Grizzly Hollow I just had a hunch.

They weren't keeping their spat very quiet, but for once Nineva could appreciate a public display of upheaval. Initially, her gray ears were confused by the faint words they kept picking up, but as her inquisitive paws brought her closer and proximity brought about clarity, she couldn't help but feel satisfaction. Oula had let the pack down as well, but certainly not to the magnitude nor consistency that Rook had. That someone else was making their displeasure with his failures clear, rather than brushing them under the snow and slathering him with undue affection regardless, was a breath of fresh air to the woman. Sure, Veho had been cold, but didn't he still consider the man his mate? Despite the affair with Amaryllis, despite the countless times he had abandoned 'their' children, disappearing each and every time the simplest of demands were made of him?

Honestly, Nineva was amazed that he was still around now, and even more so that he seemed to be finally standing up for himself against a verbal lashing worse than any the young woman had ever thought to give him.

Their voices raised steadily as they sent out their barbs, their spite choking the air. What was this really over? Veho's affection? She chuffed bitterly to herself. Love, they probably called it. Just more evidence that such a notion was worth less than the breath it took to confess it. If love was real, it was a heinous lie upon Rook Lyall's tongue, and wouldn't a wolf of Veho's caliber have seen past that deceit? No, clearly there was something else that kept the two opposites tied together. What of Oula, what truly was she looking for? If she wanted Veho's faith and loyalty, had she really thought impregnation by a stranger would get her that?

Maybe they were both just powder kegs that could care less what they took out with themselves.

She could hear them so clearly now, and occasionally caught glimpses of their contorted features. The truths that Oula spat resonated with the woman, her own tail bristling with volition. Then Rook spoke, and a dry, humorless laugh rattled within her throat. No longer could she help herself; the circle she'd been prowling around their scene began to tighten as she drew closer, making herself known by the end of his tirade. Mismatched eyes blazing, she shamelessly joined in.

"Amaryllis doesn't know shit about you," she hissed, "how could she? How could any of us know anything more than your cowardice? You've never been here!"

Her own voice was raised, louder than she'd ever used with a pack mate before. Her rage was clear as she dove into all the memories of the pain Rook Lyall's absence caused the wolves she adored most. His pathetic sobbing and sniffling as he threw himself once again into the role of victim spiked her anger. She wanted to take him up on that, if Oula didn't. She really did. The craving ran deep throughout her muscles, caused them to thrum with electricity but she knew better. Justice was an eye for an eye, and to her knowledge, Rook had never possessed the balls to sink his teeth into another wolf. What he deserved was abandonment, to be ousted from the pack and left to survive on his own as he'd done to his wife, to his paramour, to his only son, to his adopted brood, to them all.

If only Nineva possessed that power.

"You're a fucking parasite, Rook Lyall. You'd love a good beating so that you could wear the scars like a martyr, have more tears to cry, turn belly up to Veho and bathe in his god damn pity. What about Tomen?"

Her voice picked up in pitch as she finally brought up the name she hadn't dared to whisper since the boy had left her.

"You didn't even look for him, did you? You fucking crawled around until Veho came along and couldn't spare your time for him, couldn't even ask a single thing about him, your own fucking son!"

She remembered vividly that time that Tomen had finally broken down, the pain he kept locked inside of himself from what was done to him when his father had destroyed their family. All for Veho. All for the same wolf he dumped the pack upon and then only came crawling back to when he wanted to tumble around in the brush for a week or two. Her eyes were beginning to sting, but she wouldn't cry like he always did. Her voice did crack, however, as she barked out one final accusation:

"You're the reason he's gone! Tomen's fucking gone because of you and I'll never get him back!"

Even if he did return to the Hollow, things wouldn't ever be the same. How could she trust him now? He could she look at him without seeing the Lyall in him? What they'd had, the most precious bond she'd ever possessed, was nothing but ash now.

Oula watched him, all the muscles of her body humming with long pent-up rage. He had started well enough, putting his foot down against her vicious tirade, but it only went downhill from there. It disgusted her, seeing the highest ranking male currently in the territory sniveling, whining, crying to be punished rather than stand up for himself like a man. That he would just let her tear into his flesh only infuriated her further. It was an insult. She wanted a fair fight, not to beat up a sobbing boy. She snarled, her lips curled in a sneer. As much as she wanted to hurt him, let him physically feel the pain in her heart, it would be disgraceful to fight a wolf who would not fight back. 

She looked down her nose at him, cold disdain in her eyes. But before she could place the next barb on her tongue, the pack's second materialized from the forest in what might as well have been a veil of flames. Oula's venom had just been the appetizer, and Nineva brought the main course. 

The cream and grey female stepped back, ducking her head down slightly and allowing Nineva to confront the overgrown boy herself. As much as she currently detested the Hervok, she was happy enough to temporarily consider the enemy of her enemy her friend, at least for as long as Nineva was raking Rook over the coals. Quietly she urged Nineva on, her hard stare remaining trained on rook.

Oula did not expect the brittle sound that entered Nineva's typically righteous tone at Tomen's name. She'd never noticed the relationship they'd had, but it was clear that the departure of Tomen weighed heavily on the girl. Rook had failed his son, failed his three adopted children, and somehow he thought the third time would be the charm? 

Oula bared her teeth, an unimpressed expression leveled upon Rook. "You give up too easily." The growl rumbled between her clenched teeth. "You take care of your family this time, blood or otherwise, or else I will make sure that is the end of it." And the end of Rook Lyall. 

Oops I, did it again, I forgot what I was losing my mind about
Oh, I only wrote this down to make you press rewind
And send a message that I was young and a menace
If I am off the deep end
I'm just here to become the best yet
I'm just here for the psych assessment
- Fall Out Boy, "Young and Menace"

---

A chill seized him from all sides, anticipation readily burning him up within to keep out most of the bite in the air. It wasn't Oula that struck out though, it was Nineva, albeit verbally. Upon her tongue accusations - truthful ones, even, for the most part - spilled out, one after the other. Years ago, these figurative sticks and stones would have bruised and hurt, casting down his ego and spurning his pride. He would have cried and run away; he was in a different place now, however, and when his glare had once been placed upon Veho's other mate, it was cast in the gray-furred girl's direction.

"You're a fucking parasite, Rook Lyall." She continued on, "You'd love a good beating so that you could wear the scars like a martyr, have more tears to cry, turn belly up to Veho and bathe in his god damn pity. What about Tomen?"

Ah, Tomen... She'd placed barbs in his heart over this, with his first- and only son gone missing. It had to have been expected; his mother and father had told him time and time again of his older brothers' and sisters' ventures. The very first of them had drowned at a young age, the second-born of that litter ran off with his only-remaining littermate (not unlike what had happened with the Whitebark-Macieo litter just a few months ago)... The middle brothers had seen their younger sisters wander off within moments of the cusp of adolescence (much like he and Tomen had done). It was natural. If Rook had to be at fault, it was for assuming Tomen needed the space to grow on his own - not to remove himself from his own father's stupidity and selfishness and whatever else.

"You didn't even look for him, did you?" Rook wished she would stop, but she had so much to say. All he could think about was how long the girl had kept it all bottled up inside. "You're the reason he's gone! Tomen's fucking gone because of you and I'll never get him back!"

The Lyall's lips pursed. All this uproar because Nineva thought she would never get Tomen back. Oh, this sounded very familiar. Once upon a time. His breath came in heavy waves that exited from his nostrils. It was quite possibly the only thing that was keeping him in line; though, he might have very much preferred being Oula's punching bag and leaving it at that - he wouldn't even tell Veho where he got the limp or additional muzzle wounds or any injury in particular. It would have been for his own good.

His heart beat frantically in his chest like a trapped bird as he lifted his lip to Nineva, just a little show of his clenched teeth, a little bit of warning. He opened his mouth to speak, but Oula growled at him first, "You give up too easily." Inwardly, he shrugged, but her ultimatum instilled within him a sort of anchor that made sure he didn't repeat the same mistake twice. He would answer her in a moment.

"I failed Tomen, I get it--" He scoffed at the youth. "Do you not think I know what it is like to grow up without a father, huh?" A small pause to assemble more sentences, get the right mix of poison and comprehension, because while he knew Nineva was right, it was clear she didn't know the whole story. He'd let her slide.

"At least I was there when Quil WASN'T!" it was his turn to splinter and crack. "I loved her! I... didn't even understand..." His head whipped around to look at Oula, as if to make sure that she was still there, "You blame me for everything when all I've done is try to do what's right instead of doing nothing about it. If you wanted Tomen back, why didn't you go after him?! I've looked for Quil, I went looking for Cinder..." Had he known Oula better, been on better terms with her, he might have realized when Ophelia came gamboling about when her mother was missing that Oula's absence was a big deal. He might have gone looking for her and dragged Felix with him too. It was much too late to atone for that, and here she stood. He sighed at Nineva now, "Tomen is a Lyall and you can't change that. We wander and only distance can stamp out that itch until it's time to come home. You weren't born into Grizzly Hollow, Nineva, you were adopted into it! I didn't even know what you were playin' at but you lied to us and Veho and I still kept you! If you wanted to go look for Tomen, you could've gone, your true loyalty isn't here when your real family is out there." This reminded him about Arlette and the stories his father told when he reminisced back to his time on the Mountain of Dire and how, eventually, she returned to Relic Lore to find Fenru.

His tail bristled but every other aggressive display that Oula had summoned had gone. "Stop pinning your faults on me," he shook his head at the girl, all emotion stamped out apart from solemness. "Do what you want, I don't care! I have my own shit to deal with. You want my help, you can have it, it's what I'm supposed to be doing... If not, that's fine... I'll leave you alone. Whatever it takes to keep things working while Veho's gone." The bits where the exchange had touched upon his former love life, his naivety and poor decisions, and how he believed that things with him and Tomen had been alright all along still stung, but he would deal with it later in private.

"As for you," his tone was no longer demeaning or defensive. The familiar lilt that made up his voice, a hint of sadness and a touch of realization that something had been his fault, "I understand--" his brows rose, "--and I'll hold you to it."

To both women now, he asked in the most neutral tone possible, "Are we done here? Or d'ya still want to scrap?"

(This post was last modified: May 01, 2017, 09:43 PM by Rook.)

Chances are I have a BEN WHISHAW gif for that.

Despite his attempts to the contrary, Rook cracked quite easily. Obviously his tirade was directed at Nineva, and Oula watched with detached disinterest. Once he had finished, she simply turned and left, leaving Rook to the long process of proving himself with action rather than words.

Fade