Dead Empress Backwater burning up but i'm restless

Sharlee hadn't said anything to Archer when he came to stand next to his brother. This was between her and Eros. Her ear flicked at the sound of Viorel's voice when he called for Archer to come to him. The Valle woman had been aware of the leader but her gaze remained on the one she was angry with. She waited to see what argument he would come back with. Which was that she was being disrespectful.

"No, Eros. You were being disrespectful to me. I out rank you and it's time that you learn what that means. You'll be a yearling soon amd you need to understand that when I tell you to do something you must do it."

He also claimed that she was wrong, "About Modesto? She had her chance to prove me wrong and she did not. That woman made her choice. You shouldn't speak pack business to those who are not within the pack. You should have left it to your father to fill italia in in all of the details. After all it was he who was there, it was he who kicked Modesto out."

Okay. That was enough. None of this was being constructive and now Eros was in tears and angry and so was Sharlee and they were all performing in front of an audience. Viorel had seen enough that he felt it was time to step in. He allowed Sharlee to finish speaking her peace when he let out a chuff of his own. Head raised proudly, his expression was stern but was not directed towards either one of them.

Looking back and forth between the pair of them he let out an exhausted sigh, ”Eros. You owe your Aunt Sharlee an apology, what she said is correct, she outranks you and that commands respect.” Still, he shot his advisor a cautionary glance, Eros was approaching being a yearling but he was still a pup for now and he had a lot to learn. He continued, ”In the event that a member feels disrespected and an argument cannot be worked out amongst themselves I would expect them to approach either Vayko or I to deal with it.” This was apparently one of those scenarios.

He missed them being small and easy, ”In the future, all information being relayed to wolves outside the pack needs to be cleared with myself or Vayko, or in our absence Sharlee. Eros you’ve made a mistake and that can’t go unpunished, you’re grounded. You’re not to leave the territory for the fortnight under any circumstances.” Again he shot his advisor a glance, he knew she thought he was soft on the children, but this was the worst he was willing to give right now. Children made mistakes.

Archer Valle

Archer didn't like this; he didn't like that his brother was being scolded so harshly, that the tone Aunt Shar used was so different from what he was used to. It wasn't just stern, it was... she was furious. Not in a way she'd been furious with them before. Archer had to admit he was a little frightened by it. She'd been acting so strange lately, and now this...

To his great relief Da stepped forward, demanding Eros apologize and giving them a new rule to follow. Archer sighed in relief; his brother was being punished again, but it wasn't as severe as he'd worried it might have been given how long he'd vanished for. At least he would have a good idea where he was for the next fortnight. He worried about Eros constantly, especially with everything changing so drastically. He nodded to his Da, wanting to make sure he knew his new rule was understood, and then made his way back to his brother's side, eyeing their father to make sure he wouldn't be called away again. He shouldn't have been in the first place.

Archer is very haggard and thin; it is obvious he is not doing well.

His aunt insisted otherwise, citing her authority and claiming something to be true that Eros knew well was false. He'd had this very conversation with his mother many months ago, and as a parent her words held far more weight. In his opinion, Sharlee had pointlessly besmirched Modesto and Sita's names, wolves he loved just as much as her even if they were no longer right here with them. That was wrong, and he didn't have to pretend otherwise just because she was older and advised his father. Morality superseded all of that, and if he could handle correction then so could the adults.

She reasserted her claims about their shared aunt, which was expected. As much as Eros wished the others would give the benefit of the doubt, he was starting to understand that their minds might never be swayed. That was their problem though, why should it impact him? He didn't want to hear it over and over, to witness the poison of their anger leaking out. As much as he knew they thought poorly of his grandaunt and grandmother, they in turn knew that Eros still loved and believed in them. Why'd they have to keep shitting on that?

Still, the kicker was yet to come.

You shouldn't speak pack business to those who are not within the pack, she told him, and Eros' cream-colored jaw dropped. He was left gaping as she shifted her own wrongs onto him, in front of his father to boot. It was the first time the tawny boy had ever been thrown under the bus, and he was absolutely astounded by the act.

Viorel stepped in before he could even gather his thoughts, much less defend himself. He spoke of respect owed, and Eros grit his fangs as he felt he was trying to do what was asked. They were working it out themselves, right now, but of course those words were coming; you're grounded.

The emotion swelled again, and for a moment he felt as though he might explode. He remembered well the emotionally-painful consequences of not standing up for himself before, and would not make the same mistake.

"NO," he told his father, loud and clear.

"I'm not the one tellin' our business, she is!" and he'd have learned that if he'd asked for Eros' side before making his judgment.

He turned to face Sharlee then, the anger and sense of betrayal clear in his young features.

"You told her Aunt Mo was banished for fightin' with Dad! You told her that Gramna purposefully tricked everyone and abandoned Haze! All I said was whore and that they aren't the worst wolves in the world, and that was after what you said and after you told me she was family!"

Eros did not give a lot of room to be interrupted or over-talked, raising his voice if necessary and staunchly standing his ground.

"So she's grounded too, right?" his peach eyes jumped back onto his father, demanding the correct answer from his parent.

(This post was last modified: Jul 27, 2022, 01:03 AM by Eros.)

Sharlee had thankfully gotten out what she needed to say to Eros before they were interrupted. This time it was Viorel asserting his dominance over the both of them. Sharlee backed up allowing her posture to relax into a more submissive one as he spoke. He made his expectations for them clear and as always she woukd abide by them as that was her duty. However she was a little confused when he spoke ofnher being one of the wolves that could clear any information that be relayed to wolves outside the pack. She thought perhaps she should speak to Vi later about it. This wasn't the time.

Or maybe it was.

Eros burst out thst he wouldn't apologize, Sharlee wasn't surprised. She wasn't even surprised when he went on about the wrings she'd committed. All through it she remained silent. It was time Viorel dealt with his sin just as he stated only moments ago thst he would.  When Eros had finished she didn't say a word instead turning her gaze on Vi wsiting to see what he wojkd do next. Would she be punished too as Eros had been or would Viorel put his foot down and stand behind what he'd said?

Viorel watched as Archer walked to stand next to his brother, a look of relief on his face. For just a moment he thought maybe the whole matter was settled, Sharlee said nothing and while Eros looked upset that was to be expected. But, clearly this was far from over with the NO that burst forth from his son.

Okay, now that was too much.

Dark tail rose over his back as the Valle man stretched up to his full height and hackles stood up along the back of his nape. A low growl rumbled in his throat and anger was clear in his eyes. ”ENOUGH. I have have heard enough from you tonight Eros. Not only were you disrespectful to your Aunt Sharlee earlier today, now you after being disrespectful to me, your father and leader. This is not how you are expected to behave and I am ashamed at the way you are carrying on.” He was angry, really angry. The most angry he had ever been at one of his children honestly.

Viorel took a step forward, ”If you were listening to you have heard me just say, in mine and Vayko’s absence it is up to Sharlee what information is disclosed, as she is my advisor and second in command.” He never wanted this to escalate this far, and while he was not pleased with what information Sharlee had shared with Italia, it had been within her right to do so.

Salt and pepper tail flicked behind him now, ”I said apologize to your Aunt Sharlee. And, you can now count your grounding to last a full moon. You are to to as your told, and then go immediately to the den where I’m sure your mother is going to be thrilled to hear about your behaviour today.” None of this was a question and he stared Eros down. They were about even in height now, and in a few months his son would surpass him, but for now they were eye to eye.

Archer Valle

This was... getting really bad. It had started out really bad, started out with Eros scaring him and then in trouble and now it was only getting worse. Da didn't yell often, but as soon as Eros talked back Archer knew things were about to go very bad. He flinched away from his brother, staring at him with wide eyes, ears laid back. He couldn't talk back to Da like that! And his instinct was right. Aunt Shar didn't even say anything in her defense; she merely looked to their pack leader and waited for his wrath to rain upon them.

And rain it did. Eros's grounding was worsened, and Da said he was disappointed. It struck Archer deeply, even though he wasn't the one in trouble here. He swallowed and nudged his brother's shoulder. "C'mon, Eros, let's go," he said pleadingly, tail tucked tightly between his legs and fur prickling. He didn't like it when Da was like this, and like Eros he didn't see how anything that just happened was fair. "Please," he added for good measure, nudging Eros again and hoping to guide his littermate away so he could cool off and they could talk in peace.

Archer is very haggard and thin; it is obvious he is not doing well.

His aunt remained unmoved by her nephew, calm in the face of his fury. This alone set his blood aflame, but it was far from the only thing to sear him from the inside out. His father also refused to bend, instead rising to similar heights of rage. Eros' nectarine eyes burned with resentment that only multiplied with each forceful sentence.

The boy wanted to continue holding his own against the two, to continue arguing his point especially as Viorel appeared to still have it utterly twisted. In Eros' eyes, they were pushing him to this, refusing to listen to him regardless of how he acted. He was advocating for himself, trying to be heard and they were punishing him for it. What alternative did they expect, and did it ever allow him to have a say?

The lines roared within his head while his fangs cut against his tongue to keep it from working.

'Not only were you disrespectful to your Aunt Sharlee earlier today, now you after being disrespectful to me, your father and leader.'

YOU GUYS'RE DISRESPECTING ME  N' THIS FAMILY.

'This is not how you are expected to behave and I am ashamed at the way you are carrying on.'

BECAUSE STANDING UP FOR MYSELF IS SO AWFUL HUH?! I SHOULD JUST SHUT UP AND NEVER HAVE MY OWN OPINION?!

'If you were listening to you have heard me just say, in mine and Vayko’s absence it is up to Sharlee what information is disclosed, as she is my advisor and second in command.'

THEN WHAT'S THE PROBLEM?! WHY AM I IN TROUBLE FOR WHAT SHE DECIDED TO SHARE?!

'I said apologize to your Aunt Sharlee.'

MAKE ME.

'And, you can now count your grounding to last a full moon.'

I DON'T CARE!

'You are to to as your told, and then go immediately to the den where I’m sure your mother is going to be thrilled to hear about your behaviour today.'

At that, he did almost laugh. It would have been venomously bitter sound, yet still genuine. Eros, with all the wisdom of a yearling, was fairly convinced that it would not be Viorel's side his moms would be taking. The tawny teen had never had to worry about stifling with them, and trusted that this time would be no different. They would actually care about his side of the story, and apparently that was where his father differed. It didn't seem to matter who or what was right, just that he and Sharlee were 'respected.'

His father's voice faded; he was finished, and now it was Eros' chance once more to speak up. Blood dripped down into his throat and still his teeth did not lift, grit with all the strength his jaw had. It pounded in his ears and at his temple, and mixed with adrenaline within his muscles. The youth had never before been so thoroughly pissed and yet he could not bring himself to do more than continue to bare his clenched fangs and glare.

Maybe he was afraid of the consequences. Maybe he was afraid it wouldn't make the slightest difference. Maybe he was afraid of himself. Eros didn't know. All he knew was that not a single thing inside of him would budge. At least, until;

C'mon, Eros, let's go.

Archer finally spoke, and blinking Eros looked to his darker features.

Please.

Even his brother wanted his silence. Something in him deflated then, and the emptiness created soured and curdled. He continue to blink as he looked to his father once more, but this time it was to combat the tears that wanted to spill. The lesson the young Valle would walk away with today was heavy, and bitingly cold. It also, likely, was not that which his aunt and Viorel were trying to impart.

"... sorry," he said in a voice that was empty and shallow. Despite the moisture, his gaze had not softened, and he did not even glance to Sharlee as he gave the flat apology. Eros' eyes were locked on his dad's, the poisonous anger within him still very much active. Something had to get out, and while an older him would likely one day regret the words very much, he was currently in many ways still just a child. Some of that venom slipped.

"... no wonder everyone keeps leaving you."

If allowed, he would turn and take his leave then. While during the argument he had entertained ideas of taking off once again, he no longer intended to go anywhere other than directed. At this point, he needed to speak with @Vanadis in order to make sense of the mess he'd purportedly made today.

It could have been a very big rub it in her nephews face. At the end of the day Vi had sided with her in the matter of what had been said. He hadn't been angry with her for her actions. Sharlee wasn't that type of wolf though. She saw this as a teaching moment for Eros and one that she hoped he took to heart. It had been clear that he needed to understand the ways of the pack. How things were handled and where he stood. She hoped that by Vi backing her up the way he was Eros could see that.

It was a little scary seeing Vi as mad as ye was. It wasn't something she'd ever seen in her cousin before. He was always so easy going about things or he doubted his own abilities and sometimes even himself. This was new and frankly she didn't like it. Her gaze shifted between father and son as they went on but she remained silent. This was between them now.

That was until Eros spoke his last sentence. Immediately her gaze went to her cousin. She offered him a sympathetic look before turning her attention on the insubordinate teenager. "That is no way to speak to your father," she stated clearly knowing she was stepping out of line. "What kind of wolf are you that hurts your own father who you should respect leader or not when you don't get your way. What you hurt so he has to hurt too? What kind of man are you going to be Eros? Right now all I see is a boy pretending to be a man."

She would take her punishment for speaking out as she did but no one was going to speak to Vi like that. Not even his own son.

It all started to spiral so quickly. Viorel had hoped that him being stern, and frankly angry would be enough to hammer into his son’s head how serious his discretions had been. He would have spoken to Sharlee privately about the type of information she was spreading, certainly if it could look negatively on the pack, but everything escalated.

Archer was pleading, Eros was yelling and hurling a final insult that made the father visibly flinch away from the words. What was even more hurtful was the cold anger, almost hatred, that shone in his eyes despite the tears gathering there. Sharlee was yelling back, and all of this while Aunt Italia, who wasn’t even a member of the pack stood by watching. In that second he suddenly just felt… exhausted, defeated.

Turning away from the retreating forms of his sons, his eyes focused on the ground and his whole body drooped. He passed by Sharlee and all he could bring himself to say was, ”Enough. I think we’ve all said more than enough tonight.” It was barely a murmur, and sounded strained, like a wolf more than twice his age. Viorel said nothing else and made his way out of the clearing, leaving Sharlee with Italia, she had brought her here, she could deal with it.

FADE