Broken Timber Pines Pack Thread

Eirian could not dismiss the slow off kilter shift of the pale coated queen's atmosphere over the past few weeks. Despite his ink-lined lips wanting to bring such truths to light and her futile; in his opinion, attempts at concealing the obvious worry that gnawed away at her internally waning with each setting moon, the russet pelted man could not do such. There had been no need to guess the reasoning, though, as his frequent border patrols aided his olfactory senses in picking up the answer. Day by day the musky cologne of Koda's scent upon the borders grew weaker with a promise to be washed away completely by the snow if the Reinier man did not return soon.

Cream tinted limbs were trudging along the windey, compacted highway marking the western edge of their territory when the soft call of @Iopah broke onto the frigid air, bringing the male second to a temporary standstill. The gentle howl echoed off the surrounding cedar and redwood timber before the air grew still once more. Dark laced audits perked forward instantaneously in apprehension of the warning that was sure to come next, but his inner ears were greeted solely by another melancholic croon by his queen. A croon that warranted an answering call from the patrolling brute.

Skull tipped back and citrus gaze falling to a soft close the ebony leather of his lips pulled apart as jaws parted, vocal chords producing a baritone howl designed for the awaiting ears of the matriarch. His song was kept in a casual tone as it informed the queen of his current whereabouts and task, fading off with a simple question. Are you alright? Eirian hastened his pace to gallop threw loosened snow and leap over fallen sentinels to close the gap between himself and the queen before she could answer. His muscled frame pushing through the last stretch of vegetation that separated the two wolves, tangerine irises coming to settle on the seated light coated woman just outside the communal den. "Is everything alright?" The dark agouti brute reiterated his previous question in a soft spoken tone, ears splayed back momentarily in anticipation for her answer. 

A steady silence was the only answer to Eirian's spoken question at first, citrus irises swiftly dropping their gaze to focus on the obscured outline of Iopah's creamy paws against the snowy ground when the golden hue of her own sought the features of his face. Despite the obvious factor of the dark agouti wolf being the sole male left to dwell among the cedars and redwoods pointing toward him being the rightful new male heir to the throne, the title of leader was not yet his to make tangible. Unless personally adorned the gold encrusted crown upon his brow by the female before him, Eirian Asurn was still but a wolf forced to play his part as the subservient subordinate. Luckily, he was a patient wolf and patience was always rewarded.

The quietness continued to linger in the expanse of space between the two wolves until finally it was shattered by an obvious statement. "He should have been back by now," Russet audits perked forward in response to the utterance, no hint needed about who the he was being referenced to as tangerine gaze dared sneak a small glance toward the cream coloration of Iopah's chest before dropping back down to their previous position. Koda. "Something must have happened to him, everything is not alright." she expressed as his ears splayed back, finally voicing the worry he knew to be troubling the forest matriarch, but what could he possibly say in that moment? He had not a lick of information pertaining to the missing king that would put her at ease and in truth the guy was just another obstacle in his path to success under the name of the castellated Asurns. One that now was neatly cast aside without his paws having to lift a toe. It was so nice when he didn't have to do the dirty work himself.

Craning his mighty skull toward the ground to keep his posture submissive, leathery lips pursed in thought for the right words to utter in return. It was hard feigning the part of sympathetic pack-mate when Eirian was raised on lessons of brute strength and power being everything while emotions left you vulnerable and weak. And the Asurns had no use for weak wolves. "It's been a fear plaguing the back of my mind lately. I can not say I know Koda well enough to know what he is truly capable of handling, but even I know its been too long." That much was true as the statement flitted off his salmon tongue. Giving pause before continuing onward, eyes still glued to snow dusted paws. "What would you have me do to make things alright again?" Voice lathered thickly with the genuine concern of a loyal subordinate. Yes, Iopah may not be pure in the eyes of an Asurn, but loyalty always ran deeper than hatred. 

Eirian listened intently as the pale agouti woman spoke further on the situation, informing him of her promise to search for the missing patriarch should an instance such as this arise. It was a search that guaranteed no positive feedback, or even an answer to her worries at all, but the woman seated before him was determined to try her best regardless and this had earned the respect of the Asurn brute. Iopah continued on then to answer his question, revealing that she needed him to step up and fill in the abandoned role Koda once filled. It would now be his duties to rule over these woods alongside her, should he accept such a fate and Eirian was more than willing to have a taste of what he was sent here to do.

Hesitantly the subordinate took a couple steps forward, the top of his rust hued muzzle nudging the creamy underside of her own in a submissive gesture to somehow soothe the worries he knew to be festering in her mind having to make such a decision, but her paws were tied. He knew this, she knew this. "When Koda returns, I will step down as your co-leader to return his rightful position. But until then I will give my all to see this pack continues to survive in his absence." As much as the first bit tasted like bile on his tongue, Eirian knew it was the wisest move he could make. The Asurn brute couldn't afford to make any missteps and refusing the king his crown back after simply filling in as replacement for however long it took was foolish. There was trust yet to be earned within the pack, not only by his leaders, but by his fellow subordinates. If he couldn't win them all over his chances at seeking a permanent placement at the top of the totem pole could be kissed goodbye. He had to play it smart.