It was days like today that Naia longed to be with @Inali. As she paced to the northern edge of the Cedarwood Forest, she could feel springtime rustling through her fur with the wind. The air was warm and the sun was bright; a perfect day for reveling in your lover’s presence. The patches of sunlight dappling the forest floor became bigger as the trees thinned out and eventually gave way to the enormous fields of blackberry bushes that stretched on toward the horizon. Naia drew to a halt at the edge of the trees, knowing that the field was all that was separating her from her feisty Downs lady.

She flexed her paws in frustration, and she felt her claws sink into the soft soil beneath her. How she wished she could take off across the field and fall into her lover’s embrace! She had a job to do though, and a forest go guard... Being a scout had its perks as she was able to travel around wherever she liked in the general area without raising eyebrows, but if she took off for the Downs unannounced every time the desire hit her she would probably start smelling more like blackberries than cedars.

The announcement of the big move would have been a great excuse to visit Black Thorn Downs, if only Maksim and Kisla would go ahead and announce it. Naia imagined the whole pack knew of the coming changes, as it’s difficult to keep something like that a secret when everyone shares sleeping space. Whispers were rampant, and it was no longer a question of “if” the River wolves were moving so much as “when”.  Until the decision was official though, Naia knew it was best to remain firmly planted in the Cedars. The last thing she needed was for someone to question whether her relationship was affecting her work.

It was as if their energies were connected somehow; she yearned for her lover and here she was, a lithe, graceful woman weaving through the berry bushes. Naia smiled as she noticed Inali catch her scent in the air, and that smile widened as her lover made a beeline for her. As her other half brushed against her, Naia felt her pain as easily as if it had been her own. The River scout wrapped her neck around Inali’s in an embrace, pulling her close as if contact alone could transfer the pain from Inali to herself. “Inali,” Naia breathed her name after she inhaled her alluring scent. It had been too long. She stood there for a moment in Inali’s silent embrace, very much wishing they could remain like this forever instead of discussing whatever pained the Downs scout so much. Inali hesitated to speak also, and Naia sensed her reluctance to broach the subject. After a long moment Naia pulled away gently, concerned gaze searching out Inali’s azure eyes.

”Inali, what is it?” Naia asked, voice barely a sigh. She began licking her lover’s face in a desperate attempt to comfort her, and she buried her nose once more in the fur behind Inali’s ear.“Is it Noble?  Is she…” she finally dared to ask, whispering softly into the Downs woman’s ear. The death of a pup was so distressing to the point that it was almost unthinkable, let alone unspeakable.. but it was the only thing Naia could imagine that could have Inali so upset. Without even waiting for the answer, Naia felt tears of sympathy begin to burn in her own honey eyes. How would she feel if it had been Orren who had disappeared? If it was Orren’s body found limp, unmoving…? Naia began to tremble, searching her lover’s face for answers, silently urging her to speak.

Relief flooded Naia when her fellow scout denied that her mood had anything to do with the young Downs princess. The feeling was short lived however, and Naia gasped when she felt her tongue slide over Inali’s fresh wound. She pulled away slightly to inspect her love’s face, a very uncharacteristic growl rumbling in her chest. It was a wordless question, at the same time threatening and curious, who has done this?” Inali began to speak of tensions with another pack, Secret Woodlands, and Naia’s brow furrowed. Had Black Thorn Downs gotten themselves mixed up in a war? Was this why Inali’s face was scarred up? With the looming threat of the southern packs, Cut Rock River would not be able to lend their allies support.. Naia hoped dearly Inali had not showed up to request reinforcements, because she would hate to deny her lover anything she asked.

It seemed that there was more to this story, though. Inali continued, sharing her own feeling about the war and her leader’s decisions. A cold, terrified feeling was beginning to settle in the pit of Naia’s stomach. She nodded cautiously to confirm that yes, she did know Inali, and she knew her lover would proceed with caution in that situation because it was what she herself would have done.  It’s what she had done, not so long ago when her pack had been at war with Hollowheart Keep .  She had spoken to Maksim and convinced him of a need to negotiate a peace treaty. However, it seemed that this was not Inali’s chosen course of action—if she had spoken to Minka privately and attempted to change her leader’s mind she didn’t  say so, and instead she launched into an explanation of her visit with the leader of Secret Woodlands. The tense feeling in Naia’s stomach turned to dread as she anticipated what Inali was about to tell her.

Oh no, Inali, what have you done?! Naia wanted to embrace and shake her lover at the same time. Perhaps Minka was thinking with anger and not logic, but Inali hadn’t reacted with logic either. Informing the Woodlands of impending attack was a betrayal of the Downs, no matter the reason or how you looked at the situation. Perhaps Inali had been depended on her friendship with Minka to cushion her from judgement, or maybe she thought preventing a war would cancel out the treacherous act. Clearly that’s not how Minka saw it, and it seemed if Minka  was “thinking with anger instead of logic” then Inali should have predicted her reaction. Naia sighed, knowing hindsight vision always was more accurate than looking straight ahead.  

“Inali.. Inali I’m so sorry,” she murmured, pulling her lover once more into an embrace. Her heart broke for the former Downs scout. She could only imagine how she could feel if she lost everything; her home, her friends and family, and her pack, cast out in disgrace.. “I’m here love, I’m not lost, I’m right here..” Naia reassured the woman, and as she spoke the words she felt a twinge of pain. She might be here right now, but Cut Rock River would surely relocate soon, and then what? “Inali, what will we do? What will you do? Is there to be war between the Downs and the Woodlands?” If Inali was an enemy of the Downs, the most logical move was to ask this Nina woman for shelter. But of course Inali couldn’t join the Woodlands and fight her former family and loved ones if the war was still on.

The scout dropped her head when Inali confirmed that her plan was to shelter within Secret Woodlands so long as war had been averted. They would have to go back to concealing their relationship, and this time for more than just convention-- Naia would not be welcome in Inali’s packlands and neither she in Naia’s. The honey-eyed woman nodded all the same; it was a much safer option than roughing it as a lone wolf. Though she would worry about Inali’s safety less, the arrangement was far from ideal for the faithful Second. When Inali had been a Downs wolf their relationship might have raised a few eyebrows, but this.. this was different. Naia knew if she were to be seen meeting in secret with an enemy of the Downs, her loyalty would come into question, as it no doubt should. Where did her loyalties lie?

“Oh, Inali!” Naia gasped when her mate revealed her intentions to revisit the Downs. “Just.. think about it.. Bane, he might not be..” The timber woman fell silent, knowing that Inali would understand what she was trying to say. Just because Inali was willing to place a friendship over her ties to the Downs didn’t mean Bane would do the same. Though her lover spoke highly of the young man, Naia had never met him and wasn’t willing to bet Inali’s safety on it. One call to his family, and Inali would find herself all alone and surrounded by new enemies. “Please be careful,” she finally said with a gentle nudge to Inali’s muzzle. If she knew anything at all about Inali, she knew her lover would not shrink from a mission for fear of danger. It was what made her such a great scout.. but it was also what got her that scar.

Inali, attuned to her as ever, had realized that Naia had news to share too. “I’ve scented more loners than usual in the forest lately, and all the scents seem tied to one another—they may have the intention of establishing a pack here.” Naia had hesitated to bring this speculation to her leaders, feeling that it didn’t add up right in her head. Why would any sane wolf try to steal land right from under a strong, well established pack such as Cut Rock River? ”We are unequipped to fight both a war for honor with the Caverns and a war for land with these intruders.. not with the Ridge wolves undoubtedly scenting for weakness. Our forest is overcrowded by enemies, and Cut Rock River has no choice but to leave.” To fight would be suicide, as Maksim and Kisla had no doubt figured out by now. It was just a matter of when they would make the announcement. “It hasn’t yet been announced to where, or when, but I am positive it will be soon.” Maksim would not allow Kisla to deliver and raise pups in such an unsafe situation, and neither would her loyal Second for that matter.

Loyal Second. The words triggered something in her mind that had been nagging her, but Naia had previously been unable to express. Inali was a loyal Second and friend to Minka—she had proved that by following her from Whisper Caverns. This one incident of poor judgement, while Naia could understand wouldn’t have gone unpunished, should not have been enough to break that bond. What else wasn’t Inali saying? “Now you, tell me,” Naia said simply, drawing attention back to the fact that Inali had more to share too. Her eyes met Inali’s curiously.  Why was this the snowflake that broke the caribou’s back? What else had Inali been up to in the Downs that Minka had cause to question?