Ghastly Woods but baby don't let winter come

One thing that the girl had always learned was that her life was set out for her, predetermined by something whether that be her subconscious or some unknown external force. She’d believed that because of quite a few sticky situations she’d gotten out of… and part of it thought it was her sister blaming her, taking revenge against her for leading her to certain death by continuing in their little after-dark lessons. Either way, it was her paws that led her to the dark and decrepit woods that sent a chill down her spine. These lands were strange, a fact she’d defend. She’d never quite seen anything like them and she couldn’t put her paw on what made them so different.

She heard what she thought were whispers that sent her on edge, rightfully so given that if a whisper was real… what would become of her? She wasn’t sure, but the idea had her watching every step carefully, double checking lines to make sure there wasn’t a border to be found… but what pack would settle in such a creepy place? It was an honest question, but who knew, maybe the wolves were into really creepy forests that were hard to navigate because of the strange darkness and sense of death that lingered there. Maybe it was just their thing.

She was doing her best to just navigate the way she came, back to the fields and maybe farther south as spring and summer started to settle into her pelt… perhaps she’d find a pack, though she did not hold that in high hopes… but with pups on the way and the possibility of demons, no matter how imaginary they might be to her, coming back to haunt her. She heard what sounded like another whisper as her head snapped again, looking behind her. "H-He-Hello?" She found herself stuttering out of the debilitating dread at the idea of receiving an answer to that questioned statement.

The woods were far different from the drooping willows he called home; in fact, the shadow actually preferred the gloomy forest opposed to his home. He did not walk among the tall trees often enough and immediately felt guilty for evading the place. With expert precision the yearling cut through the woods, his slender body slithering around the trees, relishing in the darkness that engulfed him. This was where Greer was in his element; this was where he belonged. If he could leave the tormented willows behind and immerse himself in the woods, Greer would have done it long ago. Unfortunately, living on his own did not seem feasible — and he could not abandon his family until he knew they were left in good paws. And there were puppies on the way — more heirs to the throne. He rolled his eyes at the thought. Unless Morganna was dethroned there would be no female Archer to claim the throne until she died. That was the only way his sister would go; if she was killed. The spider queen would not leave her position without a fight.

Thoughts of his family caused a deep frown to cut across his lips. He had retreated to the comforting darkness of the woods in order to escape his family not to have them lingering in the back of his mind. Unfortunately, eliminating them from his thoughts was much more difficult than he had anticipated.

Rather than avoiding the unfamiliar scent that wafted through the trees Greer was intrigued by it. It was not very often that others willingly entered the forest; most avoided it like the plague. Perplexed by the appearance of the lone female, the shadow pursued her trail, brows furrowed as he lowered his body to the ground, allowing the darkness to turn him invisible.

It was quite evident that the female was both lost and spooked by her new surroundings. Fresh meat, he thought to himself as he observed the russet female from behind a tree, his mercury gaze narrowing as he studied the young girl. Her pelt was pack-free, and for a moment envy consumed the slender raven. He dismissed it quickly as he crept closer, keeping his body low and using the dark tree trunks to help him camouflage into his surroundings. Something had the girl spooked — he was not surprised. These woods were not for the faint of heart or those easily frightened. Greer had gotten used to the surroundings and embraced them. He was not so sure that the blue-eyed girl was keen on letting the darkness in…

Her voice called out, hesitant as the word struggled to fall off her tongue. He remained quiet for a moment, simply observing the young girl before he called out with a soft woof, alerting the girl of his presence. He slunk out from behind a tree, his head tilted to the side as he studied the agouti stranger. He did not offer any more words but remained, his curiosity getting the best of him.

There was a lack of certainty about her when she stumbled about places like this, a ersatz personality almost lingering beneath her fur. She was naturally friendly, social, but in a place like this? She wanted to run and to hide… but she couldn’t because she did not know these lands and she could not navigate herself back to the open fields she’d been in the matter of a day before… she feared a response from these woods, a response meaning that the whispers she thought she heard might be real, an attack might linger… and then she heard the soft woof that practically made her jump out of her fur with alarm, eyes wide as her tail lashed from side to side for a few seconds… and then she spotted the figure and he was alone.

Her tail dropped again as she regained some semblance of control over herself, curiosity pulling at her crown now as she tipped her head softly to the side as she noticed a few more things about him. His pelt was black like a raven that allowed him to blend in, and her eyes had a hard time seeing him seeing as they were not used to the constant darkness the woods provided. He smelled like a pack. Had she trespassed? No, surely not, because she would have smelt the border if she had, and this boy would be chasing her away if she had as well.

He said nothing, did not move though kept a curious look on his own features as she squinted a little bit to try and get a better look, taking one cautious step towards the male. Was he a spirit, there to guide her out? Did she even believe in such things? She was uncertain to say the least as she offered more words, more confident this time… she was not alone, and that surely meant the woods were not haunted, didn’t it? “Hello, who are you?” It was a curious and friendly placed question, her general disposition shifting, though an evident discomfort with her surroundings still lingered within her muscles.

Perhaps he knew the lands well, and perhaps this boy would be willing to guide her out of the creepy forest… though she was sure she could get used to it in time, the dark had frightened her. It hadn’t always… but everything bad, in her experience, happened in the dark. Everything because the dark was where shadows and demons played.

While his brother planned to overthrow their uncle Greer was still unsure of how beneficial he change of leadership would be. The shadow had a feeling that part of Skoll’s motives behind his big move was so he could fight for Hecate’s position in the pack. Morganna was not pleased about the floozy’s pregnancy; Greer suspected his sister would deal with the situation as soon as Nicolo’s position was dealt with. A frown creased his maw at the thought. It had been so long ago that the shadow and the kestrel actually had some sort of friendship — perhaps even a relationship of sorts — only for it to be ruined by her choice in Archer’s. Now the mere thought of her name left a bitter taste in his mouth. Whatever it was that Morganna had planned for the banshee Greer would support one hundred and ten percent.

The stranger was startled by his appearance (and the silence that came with it), which did not surprise him. His appearance was rather unsettling — and paired with the eeriness of the woods, Greer would have been frightened if he encountered himself. He was thankful for the arrival of spring; the snow was quickly melting and rain would arrive in it's place. Which meant that it would be much easier for the yearling to linger in the shadows than it had been under winter’s grasp.

Her voice called out once more, asking for his name with curiosity coating her words. His frown deepened as soon as silence engulfed them once more. It was clear that the girl did not know where she was, but the shadow did not know if he wanted to help her. These woods weren’t too difficult to get out of — if one did not mind walking aimlessly in circles for awhile before finding their way out…

Reluctantly he responded to the blue-eyed girl with a frown curled around his words: “Greer. Who girl?” Not that he cared. Names meant little to the leggy yearling; he was much better at remembering faces as opposed to names (unless he wanted to). He stepped away from the tree he had been lurking beside, his pale gaze fixated on the agouti loner. What had brought her to the deep, dark woods?

Lilya always had concerns about the dark. The dark was terrifying and rightfully so… it was full of demons with wings that could fly from above and death seemed to follow the darkness everywhere. It was something that she could never imagine wishing upon anyone… especially with the demons she believed to haunt her every footstep. It was the main reason she found herself constantly moving, refusing to settle down in a place where she could have some semblance of a family again, granted they’d never be her family… they’d never be Maelia or Caecia or Sebastian… they couldn’t even match her siblings.

She wanted to slow down, have a place she knew she could return to without fearing retribution in the war, the last Valrorys… unless her parents had won but they’d been outnumbered… there had been far too much support for the forces that had opposed Otter’s Run. It had been troubling, and she’d run because she’d never been made for war. She could do a lot of things, she knew she could fight… but war was never for a mind like hers… she preferred talking to tooth and claw, working her way out of situations that way.

She felt significantly better about the situation when he offered a name, speaking to her for the first time, noting his voice, a seemingly broken tongue, words tossed together but close enough to understand his questions towards her. It was very curious, this shadow lingering and speaking with her in such a terrifying place… she wanted to ask if he lived in such a frightful place but she found herself holding her tongue on that end, working out his question and answering with a friendly yet weary smile. She was a friendly person… just these woods really freaked her out.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Greer.” She started before she offered her name to him in return for his confession of what he was called. “M’name is Lilya… most just call me Lil though.” She even offered up a nickname, figuring it couldn’t really hurt in any aspect, still looking over her shoulder as the whispers she kept hearing from the trees that surrounded her… the forest was dark and full of terrors, and the forest almost seemed to be alive… most terrifying indeed.

The girl seemed out of her comfort zone but it was to be expected. There were not many wolves who enjoyed the presence of darkness like Greer did. It was where he felt he truly belonged. Within it there was no family drama or untrustworthy wolves who were trying to weasel their way up the ranks of Willow Ridge. It was unfortunate the friendship he had formed with Hecate in the beginning had turned into something so foul, but she had done it to herself. The shadow had done everything he could to be there for the pale girl, and she had toyed with him (and his youthful naivety). What was happening to the wicked witch was all her doing; he would not defend her. Not now, not ever.

A smile worked it's way onto the male’s dark maw as the stranger spoke once more, her voice soft as it pierced the dense air between them. The boy was not particularly fond of names — he generally referred to wolves based on their appearance, as he had no desire to get to know those he (reluctantly) encountered. “Lil,” he repeated with a quick nod, although he could not promise that he would remember it. Her unusually bright eyes were what the shadow would remember, not her name.

He watched her glance around nervously as curiosity bubbled up inside of him, his head tipping to one side as an amused expression unfolded across his maw. “Not like woods?” He asked before he could stop himself, an ear half folded as he waited for a response from the young loner. Something had the girl spooked, and while he was not interested in what, his boyish curiosity had gotten the better of him.

Lilya was almost certain that the reason the dark had unnerved her so much was because everything bad had taken place in the dark… it had been the middle of the night, out on one of their runs, that her sister had been killed… the first attacks of the war had been under the swarthy cloak of the night and it had been night when she’d run, convinced that they were after her despite her efforts to throw her scent trail off with water and mud. Either way, the dark had never been too kind to her, and it didn’t allow her to blend in as well like it did Greer.

He repeated her name and she let a soft and somewhat relaxed smile onto her face, though her muscles remained tense, trying to figure out just what was going on and more importantly, how to get out of there. Though his question pulled her from her planning as she thought about it. She shook her head. “It’s not the woods… dark puts me on edge… I’ve got demons who’ve been followin’ me… m’fraid they’re gonna get closer in a place like this.” She explained carefully, lacking details for obvious reason – she’d just met him.

She almost wondered why he was asking, though it could simply be because she was evidently not completely there in the middle of a creepy forest, lacking the ability to relax… those were generally good indicators that something was up.

“Dark is good,” he retorted quickly with a soft nod to confirm his words. A soft smile rolled onto his obsidian features as he studied the blue-eyed girl with quiet curiosity. How could someone so young have demons lurking in the darkness? “Close only if Lil allow.” The darkness was his friend — any of his demons resided in the light, not in the dark.

Whatever was plaguing the agouti loner was none of his business, nor did he care. His curiosity could be subdued, even if it bubbled furiously within his chest, questions hovering on the tip of his tongue but never entering the space between them. The Archer-Lyall was a private wolf. Despite the continuous family drama Greer did not like publicizing what went on behind the willows. He hardly even liked talking about himself, let alone his own family. Keeping secrets was something the shadow was exceptionally good at — mostly due to his reluctance to speak and his desire to isolate himself from those around him.

Focusing his attention to the pale girl once more, his forehead creased as he thought of a way to steer the conversation away from Lilya and her demons.

“Way out?” Greer asked suddenly, motioning over his shoulder with a flick of his nose. As a result of his frequent visits to these particular woods, Greer was quite familiar with how to get in and out without much difficultly. An inexperienced wolf might end up spending a few extra hours lost among the trees, and while the bright-eyed loner was nothing but a stranger to him, Greer felt that she did not deserve to be lost. A wolf of the shadows, this particular forest felt like home to him, but he understood why Lilya was reluctant to linger.

There was a soft smile across her features, trying to remain friendly despite the rather eerie environment that they found themselves in… one he appeared to be used to, perhaps even enjoyed… a curious wolf, and perhaps a friend. She wasn’t sure if he was the friend type though, some were and some weren’t. He quickly retorted saying that the dark was a good thing, and then offered words strung together in something she wouldn’t have expected from him, a soft smile that gave her a small sliver of hope in her heart. Close only if Lil allow. She wished it were that simple… but these were physical demons, not mental ones. Her demons lurked all around her… but they could get closer to her if she couldn’t see as far just as she could not in the nighttime hours.

“Wolves killed my family… they’re still after me.” She explained softly to him, unsure of exactly why she was giving these details. He was arguable one of the most intimidating wolves she’d met from around these parts thus far with his broken English and love of the dark… but she didn’t feel threatened. She was too young to have demons, but war created them wherever it went and after seeing her sister die in front of her, it was something she knew she’d carry for quite some time. He offered a way out, motioning with a flick of his nose over his shoulder and she offered a wider smile in return. “Thank you, Greer.” She showed her gratitude with a few small steps in that direction.

To be honest, she wasn’t entirely sure that he was a wolf… perhaps just a ghost, a spirit of the night… but she liked to think he was real, and a friend at that… but friends were often hard to make, and impossible to determine after one encounter.