Magnolia Glen when goodbye means forever

@Phineas!
RE: There are an unusual number of foxes being sighted around Relic Lore.

As she walked her home she found her eyes roaming constantly around her, searching for what felt like a million eyes watching her. Though she wasn't usually the type to roam her home without permission, the fact that her mother recently disappeared from home worried her to the point of anticipation. On occasion she would pause in her stride with expectation that eventually she would jump from behind a tree with a smile and assure her that she'd been hiding from them the whole time. It was a cruel game, one that Evy could accept if only her mother would come out from where ever she was hiding, and soon.

A rustle in the background made her pause and she used her senses to pinpoint her target, her fiery orange eyes landed on one in particular that was a russet hue and stood a feet or so higher than her. It looked to be preoccupied with foraging but Evy could not fight her urge to come near it, this strange creature had helped her to forget the sadness she felt from losing her mother. "Hello?" she called as she stepped near the fox with lowered ears and a cautious stride. She stopped with heightened fear when the fox lifted its head to stare at her, it's cat like eyes were piercing as it's ears stood erect with renewed interest, and it's bushy tail swished slowly at its rear. It studied her in silence a moment or two longer before it moved toward her with a swiftness she did not expect; quickly she retreated.

Her small legs were quick and yet the fox seemed faster as she fought to outrun it, a look of hunger danced in the depth's of it's yellow eyes as it chased her for half a mile more, it wasn't until a quick reflex allowed her to hide beneath thick foliage that she finally caught her breath. From the outside the fox sought to find an entrance to her hiding spot and a new level of fear ebbed at her insides, she did not know if this fox was seriously interested in a wolf snack, or decided that today was the perfect day to chase young pups. Whining at her hiding spot she felt herself grow hot with anticipation of jaws around her neck and closed her eyes from the rest of the world; in her mind, Evy was a goner.

The heartache he felt was only tenfold by his children – in truth, Phineas and Borlla’s mateship had ended in the winter when Kyros had been taken from them and she had threatened the Oak Tree Bend pack – only to turn tail and flee moments after, leaving behind himself and a small handful of others. He would have worked through it though.. Phineas was not one to simple turn his back when life was rough, despite what his brothers might have thought. His efforts would have been doubled, if only for the sake of the young trio. Hypatia was old enough to not be as deeply affected as they would be.. but now, instead, Borlla had left.

Likely, because of the growing tension between the two.

If he could have protected his family from her he would have.. but as it was, he could not shield them from this. The best he could do was pick up the remaining pieces and move onward.

His legs strode with a sense of purpose – his patrols kept his mind at ease, but when he heard a gentle cry which was followed closely by the scent of an intruding beast, he felt his lips curl back in a quiet snarl. He twisted his large figure then, his pace quickening to a run as he came upon the debacle. His eyes swept over the scene, noting the cunning fox as it toyed with trying to gain entrance.. and form what he assumed, as the scent of his fearful daughter filtered through the air.. it was attempting to reach her.

With a snarl that could have shattered the skies above like a clap of thunder, the ivory regal was shooting toward the culprit, his jaws slackening as his teeth flashed, aiming for an unforgiving bite to the beasts throat.

Crappy and short. Sorry. If you want me to change to PP, then I will be glad to!

The sound of nails scrapping against wood echoed through the Magnolia Glen as the fox dug at her hideout, attempting to get to her for a meal. In an attempt to remove herself from the situation, the young girl brought her paws across her eyes to close off the scenery and forget what was going on--if she were to go, she didn't want to see it first hand. It didn't take long for her savior to come, he was cloaked in a white coat and carried a pair of eyes that shone like a bright pumpkin, much like her own, and the strength that she associated him with was unlimited; he would solve this problem.

With her paws remained over her eyes, she heard the commotion unfold around her as the fox felt the wrath of her father upon it, his gut curling growl could drain the color of the foxes coat as it felt teeth upon it's neck and the remaining life drained from it. Silence followed the altercation and she lowered her paws from her face in an effort to see around her, and what laid before her was the lifeless body of her attacker and her father standing over it with the strength of a million wolves. He would always be her savior, her guardian, her everything. "Dad..." she breathed after coming from her hiding space and shook her pelt free of the debris that clung to it. Her fiery orange gaze landed on the bloody form of the fox with shock and alarm, worried about why it had bothered to chase her in the first place; what were they doing here?

"It tried to eat me..." she swallowed a layer of saliva at her throat and came closer to her father with hopes that he would help her shake the feelings she were having, "where is mom?" she wondered aloud, and lifted her head to search his matching eyes.

His aim was true – the absolute need to protect his tiny daughter form the predator that sought her out blocked any thought from mind, and as he felt his teeth sink in to flesh and tear the vein of life they referred to as the jugular, he only knew victory in that moment as having protected his daughter for one more day.

The beast grew limp in his enraged jaws, and he let it fall to the ground without sound – his hackles bristled dangerously as he stood over the fox, his fiery eyes drifting from its now lifeless body and to the rustle in the thick foliage as Evy popped her little face out. He inhaled sharply at the sight of her then, closing the distance between them as she made to shake her pelt as she crawled from her hiding spot. His muzzle worried over her, touching her cheek and moving to her spine as he ensured she was perfectly fine – it appeared the creature had not had a chance to grab her at any point. Evy, he rumbled, relief laced clearly in his deeper tones as he closed his eyes momentarily. Had he not been here..

But his eyes snapped back open to her question, and he felt the sting of her words pierce through his heart, though he attempted to appear calm on the matter. I don’t know, he admitted then, knowing he could not simply hide the fact that she was no longer with them. She’s gone, Evy. She left.. As his words trailed off, he tried to think of how he could make it better.. but nothing could ever be good enough. Nothing would fully heal this fresh abandonment.

She leaned into him, her dark fur seemed to blend effortlessly with his light as she enjoyed the warmth of her father and the feeling of strength that radiated off of him. He was her sole protector, the light at the end of her tunnel and as he answered her question with a hint of uncertainty she felt her shoulders slump; he confirmed what she had begun to think was true. "Is she lost?" she questioned, hardly accepting that her mother would leave them without a word of warning, not even a goodbye, not when her puppies were still so new and fresh. She was grateful for Phineas and the amount of confidence be boasted while remaining the sole leader, it was a tough job especially with a litter to look after, she could not believe that her mother would have been so selfish to have left him to rule alone. "I can go find her, I can scent her out and help bring her home..." her sense of tracking had become better with age and she noticed the plethora of scents that differentiated their pack from the others; she would be able to find her mother mixed in these scents as well.

"Did mommy love us dad?" she wondered aloud, her fiery gaze sought for his as she searched his face, her expression was serious in the fact that a part of her had begun to wonder if her mother hadn't wanted them at all. Then, as if the weight of waiting for an answer was too heavy, she leaned into his right foreleg and sighed heavy, her eye lids closed her heart to the emotions that reminded her of her mother. If Phineas had said it then it must be true, her mother was gone and she was beginning to understand that it could probably mean for ever.

His trio was so different from one another – Evy, as she spoke now, reminded him of how strong she was.. endearing and helpful, quick to put others above herself. His smile was sad as he glanced down at her, studying her as she offered to go find Borlla and bring her home where she belonged. But now, as time passed, he knew she would no longer be welcome here. Not just by him.. but any of them. Celandine and Takis had yet to even question him of their mother – Celandine was likely too busy playing the role of the Glen princess, while Takis was a lone thinker, much like himself.

As his daughter leaned in to him, he bent his muzzle down, preening at her ear gently. There was no soft blow for the words he would speak, but he could not tell her a lie either. Borlla had done this to all of them, and she was to blame for the pain she had brought them. She’s not coming home, Evy.. She left on purpose, he murmured, feeling his heart ache as he wished nothing more than to protect her from these words.

But he couldn’t, and as his fiery eyes scanned over her, the large male bent his muzzle down, nudging the fox with his nose. He would either feed it to the kids, or, if they found their appetites had strayed with the news of their loss, he would place it within the caches.. someone was bound to be tempted by the creature that had tried to steal his daughter’s life.

@Phineas!

Her head lifted to stare at him, the eyes he held mirrored her own as she captured his sorrow and felt her shoulders slump with disappointment. There was no light way to put any of the information that she would receive and she had grown to accept this. She accepted his word as law, the final decision in all of their lives and nodded her head then before tucking into him closer, wanting to bury herself into his fur and forget what would lie ahead of them with their mother gone and the pack without a female lead. "I'll miss her..." she admitted, and would probably never completely accept that she had left them; there had to have been a reason for her disappearance, Evy just knew it.

With a heavy sigh she let her gaze fall over the Glen and for a fraction of a second she felt a tear begin to form, the brims of her eyes threatened to collect with pools of tears and yet she would not let them fall, she had to be strong, if not for her siblings than for her father. "When I grow older dad, I'll help you I promise. I'll grow up to be the leader, I'll take moms place and I'll never leave you, ever." she felt strongly of this, as she had only ever only saw the Glen as her home and wouldn't dare leave her family behind. It was farfetched, her promise, as Evy's personality was just shy of being that of leadership and she knew Celandine was the official princess of their home, she had always been but that didn't mean that she couldn't try. Glancing finally at the fox kill she sniffed it, the limp body and stench made her stomach churn but she took a cautious bite as if this nourishment would prep her for becoming their future leader. As she saw it, she was their last hope and had huge feet to fill to compare to their mother.

(This post was last modified: Oct 17, 2014, 11:37 AM by Evy.)

It was a sorrow that was now placed on her shoulders, and as her tiny head tucked further in to the thick white of his pelt, the man felt a growing anger toward his mate. Borlla’s selfishness had been revealed time and again throughout their time together, but he had never expected her to abandon her own children. He could not imagine the possibility of doing it himself, and his muzzle bent down to nibble gently upon his daughter’s ear, trying to pull her from her grief.

Her words stirred a small smile from the Argyris man, and pulling his head back up, his bright eyes cast down on her with a mixture of adoration and sadness. A stoical beast at the best of times, Phineas was unable to not show the love he felt to his family within his eyes – for them, his heart was surely upon his sleeve. “You will be the best leader Magnolia Glen has ever come to know,” he agreed quietly, knowing that soon, he would begin to groom all four children to take the roles of a heir. Which one would be successful was anyone’s guess, and he could only hope that it would be sorted out amongst themselves – Hypatia, her ever sweet and endearing nature would make a kind alpha. Takis, his bold and adventurous decisions would certainly keep everyone on their toes. Celandine, who already held her head the way a regal princess would.. and Evy, his logical child who always put others best interested before her own.

They were his legacy, and he would have it no other way.

(This post was last modified: Nov 12, 2014, 12:13 PM by Phineas.)

She stood staring at her father as another large chunk of fox slide down her throat roughly. She didn't personally like the taste of the creature and the stench that wafted from its fur made her gag as she tore past it to get to the fresh meat but she continued on for the sake of bulking up. She would need to be big and strong in order to help her father lead the pack, and when he finally spoke after a few moments of silence exchanged between them, she felt a smile cross the length of her maw before she spoke. "I hope so, I really hope so. I want to be as good as mother, she was a good leader wasn't she?" she questioned him, her head cocking to the side.

Although her memories of Borlla were vague, she knew that in order for her mother to have become a partner to Phineas she had to be a worthy female lead and she was certain that no one questioned her mothers motives. Little did the dark pup know that her mother had been the reason that the pack would be moving soon, and partially responsible for the rift between Oak Tree Bend and the Glen. "I don't think Cella would be happy to hear that I want to be a leader some day, I know that she wants to be one bad father, I mean, she's practically made for leadership but I'll show her pa..." she trailed off as her gaze traveled to her oversized paws. She would be larger than Cella and she knew this but she was not a fighter, in fact she wasn't much of a speaker and yet she wanted to lead someday...the rift was starting.

He watched her – her small jaws snapping at the pieces of meat at a predator who could have easily taken her from him – for once, justice had been served well. His own muzzle bent down, nudging at the carcass now before he began to work on gnawing off a piece for himself – after all, the taste of flesh from a creature who had attempted to do the same to her. He cringed to think what could have happened – and how quickly the table could have been reversed.

His ears flickered as she spoke, taking in her words with a swelling ache to his throat as he withheld emotion. Borlla, in truth, had proved to hold poor judgment in the end – the misdemeanor with the Oak Tree Bend pack and her utter selfishness at abandoning her own children.. all of it proved she cared about one thing and one thing alone: herself.

He gave a small nod, wondering if his swarthy daughter would take reason to heart when she was older on the topic. “A good leader is selfless.. and will do anything for their pack or family,” he carefully worded, leaving out the part that had slapped them all in the face – that Borlla had contained none of these qualities.

“Your sister and you will come to terms with dominance as you grow older – you will work out your differences, but never forget you love one another. Many wolves leave their birth pack to create one of their own when they find a mate,” he reassured, lifting his muzzle after eating the small piece of meat he had taken, nudging his daughter. “Come, let’s go away from here and leave this foolish creature to the birds.” Standing, Phineas gave his pelt a quick shake, his paws beginning to lead his daughter away from the fox and to a path that would lead them toward the borders. Her training could not start too soon, and perhaps it would take her mind from her mother’s absence.