[Riverfall] Should Have Seen it in Her Eyes [Mao/Kavala]

[Mao]

A sharp pain seemed to thrum up the side of her leg as Mao pound her claws into the ground, tearing chunks of soil into the air in her wake. Her heart was beating faster, and faster! Like a drum that pounded against her chest, threatening to explode. She was as licentious as one could get, even for a kelvic, but it was unwise to presume the girl to be taken in so quickly; to forget what she had known throughout her entire life, the very knowledge that has kept her alive for this long. But there were certain ways to allow the wild kelvic to settle. Mao would assume the roll of a protective mother when the time came, to be so caught up in her love and devotion to quell the bloodlust she once knew. But now! Now she had struggled just to keep herself up! Her heart beat rhythmically but incredibly fast paced. Thump thump thump. It was in her ears, she couldn’t feel her legs! The world seemed to swirl around her and disperse, and the collision with the ground felt like feathers rather than solid substance. She couldn’t move. Mao wanted to flail and cry out, but no voice came. Instead her maw was held slightly open, fangs bared and claws outstretched in front of her. Still her breath came in rapid intakes, but her eyes roamed the trees ahead, a wonton feeling. She had not made it, she had been deceived by the konti! Or had it been the human? Kavala’s words tumbled in her head. Her urges that this Vanator was not food. She had clearly displeased the woman, but now Mao was at the mercy of the konti and the human.

[Kavala]

Kavala reached out and laid her hands on the man whom she'd called brother for all of her life. Once, they'd been close. Kavala missed that closeness. She used to be able to talk to him about anything. Now, there was so much in her life she didn't know how to share with him without hurting him or causing his censor. As her scaled hands came down on his slashed leg, warm energy poured forth, re knitting flesh and halting bleeding. Kavala rose, working quietly, running her hands across Vanator's bloody nose to stop the bleeding and to check to see if it was broken. I wouldn't be the first time it had been, nor probably would it be the last. Thankfully it was fine this time, so she moved on to the scratches which were deep rendings in his flesh from Mao's claws. She nodded to his words, knowing he was as strong as he looked, but she tended him anyhow, not wanting to get close to Mao until the drug had taken its full effect.

Mao's failure affected her deeply - though she tried to hide it. The Kelvic should have been safe for Vanator to have a conversation with. Instead, she'd attacked, wounded, and could have easily killed him. Or vice versa. Kavala knew what that meant. Mao wasn't nearly as far along as she'd thought she was. The kelvic had been faking it, lying, hiding, not being honest with the Konti. It hurt deeply. If Mao did something, it would destroy Kavala's reputation, which in turn would affect Hatots. Mao was a liability. But she was Sorian's bondmate, so Kavala couldn't give up. Not now. Not yet. But first, Vanator should know a few things. The konti met her brother's eyes and sighed softly, touching him like she had once done so - with familiary - as if his solid presence reassured her. And it did, even if she was loathe to admit it.

"I know quite a few Kelvics and I consider all of them people. But here in Riverfall they are considered pets. I'm not sure why. I have a deep respect of the Akalak people ... but like other cultures and our own, not all of it is to my likingl." Kavala said, meaning more perhaps than she was actually saying. "Mao thinks killing is a bloodsport that should be participated in daily. She's been abused and grown up feral, and I don't think she'd settle for rabbit or glassbeak when there's men to hunt. She has a bondmate who's an Akalak. They are very close. I slipped her fertility drugs until their natural activities took their course to ensure she'd be with his child at the end of it. She wasn't happy with me, but it protects her. If she kills they won't kill her. We're trying to work with her to teach her killing is wrong, but I'm not sure it will ever get through to her. She sees people as play toys - especially humans - and not as creatures of value. I'm fairly certain quite a few Drykas males have managed to make their way into her stomach. In fact, I can guarantee it. But she's not safe around civilization. That's why she wears the collar to keep her from shifting. I'd hoped that by you removing it, she'd past the ultimate test and not attack. She failed. Which means all she's been saying and doing is a lie. Deep down she still wants human blood. All it will take is her killing a child, someone's wife, or perhaps some valuable livestock before they will cull her. This way, as long as she's pregnant, she's safe. They might lock her up until the child is born, but they won't end her life until we've at least gotten a chance to try to help her integrate into society better. The Akalaks are on the verge of extinction. Any potentially new child has incredible value. Be it hers. Mine. Anyones. They aren't doing anything to her. I made the decision. Her bondmate is my friend, but I did not consult him on it either. The child will be a blessing for them both. For everyone. It is a gift and the boy will save his mothers life ten times over whether she appreciates it or not. All the baby is doing is buying us time to see if we can help her before someone decides shes more trouble than shes worth. Any suggestions you'd have, brother, would be greatly appreciated. She is seething with rage and a deep rooted anger I can't begin to understand. It's hard to heal a wound if you don't understand what caused it." Kavala said softly and finished her healing on Vanator. He had no more scratches and no more pain. The blood had stopped and her warm healing touch retreated.

Kavala retrieved the collar and the key from Vanator and started towards where Mao had crumpled. "Thank you for the help. I'm going to need it." Kavala said. Crossing the distance in the park from where the battle had taken place to where the great cat had fallen seemed to take an eternity. Kavala knelt beside the cat when she reached her, noting that Mao was fully awake but unable to move. Azure eyes blinked tears as her white hand reached out and stroked the rich black fur. "You promised me, Mao. You promised no more killing - no more hunting and stalking people you don't know. They aren't going to let you live if you keep doing this... suddenly deciding one of their sons is food just because you don't like the color of his cloak or the way he shoos a cat off a porch isn't going to work for you. I know somewhere in there is a wise caring intelligent woman. Please help me find her. Please. Savagery has its place... but not here. Not in the city. Not without the right circumstances. I don't want to keep hurting you. But your hurting yourself... I ... I swear sometimes you frustrate me, Mao. And I love you. I want you to succeed here. The Akalaks need to learn Kelvics aren't pets. You have enough strength, power, and intelligence to help me teach them this... but you can't help me if your busy washing blood off your hands." Kavala said softly, fiercely, as she quickly checked over Mao for signs of injury.

"And this cat form isn't helping. You can't move but you could shift. Can you shift back? The collar is going right back on if you do, but I can give you something that will allow you to start waking your muscles up so you can move. Please Mao... pick your battles. This isn't one of them." Kavala said softly.

[Vanator]

As Kavala knelt next to him, Vanator turned his attention from the distant downed kelvic to his sister. As her white hands laid upon his flesh, he marveled at the power the Konti wielded, the completeness of her healing gnosis, surely enhanced during her time in Mura. He studied her face, pale skin reddened by the Cyphrus sun, intent on her work, again the caring, diligent visage of the sister he loved so dearly. Van remained still as his wounds were erased, leaving only stains of drying blood on his skin and torn clothing. Truth was, he relished even this small moment with Kavala, the way it used to be. As Kavala revealed Mao's situation, the Drykas turned his gaze back to the panther. His sister's ploy was unconventional and certainly controversial, but clever. It was clear she had already gone to great lengths and risked much to help save the kelvic that most certainly would be culled eventually. Had Van never met Pygmy, he would most likely have written Mao off too. But the kelvic goat had been a friend, part of a community, and he could not believe that the large cat laying immobile was without hope of having the same kind of life. Then a phrase drew his attention back to Kavala. Any potentially new child has incredible value. Be it hers. Mine. Anyones. She said mine. Vanator knew of the Nakivak. He did not know much, but he knew some of them were obligated to bear Akalak children, those rescued women who could be held to repay Riverfall for their salvation. The Drykas brother suspected Kavala may be one, but he had tried to ignore it, the thought gave him a tight knot in his gut, the thought of his sister compelled to...he could not dwell on it. Vanator stood and followed Kavala as she made her way to Mao, scooping up his hand ax along the way and thrusting it through his belt. Reaching the prone Kelvic, Van stood for a moment as he watched his sister kneel beside Mao, teary-eyed and overwhelmed with compassion for the troubled creature. That section of the park had become oddly unoccupied, though he sensed there were observers watching the three of them. The man looked into the panther's glazed green eyes, her ivory fangs visible as her mouth lay slightly agape. As his sister pleaded with the bloodthirsty kelvic, Vanator knelt next to her. The emotion in Kavala's voice, her sincerity, her heart for Mao, moved the brother. Kavala had asked him for help, and he wondered how he could. It was clear that he was a temptation to Mao, that he represented whatever drove the feral kelvic to kill so ruthlessly. He and Kavala had all but gone their separate ways, and the Drykas had nothing vested in Mao, except a few handfuls of blood. But as he looked down on the helpless kelvic, Kavala's words running through his head, remembering the face of Mao in her human form, and the fresh wounds from Pygmy's departure elicited a measure of compassion of his own. His mind churned, thinking of what might help this one overcome her deadly behavior. Then Kavala urged Mao to shift. Vanator stood back, not wanting to aggravate Mao as Kavala encouraged her to change.

[Mao]

It seemed like an eternity waiting where she was, watching the leaves rustle and the grass sway beneath her without giving a petch to her current state. It was as if nothing she'd ever felt before, light as air, yet her limbs felt swollen against her bones. She could hear Kavala and the human conversing, but she couldn't understand what they were saying. Unimportant shyke, no doubt, if what the Konti said was true. Siblings. They were siblings. The word didn't quite sit well in her mind. She'd never had one, she would never have one now. Her parents were dead, her kin slaughtered. But they, they were so different! Mao just couldn't comprehend how they could ever be related, even distantly. But when Kavala approached, Mao gave a low growl. A rumble deep in her throat. Whether it was aggressive or not was difficult to discern. Her eyes were half lidded, tired eyes, exhausted. She could feel a throbbing in her head, pounding against her skull and it hurt! It didn't help when Vanator approached and filled her nose with his scent. Her growl became vicious, yet she couldn't move an inch to strike at him. Then something soft on her fur, gentle, a soothing motion. Kavala was petting her! Kavala was speaking to her like any civilized person, even in this state. If the cat could move her ears would have flicked back against her skull, but instead she simply lay there, hearing what the traitorous woman had to say. And she did this to her, she did! It is her fault. It cried. Her fault, always, she means to kill you! To end you here before you have a chance to live free! Her heart beat faster, worried that the Konti might have some hidden blade meant to strike her with, to end her there while she was vulnerable. Evil, traitorous, she is like those humans! But it is not always thus... You promised me, Mao. I did promise. What did I promise? No deaths, no killing... Why am I here but because I am trapped. I am a prisoner! The implications lay deeper in her heart than anyone would know. Kavala wanted her to live free, she wanted her to show these Akalaks something. Something, and it cannot be in this cat body. She was grateful Vanator moved when he did, for she felt more comfortable when she shifted that he was out of arm's reach from slicing her with that petching axe. But the wind blew over her nude form and she was cold. Very cold. Her fingers were curled in front of her, and she willed them to move, but they would not. Trapped, just as she was in the shadows. The growing shadows in her heart and her mind.

[Kavala]

There was something so wrong about Mao but Kavala couldn't figure it out. There was no disease in her, and her mind was sharp and clear of illness that was commonly sensed by healers like the Konti was. It just killed Kavala to kneel besides Mao and plead with her - because the pleading was all she could do. There was no physical wounds to heal. There were no mental wounds to soothe. Mao constantly felt 'trapped' and 'caged' and for some reason killing was the only way she felt released. It was like the very act of rending flesh from bone for the kelvic symbolized her freedom from whatever it was that was haunting her.

It haunted Kavala too. It was a nagging sensation at the front of her mind that seemed to scream 'see it' but there was nothing for her to see.

As Mao shifted, Kavala pushed it from her mind. There was nothing she could do about it now as she refastened the collar around Mao's neck and then loosened her own cloak to drape around the kelvics form which was shivering. Mao was almost never cold. She ran around Sanctuary with a noted lack of clothing to the point that even Aweston had stopped staring and so too had all the rest of the denizens.

Kavala kept stroking Mao's head though, offering soothing comments, as she turned her attention back to Vanator.

"Things here are different than they are on the Sea of Grass. They aren't better or worse, but just different." It wasn't an excuse. It was almost a plea for him to talk to her. To say anything... something... like he used to do. Often, all sorts of advice would come from Vanator. Mostly no-nonsense stuff. But things had changed. He'd changed. She missed Tamar acutely in that moment. It would have been nice to consult with another healer on Mao's condition.

But the dead were gone - lost to the living.

Like her brother's voice. He hadn't said a word to her in the longest time. Judging her? Ashamed of her? It was her worst fear, fear she felt realized... as she gently opened her belt pouch, dropped the collars key into it, and dug for more concoctions. One was produced, a vial this time, and its contents were upended into Mao's mouth. The taste was mint and blood, laced heavily with an herb that was more a stimulant than anything else. Kavala had been ready for Mao's sedation. She always had to be. Thankfully, though, Navis wasn't around the first time she needed to use it.

Replacing the empty vial in her belt pouch, Kavala helped push Mao to a sitting position and then crouched to wait, balancing neatly on the balls of her feet. It was more a fighters stance than a healers. In fact, everything about Kavala bespoke a warrior rather than the soft quick to laugh healer Vanator had known. She was watchful but protective, though her stance indicated she was ready to move if she needed too. And she was armed. It was subtle, but not something Vanator could miss with Kavala so distracted - so focused on Mao.

There were knives on his sister. One was tucked into the small of her back, while others were laced around her ankle and one at her forearm. He knew she had a blowgun in her belt pouch because she'd assembled it in front of him 'just in case'. What he noticed then too was her belt was actually a bola, its three weights tucked neatly into a decorative pattern. Oh yes, she was armed, and watchful even in her calmness.

But she said nothing else after that, having filled the gardens with words that had gone unanswered already. Instead she held a sort of vigilance over Mao... as if the kelvic was her sole responsibly.

[Vanator]

As the telltale shimmering lights surrounded Mao, Vanator instinctively turned his head. When the myriad of pinpoint lights faded, he knew they would reveal the kelvic's nude human form. The Drykas understood that kelvics felt no shame at their nudity, and Pygmy certainly hadn't. But Vanator for all he was, still found himself offering Mao some modesty, only turning back when he was sure Kavala's cloak concealed her nakedness. Kavala's words hung in the air between them, their truth painfully obvious. When Vanator left Sanctuary, he was deeply hurt. Soon his pride swelled and he grew indignant towards Kavala. He resented her accusations, the coldness she showed him. Raiha had managed to help Van find perspective, but he had honestly believed when he walked out of Sanctuary, he would never see his sisters again. That was three days ago. Now, Kavala was there. He had seen his old sister in the woman that mended his wounds, who cared so tenderly for the feral kelvic. Of course things were different. The brother had already seen it, and as she crouched next to Mao, he could see the confidence and strength of a fighter, complete with a small aresenal carefully placed about her body. He would never have imagined Kavala as a combatant. Yes, they were different. She was still his sister, Kavala would always be his sister, no matter what. He missed her so much. He had Kashik, and now Khiara was with them, but it wasn't the same. Kavala was his history, his roots, his blood. She knew things about him they may never know. Mao's attack had given him a second chance, and he was not going to let Drykas pride take it from him. Kavala had asked for his help. When Vanator spoke, he did not preface it with any explanation, he simply lifted his deep voice, matter-of-fact tone, brows knitted thoughtfully, as he had done countless times during their lives, as an older brother, Ankal's son, and friend. His words were spoken in Pavi, assuming the Kelvic did not speak the language of the horseclans. <"Kavala, if Mao's behavior seems to be driven by those traumatic experiences she endured in the past, I don't think any amount of reasoning and positive reinforcement will be able to break it. I believe those experiences have to be faced and dealt with."> Vanator looked at Mao, seeming so young now that she was not snarling and cursing at him. <"I have an idea."> He remembered his last moments with Pygmy. Only then did he see the pain and angst she had hidden so well from him. She had been humiliated as a slave. The kelvic goat was not a killer, but she had issues and hurt she could not shake. In the end, Vanator knew he had only made that pain worse, making those old wounds fresh. And when she turned to walk away from him, he knew he would never be able to help her. Maybe he could help this kelvic. <"Mao's pain is obviously deep rooted. I have heard that traumatic physcial or emotional stress can force those painful issues to the forefront, where they can be seen and addressed. It is not easy or pleasant. I wonder if Mao was placed under that kind of stress, she would be compelled to deal with those ghosts that drive her to murder."> His eyes met Kavala's, a flash of softness revealed as he held her pale gaze for a moment. <"it is apparent I represent those who tormented her. If the two of us were put together in a controlled environment, and Mao was allowed to unleash her anger, maybe together we could help her overcome the source of the problem. Like we tried earlier, but instead of using me to try to acclimate her to human men, I become the embodiment of those who caused her hate. Maybe she could face it then, maybe you can see into her to find a way to help her."> Vanator knew what he was saying would sound crazy. He would surely suffer injury, though he didn't believe Mao could kill him. He paused, still feeling her teeth and nails tearing his flesh. But Kavala had healed him once, she could do it again. Looking down, he was moved by the sight of the slight, feline eyed girl. <"I will not hurt her, just fend her off as I need to. I know it sounds harsh and cruel to make her live that all again, Kavala, but she seems to be running out of options. It would be a crime to cage her up as an...animal."> He knew in essence that's what Mao was, but he knew she could be so much more, like Pygmy. <"Of course i would not want to endanger her child, but you will have to be the judge on that."> Van rested his hands on his hips, looking down at his sister. The siblings were once again tackling a problem together. Vanator felt closer to her at that moment than he had since she left the pavilion.

[Kavala]

OOC NOTEThis thread is going to get intense. Baku is going to drop in, award, and restart it at Sanctuary if you'd like to continue to play. This is a wrap-up post.

Kavala looked up at her brother, a white eyebrow lifted. "That's the problem though Vanator. She doesn't act like its past trauma drive. She doesn't act like its clinical or mental at all. It doesn't make sense how she acts. You are either a predator or you are not. It's like she is two different people. One is incredibly different than the other, but it is not like the Akalak I've dealt with and their dark brothers. It's something more dangerous and unexpected. Sometimes, she is so comfortable to be around, so lovely and so powerful. Other times, she makes my skin crawl and everything in me shrieks to watch out for her. In those times, shes's someone, no something, completely different. I can feel her thoughts. Her emotions. And they change. They grow so distant I can barely understand them - almost alien. In those moments, I want to cull her immediately because I know shes dangerous. To me. To the animals in my care. To my friends and family here. And then in a blink shes back, my warm loving friend who's a little feral and a tries very very hard to fit in even though shes strong enough to not need too." Kavala said, then reached down to touch the silver Nakivak bracelet on her wrist. She reached down, stroked her hand down to Mao's stomach, and listened quietly to the life inside. Fine. Her son was fine. Happy even that his momma was napping and letting him have a little peace.

"We need to get her back to Sanctuary. You're ideas have a lot of merit. If she keeps reacting to you in a controlled environment, maybe I can read her long enough to discover just what exactly is making her act like this. Its... something. I don't know if I can explain. You very well could be the key we need to unlock this secret though." Kavala said softly.

She urged Vanator to help her boost Mao's limp body up and onto the little Strider Stallion that followed Kavala. He came when he was called and sighed indigently when he was yet again asked to haul what he considered a sack of potatoes. "If you would come home with me, I'd deeply appreciate it. This might take a while." Kavala said softly before she started to head back to Sanctuary.

At the edge of the garden she paused. Turning, she lifted her voice and called out strongly to hidden eyes. "I know shes dangerous. I will keep her restrained until her son is born if we cannot help her. But we must try. She's Navis and Sorian's bondmate. Her child is theirs. And I won't give up on her. Not now. Not yet. But don't do anything drastic, do you hear? I will not let her endanger anyone else. And if we can't help her and we can't find anyone who can, I will cull her myself. I promise you that. You don't need to. I give you my word. Just give me a chance with her." Kavala said, then looked deeply into her brother's eyes. Her gaze was filled with determination, understanding, and a deep wisdom that hadn't been there before. Gone was the girl, bright and playful, who was constantly laughing. In her place was someone who'd known hardship, bore scars, and had been reforged into something else. Someone else.

"Mao is my test. She is my last and hardest one." Kavala said to Vanator. "My Call is here, helping these extraordinary people and the people that are in turn here to help them. But I have to be found trustworthy first or I will never be accepted. The Akalak have failed to realize, Van, that the Konti are their equal and opposites. Just as they are our equals and opposites. My mother's race has yet to acknowledge it either; which makes their existence even more sad. The Akalak came before the Konti, but I do believe the Konti are their reward for living the lives and bearing the burdens they do. Someday they will see the truth as the white isle women do. And then they will be more accepting than they are now. Someday." Kavala said softly, pacing beside the Strider, beginning to walk slowly towards home. Her home.

"I...there's so much I need to tell you. But there's so much I am not sure you will understand. Can you understand, Van? Are you ready? Just you? Not our pavilion, or our family, or your wife? Just you?" She said softly as she walked, a soft gentle hand on Mao's rump holding her limp form steady over Windsong's back.

[Vanator]

Vanator helped Kavala lay Mao gently across the strider, the blood-hungry wild child now possessing the appearance of an innocent sleeping girl, only the stain of his blood on her mouth betraying what she had been. As they tarried at the garden's edge, Van surveyed the landscape, but saw no sign of the Akalak's his sister was addressing. Yet, he knew they were there. Kavala drew Van's attention as she turned to address him. She held his gaze, allowing the brother to search her azure irises, the set of her eyes and the expression of her face. Her general appearance was familiar of course, but who he saw in those features was another woman. Vanator saw a maturity brought by great responsibility, sobriety born of pain and suffering, and dogged tenacity. In that moment, after seeing her with Mao, after seeing the woman in her gaze, Van finally accepted that this was his sister, strange to him now, but not a stranger. Her identity had changed, she was no longer Drykas, she was Konti. He felt a twinge of pride in her, in fact. She seemed to have found who she was in Mura. Kavala had found her calling, her purpose, and she had made a place for her self in Sanctuary. As the siblings lead the Kelvic-laden strider towards Santuary, Vanator only pondered Kavala's questions a moment before looking at her and replying. His gold-flecked gaze was sincere, resolute and void of the uncertainty of their last meeting. "Kavala, you are my sister. Time moves on, life changes who we are, but you are my sister and I miss you. I will hear what you have to say, even if it hurst to hear, I want to know. I may not understand it all, but I will try. I will honor you Kav, what passes between us will stay between us, I promise." The Drykas held his Konti sister's eyes for a moment longer, a familiar semblance of his strength and compassion evident in his dark gaze. His own eyes appeared older, crinkling a bit more at the corners, even as Kavala's had not seemed to age in a decade. He broke the contact, turned his eyes to Mao, brushing a stray dark lock out of her face and continuing the trek towards Sanctuary.

[Baku]

Thou has written, and thou has completed, so I award thee the following.... Vanator - Observation +4, Brawling +2, Interrogation +2, Wrestling +1, Rhetoric +3, Lore: Being Stalked by Mao, Facing Something Feral, Holding Back Despite Having Neck Nearly Torn Out, Getting Bitten by a Kelvic, Listening to Reason, Straddling Mao and not Enjoying It(Only because of the strangulation factor…..and other injuries), Restraining a Kelvic, Kavala’s Charge: Mao, Trusting Kavala’s Judgment, Kelvic Nature, Skinship: Trying to Befriend Moa with Touch and Talk, Crap! Mao Was Playing Possum, Akalak’s View on Kelvics, Akalak Justice for Harming Pregnant Charges, Mao’s Situation, Whoa, wait a minute? Who Knocked up my Sis?, Mao - Tracking +1, Stealth +1, Brawling +5, Intimidation +3, Observation +2, Rhetoric +2 Lore: Stalking Vanator, Losing Control, Straddling Van and Enjoying It(Only because of the Strangulation Factor, The Taste of Human Blood, Nearly Ripping Van’s Throat Out, Conviction: DEATH TO DE HUMANS!, Kavala’s Brother: Vanator, Vanator’s Sister: Kavala, Konti Genders(and how to spot the fakes), Drykas Polygamy, Realizing Consequences, Definitely Not Enjoying Skinship With Vanator, Getting Nekkid in a Hurry(for shifting of course), Ha! I Was Playing Possum, Reservations To Kill Vanator, The Effects of a Paralytic, Questioning Kavala’s Motives, Kavala - Riding +2, Negotiating +4, Observation +3, Rhetoric +5, Hand to Hand +1, Blowgun +1, Medicine +2, Lore: Worrying Over Family and Charges, Explaining Reason, Explaining Consequences, Calming a Kelvic….at least for a moment, Explaining Konti Genders(and how to spot the fakes), Explaining Drykas Polygamy, Weighing Options, Sensing Mao’s Feelings, Vanator’s Blood Tastes Icky… Or Does It?, Trying to Create a New Friendship, Crap! Mao Was Playing Possum, Mao’s Limits of Trust, Vanator’s Ideals, Mao: Suspicions of Deeper Problems, Riverfalls Silent Test Additional Notes: An intense thread indeed. I’m wondering how much Mao would have continued to nom on Vanator had Kavala not shown up. Very nice work to all involved, and who knows, Mao just may very well rub up against Van’s legs and purr one day yet, if his legs can handle being a scratching post until then.