#otsana;threads

For Otsana, it was mandatory to meet other Council members on neutral ground, especially those whose intentions she couldn’t help but suspect. The mer Queen’s aim was noble, and the old werewolf could catch a glimpse of true light in her eyes those few times they met —in and outside of Council business— but she was certain that other people would try to take political advantage of their new arrangement.

She wasn’t any different, she had her own agenda too, even if she didn’t mean any harm with it. Peace was appealing, but uncovering the identity of the mysterious letter sender was what she truly sought. A position like this could help expose them.

With a sigh, Otsana checked the watch on her wrist. She had arrived at the meeting point way too early and all she could do now was wait and observe the people around her. She wasn’t used to lowering her guard anywhere else but her farm, but as she did it, she could hear a few birds even in the loud murmur of the square.

Otsana was on the edge of internal collapse.

She knew that accepting the position of Beta all those years ago would come with responsibilities that she hadn’t wanted at first, but she grew into it as they all found a rhythm that suited her. Later on, taking over the role of Council Speaker was merely a strategic move toward her main goal, but how was she supposed to work on that when the whole state was flooded with blood and merfolk refugees were settling in her farm and all across Selcouth territory?

Not only there, but all over Calamity, people were opening their doors to them, now forced onto borrowed legs. It was heartwarming… and also a pain in her ass.

They needed to find a solution. Fast.

That’s why she didn’t doubt it for a second when Oberyn popped into her mind. The ancient sorcerer truly should know something about blood rain and all sorts of supernatural disasters. Maybe he even had something to do with it… She wouldn’t put it past him, but no accusations would be made until she gathered enough information.

“You surely have lived through everything, you old codger,” she pointed out without shame. The bloody weather had certainly made her snappier than usual. Still, the corners of her lips twitched with hidden amusement. “What the hell is going on?”

Otsana had been blessed with a strong immune system and good health since birth. Surely, she’d caught a cold here, the flu there, maybe she’d mistaken a poisonous berry for a safe one when she was a kid, but none of it lasted long or had much impact on her well–being.

Still, she had needed medical assistance several times in her life, not only for each of her three pregnancies or the births of her grandchildren, but also in the past, when her father was older than most in the pack and the weight of time manifested in his bones. Not many got to live so long in Calamity, few were lucky to meet their progeny. She felt fortunate.

And yet, this world always had ways to sweep even the luckiest off their feet.

She’d been overthinking —like few times in her life— about the grimoire she found in the attic. Even if she tried to come up with a way to justify its existence other than it belonging to her mother, she could still picture her writing in it. She had left long before her father, she’d whittled away too fast. And now Otsana was starting to understand why.

She needed answers. And the first person that came to mind in that regard was Finlay. Their families had relied on each other for a long time, she knew he was trustworthy. Grimoire in hand, though wrapped in a cloth and tucked in a basket, she stepped into the Cochran Clinic. When was the last time her heart had raced like this? Hard to remember.

“Good morning,” she greeted with a polite smile brightening her features. “It’s been a while, Finlay,”

The Selcouth Alpha was feeling unwell. That was the excuse she had to use every time he sent her to attempt diplomatic relations with the unruly Revenants. Forever reminded of her connection to Liliana and her late uncle, Otsana had no other choice but follow orders. She wished it hadn’t come to this with the young Alpha, the one she’d seen grow into a fearless and terrifying werewolf.

A part of her still saw the child in Liliana, staying close to the one person who granted her the sort of safety felt only inside. Accessing it now seemed impossible, as if it had been buried so deep not a single drop of light could reach it now.

“We need to talk about the merfolk,” she started without beating around the bush. At least, they still understood each other in their dislike for pretenses. “I’m not expecting you to lend a hand with the refugees, but you need to keep your wolves in check.”

She shifted her position, arms crossed as she leaned against the closest wall. Her golden eyes fixed the Alpha as if she were one of her own, and not a mere Beta sent to deal with the devil herself. After trying to improve their pack–to–pack relationship for so long, what she was about to declare felt counterintuitive, but as things were as of late, her options were reduced to this.

“I know it sounds tempting… messing with the seabound—but if any of yours cross into Selcouth territory or my farmland, they’re dead.”

Too much had been revealed to Otsana recently. Secrets about her family she'd never imagined, truths that would haunt her until the end of her days. Everything was starting to make sense, her very own existence, but there was still so much she needed to dig out to understand who exactly her parents were. All she knew about her father was his origin, the Revenant pack. She thought of asking Liliana straight out, as she was the current Alpha, but things had been difficult with her ever since her uncle died. Montego was her only option, her only other connection to the unruly wolves.

She'd sent him an invitation to her farm, far in the southern forest, away from prying eyes and sharp ears from both her and his pack.

When he arrived, she was herding the flock back inside the barn. Humidity stuck to her fur, warning of an oncoming storm. She locked eyes with him in acknowledgment and barked toward the farmhouse, inviting him in.

Shortly after , Otsana joined him inside, on two legs and fastening the last few buttons of her shirt. "Thank you for coming," she greeted dryly, almost mechanically. Dreadful small talk. "Coffee?"

Even though there was so much weighing on her mind, Otsana wasn’t the sort of woman that would leave her animals unattended even a single day. Still, she needed time to think, to clear her mind and plan her next move with surgical precision. If her parents had kept their true identities secret even from her… there had to be a damn good reason. She had to tread carefully.

When the sheep were grazing safely and the chickens had been fed, she shifted into her wildest form and ran across the fields. It was the most efficient way to ground herself, to let the mental clouds dissipate with the wind brushing her fur back. She loved losing herself in the forest for a few hours, catching scents, watching the wildlife with no other intention than to admire it, and making sure that predators, supernatural or otherwise, kept their distance from her farm.

It was when she was about to turn around and go back home, that an unusual smell was caught by her snout. Human. Too far into the forest. Too deep into wolf territory. A hunter?

Otsana recoiled, found a hiding spot and stayed as still as possible to let her ears and her nose tell her where this trespasser was headed, and luckily, even what their intentions were. It was confusing, as if they didn’t have a specific route, as if they were just frolicking around.

She needed to see.

Following the scent with the utmost caution, she came upon a young woman. She was collecting herbs, completely unaware of Otsana’s presence in the bushes next to her. The wolf couldn’t sense any sort of threat from her, and that was even more puzzling. She wasn’t carrying any heavy weapons, not ones that Otsana could tell from a distance. Had she accidentally ventured too far from her home?

Only one way to tell what she was up to; without revealing herself to the human, Otsana growled lowly from the bushes, waiting to see her reaction. That would tell her everything she needed to know before making her next move.