Blackberry Fields A basket of wild blackberries.

A clipped snarl, followed by a sharp cry, broke the afternoon stillness as the silver she-wolf attempted to ambush a large, lean rabbit where it nibbled at a bush weighed down with ripe, juicy blackberries. Yet the scream did not come from the hare, which quickly fled into an unseen burrow nearby. Instead, it came from the hunter. Her lips peeled back from her teeth in a grimace as she looked down at her paw, which she held an inch or so off the ground. It did not visibly throb, yet it ached, having been twisted in the dirt. Koontz gave it a little shake, then softly licked it before gingerly placing it back on the ground.

After slowly testing her weight, the young Redleaf began to stride across the plain. Shake it off, she thought as each step brought with it a shooting pain up her right foreleg. Her mother would have called her a pussy if she'd shown the least indication of weakness, albeit playfully. The thought of her mother simultaneously made her heart pang and brought a smirk to her face. Miss you, Mo, she thought.

She missed everybody, but Koontz never considered turning back. Nah, she thought. This was the life she wanted, she reminded herself as she paused and gave her tender paw another lick. She loved the open road and the utter freedom of wandering. Sure, it was hard keeping herself fed—her ribs showed slightly beneath her lustrous gray pelt—but she had known it would be. Besides, she didn't intend to be a loner forever. She would join a pack, either temporarily or permanently—whatever life threw at her.

The cloying scent of wild blackberries overwhelmed her sense of smell, making tracking next to impossible here in the open field. With a sigh, Koontz decided to give up—only for the moment, of course—and stopped to relax on her haunches. She lifted her forepaw again and ran her tongue over it, even as her impossibly light blue eyes scanned her surroundings with the inquisitiveness that was trademark of any yearling wolf.

*snags* Got really carried away with this, no need to match the length. :p

Something had changed within Nanook, departing from Relic Lore the first time without the slightest intention of returning. Something had pulled him back to these lands, be it the friends he left behind -- a soft snort was given to that thought, fiery golden eyes rolling heavenwards at his own sarcasm (for he had no friends and considered Datura an acquaintance at best), or that walking out on the lands he had found himself a home in, however temporary the initial den had been, that suspiciously like he was giving up. Giving up was not words Nanook considered to be in his vocabulary and felt the insult prick at him like tiny needles generating his irritation and the fierce desire to prove that he was not, indeed, throwing in the towel. Aether had not raised him to be a quitter and quitting simply wasn’t in his blood. It was true that he did not have to prove himself to anyone he simply felt that things needed to be reassessed, re-evaluated and looked at much more closely than he had done previously. This time, things would not be rushed and chaotic. Chaos, he realized as the days wore on, would be his ultimate downfall. There was no order, not clear structure to help him achieve his goals. He could not go on pretending as he had. The re-evaluation did not stop at Relic Lore and the variety of packs it had to offer him. Distractedly, as the DiSarinno continued along his path he began to evaluate himself (something that sorely needed to happen), his mind a thousand leagues away on a past he could no longer attempt to run from. His dominance while effective had been considered barbaric and undeniably cruel by many, if not all of the pack. Yet, they had let him go for it was, seemingly harmless. Until the mud mutt had conspired against him attempting to grab his seat atop the pup hierarchy. Having reached a full year of age, Nanook was as capable as any adult of dealing heavy damage, months of training aiding him in the attack. The mud mutt, a son of lower ranking wolves his parents had graciously allowed to spawn (which was a mistake in Nanny’s mind for the other boy was stupid and overtly ambitious in said stupidity). It had been the lesser boy that had attacked first but Nanook, having been tipped off by a dainty little girl of the Beta who had some sort of infatuation with him (unsurprising to Nanook but rather annoying at the time) had been prepared for it.

The fight had been short, and in the end though the mud mutt had been taller than Nanook, Nanook had been the victor, his brains overshadowing what brawn he possessed. Having pinned the other boy to the ground was not enough, just because he had been humiliated once did not mean he would have learned his lesson. Perhaps temporarily until he licked his wounds clean and his pride had healed. Nanook was hardly an imbecile, he understood how such things worked. As long as Nanook held any sort of seat of power Mud Mutt (his name was disregarded by Nanook long ago and even if he wanted too, he doubted he could recall it) would clamor for it. Like the greedy beggar Nanook saw him as. He could have left him with the few nice cuts and teeth marks that Nanook had given him, left him to wallow in his temporary humility but that wasn’t enough. In a fit of testosterone fueled desire to make sure Mud Mutt would never again disobey him, Nanook crippled him. Tearing at the flesh of his shoulder as the other writhed and snapped, his sharp cries of pain echoing in the otherwise silence. That, was why Nanook had been kicked out of his pack. For unnecessary ‘barbaric cruelty in dominating of a fellow pack mate, crippled the boy, blah, blah, blah’ never mind that Nanook, still even after re-evaluating it, felt he was fully justified in his action. He had not been a child when he had done it, and Mud Mutt had not meant it to be a game. The so-called adults, however, for some reason were unable to see it that way. Or refused to see it how Nanook did, at any rate.

It didn’t matter, it wasn’t as if, in all honesty, he could ever go back, even if he could find some shred of remorse within him for crippling the other boy (he didn’t). Mud mutt would have done the very same to him if he could have won. There was an abrupt almost sweetly scent that flooded leathery black nostrils causing Nanook to snap out of his ancient (to him) thoughts, for a moment disoriented by the blackberry fields he now, somehow found himself moving within. Green vine tangled around his left forepaw and he tugged on it unable to remember how exactly this had happened. He supposed, this was what he got for not paying a lick of attention on where he was going. Scowl tugged at lips, angelic face distorted with the emotion as Nanook tugged again, feeling the recoil of the pressure he’d used when the vine snapped free, footing lost on the slippery goop of the blackberries he had crushed under his weight as he had walked, causing him to crash to the ground on his stomach, the impact of his weight upon the earth causing him to lose his breath for a few seconds. Smoky-ivory ears slicked back to his head, golden eyes peeking over the tops of the green hoping nobody was around to see that lack of grace. Quickly he rose, glimpsing down to see where blackberries had exploded under his weight staining his fur with inky spots of blackberry juice. Soft whine escaped his lips as he considered where the nearest lake or pond was so he could bathe the evidence of his embarrassment off of his coat.

It was then that he saw her. Her coat looked like a dusty mixture of monotone grays from the distance between them. There was something about her that was jolting in it’s familiarity but Nanook could not place it. She seemed to be licking her paw -- though he couldn’t be sure and Nanook felt embarrassment creep into his chest as he figured she’d seen everything. Or maybe she hadn’t since she didn’t appear to be laughing at him, but Nanook didn’t want to give her a chance. Not terribly shy -- in fact not shy at all -- the DiSarinno began to make his way towards her (more conscious this time which helped him in being able to avoid being tripped by snaking bushes/and or vines). “Hey you!” He barked to her, calling out across the slowly closing distance though he was not as, smooth with his loud greeting as he normally might’ve been all attempts at being wordsy thoroughly abandoned in his current state. There was no sense in being charming when he didn't look the part, after all.

nanook

(This post was last modified: Jun 17, 2013, 12:09 PM by Nanook.)

Stunning Set by Sarah <3!

FROM THE CRADLE TO THE GRAVE
PART OF THE SHOW...IT'S A RIOT, IT'S A RIOT...

So I originally wanted to model Koontz after my old character, Riot, but then I had the brilliant idea to actually play Riot again (o'er at Souls), so... I am going to have to rework her personality. Just a heads up.

Also, I always assumed Aether and Mo hooked up and lived happily ever after in the Seahawk Valley, so Nanook could be one of their kids...? OR&mdash;I read his bio and it might be juicy if Aether fathered another litter besides Mo's (maybe with Nanuq, as seems implied?!). She could hardly call him out for cheating, LOL...

Little did Koontz know that the scent filling her nose was not just the natural scent of the blackberries, but the result of several of them being splattered, their fragrant juices released to perfurme the air. She only learned this when movement caught her eye and she turned to see a wolf striding toward her, dark purple spots staining his smoky coat. Immediately, Koontz sensed a familiarity about him, yet as her frosty eyes briefly caught his and he called out to her (rather brusquely, she thought), the young she-wolf realized she didn't know him.

"Er," she replied to his shout, "hi?" Her ears flicked backward, then slowly pricked again, as she regarded him. He was a tall, willowy, handsome fellow with the prettiest amber eyes. He was large and looked fierce, yet having been raised by March Owl Redleaf, Koontz hardly quivered in fear of big, bad wolves. She did dip her muzzle in a show of respect and held her tail entirely neutrally, the silver tip low but curling upward.

"I never thought of doing something like that," she said, pointing her blunt muzzle toward the stains. She figured they were accidental, yet all the same, Koontz continued, "I mean, dying fur with berries. It looks kind of cool." Her tail twitched and she blinked up at him. "I'm Koontz Redleaf-DiSarinno," she introduced, then waited for him to offer a mutual introduction.

(This post was last modified: Jun 18, 2013, 02:04 PM by Koontz.)

To anyone besides Kat and myself reading this Nanny went through some changes to fit better into timelines and such so if this doesn't directly match some of the fluff in my first post that's why. :p

Getting her attention in his unconventional, and perhaps, depending upon how she interpreted it, rude greeting (if it could be called such a thing) had been relatively easy. Coy smirk tugged easily at the edges of his lips as she let out a soft noise of what he assumed might be hesitation -- though he couldn’t be sure -- before she spoke. While disarming her with his abrupt greeting had not initially been apart of his plan -- originally he’d had the intentions of subtly making sure she hadn’t witnessed his embarrassing slip though the evidence was stained upon his fur, saturating the strands with the sticky juices of the fruit he’d crushed -- but it was a nice touch. Fiery eyes watched her dip her muzzle in what he took to be respect and though this sated his darker dominance (he liked knowing that he was acknowledged) his tail did not curl with it, and he did not force it. They were both loners here, and this was open territory. Lawless land. No one was of any higher rank than anyone else. Perhaps that was some of the appeal of it. He did not have to bow to anyone as a loner. Likewise, no one had to bow to him which was unfortunate but the door seemed to swing both ways and he couldn’t have one without having the other while having no affiliation with a pack. His own muzzle bent down to the earth, a lowering of his crown and ears given in a mutuality. It was then that he studied her as discreetly as he could manage. Her eyes, too, seemed shockingly familiar but he could not place where he had seen eyes like that.

When she spoke again, her words momentarily borne confusion that caused a small crease to form at the top of the bridge of his muzzle before she clarified and he understood that she was speaking of the dark stains spreading across his chest like faux blood might. He almost let out a snort, until she told him that she thought it “kind” of looked cool. Immediately, that changed circumstances, and definitely in her favor. “This is probably the part where I make a wildly fantastic claim about how dying my fur is a regular thing I do to add to my overall beauty appeal,” Nanook drawled vainly, and then sighed, chest rising and falling quickly with the action. “But while there is fun to be had in saying such whimsical things it would not be the truth. This was not done on purpose.” He admitted, though perhaps she already knew that and was simply not letting on that she knew. She introduced herself and he felt his blood run abruptly cold, freezing like ice in his veins. Face was a stoic mask as he processed why her name was so, disgustingly familiar to him, and why it made him want to turn and abruptly walk away. DiSarinno. Her eyes were his eyes. Aether’s. The man who Nanook hated for reasons that no one knew aside from Nanook (and possibly Aether) himself.

“You’re one of --” Nanook almost choked on his name. “Aether’s kids.” It wasn’t a question because he was already assuming the answer. He knew it was wrong to judge her based on her father but she’d have to prove that she wasn’t just like him. He mistrusted easily, and always first. Especially when it came to Aether DiSarinno. “I’m Nanook. Nanook Kesuk,” He almost whispered his last name, not so sure he had rights to it anymore. He had not spoken it aloud since the day he was exiled and it burned like fire on his tongue. “I trained under your father for a while.” In case the word of his actions had not spread to Flightless Falcon’s.

nanook

Stunning Set by Sarah <3!

FROM THE CRADLE TO THE GRAVE
PART OF THE SHOW...IT'S A RIOT, IT'S A RIOT...

He rolled with the joke, even while acknowledging the accidental nature of the blackberry jam smeared in his fur. "Well, you're an incidental trensdsetter then," she replied, a small smirk tugging at her lips. Truly, the stains looked interesting, though Koontz preferred the color red. One day, she would have to seek out a patch of strawberries and give it her best shot.

Although he introduced himself in turn, Koontz barely registered his name on account of the words that preceded it. "Yeah, Aether's my dad's name," she responded with a loud blink of her icy blue eyes. "Wh&mdash;?" she began, but then his revelation surprised her into silence. Aether had trained this stranger? When? Why? Did this explain the vague sense of familiarity? His name didn't ring any bells...

"When? And why?" she asked, curiosity effectively piqued. Her heart skipped a beat when she realized something else. "Then you must be from the Seahawk Valley?" It was as much a wondering statement as a question. Having left the place on purpose, Koontz didn't know why it excited her to run into someone from there, except that it was so unexpected. This connection with her father was especially unprecedented&mdash;and very intriguing.

Although Nanook hadn't said or done anything to indicate a dislike for Aether, the intuitive she-wolf sensed something amiss. Suddenly, her eyes narrowed ever so slightly and she felt her heart drop. She felt strangely defensive. She wasn't a daddy's girl, per se, but she was his youngest daughter&mdash;his last child, actually&mdash;and so they had been close. That this stranger knew her father was interesting, but this disquieting sense that Nanook actually disliked Aether troubled young Koontz.

At Koontz’ words Nanook could no longer keep his snort at bay and let the soft expel of air rush out of leathery black nostrils with a flare, fiery eyes rolling in a way that could easily be considered, perhaps, playful. Which was rather startling to him because it had been a quite an awful long time since he’d felt or had accordingly been playful with anyone. Strange that this girl brought it out of him. Nanook could have claimed, he supposed, that she reminded him of Olympia but she didn’t. His sister was prim and proper (and at best annoying) and would have scoffed at the stains upon his fur rather than complimenting them. No, Koontz did not remind him of Olympia at all. "I suppose soon enough everyone will want to look like someone attempted to murder them with blackberries," He murmured in addition to her trendsetter comment, glimpsing down (as best he could) at the sticky substance clumping his fur into uneven spikes. It would take him forever to get that out. Their fun conversation did not seem destined to last and at the expression he saw forming upon her face Nanook wished he wouldn’t have said anything at all. In fact, was quite unsure of why for the first time, he admitted anything that connected him to Seahawk. Clearly, it had been a stupid move.

If Nanook had hoped Koontz would let his word at what it was, vague, they were immediately squished (rather like a small patch of blackberries behind him) as the questions left the DiSarinno girl’s lips. “When I was little for a month or two, I really don‘t know why. I was told it was a pact he and my parents had made before my father passed away, I guess. He trained a couple of us.” Nanook felt his willowy shoulders shrug because if she expected anything else she’d have to march all the way back to Seahawk herself and ask. Nanook hadn’t been told why Aether was training them only that he was, for a little bit. “Yeah. I am.” But of course the confirmation on his part really wasn’t needed. He had already given it away and she already knew it to be true but he felt useless just letting her realization/question hang in the air even if it had been rhetorical. “My mother is Nanuq.” Maybe, just maybe, his exile -- though entirely justified in his mind, still -- hadn’t reached the Falcon’s over the lake. That was a little fact that she needed to know, if she did not know it already. He’d already given away too much already.

Ears lowered to rest at half mast atop his head as he looked anywhere but at her, sensing something had shifted and changed in the atmosphere, yet again. Weight shifted, a soft wind rising and breezing through the silken tendrils of his smoky ivory fur along his spine. Knowing that she was one of Aether’s daughters (for according to Nanuq the DiSarinno man had a lot of children, not just with March Owl but two to his previous deceased mate, Fayre, as well) just made him feel awkward because he more or less, despised her father. It hadn’t always been that way, but whatever it had been before all Nanook knew was it was mutual now. Nanook did not hold the grudge against her that he held against her father -- for it wasn’t her fault Aether and him could not, over time, see eye to eye. She shouldn’t have to, and didn’t bear the weight of her father’s burden.

nanook

(This post was last modified: Jun 19, 2013, 11:42 AM by Nanook.)

Stunning Set by Sarah <3!

FROM THE CRADLE TO THE GRAVE
PART OF THE SHOW...IT'S A RIOT, IT'S A RIOT...

The news about her father's involvement with Nanook and a few other pups made Koontz feel strange. Growing up, she had felt the itch to explore quite a lot, yet she had largely stayed close to home until reaching age one and leaving Seahawk Valley altogether. Of course, she had known about the other packs there&mdash;her parents were Alphas, after all, and a certain amount of political manuevering happened&mdash;but she had not branched out much beyond the Flightless Falcons. She didn't really know anyone outside of her pack&mdash;'til now, of course.

"God, I was sheltered," she murmured, perhaps too lowly for Nanook to hear. Louder, she said, "I knew he traveled to other packs as a diplomat but I didn't know he... trained other pups." As she said this, Koontz realized she felt retroactive jealousy, which didn't make much sense. But if Aether had been spending time with Nanook and others, it had been at the expense of Dean, Ray and Koontz herself, hadn't it? "I wonder why." He had said he didn't know, so she didn't press him.

He mentioned his mother's name, which sounded a lot like his. The slight difference in pronunciation tripped a wire in the silver yearling's mind. "Nanuq?" she echoed. Vividly, she remembered her mother throwing a fit and cursing that name. March Owl hadn't known her daughter was there, watching. She'd hurled so many curse words, Koontz's ears had gone numb. She'd known not to cross her mother's path, nor ask why she was so angry with Nanuq. Her curiosity was aflame even worse now, yet she hesitated, wondering if she should mention any of this to Nanook.

She decided she shouldn't, at least not right now. Obviously, their parents knew each other, for better or for worse. What did it matter? They were all back in the valley. Koontz did decide to mention something else she remembered: "You must've been from Shearwater Bay then. Your mother was the Alpha&mdash;the Warchief, if I recall correctly." She paused, icy eyes meeting his before she averted them. "My parents were&mdash;are still&mdash;the leaders of Flightless Falcons. Our packs are allied." She shrugged her lean shoulders.

And, despite the alliance, there was an animosity there. March Owl disliked Nanuq and Nanook seemed to dislike Aether. Koontz blinked, wondering what to do with this information, before she abruptly decided to let it all go. She hoped he would do the same and even said, "Well, it's neat to run into someone with a connected past but it is the past. None of it really matters out here, right?" Her eyes swept their surroundings indicatively.

When they found their way back to Nanook's face, Koontz hoped the subject was closed. To change it, she asked, "Would you like to hunt with me? I haven't had a square meal in a few days. I just missed out on a rabbit and sort of twisted my foot, but..." She held it up and gave it a shake. It was still a little sore but she would be fine. Her youthful face suddenly took on a beseeching sort of expression as she looked to the smoky male.

Koontz murmured something, too low for Nanook whose attention had focused back upon her at said murmur, to hear. Fiery golden eyes studied her for a few heart beats, silent except for the pulse of blood in his ears before he decided to let it go and not request that she speak up. Likely, her murmur was not meant for him to hear anyway. She admitted that she had not been aware of this arrangement and Nanook, for some strange and discernable reason felt a soft glow of perhaps, pity, for her, though he was careful not to let it show lest he upset her. Though why he suddenly cared if he upset her was quite beyond him and thusly not something he felt comfortable diving too much into. “Look I don’t know all the details, it isn’t as if all of the pack arrangements were ran by me first,” Even if he was the current (and youngest) Heir he was not a leader and Nanuq didn’t have to tell him squat because she didn’t need his permission. Salmon pink tongue darted out to run across his lips once before he continued with, “But he was trying to teach me diplomacy. Needless to say I‘m not exactly…diplomatic.” In fact the exact words used by the panel of “judges” were “Brutal and barbaric” among a few others. “I suppose my mother thought he could…tame me or something if she got someone else to teach me. That maybe I would listen.” In some corner of Nanook’s mind he had a hard time believing he was actually admitting these things.

“Yes.” Came Nanook’s simple reply to her inquiry regarding Nanuq being the Warchief. Nanook’s comfort at speaking about his past, about his family and his home. His old, yet still seething dislike(s) was stretched to his limit and the smoky-ivory dark angel was glad when she spoke about the past being past. He couldn’t have said it better himself. “No, it no longer matters.” Relic Lore was supposed to be a new start, a clean slate. This time around, Nanook was determined to let it be just that. Nanook took her question to mean that they were on said clean slate, as well, despite the uneven and sometimes uncertain grounds their parents might’ve been on for whatever reasons. Relief seemed to flood Nanook when Koontz changed the subject, of which he was almost grateful now. She knew more about him than he cared for anyone too. Whether it was because she was apart of a place he had been banned from, or her pretty face that skewered all of his good judgment he had yet to fully deduce. At any rate, it wasn’t as if anything regarding his past could be used against him here, so he supposed it didn’t matter if she kept it to herself or not. “Sure.” Nanook offered her when she extended an offer to hunt with her. He could go for a little snack, though he wasn’t overtly hungry himself. If anything, it was an extended amount of time in her presence.

nanook

Stunning Set by Sarah <3!

FROM THE CRADLE TO THE GRAVE
PART OF THE SHOW...IT'S A RIOT, IT'S A RIOT...

Although she had decided to push matters of their past to the back of her mind, Nanook's explanation did ease some of her earlier disquiet. It sort of made sense that Nanuq might call upon Aether to teach her belligerent child some manners, since the dark DiSarinno was about as civilized and gallant as they came. Surely, the exchange had strengthened the packs' alliance, which was not only good but expected. Perhaps March Owl's irritation had been simple or even petty; after all, it didn't take much to earn her ire. Considering this, Koontz felt less concerned about everything and that much more able of letting it go.

Nanook seemed game to assist in her hunting endeavour, so the sprightly she-wolf gave him an appreciative smile before turning and beginning to walk across the fields. "Since it's the two of us, maybe we can look for something a bit bigger than a rabbit," she mused thoughtfully as they walked. Maybe they could rustle up some deer and pick off a fawn or something. She didn't think ungulates ate berries, though maybe they came to these fields to nibble on some grass and clovers.

"Tell me about yourself?" she questioned, glancing sideways at Nanook. "What's life like been since you left Seahawk Valley?" she added, truly wondering. Maybe he could tell her some of the things she could expect and that she had not yet experienced in her two months of wandering by herself.

(This post was last modified: Jun 19, 2013, 03:33 PM by Koontz.)

Her appreciative smile did not go unnoticed by the exiled Kesuk, and after a twitch of his lips into what might’ve been a smile in return, he followed after her when she began to walk, his chest about mid body with her, sure to keep his pace so that he wasn’t entirely behind her but not in front of her either. After all, this was her idea, so therefore her hunt. It was only fitting she should take the temporary role of “leader of the hunt”. “Is your paw well enough?” Nanook inquired recalling that she had mentioned about spraining it. He supposed it tended upon how badly she had sprained it but still that small albeit solidly nagging concern remained there until she chose to dispel; be it with assurance or something else. There was a slight quicken in his heart rate when she asked of him to tell her about himself. Unable to place the strange reaction, Nanook paused for a few seconds before he returned her question with one of his own. “What do you want to know?” The topic of Nanook Kesuk was a vast one and vanity would allow him to talk about himself endlessly if not controlled and moderated. It was better if she laid out some specifics for him to go off of as opposed to letting him just babble endlessly. He felt a little guarded but was thankful that it didn't seem to manifest itself into his tone.

“In Relic Lore, you mean?” He inquired, pausing for a beat before he assumed that was what she had meant. “I guess it‘s kind of, in it‘s own way, the same. Tons of packs to choose from just like in Seahawk. I met a male, about our age, from a pack called Nomad‘s Pass,” Nanook admitted and then snorted, a soft laugh bubbling in his chest. “He seemed rather determined to prove to me that he was the most handsome wolf in Nomad‘s Pass.” Not that Nanook had been paying much attention (if any at all) to Datura’s physical attributes enough to make any sort of judgment that either agreed or disagreed. Especially considering Nanook didn’t harbor an attraction to the same sex, despite his own androgynous appearance. “Aside from that, I haven‘t been here long enough to make much of a comparison.” Nanook finished, trailing off into a contemplative silence.

nanook

(This post was last modified: Jun 19, 2013, 04:54 PM by Nanook.)

Stunning Set by Sarah <3!

FROM THE CRADLE TO THE GRAVE
PART OF THE SHOW...IT'S A RIOT, IT'S A RIOT...