then the family entirely, wouldn't you agree?" *And then it sort of clicks. Hollis. She gave a little meaningless laugh, empty in a way, that is to say, entirely. It was funny, not too long ago she was that graceful, picture-perfect hind with the gorgeous attire and graceful stride. Look at that hind now with the ripped up fabric and dirty pink hide. It was ironic, how quickly one looses faith in everything. You gotta stand for something or you'll fall for anything, but then, what if there was hardly anything to stand for anyway? When half your family's dead, one's too obnoxious and self-preoccupied, your Father apparently cares more to run off with his buddy rather then reconcile with his daughter- and then you have this one here, and this speaks all for itself. Why did she want to reconnect with her family so badly again? They only seemed to bring her trouble. Nothing but it. And by god did she loath it.*
Hollis: Mm. *mulls over the answer for a moment, then decides it's a good one, head dipping slightly in agreement* It's why I returned. I suppose there are still some good ones left. *a vague compliment?! tone as flat as ever, but Hollis seems to warm just the tiniest smidgen, at the very least finally offering an introduction* Hollis. And you are? *the memories are growing clearer by the second, wandering about have shaken out reminders of time spent in the hartlands, a messy childhood muddling most of it but this hind seems so familiar and Hollis feels so close to realizing it now, maybe there'll be something more solid to finally latch onto, so to speak*
Alana: "Must be nice. Having good ones left. I hope one day maybe my own family will prove me wrong." *but forget that; she straightens up, poised, despite looking so ragged. Whatever; looks hardly mattered lately* ... *Her lips twitched when the herla introduced them self, Hollis, of course, she was right- and that bitter smile emerged again* "What a lovely name, Hollis. It's nice to finally see you again." *Her voice was practically dripping with passive aggressiveness with the sudden realization that she was in fact, reuniting with a fragment of her family. How wonderful, splendid, lovely...* "Oh but where are my manners? After all, my side of the family always prided ourselves on manners and beauty and perfection." *that smile suddenly fades, and it's just a rather apathetic frown* "Alana." *The way she says it; curt, precise, underlying indignation.*
Hollis: *now throroughly amused, Hollis' mouth curled into a small, rare smile. hilarious how bitter this hind was, it was like a curse in this family or something! and just like that, recognition returns to Hollis. here was the favorite child, no wonder she was so angry. resisting the urge to laugh, not out of mockery but out of pity, Hollis shakes instead, fur puffing out, enjoying the biting cold of both the weather and their sister, because that's who this hind is, oh boy. Hollis' voice softens, even rarer than a smile* Little Al, little sister, don't sound so bitter. You don't want to end up like me. *abruptly breaks off, looking away, over the snow-covered landscape of the hartlands. Hollis feels like saying more, but is suddenly at a loss for words, feeling all sorts of guilty. for leaving, for returning, for not even recognizing Alana until now, and being so terrible to her in the first place. it'd be easy to just leave, withdraw again, but hell, Hollis is done with that. here's a chace to reconcile! and Hollis hopes it isn't already blown. Alana is allowed to be angry, and Hollis, well, Hollis turns back to her with a frown* My side of the family has always prided themselves on being strong. But they wander. And sometimes they forget what's really important. I hope I can prove you wrong, if you'll give me the chance.
Alana: *Yes, the favorite child, and why? How? The hell were they to call her a favorite and leave. Maybe she was being selfish; she didn't want to be the favorite, she just wished her family didn't lie. She wished her family was just sane and whole and like all the other families for god's sake.... but then the indignation fades, if slightly. Her eyes are still weary, an untrustworthy shade of teal, if only because she's been hurt and betrayed by her family so much. Her face muscles twitch, Little Al, and she wanted to call her out. Siblings or not, they were practically strangers...* . . . . *But... she had given Royce another chance to, and even though he was rather... excitable and eccentric, he was still her younger brother and surely wasn't as bad as some... other certain family members. Her lips twitched into a frown again; it was always the ones more like father that she could deal with, and yet here she was, trapped forever on the opposite side. It was funny in the worse sense of the meaning; it was almost as her mother and brother were the only ones who made it out alright, because they were dead, simply put* "I haven't even seen you in forever, and I hardly even saw you growing up, forgive me if I'm just a little apprehensive... but..." *she pauses, the anger drains and she's suddenly quite tired from her small passive aggressive outburst. She really is just a harmless, pretty petty hind* "... But sometimes forgiveness is better then pursing grudges, even though I suppose I've hardly the reason to hold a grudge against you, well, compared to everyone else... but I guess if you'd really care enough to try, then I'll give you the chance. Having a family would be nice, for once."
Hollis, always watching ever intently, saw the subtle change in her sister's demeanor and felt afraid. Had she blown it, then?
It occurred to Hollis that she really could be coming on too strong. It was ironic, that she should suddenly, so desperately, want to get to know this sister, the one that they both knew represented everything they hated in the family, taking so much after the mother they both hated. The favorite indeed.
But really, when you got right down to it, how could she hate what never was?
They had been separated as fawns because of the growing distance between their parents, who desperately tried to cling to a dying romance born of foolish childhood fancies. It was probably destined to fail from the start, and neither of their parents couldn't—or just didn't want to—admit it, and they all suffered as a result.
It was an overwrought melodrama, something Hollis could have laughed at if it hadn't hurt them so badly. They hadn't completely understood it then, of course, but the way Hollis and Alana looked at each other now, as strangers despite being of the same blood, spoke volumes.
Hollis faced her sister calmly, the only indication that she was afraid being her ears, pulled back as though she didn't want to hear the rejection, but she was hanging on every word. Funnily enough, as brave as Hollis wanted to be she was hurt so easily. Losing her family, her friends, she had reflected on that for so long in isolation she thought she had come to terms with it. She would return to the hartlands to start over.
And indeed here she was, ready to start over. By herself, she would be OK with that. So if Alana told her to ******** off (so unbefitting of a lady!), cool, Hollis would deal as she always did: Stonefaced outward, dying inside and withdrawing further inward despite the fact that Hollis told herself she wouldn't, really, she was better now.
But it didn't come to that. Hollis' ears lifted as Alana picked up again, apparently having changed her tune. In this case, Hollis couldn't keep her usual emotionless expression—a small smile pulled at the corners of her mouth, but did not grow any larger. Don't get her wrong, Hollis was thrilled, but the guilt she felt wouldn't allow her to completely celebrate just yet. Seeing how exhausted her sister suddenly looked, as though being so angry and bitter took so much out of her (Hollis could confirm it did, actually), she felt just as guilty as if she was the one that had sabotaged their family.
All the more reason to be the best damn sister she could be.
"Thank you, Alana. This means more to me than you know." she allowed her smile to quirk ever-so-slightly more, and nudged her sister affectionately. "I'll try to be one of the good ones."
AND THEN THEY WENT ON TO HAVE KICKIN' RAD GRRL POWER ADVENTURES HAPPILY EVER AFTER
