Cedarwood Forest the noose around your neck

Set after <a href='http://relic-lore.net/index.php?showtopic=1313' target='_blank'>this</a> thread; the travel to take Prosper's body back.

The large wolf had kept quiet during their travel, not strained by the silence but more so the severity of the situation. His dark companion was a stranger to him, and one that he did not trust. Her display of dominance had not been taken kindly, and while Ruiko was aiding the lady in her quest to get the body of the youth home to where he belonged, he also would not stand for her attempting to place herself above him.

His jaws were placed with meticulous gentleness upon the youth’s body, ever so careful to not pierce the flesh of the deceased. His mind was clouded with the news he would have to deliver Jaysyek, and his urge to protect the ivory dove was strong, but misplaced. There was nothing he would be able to say to comfort the gentle woman. His bright golden eyes were upon the path they traveled back to the Hollow pack, but for a quick moment Ruiko allowed his eyes to slide over to the she-wolf who served the Grizzly pack, curious as to her disposition. He doubted she needed a break, knowing she was likely very eager to have the situation over with. So Ruiko Tainn continued to move forward, his pace setting an even match to Elettra despite the awkward tension, for they both knew what was to come.

Still did the rage in her heart burn, the pain, the sorrow, swallowed down by the need to not show such weak emotions, yet to replace them with the hard exterior she had been built upon. She was nothing less then a wild, dangerous and powerful being. To expect anything less of her was foolish. Built upon a royal bloodline, trained harshly and made ruthlessly. She forever knew what she wanted it life and would fight for it to the bitter end, for she had never been one to back down from a challenge, for this was half the fun! Whilst respectful to those she meets, it was not with easy trust, which came little and few but to those that did wiggle their way end, held themselves a forever ally; protective, possessive, even perhaps. She had grown such a way to her leadess and the kin in which she birthed, due to the lack in members which had been there to care for them all this time. She would cradle the child as she helped the unknown male carry him, delicate, yet strong in her grasp.
To prevent the pained sigh from escaping her lips, would she cover it with a low growl. She had never been a mother and little had bothered to try and court her for affection. She had never been the prettiest girl. Most elegant, fitting with long legs and a thin body, with dashing blue eyes and pale fur. She was stand-offish when it came to affection and was nearly lost upon the subject. Even as she was protective of the child (proving she could be motherly, if only...) she did not comprehend the pain Jaysyek might feel towards the news. Her throat tightened to the thought, but mechanically did she move forward in silence.

The rustle of leaves beneath his heavy paws was the only sound that broke the silence, and the Tainn wolf once more allowed his gaze to drift over to the she-wolf briefly. Lethal and large, it was her eyes that captivated his attention for a moment, never before witnessing such a pale grey. She was unreadable – something he could appreciate, for his own emotions were masked behind a stoical façade that rarely broke, spare for his family and friends.

Moving slowly among the tall trees of Cedarwood Forest, the regal wolf finally allowed to break the silence, his throat giving a quick and gruff clear to catch her attention. They would be to the Hollow pack lands soon, and at that time Ruiko and the unknown wolf would thoroughly destroy any hope Jaysyek ever had of reuniting herself with her son. Slowly putting down the weight he carried of the boy, Ruiko Tainn studied his companion thoughtfully. “Are you going to be alright?” After all, it was his assumption that as a subordinate to the ivory leader of Grizzly Hollow, the she-wolf would not only be grieving for the boy she had likely helped raise as a pack member, but also for the mother who her loyalty was pledged to.

Every so often she would feel his golden gaze upon her, a stark difference from her pale shade of silver. Whilst his might seem hopeful and passionate, her's were emotionless, dark and void. It did well to hide her feelings from the world, as his hard-lined facial expression. Perhaps they would share the same in this demeanor, as their strive for dominance, power, and respect. Surely, they would bump heads if nothing else.
The clearing of his throat would break her steady pace, causing her to finally turn her attention to him where else she had otherwise only secretly viewed him from her peripheral vision. She would settle the child with him, easing his body to the ground, growing stiff as time passed-cold, hard. She would wrinkle her nose to the smell, tossing her head away from the death. She had seen plenty of it before, but perhaps the inability to 'get used' to it may be proof she was not as cruel hearten as others might of thought her to be.
"Was I ever...?" It was a delicate whisper of her tongue, meant to be soft, but distorted by the roughened tone of her voice as it curled off her Italian tongue. It was in this moment, for the first since their venture, would her head lift, eyes directed straight to his own. Perhaps he could easily hide himself from those more open, but could be hide himself from her, whom was just as withdrawn, if not more?

He gained her attention then; his words stirring the she-wolf to follow suit and place the boy gently to the ground for a quick moment. He noted carefully the way her muzzle tilted away from the body of the youth, her nose scrunching as if she held distaste for the scent of death. He softened his quiet resolve slightly, knowing then that the dark lady was simply keeping her emotions at bay at the despair her pack was about to discover.

Her words drew his ears forward, his eyes to lock upon hers. Usually a stance of dominance came from such a bold gaze, but this was a sense of enlightenment. “I wouldn’t know,” he returned, his own tone low in respect to the dead. “I don’t even know you’re name let alone your thoughts.” There was a small pause, and he inclined his muzzle slightly. “But I know if it was me, and I was carrying back a pup of Corinna’s.. I would be devastated.”

She listens intently, his monotone, his realism in his words- direct, uncaring even, perhaps, as they are spoken. There is nothing of mystery, of magic, of passion. Only cold, hard facts, much as herself. Her lip twitches as it begins to pull back at the ends, though she would force the frown from her face before it could fully form. "So do you ask in respect, or do you genuinely care?" Though why would be honestly care, other then the simple respect for another wolf by the death of a child. It was not his own, nor that of a comrade or fellow family member. She shifts then, her head away from him. In the very moment it may seem any emotion might be revealed in that deep gaze, does she shut down- hard, once more. "I'll be fine."

She carefully avoided truly answering him – swift with her words and quick to push them back to him. Ruiko gave a light blink in return to her question, his eyes falling down to the youth that had likely once held a world of promise and happiness. “I consider Jaysyek a good friend. I care.” He did not know the female before him to give much thought upon her feelings, but he also was not such a beast as to disregard her emotions completely, especially when she shielded them from the world.

Finally, her response drew a single nod from him. He did not believe a syllable of her answer, but he also was not going to insist she lean over and have a good cry on his shoulder before they delivered the news to the Hollow wolves. Nothing he could say could make it better. “I’ll go back to the Wildwood once we take him home. Just to see if I can find any traces of anything.” Or any kind of answer to this mysterious death.

And oh so shielded was he. When he looked down to the child, she did not, but rather kept her head level, eyes directed straight before her- straight towards home. He mentioned Jays as a good friend of his, much as she was to Elettra, much as El might protect her, care for her, and guide her when she longed to be guided. "Then when she arrives, you can ask her if she is alright, since your question otherwise would have nothing to do with me." After all, he had originally asked if she was alright, though if he only truly cared for her leadess in this situation, then perhaps his question did not belong directed to her. Perhaps her words were almost made to once more deter him, where she otherwise did not wish to spill her feelings on the subject, which were more or less being forced down her throat as the heart locked in her chest. "....I can do it." It was her pack, after all. Her leader, her child, in a sense that they were family in their pack. She would need some kind of escape to herself, if she would ever break free of this un-caged engagement by this horrible despair.

His words were not taken kindly, and the she-wolf snapped at him, seemingly upset that he had not openly told her he cared what she felt. Ruiko’s tail gave a lash against the air, his gaze settled on her as she lashed out to him. “I can ask her,” he decided quietly, his gaze not leaving hers even after she decided she wanted to continue the journey without him. “And I will. But I was also asking you.”

He let those words settle, wondering if the stranger was always an emotional roller coaster or if she was buried beneath her grief for the boy. “I’ll continue with you and be quiet if you’d rather,” he offered one final time, not willing to push the she-wolf to annoyance or worse, grievance. He had a feeling she was going to decline him once more, and in part, he could not blame her. She likely wanted this to be a private pack matter, as it should be.

"I'll be fine." She only said simply, once more repeating what she had said formerly. Of course she was sad by the loss of the child, any dope could figure out such a thing, if not by the fact that he was a child of her pack, but by the protection and anger over his death which she had showed when she had first founded the boy. Did she need to tell him that she was sad, for him to understand it? In time, she would heal, much as any wound may heal- this was obvious. At least, to her. So without answer she would lower her head, jaws hovering over the still child (and still avoiding to look at the corpse) as she was ready to once more help him lift. She did not speak however, and hoped that her movement alone would be enough of a sign that he may continue with her.