In Dire Straits - Curtain Call [Ammut]

   She doesn't go out of her way to make friends anymore. She has her sisters, she has the Rosa, and she is safe in her Bond. Still, it is the duty of every wolf in Death Valley to know every other inhabitant, and the girl is certain she would remember someone with stars in their fur.
   Ashtaroth is blossoming, coming in to the family's Fringe Dire height and cultivating the muscle expected of their kind. The machinations of her mind are ever-turning, and she greets Ammut with the manners Scheherazade instilled. "Hello, miss," is the greeting. Will the kindness remains when she has someone to outrank? How like Mama will she be, in the end? "I am Ashtaroth, daughter of Rosa Gigantea and the White Seour." Gone is the addendum of her true parentage, the ugly traitor and lovestruck Shihan; Ashtar has embraced the adoption, with all the blessings and curses that accompany it. She has accepted the role of White.
   It is Gigantea speaking when she says, "You have such a lovely coat. What might I call you, miss?"

AMMUT

Perhaps once the star-strewn queen had been a bit more of a socialite, but then again, she had once been much more of a queen as well. The past few months had been rough on her. She was a stranger in a strange land - stripped of any authority. Even the former members of Sol would only obey her out of deference to who she used to be, it was not as if there’d be any consequence to do otherwise. In Oukoku-kai, she was but a lowly Kyuu, and she was still learning what that meant.

"Hello, miss. I am Ashtaroth, daughter of Rosa Gigantea and the White Seour."

When the black red and white young approaches her, there is a slight barely perceptible flicker of annoyance across the violet and gold wolf’s features before she remembers her place here in the new land.

"You have such a lovely coat. What might I call you, miss?"

A small smile lit the timber wolf’s face, reserved but affable. “Thank you..." She dipped her head somewhat in deference to the younger wolf as she answered the compliment, voice level and diplomatic. "I am called Ammut. My parentage would mean nothing to you, I’m afraid.” Despite that fact, Ammut still cut a regal and almost imposing figure. Her head held high and level, violet eyes steely as she watched the stranger curiously.

”To what do I owe the pleasure?” She asked, soft and tactful.

   She squints at the base of Ammut's throat. No slashes, but she is certainly not born of the Valley. "I haven't undergone a Rite of Passage or Auction, so I am the property of my parents. Whose property are you?" There mustn't be a Bondless this pretty left on her lonesome, or Gigantea would have claimed her. Ashtaroth knows the members of her birth House; is trying desperately to learn the faces of her pack.
   The girl holds her pink tongue between budding teeth. You don't know everything, child. Not yet. A slight smile puts a lovely curl in the angles of her patterning; like the hooks above her eyes, scythes on her hips, slashes at the shoulders. Bred of war. "Do you hold rank or Bond? I am so very interested in my packmates, you see. Every Order is a necessary facet of our ways."
   Because without Yellow or Red, White would have overtaken the Straits already.

AMMUT

"I haven't undergone a Rite of Passage or Auction, so I am the property of my parents. Whose property are you? Do you hold rank or Bond? I am so very interested in my packmates, you see. Every Order is a necessary facet of our ways."

Ammut's pointed ears swiveled, perking slightly at the question. The customs of this place were still rather strange to her -- the concept of bonds had certainly been explained to her, but the details and intricacies of that aspect of Oukoku life had eluded her, as had the experience of having one. She gave a thoughtful pregnant pause as she considered the words.

"As yet unclaimed..." She murmured.

Inwardly, she felt another wave of indignant irritation at the concept some beast meant to own her. Outwardly, her expression was serene. Calm, affable, and regal. Ammut could play the game as well as any, and she was a creature who knew the value of diplomacy. Any friend was worth their weight in gold, and it was best not to upset any who you were at the mercy of. Perhaps someday she could reclaim some vestige of status, some lofty position here in the place she had found refuge.

"I'm afraid I'm still a newcomer to these lands, and only a Kyuu as such."Her voice was smooth as satin. "I do hope someone shall... provide me an opportunity to prove myself worthy of their bond soon." She might have lost her crown, but she had lost none of what had earned her it. Charisma, poise, and etiquette accompanied by a sharp mind and sharper tongue. She wondered at the purpose of the young wolf's questioning. Was this an opportunity? She was not certain. Regardless, it would do her no harm to befriend the young wolf.

After all, she'd a soft spot for children.

   She looks the woman over once more, stars in her coat, and thinks distantly of the half-breed Bacchus. Ammut plays at White; Ashtar can tell. She, however, has no power in this place-- not yet. They're almost even, it would seem. How abhorrent.
   "I'll keep you in mind then, Miss Ammut. Captain Iti intends to claim me when I come of age." It's almost a gloat, that she cannot contain. She is better than any born a heathen. She must be. She knows her face now; the sunset pelt and White glow from within. She knows all she needs. "Perhaps we will meet again, hopefully in higher positions."
   Ashtaroth chuckles lightly, like a proper lady at the tea party, but within her heart, she wants to be higher than the woman.