EVERYONE'S SO SCARED // Dante

[glow=white,1,400]DO YOU THINK YOU'RE SAFE, FROZEN IN PLACE ? — [abbr=HYDROSTATIC "HYDRO" CIPHER, PUP, THE PITT, 4 MONTHS]｡+ﾟ.[/abbr][/glow]

Even though his first visit to the Ashen City had been quite unnerving, Hydrostatic was curious about the place. Although he didn't want to bother Aine about visiting there, since she seemed almost as nervous as he was when she had discovered him on the edge of the city. There was one person in The Pitt though that knew the Ashen City well and Hydro discovered it after asking around. Dante Northwest, the strange sharkcat that was around Jormungand a lot.

It wasn't really hard to find the hybrid either, considering he often lazed about in the sun and was warming himself. Hydrostatic approached Dante, ears pricked. "Hey, Dante!" He greeted with a small chirp.[glow=white,1,400] ━ ✧*:･ﾟ[/glow]

[glow=white,1,400]I'M LOSING MY MIND TODAY ! — [abbr=DANTE NORTHWEST, THE PITT, PITTIAN, 8 YRS, SINGLE]｡+ﾟ.[/abbr][/glow]

Dante would have had a nice sunbathing nap, if it weren't for a certain silver-colored jaguar cub running up and ruining his nap. The hybrid's torn ear flicked hearing the cub approach and he opened one eye in a grumpy manner when Hydrostatic greeted him. "Whaddya want?"

"Do you know anything about the Ashen City?" Hydrostatic asked him, which made Dante raise his head and open his closed eye, blinking down in surprise for a moment.
"Yea, I do. Why?" Dante replied. Honestly - though he wasn't going to admit it - his heart fluttered at the mention of The Pitt's original home. He missed it there, and he missed Yes Man. Hydrostatic looked at the ground after receiving confirmation, shuffling a paw as if he was embarrassed about something.
"Can... you take me there?" Hydro asked, still looking at the ground as he spoke. His ears flattened, as if he was ashamed of asking such a thing. Dante was curious as to why the kid needed an escort, but on the other hand, that meant he could return home even if it were just for a little bit. Dante got up and stretched, startling the cub next to him.

"I'll take ya there. Let's go, kid."[glow=COLOR,1,400] ━ ✧*:･ﾟ[/glow]

[glow=white,1,400]DO YOU THINK YOU'RE SAFE, FROZEN IN PLACE ? — [abbr=HYDROSTATIC "HYDRO" CIPHER, PUP, THE PITT, 4 MONTHS]｡+ﾟ.[/abbr][/glow]

Seeing the hybrid get up startled Hydrostatic, making the jaguar wriggle back a few paces as if expecting Dante to lash out at him. Instead, Dante agreed to take him to the Ashen City, quickly walking off without waiting for a response from Hydrostatic. The silver jaguar quickly padded after him, ears pricked. Although there were strange glances from NPCs with Dante leading him somewhere, Hydro was sure that Jormungand wouldn't mind. The two seemed close, after all.

"Why did'ya want to come here?" Dante asked as they exited camp and out into the desert, Hydrostatic trailing behind him and trying to keep up. The hybrid didn't look back when he talked, though not that Hydro minded.
"Aine told me about it, kind of." Hydro replied. "I went exploring and I found the edge of the city and it gave me the creeps." He heard Dante let out a snort of amusement. "But I wanted to know more about it, and she seemed weirded out by the City too."
"Because she was there when it burned down." Dante didn't hesitate in his response, though Hydrostatic could sense venom in his tone. Though whether it was towards Aine or the event itself, he couldn't tell. "It used to be where The Pitt's camp was. Harsher weather here, with it being in the middle of the desert. Had to walk further to get to the Nile and even then, that's not something you wanted to drink out of."

"Right," Hydrostatic mumbled in response, though interested in what Dante had to say. Honestly, it was the most he's ever heard the guy say but hey, he wasn't complaining. Dante was one of the few that seemed to know about The Pitt's past, other than Gael, Sweeney, and Aine - who Hydro wasn't really familiar with. Aine he knew more than Gael and Sweeney, but regardless, the Fleshweaver seemed uncomfortable just being near the City and he didn't want to make things worse.[glow=white,1,400] ━ ✧*:･ﾟ[/glow]

[glow=white,1,400]I'M LOSING MY MIND TODAY ! — [abbr=DANTE NORTHWEST, PALE BLOOD, THE PITT, 8 YRS, SINGLE]｡+ﾟ.[/abbr][/glow]

The few stray ashes were cold as the two walked through, though obviously that was something Dante expected. The fire that raged through here was long gone; no reason for the ashes to be warm. Not to mention the blizzard that came before he returned home once again. Dante took in a deep breath as they went through his old home, with him aware of how Hydrostatic gazed around the area. "Not much to see here." The hybrid said to the cub, a strange sadness in his tone.

"It's so eerie here." Hydrostatic mewed as a response, still trying to keep up with Dante. The hybrid stopped, turned back to wait for the kid. "That's because it used to be full of life here." He replied with a shrug. "We had started out here and lived here up until The Typhoon decided to burn it down." Dante dug his claws into the ground, feeling ash and sand shift beneath him. "We used to be great, kid. Feared, even." The hybrid let out a snort, shaking his head. "We're far from that now, and it's almost pathetic."
Hydrostatic caught up to him now, a frown on his face as he sat in front of where Dante stood. "Why? What makes you say that?"
A laugh escaped Dante. "You came from the Coalition. They're what The Pitt was at one point. We used to be feared and whispered about, warned of how we were merciless against anyone who dared crossed out way." Dante looked up and over, seemingly searching for something. His gaze fell upon a grave and he knew exactly who it was for.

Dante rose to his paws and walked over to the grave, tail dragging in the sand. He heard Hydrostatic follow him, though the cub asked no questions. Dante stopped next to the grave, staring down for a moment in silence. He felt himself getting choked up, his throat tightening. "This grave... belongs to Yes Man. The founder of The Pitt." The sharkcat spoke, lowering himself down to lay before the grave. "I followed him here." I made a promise to him. He could feel Hydro's gaze on him, expecting him to go on, but the hybrid found the words hard to say. I'm sorry, old friend. I've tried. He would have loved to see The Pitt thrive and be as fierce as they were, but with Gael as Ardent and Kold and Aine existing, that was going to be hard.

"The whole point of The Pitt was to have a group that protected themselves." Dante went on, forcing himself not to focus on the thoughts and emotions running through him. "We were supposed to be a tight-knit, tough group who took no shit from anybody. Threatened if someone crossed us and meant it." Now there was anger running through him again, with the thought of Gael, Aine, Kydobi - Kold was there too, though Dante personally felt that had she been here during The Pitt's older days, perhaps she would have been a good ally to have. But alas, she came during a time where The Pitt had fallen.
"We had trading partners, but if they crossed us, they learned why that should not happen." Dante rose to his paws, shaking his fur out and stretching his wings - careful not to knock over or hit Hydrostatic. The cub was staring up at Dante in awe and wonder, something that the hybrid was surprised about. Jormungand raised a good kid. One who seemed to understand what he was getting at.

But then Hydrostatic frowned. "... Some people bring up slaves, is-is this true?" Dante's torn ear flicked at the question before answering truthfully, "Yes. It is, but if I recall, they had a chance to prove themselves to The Pitt in order to become a full member." If they ran off after being accepted, then, well... that was on them. "It was a way to keep control over our enemies and made sure they knew we weren't someone to fuck with. Granted -" Dante added with a sharp inhale. "- slavery isn't needed for this, but I reject Gael for insisting on remaining pacifistic to the other groups. There is no reason to be. No reason to humor them in believing we care." With a shake of his head, Dante reached out a paw and gently shoved Hydrostatic towards the direction of camp. "I believe we've overstayed our welcome here. Let's go home." I need a fucking drink.

Hydrostatic seemed disappointed, but listened and started to follow Dante back home. The cub was silent for a moment, before quietly calling out, "Dante...?" Dante didn't look back at the kid, but let out a grunt in response, "Yeah?"
"... Thank you."[glow=COLOR,1,400] ━ ✧*:･ﾟ[/glow]