#though they are... definitely not nice birds sdfgjhsdfghj - honestly they're assholes lol

[starcchild]

liars - bird set free, ikau one-shot

“I don’t like Greer.”

Carter snorted, her arms crossed tightly over her chest as she glanced down to her daemon - almost amused by the scowl-like expression as he kept his teeth bared. “I’d- I’d be con-concerned if you- you did, Alcaeus.”

The coyote shot her an unimpressed look, and shook his head as his muzzle slowly relaxed. “Be grateful you cannot hear the things she says. The brute has a worse tongue than Stane.”

Her jaw tightened at the thought, and she shook her head - holding herself tighter as they made their way into the woods that surrounded the compound. Obadiah’s words still echoed through her mind - his ridicule stinging far more than she wanted to admit. He wasn’t the first to point out her and her daemon were different, but whenever it’d come from him...

“Le-let me guess, she- she was ma-making fun of- of you for no-not settling?”

Alcaeus’s head lowered, and his ears flattened. “Of course she was. She was repeating what Stane said to you. Like always. I still think she should’ve been a parrot rather than a wolverine.”

A part of her actually wanted to laugh. He wasn’t wrong - while she couldn’t understand what Greer was saying, she knew enough from him that she seemed to only mirror Obadiah’s actions. Something that... wasn’t at all comforting. Alcaeus, while a part of her own soul, at least had a mind of his own. Spoke to her like he was a separate being. But Greer...

“I’m not surprised,” Alcaeus continued, “she’s just as rotten as he is. There’s nothing good--”

Carter inhaled sharply and came to a stop. Her heart skipped a beat before stuttering almost painfully in her chest, and she forced herself to keep her breathing steady. Talking negatively about Obadiah felt wrong, and she knew damn well her daemon was aware of that. “Enough. He’s- he’s not tha-that bad. You- you know tha-that, Alcaeus. He- he just... he- he has a- a weird way of- of show-showing it, is- is all.”

Her daemon stopped beside her and swung his head up to stare - his ears still flattened, and his lips drawing back in disdain. “A weird way of...? Carter, that can’t be--”

She shook her head and forced herself to begin walking once more - biting her tongue when she realized he wasn’t following. “We-we’ve been o-over this before. I- I don-don’t wanna ta-talk abou-bout it.” She couldn’t. She couldn’t acknowledge that... maybe, Obadiah didn’t--

Alcaeus quickly caught up to her side - slowing down from a trot to a slow stride as he trailed next to her once more. “Carter... We both know he’s a bad person.”

The corner of her mouth twitched as she held back a scowl of her own. “No- no one would be-believe us,” she pointed out dryly, but her voice was small. Far weaker than she wanted. Not that there was any point in trying to fool her daemon, but... she couldn’t bear to acknowledge the truth. It hurt too much as it was. The loneliness in her chest was getting harder to bear. “Jus-just drop it, Alcae-caeus. There’s- there’s no point in- in bring-bring it up. S’not li-like we can- can do anythi-thing to stop it- it, anyway. He- he does care a-about us, and he- he worries a-about...”

“Me not settling.” A low growl rumbled in Alcaeus’s throat - sounding more frustrated than angry. “I know. But he sure seems to have a funny way of showing he’s worried. Greer certainly doesn’t seem to share that sentiment.”

She didn’t respond - not in the mood to argue with him again. Not in the mood to dwell on the fact there was something wrong with them. She was almost twenty and he still couldn’t settle, and Obadiah was right in pointing it out. How could she be a hero - how could she support her father’s legacy - when her own daemon couldn’t find a permanent form? When she couldn’t even connect with her own soul? 

“I’m sorry.” Her daemon sounded almost defeated, and Carter finally glanced down at him in surprise - temporarily distracted by the ever-growing anxiety swelling in her chest. “I know I should’ve settled by now.”

She winced. “It’s- it’s not your fau-fault,” she whispered, and let out a heavy sigh as she reached out to scratch his head. “I- I know you-you’re trying, Alcaeus. It... it ha-happens, and it’s- it’s not a- a big deal.”

For a moment, he stayed silent, before he let out a snort, and lifted his head to gaze up at her wearily. “We’re both liars, you know.” He shook his head, and lowered it once more. The fur along his spine prickling. “You’re lying to yourself about him, and we’re both lying about me not settling being fine. It’s not. None of this is fine.”

Liars. Carter felt her throat tighten, and she turned her head away as well - crossing her arms back over her chest. Unable to respond. She knew she was - Obadiah called her out on it enough as it was. But... was she truly lying to herself about him? About Alcaeus not settling? About everything being fine?

“Carter--”

“Let’s- let’s ju-just go back.” With a sharp breath, she turned around, and quickly began to walk back in the direction of the compound. Unable to stand the quiet for much longer. Unwilling to acknowledge what her daemon was saying. Obadiah loved them both, he did, even if his daemon acted like a bully. He was just worried, was all. And Greer just... didn’t know how to reflect that worry. That was it. “I- I have wor-work I- I need to do- to do, anyway. We- we can ta-talk about this a-another time.”

Alcaeus scoffed, but followed after her. “Sure. Another time, then.”

She did her best to ignore the scorn in his tone, and the way her heart seemed to sink with each step. Unable to shake what her daemon had said. Unable to shake the ever increasing tightness in her chest as she forced herself to breathe. 

Liars. 

They both were, and she hated it.