"Scared?! Of the Deer?" Asta's face was twisted in sheer confusion.
"....Yes?" Hera raised an eyebrow, once again skeptical. "Well, mad, maybe, is a better word. But I'm not sure why you're confused. They do teach you about the massacre, correct?"
"You mean how the wolves and anything with sharp teeth have been killing my clan for eighty years even though they were supposed to not eat shifters?!" Asta hadn't realized she had started to raise her voice, but she in part had to because of the screaming match going on at the Tri table.
What was supposed to be a civil, formal affair, had broken down in mere moments, all parties on their feet and snarling.
Hera took a moment to stare down the doe, who's ears were flat back, her hands fisted at her sides as she couldn't help but defend her people. How dare the predators think they were justified?
Hurriedly, the elder wolf grabbed Asta's small wrist, dragging her to the middle row of stools, before turning her roughly so they were facing each other. She then grabbed both of the younger girl's hands, with the same urgency that her son had.
"Asta, that's your name right?"
The doe nodded suspiciously.
"Right, Asta, are you telling me that they do not teach your generation about the Okoltants? About how the deer made a deal with the Okoltants to massacre us? Remember, I will know if you're lying."
"I have absolutely no idea what you're talking about," Asta sputtered, praying to the Idols that this wolf could scent deception like she kept insisting. "We're afraid of the Okoltants too! They eat us also! We have predators to the north, Okolts to the west and south, and the ocean to the east. Truly, we are surrounded, that's why I was here in the first place, you have to believe me, I had no choice. The Okolts can't shift, but their magic, their weapons, we can't go there. We just can't."
The wolf stared at her, almost straight through her as the doe's chest heaved. She was almost just as terrified of this absolute confusion as she was to be hunted. It was like they were speaking two different languages, yet insisting they were one in the same.
Suddenly, Hera let go of her iron grip of Asta's hands, swiftly moving to the front of the room where it was now Sable and Molaki that were bearing fangs at each other and barking.
"MY ALPHAS!" The elder yelled over them, raising her hands, though her head was diverted down. All four younger wolves stopped bickering, startled by the usually quiet women commanding them.
"I apologize," Hera said quickly, knowing if she didn't explain herself the arguments would start up immediately. "But there's something you must know. Our guest - Asta - insists that she was never taught about the massacre. And she isn't being deceptive."
"She has to be using Okolt magic, to hide her lies," hissed Zylo, clearly the most superstitious of the three. "She may as well grow horns and spike this idiot through the heart. It's all fabricated, all of this is fake."
"She says the Okoltants went back on their word, so long ago it doesn't sound like the youngsters even know there was a war, sir. They are hunted by them also," Hera begged.
"There's nothing she could say that couldn't be fabricated. She could be lying about that too. The Okults can make you see anything they want you to. Why else would a doe be out here to hook one of our best Seconds to drag him down?"
Asta begged her heart to stop speeding up, threatening to spin her back into shock, but she felt like a caged animal, the walls closing in around her. The air was becoming heavy. She had learned too much in a few short moments - apparently, APPARENTLY, the wolves had believed that her people tried to kill them. She had no idea how that would have been possible - but they firmly believed it. And, she could apparently be scented for truth or lies, except there wasn't anything she could say without being accused of using magic she did not possess to alter everything.
Her head started to spin again, Molaki's voice in her head rolling over and over, reminding her to stand straight, to not show weakness. But for her, she was in the dungeon of her death, and so far she had seen nothing to make her believe that wasn't where this was headed. Weak kneed, she crumbled onto one of the stools, gripping the wooden top of the seat next to it to steady herself.
Molaki broke ranks trotting over to kneel next to her.
"I'm sorry, I tried," Asta mumbled, not wanting to meet his eyes.
"None of this is going how I thought, you're fine," Molaki almost cooed, running his hand down her cheek and pecking around her like a mother hen trying to make sure he hadn't missed anything.
"I'm not trying to trick anyone. I don't know how to prove it..." Asta's face broke, tears welling up. First she was embarrassed, then she was hot with anger as she knew the Tri would just think she was being dramatic to save herself.
"May I - I have an idea," Hera interjected as the Tri were about to start to argue amongst each other about what to do with the deer.
"Forgive me if you already know about this method," she continued, her head dipped. "But you may not, since your generation has never had a need for it. I don't know the exact ingredients, but the Elder Council definitely should... there is a tonic that can be given to make her only speak truth. It would stop any magic. It was used during the war with success."
Zylo scoffed, but Sable and Amarok were listening with interest.
"I don't know why we would even bother," Zylo threw his hand up roughly, Molaki starting to snarl in the background.
But it was Sable, the youngest of the three, a woman with mousy brown hair twisted in two long braids, who cut him off, pointing at Molaki with authority.
"THAT'S why we will bother, Zylo. What's wrong with you?! Both of you are mated. It's none of my business if you're with your True Mates, I'm not going to interrogate you as to if you scented the connection or not. But if this is true, would you really kill Molaki's truly destined partner?! Do you really care so little for your fellow family?!"
The two males went silent, though Zylo's ears were still snapped back. The wolf clan was incredibly tight knit, and it didn't matter if they were blood relatives, everyone was considered family unless they did something so atrocious they had to be cast out, which was rare.
"PLUS, need I remind you two fools, which I must, since I doubt you've read our histories - True Mates across our two species was not unheard of. It's been... too long to consider, but this isn't the first," Sable went on, before she crossed her arms, lifting her chin to announce.
"So unless both of you object, I declare that Hera will gather the Elder Council, and find someone to make this truth serum. The doe will take it, and be interrogated. If she refuses, then we know she's lying, and we will do as we do with liars."