Silent Moon Plateau I see the world, the one you made up

I'm cackling and having so much fun here. Poor Mace!!

Her words packed a punch, one she observed with pride as her defense knocked the words right out of his jaws. After a beat the male regained his composure, and fought against her accusation again. "Of course you don't have a mate, she's dead," Iyes countered with a huff just to make a point. What she really had a problem with was the sentence he said next. Shaking with hate she relayed the story, exactly as her mother had told it to her, at a decibel level rivaling the snarl of the rapids he sought. "What I'm talking about is some wolf named Attaya, who started a family with a good wolf, and who took off the instant his cubs were born!"

Anger roared from her mouth like a cresting wave, but when it crashed against the mountainside all that echoed was sadness. This wolf who she believed to be her father took her verbal abuse almost dutifully. Her razor-edged tongue could go on for hours using someone else's negative energy to continue the momentum - but Mace was no whetting stone. There was no anger radiating from his inky coat for her to feed off of. The perpetual presence of his diligence was starting to exhaust the rage, and it made her sad. Where was this wolf when she was growing up? She was almost starting to wish he had been there.

Amber eyes still burning she stepped closer, craning her neck to meet his stare despite their drastic difference in heights. Her body stilled, turning her rage quiet as it only vibrated under her skin. Her voice was soft, almost daring. "Are you going to admit that it's you, dad?"

adopt thea?

Once again, Iyes was not wrong, and once again, Mace had to ask himself if there was something he just didn't know about. There had been several females. If one had slunk off carrying his child, fancying he was their mate, then taught that child that he was a good-for-nothing Attaya because he never sought her out again, then the whole situation was plausible. Mace, pragmatic though he was, was no real thinker, and the possibility was enough to sweep his world out from under him.

He came to when she called him "dad", and his blue eyes searched her for any sign of familiarity. There was none, and yet... and yet, she resembled his Tinley so keenly he knew it must be true, even if he didn't want to believe it. His Tinley's genes came from him, mostly. Her mother had been a creature spun of gold and cream, and she had inherited none of that. Her brilliant orange eyes came from her mother's side, but then, who was to say Iyes' didn't, too?

Holy shit, Mace, goaded his mind, what have you done? He'd had another daughter, maybe more, and never even known. He'd unwittingly abandoned her.

I'm, he began, stopped, wet his lips, then continued with an air of defeat and shame. I'm so sorry, I didn't know. I didn't know about you.

(This post was last modified: Apr 13, 2017, 02:37 PM by Mace.)

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When words finally slipped from his blackened jaws, free of denial and hushed in shame, the ink-coated yearling felt her blood run entirely cold. His admission shocked her anger into the very back of her throat and she swallowed it painfully. Iyes had practically been begging for this, daring him to admit that he was her father. Only now that she'd gotten what she wanted, she realized she hadn't really wanted it at all. Him admitting to this changed everything - and despite the big game she had been spitting, she was not ready for this encounter, not even at all.

Exhaling a shaky breath she tried to mask the dumbfounded look which had appeared on her face. Her orange-tinged eyes roved over her father, seeing the damage that she had done. What she didn't understand was why she felt so conflicted. It had been repeated to her that he was a no good wolf. But he looked so deflated, lacking in something he'd had when their conversation first began. And on top of that, Mace was sorry for it. Apologies were foreign to the youth. They so rarely came from her mouth, so it made sense that they weren't often offered in her direction either. Except for now.

Her rage had burned through her like a wildfire, leaving only a pile of tepid ashes where Iyes once stood. She had visibly shrunk, conflicted about how to process the encounter, letting her eyes fall to the ground. She thought back to her early life, picturing a memory of herself, and Thea, and Phaios. In that memory she tried to place his likeness beside her mother; It was easy to do.

Still staring at the ground she muttered, "How could you have not known? My mother said she loved you. She said you knew." It was more for her benefit that she voiced her thoughts - Mace had already made it clear he had know idea she existed until now. Which begged the question... "What are you even doing here?"

(This post was last modified: Apr 13, 2017, 07:39 PM by Iyes.)

adopt thea?

How could you have not known? Iyes asked. My mother said she loved you. These words slashed Mace like razor blades, and his face fell, his eyes clouded by an emotion he couldn't quite name. It was becoming harder and harder to believe that this was actually the case. From his understanding, one of the women he'd lain with had fallen pregnant, but hadn't sought him out in the same way Tinley's mother did. Maybe she was shy, maybe she loved him from afar, but Mace couldn't be blamed for what someone else had failed to do.  

So then why did he feel so guilty?

She asked him a question, breaking his heavy silence and the ice that built between them alike. I was born in Darkwater Rapids, he began, and am here to seek out that place, and whatever might remain of my family. But, like him, all Attayas were struck by intense wanderlust and instability. He couldn't have known that his brother and sisters had had far more successful times in the Lore than he had, but he couldn't assume they hadn't, either. That was why he was here. But it felt awkward to talk about it with Iyes, and for a long moment, Mace couldn't think of what to say.

Tell me what I can do, bid the quiet Attaya at last, who found his voice and his feet at the same time. How could he continue to sit, a picture of neutrality and peace, with such the anvil of sudden news dropped on his head? He felt a strong desire to pace or walk for hours, but he fought against it, remaining still even though he could no longer sit. What can I do to start making it up to you? I promise I never meant to hurt you, Iyes. He hadn't meant to be a bad father. He hadn't known any better, and it lanced him deeply that he'd doted so fiercely on Tinley when he had another child, or other children, out in the world going without his attention.

gorgeous set by kydnt

Heaviness of a feeling she couldn't describe had set deeply into her bones. It was exhausting to keep standing, and since Mace had proven a distinct lack of threat to her a long while back she let herself fall to her haunches, sitting and staring miserably at the ground. She frowned deeply when he said he came looking for the place he was born, which he seemed to imply was close here. Iyes hadn't been born anywhere near the Lore, but somehow they had both ended up in this moment, in this land. A wry smile almost appeared on her face - almost - and she wanted to voice this coincidence to her father. She wanted to know what he meant by that ominous phrasing - what's left of my family. But like him, there was something so compathetically strangling about the awkward mess they marinated in that she couldn't find it in her to say it out loud.

In the silence that consumed them she wondered if the ground could open up and swallow her into the mountain, removing her from this situation that she was too emotionally underdeveloped to deal with. Truly she thought the feeling that wrenched in her gut couldn't get any worse until her father begged a question of her that she hadn't expected to deserve. As he went on the offer cracked her steely veneer and elicited a high-pitched and morose whine from the youth. Tears were hot in her down-turned eyes and she felt like a crying child again, three months old and begging for her mother to come console her.

Except her mother was dead, and her father was here, asking her forgiveness. Without thinking she bolted from her seat, crossing the frosted barrier that set between the two Attaya wolves and pressing her cheek into his chest. Even though the feeling of embracing her father was something brand new, it fit into a compartment in her heart that had been waiting for the moment. Sinking back down to sit leaned against him, Iyes swallowed a sob that threatened to escape her. "I- I don't know," she started honestly. But she did sort of know, even if it was a request which made her feel almost pathetic to ask. "What if you came back? After you find Darkwater Rapids... come back here? And tell me about it?"

adopt thea?

Iyes had no comment to make in regards to his mission, and Mace felt his face falling along with his spirits. She was his alleged daughter, but because of his negligence, she likely didn't feel the same pull to discover her family. He had the fleeting thought of inviting her along with him, but just as quickly discarded it. She was fully grown, and probably had a life of her own to attend to. He certainly hadn't been part of it, and couldn't imagine forcing himself into it now with such an invitation.

Still, he silently vowed to be present for her. That even if he didn't find any traces of his siblings or parents, and even if he didn't find Darkwater Rapids, he would at least remain present for Iyes. He thought of Tinley then, absurdly, and how he might never see her again. His heart ached at the thought, but the daughter he had raised was a tough wolf. She would be fine with The Bloodbreakers, and judging by her last words to him, she didn't care too much if he was around or not.

He was shaken from his sudden pensive reverie quite suddenly when Iyes collapsed into his chest. Eyes wide, the Attaya hesitated, then lowered his snout to gently nose the soft fur on her scalp. He took in the scent of her—pleased to know that she carried the scents of others, as well, and was likely provided for—before she pulled away, but remained leaning in. Mace let a soft breath out from his nose and searched the top of her head, then the depths of her fiery eyes, as she admitted she didn't know what he could do.

His stomach dropped like a stone, then lifted once more, buoyed on her next suggestion. Yes, he said, without hesitation. I will come back, I promise. I want to travel around the Lore for a little while, find some of my old stomping grounds and maybe some clues about my home and my siblings, but yes... I will return here, and tell you what I find. It wasn't enough. It wasn't nearly enough to make up for all the lost time, how he'd seemingly abandoned her—which begged the question of which untruthful Bloodbreakers mink had been her mother, for he knew not the name of Phaios—but the surge of affection in his breast for her now told him that this time, for once in his life, he would not break this promise.

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Iyes had not expected some grand firework show to happen in her head when she careened against Mace, no parade of mini black wolves in her head bouncing around and screaming I love my Dad! But she did feel something comforting when he didn't shirk away from her, letting his muzzle caress the fur between her ears and get familiar with something entirely unfamiliar to him. The tightness in her chest did not disappear, but it receded, and that was enough for her to momentarily forget all of her life before this exact moment. Tears made her eyes feel heavy, and she wiped them away on the dark fur of his shoulder, like she had always used her father as a professional snot rag.

Perhaps what drove her back to reality was the wolf's too good to be true answer. Yes, he said, almost immediately. Mace promised her a commitment so swiftly that her natural instinct was to doubt it. There was nothing to definitively say that after he did leave her mountain to travel elsewhere he would come back - just a smattering of hope that the girl caught with both hands and cradled. Exhaling a shaky breath, closed her eyes and made the choice to believe him. The only thing she returned was a word, a simple promise of her own. "Okay." If he would go, find what he was looking for, and come back, then Iyes would be right here whenever that was, eager to hear his stories.

With a gentle push the petite youth disengaged from their embrace, trotting only a few steps away before stopping. Her side felt cold where she had touched him, now lacking in the comforting heat that he had provided her. Dark legs felt as stable as stilts, a slight tremble still coursing down her spine as she came down from the whirlwind of emotions that had just swept through the Heights. When she met his ice-colored gaze one last time she smiled, small and delicate but not forced. "Good luck out there. I hope you find what you're looking for." She had, and now she needed to dissect the encounter. But first she had to watch him leave, just to make sure he didn't disappear into thin air.

adopt thea?

Iyes agreed to his promise, and he smiled, and it was more watery than he would have liked. Mace imagined himself to be a fairly strong individual, strong and steady, but something about this had shaken him and moved him in a way he hadn't felt in quite a long time. Emotion welled up in him at having found this, his wayward unknown daughter, and he found he didn't know the right words to say in parting.

Come with me, he might have said but that he knew his mission might be fruitless. Not entirely, for he'd found her, but as for his real mission, it was possible none remained who could tell him anything. The black wolf felt his heart sink at the possibility, but knowing Iyes existed and would be here waiting for him no matter the outcome of his search buoyed him. His smile strengthened and his eyes were warm as he said, see you soon, then, and though he couldn't put a real number to "soon", he intended to conclude his search as quickly as was feasible.

Then Mace Attaya turned and headed across the plateau, and couldn't stop himself from glancing back at his daughter, and feeling a rapidly growing fondness as he began his journey, now with a true end goal in mind, whether or not he succeeded.

(This post was last modified: Apr 19, 2017, 03:17 AM by Mace.)

gorgeous set by kydnt