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this is an arms race — Willow Ridge 
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Played by Cade (inactive characters) who has 594 posts.
Inactive No Rank
Sven Archer
@Skoll

The child was growing accustomed to the breaks that his mother would take from him. This was not to say they didn't still bother him, for he very much felt out of place without her doting presence. When she wasn't within sight, he was consistently on edge, guarded against what the world might try to deal to him while she was not here to deflect the wrong from the right. He also worried for her safety, and had a sneaking, festering fear deep within that this was the time she might not return, every time. It wasn't that he doubted her love and will to come back to him; it was that he had seen the open expanse beyond his den swallow others before her. Sven did not yet understand what lie beyond his own life. For him, the horizon point was where the flat disc of the earth abruptly ended, and all who passed fell into inescapable nothing.

The blue was nearly completely absent from his eyes now, becoming lost in the thickening gray fog. They sought a plaything, something new aside from the now-ragged pinecone that had always been his favorite toy, present as long as he could remember. The sticks and stones, patches of grass and thickly piled dirt, did nothing to sway his interest. At a loss, he turned his empty sights to the form of his darkly colored guardian, the one whom Piety referred to as father. Sven felt a strong pull toward this wolf, leading to an attachment that was not quite as strong as the intimate bond between him and his mother, but still one that created a deep wealth of trust and fondness. His growing legs carried him silently to his father's presence, a grace unlikely for his age noticeable in his youthful movement.

"Fath..." like a printer out of ink, the word faded upon his tongue as it proved too difficult for him to properly wrap his tongue around. Already developing a sense of pride, Sven was rarely found babbling. If he could not get a word right, he'd rather not speak it at all than be incorrect. Only @Piety could coax him into sessions of vocal effort, when no one else was around to overhear his blundering.

"Dad," he decided on, whispy tail swaying with mild elation. Sven felt proud to finally be able to communicate the words he'd always heard adults speaking, even if his vocabulary was limited and many still tripped his tongue. "Where mom?"

His father would know. He always knew the answers to all of his questions, just as Piety did. While he never doubted his mother, there was always something deeper registering within him when Skoll spoke. His mother told him stories, tuned her words kindly to be gentle upon his ears. In contrast, Skoll's words reverberated with nothing but pure truth.

"Bored," he asserted after a moment's hesitation between this and his question, simultaneously explaining his impatience and indirectly requesting that Skoll do something to remedy the agitation.
Played by Grey who has 448 posts.
Inactive No Rank
Sköll Archer
Backdated a bit to June 7th.

His elbows and knees ached, his neck felt like it had kinks, his back hurt, and every fiber of his being pined to be at peace. While both Piety and Sven asked for little and demanded for nothing, the need to make his mate and son feel like "one of the family" had driven him into a temporary madness that could only be quelled in the dead of night when the rest of the world was fast asleep. He had just finished with attempting to find something for the boy's belly and the prize he had clutched in his jowls was not a gift that was usually bestowed upon someone dear: an old field mouse with unconventional black fur. With half-lidded eyes and a slow, easy-going stride, the royal approached the thicket. For just a few seconds, it seemed as though the little prince was asleep but, soon enough, there he was with those moon-like pale eyes and long willowy limbs.

Skoll tensed, standing in place as Sven came to greet him. Using his tongue and opening his jaws some as he raised his head out of the cub's reach, he maneuvered the rodent between his teeth. It seemed content to lay there with a warm tongue pressed to its plump belly, allowing its captor to address his son with a stony gaze. It would seem that verbal impediments ran in the family. He wondered briefly who he would have to curse for having his son inherit such a humiliating trait. The corners of his mouth leveled into a straight line as Sven wagged his tail and asked where Piety was. He might have been Piety's keeper, but he didn't keep constant tabs on her... he knew all too well that she could take care of herself. The fact that he had asked for her could only tell him that she might be babying him too much for his comfort. Skoll would correct that in time, he decided, but for now it was obvious that the little princeling was bored.

Ever so gently, he placed the mouse at Sven's paws before drawing his skull back up to look down his nose at the little lord. "Mother will be back," he spoke, his tone of voice soft yet even and flat. "For you." He gestured with his right paw to the lump of fur he had set down, certain now that the plaything he had caught was indeed nearing the end of its short life. It had had the chance to run but it had noticed Skoll, an assumed shadow, much too late. Surely the pinecone his sister had brought had already seen better days and was ready to be disposed of.

As if to spark his son's interest, he poked the tiny creature with a nail at end of his right forepaw, provoking it to produce a singular, high-pitched squeak as it tried to hobble away. It wouldn't keep his way for long but perhaps it would keep Sven's declarations of being unamused at bay for a while.

i'm a dreamer, i'm a man
i'm doing whatever i can to make the bad things go away
Played by Cade (inactive characters) who has 594 posts.
Inactive No Rank
Sven Archer
Sven's ears flicked forward and his graying eyes lit up as whatever had been betwixt his father's jaws was set before him. Reactively the boy lowered himself to the ground, forelimbs stretched out like barriers with the plaything resting uneasily between them. The continuous movement of his ears gave indication to where his attention was jumping back and forth from, swiveling upward as his father spoke and before focusing on the toy in front of his gray-stained nose.

His tail whipped slowly through the dirt behind him, muscles tensing as his instincts told him to pounce upon whatever it was. He observed it's exhausted breathing, saw the light fading from its eyes, but did not fully understand what any of this truly meant. All that he knew was that it was alive, and he had yet to see something exactly like it before. Both of these things fascinated, but more deeply Sven found he was enraptured by the sudden rush of power he felt. The beast was so small, so pitiful that Sven, a mere child, loomed over it.

"Where is she?" he asked again, but the toy was clearly doing its magic in distracting him, as the query did hold even half the force as it had the first time he'd levied it.

Then, suddenly, his father reached out and inspired both noise and movement from the living treasure, and Sven was completely rapt. To stop its movements, as well as to test exactly what all he could do with this creature, the boy's pure white paw slammed down upon the mouse's already beaten body like a gavel at the deliverance of a death sentence. Again the miniature mammal cried out in protest, perhaps demanding he be left alone or simply unable to help it, but this only encouraged the Archer heir to act again, and again.

Faintly, in the back of his mind, he recalled his mother speaking about kindness to all creatures, but it didn't exactly register with Sven that he was causing the mouse pain. All he knew was that he was getting a reaction, and that he liked the feeling of being a gargantuan monster, of having such freedom over another living thing.
(This post was last modified: Aug 13, 2015, 10:01 PM by Sven.)
Played by Grey who has 448 posts.
Inactive No Rank
Sköll Archer

The boy's question had not been lost on the young father's ears, but it was apparent that Sven's attention span had already shifted. Skoll vaguely remembered being Sven's age, being so intrigued and so taken with the idea of a live toy. A chuff was given, encouraging the chance to explore and play with the mouse. Piety was around; he was sure of it. There was no need to have his son so dependent on his mother that he couldn't be without her for more than five minutes at a time. He was Sven's parent, too, and that ought to mean something.

The dark tower bowed down, reclining onto his stomach to watch Sven play. He even crossed his forepaws in an attempt to get comfortable. He might as well; the most favorite memories he held dear were the ones with his Nonna and how she often indulged his insistent paws climbing all over her as if she were a mountain to be claimed. If it came to it, he wanted to be sure he wouldn't mind at all if his son chose to return the gesture.

He craned his head over with a smile to nudge Sven's rump in a playful manner. "She will be back," Skoll assured his one-and-only. "We'll be patient. Go--" A nod of his head continued to persuade Sven to "practice" some instinctive 'predatory' skills with his mouse. "Play."

At the back of his head, he would begin to count the seconds - moments - until Piety returned; however high the count, he was rather convinced that he wouldn't be cross if she were to, say, leave her boys there for the rest of the day while she recouped, replenishing her energy and doing whatever it was she did when he was not around.

i'm a dreamer, i'm a man
i'm doing whatever i can to make the bad things go away
Played by Staff who has 4,812 posts.
There is a moose carcass that has been scavenged by coyotes nearby. +15 Health
Played by Cade (inactive characters) who has 594 posts.
Inactive No Rank
Sven Archer
@Skoll

When the nudge had been given, the small child had paused, his paw still poised within the air, to look back at his father inquisitively. Patient? Yes, that was a virtue, his mother had informed him before. A trait that was to be treasured, and that would certainly earn him a plethora of praise if he was successful in displaying such a characteristic. A smile was thrown his papa's way as he nodded his understand, before his ears slicked back against his head and he returned to his prey. Yet as his eyes lay upon its sunken body, Sven noticed just how still it had become.

His ears pressed forward as his nose wriggled, nearly touching the tiny beastie's body with the tip of his snout as he checked it over. After a moment, the boy was able to declare with a majority of certainty that it was, "Dead." Yet what exactly did this mean for the pitiful creature? Perhaps, if he hadn't been exposed to his mother's strong faith, he wouldn't have given it a single thought. Yet as it was, he tried to piece this event together with everything she had told him over his short life.

The boy looked to his father over his shoulder once more, before turning his pudgy self around and batting the minute carcass toward Skoll's paws.

"Is... it in heaven now?"
(This post was last modified: Oct 23, 2015, 01:07 AM by Sven.)
Played by Grey who has 448 posts.
Inactive No Rank
Sköll Archer

"Dead." Skoll's mind had wandered in the seconds that it had taken for Sven to observe the mouse and it was this singular word that brought the older Archer's attention back to his son. Ghost gray eyes swept down to the rodent's motionless body as it half-rolled towards him. Maybe Sven wasn't amused by it; and, immediately, Skoll wondered if he might have brought something else for the cub to play with. A stick, perhaps, to keep that pinecone company...

He craned his head down to sniff at the small creature's face when Sven's voice came again, this time in another question. He fought the urge to scowl. Obviously Piety had been quick to put some of her parenting skills to work, laying down the foundations of her faith in order to give their son a religious understanding of the world. He almost sneered, but he bit his tongue. If she thought it was best for him, then Skoll just wasn't going to be apart of any of it. Elettra had bestowed upon him her own sense of faith - the kind that had been carried from Torbine itself - and he supposed it would be too much of a hassle if both belief systems were given to him. For now, he let Miss Santoro do all the talking.

"Heaven?" he repeated. "I think so." It might have been a little bit too much sugar-coating but the young father was willing to allow the cub his childhood - unspoiled by doubt or anything that might taint Piety's virtuous teachings. "You don't- You don't want it?" I... I caught that just for you, you little punk... This must have been how Angier felt for the better part of the past two years.

i'm a dreamer, i'm a man
i'm doing whatever i can to make the bad things go away
Played by Cade (inactive characters) who has 594 posts.
Inactive No Rank
Sven Archer
SVEN ARCHER
& the night is closing in

He awaited his father's judgment patiently, hinging wholly on what would be uttered next, for it was @Skoll 's word that would give finality to the connection suggested by Piety's many stories. Yet when finally Sven was given his answer, the phrasing of it struck him as quite odd. He thinks so? If the boy was older, he would dwelled on this much longer, perhaps even queried after it. As it was, the notion passed out of his head as quickly as it came when his father continued to speak, something slightly more tremulous escaping him. Sven was able to pick up on the hesitance, the subtle notes of shocked disappointment, and he was swift to remedy the misunderstanding.

The boy pounced upon his present once more, before pulling it closely to him with both forepaws. He did want it, was grateful for everything his father brought him, but he did not want to play with it by himself. He wanted attention, and the pitiful creature enveloped in eternal slumber could not fill such desires now. Piety would be his first choice, but his father was a very close second, and Sven very much wanted to make the most out of their time together now that the squeaking had been silenced and could no longer amuse him.

"Play?" he asked tentatively, before throwing the carcass forward at his father's paws once more. The moment the tiny animal's remains were out of his own paws the child jumped back, crouching down and waggling his butt in the air, a tiny grin taking residence upon his stained muzzle. The boy was clearly ready to catch the mouse, should Skoll pick up on this and toss it back.

Played by Grey who has 448 posts.
Inactive No Rank
Sköll Archer

Skoll watched with inward satisfaction as Sven reclaimed his gift. Maybe if he had been blessed with two cubs, he might have favored the one who appreciated the mouse more - or, perhaps, he might have just been happy to take it back. The maowse he kept tucked away in his shadowy hiding place within Willow Ridge could have used another companion, especially since that new friend still had its tail intact.

"Play?" the boy questioned. The older Archer folded his hind limbs and he sat with a look that told his son that he was in no mood for games. That, for the most part, was Piety's job. "Not now," he relayed, just in case Sven thought to press the issue into one of a dire need for wasting precious energy. "Father tired." Today would just be one of those days in which he sorely wished he had had another child to keep this Piety-lookalike amused. Angier had gotten away without co-parenting him, Asriel, and Morganna (perhaps even Deacon, Castiel, and Greer also... though Skoll couldn't be entirely sure since he had spent most of his yearling days resenting the Lyall trio's mere existence), so should he be subject to such things? Skoll might have believed he would have been better if Angier lent himself more to their near-father/son relationship, but at the very least, Sven had his biological father, and a royal one to boot.

Those gray eyes came to look back at his son with a rather apathetic stare and, much to dismay, he found that he couldn't resist that small smile and the way that little white rump wiggled about in unmistakable anticipation for his parent to follow through. He blinked once and slowly slide forward to recline onto his stomach, tucking his chin to his chest in order to somewhat flick the mouse towards his son. Maybe that would be enough to keep the heir entertained for a little while longer...

i'm a dreamer, i'm a man
i'm doing whatever i can to make the bad things go away
Played by Cade (inactive characters) who has 594 posts.
Inactive No Rank
Sven Archer
@Skoll, feel free to fade. <3

SVEN ARCHER
& the night is closing in

Immediately his father denied him through body language that the boy was growing to become very familiar with. A whine wormed its way up his throat but he refused to let it out, yet he could not stop his ears from folding downward toward his temples.  As much as he wanted to hide it so as not to upset the shadow, the evidence was abundant that Sven was disappointed with this denial. His eyes cast down to the ground, before a tentative swell of perseverance rose up. He lifted his gaze to find that Skoll was watching, and again the smile presented itself as he wriggled hopefully.

It paid off. The boy backed up as his father laid down, eyes glued to the minute carcass, preparing to catch it once it came his way. A flick of Skoll's nose sent it briefly into the air before it tumbled toward him, and the boy made a grand showing of pouncing upon it. His too-large paws closed around it, and he used them both to gather it before throwing it up into the air with a jerk. Watching it sail he pranced around, stomping his ivory paws gleefully. When again it landed upon the dirt he batted it again told his father, hoping to do it again. Even just this he would be content with. At least, until Piety returned, of course.