May:
The sleek window was cold and made Timothy's skin pale as he leaned against it. The color of his eyes shimmered like fine strips of metal as the sun's light reflected off the surface of the snow at him.
For the longest time, Timothy had been staring silently out the window in front of the grocery store, with no intention to move or find a better use of his time.
It would seem common for someone to ask him if he needed help or assistants, yet there was not a human word spoken to him.
Business was good today, many people came and went with cheery voices and left with smiles on their lips.. Yet it is in this busy place that Timothy had never felt so alone.. No one else in the pack knew he was here, or surely they would have complained and ordered him back. After all, only those whom had a trusted rank in the pack were ever allowed into town by Kratos...
So, Timothy had slipped away as he usually did, to escape that place without entering those wretched mountains. Everything bad in Timothy's life which he could remember always happened up there, and he was determined never to go back there again in life.
When Timothy's breath had formed condensation over the window to the point where he could no longer see clearly through it, he withdrew and slunk off to a empty isle in the back of the store.. With any luck, no one would confront him today..
Mariel:
Seeing as Kieoki had ended up staying in her human form for an entirely longer time than she had wanted to, or even expected to, it was feasible that she could be considered 'on-edge'. Annoyed and somewhat irritated, she couldn't shift in case that blasted pack on the fringes of town scented her, and as the snow began to fall she became stuck in the town, fluttering around in the shadows and never sleeping in the same area twice. So as the snow lay upon the ground on this chilly day, Kieoki was roaming the streets, wearing a multi-colored plaid coat with a red shirt on under it and jeans with dark brown boots. Her breath made little wisps that vanished in the air moments later as she walked down one random street, not really having anywhere to go at the moment.
Her head was held up, but her eyes were vacant, trying to hide her agitation, and her wolf's anger as well. For Kieoki, being in her Were form was what she preferred, and so over time she'd gotten used to eating freshly killed meat, not human food that she had to steal from supermarkets that was already chopped up and pretty disgusting. At least it was disgusting until she cooked it up at least. her thoughts wandered back to the condemned apartment she was staying in. The idiots who had been renting the apartment when it was condemned forgot to turn off the supply of heat, water and gas, though there was no electricity. So when she stole slop off of the markets, she would return home to her spices and herbs and make the meat decent to eat. Just thinking about the savory flavors of her cooked meat made her mouth water and her stomach growled, making Kieoki narrow her eyes and sigh. Might as well get something to eat now, she hadn't eaten since yesterday anyways.
Changing the direction she was walking only slightly, she crossed the not-to-busy road and walked into the grocery store, enjoying at least the fact that it was slightly warmer in here than it was outside. Suppressing a small shiver, Kieoki ignored the other customers and walked back to where the frozen meat was, and she found that it was fairly devoid of people, which made her happy. There was only one other person in the isle in fact, and she only spared him a moment's glance, but as her eyes skimmed over him she froze, having to turn towards the doors of the meat section so the guy wouldn't see the way her eyes widened and she slightly gasped. Stifling the noise with her hand, and turning it into a fake cough, she let her hand drop back down as if nothing had happened and she went back to looking at the meat, acting like she was deciding. She pulled her coat closer to her face though, and her thoughts were whirling. It can't be possible! I've never seen any of them in town, but what's the chance that it actually is that one that we saw attacking the human?
I don't know! But look at his eyes! They are the same ones, we both know that at least. Her wolf snapped out in her mind in response to her question. That guy's eyes were the same as those of that Were, and she didn't glance at him again. So hiding the silent argument going on in her mind, she opened the door, grabbed some random meat package, and spun on her feet before starting to walk out of the section, hoping that the guy would not recognize her.
May:
Timothy leaned against the cold metal shelf and crossed his arms over his chest, then he saw a young woman enter the isle.
She would not bother him.. Even human beings are sensitive to body language, he was keen on this fact, and had made it quite clear in this way that he did not want to be bothered by anyone.
Then the woman's eyes fled passed his own and Timothy instantly caught the change in her casual countenance.
As the woman turned away, Timothy looked at the glass doors of the meat shelves and watched the reflection of her eyes.. She seemed as if she were recalling an unpleasant memory just as she turned and quickly began to leave.
What was she trying to remember? Timothy didn't chance a guess and he wouldn't have cared at all, had she not brought the scent of a werewolf along with her.
Timothy quickly stood and walked in the opposite direction which the woman had fled, peering around the isle, he then watched her for a moment. The doubts that plagued Timothy's mind had compelled him to the possibility that this woman was a member of the pack and thus sent by Kratos to find him... But her face was not familiar, so Timothy wondered for a moment if he should go after her.
Yet if this woman was not whom Timothy suspected her to be, there would be a greater danger in following, or even trying to stop her.
"Man." Timothy sighed and looked away. He would not chase her.. But perhaps it would be well if he left this area in case she tried to return to find him.
Mariel:
Keep walking lucky. Kieoki's wolf urged on in their mind, almost forcing Kieoki to walk faster. But the cold in her fingers reminded her that she still was carrying the meat, and not caring what it was, she slipped it under her shirt, forced her pace to slow down, and easily slipped out of the store, unnoticed like usual. It wouldn't matter anyways if they saw her. She'd just outrun them or shift. Humans didn't stand a chance against her. Free from the store, she couldn't stop herself from throwing a glance backwards at the store, and a sigh in relief escaped her lips when she didn't see the other Were.
Shaking her head, and reminding herself that she would not be going back to that store anytime soon, she ducked into a fairly large crowd and walked along with it, heading back towards her 'home'. She was shivering now though. It wasn't the warmest day outside, and the cold meat against her body was starting to chill her. So when she caught sight of her home, she blinked in happiness and darted away from the crowd, breaking away at just the right time so that as she lifted the 'condemned' sign and slipped insides, no one saw her. At least she hoped no one saw her.
Fumbling for the light switch, Kieoki flipped on a very small light that lit up the room, and she made sure that the heavy curtains were draped across every window. Satisfied, she set the meat upon her counter and heated up the stove, dragging out a pan and a spatula to cook with, for her herbs were already out and upon the counter. Starting to hum softly to herself, she unwrapped the meat and sniffed it, recoiling in disgust before she plopped it into her pan, enjoying the way it crackled and sizzled. Shifting through her different herbs, she started popping them open and sprinkling them over the meat, flipping it as she cooked, enjoying the way the smell filled her 'home'.
May:
Kratos shuffled through a few things in the dark room.. There were blankets and a few modest possessions, but nothing he was really looking for.
The house smelled strongly of her, and after tracking the stranger for a week, this was what he had come to..
An old condemned house just inside town, which no one really payed any mind to.. it was a perfect place for a wanderer to hide.
Suddenly Kratos heard someone enter the house and instantly he stood frozen. There was not a draft in this room to carry his scent to the rest of the house, so as long as he did not move, the stranger would not detect him.
Kratos listened as she entered the kitchen and heard the clanking of pans against the stove top, that was when he knew she was in the kitchen and decided to pay this 'intruder' a visit..
Steadily, the Alpha's leather boots slipped quietly over the floor and his bright yellow eyes peered around the corner. Sure as fire gives light, the stranger was there, standing over a pan and cooking a large steak in a pot of herbs and fine spices... Kratos couldn't help but smile.
This stranger seemed completely at home actually living like a werewolf on the territory of a nearby pack.
"You're quite the little home-maker aren't you?" Kratos' incredibly deep voice spoke out from the hallway, making his presence known.
Slowly the giant man stepped out into the light where he could be seen by the stranger, his dirty blond hair sweeping only a few inches from the ceiling and his sharp wolf-like eyes glinting down at the girl.
Mariel:
Kieoki was enjoying herself, still humming away as her senses were flooded with the scents of the cooking meat, masking the other smells. Unaware that Kratos was watching her, she continued cooking until her wolf suddenly gasped in her mind and she froze as she heard a deep voice. Forcing herself not to do anything more than jump a bit, she threw a glance in the direction of the speaker, letting her eyes rake over the tall man before she turned to look back at her food. Are they searching for you now? You must be doing a wonderful job of hiding Kieoki. Her wolf snorted sarcastically in her mind, annoyed.
I thought I was! So be quiet, I need to think. Kieoki retorted sharply back before speaking as she moved the cooking meat around the pan. "Seems so." She said before adding one last pinch of basil to the meat before snapping off the stove and spinning around, grabbing a plate from the table before her and sliding the steak onto it, before grabbing a bent fork as well. Sitting down with another glance at Kratos, she cut her steak and began eating, speaking after she chewed. "So what brings an alpha to my home?" She said, trying to stifle a sigh. Gee, you haven't said THAT one before. Her wolf mocked in their mind, laughing softly about his sarcasm.
Cassie:
(written from Kaleb's perspective)
I dreamed nightmares. A dark blackness, pitch you would call it, always ended the same dream. I ran through the forest, the great beast always after me. It breathed heavily, chasing me endlessly. I tried to run, my breath spilling out in front of me as a giant mist cloud. The red eyes stared after me, boring into my soul. Then, it would grab me in its paws, and the full moon above would light up the figure. It was me. You can't escape form yourself...Haha...Mwuhahahaha!
I always woke up after the laughter. Always the same dream. Or nightmare. I rubbed my head and shuffled to the bathroom to shower. After that, I stumbled downstairs. The house I had been living in for almost a month, Zeit's house.
I hadn't lived here originally. I hadn't been the way I am. I hadn't been a werewolf. But now I struggled every day with this..this...disease. I couldn't escape, so I had to live with it.
Kratos, the pack leader, was kind and caring towards me. He was also very, very tall. Then there was Zeit, Sabrina, a girl I had a huge crush on, and another named Alice. She was nice. Then there was Timothy, he was the one who changed me. I have forgiven him for it, since he probably didn't know while he was in wolf form. And antoher girl named Jaque. She's a bit, odd.
I walked to the kitchen table, seeing Alice sitting there. "Good mornimg Alice!"
Kale:
Kale stretched and looked at her handiwork. other than the fact that the color was a bit brighter than the rest of the barn, you couldn't tell that section of wall had been replaced after having a couple of upset werewolves break it. the bright sunshine had been warming her back as she worked and was now getting a lttle uncomfortable as her shoulders started to burn. glad that her task was finished, Kale picked up the paintbucket, brush, hammer and nails and took them back to their rightful places before heading inside.
"i wonder if Zeit noticed?" she mumbled to herself.
Kale wandered back into the house and into the kitchen(her favorite place) to wash the paint off her hands and face were she had wiped sweat away and accedentally smeared herself. She loved the smell of the kitchen, since it always smelled like whatever Zeit had been cooking lately, and Kale greatly appreciated zeits cooking skills. right now it smelled like coffee, which tended to overlay other scents, and faintly of something sweet. Kale gave a smile to her two packmates at the table as she finished washing up and headed right upstairs to her bedroom.
after peeling off her stinky cloths Kle changed into something lighter and brushed out her pale hair. the house smelled strongly of werewolf and Kake sorted out individuals, noticig that certain individuals must have been gone most of the day as their scents were fainter. Kale wondered about them for a moment before her stomach started growling and, in immediate resonse, she went back to the kitchen.
"what do you guys want to eat?" she asked.
Hour Glass:
Zeit trotted around her home once more, not quite wanting to go in. Even at this stage, she was still a bit distant from the pack, but she was a Beta, meaning she was supposed to be closer then she was. She sighed, wishing for someone to run with, since she was getting used to not being alone. She took a deep breath, and leapt on her roof, and she slid into her open window.
She walked through her room and to her own bathroom, a quick shower was called for, she didn't need to meet the pack this morning covered in sweat, dirt, grime, and mud. She changed forms smoothly, turning the water on to a warm level, and began to wash away todays morning run. Once out she put on her normal ranch clothes and headed downstairs.
The new scent of paint assulted her nose, she glanced over, someone had fixed the broken wall, good, though it seemed that someone had already stuck their paw in the wet paint. She continued downstairs, barley catching Kale's question, "Just something good" she replied, sitting down at the time, and grabbing pencil and paper. She began a doodle, she had been finding that she had a bit more free time then normal since the pack had come, since the pack helped around the farm when she needed it.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hawk cursed under his breath as he washed away the paint off his hand. He had come down sleepily in a tee-shirt and sweats, his hair unruffled from his small nap. "Kale, put up a sign next time" he mumbled as the paint came off. His stomach growled, and ignoring Kale's question, he checked the fridge, finding that they were running low on supplies. "Looks like I'll do a grocery run later" he muttered to himself, rubbing the slight stubble on his chin.
May:
Kratos smiled at the girl's reply. That old empty house no longer smelled so old with the scent of cooked meat in the air.
"Forgive me for inviting myself in, but I've been meaning to find a moment with you, and you are quite a hard one to get ahold of." Kratos said slowly. "You see, you left us quite a lot of questions the other night..."
*****
Timothy had quickly left the grocery store and had made his way to a quiet alley.. But he had not intention of staying, because this was exactly the place one would go looking for a werewolf.
With a sigh the boy crawled up ontop of a garbage can and pulled his knees close to his chest... "Where will I go?" Timothy thought quietly to himself. He was lost in a world which he could not remember and surrounded by things he did not understand. And here, on a ice-covered sheet of metal in a dark alley with the scent of rotting food everywhere.... Timothy could not say he felt out of place.
Cassie:
Kaleb stood there a few more moments, then sat down in the chair beside Alice. He saw there was paper in the center of the table. There was a box of pencils beside it, which he opened. Kaleb grabbed a perfectly sharpened pencil, and a crisp white sheet of paper. He began sketching a running wolf, its gray fur ruffled, its mouth open wide, capturing the wind in breathing. Suddenly, the door came open and Kale waltzed in. She smiled, and he smiled back, before she walked to the sink. Kaleb watched her, then she turned to him and asked what he wanted. "Can you make stuffed french toast? If not, I'll settle for eggs and a bowl of cereal." Then he heard a thud upstairs, and the water turned on. Kaleb went back to his sketch, and finished it up. Zeit came running down, and also sat at the table. She grabbed some paper and began drawing. "Hey Zeit, good morning. How'd you sleep?" Kaleb asked, setting down his pencil and grabbing another paper off the stack. Then Hawk came into the kitchen, grumbling angrily, and walked to the fridge. Kaleb watched as he opened it, and muttered silently.
Kaqurei:
"What am I going to do?" Sabrina asked herself. She watched nothing but her own pale breath as she walked down the quiet street of the town. Even though she couldn't see him, she could smell Timothy.... moreso, she could almost feel his pain...his confusion...his sense of self loathing.
The incident that had resulted in two new pack members last month had been troubling to say the least.... not that new pack members were bad--in fact, Kaleb seemed like a very nice boy. But, it was sad... would he ever be able to control the monster inside him, the monster that would without a second thought tear his own family and friends to shreds? Sabrina knew her own mother never could control her wolf. Perhaps there was hope for Kaleb though. Kaleb was young and without fear. Well... without the same kind of fear Timothy had.
Not for the last time, Sabrina cursed the name of Gathen. Timothy was almost unreachable because of that old snake....almost. There had to be a way. His wolf was smart. Dangerously smart. If Timothy could just learn how to control it...
He had to learn not to fear it first. Sabrina was determined to teach him... but how could she, when he feared even her?
****
Levi squinted and put his hand up as a vizor against the sun. As far as he could see, there was nothing but wild mountains ahead... save for that speck of a town and a bit of frozen farmland just yonder. That town was his destination.
There was a member of his pack whom had come to this area with orders to dispose of a rogue werewolf and report back.... but that was months ago, and Levi's pack had heard nothing since. Had the rogue gotten the better of his packmate? Levi's Alpha wouldn't believe it, so he sent him to find the lost wolf.
As Levi sniffed the air, he caught not one but many unfamiliar wolf scents. He winced....was the Alpha quite certain there was only a rogue wolf here and not a whole pack?? Only one way to find out...
Kale:
Kale shot a funny look Hawks direction when he mentioned something about a sign." couldn't you smell the paint?"she asked, attempting to not smile as he washed paint of his hand."French toast? okay...hmm.....thats bread, butter, eggs....okay, yeah i can do that" kale mumbled to herself as she leaned over the fridge and checked inside. the kitchen area was soon becoming filled with werewolves, only natural, she supposed. Kale began making messes as she went about cooking, since it was impossible for her to cook and not make a mess. the smell of the bread and egg in the frying pan was delicouse and made her mouth water, her stomach growled in response. soon enough she had a plate next to the stove stacked high with slices and more on the way, her ideal was that if you were going to cook for a house full of werewolves, you might as well make enough for a small army.
Mariel:
Kieoki popped another piece of meat into her mouth as Kratos spoke, and she faintly laughed, enjoying the compliment. "I'm surprised you found me. Good job you Alpha. But I don't care much for answering questions. I've been asked to many to many different times. So ask away, but I may not answer." Kieoki said with a soft smirk before plopping another piece into her mouth as her wolf sighed in their mind, annoyed. Told you this would happen. It sneered at her.
Well, we couldn't leave the town anyways, so don't chew me out.
Fine, just don't get angry, I doubt we would be able to stay human for very long.
Yeah yeah, I got it. Kieoki said, ending the conversation with her wolf.
Cassie:
Kaleb sat there, watching as Kale got otu the ingredients and began to cook. He smiled, and grabbed another piece of paper. He sharpened his pencil and began sketching. This time, it was a wolf like creature, with beady eyes and hulking muscles. It was human-like as well. A werewolf, the werewolf from Kaleb's dream. Kaleb gasped, and crumpled up the paper. He took aim at the trash, wound his arm, and threw. The piece landed perfectly in the can. Kaleb grabbed another piece, and set to work sketching a sitting cat. He slapped his forehead. Aw darn, I forgot that I had Silvia to feed! She is either starving or fending for herself. Let's hope the latter. Kaleb sighed, and kept working on his drawing. He picked up some colored pencils and colored it, paying attention to the shading.
Soar:
Jaqueline's eyes fluttered open, greeted instantly by dull morning sunlight that passed through the small window next to her bed. She studied the small dimples in the creme ceiling, uninterested completely about their appearance but could not find anything else to stare at. She sighed slowly and softly as she recollected the month's events, as she did every morning, then at last heaved herself upright.
Immediately her right arm protested from the sudden movement. Unfortunately it had been broken in last month's "incident". The pack's healer had done her voodoo with herbs, spices, and magical triangles no doubt, then had bound it up in a tight cast. Jackie had insisted on going to a real doctor, but the pack had refused in case she might prove a danger for society. In any case, one positive aspect about her new lifestyle was that things healed much faster and her arm was now only immobilized by a light splint.
She ignored the pain without much thought and brushed the covers away from herself. Jackie moved her feet to the edge of the bed, stood for a moment, then kneeled to peer underneath the bed. As quietly as she could, the woman slid the small black duffel bag from it, unzipped it, and withdrew a small syringe filled with a translucent blue liquid. Jackie admired it against the sunlight for a moment, and without much thought, injected it into her system.
When the pack had retrieved her from the woods, she had been fortunate enough that they had not left the bag behind. It would have proved almost impossible to find-- most of the woods, after all, looked the same. And if it had been left behind, it would have had, literally, some deadly consequences. She had revealed very little to the pack about herself, most of all that she was actually allergic to dogs. Considering she was closer to the pound mutt than anyone should hope to be, she did not like to consider what would happen if she didn't take her medication. For the time being, her little secret remained under raps and the pack, as of now, had no known power over her.
Now satisfied, she shoved the duffel bag back under her bed and stood again, walking quietly towards the kitchen.
"Yo, any of you nimwits get about to breakfast yet?," Jackie called out loudly. If anyone hadn't known of her presence yet, they knew it now.
~~~
The past few weeks for Theo had been spent mostly in the forest. He was not a bad person and the thought he had recently turned a human was an uncomfortable feeling. His old pack would have glamorized such an action and perhaps celebrated it. His new pack had new ways and thought of their predicament as a disease. Theo wasn't sure what exactly to call it and his views on the matter were a mixture of both. In any case, the pack leader was probably furious with him. But he had resolved to avoid him.
Avoiding only worked so long. He usually had to stop in for meal time since catching your own food was more difficult than he would have thought. The morning sun filtrated through the leaves, reminding him of the time and what meal he should be eating right now. Effectively starved out of his hiding place for the time being, the boy raced through the forest, bare-footed, towards the ranch.
As it approached into view, he ducked to the side and wisely choose to take the back-door entrance. With any luck he could sneak into the kitchen before or after Kratos entered it, grab something to eat, and go back to hiding.
May:
Kratos' eyes narrowed at the girl.. She was playing a very interesting game in which he did not particularly care to participate.
"Believe me, I am none too fond of questions myself." Kratos replied. "So I will say only this, that the people in this town do not know of us and thus do not know that their land has been claimed by us. But to others of our kind there is a warning.. You cannot expect to live on our lands and be treated kindly unless you are a member of the pack."
The Alpha then fell silent and awaited a reply from the stranger. The girl seemed very calm given the situation, thus Kratos could easily guess she knew how to control her werewolf form.. That meant he needed to be ready in an instant in case she tried anything......inconvenient.
*******
Timothy's head was cocked back against the cold brick wall with his face towards the sky. There were no clouds out today as there had been the night before, no doubt the snow would melt soon.
With a sigh, Timothy looked down again and blinked his eyes to readjust them to the darkness of the alley... He would have to leave now in case someone came looking for him.
When Timothy came around the corner, he looked up and down the street before cautiously stepping out into the light.
"Oh well, I'll figure something out soon... I hope." The boy mumbled to himself as he stuck his hands into the pockets of his jeans and began walking down the sidewalk.
Then suddenly he became aware of a unfamiliar scent and his eyes automatically lifted to search the surrounding area.
Timothy was confused for a moment, he wasn't usually in tune with the werewolf part of himself and thus could not figure out the difference between a scent he knew and one he did not.... because "logically" he didn't trust either of them.
Mariel:
"It's not like I want to be staying here Kratos. The snow's blocked me road wise and I wasn't going to try and sneak out of town through your territory. I'm no idiot." She said flatly, blatantly missing the fact that she let slip his name. Idiot! He didn't know that you knew his name! Nice job Sherlock. Her wolf snarled out in their mind, loosing patience. But Kieoki stayed calm, acting as if she hadn't let anything slip, and she finished her meal by plopping the last piece in her mouth and chewing before she stood and swallowed, moving towards the sink to wash her plate.
Turning the water on, she spoke without looking at Kratos. "So unless you're going to 'force' me to join your pack or whatnot like every other pack I've gone through, I don't expect to be treated kindly by your pack. I am an 'intruder' after all, now that I'm not just passing through." She said with a narrow of her eyes, annoyed more at herself and the weather than Kratos. Of course she had to get stuck in the town.
Cassie:
"Wait, where is Kratos?" Kaleb called out, realizing that the pack leader was no where in sight. He coldn't smell Kratos either.
Kale:
kale was in the middle of flipping over yet another piece of french toast when she head jackie yell from upstairs.
"Yo, any of you nimwits get about to breakfast yet?,"
Kale growled angrily and yelled back "your a werewolf! use your nose idiot!" she didn't appreciate being called a nimwit by someone so new, or so irritated. kale was known to have a short temper, and after not having eating something since yesterday afternoon she was already cranky herself.
"Kratos is out.....doing what he does." Kale replied vaguely to Kalebs question. truth was, Kale didn't know where kratos was half the time, as long as she could easily come across a recent scent of him, she didn't worry much since he was more than capable of taking care of himself. he took care of a bunch of werewolves for moon's sake.(yes, she swore by the moon, yay or werewolfness)
what worried her more was not that she hadn't seen kratos, but that she hadn't seen Timothy. she suspected he had been sneaking out lately, but if Kratos caught him in the town he might get angry. it was dangerous for newer wolves to be around so many people, and while Timothy wasn't as new as some, he still had...issues that could make him lose control.
the bitter scent of burning bread drifted up from the frying pan and kale turned her attention back to breakfast.
Soar:
"I try not to. It smells. Bad. Breakfast or no breakfast, hmm?," Jackie mumbled hotly and took an abrupt (and some-what noisy) seat that was closest towards Kale.
With her unbroken left hand, she fingered around the spare silver-ware on the table, making obnoxious tapping noises on its surface. Inspiration struck and she clung two knives together, making a fantastic metallic shrill. The game became boring rather quickly, however, so she offhandedly picked up a sharper steak knife. She studied with intrigue, then aimed it meticulously at the wall and threw it. The dart hit its target on the dry wall with a thud and Jackie nodded with satisfaction.
"Is it done yet?," she asked loudly in a tone reminiscent of an impatient 5 year old.
Hour Glass:
Zeit looked up, her eyes trained on the knife now in her wall. She was instantly up, and at Jackie's side, and whamped the back of her head. "There is a knife in my wall!" she growled, "Kale just finished the repairs from an attack by a rouge wolf, and you go and stick a knife in my wall!"
Zeit's mood had swung, which could be counted as odd, but she still had been tense from the life in the werewolf pack. "Now, you are going to fix the hole in my wall, or I will have your tail" she said coldly, before turning and taking her seat. "This house is going to be torn apart" she muttered to herself as she went back to her doodle, trying to contain her anger a bit, it wasn't working.
This called for another run later, and a nice good hunt, maybe she would ask Hawk to run with her, but right now he just seemed surprised that Zeit had just smacked another wolf. She grumbled to herself, the air around her seemed to crackle around her, as it seemed her mood could change at the slightest second.
Kale:
Kale growled once more at Jackies reply and winced as some horried metal on metal noise was sounded. between the sizzling of the french toast in the pan and the other subtle noises of the kitchen kale heard a soft thwump followed by a reverberating ringing. she turned round just in time to see a knife in the wall before Zeit lost it.
Kale snickered a little and then took note of exactly what Zeit said. attack by a rouge wolf. so she hadn't seen who crashed through the wall. Kale hadn't seen the guilty party actually do the damage either....but she was pretty sure it was a couple of pack members from the lack of any strange scent. they had beter hope zeit doesn't find out, she herself didn't know because the scent of everyone around the barn mingled together.
"the heaping pile of french toast beside the stove isn't for show, but i'm not a maid, dish yourselves." just after giving them the all clear Kale picked one up off the plate and folded it, taking bites as she cooked. tempers were running high today....
Kaqurei:
Levi walked casually through the town with his hands shoved in his pockets. He was even whistling ("Oh where has my little dog gone" just for the sheer irony of it). He smiled and gave a friendly wave or nod to those he passed, even helped a young woman whom had in her hurry to get home dropped a bunch of packages on the ground.
As he walked on, he cheerfully exhaled and watched his breath turn white. No common onlooker would ever have suspected that the guy was a werewolf.
Yet, even though he didn't imediately appear like he was doing anything in particular, his green eyes were sizing up town residents--reading them, as it were. The people seemed mostly cheerful and busy. Apparently a popular holiday or celebration was coming up, or so he'd heard. Well, he thought, This doesn't much look like a town tormented by rogue wolves. Still, I can't ignore the scents... there are definitely wolves here.
****
Sabrina coughed as she approached Timothy, to alert him of her coming. "Hey," she said, smiling a little.
Soar:
"Yes. But not just that. I believe I made a bulls eye," Jackie smiled cockily, noisily pushed her chair out, and got up to investigate her handy-work.
She smiled with a rather cheerful nod, despite the fact that Kale was full out loosing her head. It was a rather odd scenario that she remained level-headed and someone next to her lost it. Usually it was the opposite. Then again, she was the one who had really irked off Kale. It was a great pleasure of hers to get under other people's skin.
"Sorry, my schedule is completely booked for the lowly duties of a carpenter," Jackie tore the knife out of the wall and some of the dry-wall leaked onto the floor,"I'll have to do it next Friday. No, make it next next... Sunday".
She rubbed her fingers over the hilt of the steak-knife, as if it was of great importance. With a flash of glinting metal, she threw it a foot or so in the air and watched it spiral. At the last second she snatched the knife on the handle, then did it all over again. Perhaps there was a threat in the way she constantly repeated the knife trick over and over again or perhaps not. It all varied on one's paranoia.
May:
Kratos raised a brow when the stranger addressed him by name, but other then that he did nothing else to question it.
So, this girl was a loner.. She has had previous experience with being a member of a pack, supposedly knows how to control her werewolf form, and says she is stuck here because of snow... Interesting.
"I do not force anyone to join my pack unless they are victims of it, and I only keep them until they know how to control and deal with the changes. If they wish to stay after that it is their choice." Kratos informed as his arms crossed over his chest and his head tilted to the side. "However, you need no such guidance, and as you claim to be a victim of bad weather, I'll treat you as a guest for now."
The Alpha then turned his back and walked toward the door. Glancing over his shoulder he said, "Forgive my intrusion, I meant for only the safety of the ones I protect.. Perhaps I might be able to invite you to our place that we may become more acquainted? Farewell for now."
Then Kratos left.
************
Timothy was startled by Sabrina's approach. Up until a few moments ago he had been anticipating the others to come find him, but that unfamiliar scent called for a different reaction...
"Wha- oh." Timothy practically jumping around to face Sabrina. Once he saw it was her though, he again turned his back and pretended to resume a casual walk. "Uh, Yeah.. What do you want?"
Hour Glass:
Zeit growled again, "I suggest not doing that, and you will have the wall fixed within 24 hours." She rose her cold gaze to meet the other wolf's eyes, "PLus to pay for the damages, you'll be doing more odd jobs around the ranch" she said, "When you live under my house, you go by my rules."
She got up once more, taking her paper with her, "Kale, I'll come back down later for some of your food, I'm not to hungary at the moment.
She walked past Jackie, grabbing the knife swiftly out of the air. "Since your apart of this pack, it means you listen to those who hold a higher rank then you" she said stiffly to Jackie, "Which means you have to listen to the betas, which happen to be Kale and I." She moved past Jackie, bending the knife in her palm, before tossing it into the trash.
"If you do not like the rules I set or the orders I give" she said, "You could try and knock me out of my rank, but I doubt that could ever happen, plus, Kratos would have to approve first." She gave one last cold glare to Jackie, "Don't you even think about grabbing anymore knives or forks, or anything and toss it around here again!" she said, directly and firmly, "or you life here will turn into a living ****."
Mariel:
Kieoki watched Kratos leave, shock borne upon her face. Does that count as being kind? She blankly asked her wolf, having the shake her head and lean upon the stove for balance.
**** if I know. I'm as shocked as you are. Her wolf spoke back, trying to shake it off. But they couldn't just shake it off, both of them knew that. Glancing around the corner and to where Kratos left, she narrowed her eyes, contemplating of following him. After all, if would be very easy to find where his pack was staying. It was a larger pack after all. Still unsure of what she was going to do, Kieoki walked to the window of the small place and watched Kratos exit her 'home' and walk off.
What was she doing? Why were her feet carrying her towards her door and making her step outside? She growled, a warning to her wolf who snorted as Kieoki forced herself to stop just outside of her door. What are you doing? She growled out at her wolf, annoyed.
Sorry! Can't help it if wolves hate traveling alone. Outcasts are normally those exiled by another pack or those who have killed, neither of which I've done so pardon me for my instincts. Her wolf blatantly replied back, more or less muttering out the reply. Kieoki rolled her eyes and sighed, glancing up at the sky before making sure she couldn't see Kratos anymore, before she struck off towards the woods.
How about I do something for you kay? Screw instincts. Kieoki growled her, her hands twitching as she picked up her pace until she was running towards the woods. The stray person watched her flash by, but they paid no real attention, and it was only a minute or so until she was in the forest, her body quivering as she ran along. Another moment and she was jumping into the air, shifting before she hit the ground, her paws making no sound as she continued running, her jaws parted in a soft laugh. Her wolf was running happily now, racing across the forest and through the snow, leaving only pawprints to show they'd been there.
Soar:
Anger began to boil in her cold blue gaze as she watched her knife get rolled into a little tiny ball and tossed in the trash. She had grown attached to the knife in the minute or so it was hers. Seeing it destroyed was like stepping over a personal line of hers.
" It's not exactly like I have a choice on living here, now do I? I told you I wasn't getting to it for a few weeks!" Jackie growled, her voice escalating closer and closer towards full-out anger with each new word.
Angering Zeit had lost its charm when the woman had, so foolishly, insisted on her doing house-keeper chores. So that left something of a disaster to unfold- two very very angry werewolves ready to blow at any time. But this little fact didn't bother Jackie. She could only hope she destroyed most of Zeit's house in the process.
~~~
In the mean time, Theo had very well followed Zeit's advice. He had snatched 5 pieces of french toast from the stove-top, placing it on a plate he grabbed from the cupboard shortly after, and applied a big glob of syrup on top. Theo made way for the table and took a seat farthest from Jackie.
In normal circumstances, he wouldn't have cared on his location from the fight. However, considering his current relationship with the alpha, he didn't exactly want to be blamed for something else.
Kale:
Kale listened to Zeit and Jackie's argument very intently, and also glanced at Theo when he snatched his french toast, smiling as he did so. food made kale happy, seeing ther people happy from eating food made Kale happy. one of the perks that allowed Kale to adjust to her wolf was that mutual love of food, and the hightened sense of taste and smell that came with her wolf.her mood lifted, kale sought to enlighten jackie on a few points.
" you have a perfectly open choice of living here, Jackie." kale said evenly, speaking over her own shoulder as she was still facing the the stove.
"no one ever said you had to stay. you were brought here for your protection as you changed. you were welcomed here as a new werewolf. under our protection we set rules you have to follow, such as the restriction about going into town, and the need of helping with chores. new werewolves are dangerous Jackie. they don't have control over their wolf, they can flip out and hurt people. they can kill people. i understood this since my first change. you were lucky, there weren't any humans around you could hurt. some of us weren't so lucky. i came into this pack asking Kratos to help me control my wolf, and he accepted me."
"some of us had a worse beginning."
Timothy. what Gathen did to him was a living nightmare i couldn't imagine.
"you can leave anyime you want, just ask our alpha first, so he knows. however if you leave, then you leave this territory as well. you leave this ranch, this town, and these mountains, do you understand?"
" if you stay, you follow Kratos rules, and you respect those of higher rank. this is Kratos pack. he is the Alpha.and do you know why Zeit is first beta? typically i would assume Beta's equal, but Zeit went above and beyond. she let us into her ranch, onto her land, into her home. this is Kratos pack, but your in Zeits den. respect those facts."
Soar:
"Really, flip out, HUH? DOES THIS LOOK LIKE FLIPPING OUT TO YOU?," Jackie fumed.
The anger in her voice had begun to lose its sharp edge and her body posture calmed. Instead of staring at Zeit and Kale like a predator staring down its enemies, she loosened her stance to lean over the counter aloofly. Some hostility still lingered in her gaze, but it was more of mild irratation. It was clear Jackie wasn't going to be demolishing the house and infuriating its occupants any further for the time being.
"I suppose I should patch your stupid wall that so foolishly got in the way of my knife. Because apparently I'm going to flip out on all the stupid humans and I apparently need to stay here so I can flip out on all of you instead," Jackie huffed, taking meticulous care to extenuate the meaning of her words.
May:
"I would hope not." Kratos's deep voice replied to Jackie's rant from the doorway. The Alpha had just entered after hearing most of the argument with his sensitive hearing some several yards off.
Kratos leaned in the doorway with a confident smile upon his lips, his sharp yellow eyes seemed to gleam with a sense of pride.
Truly Zeit and Kale were an amazing team and certainly the most trusted by the Alpha. Even under stress and frustration, Zeit and Kale stayed levelheaded and supported each other like true pack members should.
"Thank you for those words, Kale. And I apologize for the damage done to your home, Zeit. Please allow me to repair the wall and perhaps buy you a new knife or two." Kratos said sincerely. "Jacqueline and I will be taking a trip to the canyons, so that we can more fully explore the consequences of loosing one's self-control."
Soar:
Jackie's left eye brow rose with interest as the alpha entered the kitchen, but otherwise showed no intimidation as Kratos entered. In fact, she look rather aloof and bored. Either way, she remained slumped and impassive as ever on the counter top.
"Will we? Can't wait to start with that self control exploration stuff, I'm practically giddy with excitement here. Please oh mighty alpha sir, don't keep me waiting," Jackie sneered sarcastically and drummed her fingers on the counter, pretending to be impatient at the alpha's offer.
Jackie groaned in irritation, then shifted her weight off the counter to a full stand. She hated deserts, canyons, hot areas in general. If this alpha thought she was going to take this soul searching lesson or what-not seriously, he had another thing coming.
~~
In the mean time, Theo had been nervously stuffing french toast down his throat as the alpha entered. He was thankful that his seat had not only been farthest from Jackie, but farthest from Kratos as well. He dare not take even a look at him, in fear he may notice him. With a hard lump, he swallowed the rest of the french toast.
Very quietly, the boy made stealthily towards the back door. Maybe it wouldn't matter if Kratos noticed him, for he'd be long gone by then. Being the clumsy boy he was, Theo tripped right in front of the door with a loud thump. Plans of mad dashes to freedom since vanished from his mind.
Mariel:
Kieoki was enjoying the feel of wind upon her fur as she ran without having a destination. Barking out a happy laugh, she continued on this way through the forest, in a state of bliss until she remembered her clothes and dagger that she'd stashed away under a large stone. Now that the snow wasn't hindering her anymore, she stopped and scented the air, trying to pinpoint her location before she suddenly darted off and towards her things. Paws soundlessly keeping a steady rhythm, she burst into a small, sunny clove with a large stone in the center. Sniffing the air, she shuffled around it's base before she barked and started digging up her things. She had them out within moments, and she tied her sash around her back, which contained her dagger and clothes as well.
Nequaria:
Creorran jumped awake from his old matress when the smell of burning food reached his room. "Oh jeez, I slept in again" he said quietly to himself. "Kratos is gonna kill me. Well, at least I'm not like, a beta, or someone great things are expected of."
He nervously and quietly stepped down the creaky staircase; he was trying not to alert anyone of his presence. When he reached the bottom of the stairs, he was sure he had made so much noise that the entire pack knew he was here. If not, they could definitely smell him. After deciding not to sit at or around the breakfast table, Creorran took his place in a far corner, leaning against the wall.
As he took in the angered faces of two females, and the small hole in the wall near him, the young werewolf began to look distressed. If he would've been in his wolf form, his orange-brown ears would've been flat against his head.
Kaqurei:
Sabrina pretended not to notice the fact that Timothy startled at seeing her. She was trying to appeal to subconcious human senses by acting completely and totally human... that meant no sizing up situations and constantly appearing on guard with either an air of superiority or inferiority. No wolf. Human.
She smiled weakly. "Hi," she said awkwardly. Human. Human. Human. Sabrina repeated in her mind, trying to remind herself. She wasn't used to it. At all. She glanced down at the snow, then looked back at Timothy.
****
Levi decided the best place to look for his lost wolf was at her aunt's house. Anyways, that's what Alpha had said. Alpha had also said that the lost wolf was very fond of her aunt, and that she might have postponed her return to the pack to stay with her for a while.
The aunt lived in a cottage a little east of town, perched up in the nearby mountains. After Levi was done asking locals about any "strange incidents" that had taken place within the past couple of months, Levi started for it. Alpha's information on the exact location of the cottage had been vague, but Levi was certain he could find it.
He found a road that led east out of town and took it. At first, it looked used often enough, but the nearer he got to the mountains the less he saw footprints in the white blanket of snow. Levi wasn't surprised. From what he'd gathered from the locals, there were many legends and fears that clung to these mountains.... from the smells on the air, they were not unfounded.
As the path snaked upwards, Levi lost sight of any kind of tracks at all. It was eerily quiet, save for the crunching of his own boots in the snow. Randomly, a branch heavy laden with snow dropped its burden on the forest floor below. Levi's attention snapped to it. As he scanned the surrounding area, he couldn't spot a soul. He chuckled weakly at himself.... the silence and the ever-present smell of an unfamiliar pack had made him quite nervous.
At last he arrived at a cottage nestled in several pine trees. It looked a bit run down, dark, frozen.... if Levi didn't know any better, he would have said it was abandoned. He approached the door and knocked. No answer. He knocked again, a little harder this time, and to his surprise it creakily gave way and swung open.
His breath still white, he entered the dark little cabin. Inside looked to be a mess; cluttered, a chair knocked over, papers scattered all about. There wasn't a trace of life. If someone had lived here, they had certainly left in a hurry.
Levi decided to investigate this place a little further. He found some old claw marks on the walls and a table looked pretty chewed up. Yes, that settled it. This house had been attacked. His missing wolf's aunt had either left or been killed. He sighed heavily. That meant he had no leads.
Suddenly, he heard a screeching scream, right behind him! He whirled around and was met with a flurry of bristles in his face! The banshee-like screaming went on until his head rang, and the bristles beat at him violently---POW! POW! POW!
When Levi could assess the situation again, he found that he had somehow managed to get out of the house, but he apparently tripped as he was now lying on his back in the snow. Furthermore, he was being beaten mercilessly with a stick---no, a broom---and some old lady was screaming and yelling a mile a minute. He couldn't figure heads or tails of what she was saying, but he finally managed to get a grip on that broom of hers and yanked it out of her hands.
"You miserable skunk!" the woman cried, "Invadin' my privacy! I oughta shoot you full of----"
"Are yeh Sabrina's aunt!?" Levi interrupted quickly, still wincing and holding that broom over his head as some sort of defense against his elderly assailant.
The woman stopped short. Instantly she put her hands on her hips. "What do you know about my Sabrina?" she demanded. "If you've hurt her, you no good--"
"No, no, no, ma'am," Levi objected, scrambling to his feet, "I am a friend o' Sabrina's!"
"Humph," the woman said, still not convinced.
"Uh, er, her father, Aedan Sabres, sent me here ta look fer her. He said she might be with you," Levi tried to explain.
"Oh, well that's different," the woman muttered. "Lucky for you I grabbed my broom and not my shot gun. Come on in, maybe you can get the fire going. Then I'll tell you what I know about Sabrina."
May:
Kratos scoffed a laugh at Jackie's remark, his smirk never fading.
Then the Alpha's attention turned to the two boys whom were so obviously trying to avoid him.
"Where are you off to in such a hurry, Theo?" Kratos asked lightheartedly. "And what about you, Creorran, did you sleep well?"
Kratos then laughed and glanced back in Jackie's direction. "Come on in and take a seat boys, I'm sure Kale made more then enough for us all."
****
Timothy peered over his shoulder at Sabrina suspiciously.. she was acting noticably different.
Suddenly the feeling of a nearby stranger began to lift and Timothy felt himself automatically relax.
"Were you sent by Kratos?" Timothy immediately asked, almost completely ignoring Sabrina's attempt.
Soar:
"Nowhere in particular...," the boy mumbled, though obediently took a seat as Kratos had instructed.
Theo was pleased Jackie hadn't decided to take a seat and stayed close to the counter. Setting aside the fact he was the one who'd turned her in the first place, she was obnoxious company to be around. Even Theo knew there was a limit to how much offending you should do to a very large and powerful pack. Jackie, on the other hand, was either dense or didn't care. For on a daily basis, she offended just about everyone there was to offend. Including the alpha.
Momentarily, Jackie apparently became bored of her spot on the counter and stood to take a seat. She slumped into a seat a few chairs over from Theo. The boy held back a groan at his luck, and instead brought his attention to the silver-ware.
~~~
As Jackie moved to take a seat, she twirled away some loose hair in thought. A quick glance out of the window, she could see miles of blinding white snow, untouched for the most part. However, the winter sun still shimmered weakly with light and cast a warm glow over the snow. Jackie would have found it quite beautiful if she took note of such things. However, all she could really figure was it was definably cold outside and she wouldn't want to be going on fantastical journeys any time soon.
"Soo... What's up?," Jackie trailed idly.
Cassie:
Kaleb finished his cat drawing, then got up. He walked to the stove and snatched a few pices of french toast, four to be exact. He set his plate down on the table, and walked over to the fridge. Kaleb swung the door open, and grabbed out a tub of sour cream. Setting that by his plate, he stalked to the cupboard, where he hunted down the brown sugar. Where is it? Kaleb saw it hiding behind a jar of peanut butter. Aha! I've found you sugar! Kaleb grabbed the bag of brown sugar, then two spoons from the kitchen drawer.
Kaleb sat down at the table and graciously spread on the sour cream. Then he delicately sprinkled on the brown sugar. Making a giant sandwich with all the pieces, he grabbed it and bit down. Mmmmmmm! Kale makes good breakfasts. Kaleb finished it off in a few quick bites. He put his plate in the sink and sat back down, smiling with his belly now full. Jackie came down and she and Kale started yelling. All of a sudden, Kratos came in and stopped them. Then they were all at the table, Kaleb included. "So where were you, Alpha?"Kaleb asked, thinking everyone wanted the answer.
Kale:
Kale frowned as her latest piece of french toast burned, and it's acrid scent made her nose twitch. Kratos's entrance had startled her a bit, she hadn't even heard him come into the house. she quickly let it go though, Kratos was bound to know how to move quietly by now. kale glanced over at Kalebs 'breakfast sandwich' and smiled a little at the combination he used.
"Creorran, quit standing there like a deer in the headlights and grab some french toast." Kale called over her shoulder. finishing up on the last batch kale turned the stove off and put the pan in the sink. leaning over, she cracked the window open just a little, letting fresh air into the kitchen, and new scents.
Hour Glass:
Zeit heard her alpha come in, and felt the tension in the air die down a bit, but she wasn't ready to go and see the disobediant werewolf. She instead walked into her living room, where her rocking chair chair, along with an unfinished book which sat on a table. She first retrieved her book, opening it up right tot he place she had left off, and plopped into the rocking chair.
The scents that came from the kitchen held the scents of breakfast, and her stomach growled. She ignored it, she would eat later, she was saving up for a good long hunt, eating food now might make it harder to find her prey, since she wouldn't be as hungary when she left. She should talk to Kratos, she thought to herself, he more likely want to know where his beta would be off to, and he may even stick a few wolves to tag along with her. She rolled her eyes at the thought, if any other came with her, they would have to be swift and agile in order to keep up with her.
She looked to the words on the page, trying to clear her head, and to focus on the book. It was almost comical, her choice of reading being a book about a pack of wolves. She loved to point out the faults people seemed to always think about the werewolves, and how they thought pack life seemed to be. The book would give her a good laugh, and would calm her a bit before she went back to her pack.
May:
Kratos leaned against the kitchen wall and crossed his arms over his chest as he watched the others eat.
"Ah, I was just snooping around town, Kaleb." Kratos replied, his eyes carefully scrolling passed each face at the table.
The alpha took careful notice of all whom were and were not present, then he stood up straight again and wandered into the living room. There, he saw Zeit reading a book and trying desperately to ignore the rest of the pack until she had calmed down.
Kratos couldn't help but laugh.
"I found that stranger from the other night." Kratos said as he took a seat on the couch.
Hour Glass:
Zeit looked up, closing her book, still holding her place, and looked to Kratos. "You mean the one that guarded the kid then ran off?" she asked, thinking back, "I'm the werewolf didn't know about the pack or she was just curious, so what are you going to do about her?"
She crossed her legs, making herself more comfortable, and placed the book in her lap. She looked to the cool gaze of her Alpha, and her tension faded away a bit, making her a bit more relaxed. That's one thing I need to learn to do, relax she thought to herself for a moment, before turning her attention back to her Alpha.
"Also, what are you going to about, I think her names is Jackie?" she said, "Right now I see her as what's going to turn my home to rumble, not that it's almost happened before." She waited for his answer to both of her questions, ignoring the scent of the french toast. She took a deep breath, her mouth watering, but she was trying to relax a bit, an uptight beta might not be good for the pack.
May:
"As for Jacqueline, I have a pretty fair guess that she comes from a very strict background and hates dogs." Kratos said bluntly. The guess was founded upon the facts of Jackie's previous job and her current attitude. But Kratos had also gone through Jackie's bag that night when he had returned to the place he found her to wait for the others to return..
He had opened it in search of some kind of personal information about the woman, like family or contacts of any kind, but he had only found those allergy drugs.... It certainly was an odd thing for one to have on hand in such great quantities..
"I'll be taking her with me on a short hike.. There's only so many ways I can reach her..... Speaking of which, have you seen Timothy or Sabrina this morning?"
Cassie:
Alice woke up to two of the females yelling at each other. She sighed and rolled her eyes. Then she let out a low growl. Ugh, why can't those two bickering she-wolve get along?! Or at least, why can't that new female seem to fit in and get along with everyone else?! She's the real problem here!
Alice, grumbling and muttering unintelligible stuff under her breath, stumbled downstairs and into the kitchen. Everyone was at the table, including Kratos, and eating french toast probably made by Kale. She walked over to the stovetop, plate already in hand, and snatched up four and a half pieces of the sweet stuff. She buttered them up, and sat at the table, trying for a seat away from Jackie. She sat down and chowed while Kratos talked about stuff, and the loner that had been on our territory. And also that he was going to take the new were out for a walk. Alice snorted, Sure, Kratos leaves and come back randomly, he has to spend time with everyone, and he chooses to spend a walk with that ungrateful mess! Man, sometimes I just don't get Alpha's reasoning. Alice finished off her breakfast, and ran up the stairs to take a shower. She went into the bathroom with a towel, fresh clothes, her special wolf necklace with the hawk feather on it, and some socks. As she was about to step in the hot water that would wash away a lot of stress, a wave of pain hit her. Alice screamed, more like a howl, and crumpled to the floor. In her thoughts blood seeped down, and stained the ground with blood. A half familiar face stared at her, pale, deathly, and frightening, before it was gone in a flash. The vision only lasted a few mere moments, but it felt like minutes passed. She stood, jumped into the shower, and washed all her worries away.
Soar:
Jackie forked at some french toast she had grabbed a few moments before. She balanced it on her fork, studying its texture (and possibly some burn marks), then tentatively took a bite of it. Her face was at first something of a grimace, but turned into a nod of approval. She ate another piece.
After a good few minutes of scarfing down breakfast (she had to admit, she actually enjoyed the wolf food Kale passed as french toast), Jackie had grown bored of the quiet conversation at the table. Kaleb seemed far too fixated on his weird concoction of... who knew what.
The other two looked like they'd rather jump off a cliff then say a word to her, which she supposed she should take as a compliment. After a few absent clangs of her fork on the wooden table, Jackie finally grew tired of her impending doom and silently walked off towards the living room where she had seen Kratos go.
"Are you two done yet? I'm getting bored here," Jackie grumbled.
May:
Kratos stood up with a sigh and began moving toward the door. "Yes, we wouldn't want a bored werewolf in the house, now would we?" He said with a smirk towards Jackie.
"Zeit, I'm sure, has other plans for this morning. So Kale, you're in charge until I get back. Please, keep an eye out for those who didn't come in this morning." Kratos called into the kitchen. "Anyone's welcome to tag along, I'm only a howl away if anyone needs me."
Kratos came to rest his hand on the front door knob then paused. After a moment of thought, Kratos looked over his shoulder at Jackie.
"I suggest you get your bag and an extra pair of clothing.. Most of us have learned not to leave the house without such items.. I think you'll be wise to do the same."
Soar:
"No we would not," Jackie said almost civilly.
Slowly, she escalated up the stares until she reached the farthest bedroom down the hallway- her bedroom. Her eyes looked lazily around the room until she spotted a "clean" shirt tossed on her dresser somewhere, and a "clean" pair of jeans laying limply over her bedpost. She assembled the rest of her clothing and tossed it impartially into a cloth draw-string bag she had spotted lying in her closet. With one final thought, she removed two needles from the black duffel bag from under her bed, and tactfully hid them in a roll of socks. No one in their right mind would look for something there.
Jackie came down the stares the same way she had went up them- slow and uninterested, a guise really to unnerve anyone who wanted her to be timely. She smiled coolly at Kratos, hoping he had enjoyed waiting for ten minutes.
"Now can we go??"
Cathannah:
Toby gathered his books and papers into his large, brown shoulder pack and started down stairs. There was quite a bit of hussling and bussling in the lower levels of the boarding house, due to a recent decision by the headmaster to have the building remodeled. Toby hoped to return to a brand new bedroom with pretty wallpaper and a desk lamp! Hopefully, the renovators would not touch his study chair.
Toby had lived in this dreary town all his life- Infact, his grandmother even ran a strange little antique store here, but Toby wasn't content. He dreamed of someday dusting the dirt of these roads from his feet and going to a big-name university to become a professor.
But in order to do that, he'd have to study, and in order to study effectively with full concentration, he needed quiet. So he was venturing into the forest for today. Many people in town would warn him against it; saying werewolves romed about within the dence foilage.
Werewolfs... Terrifying beasts! If Toby saw one, he'd just climb a tree is all he'd do. That'd work, right? Besides, werewolves were people during the day. If he saw any werewolfy people out there, he'd run for his life. That'd work for sure! No need to be worried.
Kaqurei:
"He didn't send me," Sabrina replied to Timothy. There was another awkward silence as she tried to figure out what to say next. She couldn't believe how hard it was for her to communicate with him... maybe it was some sort of subconcious thing since that night. She tried to shake it off and shoved her hands into her pockets. "Have you had breakfast yet? It's about that time of day."
****
"Aye, I'll let yeh know as soon as I figure anythin' out," Levi said, waving a farewell as he left the elderly woman's cottage. She'd been anything but cooperative, dispite her broom attack being stifled when she learned he was sent by Sabrina's father. She hadn't really told him anything useful, and only hinted that Sabrina might still be in the area. She'd been suspicious and had an underlying threat under even her nicest tones... Mess with her Sabrina? That he most certainly would not do.
But, he had learned that Sabrina was alive. Why hadn't she reported back to her father yet? The question was driving him crazy. As he walked back down the path he had come to the cottage by, he tried to figure out his next move. Obviously, he had to track down Sabrina and confront her. That wasn't what he was trying to figure out though... it was more of how to do it. Nobody in town had been very helpful when he'd asked about the tall blonde foreign girl.
So... plan B... naturally, was to take his Wolf form and see if it could figure out more from the surrounding woods. Ordinarily he'd have been cocky enough to change form on the spot... but this land reeked of belonging to a rival pack... and he was kinda on his own here. With no leads on exactly how big this pack was, the statures of any scouts, or the temperments of its alpha and betas respectively.... taking Wolf form was a risk.
Ehh, but he decided to go for it anyway.
Nequaria:
Creorran followed her orders and delicately, though almost disgustedly, picked up a piece of half-singed French toast. Even as a young teenager, he was never one to consume much, be it French toast or anything else. Once he had returned to his position - leaning against the far wall - he took a small bite of the thick, soggy bread. He found its taste neither great nor horrid, so the young werewolf simply ate in silence.
"Deer in headlights. . .", he thought as he finished off his rather minute breakfast. Now that would be a good time. If this pack could track down some large game, like a deer, the feel of running free, the thrill of taking the animal down. . . Creorran's thoughts drifted off. He had wished that the "hunt" he had experienced previously was a true hunt; for prey, not a rogue werewolf.
He still did not wish to get involved in the somewhat heated talk between Jackie and the other wolves. She'll definitely be trouble, he thought, rolling his eyes.
Cassie:
Kaleb sat at the table while everyone ate, hearing their chomping and biting and nomming on french toast. He was quiet as he drew, watching as nonsensical lines on paper became a beautiful picture. Then he saw Creorran out of the corner of his eye come in and silently eat a piece of toast against the wall. Kaleb yawned, and looked at everyone.
"Hey, I'll make dinner if you guys want, I'm a pretty good cook!" Kaleb said out to everyone, actually wanting to make dinner for everyone.
I will need to go to the market though... Kaleb thought, thinking of what he would need for supplies.
"Kratos, do you think you would have enough time to take me to the market? I mean, if you guys want me to make dinner. And do we have any grille of some sort?" Kaleb questioned Kratos, looking over at him.
May:
Kratos leaned against the door and glanced at Kaleb, then back at Jackie.
The Alpha remained silent until Jackie had left upstairs to get her clothes, then he again turned his attention to Kaleb.
"I may be able to take you once I get back." Kratos informed calmly. "Or if you'd rather, you can tell me what you will need and perhaps I'll be able to pick it up before returning."
When Jackie returned, Kratos, without saying a word, stood up and opened the door for her, allowing her to exist first.
****
Timothy stared down at the sidewalk and kicked the slush under his boots.
"I don't want to go back to the ranch.." Timothy whispered. "I don't want to be what I am... But I can't avoid it, nor can I try to live like a person with it. I have nothing besides this stupid nightmare to live.. I can't remember anything before it and it's simply impossible to imagine ending.... Kratos is a jerk, he wants me to learn to 'control' this nightmare like it'll make a difference, but every full moon will still be faced as an animal.."
Timothy's thoughts began to spill from his mind.. He did not know why, but it felt good to have someone listen, thus he couldn't help it..
What Timothy could not recognize was that, while the Werewolf had instincts which naturally manifested themselves, so too, did the human being which sought comfort and the simple knowledge of another listening to the words of his heart.
Hour Glass:
"Don't need to worry about that Kaleb, I'll take you" replied Hawkthorne, still standing at the friends, "PLus, I learned at a young age never to be in the same house as a moody female werewolf."
"What was that?" Asked Zeit, walking into the room. She crossed her arms and leaned on the doorframe, "You gonna tell me what you just told Kaleb here?" she asked, her eyebrows raised.
"Only that I need to borrow your truck for a bit of shoppin'," he replied, "And I was was gonna take My new friend Kaleb here!"
Zeit looked to Kaleb, "Watch out, when he says new friend, he means he's going to drag ya everywhere he goes now" she said walking out of the kitchen tot he stairs. She stopped before she exited fully, "I don't want ta see any new scratches on my truck, ya hear?" she said before heading to her room to pack a small bag.
Hawk waited until she had left, "She wouldn't noticed if I came back with the car wrecked" he said with a chuckle, his only reponse was a shout from Zeit, when went along the lines of "I heard ya!." He chuckled again, hopping that a bit of humor would lighten up the tension in the room
~~~~~~
Zeit was out of her home swiftly, a small bag for hiking slung on her shoulder. She felt a gentle breeze play it's way across her nose, bringing different scents to her. She wasn't to far into the woods when she caught scent of a tresspasser. She began to amble in that direction, she could check the cattle which were being held in a field int he same direction. She didn't walk in a upbeat pace like usaul, instead she took her time to confront the new arrival, letting nature calm her a bit more.
May:
Kratos smiled when HawkThorne volunteered and he listened briefly to their conversation before he turned to leave the house.
Moments like that were when Kratos felt at home, moments when he felt satisfaction for his efforts..
"Alright Jacqueline." Kratos said as he stepped outside the house and closed the door. "Do you want to walk, run, or ride?"
Mariel:
Kieoki, for the matter of the time being, was infact enjoying the view from the top of the canyons. She'd run for an hour or so more along them until coming to a stop and sitting at the edge, staring at the breathtaking view that stretched out before her eyes for many, many miles. Sighing softly, she felt herself calm down and though others would have shifted in a calm state, she did not. Her fur fluffed up as a breeze blew through, but nonetheless, she was still a wolf. Though this didn't faze her. She was more at home in her wolf body than most. It was odd...in a way.
Kieoki had been planning to move, and not stay out in the open, but all wishes don't come true and the combination of little sleep, eating and running for a long time started to lull her out. She laid down then, her front paws hanging off of the ledge as she rested her head upon them, watching the skyline. It wasn't to long until her eyes slipped shut and she drifted to sleep, her pelt rising and falling slowly.
Kaqurei:
Sabrina listened sympathetically as Timothy spoke. He had not said anything she did not already know, but she was keen to pick up the fact that talking about it helped him somewhat. A smile did tug a little at the corners of her lips when he had said Kratos was a jerk, but she was quick to return to being solemn.
"I'm sorry," she said softly after he had done. "You don't have to go back to the ranch just now. Maybe I can buy you breakfast at a restaurant here in town? What kind of food do you like?"
***
Levi was more than pleased by his wolf senses coming in full swing with his transformation. Everything in the world seemed so much sharper. Then his instincts changed from man to wolf, and he became more aware than ever that he was a loner on claimed territory... not good. The sooner he got out of here, the better.... lovely place though... he might just mention that to his alpha when he got back.
Sabrina apparently frequently visited her aunt, the most recent time was probably the day before last. This gave him a decent trail to work with, so he started padding deeper into the woods in pursuit.
Cathannah:
Toby cuddled onto the roots of a large tree and dug his books out of his pack. His pencil was freshly sharpened and ready for writing. Happily, he grabbed his history book and opened it to the same page he'd left off at. It was a very advanced history book, and most people lost interest before the second paragraph of the introduction- but Toby found it fansinating. It was advanced stuff like this that would make him a university student and professer!
The silence of the forest allowed his to ultimately loose himself in his studies, until papers and books were spread across the snowy ground all around him.
Soar:
Jackie held back a smile as Kratos opened the door for her first. She stepped through the door frame without a word. Apparently chivalry had not yet met its end. An odd thought really that a werewolf, a very powerful one at that, still made time for manners. She toyed with the notion of Kratos sitting at a tea party, laughing mentally to herself, then shooed it away as Kratos spoke to her.
"Oh surprise me".
Jackie thought about her statement for a while, frowning. She never liked surprises, especially not in the hands of people she hardly knew.
"Scratch that, let's walk".
Cassie:
Kaleb sat there while Kratos gave his answer, then watched as he left. Hawk then offered to take him. "Sure! And it would be best if we visited a Mexican vendor or something, I had a spicy dinner in mind." Kaleb told him, then Zeit came around the corner after Hawk had told him that he would be his best friend. He glanced at Hawk as Zeit told him that now Hawk would want him to go everywhere. "I don't mind, it doesn't really matter to me." Kaleb looked at Hawk. "After I get on some appropriate clothes, we can go."
Kale:
Kale nodded to kratos about being in charge and finished the dishes, listening to the others as they went about their ways. Kale smiled at Hawks comment and shut the faucet off. snagging another two pieces of french toast for herself kale wandered through the living room, only half listening to snippets of conversation. Fat flakes began to fall outside the window, catching her attention as they drifted down to join the millions of others on the snow-laden ground.
it had been a long time since Kale had seen snow, Kale smiled at how she thought snowflakes were ice fairies when she was little. the idea had been cute then. before the change.
how diferently she saw thing after that day.
Hour Glass:
Zeit stepped forward, reaching down, grabbing a damp paper off the snow covered ground. She looked at it for a moment, nothing catching her attention. She folded it neatly, and began to collect the rest of the papers at her feet, saying nothing at first. She folded the rest of the papers, before looking at the man, she had a stern gaze.
She placed both her hands on her hips, keeping her gaze hard, and ready to look him straight in the eye. "Why are you here?" she asked softly, but firmly, "I happen to own this land, and I know I put up signs saying there will be no tresspassers." She shifted her weight, and crossed her arms. "I mean you are never supposed go on private land" she said, "You don't know if I have large guard dogs, or if I have a rather tempermental bull who would gore you in an instance."
She clutched the papers tightly in her hands. "Now I want answers to everything, or you papers" she said, "Will either become kindling or fertilizer for the trees of the forest."
Cathannah:
Toby remained focused on his currrent work, not even noticing the others blowing away in the faint breeze. Then the stern voice of a starnge woman sounded.
"YIPE!" He exclaimed, glancin up to see her.
Barely hearing a word, leapt out of his skin and tried to gather all his books and papers. nstead, they seemed to go out of their way to escape him- thusly, he pulled them (and much snow) into a pile under his body and curled into a small ball.
There he stay, quietly.
May:
Kratos paused and looked at Jackie with a smirk, as if asking her if she really meant it. Then she spoke up again and Kratos couldn't help but laugh.
"Alright then." Kratos said with a chuckle, "We'll walk."
He then steadily took the lead and walked with Jackie out of the Ranch yard and along the dirt path outside the fence.
The morning sun shone brightly over the land and a chill wind was carried into the trees that had grown along the small dirt path. Though the ground was covered in a light layering of snow, bright green leaves could still be seen as lush and alive as ever.
In the air was an almost still, yet sweet scent that resembled a fresh cut cucumber on a dark green salad..
Nature seemed calm and the birds were at ease, the commotion of mankind seemed so distant... As they walked the path, Kratos swept his hand over the top of the short fence and wiped the icy droplets of melted snow down the sides of the wooden posts.
"Well, Jacqueline, you said you were bored." Kratos said after awhile. "So, what would you usually do to entertain yourself?"
*****
Timothy thought about Sabrina's question for a moment before he rubbed the back of his neck and chuckled.
"The only things I can ever remember eating are those dishes Zeit and Kale are always making... So I wouldn't know. " Timothy replied at last. He knew he sounded awkward... He didn't know how to react to these interesting feelings, so he tried to go with the flow.
Soar:
"Oh you know... whatever hits inspiration," Jackie said casually and shrugged.
"That's what makes it fun," she grinned as an after-thought.
The snow crunched crisply under her feet, breaking through towards the grass that lay underneath. Jackie took little notice and hummed to herself in an odd tune, which though was not uncommon, was more common around France.
Kaqurei:
"Ooh, fun, we get to experiment then," Sabrina said brightly with a wink. "This town has a bit of a diverse history, so we can make a day of it until we find something you really like. How does that sound?"
****
Hour Glass:
Zeit growled inwardly and outwardly, "When ask questions, I expect answers!" she said, her voice not as kind as before. She shoved the man's papers into her pocket and reached foreward, grabbing his scruff and pulling to his feet, and to her eye level.
"Now, first question" she said stiffly, "Why are you on private property, when I made sure signs are posted everywhere? I have some pretty nasty gaurd dogs around here, and they will attack strangers." She locked her eyes onto his, making sure he got her point. "Now answer the question." This was great, she had gotten into a fight with a subordinate and now she found a tesspasser.
~~~~
"So Kaleb, I'll change into some better clothing, then off we go!" Hawk said with a chuckle, ignoring the breakfast Kale had made and going to change. He put on his normal clothes, walking downstairs after grabbing the keys t Zeit's truck. "Time for some grocery shopping, anyone who wants something go ahead an speak now or forever hold your peace" he said.
Cathannah:
Fight? What fight? Toby wasn't fighting. He was cowering, whimpering and quaking like a leaf.
As the female grabbed his scruff, he again yiped, but did little to fight her. Instead, he wrapped his arms around his own head to sheild his eyes began whimpering. "Oh m- Oh no.. I cant,- oh." He cried. He had a paper stuck to his shirt, quickly he grabbed it and shoved it in her face. "This. This. Only this." He whimpered. "Studying. You know study? Do you study? Oh dear! Why did this happen to me?" He moaned.
Cassie:
Kaleb raised an eyebrow at Hawk's enthusiasm, but shrugged. Okay then. He thought. Then he ran upstairs, throwing off his pajama pants and trading them for jeans. He put on a long-sleeved thermal shirt, and then a light jacket, then a heavy one that could withstand the snow. He also put on earmuffs and gloves, and snow boots. Then he trodded downstairs. "Let's go Hawk!" Kaleb shouted, walking out the front door when, "You're not going without me." Alice stood leaning in the doorway, her small frame scrunched up. "Okay then, go get on some clothes, and hurry."
Alice quickly ran up the stairs, and threw on some warm clothes. Then she rapidly bounded back down, and out the front door. She jumped in the Jeep. "Let's go, furball." Alice said to Hawk, wanting to get back to the warm house as soon as possible.
Hour Glass:
Zeit growled again, letting go of him, letting him drop like a rock tot he ground. "It's happening because you came onto private property, which happens to be private for many reasons" she said gruffly, crossing her arms, "Pay attention tot he signs before you go someplace, like before coming on to a ranch that happens to be having a few predator problems and guard dogs."
~~~~~~~
"Call me furball again, and see what happens" Said Hawkthorne in an angered tone, but, being him, he couldn't act angry when he was content. His smile was shortly back on his face as he climbed into the driver's seat. "So Kaleb cooking tonight, Zeit's fridge needs replenishing and we need some snack food for after runs" he said as he started the engine.
Nequaria:
Seeing no reason to hang about in the kitchen for much longer, Creorran climbed up the old staircase. Once he was inside his room, he quickly threw on a clean pair of pants and a shirt. The young werewolf leaned upon the windowsill and gazed out. To Creorran's disappointment, there was not much to be seen.
Cathannah:
Toby glanced up. "I didn't see any signs. Maybe they are not well placed or broken or invisable. It's only a forest I thought. Perhaps you should go repair the signs, or put up a fence, or let someone know who can put up a fence fore you- hey, can I have my paper back? I'm studying." He whimpered and rammbled all at once.
Hour Glass:
Zeit took a deep sniff, this male was a werewolf himself, he should have been able to smell that this area was taken. "Have you ever learned to use your nose?" She growled, angry that she hadn't chased him off already, "You should have smelled the other werewolves in this area, and I happen to be second in command of the pack here, which means you need to run along now, I don't care if your just studying, I don;t like tresspassers here."
She let out a deep throaty growl, her eyes flashing that she would change if needed. "Run now and never come back, or your tail will no longer be attached" she growled, crossing her arms. She gripped his notes tightly in her fist, "You will only get your notes back when I watch you leave the area, after that I'll hand them over, once your over the boarder."
****
Nequaria:
A wolf trotted through the very town that was near to the Kratos' pack. She was young, perhaps about twenty, with cream colored fur. She was thankful for her rather bland coloration, for it did not draw attention to her, and she could often pass herself off as a dog for she was not a very large creature. She was overall quite average.
The variety of odors in the town quite distracted her, though even she herself was not quite sure of why she was in this particular town. It was very far from where she was raised, though that did not matter to her any longer. She had left that place behind for good reason.
She suddenly stiffened as she passed a small grocery store. Her ears pricked straight up upon her head, and her eyes wildly scanned the area. As she opened her mouth to further investigate the scent, she quickly realized.
She had smelled another werewolf.
After sniffing around a bit longer, she discovered a second werewolf's scent. Both of the trails were fresh. She had no interest in following either scent or discovering which of the many "humans" around her were really werewolves. Instead, she wanted to get as far away from them as possible, but she found nowhere to run or hide.
Aim:
Chime slowly got out of bed, she stretched then walked over to the dinning room, which was only a door away from her room. She looked at the table then at the kitchen door "I don't wanna cook today...." She groaned to herself and stood then for a few minutes, hoping some random dude would come out of nowhere and cook for her. When nothing happen, she sighed and walked into the kitchen and got some eggs and cheese from the fridge, with those she made a cheese omelet.
Chime grabbed the frying pan and took it to the table with a fork and dug in, she ate half the pan then, being full, walked back to the kitchen and threw the rest in a trash can. "Man, for someone as poor as you, that's being very wasteful." she thought to herself, smiling, then walked back into her room to get dress, she came back out five minutes later and walked out the door.
The walk to the store that she work part time, was short walk and she soon was there. She walked in and got her name tag. Chime then got ready for one of the borings jobs she ever had to, check outing.
Cathannah:
Toby whimpered again. "Werewolf? What are you- oh, you must be one.. I shoulda known. Oh dear, no wonder you're so mean. Yes, well. I don't have a tail, but that's not important.. I'm going now.. Yes. And- uh. You can keep the papers. They're not that important, I'll make new ones." He chuckled nervously, backing away. Then bolted like a rabbit......
In the wrong direction.
Kaqurei:
A bit unnoticed for the moment, a large brown wolf had stumbled upon Zeit and Toby and was watching them from a distance. His ears were errect and focused towards them, and his bright yellow eyes studied their interactions with increasing interest.
Zeit had announced her position in the pack he had figured lived here. The other... he had to be either an omega or was a trespasser. As he watched the lanky boy dart off, he decided quickly that the latter was more likely the case.
Perhaps an amused expression flashed accross this wolf's face. He checked his position briefly to be sure that he was downwind and his scent would not likely draw attention just yet. Satisifed that he was, he decided to standby and see how this would play out. Their beta, huh? She didn't look all too intimidating in her human form... but he knew that a person's man and wolf could be a far cry from each other.
****
While Sabrina waited for Timothy's reply, an unattractive odor reached her. Strange wolf. Never an invited scent. Her eyes flashed and she glanced around the surrounding area quickly for the intruder.
Surprisingly, it was not hard to pick a large tan canine out of the crowd. Sabrina felt the hair on the back of her neck stand on end and her eyes blazed yellow for a moment before she checked herself. What was she thinking? She'd just gotten Timothy to talk to her again...and then she was going to go "animal" and maul this intruder in the middle of a screaming crowd? No.
It literally pained her, but she decided to turn a blind eye to this invader for now.
Hour Glass:
Zeit growled, grabbing her things, clearly frustrated with the boy, it was time she chased him down, and she was faster as a wolf. SHe looked around, finding a good spot to change her clothing, she didn't want to rip what she was wearing now. She swiftly changed, and took off, leaving her bag behind, she could come back for it later, now she had an intruder on her hands.
She moved through the forest, she knew the layout around here, along with every tree, stone and flower, this was her turf. She glided through the trees, almost a blur but nit quite, but she was picking up speed, and catching up tot he half-breed very quickly. She ran, then leaped over his head, spinning around as she landed, kicking up dust behind her. She growled, her ears pulled back in a sign of agression. "Other way, buster" she growled, her eyes narrowing.
May:
****
Kratos smiled at Jackie's reply. "You like to beat up on inspiration, then?" He asked sarcastically.
As they continued to walk, Kratos' eyes trailed up the path a little ways ahead of them to where the path lead away from the fence and off to the apple orchard on the hill. It was a place very near to the large oak trees amidst the firs of the forest, where the pack had been founded....
With this thought, came naturally the memories of that dark night with Gathen and later the discovery of Timothy..
Kratos sighed and shook the memory from his head, it was not a pleasant thing to recall..
"Well, something that I've always found rather interesting is a good run through the forest with the wind at my back.." Kratos said contentedly. "I know that it may sound cliche as far as our kind are concerned, but please let me explain my fascination with it.
You see, ordinary people can never experience the world the way we do. With four legs we have the ability to race alongside wild horses without ever falling behind. We can embrace any landscape beneath our feet without tripping and roam the highest ledges that most people could not dream of ever reaching.
"We don't need to fear the wild beasts which we come upon, because we are the beasts which most come to fear. We do not give regard to sleeping in the mud a night because we do not grow ill from it.
We have naturally what most have always sought but will never gain...
However, as with everything we know, what can be used for great good, if neglected, will be used for great destruction.. There are not many who can withstand us, and as such we must not engage upon them as is the desires of our natural being.
We can see the world in such a more glorious way then the average human being, if only we can control the natural instincts of a mortal frame. This is our legacy, indeed a legacy written in our very blood.. "
*****
Timothy smiled at the offer, but remained silent for a time to think about it, and when at last he was about to reply, he instinctively noticed Sabrina's tensity.
"What's wrong?" Timothy asked, but he discovered the reason quicker then he had expected. The scent of another werewolf, not the stranger he had felt before, but another individual which was in the area.
Timothy turned his head quickly in the opposite direction in which he believed the stranger to be, as if he were trying to ignore it, but at length he gave in.. The boy stopped dead in his tracks and looked at the young werewolf whom no one seemed to be noticing, and for a time, he could do nothing but listen to the sound of his heart pounding in his ears.
Timothy could not think of what he was doing, or why he was doing it, nor did he know that within him a silent battle was raging...
She's standing over there, she seems completely oblivious... No, wait. She's become alarmed, she wants to run. But I want to run. Why should I run from something that's running from me? Why is she acting like that, I've never seen someone act like that.. They're hunters, they hunt, they don't run... If you run the hunter is going to chase, you're suppose to stand your ground. Obviously.
If she wants to run and so do I then who's going to chase? We can get away from each other.. I'm leaving, I'm going to run. It doesn't make sense to run. If I run I'll become prey, they'll hunt me..
A fear began to close on Timothy's mind. It was hunt or be the hunted, and even though Timothy could not remember it, he knew what it was like to be the hunted.. It was painful, it was a punishment for running.. He couldn't fathom why he couldn't think reasonably, why he couldn't just believe that the werewolf was a dog like all the people around him. Why he couldn't lie to himself and make himself believe it just so he could turn around and leave...
Nequaria:
The young wolf calmed down when she was not immediately confronted. However, it did not last long when she pinpointed the other werewolves. A male and a female, both tense. The male was scarred, and appeared to be missing a finger. For a moment, her eyes connected with the other female werewolf's. She seemed rather annoyed that there was another wolf so close to her that she had not wanted there. The young wolf held her gaze for a moment, but found she could not look away. The female's stare was so intimidating that the young werewolf nearly started shaking. As soon as she broke the gaze, even though it was only for a moment, the cream colored wolf bolted, hoping the two would not chase after her.
Cathannah:
****
Toby changed instantly. Surprisingly, only a few buttons popped from his white, patchwork shirt. A larger button, that had once been at his human stomache, now held the shirt perfectly closed at his werewolf neck.
He was still just as scrawny as ever, and the hair that had once been a mess only ontop his head; was an even bigger mess all over his body. There were short patches, long patches, scruffy patches, smooth patches, even bald patches!
Toby sprung flawlessly over Zeit's head even as she appeared before him. Had he been thinking clearly, he would've halted, heeded her warning and gone the other way... But no, he was in panic mode. He programed his wolf mind to escape, then let go.
In wolf-form, he was shockingly agile, and even faster than he'd been origanally. Once he hit the ground, he was off like a bolt of lightning.
Soar:
****
Some time elapsed before Jackie spoke a word to Kratos. All there was to offer of her presence was the crisp crunch of snow under tennis shoes. Truth be told, Jackie didn't know how to respond to a statement like that. It had all sounded so well-thought out and spoken... these just weren't things Jackie was used to (or good at). So some more time passed. Finally Jackie just couldn't take it anymore, the need for words (nonsensical or not) were just something she couldn't live without.
"Ahh.... lovely. Hey, are we there yet?"
May:
Kratos allowed the awkward silence to hang in the air for a time and made no effort to drive it away. He simply stared at the dirt path as he walked, put his hands in his pockets, and listened to the birds chirping in the forest some distance off.
When at last Jackie spoke, Kratos looked down at her face and chuckled.
"Yes." He said lightheartedly. "We're here, unless you'd like to go somewhere else."
Looking back up at the surroundings, Kratos noted the two of them had reached the hill where the path came to an end and the apple orchard began.
"So, what are you used to doing for a living?" Kratos asked as he absentmindedly reached up into one of the older trees and picked an apple.
******
In that moment, Timothy was forced into making a decision that one part of him hadn't really come to a conclusion about, thus the part of him which was certain of his reaction took lead...
In a heartbeat Timothy had crossed the street and was after the other werewolf like a cat after a mouse!
Nequaria:
Savannah's heart raced as she saw that the male had begun to chase her. She silently cursed under her breath as she ran, possibly for her life. Although her mother had always told her to run if ever in a situation that could potentially be dangerous, she was beginning to doubt this was the safest action.
She was forced to slow down for a moment to snatch up her bag, which she had left in a sheltered place next to a building. This and the extra weight of the bag, which happened to be full of food and supplies, slowed her down enough for the other werewolf to begin to close the gap between them. She slung the pack over her shoulder to make carrying it easier.
When she gave in and realized that there was next to no chance she could outrun the male, she wheeled around on her hind legs and lunged at his face!
Hour Glass:
****
Zeit growled deeply, begining her chased. She speed off, switching to a longer stride in order to speed up. She then switched to a different path, one that would lead her ahead of her prey on the uneven terrain, it didn't help she didn't like the direction they were heading. Not only were they heading towards the house filled with wolves, but they were heading right into a pasture, one that held some of her prized calves, and she didn't need a fear filled wolf heading towards her income, and ruining her ranch. If only Kratos was here. She thought for a moment, other wolves were still here, maybe if she called some, they could help. She let out a short howl, letting the others know of her condition.
Mariel:
Kieoki's peaceful slumber was shattered by the howl of a wolf, no a Werewolf, and her paws jerked as snapped awake, her eyes blinking away the sleep. It took her a few moments to remember where she was, having fallen asleep in a pack's territory, but she remembered as the view of the sun hanging closer to the skyline greeted her as she gazed out over the canyons. A moment of peacefulness flushed through her at the view, but then she remembered the howl and a second later she was on her paws, glancing around. The howl hadn't sounded very close, but still, if anyone was rushing towards the maker of the sound, she didn't want to run into them.
Taking one more look at the sky and sun, Kieoki turned away from it and padded back into the forest, stretching out her muscles as she started to run, hating that the snow made her leave a trail that could be followed. One thing she did make sure of though, was that she wasn't running towards the sound of the howl, or the town. It was this way that she suddenly burst into an open field with a good sized house not to far away. She pulled up short, her breath catching for a moment before it returned to coming out in short puffs that could be seen in the cold air. Should she dart away now? But what if this was them main home of the pack...Unsure of what to do, she drew in a deep breath and dashed across the field, heading towards the back of the house.
Worried and glancing around with every step, she slowed as she neared the back of the house. The air stunk with the smell of Weres, and she realized that even if she ditched her clothes and tried to look like a feral wolf, that one who'd found her might be here and recognize her eyes. He'd never seen her as a wolf, but eyes didn't change. She knew this fact all to well. The memory made her wince, and she shook it away as she padded up to a lower window, ready to dash in a moment's notice as she peered inside.
Celeus:
Marcus had just started climbing a tree, and Ziet's call rang out right as he was jumping up to the first branch. His hightened senses allowed him to hear it very clearly, especially since it was from her, and they had both been original members of the pack. However, since he was so interested in her call, he forgot about the tree and fell short, falling to the ground with a loud thud. Surprisingly the boy didn't even really care, he just scrambled to his feet and started sprinting in her direction, transforming smoothly (since he was choosing to do so) into his wolf form as he ran.
He soon caught up to the beta, and their paces were in sync as they chased after the loner. He analyzed the situation... this wolf was headed right for the farm. They needed to figure out a way to get him going the other way. Of course, looping around him and facing him head on could always work. Marcus smirked slightly, his eyes narrowing with determination. Speed was definitely one of his strengths. He pushed his muscles harder, his head pounding with the increased strain. He found he was pushing ahead of her... he really hoped she would get upset with him for that. Although, Zeit was no fool, so she would probably know he was just trying to stop the loner, not challenge the girl's rank.
Soar:
****
Red applies hovered in the trees like Christmas lights. Jackie stared at them mournfully for a second, as if wondering the tree would fight back if she tried to steal an apple. Jackie was never one for boundaries, even those created out of insane little hunches. She reached up and twisted an apple off of the tree, rolling it on her palms for a moment, then taking a large bite out of it.
"Depends what we're doing," Jackie mumbled through a mouth full of apple.
She swallowed the apple with one tremendous gulp.
"For a living... haha that's a funny one. What I did didn't involve a lot of living, just mainly mindless zombie work," she laughed a bit at her joke.
"I did whatever would pay me, more recently I worked for the local animal shelter. Hence the dart gun and the idiotic trek through the wilderness at midnight for "smuggled wolves". Almost hilarious, looking back," she sighed,"Still, I suppose they do wonder whatever happened to their /beloved/ employee that night. I wonder if they're offering money for finding me alive".
****
Hour Glass:
Zeit nodded, quickly noticing that Marcus had increased speed. She only gave him a quick look over, but the way he held himself told her she needed to fear nothing. She directed her gaze back to the path. "Thanks for coming at my call" she said softly, keeping focused on the path, son they would hit an open field, but the loner had two pack members on his tail, he wouldn't be to much of a threat much more.
She thought for a moment, before an idea hit her. "Have you ever watched how some dogs are trained to herd sheep together?" she asked, "Maybe we could try the same tatic, but use it to keep the wolf in one spot, that way we can chase him in the correct direction off the territory." She saw the loner's movements through the trees, once the field opened up, they would be able to see every move he made.
May:
****
Kratos examined the apple which he had picked and began to polish it on his shirt while Jackie spoke.
"Probably not, as wolves have a reputation here..." Kratos said simply with his eyes downcast. He may have gone on to explain if he had known how, but he did not, nor did he truly want to explain... Gathen had been a murderer and the people in the town knew it.
That was when Zeit's howl met with the Alpha's ears at the hill and his attention turned in that direction. For a moment he waited with his eyes fixed upon the field.. Zeit's message did not sound urgent, she just needed help.
When nothing emerged from the forest a few moments later, Kratos looked back at Jackie with a quizzical expression, still listening for another sound.
After another moment with no event, Kratos ran his hand through his hair and spoke.
"Would you mind if I replied to her call?" He said. "I know changing can disturb people who are not well adjusted to it, so that's why I ask.."
******
Timothy was surprisingly gaining on the small werewolf female. He didn't know how, but because of her burden or some other reason, his two legs were out-matching the speed of her four paws.
Then, in a split second the stranger had turned around with her jaws coming directly at the boy's face! Timothy's eyes closed tight, his human instincts forcing him to be prepared for pain, thus he didn't see exactly what happened next.. All he knew, was the pain never came.
As the unfamiliar werewolf brought her head toward his face, the boy smashed his fist into her lower jaw with one hand and with the other, he grabbed the fur on her throat and shoved her head toward the brick wall to his right! These actions could not leave damage on the thick flesh of the werewolf, the strength of Timothy's arms were simply enough to thrust the attack off and give him time to get out of the way.
When Timothy opened his eyes again, he found that he had somehow managed to get behind the other werewolf and was braced for another attack!
Soar:
Jackie wasn't paying close enough attention to Zeit's call, and though she heard it with her now-heightened senses, did not seem important enough for her to recollect. She had come from the city- he brain wasn't trained to register subtle goings in the forest. Thus, she had absolutely no idea what Kratos was tensing up about, but then again, there was much she didn't know about him.
"Knock yourself out," she shrugged half-halfheartedly,"Personally, seeing it isn't nearly as bad as feeling it"
"Don't worry Kratos," she grinned suspiciously,"I won't get myself into trouble with these apples here".
Cassie:
****
Alice sat in the back of the truck, her hair whipping around as it was blown by the wind. She sighed and looked at the scenery. All white and sparkly in the sun. It is a really nice day, but we need to get to the store. It's cold today. She looked at Hawk and Kaleb. "Hey! Could you speed it up fuzzy, I want to get back to the nice warm house as soon as possible. And I'm tired. A bad nights sleep equals a very grumpy werewolf." She growled at him, not in the mood to be trifled with.
Kaleb sat in the front seat, occasionally looking back at Alice, but mostly looking ahead at the shiny white world in front of him. He sighed, thinking about how his life changed when he stupidly followed the pack into the forest. Now, I kind of regret that, being as I will never see my mom, or cousin again. But at least I'm not alone. He looked at Hawk and back at the road. At least now I have some sort of a family.
Kaqurei:
****
No. No. No. NO! Sabrina couldn't quite fathom how events had managed to turn this way. Timothy had surprised her yet again; he'd taken up the chase she'd turned a blind eye to...in his human form. Timothy could only change under the light of a full moon (as far as Sabrina knew...but she was learning that he was full of little surprises) and the intruder was in wolf form! It was something akin to a rabbit deciding to chase a hawk out of its territory, really.
Sabrina dashed after Timothy--she hadn't a clue what had come over him. All she knew was that he was increasingly closer to cornering a wolf while he was in human form. In her hurry to keep up with them, she collided with an elderly woman in the streets! The woman cried out as she fell, but she never hit the ground as Sabrina quickly grabbed her by the shoulders, steadied her, and kept running. "I'm so sorry, Mrs. Buttermilk!" she cried behind her, though her eyes did not leave Timothy and the stranger that no one seemed to be noticing. "Timothy! Stop!" she yelled. But he didn't hear her, or else ignored her, for he kept up the chase into a small alley way.
Sabrina's heart stopped around then; she had no visual on Timothy and she heard a snarl and a crash! As she rounded the corner she was surprised to see Timothy still standing--but only took a second to register that fact. In the next instant her eyes blazed yellow and white fur covered her now very large wolf form. Teeth barred, she snarled and growled at the intruder. "What is your buisness here, stranger?" she demanded, her hackles raising. She flashed a glance at Timothy, wondering only for a fleeting second what he must be thinking, before her thoughts returned to the stranger. She was completely cornered now; Timothy and a wall behind her, Sabrina standing in front of the only exit.
****
Levi was soooo tempted to take up a quiet chase and see the betas of this pack in action, but the slightest change of wind would reveal him. That would be inconvenient, particularly if more than just one answered the female's call.
However, Sabrina's scent was strong in this neck of the woods, getting stronger and more recent with every step he took in following after the three werewolves. Two birds with one stone, maybe?
Risky as it was, the scout decided to follow after the chase (from a safe distance, of course) and measure up their skills.... in case... it ever amounted to anything in particular.
Cathannah:
Toby had no idea what was going on, but his wolf mind refused to be herded into a feild. Toby made a quick and rather sharp turn and raced in another direction. There was a large oak tree standing perhaps twenty feet high just infront of him.
Hardly missing a beat, he sprung up toward the highest branch reachable by a werewolf jump, turned into a human, and managed to scurry all the way up to the highest branch. Toby could see down at the two werewolves below just fine.
"HA! Get me up here, LOOZAHZ!!" He laughed victoriously and out of breath. Then as an after thought, added; "Unless of course, you have somthing better to do.. I really wouldn't mind. I'd even wait for you to get back or whatever- not that I want to. I actually want to go home, but it's what you want that really matters. Right?" He whimpered with a big, weak smile.
Hour Glass:
Zeit stopped short of the tree, and looked up at the loner, frustrated by him, and his comment made her even more frustrated. "What do ya think I'm trying to do?" she yelled up at the tree, beginning to pace back and forth, "I was tryin' to chase you off the territory, which means you would have been able to go home, but now, you get to deal with the Alpha." She walked to the tree, plopping down in the shade, relaxing for a bit, watching to make sure he didn't come out of the tree.
She looked to Marcus, "Thanks for coming again" she said, "Though I don't think your the only one that came to my call." She looked back tot he woods, "I thought I caught scent of another loner, but I'm not sure, whoever he is, he is trying to go undetected." She grunted slightly with her frustration, and leaned back ontp the tree, she could at least enjoy a few moments away form the pack, and a good talk with another were.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Hawk growled at the female, "Man, your just like Zeit when she gets moody" he muttered, "I guess it's just a female thing." He did gun the gas though, sending the car lurching forward, and speeding down the road. He really didn't care if some kind of accident happened, they were all wolves they wouldn't die easily, though he didn't need a human death to happen. He watched the road closely, trying not to harm anyone, until he pulled into the parking lot of the market, and parking.
Kale:
****
Kale sighed and turned on her heel, away from the window, and jogged upstairs. after a quick couple steps down the hallway she pushed open her door and stepped inside. her room was relatively clean, if you didn't count the odd articles of clothing here and there that she had tossed to the floor when changing, not bothering to pick them up she headed strait for her closet, pulling out a backpack and a pair of boots. slipping the boots on she went to her window and opened it wide, hopping out and closing it as much as possible before she jumped to the snowy ground below.
pausing she scented the air. where to go?
Mariel:
Kieoki was peering into the odd house when the slid of a window above her made her freeze and glance up it time to see a figure appear at the window sill. Eyes wide, she pressed herself up against the house, not daring to move as a girl hoped out, landing smoothly before she seemed to pause, deciding where to go. Every hair standing on end, Kieoki didn't have to tell her wolf to hold back, she knew better than to attack the...human? Odd. The girl smelled like a Were. Possible actually. Didn't that alpha say he had a pack?
But now wasn't the time she was going to meet them.
Thinking fast, Kieoki shot sideways, out of the girl's eyesight and darted for the forest, sprinting fast and never stopping to even glance backwards. She knew what she had to do, and so after she hit the forest, she continued running, shifting back to a human easily, though she gritted her teeth. Running through the snow in bare feet with these odd clothes on wasn't her forte. Well, odd clothes to her. The blood red shirt and khaki pants she'd picked up back in town didn't suite her well, but she still wore her sash-though now as a belt- and she untied it now, scooping up her hair and tying it up swiftly, continuing to run, her feet only making soft thuds as they hit the ground. Knowing she'd gone far enough though, she slowed her pace, glancing sharply upwards as she heard voices coming from infront of her.
Eyes narrowed, she stopped and glanced around, scaling the tree closest to her. Sitting on a sturdy branch that was some twenty or so feet up, Kieoki looked over the branch, surprised to see the alpha below him. Odd. He was with someone, but she didn't look long. Something hard hit her head and she looked up, eyes narrowed before they widened. Apples. An apple tree? So very odd. She was so fascinated that she never noticed when the falling apple continued to do so and softly landed on the ground with a thwump in the snow.
Cathannah:
****
Toby glared. "Nu-uh! I've heard about people like you! You made me think you were gonna let me go then tried to eat me! Oh yes, I've seen it all before! Stupid werewolves! You an't be trusted! None of you!" He said indignantly.
"Impossible creatures! Everyone of ya'."
Celeus:
What a foolish creature this was. Didn't he know that climbing trees was Marcus' specialty? Ever since he was in elementary school he had been climbing them. And now that he had a pack, he was doing it even more. It had become an unofficial duty of his to keep watch from the tops of the massive trees sprinkled across the farm's land... and here this wolf was acting as if he had defeated the pair by climbing the tree. He gave a little chuckle, and smiled at Zeit. She probably knew what he was thinking.
He took a few steps back, and then jumped at the tree, morphing into a human as he did so so that he would have the powerful leap of a wolf and yet the nimbleness of human hands to grab on and climb. Rapidly he rose; it was like watching a squirrel! Only a few more branches and he would be right by the intruder. If Toby were to jump he would surely break several bones... but, if he were to change into wolf form as he did so, he would be able to make the landing. No problem. Marcus could do the exact same thing. And then the chase would continue
Hour Glass:
Zeit looked up, and rolled her eyes. "Your an idiot you know that?!" she called up to Toby, "First of all, we don't eat humans, that's why I own myself a ranch, and second of all, your a werewolf Why would I eat another werewolf?" She looked watching Marcus climb up the tree, he resemabled a squirrel climbing up the tree, but she didn't at the moment, if Toby jumped, she's be there to pin him down.
She wrapped her tail around her paws, and bunched up her legs, ready to spring when nessicary. She looked up again, before looking away, and brushing off some of the dirt on her striped pelt.
Cathannah:
Toby watched as the other wolf transformed into a human and scurried up. He whimpered a little and gripped the main tree tighter. "Don't think coming up here will accomplish anything. You try and grab me and I'll kick you off.... or, or somthing." He moaned, hiding his face.
As Zeit spoke, he looked down at her. "Oh boo! i'm a domestic werewolf! I have table manners, sit when I'm told, and know how to take a bath." He argued, though still a wimpy tone in his voice.
May:
****
When Jackie replied, Kratos leaned against one of the trees and smirked, still listening for anything else from Zeit.
"How would you know seeing the change isn't as bad as experiencing it?" Kratos said lightheartedly. "It's only your first month as a Were and we haven't yet come along the next full moon. So, unless you are more curious about it then you let on....."
The Alpha let his words trail before laughing and pushing away from the tree. Then he stretched his arms out in front of him and began to change forms.
Kratos needn't have switched into his werewolf clothes, because the black uniform which he always seemed to be wearing was crafted in a way which would embrace both of his forms without shredding or becoming uncomfortable.
The change was complete in a matter of seconds and Kratos' clean black coat ruffled in the slightest breeze. The dark red tips of his fur stood out a lot better on the white background of the snow then it did in the darkness of night, and the length of his mane was also a great deal more apparent when it wasn't tied back.
Now, as a massive beast standing upon a hill beneath apple trees, Kratos certainly stood out.. It was so rare that he would ever use his form during the day, as the differences between a common wolf and a werewolf were very obvious when seen in the light. However, there were no unsuspecting eyes for miles and he was free to do what he will.
"Alright." Kratos said, gruffly manipulating human speech with his deep voice. "I'll call to Zeit and ask what the problem is."
Then Kratos stalked out from under the apple tree, allowing him to stand up on two legs with his head raised toward the sky, and let out a deep and powerful howl to his friend.
Cathannah:
As the howl echo'ed through the air. Toby's pupils went big; his head perked up and he seemed to stare into nothing just listening to it. Rapidly, he blinked then cowered.
"Oh no.." He whimpered. "Nothing! Nothing! I'm not a problem! Oh dear." He whimpered.
Hour Glass:
"That's what you think buster" she growled after hearing Krato's call. She looked to Marcus, who seemed to have everything under control. She moved from her place under the tree, moving so she could give a proper howl to her leader. Unlike Kratos, she stayed on all fours as she leaned her head back, letting out a deep howl, replying to her Alpha. Her howl told about Toby, how irritating he was being, and how he just wouldn't leave, and now that Marcus and him were both up in a tree. When she finished she looked back up, "You know, if you get stuck up there, I'm laughing" she said, "Also, if you fall, I'm gonna laugh too."
Cathannah:
Toby frowned. "I'm not going to get stuck or fall, and I am NOT being annoying. My not leaving is entirely your fault meh'dear. I tried to go." He huffed, looking away. He hadn't ment to translateh her howl.. Or even listen into it. But he nevertheless heard things that insulted him and therefore had to address them.
Aim:
Chime stood at the check out, playing with some scarp paper, it wasn't a busy day, which means she was bored out of her wits. She stood there for a few more minutes then walked into back room, but soon went back out to the check out. Another worker came up to her and stared for a few minutes. "Hey Chime! You're going to get fired, sit still." she said before disappearing in the back room. "'K." Chime said then heard the first howl.
Chime stop what she was doing and listened for a second, howl was in the distance, but she could tell it wasn't from a normal wolf. "Hey, Hinda, if the boss come today, cover for me." She said just before running out the door. Chime had to know who or what made that noise.
After she got out of sight, she turned into a werewolf, her tee-shirt stretched a little but other then that nothing. Chime ran all the way to the ranch, she now heard another howl and followed it's sound. She got to the place where the other werewolves are, she looked around and saw two werewolves in a tree and one at the base, who howled again. This time she could understand everything she said.
Chime turned back to human and walked out from behind a tree. She looked at the other, bigger werewolves. "Hey, I'm sorry if I'm trespassing, but had to see what was going on. So, could you tell me?"
Cassie:
****
Kaleb quickly hopped out of the truck and walked closer to the market. "Okay, we need jalepeno peppers, salsa, eggs, and egg beater, a deep dish pan, the kind that goes on a stove. Oil, an oil temperature measurer, refried beans, and Spanish rice."Kaleb counted out all the ingredients on his hand."Now go!" Kaleb ran off to find the jalepenos. Soon, he had a bag full of the spicy green peppers. Okay, jalapenos check.
Alice ran to the oil section and grabbed two bottles of generic oil. Then she swiftly got an egg beater as well. Okay, egg beater and oil check. I hope Kaleb and that furball got the other stuff. She ran to the front of the store where she hoped Kaleb and Hawk would find her.
Kaqurei:
****
Levi was crouching behind a tree several yards from where the betas had "treed" their intruder. He listened to the exchanged howls, and considered what was said. The alpha had a chilling voice, whoever he was.
Now he waited to see what would happen next. His head suddenly lifted from his stalking pose however as he noticed a small new wolf appear on the scene. Being downwind, he could smell that she was not of this pack, and yet she approached the betas confidently. One of his ears flicked to the side. He watched with a confused expression (kind of silly on a wolf) as she padded up and asked what was happening.
He was curious to see how they would respond. Now and then his ear would flick back, however... for as he was downwind of the betas--any wolf coming up from behind would be downwind from him.
May:
The Alpha laughed heartily when he got Zeit's reply. A werewolf up a tree, how funny!
"Well, I cannot fathom any danger there, still, it might be interesting to introduce ourselves to the odd little fellow." Kratos said looking over his shoulder at Jackie. It was in that moment that he noticed Kieoki sitting in the apple tree just above where he had been standing.
"Ah, so that's where you've been, is it?" Kratos said as he turned back to face the orchard. "Come on down, you have no reason to hide from us. This is Jacqueline, and we were just on our way to join up with several pack members. Perhaps you would like to come meet them?"
Kratos then went down on four legs and began walking back to the shade of the apple trees.
Mariel:
Kieoki mentally cursed herself as she heard Kratos' voice ring out from below her as he looked her way. It was chance that he'd seen her yes, but she couldn't stop the raise of her eyebrows. Odd seeing him in his wolf form, though she didn't let it show upon her face. She was itching to shift to her wolf form, but she held herself back, taking the time to look down at him as he walked under the apple trees. "And you think I've been hiding?" She said with a soft smirk. She had been doing just that, but she wasn't about to let him believe that. "Actually, I was enjoying a run around the woods. With the tranquil views I actually fell asleep for a time Kratos."
A swing downwards and she was on a lower branch of the tree, her back resting against its trunk as she let her feet dangle. "I don't think I'm coming down though. You'd have to be more persuasive. It's comfortable up here." She said with a stretch, before training her eyes back upon him.
May:
A deep chuckle rumbled from Kratos' throat upon hearing Kieoki's reply. He had found some amusement with her choice of words, whether her experience with other packs had anything to do with it or if she was just trying a civil approach to something that would ultimately tempt a werewolf.
"Is it really?" The Alpha's deep voice replied. "Then I guess I'll have to come up there and see for myself if it is truly so nice."
Kratos again stood up on two legs, lifting his head well into the branches of the large apple tree and his eyes being brought to eye level with Kieoki. Then as quick as a blink Kratos' large black hands grabbed the branch on which the girl was perched and began to heave it downward as if to pull himself up!
In truth, the effort wasn't nearly close to what it would take to cause the branch to brake, but the jostle would be enough to convince anyone more then six feet off the ground that they were falling. Nonetheless, Kratos took care not to actually knock Kieoki from the tree and was prepared to catch her if she fell.
"No, no.." He said after a few fake attempts to crawl into the tree. "It certainly isn't as comfortable as you make it out to be."
A sarcastic smile gleamed upon the Alpha's face as he slowly steadied the branch and let it go.
Mariel:
Kieoki raised an eyebrow as Kratos stretched up on his hind legs, looking as if he was going to come up, and she almost rolled her eyes at this until she saw him grab the branch and start shaking it. Being up against the trunk did a good favor on her part. She was barely jostled as she watched the branch move wildly until Kratos finally let it go from his grasp. Frowning Kieoki stood up, plucking an apple from the tree before she chucked it at Kratos' head before she sat back down.
"Is that your definition of coming up here and seeing? Because to me it looked like you were trying to snap this branch off. Poor apple tree. It didn't deserve that. So either you were trying to frighten me, or you really can't get into a tree while you're in your wolf form. You're just to large." Kieoki said with a decisive shake of her head, adding a shrug to the gesture. She let her fingers trail along the branch as she sat back down, leaning up against the trunk, swaying feet. The patterns in the back amused her, and she pretended to be paying more attention to them than to Kratos as she quietly hummed to herself.
****
Nequaria:
After she felt a minor blow to her head, the young werewolf fell to the ground. She lay there stunned with her eyes screwed shut. When she opened her eyes, she saw that the female werewolf had joined the chase and was blocking her only way out.
The brick wall was too high to climb, not to mention its surface didn't have any pawholds. With a wall behind and two angry werewolves in front, there was nothing the young werewolf could do. All directions were blocked.
She was trapped.
She staggered to her paws and stood a bit unsteadily. When the female in front of her spoke, she did not reply. Instead, she merely stood there, unable to do anything. The fur on the back of hr neck was standing on end, and her mouth instinctively twitched into a snarl. No matter what, she was not about to give in to these strangers.
May:
Kratos laughed wholeheartedly.
"Neither, for if I were trying to frighten you then you would have reason to be afraid, and if I was trying to get into that tree the branch surely would have broken off. I rarely ever fail at my intentions, so you can see as to why I'm laughing."
Kratos' large form began to shrink slightly as he began to change back into a human. His head lowered from the tree branches and his clothes slowly retracted back to their regular size.
"So, will you be joining us or would you rather sit about and chat with that tree?" Kratos said once he had again become human. "The tree may deliver good fruit, even in early spring, but I doubt it is a very good conversationalist."
********
Timothy's eyes staggered between Sabrina and the stranger. He was at a loss as to what to think or do. Now that Timothy had a moment to reflect, he realized that being behind the stranger at the back of the alley was a very bad place to be.
Sabrina had become a werewolf in daylight and now blocked any way out of this mess. Oh how Timothy cursed himself for being so stupid!
But there was nothing else that he could do, Timothy felt trapped, and everything inside him was searching for a way out.
Kaqurei:
Sabrina mentally cursed Timothy for being so stupid too. There was no going back now, and whatever it was in him that caused him to pursue the intruder was long gone now. She could see in his eyes that familiar human fear of being pinned behind two snarling animals. Hopefully he would just stay back now and let her handle things...
"Speak if you value your hide," Sabrina snarled to the stranger. "Why are you trespassing on our territory? For what reason have you come?"
The intruder did not appear to Sabrina as much of a threat; had Timothy not been there, Sabrina might have been more inclined towards curiosity. But he was, and while this small wolf may not be an immediate danger to the pack, she was a danger to him.
She was small enough to pass for a common dog and looked disoriented--if it came to a fight Sabrina felt confident that she could easily subdue her. However, the intruder was in wolf form in broad daylight... that required skill, and meant that this wolf could not be underestimated.
Mariel:
****
A faint smirk played upon Kieoki's lips, despite her self-control, and she inched out on the branch, hooking her legs onto it before she swung downwards to face the now human Kratos. Hanging upside-down from the branch, it was only her red sash that kept her shirt from flying up it her face. But wait, it was in her hair wasn't it? Yes. It was. Her sash was holding her hair in a ponytail that now hung below her head. No matter, she had her kimono on. But no, she didn't. It was tucked in a spot only she knew, and at the moment she was wearing normal clothes. Realizing all of this in a matter of seconds, she dropped fully to the ground, rolling cleanly forwards until her feet touched the ground and she sprang upright, spearing herself any indecency. Brushing off her shirt, she untied her hair and slipped the sash back into her belt loop and spoke to Kratos as she did so.
"Joining both of you? I don't think so. Joining just you Kratos?" She said with a raise of her eyebrows coupled with a sideways look. "That depends if you can hold a conversation better than that apple tree. Up to the challenge?" She said with a mock grin as she left her hands at her sides, her hair finally back into the position it liked to be in, down and straight.
Nequaria:
The wolf did not seem fazed by the female's threat. Even though she was confident she wouldn't have to fight, she did not risk returning to her human form. Even though she was average size as a human, her wolf form was rather small. Sometimes that could help her, but at others it could work against her.
"Your territory?" she said in a mocking tone. "Last I checked human towns were neutral ground, correct me if I'm wrong. Even if this is not your territory, I don't plan to stick around," she continued to snarl.
She stopped when she saw the male who had chased her. He now seemed terrified of something, though she had no idea what. She realized she had nothing to fear from him, so the young wolf decided to leave him be for the moment.
She continued to speak to the female. "I don't see any point in telling you my name, intentions, past or anything of the like. What I want to know is what right your little friend over there had to chase me and then push me into a wall like that," she nodded her thickly furred head towards the quivering male.
Hour Glass:
****
Zeit turned to another wolf that had appeared, yet another intruder on the packs land. She growled softly, irritated by the intruder, but she didn't snap right out. She held a stiff position, showing her irritance, today was just not her day.
"Even if you know you have tresspassed, I don't care you, have walked on claimed land, meaning if you don;t leave, I will chase you off" she growled, the hairs on the back of her neck raising up. She already had the wolf in the tree, but Marcus had him covered, leaving Zeit's paws open to get rid of the female in front of her.
"Leave before I make you" she said sternly, "One day your curiousity will get you killed, your lucky that this pack ha members that are merciful." She dug her claws into the ground, staring deeply into the female's eyes, showing her dominance, and her loyalty to her pack. She didn't need another pest like Gathern had been, and she certainly didn't need someone else destroying her home again."
~~~~~~~
Hawk watched as the two wolves that had come with him rush off to get only a few ingredients, leaving most of the list up to him to remember to get. He sighed, grabbing what he could remember, and walking up to the front, hoping he had everything right, it would be up to his new friend to make a good meal, meaning it would be up to him to have a meal that the females of the pack liked, unless he wanted to be chewed out.
Kale:
Kale thought for a moment she heard something moving through the snow, but by the time it registered and she looked, all they lay before her was an empty plain of white. the cold clean air gave her no strange scent to follow, however, it carried very familiar ones. only natural with them all running about.
Zeit's was the frshest, so kale followed that out of the open and into the forest, were she recognised Marcus's scent mingled with Zeit's. Kale shivered as snow fell from tree tops above her, showering her in icy owder. She hiked deeper into the woods and the snow on the ground grew thinner were the trees grew thicker. finally she found a thick patch that was well hidden, and took an opportunity to change both her cloths and her form.
the forest took on an entire new perspective from her wolf's eyes. shadows being brought to light and details into veiw as she saw the world anew. tree's creaked in the cold and softer sounds reached her ears. Kale nudged her pack into the roots of a tree and took of at an easy lope, following Zeits trail. she stopped and breathed deeper when her scent crossed a strangers, but hurried on after Zeits.
Anyone looking through the forest would have difficulty seeing the blue-grey wolf as she flitted through the tree's, blending in well with the blue's and greys of shadows and the dark and pale tree trunks, her white patches making her all the more disguised with this snowy-scape.
Kale paused again and then quickened when the scent of strangers grew stronger, voices carrying on the wind to accompany them. Kale could hear zeit ahead, the scents of two strangers and Marcus accompanied hers, alerting Kale of what she was about to run into. she slipped silently towards the group.
Aim:
Chime stared at this female, she seemed very irritated. Chime listen as she spoke, pack land? What was that? She wondered and, for a few seconds, looked confused but soon put on her poker face and stared at Zeit.
What, hey, I said I was sorry lady! was her thought as Zeit talked about how she didn't care how she knew about the trespassing and she gonna chase her out and blah blah blah. Chime tried not to roll her eyes and, not knowing how high Zeit's rank was, she played with hands, using them to mouth her. She flinched when she looked into her eyes but stared back into Zeit's, she wouldn't let this person scare her!
"Ha! I'm sorry to say this, but I won't be leaving till you answer my question." She said stubbornly and sat down, cross her arm and wouldn't get up. Ha, just try to get me to leave.
Cathannah:
"I think you should acctually. She's very, very mean." Toby called down mournfully. His attention was more on the other werewolf in the tree with him, then on what was happening below him on the ground.
Infact, given Zeit's threatenings and the newcommers utter disregard of them, Toby tried even harder not to focus on them- incase someone got ripped apart.
Kaqurei:
Levi almost didn't notice Kale's approach until she was practically on top of him. It had been sheer chance that some snow fell from the branches of trees behind him, causing his attention to flick in its direction. He did not at first realize why he did not just return his gaze to the betas and strangers near the field--he did not see Kale, as her coat blended so well into the scenery. When at last her movement caught his attention though, he nearly startled out of his skin. Luckily, he was able to regain composure enough to avoid doing anything rash. The new female hadn't noticed him yet, and if he was smart, she wouldn't.
He slowly lowered into a crouching position in the shadows of the trees. As he held very still, he hoped she would simply overlook his presence and go by.
****
A low growl rumbled deep in Sabrina's throat. "You are gruesomely mistaken on that account, my dear," she snarled. "This town and all the surrounding area is claimed by Alpha Kratos. You are trespassing; a crime which can carry severe punishment."
She took an aggressive step forward when the stranger's head was turned in Timothy's direction; she was sorely tempted to take advantage of that exposed neck. "My little friend was doing his part in keeping intruders out," she said poisonously instead. "I tell you again: state your business or you shall not be allowed to leave."
Nequaria:
"You certainly didn't do a good job of marking your borders then," the she-wolf retaliated. She fully intended to match the anger of the other wolf. "Intentions? What good will that do you? All I intend to do is survive," her voice raised to an audible growl. "I've trekked miles upon miles to escape, and the last thing I want is to do is be trapped in this disgusting little town," the small wolf now had her lip curled back in a snarl.
When she noticed the hostile female had taken a step closer, the tawny werewolf held her ground. Her fur was bristling, and her tail looked more like a bottlebrush than a wolf's tail. She was hoping this wouldn't turn into a fight; fighting wolves would obviously attract unwanted attention to them. If it did result in conflict, she was nearly positive that the larger female could overpower her in a heartbeat.
"And if you plan to drag me into your litle rag-tag 'pack'," she spat, "you've got another thing coming."
Hour Glass:
****
Zeit growled again, this girl didn't seem to know who she was dealing with. "I'm afraid you don;t get a choice in the matter" she said, "First, this is my property, second, Because I'm Beta of the pack here, I can and will chase you off, After all, I hate tresspassers."
She growled, her head dropping, getting into a low stance, changing from showing dominance, to a form to fighting stance, she was sick of the newcomers. "Leave or we end up in a fight"s he growled deeply.
Kale:
Kale slid just a little closer to the group, her eyes flicking to each one in turn.
she flicked her ears just after she spoke, thinking she had heard movement, but not from the group she was looking at. she scanned the tree's but saw nothing obviouse in the gaps of the tree's. the area was clogged with too many unfamiliar scents to be sure.
"but my fellow Beta is right, this is our territory, and you walked in without 'knocking' so to speak. we have a few new werewolves who might get ahead of themselves around trespassers, and today really doesn't seem to be a good day, for any of us."
breakfast this morning had been all too tense. Kale glanced aound once more, peering through the tree's and, at a necessary point, up them to see those sitting there. she still had the feeling she was missing something.
Aim:
Chime looked up at Toby, she stared at him for a moment then looked back to Zeit and blinked, she was getting a little scared, I mean wouldn't you? But she stayed were she was, she wasn't going to leave anytime soon "I will only leave when you answer my question." She said slowly like she was talking to an idiot. She didn't want to fight, but if that was only way she would get somewhat of a answer she would.
She got really to change if needed but didn't really show any signs of fighting. Then Kale come up and talked about the day they are having? Chime snorted "If you must know, I don't care if your a beta, whatever that means, or you hate trespassers, I told you what will make me leave and only that will." She was getting tied of this. Maybe I should just leave....No! I want a answer, they got it. I'm staying till they tell me!
Hour Glass:
"Even if you are wolf, your pretty dumb" Zeit snickered, insulting the wolf after she had talked to Zeit as if she was slow, making the already irritable wolf even more irritated. "We are both Betas, meaning we are second strongest to our leader" she growled, "ANd when you tresspass, you leave yourself open to be slaughtered by the pack, we don;t care what you want, we only want our pack safe, meaning all tresspassers are treated the same."
She moved forward, she was seemingly egging on the fight in a way, but also showing that the wolf would not be welcome, and she really wouldn't get her answer to easily. "And your about to find out what's going on" she growled, her eyes darkening, "Since the boy up there is int he same situation as you, only he isn't on the ground where I can get my claws into him."
It was true, Zeit had been very moody recently, and since she had been irritated earlier, she seemed to be getting harsher with the wolf if front of her now. She could only hope Kale could stop her before she did something stupid, but chasing off the female was in her line of duties. "NOw you run, or I attack, pick one" she growled. A good fight might just be the thing she needed to relieve the anger she felt.
Cathannah:
Toby peaked an eye open and glanced down at the two werewolfs. Zeit's body language, though not directed at him, spoke loud enough to make every inch of his soul scream for a get away. It was so overpowering, he almost sprung from the tree and darted off again- instead, he just whimpered and curled himself in the tightest ball he could manage.
He then began to hum a quiet song as to block out any stomache-churning noises that would be made when the werewolves began to fight.
Aim:
Chime snarled at Zeit's insulting comment. She listen yet again "Heh, your rank? That's it? That's dumb.." She muttered and listen some more. Chime rolled her eyes and yawned, this talking was getting very boring... so now she knew one thing, they where going to fight. She got up, stretched and turned back into a wolf, but then sat back down, "Heh, I will leave right now if you tell me what's going on, but if your not going to do that, then go ahead, take a chomp out of me." She said and got into dodge mood.
Hour Glass:
Zeit chuckled, "I did, but your deaf to whatever I say" she growled, readying herself, "In fact I stated that the wolf who thinks he's a cat, is in the same situation as you, a tresspasser on this territory." She growled, wondering if Kratos or Kale would stop the fight, if not, Zeit was about to have some fun.
She stared down her sitting foe, studying the wolf's make-up, knowing the Zeit's best trait was her speed and her knowledge of the land, something few of the pack knew. She waited, as f needing the right moment to strike, before she moved, moving swiftly forward, first going tot he right, but at the last moment moving left, sinking her teeth into the wolf.
She clamped her teeth down hard, tasting blood as she attacked, waiting to dodge the wolf's moves with ease.
****
May:
Kratos smirked at Kieoki.
"Well, I'm not a tree." He replied. "Some topics I can carry better than others, but we really must be moving if we are to talk. My friend informed me there is a stranger very close to our home, and though he does not sound to be doing any real harm, I must meet him before anything bad happens.."
The Alpha understood the fact that many young werewolves did not know how to approach each other correctly. Many of them expected that they were to be treated like animals by their own kind, while others insisted on being treated like people.. It was often times very confusing, but the fact was that if you did not approach correctly, the consequences were severe.
"Come along Jacqueline, I believe there is quite a bit of entertaining inspiration just off the fields." Kratos beckoned.
((Unfortunately Kratos is unaware of the current events taking place and it seems he will not be getting back in time to stop the fight.))
*******
The town, though busy, had a rather peaceful atmosphere compared to that of the city in which Ulric had been raised..
It was a nice escape to feel fresh countryside air rush in through the open window of a small car door. Ah, how splendid it made Ulric feel!
"Isn't this wonderful? I'm not surprised we're coming all the way out here, it is certainly a nicer place than Father's land." Ulric said cheerfully as he leaned against his seat and steadied his hand on the steering wheel.
"It is indeed." Replied Ulric's elderly passenger as she peered contentedly out the window on her side of the car.
Ulric again took a deep breath of the wonderfully clear air. Long since entering this town had Ulric smelled the scent of werewolves, but he was so used to such smells that he did not allow it to taint his experience in this beautiful land.
"It is amazing, and I do not think it chance that your son came here." Ulric stated.
The elderly woman did not say anything at first, her eyes still lingering at the window as buildings and people were passed by.
"Perhaps not, Ulric my son, but such things are not of your knowledge or mine." She whispered at last.
"No, I suppose not..." Ulric looked off toward the woman for a moment, then he looked back at the road with a sigh.
"Wait a minute! Park the car." The elderly woman suddenly said.
"What? What is it?" Ulric asked, but he did not receive an answer. Nonetheless, he pulled the car into the first parking lot he came upon and stopped the car.
Immediately the elderly woman had left the vehicle and began approaching the grocery store at a fast pace. Ulric was quick to follow her, he did not understand her reasons, but he knew he had to keep her safe. When Ulric finally noticed that she seemed to be heading off behind the store instead of into it, he became certain of her destination.
"Resma, stay back, I'll deal with it!" Ulric called and pressed to get beside her. "If they're fighting you won't want to get involved, let me handle this."
Ulric then raced far ahead and darted around the corner!
Immediately after entering the alley and vanishing from the sight of any curious eyes, Ulric was met with a more obvious sign of fighting werewolves... The scent of fear and the tracks of a large animal in slush.
In a few more moments he rounded another corner and came up directly behind a large white female werewolf whom had backed a much smaller female into a corner, and yet behind the latter was a young human boy.
Instantly Ulric scanned the situation and readied himself to interfere.
"Away now!" Ulric commanded. He cast his shirt to the ground and changed his form as quick as a wink. "None of this will solve anything so withdraw your desires for blood!"
Ulric was young but his stature was bold. His fur was a light creamy brown tipped with a black haze, and the color of his eyes were a brilliant auburn.
Mariel:
Kieoki rolled her eyes and raised an eyebrow, staring at Kratos for a moment until she shrugged and went to stand besides him, casting a sideways glance at the girl. She spoke to Kratos though. "A worried alpha you are Kratos." She said before indicating she was willing to go with a deft flick of her one hand forward. "So what entertaining inspiration are we going to see? Does it have anything to do with that house, your house, that I saw back past the fields?" She asked, turning her gaze to the forest infront of her, tipping her head slightly as she mumbled to herself. "The place has a nice kitchen. Sorta wanna cook there..." Her voice trailed off into something unintelligible.
In fact, Kieoki was starting to glance off into the woods, her fingers playing with the hem of her shirt as they walked. Walked? Was Kratos walking as well? Where was she going? Her eyes were flickering along the bottom of the forest, where the small clearing touched it and she smiled, seeing what she was 'looking' for. Chives. They were growing in patches along the edge of the forest but she had to restrain herself. She could come to collect them later. So she stopped moving, turning to see where Kratos was and go back to his side so he could lead the way.
Soar:
Jackie had ignored most of the conversation between Kratos and whatsherface who she had never seen before in her life. Her hair was starting to bug her as the crisp winter wind had begun to pick up as the day progressed; so she had been braiding it tightly instead of really "participating". In her opinion, it was much more important than petty conversation with poorly chosen jokes. She had nearly been done when Kratos had called after her to do whatever. She finished the neat french braid by tying it off with a rubber band around her wrist.
"Jackie, not Jaqueline. My mother used to call me Jaqueline," she spoke the last part sternly, as if it was rancid meat.
She raced after Kratos, even though she was a little irritated at him for using her full name. Let's face it, "entertaining inspiration" was just something Jackie couldn't deny.
May:
"Very well, I will respect your wishes concerning the matter, Jackie." Kratos said as the two women came to stand by him. "Let us be off then."
The Alpha then began leading the way down the hill, following the same path which had originally lead Jackie and himself up to the orchard.
When they had come to it's base, they were lead off the path and out into the fields.
Coming by the fence of the pasture, Kratos lead the group to the gate and opened it, allowing all to pass before closing and re-securing it. From then on they travelled diagonally away from the hill toward the forest edge some distance behind Zeit's ranch.
When at last the small group began to approach the area where Zeit had called out, Kratos began to check for signs of danger.
Many of Zeit's prized calves were in this pasture along with their mothers, so Kratos looked to them first to see if anything was wrong. He noted that they seemed rather calm, which meant nothing had been killed, but the group stood afar off from the edge of the pasture nearest the forest edge, thus Kratos knew some commotion over there had taken place.
It was only as he drew nearer that Kratos caught the scent of blood and realized that the situation was worse than he had assumed.
****
Cathannah:
Toby winced as the snarling fight began. Slowly, he burried his face inbetween his two arms and the tree trunk. He didn't bother adjusting his glasses into their correct position as they slid to his forhead. His ears went flat against his head to block out the sounds and he began to hum and mutter some more.
How ever did he end up in a situation like this? He wanted to ask that mean female [Zeit] if it was too late for him to take her up on her offer and go the correct way out of her lands.. But she was busy- and he didn't want to acctually talk to her anyway.
Kaqurei:
Sabrina's fur bristled when she heard the voice behind her; instantly her nostrils were filled with the scent of an unfamiliar pack. Her reactions were quick and snake-like from there; she didn't want to have an enemy behind her and ahead--so she lurched forward and caught the small female by the nape of her neck, flung her onto her back, and pinned her beneath her as she turned to face this new threat!
Though he was still young, he was nearly her size. As a male, he was stronger. Sabrina snarled and barked threateningly in low tones. Who was he, where had he come from?
But she was sick of asking questions. A stranger coming up from behind her had filled her senses with an animal-like aggression and anxiety. She felt cornered and threatened by this male's presence, not too unlike the small female she now had pinned under her. She lifted her head and let out a cold howl--a call for help. She cut it short, however, as she did not want her neck exposed to him for longer than neccessary. Again her lips were curled back to reveal all of her glossy white teeth, "Stay back!" she growled to him. She cast a quick lance down at the little female. "Bite me, and I tear you apart."
Nequaria:
The little female yelped as the larger wolf grabbed her by the neck. Once the wolf had her pinned, there was nothing she could do. Though she probably had no escape, if the white female's grip loosened- even for a moment- there might be a window of time where she could wrestle free from the female's hold and run.
This was a situation she clearly did not want to be in. A wolf on top of her, a possibly violent human behind, and a possibly violent wolf in front. The young female wiggled around nervously, and an involuntary whine began.
Though the large male didn't seem hostile, and he seemed to want the fight to stop, she would not take any chances.
Kale:
****
Kale watched as Zeit lunged, her eyes danced about, seeing if any real harm was being done, finding nothing too troubling she glanced back around the others, especially the ones in the tree.
"hey, up top. while Zeit's having her fun, care to tell me what your doing here?"
Cassie:
****
Kaleb raced to the checkout as soon as Hawk arrived. He took the stuff Hawk grabbed and rung it up. Then he checked it off on his mind list as he put the items in the bag. "Alright, we can go. You guys did a great job, thanks. Come on Hawk, let's get back to the ranch."
Alice waited beside Hawk as Kaleb got the items ready. She sighed and huffed, until finally they were ready to go. "Let's go. Hurry it up, furball, I want to get back home." Alice barked to Hawk, hoping she could be back, drinking hot cocoa and watching T.V. on the couch.
May:
The moment the smaller werewolf touched the dirt Timothy had bolted. He did not pause to consider his actions, all he knew was that he needed to get out of there! He dodged around Sabrina and toppled the trash cans beside the werewolf male, he then ran out of the alley way and escaped the scene.
*****
Ulric's hackles raised when the larger female rolled the other female and pinned her down. The thought crossed his mind to attack just then to free the smaller female before any harm came to her, but he held firm in his stance.
Suddenly the boy in the back of the alley fled! Ulric did not try to stop him, unaware that the boy was a werewolf, thus he stood his ground and allowed him to go by.
However the boy thought Ulric was going to pursue him and laid chaos between them, using the heavy metal trash containers as obstacles to secure his safety.
Assuming the human boy was safe now, Ulric turned back to face the large white female. He was not going to approach, because this would only make the woman feel more threatened, and the last thing he wanted to do was to make himself a threat.
"Stop." Ulric said firmly while taking a step back and putting his hands up as a gesture which would appeal to human instincts. "I will not harm you... You can still reason, it is daylight, so try to be calm. I am an intruder but I mean you no harm and my pack is nowhere nearby.. please let the girl go."
*****
[Meanwhile]
Timothy charged blindly out of the alley, running as fast and as far as his legs would carry him. He heard a woman call after him but he gave her no heed, he continued racing until he passed the parking lot and ran out toward the street. From there Timothy took off down the road with no intention of ever looking back.
Kaqurei:
Timothy's thrashing by "woke Sabrina up", so to speak. She then remembered his presence--remembered his fear for wolves, and realized her folly. "Timothy, wait!" But it as too late. He was gone. She'd gone animal on him again....regardless of the fact that it was his fault. Darn him for chasing after this female in the first place!
Disappointed and angry, Sabrina looked from the large male to the small female as Ulric spoke. Some half of her wondered why he was talking down to her like a newly changed were. Then she heard the female's whine and everything came together in her mind. Oh stupid, stupid, stupid, she thought to herself, What have I done? She'd completely lost herself, that's what she had done!
She sighed irritably. "I'm not going to hurt her," she said. Her body relaxed to a degree and she stepped off of her, letting her squirm free. "Neither of you are welcome here. Be gone if you know what is good for you."
Cathannah:
****
Up top?...
Toby ventured a peak over his shoulder down below. "I'm sorry, are you addressing me?" He asked innocently. involuntarily, his eyes scanned over to Zeit and the other werewolf. Though he saw nothing hinting to cruel dismemberment of limbs or whatever, the sight still shocked him and caused him to burry his face once again.
Kale:
"no, i'm talking to the tree." kale said sarcastically." of course i'm adressing you." she had to admit this werewolf had her curiouse, she'd never seen one so....skittish. the innner wolf usually gave them quite the dose of violence and attitude. Kale glanced back to Zeit and her opponent at this thought. Both wolves seemed quite into their fight but not dangerously so. yet.
she glanced back up at the tree, the snow on her fur shifted and water trickled off her sides as it melted. kale sat on her haunches and waited for his reply, her run through the woods had greatly improved upon her mood.
Mariel:
At first, Kieoki was following Kratos without hesitation, slightly wondering why she hadn't run into the gate when she'd wandered up to the house in the first place, but that wasn't a big matter, and so she left her thoughts go and continued to follow Kratos as they drew closer to whatever they were looking for. They were in a meadow now, and Kieoki found herself watching Kratos (Who by this point has dubbed 'Krat' she wasn't the best with names) look caves and their mothers standing off to the edge of the forest, and he went closer to it. It was then that Kieoki smelled the blood, probably at the same moment Kratos had, or just a few moments later. Either way, her wolf smelled this and its interest was pricked, and Kieoki was suddenly in a mental battle that she found herself loosing.
Let me at it! It smells so wonderful Kieoki! Her wolf growled out in their mind.
Heck no! I need to stay human and besides, we just ate. You can't possibly be hungry already. Shut your trap and listen to what I s-
**** will freeze over before I do that! Her wolf said with authority before Kieoki was doubled over, knowing what was about to happen. She wasn't doubled over in pain though, she had shifted, quite easily, and her wolf was trying to take her towards the blood, but Kieoki was much stronger as a wolf and she was able to hold her back, staying by Kratos' side. Her tail was twitching, but she held her wolf off and managed to speak to Kratos without giving much away. "Pardon for that. It's easier for me this way...please, trust me on this and let us continue Krat."
Nequaria:
The female filled her lungs with a deep breath as soon as the white wolf released her. She thanked the new male in her mind, knowing that spoken words could further anger the larger female. The tawny wolf scrambled to her paws, not daring to stay around much longer.
Once she had collected herself, she slowly loped off in an attempt not to gather any more attention. The young wolf was glad that she had not been well fed for the last few months; it made her seem much more small and frail than she truly was. She snatched up her bag, which she had tossed aside during the fight.
Even though the bag was not large, the girl had crammed plenty into it; several sets of clothing, a small knife, whatever food she had, a wallet which contained about thirty dollars, and a gold ring and blue pendant her mother had given her.
The wolf bolted once she was out of sight of any humans. Once she was definitely alone, she morphed back into her human appearance. She threw on some warm clothing and slung the bag over her left shoulder. She brushed the dirt off of her clothes and face, then ran her fingers through her curly, medium blonde hair. By no means did she look at all wealthy, though at least it was good enough for other humans to think she also was purely human.
Once she was "presentable" the young woman walked back towards the center of town. She then recalled the other female's words. She figured that the woman couldn't argue with her stopping into that little store to buy some food, could she?
---———----
Creorran yawned as he withdrew from the windowsill. He was sick of being in a pack, and of its members as well. He threw on his only coat, gathered whatever belongings he had in a backpack, and descended the staircase. As he walked through thedoor, he thought twice about leaving, but he stayed with his original plan.
Creorran began to walk, his hands thrust into his pockets, his backpack hanging loosely off one shoulder. He had had enough.
Though he had no where to go, he walked on; as long as he was alone he was happy. He simply stared at the sky, the ground, anything around him. He didn't know what he would do, but he pushed that thought to the back of his mind. He listened to the wind, the birds, his footsteps, the blood roaring in his ears. He ignored the infinite amount of scents his nose caught; he ignored everything related to being a werewolf.
He hated it; he hated it so much he didn't want to live this way. Maybe that's what he would do. When the thought he had shoved back pushed itself forward, one word echoed in his head: suicide.
No one would care. They probably wouldn't even notice if a stupid boy went missing or was found dead. For the second time in Creorran's life, he actually wanted to die. The first was when he set fire to his father's farmhouse, most likely killing his only remaining family. Now he had none. The pack was not his family. He had no blood relatives, no friends. To a young boy hating life itself, the thought of death seemed like a wonderful thing.
Kaqurei:
"You've been warned," Sabrina muttered as she shoved her way past the male.
She had to find Timothy. If the intruders caused any trouble, the Alpha would hear of it. Not until then, though... she felt humiliated... what an example she had been. As she padded out of the alleyway and slunk out of town she considered Timothy's most recent actions. A human would not have gone after the intruder... his inner wolf was waking. The night of his last transformation had been a haunting one, and not without consequence.
Well. She'd had it. She had tried to be nice and appeal to his inner human. Then he went wolf on her. She had not had a choice but defend him from his own stupidity. Now he was scared of her again.
That did it. Tonight she was going to round up every self-loathing runt in the pack and teach them what being a werewolf meant.
****
Levi had grown a bit bored of the show. Now that things looked like they were going to get messy, he decided he was getting out of there.
His original mission back on his mind: find Sabrina. Unfortunately, her scent would lead him through the rampaging betas and towards a ranch. Wolf form would be no good then... but he was loathe to change right now--be a vulnerable human in foreign packlands? Ha, ha, far be it from him!
So he ultimately decided to go the long way and come upon the ranch at a different angle. That would mean tracking through the forest again....
May:
Alpha Note: Ease back on the curses and whatnot guys, I think this is the third or fourth time I'll let it slide, but even mild language is not appreciated here. The idea is to keep a wholesome atmosphere even when things get tense.
Suicide was a bit of a sudden decision for Creorran, what got his tail in a twist?
Kratos' bright yellow eyes turned in Kieoki's direction when she suddenly went down on all four paws.
"No." Kratos said expressing grave seriousness. "If you can't completely control yourself then I must ask you to wait outside this field. These are my friends and pack mates, if anything is to go wrong my instincts will force me to do things which are too horrid to imagine. For my sake, get beyond the field and wait for me to call for you."
The Alpha's deep voice was filled with urgency and power, every word spoken was said with the uttermost strength of Kratos' soul.
Kratos then changed form himself, his massive black figure rising high above Kieoki's head.
"Do what I have said and you will have place here.." Kratos said and turned his face away from Kieoki. He then looked off to the edge of the forest just beyond the pasture and began running off in that direction.
*****
Ulric pressed his back up against the brick wall of the alley to allow the white female to exit.
The anger had ceased, thus the danger was passed.. Now the young stranger needed to return to his mother and maintain his place as her escort.
But for a time, Ulric did not but stand in the cold alley with his eyes cast toward the ground. All had been well this round, which was so rarely the case in werewolf battles..
Ulric contemplated a moment the previous situation, then stooped and took his shirt out of the mud. When the young man rose again, he was no longer werewolf and he quickly clothed himself again before leaving the alleyway.
When Ulric emerged he saw not a trace of those whom he had confronted and quickly searched the area for his mother.
Resme was found standing just outside the entrance to the store with a concerned look upon her face. When her eyes finally caught his she quickly came to his side and inquired of what he had found in the alley.
"Just a mess." Ulric replied as he lead the elderly woman back towards the car. "A member of Kratos' pack must have been confronting a stray. I feel my presence only aggravated the situation.. I did wrong to interfere."
"Ulric, do not think of it that way.. How do you know it was a member of Kratos' pack?" Resme asked as she looked up into Ulric's eyes.
"She carried his scent.. That is, the smell I recognize which resembled my father's smell." Ulric explained.
"Do not worry then, I know Kratos would not have wanted them to fight. He left to find others to teach them not to fight, so do not burden yourself with this. Come now, my son, let's go."
The two returned to their car and Ulric said little else as he started the car and drove it back into the street.
Mariel:
See? This is what happens when you do this. Kieoki growled in her mind at her wolf, who was whining about wanting to move forwards. Kieoki was unmoving though, more now than even because Kratos said that if she had no control, she couldn't come. No control? That's what gave her the rights to take it over her wolf now, her anger sparking into a little flame. She listened to Krat's orders, and heard the way his voice was full of authority, but it didn't touch her. She hadn't accepted being in his pack just yet, and his words affected her, but not nearly to the same degree they would have been if she'd been in his pack. But she took his words in and nodded, watching as he shifted and darted off towards the woods.
She wasn't going to follow him.
Instead, she turned back towards the field and decided to do some calming down work, and she scented out the chives she'd smelled before. Another moment and she was darting forwards, using her anger to shift back to a human without breaking her stride. Bare feet flying across the ground, she continued running along the edge of the field and forest until she found the plant, growing in odd clumps here and there. Great if cooked in potatoes. Her mouth watered as she imagined cooking them at her place later today. Her place. Her hand froze as it was reaching towards the plant then, the realization hitting her then. If she stayed here, there was no going back to her old place and did she really want that? Confused and undecided, she plopped down on the ground, legs crossed as she mulled things over with the scents of chives wreathing around her.
Aim:
Chime yipped in pain, getting bit hurt more then she thought. Chime had never been in a werewolf fight before and the fights she have been in were all yell no fight type of deals. Chime tried to snapped at Zeit shoulders but just ended up with a mouth full fur. She gagged and spitted out the fur then backed away from her, she didn't quite knew what to do, then she got a idea.
Chime ran up towards Zeit and slipped between Zeit's legs, she scratched her hind legs and then ran out the other side, so for the time being she was behind Zeit. She nipped Zeot tail then ran a little bit away from her, she knew she looked something like to spazz-butt but didn't care.
Soar:
****
Milky rays of sunshine fluttered delicately through the kitchen window, bathing Theo in a warm and gentle light. The snow outside glittered wildly in the afternoon sunshine, already melting a little from the peak of the day's heat. Theo scooted the table chair back and looked blandly at the deserted kitchen. The boy hadn't minded at first, the lack of commotion and dart-throwing idiots was refreshing. But after ten minutes past, the silence had become unbearable. So Theo went off to do what Theo did best-- practical jokes.
Five cans full of snakes (strategically replacing certain jars inside the pantry) later, the boy was utterly bored and out of ideas on how to fix that. It would most likely be hours before anyone would be able to fully appreciate his work.
A songbird chirped late in the evening, bringing his attention towards the green forest outside. Something about it seemed to invite him onward. He was now solely focused on the bright greens of trees and the white of snow. The young werewolf pondered it for a moment, then rushed into the depth of the forest.
For a moment, Theo felt exhilarated as his bare feet rushed easily over the cool snow. The forest seemed warm and full of life-- with the sun rightfully shining down through bare spots in the canopy and small creatures stirring in the trees. Then all of the sudden, he fell backwards and was winded. Through the distractions of the forest, he had failed to realize there was something ahead of him. He blinked-- correction, someone. Theo had ran into Ceorran.
Nequaria:
Though Creorran had been attempting to ignore his surroundings to focuse on getting away from the pack, he could not ignore the loud crunch as something fell into the snow behind him. He whirled around to find a young boy probably close to his age. The young werewolf groaned inwardly as he realized the newcomer was also a werewolf.
"Great," he said said quietly, "just who I wanted to see." Though he had not met the other boy, Creorran knew from scent that he was a member of Kratos' pack. "What do you want?"
Hopefully the new wolf would not be hostile, and Creorran could get away from him and continue on his way. He had a feeling this would not be the case. Without waiting for him to answer, Creorran began to walk away again.
Soar:
"Uhhh... hi," Theo blinked dazed, frowning as he looked over at Creorran. He only had a brief memory of the boy- maybe seeing his face once or twice or something. Or maybe he hadn't; Theo wasn't well-known for being good with remembering people. He smelled like Kratos' pack so it was at least possible he had seen him before. He quietly debated it, but at last gave up on a final answer when he realized it honestly didn't matter.
The boy awkwardly stood, brushing off snow from his loose cotton shirt and jeans. Transiently, He smiled apologetically at him. He didn't add any words to it, though, and shrugged half-halfheartedly in hopes the moment would pass.
"What do I want...?, he echoed thoughtfully,"Nothing actually. Just thought I'd drop in- Hey!"
Theo frowned irritably as the boy strode away in mid-sentence. Didn't his mother teach him that was rude? He jogged lightly to catch up with the strange boy. Creorran obviously wasn't in the mood for company, but that didn't stop Theo. The house had been very boring. Trying to strike conversation with this unsocial werewolf might prove at least interesting, or at the very least, better than nothing.
"My name's Theo, in case you were wondering or anything," the young werewolf grinned cheerfully, ungracefully extending his hand to shake Creorran's while the two walked. He put his hand down, frowning, as he recognized the usually customary form of greeting a new person wasn't designed to be done while walking. The only thing he could do was progress towards the next step,"Hey, what's you're name anyways?"
Nequaria:
"Why do you need to know?" Creorran said coldly. He kicked away a clump of snow as he spoke. "Besides, I'll be gone in a few days if all goes well, which includes you keeping your nose out of my business," he glared at Theo, who was obviously not welcomed by Creorran.
He then realized he had no way to shake the other boy away, he seemed persistant—and somewhat naive—which could cause a problem in Creorran's plan. He wanted to get away from the werewolves, but Theo seemed to want to have a long conversation.
---———---
Once she was finished shopping, the female werewolf left the small store. Buying some food had set her back about ten dollars, but she figured she could always steal some more from the town's foolish humans.
She sat beneath a bare tree on the edge of the town, looking through her bag. She had three sets of clothing and a few days' worth of food in the main pocket, her knife in the side pocket, and her mother's necklace and ring in a tiny ouch on the front. Once she felt safe she would wear the jewelry, but until then she kept it packed away to prevent it from being stolen.
Soar:
"Because names are important... they tell you a lot about a person," Theo explained seriously for all of a few brief seconds.
Then this lapsed into a grin and the boy snickered under his breath and chided at Creorran like a 6-year old tattling on a peer, "And if you don't tell me, I'll have to give you one! Rover.. Floofers. Mr. Grumpyface?"
He studied Creorran with a sweeping gaze. He had noticed the other werewolf's mood had been less than humored (which had had every intention of fixing), but looking at the boy now, he seemed almost sad. Why would that be? He pondered with the thought. A previous comment, that at the time Theo had ignored with the excitement of deviously plotting his new name, now suddenly stuck in his head.
I'll be gone in a few days if all goes well, which includes you keeping your nose out of my business...
"Why are you leaving, anyways?" he blurted all at once.
Hour Glass:
****
Zeit turned swiftly, the She-wolf had used a tatic similar to her own, making it easier to read her moves. The wolf had targeted the legs, and used speed over brawn, merely nipping her, leaving no real wound like Zeit had down. In the inside, she slightly smiled, it would be fun to fight against someone like her, but it would make it more of a challenage, something she would enjoy.
She stared for a moment, thinking out a battle plan, simply watching her target for a bit. She would use her knowledge of the landscape to help her try and vanquish the wolf, and she would use her speed, something that would help her keep up with the wolf. She dropped into a defensive stance, as if waiting for an attack, but instead bunched her muscles up, digging her feet into the ground, preparing and planning.
Her dug her forepaws in, feeling her muscles ache slightly from her building strength as she waited, her next attack would be explosive.
May:
Kratos quickly ran to the edge of the pasture and jumped the fence in half a leap. He had never been known as the quickest of all werewolves; Kratos' large size and stature made him heavier and thus slower than the more lithe members of his pack at a full run, but with legs of that size, his stride alone brought him further than the regular werewolf.
When the Alpha crossed into the forest, he could already see the small group though the trees, though he didn't spot Marcus and Toby in the branches until he had gotten a bit closer.
With a short distance between himself and the small fight, Kratos stopped within the foliage and remained, for the moment, unnoticed.
The white sunlight of the afternoon poured under the shadow of the trees just behind the Alpha, but the only light that was allowed entry to the forest was the green streams of light which leaked in through the leaves.
Kratos' massive black form sat down amongst the bushes and bramble of the forest floor with his bright yellow eyes trained upon the small stranger and the Beta of his pack. It appeared that Zeit had given the stranger a nasty bite, but not a severe one, which led Kratos to believe that she had challenged Zeit's authority.. There was no other reason for such violence, as the pup didn't look like she was skilled in 'combat' at all.
"Zeit, you did not tell me there were two strangers.." Kratos said at length, his deep voice alarming them to a knowledge of his presence. His intention was to draw the fight to a halt and prevent anything really bad from happening, as he could see Zeit was getting more involved with every second.
Kratos tilted his head upward and gave the unknown boy a sideways glance, then he looked back at the girl on the ground and spoke again. "What are your names, and why are you here?"
Aim:
Chime watched to see what Zeit would do, she looked like she was getting ready for another attack, a big one. She started to get ready to brace herself when a another werewolf came up, he said something, making her jump. Chime looked at him, he was huge! His size was intimidating to her, she lowed her glaze and listen to what he had to say.
Chime thought for a few minutes, she wanted to tell him she was Peter Pan and that she was site seeing, but decide that it would be best not to toy with him, he didn't look like he would attack, but if he did she would be in trouble. "My name is Chime, Chime Slyer. I heard a howl and went to see what was going on..."
May:
The rest of the drive up the road was spent in silence as the vehicle and it's two passengers came closer to the mountains. Fields passed and Ulric noticed that the human dwelling places seemed further and further spread from each other; This was curious to him, as in the city where he grew up, people usually dwelt directly upon each other.
Still, Ulric remained silent and said nothing, allowing questions to fill his mind like a river fills a lake.
When at last they came to a fork in the road, Resme directed them to the older and more cracked path, leading higher into the old mountain.
"Are you sure you know where we're even going, Resme?" Ulric asked doubtfully.
"I am quite sure." Was Resme's reply, and she insisted upon her decision. So Ulric gave in and turned down the old empty road.
Fields and fields, with a scattered tree here and there was all that they saw for a time, neglecting to pay any mind to the mountain seemed to draw nearer like a great guardian out of the earth until it's shadow loomed over them.
"There it is, the last house before the mountain." The elderly woman announced as she pointed out the window to what appeared to be a small ranch nestled at the foot of the giant. "Isn't it a beautiful place?"
Ulric seemed to have become very alert upon seeing the small ranch and did not reply to Resme's words. To any normal human being this place was beautiful, and indeed the scene was enough to capture the attention of even a werewolf's senses, yet Ulric felt his heart pound with a sudden fear of what was awaiting him.
"This territory is huge. There is enough room for many werewolves to hide here and be completely uncaught by human notice. What would they do if they deemed me their enemy?" One more question added to Ulric's growing collection as they turned into the drive and steadily stopped just in front of the ranch.
For a moment the two sat in silence, scanning over the cottage before them. Then at last, Resme opened her door, gave Ulric a comforting glance, and stepped out of the car. She then proceeded up the drive to the front door of the cottage.
Ulric was hesitant to follow, but he knew he could not let her go alone. He had been sent as her escort to keep her safe, though there was no doubt in his mind that this was where Kratos' pack stayed..
When the elderly woman reached the front door, she paused a moment to look back at Ulric and motioned for him to venture after her.
At length, Ulric stepped out of the car and came to Resme's side. "There are a few close enough to be aware of our presence.." Ulric informed in a hushed voice. "But most are away from here right now."
Resme smiled at Ulric then turned away from him, saying nothing, and knocked on Zeit's door.
****
Nequaria:
Had Creorran been in wolf form he would've bared his teeth at Theo, for he was tugging on Creorran's last nerve. "If you must know," Creorran said angrily, "it's Creorran. Though that doesn't matter right now." The young werewolf rolled his eyes at the naive boy. Does he ever shut up? he thought.
"Why should you care?" he said when Theo asked why he was leaving. Creorran turned away, but figured the boy would not leave until he gave an answer. He debated over what to tell Theo. If he told him the truth, about committing suicide, the young boy would surely run home to Kratos and—Creorran didn't even what to think about what the huge wolf could do to a lanky, pathetic teenager like Creorran. However, if he made up a lie, such as needing to get some food from town, Theo would probably want to go with him. And if he told Theo nothing, he would probably continue to bug Creorran until he told the truth.
"Fine, if it'll get you to leave me alone. It's because I'm," Creorran lowered his voice to just louder than a whisper, "committing suicide."
He figured that if he could get away and kill himself before Kratos found him, it wouldn't matter if Theo knew the truth. Without another word, Creorran darted away, kicking up a flurry of snow in the process. He ran, panting heavily, into a thicket of bushes where he sat down and began to quietly sob as he thought of a way to die.
Soar:
"Uhh..."
Theo was dumbfounded and starred at Creorran with an equally dumbfounded expression. Granted, there were aspects of his nature he wasn't too found of but suicide? The word sunk in like a cold knife. It seemed too large a stretch for him. The more he thought about it, the more he was confused until everything was confusing. Maybe he could have starred out there for days trying to figure it out, but about a minute in he gave up.
What to do next... just as confusing for a topic. Obviously the good semaritan approach was to go comfort the kid and draw out whatever deep-dark-secrets-of-despair that had manifested themselves somewhere in some sort of traumatic past. Theo wasn't exactly the touchy feely type. Course two would be to walk away now and pretend the whole conversation never existed. As tempting as it was... some annoying whisper in his mind urged him against it. Touchy feely it was.
It didn't take long to find him. The patch of forest they had been in had been untouched by human or werewolf alike-- the snow was still a fresh, sparkling blanket. All he simply had to do was follow the footsteps and found Creorran sniffling in the bushes. He knelt down, peering through the brush to be eye-level with him.
"I don't suppose you'll come out of there?"
Nequaria:
Creorran cursed himself as Theo found him right away. He had forgotten about the snow. There was nothing he could do now. It was over. He knew it.
"I suppose you're going to drag me back to the ranch?" he sighed, not bothering to look up at Theo. Creorran dried his eyes as he prepared for the worst. He stared at the bright blanket of snow and pushed his hand into it. The cold numbness soon took over his fingertips and after a while, the rest of his hand. He then realized that if he could just get Theo to leave, he could lay in the snow and freeze to death. Before Theo had the chance to answer, Creorran readjusted himself so that the left side of his body, including his face was pressed into the snow.
---——---
The female werewolf was growing tired of lounging about the lazy town. She stood up and scented the air. The scent of the others wolves had nearly faded, but she still felt tense. There was some strange thought pulling at the back of her mind, and she could not ignore it. Was it a longing to join the other wolves' pack? She dearly hoped otherwise.
She needed something to do, so she began walking. Unknowingly, she was heading towards Zeit's farmhouse. It wasn't before long that she caught the scent of two werewolves. They were males, and she could detect a strong fearscent from one of them. She located the two just ahead. One was laying in a clump of brush, the other standing over him. They were both human at the moment.
Wanting to get a closer look, the female changed into her full wolf form and set her bag down at the base of a nearby tree. She surveyed the woods for a moment, looking for a tree that would be relatively easy to climb. She spotted a thick tree with great branches on the edge of the clearing in which the males stood. After a springing leap and a bound from the tree trunk she was onto a low branch. Her smallish size made tree-climbing nearly effortless. She hopped up a few more branches until she had a great viewpoint of the clearing. She settled into a crouch on the thick tree limb, close to the trunk so that it would not snap. Her sharp eyes flicked around to watch the two males.
Soar:
"Probably. That's what I'm supposed to do, right?" Theo dusted the snow off a nearby rock and sat down on it.
Through the brambles, he could just make out Creorran's figure laying in the snow. What an odd thing to lay in. Theo frowned and tested the snow with his palm. It was cold, wet, icy, and not comfortable at all.
"Why are you laying down in the snow?"
Mariel:
As soon as she heard someone's feet running through the snow Kieoki fled behind a tree, turning to peer out from behind it. But no one greeted her sight. Confused, she stepped out form behind the tree and walked down the line a bit, until a wave of scents washed over her nose. She froze, because her eyes displayed who she was scenting. Sitting on a brushed off rock was what smelled like someone from Krat's pack, and he seemed to be talking to someone. A were was sitting unnoticed in the tree above the one, and Kieoki had to smile, that was her trick.
Deciding to join the watcher, Kieoki stole behind the tree the were was sitting in, and swung up into it silently on her bare feet. The branch was cold, but she was used to that and plopped down beside the female were, slinging an arm over the girl's shoulder and spoke in a soft whisper. "So, may I join your little watching party?"
Nequaria:
Creorran didn't answer. His bare face was beginning the turn coldand raw but he ignored the pain. If Theo was going to take him back to Zeit's house, he'd certainly have to use force. Creorran did not plan on getting out of the snow anytime soon.
He felt it would not be long before hypothermia began, though he truly had no idea how long it took to freeze to death. He gently closed his right eye, the only one above the snow. His thoughts drifted back to before he was a werewolf.
He remembered his farmhouse. The rough wool sheets and the soft bed stuffed with cotton and wool. He loved to snack on the fresh vegetables and occasional fruit. He cried the first few times an animal was slaughtered for food. His job was to gather the eggs from the henhouse.
He remembered moving to the farm. He and his father had lived in town, which was much different. They packed the few things they owned into cardboard boxes and loaded them into his father's pickup truck. They had to learn to farm, and there were a few hungry seasons at first.
Most of all he remembered his mother.
A tear rolled down Creorran's cheek at this point. Then it struck him like a bullet. He needed to stay alive, to honor his mother and father's memory. He slowly stood up, still without even looking at Theo. Creorran carefully stepped out of the brambles and brushed the snow off of him. The left side of his face was raw and red, and his fingers and toes were completely numb. Without answering Theo, Creorran began to hobble back to the ranch.
----——----
The female wolf bristled as a human joined her in the tree. Her wolf coat was on end until she realized that the human was a werewolf and seemed friendly. Her claws flexed as the newcomer put an arm around her shoulders. She tried to inch away, but if she went much further she'd be off the short branch.
Her voice was slightly rough, yet polite. "Well, I suppose so," she said quietly, "but I don't see what's so interesting." She hesitated as she caught a tiny trace of the scent that the other two had. "Are you from their pack?"
Mariel:
Kieoki smirked at the girl's words, listening and answering almost immediately after the girl spoke. "Really, nothing is interesting, but it's amusing to watch them drag one another back to their home." She said before dropping her arm from the girl's shoulder, as if she hated the closeness of another. This were didn't seem that violent though, most weres would have tried to attack her as soon as she touched them, so off to a good start yes. Though it wasn't like Kieoki cared very much-if at all- about starting off on good terms.
When the wolf asked her if she was in the pack Kieoki raised an eyebrow and thought for a moment before replying. "Not exactly. And I don't feel like explaining." That was all Kieoki managed to get out before a foreign howl rung through the air and lingered there, calling to Krat. Kieoki stood up on the branch she was on and chuckled, looking down at the girl. "Well, if you do want to see something interesting, I suppose seeing what's going to happen will be. I'll be in the trees watching. Join me if you please, but just saying, wolves are easier to scent than humans."
A smile, and a swing down from the tree and Kieoki was gone, running on bare feet along the treeline until she was able to see what was going on, and then she climbed up into a tree, hidden and watching.
May:
****
As Ulric and Resme stood silently on the doorstep for someone to answer, Ulric seemed to grow stiff.
Resme tried knocking and ringing the bell a few more times, but no answer came, so Ulric finally turned and left the porch without a word.
The elderly woman looked between the young man and the door with an almost disappointed expression, then she sighed and was about to return to the car when she noticed Ulric's odd behavior... He seemed to be pacing in front of the house, sometimes with his head held very high, and sometimes with his face nearly touching his knees.
This, to any other normal person, would have been the very weirdest sight (and probably would have lost Ulric a date if such a girl were watching,) but for Resme, who was well acquainted with this behavior, knew what Ulric was up to.
"Weren't you afraid of them just two seconds ago, Ulric? Why are you seeking them out now?" Resme ventured to ask.
Ulric paused and looked up at his adoptive mother. "Because you need to see your son." He said firmly. "That is why we came here, and I will not allow my fear to rule me or deny you this opportunity.. My fears are subject to my spirit, I will not let it be the other way around, one will always rule the other... You taught me that, dear Mother, and I owe you everything for it."
A smile grew broadly across Resme's face and a sense of gratitude filled her heart.
Ulric then looked off toward the forest behind the ranch and took a deep breath. He knew that many of the pack members were close, probably just along the forest edge, but he would not venture to find them himself. Such an act would be treated most unwelcome, especially by a someone who smelled of another pack.
Thus, Ulric needed to do what he had been taught was proper in his pack, but that wasn't something he could do standing in plain sight.
"Please come with me Resme, I cannot announce my presence with the road so close; where any passerby can come over that hill and see us." Ulric said humbly, throwing a glance back toward the road. "I'll protect you if Kratos does not personally answer my call, but we need to be hidden on their land before I can change."
Resme said nothing and quickly came down off the porch and followed Ulric around the house to the back of the barn.
In this small area between the house and the barn, the two people found an opening to a small, but rather tall, corn field where they were seemingly sheltered at every angle.
"Here we go.. Mother, put your back against the barn and stay by that pile of fire-wood." Ulric said as he pulled his shirt off and hung it on a rake against the house. "If anyone charges to attack me, you will be safe until I explain the situation..."
Ulric walked to the center of the small nook, and began to mumble. "Hopefully they'll understand. Man, I should have brought my leather shirt.."
He then changed into his werewolf form, raised his head to the sky, took another deep breath, and released a loud howl over the territory!
-To those of this territory I announce myself. I am on your lands and have come here purposely. I stand now at your dwelling and beckon your Alpha to meet with me.-
A second howl followed, though not as long, nor as full as the first.
-I come peacefully and do not seek violence.-
Hour Glass:
****
Hawk paid for the food, and went and helped load everything into the truck, he wanted to get home soon, he had a feeling something was going to happen or was happening at that moment. He waited for his two passengers to get into the truck, before he put it into drive and headed off speedily down the road.
He watched the icy conditions, but it wasn't bad, plus driving in little snow wasn't hard compared to running through blizzards. He felt like he needed to be at the house. He parked swiftly, exiting the car as fast as he could, leaving it up tot he other two to carry everything in, afterall, he wasn't preparing dinner that night.
He sniffed the air, all ready scenting more then one different wolf, and caught the howl when the closest one to him called tot he pack. It seemed the rest of the pack was already off with the other new comers, so he headed tot he nearest ones, surprised slightly by the older lady there.
He looked tot he wolf, and raised an eyebrow, "Well, you don't need to change, the more aggressive wolves aren't here at the moment" he said smoothly, making sure the wolf came in peace, "And it seems there is an elderly woman out here, who should be inside the house where it's warm, since your supposed to be peaceful, I guess it's okay for you to come in."
****
Kale snorted when [Toby] didn't reply and froze as the fading echo of a howl reached her sensitive ears. shifting from paw to paw kale tried to focus on the sound but the echo had died, leaving her with two options; ignore it ad stay, or pursue the source. She didn't want to leave Zeit amongst the strange werewolves, but the only aggressive one seemed to be the one fighting her and the others didn't seem keen on joining in.
Had Zeit heard the howl? it didn't sound like one she'd heard before...but she couldn't be sure, she hadn't caught the message. Kale rocked back on her haunches and turned to Zeit;
"Seems we have more company. i'm going." and with that, Kale turned and bolted back through the tree's. in a hurry now, she recalled who was left at the house, which was a very little number. Zeit won't like strangers at the house, and neither do I!
Kale stopped, panting in a small clearing and rose her muzzle to the air, a singing howl poured out int the sky.
- stranger stay put. Beta coming.. -
She let the note die and raced back into the tree's. i should have stayed at the house, Kale berated herself. Snow flew under her paws as she leaped across fallen logs and rabit holes. on her way back she veered sharply off her path and found her hiding place, grabbing her pack and cloths in her jaws before taking off once more. cold air whistled past her ears and small details blurred. light blinded her as she hit the edge of the treeline were she paused, looking over Zeits fields.
May:
Kratos nodded in acknowledgement when Chime introduced herself but did not say anything else for the longest time. He looked at the tree which Toby and Marcus were in, then back at Zeit, Kale and Chime whom were on the ground.
Then a howl broke the air in the direction of the house and Kratos' attention was drawn briefly towards it. The call was distant, but Kratos was able to capture and translate it before it faded completely.
"He announced himself."
That was all that Kratos thought upon hearing it and it appeared to be the only thing that could really be taken as fact. Such an action meant that the stranger was experienced, if nothing else, and thus likely from another pack.
An experienced werewolf was liable to become a threat, though perhaps the more dangerous threats were the experienced werewolves whom did not announce themselves, another fact which the Alpha was all too mindful.
At that moment Kale took off like a bullet, and Kratos' gaze followed after her before it returned to the group by which he was standing.
"Marcus, come down out of the tree and leave the boy alone for now. He has not answered me regarding his name, but we surely will track him later if he stays long." Kratos said firmly as his ears turned back to listen to Kale's message. "Zeit, I must ask that you also come with me for the moment as well. As for Chime, you are a stranger here and I expect nothing of you, but you should know that all whom linger on our land long will be confronted when it is convenient."
Kratos looked off toward the ranch again and stood up. He felt more comfortable with leaving two inexperienced strangers alone on the territory than leaving Kale to confront the experienced stranger at the house with whomever else was present there.
****
It was not long before another call sounded in reply and Ulric's attention was brought to the front of the house where a truck parked in the drive.
Immediately upon getting out of his vehicle, the man caught the scent of Ulric and approached the barn, announcing himself quite openly.
"Thank you for your hospitality on such notice, but perhaps when the more dominate of your pack get here they will not be so keen upon my being inside their home." Ulric replied to HawkThorne with a short bow. "However, I might accept for my companion if that is her desire, as she is not a werewolf and therefore cannot be deemed a threat by anyone."
Despite the man mentioning that there was no need to be in werewolf form, Ulric did not return to his human stature.
Ulric meant peace and did not wish to make himself seem like a threat, but to return to his human form did not seem wise under the circumstances, there were still many he had to meet before he would be considered welcome here..
Resme smiled at the young man whom had addressed Ulric and extended her hand. "My name is Rosa." She said warmly, "I've come here to visit with my son, do you know if he is here? I'm not sure if you will know his real name, as he always did follow after his father in keeping the name I gave him private, but perhaps you will know him by the name his father calls him by; Kratos Shragron?"
Nequaria:
****
After limping for a while, Creorran had the farmhouse in sight. He had heard the unknown werewolf's howl, and he was extremely tense. He had learned to slightly control his transformations, and he felt more powerful as a wolf. It was quite difficult to transform in daylight, but Creorran tried desperately.
He relaxed once he was in wolf form. He felt much safer, though he was still edgy around the newcomer. He slowly crept around in the wet slush until he was close to the new wolf. Hawkthorne was there, so at least if the werewolf turned hostile he wouldn't have to face him alone. Creorran's ears and tail twitched nervously as he stood next to Hawkthorne. He turned to the newcomer and the human woman; neither seemed agitated or hostile, only tense.
---———---
The female werewolf jumped down the tree, spraying snow in all directions. She merely hoped the male called Theo hadn't seen her. She snatched up her purse before continuing on her way. She trudged through the wet snow, almost tempted to follow the two howls. She recognized the first as the male who had helped her earlier that day; the second was a mystery.
The cream-colored wolf padded in the dirction of the howl until she caught scent of a few different wolves. Something inside her compelled her to answer the two howls, but she realized they'd probably find her and attack her for trespassing on their territory. Her thick tawny fur was clumped with bits of snow and ice, which not only weighed her down but chilled her to the bone.
She found an area not far from the ranch where there was less snow. At the roots of a tree there was a patch of ground with no snow on it. She settled down there, hoping that the pack wouldn't find her as she drifted off to sleep.
Cathannah:
****
Toby had quite phased out of everything and dozed off. He awoke sometime later to the sound of Kratos' voice, only to find himself still high in the tree clinging tightly.
Glancing down, he didn't see any werewolves. Perhaps, they had all gone home?
Slowly (and rather clummsily) he scampered down the tree. Though he missed the last two branches and fell to the ground near the last part. He inhaled the chilly air and glanced around, putting his wolf senses on full alert for any movement at all.
How long had he been out?
Where was that mean Zeit lady?
Where was everyone?
Where was he anyway? He'd never been this deep in the forest before.
Aim:
Chime watched them leave then Toby come down from the tree. She was about to walk away when the odd wolf looked lost. Chime changed back into a human and walked over to him. "Hey, you look sorta lost, do you need any help?" she asked softly, she didn't want this skittish werewolf back up in the tree. "And don't you worry, I don't like to fight, I only did 'cause she started it...." She said, again, softly and then walked closer to him and held out her hand to help him up.
Hour Glass:
Zeit nodded, following after Kratos, wondering what he wanted to talk about. It might be about her moodiness recently, or something else, but that would be up in the air until he began to speak. She relaxed slightly, even if the wolves hadn't been run off, she felt like she had done something to keep them from causing trouble, or at least staying away from the cattle.
She walked forward, her pace more relaxed then how it had started, and she was begging to feel a bit better, and the chilly air was more calming then the cramped feeling cottage. She took a deep breath, shaking out her pelt as a light flurry fell from the sky.
~~~~~~~
Hawk chuckled again, "I do know a Kratos, but not his last name. But not many people are named Kratos, so I'm guessing they are the same person." He replied with a small smile. "In fact, he's the leader of the pack here, so if your related to him, he wouldn't mind letting you in the house, and I also know the owner of the house, she's one of the Betas, and wouldn't care much if you came in. If your lucky, there may even be a few bits of leftovers from breakfast."
He looked over his shoulder, seeing Kale had come. "Also, here is the other Beta, Kale," he explained, "If you have any other questions, just ask her."
Kale:
Kale stepped out of the treeline as her eyes adjusted and spotted several figures in the driveway. She bristled slightly but let her fur lay flat and trotted foreward at steady lope, her pack swinging from her jaw just above the snow.
a slight breeze drifted through the cold air, bringing with it the scent of the stranger, and that of a human.
odd, to bring a human with him. perhaps as a sort of shield? or a show of control? a bit foolish though.... kale thought.
perhaps he thought he could protect the human if any skirmishes occurred? not that the pack would attach her but still.
Kale drew closer and took in detail. his stance, his height, his build. her wolf eyes let nothing escape them. nor did his werewolf form go unnoted. it would have been smarter of him to be human, so it wasn't taken as a challenge. was he looking for trouble?
Kale stepped up to the group now and flicked her ears in irritation before dropping her bundle. she nodded to Hawk and then turned her bright eyes onto the stranger.
" i'm afraid i'd like to ask questions first, if you don't mind." Kale started, her voice as level as she could keep it in wolf form.
" what's your name and business here?"
Soar:
Theo followed Creorran quietly, his head perking with interest as an unfamiliar howl echoed. The boy didn't look particularly alarmed at the how and looked curiously at the werewolf Creorran. Why bother? The stranger seemed pretty peacefull. He shrugged to himself and continued to walk towards the house.
~~
Jackie had crept off some time during the journey towards the orchard and the house. After seeing that Kratos' big issue was nothing more than a flea-bitten mutt, she was disappointed. So Jackie had gone off and hoped she would stumble across some trouble.
It hadn't taken long. A howl traveled through the air and she paused, a little startled that she had made sense of its message. She turned, walking briskly towards the house. Her eyes narrowed calculatively on the large shape of a werewolf and the frail shape of a woman. She lingered in the shadows, and for the time being, was content to watch until things proved more interesting to intervene.
****
May:
Rosa smiled at HawkThorne. "You're very kind, thank you." She replied, and turned to look at Kale as she approached.
Ulric turned around aswell with his ears held erect. Though in werewolf form, the young stranger stood like a man and held a solemn expression upon his face. He knew the questions she asked were more directed at him then his adoptive mother, as the Beta kept sizing him up, still though it was not his place to reply.
Instead it was Resme, or Rosa as she was called by her kind, whom replied to the Beta's question.
"Not at all." The elderly woman replied with a friendly smile. "My name is Rosa, and this is my son, Ulric. I've come here looking for my elder son, Kratos, because I wish to speak to him in person."
Ulric stood firm beside Resme and did not speak a word. Though Resme was not a werewolf, Ulric respected her and treated her as though her rank was above his own.
******
Kratos lead the way into the cattle pasture with Zeit following. He did not speak until they were far from the forest edge, then he slowed his pace and tilted his head over his shoulder.
"My, how inexperienced they are.." The Alpha said casually. "Those two certainly need some training, wouldn't you agree?.... They are obviously of no threat, do you think we should give them the option to join us, Zeit?"
Kratos had felt the need to ask Zeit for her opinion concerning the matter, thinking that it would be rather rude not to consult her before offering the hand of friendship to these two others whom had undoubtedly questioned her rank and authority.
They would be coming upon the house in moments, and Kratos hoped this new matter would be resolved quickly.. There were too many new werewolves on the territory and too much chaos in the pack.
The thought made Kratos groan. "We need to rank some scouts..." He muttered under his breath, "I can't be everywhere at once."
*****
[Meanwhile]
Timothy had ran to the edge of the small town, following the road up until that point when he darted off in the direction which seemed least populated.
"Somewhere, somehow, I'll be safe." He kept repeating in his mind, though both parts of him knew this was not true. Nonetheless, Timothy ran and ran.
The bushes grew thicker and the bramble gradually became sharper. But Timothy ran and did not stop even when his legs hurt and his lungs heaved.. Thorns had scraped his face and blistered his hands, yet he ran on with a speed that couldn't be matched by the average human being.
At long last the ground sloped downward and Timothy's foot got caught on a vine, causing him to trip and fall into the cold mud. He quickly scrambled to his feet and prepared to run on, but was met with the sight of a fearsome rushing river in his path.
It moved with such violence that it did not take Timothy a second look to know that it was very wide and very deep. It moved with such power and the sounds it made struck the image into Timothy's mind of being dragged away by it and drowned in its depth, never to be found by anything save a hungry beast alone. This made Timothy recoil with a cautious fear, finally enabling him time to recount his actions.
At this moment, most lost children would sit down and cry, contemplate their situation, and decide whether or not they would return to the safety of their home, blaming rage or irrational emotion for their behavior.
However, it was neither rage nor irrational emotion that had caused Timothy to run in the first place.. It had been a calculated fear which had driven him away. A fear which he could not explain outside the yellow, bloodshot eyes which had so often haunted his nightmares.
Thus Timothy found himself alone, and a long way from anything familiar. His heart pounding and his mind too active to give way for sorrow or self-pity, Timothy sat down in the mud and listened to the powerful river that lay before him.
He thought for a time about a dark night in his memory, when he could hear the heart beats of everything alive around him.. It made him angry and it made him more afraid, and though he pressed to remember more of that night, his mind would not allow it..
Hour Glass:
"I don't mind letting more wolves join, but they must learn who gives who the orders, and learn to follow them once they are given" she said, taking a breath to chill a bit, before she continued to speak. "Also, as for scouts, I suggest finding the wolves with more leadership skills, that are very loyal to you" she said, " and have them in charge of a small amount of wolves, that way you won't be running around with a to do list larger then the mountain."
May:
Kratos listened to Zeit's words carefully as they ran along. "I agree." He replied contemplatively. "And I should like to apologize for all the trouble you have been caused on their behalf. So many of them are wanderers whom have never been accustomed to loyalty or rules."
****
Kale:
Kale cocked her head slightly as she listened to Rosa's reply. family eh? Kratos's family?
" Our Alpha is out..." kale paused, she really didn't know what Kratos was doing at the moment. "doing what he does and may not be back for awhile. I'm Kale Cooper, second Beta. If you'd like to stick around,i'll invite you inside, but i have to warn you that we have several new werewolves in the pack and tempers are high today, and the fact that we have too many strangers on our territory right now isn't helping." Kale finished, eyeing both rosa and Ulric, curiosity peaked in wonder over Kratos's family.
Mariel:
"Tck. Is it such a good idea to let guests know about strangers on your land?" Kieoki muttered to herself with a shake of her head as she watched the little 'gathering' that was taking place in front of Krat's house. Kieoki currently was sitting some thirty feet up in a tree not to far from the house, watching with locked eyes on the small group. She was amusing herself by critiquing the one pack member, amused by her. One thing you never did was tell of a bad situation. That would be almost the equivalence of a young child whom was home alone answering the door, finding a stranger, and saying "Oh yes, my parents aren't home right now.". Major mistake. Kieoki faintly mused about 'joining' their little conversation just to screw with that beta down there, but she thought about Krat, and how he'd react and changed her mind. Eh, getting soft was she? Mayhaps. Either way, she was really considering his offer and there was no way she was going to toss it all out the window now.
May:
Resme smiled and nodded to Kale. "I'm sorry to intrude upon you, I don't mean to be a burden." She said sincerely. She was about to open her mouth again to speak but did not when she saw the look in Ulric's eyes.
With that look, Ulric requested permission to speak, so Resme granted it.
"Your Alpha will know us, and we have not come to plague your pack further. While we are here, we are your allies." Ulric said, addressing Kale. "If my mother is safe here, then I am at your service and will help in anyway I can."
Soar:
"I'll say our tempers are high!" Jackie hissed in comment to Kale,"Planning on serving them cookies and cocoa too?"
Jackie at that moment had decided patience wasn't her strong suite and wasn't going to do nothing. She certainly wasn't going to go yuck it up when a potential enemy was sitting on their doorstep. The pack were made up of idiots! Take a stranger's word that they'll play nicely? Pah! And she'd go to a tea party. Idiocy irked her beyond belief.
"I do hope you keep to your word and don't do anything stupid," her icy blue eyes lingered to an unspoken threat at the two strangers on their doorstep.
May:
When Jacqueline suddenly approached baring a threat on her lips, Ulric's attention was drawn quickly toward her, yet he said nothing. He would not challenge her, for this was not his land, but his guard was never displaced.
Resme however, grew an even broader smile and spoke with all of the certainty in the world.
"We'll keep to our word." She said. "Stupidity is not one of our stronger qualities."
Soar:
Jackie only offered a grunt to Resme's response. She still didn't seem happy about the two's appearance on the porch, though didn't seem to be disputing as openly before. Rather it was a grudging acceptance-- for the moment content to let them be, though open to changing it if something interesting, or particularly stupid, happened.
Cathannah:
****
When Toby arrived at his Grandmother's antique shop, he was quite out of breath and his school papers had been destroyed and blown to the four winds. He was quite bedraggled, but managed to straighten himself out enough to walk through town unwatched by curious bystanders.
"Where have you been, Toby?" His grandmother asked him when he entered the old wooden shop.
"Climbing trees." Toby replied wearily.
"I thought you were studying." His grandmother said.
"Uh-huh.. But then a werewolf ate my homework." Toby replied, slupping into a chair.
"That's a new one for the record books; though I've never known you to make excuses like that." His grandma said.
Aim:
Chime walked away from the ranch, she looked back one more time, with her mom gone she didn't know when she would see another werewolf again and was getting a little lonely. She then walked back to her job, so dull...
Chime walked inside the store she worked in "What happened to you?" asked one of the females who worked at the store asked, Chime then looked at her arm, which Zeit bit "Nothing." She lied and the started to get back to work. "What's the meaning of this? I thought you needed work so badly now I find that you leave to have a fight? Chime your fired and you know why..." Her boss said Chime turned around real fast and looked at him "Man, he has gotten fast..." She thought "But sir, I um, well fine...." She said then got up to go, give back her name tag thing, walked out the door and went back home.
Hour Glass:
[Zeit's] ears perked as they neared her home, it seemed Hawk was home with Kale, and there were more werewolves. Great.... Just great. She sighed slightly, but never changed pace, staying up with Kratos as she evaluated what all was going on. It seemed Kale and Hawk had everything under control, and the intruders were following orders and not attacking them, at least something was going right in her day.
"Well Kratos, what do you say about these two?" she asked briefly, before stopping slightly when the scent of the elderly woman, noticing similarities between hers and that of Kratos'. She looked to her leader, "Do you know her?" she asked lightly in a questioning tone.
May:
When the small gathering at the house came into view, Kratos slowed to a stop beside Zeit, and stared for a moment upon it.
The Alpha had also caught the scent of familiarity which hung in the air, but his recognition of it was regarded differently than other members of his had upon translating it.
For Kratos, along with the scent of one whom was related to him, came the memories of comfort and safety within his father's home.
The whole scene caught Kratos rather off his guard and a look of confusion passed over his bright yellow eyes. He muttered something under his breath and seemed to lean forward as if trying to get a better view over the distance.
After a few moments of wonder, Kratos finally replied to Zeit's question.
"I admit I am a bit stunned.." He said slowly, as he erected his stance. "That is my Mother if I am not mistaken. Why she is here, I cannot fathom, but I am almost certain it is her.. I do not know the lad whom she is with, but his scent is blended with that of my father and a pack which I cannot name.."
Silence followed and Kratos did not move nor speak. Then all at once several alarming thoughts flooded the Alpha's mind and a look of great concern crossed over his face.
Regardless of the physical actions of this new werewolf, Kratos was suddenly filled with suspicion and he felt his hackles raise slightly.
"Come, I must see who he is and why he is here with her." Kratos' deep voice rumbled, and he began off toward the house.
Mariel:
"And now enters Krat, right on cue." Kieoki said with a smirk as she rested her head upon her hands as she sat in the tree. She was still watching the scene play out infront of her and in fact she was beginning to make a game out of this. Laughing softly, she cut the laugh short and held her tongue, not wanting to be seen until the play was over.
Soar:
In the mean time, Theo had broken away from his glum companion. He had hurried over to the ranch in simple curiosity of who the strangers were. The boy was not disappointed to find a very credible werewolf and an animated looking woman. Pensively he studied them, but did not say or do anything more than offer a quick smile at Resme and a brief dip towards Ulric. Theo than sat on the front of the house, inquisitive on what the alpha would choose to do.
Kale:
Kale resisted the urge to snarl at Jackie for mocking her attempt at diplomacy and instead took initiative to to head into the house, however, as she stepped up onto the porch she spotted two familiar forms in the distance, the large form of Kratos and the relatively smaller form of Zeit. stifling a snicker as she heard Resme's comment on Jackie she stopped on the steps and turned back to face the...guests. taking a pause to nod at Theo she adressed Ulric and Resme;
"well, i'll have to hold that invitation into the house for a moment, it seems our Alpha and first Beta are on their way. Since you came to see him and since it's Zeits house it's less troublesome to keep you outside, although it may be uncomfortable for you. " as if to accent her words, a chilly breeze toyed around the house, carrying with it another strange scent. Kale glanced off into the tree's, her inner Wolf alert. i swear if we have any more intruders today i'm going to invest in a barbwire fence, even if it's rather ineffective against werewolves. Kale thought.
May:
As Kale announced Kratos and Zeit's coming, Ulric raised his eyes from those nearest him, to the pasture just behind the house. When the young werewolf saw Kratos, his ears fell back and laid on his neck; he had not expected the Alpha's son to be so much larger than his father.
Ulric had sized-up the Alpha rather quickly and he knew there was no way to challenge Kratos even if it just came down to defending himself..
Anxiety found it's way into Ulric's heart as the brutishly-huge creature refused to relent his charge; Ulric even faltered a step back in case he had to retreat from the Alpha's path.
Resme too, had looked to see Kratos' coming, but her smile and faith never faded; she knew her son well and his size did not frighten her.
When Resme saw Ulric take a step back, she remembered his anxiousness about the situation and carefully came to stand beside him. She then lifted her hand and slipped it into his comfortingly; she felt the warm pads on his palms and rubbed his furry knuckles with her thumb.
*****
Kratos leapt over the fence fluidly. Dirt flew up behind his paws as evidence of his weight and he did not bother to slow his pace until he saw the young stranger react to his approach. Then he slowed down but did not refrain from displaying his dominance and authority in a careful stride.
The Alpha inspected the situation carefully before standing up on two legs and coming to a complete stop. Rosa's attempt to reassure the young stranger did not escape Kratos' notice, but his curiosity was not appeased. However, Kratos did not know what to say to voice his confusion just then; obviously he did not want to interrogate his mother, so he remained quiet for the moment.
*****
Resme laughed and broke the short silence. "Come now, my son, I am not a stranger and I will not be treated like one." Resme chuckled softly. "Now come down and let me have your arms for a moment, I have not seen you in several years and I think I am entitled to a hug."
Immediately Kratos complied and his stature shrunk back to that of a man, but even so, he was still very large.
Ulric stepped away from Resme as Kratos came to embrace his mother. Ulric's brilliant auburn eyes watched the two carefully and he finally felt that it would be okay to return to his human form, but he did not move to do so just yet.
******
When Kratos and Rosa came away from each other, Kratos quickly glanced in Ulric's direction before speaking.
"I did not expect to ever see you here." Kratos said. "Are you well? Who is this with you?"
Resme still smiled in a kindly way and looked at Ulric. "This is Ulric, Kratos, and I am quite well." She said. "Ulric is your adoptive brother and we've come to see how you are doing."
Kratos seemed a bit taken and for a moment did not but stare firmly at the young lad. Then at last, Kratos extended his hand toward Ulric, his expression unchanging.
******
Ulric was still trying to calculate the situation and did not respond immediately. Then he quickly changed back to his human form and stepped forward to take Kratos' hand.
They shook hands briefly and exchanged greetings; Kratos seemed just as awkward as Ulric felt about the situation, but did not press the situation into an uncomfortable zone by asking more questions.
Resme couldn't help but laugh at her two boys. "I'll explain everything in a moment Kratos, but first why don't you tell me about yourself and all your friends." Resme said heartily.
Cassie:
Kaleb and Alice walked through the door, shaking the light dusting of snow off their heads as they came in. "Ugh, I'm so glad we're back, it was c-o-l-d out there. That furball sure knows how to drive fast and well. And he's pretty nice."
"Yeah, Hawk is pretty nice to have around. I'm glad we're buddies. Now, let's find that grill, I have to start on these peppers. Alice help me please."
So, Alice and Kaleb set to work grilling the peppers to a charred perfection. Then they came in after a while.
"Okay, now we have to let them steam in the bag to cook their insides for a bit longer. While we wait, let's go enjoy the snow."
Sounds good to me, thought Alice.
Kaleb and Alice went back through the door and out into the winter wonderland. The snow dazzled in their eyes, making them blind for a moment. Then they headed for the trees.
Soon, they were quite a bit into the woods as the had jogged. Suddenly, Kaleb convulsed and hit the ground.
Ugh, oh no....N...Not again. I haven't had an attack for a while. The Wolf's taking over. "Alice, get Zeit or Hawk, or try to find Kratos. Y..you're about to have a wolf on the loo...." Kaleb Shifted, his fur coming on. Wolf howled, and took off away from the girl.
Alice stood there in complete shock. Her mouth gaped open like a fish on dry land. Her hair whipped in her face in the wind, the black wisps assaulting her skin. She gasped, her hands flying up the same moment Kaleb galloped away on his four hairy legs. The tawny fur being blown back in the wind.
She spun on the heel of her boot. She knew she should probably go after him, but dealing with an unpredictable werewolf was not something on her list at the moment. Although her muscles ached to Shift and change into her other form, Alice new it would be hard to risk her other instincts she got while that way.
So, her snow boots hit the ground, creating prints in the dazzling white power that covered the ground. Her scarf flapped as she increased her speed, hoping to reach the house faster. And also hoping Kratos was there.
Alice was panting, she had reached her destination. Without going inside, she called.
"Kratos!" Alice yelled. "Kratos, are you there!?!" she shouted, hopin gher voice would carry. "Kratos! kaleb Shifted and we need to catch him!"
She fell to the ground, exhausted from running, when she heard a howl.
****
Wolf ran, excited to be free and in charge of his body. His tounge lolled, hanging and caching the air, bringing it into his lungs. He could feel his paw pads hitting the cold snow, the white substance stickng and chilling his nerves.
Kaleb was trapped in his own mind. Laying in the shadowy cage he was held in, he roced the bars. His eyes were dark with hatred. Wolf came padding up, then rose on his hind legs. His black eyes stared with a dark intensity, his lips curled into a psychotic sharp smile. It didn't seem natural on a wolf. Kaleb sneered.
"You really think you can keep me here for long?" he asked, voice low and husky, self respect and confidence gone.
"Well, you haven't escaped yet, and I don't think anyone will help you. I mean, your little girlfriend there ran away. She doesn't care." he said, staring at him, his mouth now jsut a curved straight line.
Kaleb arched his back, spine chilling, his hair stood on end. He knew he must've acted harshly, as Wolf chuckled dryly, really with no humor.
"She's not my girlfriend," Kaleb whispered, spite and anger in his voice. "We aren't together, and you can't rule me anymore!!!!!" Kaleb's voice rose to a scream.
Suddenly, he felt his teeth become sharper, and the Wolf looked alarmed. Then, he was the wolf. Being locked up was gone, Kaleb was experiencing the thrill of being in control of his other body. It felt weird, the way the bones had changed shaped and moved in a way other than his human form. He shuddered, but his long fur kept him warm in the cool weather. He sniffed the air, and got the scent of the house on the wind. He started trotting towards the smell, letting his instincts guide him.
May:
Kratos opened his mouth to speak and introduce every pack member to his mother when Alice's desperate voice rung through the air!
Kratos whirled around on full alert and raced to the corner of the house where he had heard Alice shout. "Alice! Alice I'm here, what's the matter?!" He called as he ran!
Ulric and Rosa also became very alarmed at that moment and couldn't help but follow Kratos around to the front of the house to see what was wrong.
"Great. Alice, the others are just behind the house along with my mother and youger brother, go to them." Kratos instructed and immediately changed his form and took off across the yard!
Savannah:
Savannah yawned as she stretched and stood up from the base of the tree. Had the pack seriously not noticed her? She shook her head and grunted, pondering how they could be so stupid as to not realize there was an invader extremely close to the center of their territory. They must be preoccupied with something.
Something inside of her was pulling her to join their pack, but she was terrified of being attacked again, and she was sure this time would be more severe. Savannah had no idea whether it would be safer to approach them or let them find her. For the time being, she paced around, whimpering, as she debated her next move.
Mariel:
Kieoki was getting quite bored watching the little happy reunion, and so it was to her amusement when someone, who Krat soon named Alice, started shouting out for him. Krat proceeded to dash and shift and vanish from sight, and left the two others to stand blankly after him. Chuckling at this, she decided it was time to introduce herself, just to start some fun for herself, and so she nimbly swung down from the tree and landed on the ground, her feet making only a small thud when they touched. Standing straight up, she brushed her shirt off and readjusted the dagger in her red belt before she strode off towards who she didn't know was Krat's mother, and whomever she'd brought with her.
Light on her bare feet, Kieoki silently worked her way across the yard and over towards the mother and ...friend she was besides. She walked up from behind them until she was standing besides them, staring off after Krat when she gave a shrug and spoke. "Poor Krat. He can't get a break today can he?"
May:
Ulric's attention was brought upon the girl whom had approached from behind, and he stared for a moment confused. The stranger did not smell like a member of the pack, yet she spoke of Kratos as a friend would.
"Excuse me, what is your name?" Ulric asked quickly. It seemed a rather blunt question, but Ulric wasn't used to strangers being allowed to roam on a claimed territory.
Rosa seemed concerned about the situation and stared for a time in the direction Kratos had gone.
Kale:
Kale gazed in shock after Kratos as he tore across the fields after Kaleb. or at least, she gazed after him up untill the point Kieoki snuck up behind them, commenting on Kratos. Kale bristled but stopped there. Kieoki was an unknown entity, unlike the other intruders, Kale had met her befre and she didn't seem hostile, not that she was particularly frinedly but....so far she hadn't caused any problems for the pack.
" long time no see, stranger." Kale greeted her with mild irritation, seriously contemplating the pro's and con's of a barbwire fence. waiting for her reply, kale glanced between the direction her alpha had dissapeared to and the strangers standing next to her. this was turning into a very, very long day.
Aim:
Chime walked slowly, trying to think what job she should get next. Being a small town, she already worked in alot of the shops, plus what she got fired for on her last job wouldn't help. She was so lost in thought that she walked right near the ranch house and didn't notice till she looked up, "Ahh, shoot." She mumbled and tried to quickly get away, but then bumped into their trashcan "Snap!" She shouted annoyed.
Mariel:
Though the 'new' guy she was standing beside spoke to her first, Kieoki chose to reply to Kale before she replied back to the other. Smiling softly and flicking a sharp wave at Kale, she spoke. "Can't say the same. Sorry." She paused then, suddenly glaring with narrowed eyes and a whispered tone as she spoke directly to Kale. "Though I have seen you more than you've seen me." Her face brightened then, and she seemed to remember Ulrick, and so she turned back to him, tipping her head with a smirk as she spoke. "Well, I'll let you decide on that one for yourself. I'm either Kieoki or just Ki. But then again, I could be lying. You would never know after all." She finished with a dark laugh. After all, she hated acting this bubbly, but it was worth it to mess with them.
Kale:
Kale cut in to reply back to Kieoki before Ulric had a chance to say anything in return.
" So you've been hanging around? do you like what you see? permanent place to stay, guaranteed food everyday, if your on time to meals, anyway. territory to roam unchallenged. protection by the pack. it's not a bad life you know. being part of the pack, Kratos's pack anyway. the offer's open, if you want it, and you've had plenty of time to decide. so go ahead and make a choice already-"
kale stopped her pitch when she heard the trashcan fall over, she glanced down the long driveway to spot yet another stranger at it's end. Barbwire fence.....no barbwire fence....barbwire fence....no babwire fence..... the thought danced around in her head as she turned back to Kieoki.
" stay and be part of the pack, or move on and get your furry behind out of our territory. i'll give you till tomarrow night to decide, and if i don't have your answer by the folowing morning, i'll either chase you out, or if i must,-"
Kale stepped towards Kieoki, looking her dead in the eye as Kales inner wolf,no, not just wolf, her inner Beta stepped up to protect her pack.
" i'll kill you. my pack is unstable enough as it is, without extra problems or nuisances."
Kale growled, then turning to Ulric,
"the same offer will stand for you, if you wish , however, you'll have to discuss such things with Kratos, as you're his family, you may as well be his problem. now, if you'll excuse me, i have yet another stranger to deal with."
Kale nodded to Jackie, Theo, and Zeit before turning away and trotting down the driveway.
Aim:
Chime heard somebody coming, Why did I have to wander over here? She thought to herself and then got up and picked up the trashcan, there was no running now and she didn't want it to look like she was doing it for fun or revenge. Chime looked at the Beta "Hey again... I'm just going to..." She muttered and didn't look Kale in the eye she then got an idea. "Do you need any help around here?" She asked "I could maybe make a fence so people don't wander in, by accident or not?" She then smiled friendly. What the heck are you doing? You fight with one of them earlier, do you really thing they'll give you a job? And yet Chime smile even more friendly and awaited her answer.
May:
Ulric watched Kieoki and Kale with a wary gaze and decided it was not his place to speak up again.. He was curious about the pack and it's members and nonmembers, and on any other occasion Ulric would have jumped at the opportunity to get to know a few of them. But with threats being issued so willingly, it did not seem wise for him to make friends with enemies of the pack on their territory; so he remained quiet.
Rosa had been taken aback by Kale's threat, perhaps because she did not understand on which grounds it had been meant. But to hear such a harsh thing said openly and without sarcasm from one human being to another was truly stunning.
****
Kratos had tracked Kaleb's scent to the edge of the fields. The Alpha's bright yellow eyes searched keenly for the younger werewolf or any sign of it's passing; something dead perhaps.. But Kratos found nothing of the sort and became very alert when he heard Kaleb approaching instead of charging into the woods.
Kale:
Kale headed towards the stranger at the end of the driveway with a slight uneasiness in her stomach.
She wasn't sure about what she had said to Kieoki; the words rang true and Kale would honor them as a beta protecting her pack from outside threats, which Kieoki was as long as she intruded upon their territory. And yet Kale was nagged by the thought that she had presented them wrong.
first, against kieoki, the threat may be ineffective, but might at least nudge her to make a decision about joining the pack or not. second, voicing her annoyance and anger in her threat in front of Ulric and Resme was unwise on her part. third, for the reason prior, this may cause the outsiders to veiw the pack in a different way, a wrong way.
Kale sighed as she reflected on her errors in judgment and then pushed the thoughts away as she drew up to Chime. yet another strange werewolf, but at least she was a less disturbing stranger.
"help out? around here?" kale actually glanced around. She had offered a place in the pack to kieoki, in the wrong way. maybe this time she would get it right.
" sure. that actually wouldn't be too bad. Being helpful would actually be appreciated... If you like it around here, and would care to stick around, you could join our pack. it may be sudden, but, think it over, you might find you like the idea." kale said, her annoyance fading away to a calmer expression as she addressed Chime.
Aim:
Chime felt relieved and yet a little shock, she looked at Kale and blinked "Join the pack..?" She asked kinda dumbly then get a little excited "Join? Really? That would be great!! I mean unless mom comes home to find the house empty... But she's not coming back, so do it! But she might..." Her thoughts bounced back and forth and she found herself lost in them, she finally snapped out of it "Eh, I don't know..." She said quietly and looked at Kale and smiled "I guess I'll join, it sounds fun." she said, trying to sound less excited then she felt, but didn't do to good of a job of it.
Mariel:
"So she offers me a place in this pack and yet she threatens to kill me. Typical." Kieoki said with a distasteful glance after Kale as the beta left to investigate the loud noise that had rung out. Kieoki narrowed her eyes for a moment, angered at the pointless threat, but she let it slide for once and shrugged, not really speaking to a certain person. "I'm a bit disappointed though. I mean, I thought Krat's pack was unlike the others. I guess not...after all, they're threatening me now too. Shame." Frowning, she walked up to the house, peering in a window before standing and throwing a glance at the scenery around the house itself. Everything aside, she didn't want to just give up and go. But that beta...
Wait.
Since when did she succumb to the threats of one little beta? Kieoki caught herself in this thought and chuckled, her eyes narrowing as she jumped lightly off the porch and hummed, waiting for Krat. As to the humming, she did that only because she wasn't in the clear yet to be herself. The two others were still there. "Do you hear the people sing? Into the valley of the night. It is a music of a people who are climbing to the light..."
Cassie:
Kaleb kept trotting and following the scent of the house. His nose was lifted in the air, scrunched at the end, keeping the smell coming. As he got closer, he smelled something else. It was closer, more prominent. Kind of musky, like an animal. His nose led him towards that scent. Not too far away from him, he spotted a big black wolf, no, Kratos, sniffing the ground. He saw Kratos look up, and stare directly into his green eyes with his yellow ones. Kaleb flinched slightly. And was that surprise on his face?
Kaleb felt a growl rumble in his throat, and his fur slightly lift. His tail made a straight line behind him like a flag. Something had made him do this, Kaleb wasn't completely sure of how he had just done that. Slowly, he crept foward, his growl gettting a bit louder. But as he neared Kratos, his posture changed, and his growl subsided. Then he stood there, a couple feet away from him, staring into the Alpha's yellow eyes and waiting for something to happen.
****
Alice watched as Kratos quickly morphed and ran off after Kaleb. She sat down on the ice, finally getting time to catch her breath. She wiped her forehead in exasperation, sure Kratos could help Kaleb.
May:
Kratos watched Kaleb approach carefully. At first he wasn't sure what to expect of the young lad, but as he translated Kaleb's body language, Kratos found himself less than pleased.
The younger wolf was challenging the Alpha's authority with a stance of dominance and leveling his eyes.
This did not appeal to Kratos' instincts and he felt as if Kaleb had just sassed or mocked him. As a result, the Alpha's teeth were bared and his stare became more intense. Then he took a step forward, warning the younger werewolf to back down or suffer the consequences.
****
Ulric watched Kieoki with a steady eye. Then he turned to his adoptive mother and took her by the hand.
Ulric could see that Resme had been a bit shocked by the interaction of the two werewolves, and his hand was to help her understand that it was somewhat natural for werewolves to be so violent in speech.. They didn't think on the same levels a normal man would when angered.
Resme, however, did not believe anything was a good excuse for violence, but she would say nothing once again. With a sigh, she looked at Ulric's face, then in the direction which Kratos had gone.
Ulric followed Resme's gaze to the corner of the cottage and sighed.
He then turned to look at the Beta whom had come with Kratos from the fields earlier. "May I go see what is taking your Alpha so long?" Ulric asked humbly.
Mariel:
"...For the wretched of the earth, it is the flame that never dies. The darkness will always set and the sun will rise." Yes, Kieoki was still humming, and attention was being drawn away from her.
Perfect.
Smirking to herself now that she had her back to the two new people and the beta was off down the driveway and Krat was nowhere to be seen, Kieoki silently crept back into the woods and vanished from sight. She had made up her mind, and now was running along softly to where she'd stashed her things. They were hidden well, under a large boulder, and it took her only a few minutes to locate the correct boulder. The next moments were spent on her knees as she leaned down and dug out her things, worried that she'd chosen the wrong rock until her hand touched the soft silk of her kimono.
Sighing in happiness, she pulled everything out, setting her kimono ontop of the boulder along with her dagger and a cast iron frying pan that she often used for cooking. She untied her blood red sash and set it there too before she glanced around, made for certain that she was alone, and then quickly changed out of her clothes and into her kimono. After having missed her white clothes, she sighed and easily tied the sash back around her waist and tucked her dagger into it, and picked up the frying pan. Yes, it was black and heavy (the frying pan that is) but it could suite as an effective weapon if she couldn't reach her dagger for some reason.
Holding the pan over her shoulder, Kieoki smirked and headed back towards the house, her steps light and airy.
May:
Alpha Note: Wrapping this roleplay up now.
At the end of a very long day, the pack was once again together. As friends and strangers alike, all were accepted for and despite of their differences.
Kratos learned from his mother that the pack of his father had returned to claim an Alpha and see an end to their era of confusion. Rosa explained that the other pack had sought a younger and more loyal leader, indeed they had sought the heir to their previous leader, but were denied by the Alpha, Kratos' father. Thus with no alternative, the pack forced their previous Alpha to lead them once again.
Rosa explained to Kratos and to his pack of the Werewolves whom roamed in the city, and of their success in secret. She told that many of the pack members held jobs of authority among regular human beings and that they supported their leader with a large fund, despite their Alpha's protests. Rosa also told of how Kratos' father wished to give their son a portion of the money which they had no use, to help support him and his pack.
Rosa had kept Kratos' location secret from her husband's followers, for she feared that they still sought a better leader. Rosa continued to explain how she had set out in secret to bring Kratos and his pack the means of support which her husband had intended for them. Ulric had been urged by his adoptive father to go with Rosa; to be a form of protection until she could reach her destination.
Rosa then related the story of how Ulric came to be her son. She explained that shortly after the pack had forced her husband to reclaim his position among them, that the pack brought the Alpha an orphaned child. They had said that the boy's parents had been members of the pack before they were killed by an unknown source, and that the child had been raised by the pack since that time.
At the close of the conversation, Rosa gave Kratos the large sum of money which had been sent by his father. Then Ulric and Rosa bid their farewell to Kratos' pack and left Zeit's ranch; driving into the night and vanishing from view. It was nearly midnight, so all were immediately excused to their beds, all except Timothy and Sabrina, whom Kratos reprimanded for another hour before sending them away to sleep. All were undoubtedly weary from the day's events and contentions, so not another word was spoken throughout the house for the rest of the night..
To Be Continued...
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