Swift River Night of Stars

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There was a overwhelming scent of wolves. So many different and unknown scents who all shared the same dominant scent of the leader from Swift River. Ren could already imagine the close bond in this pack before she had even seen a other member except Indru. The way how the scents were mixed together, she had never smelt or seen anything like this before. It seemed that her old home was nothing compared to this, back then Ren thought they were quite close but this was from a whole different level.

The young female had left the side of Indru, the night was still dominant in the sky. Ren knew she should go and sleep, it just felt a bit awkward to go into the dens and go to sleep next to the other unknown members. Maybe later, not right now. She knew herself, she couldn't sleep anyway because of the events. All she would do is turning and rolling trying to fall in sleep while it would never happen in such situation. Better she would stay outside and let the others sleep. Ren didn't want to wake everyone up, she was alright here, the night wasn't so cold and she liked to see the aphotic sky lighten up when the sun would rise again. In the camp Ren observed for a moment the open space. It looked very nice. She turned away from it and searched for a good place to gaze at the sky. Even though there was still no moon to spot, little stars shimmered in the sky. Ah yes, this felt better. Relaxed she put her tail around her paws to keep them warm. Ren hoped she would be accepted by the other leader of the pack and the members itself. She was polite and knew her manners but if she would loosen up they would notice she was quite a girl. Challenging wolves, sometimes even make trouble. Ren couldn't change who she was, she just hoped it wouldn't be a big matter. She did want to keep her word and become useful soon. If she just knew where her talented laid it was so much easier. Just for now she shouldn't worry about those things. Just watching the stars. Some minutes past and Ren began to humble a bit, softly without moving a inch.

<blockquote>Bloody females. Had Indru brought his harem with him or something?

The border patrol entity had been taking advantage of a cool night to do some rounds, though after a heavy day of that exact task, it was fairly light-hearted. For Marsh, at least. He was not yet very tired - the beast functioned on remarkably little sleep - but he also had the gut feeling that nothing exciting was going to happen tonight. Perhaps it was just the effects of an uneventful day, but there was only so much you could tread over the same ground before you started to just zone out. Even Marsh had his limits on monotony.

Being accompanied by Ice always helped to liven it up a bit, though. It was times like these that made him almost regret being so reluctant to engage more. Though their relationship had evolved to the stage where they could practically have fully-functioning 'conversations' (if simple ones) without a single word needing to be spoken on Marsh's behalf, there was something singularly fascinating about Ice which almost made him want to try. He could recall a time when it had not been so hard, after all. He had never properly rationalised or analysed the deteriorating relationship he had with words; it was simply something that had happened over time. He guessed that the long period of time alone had been the catalyst. Ever since he and Albion, all those years ago, had formed their partnership, he had been thrust from the world of guttural sounds into that of language, and it had always been an uphill struggle.

Marsh was too old to care about fighting it any more. He was altogether a more relaxed creature when surrounded by those who did not expect him to talk.

Something about Ice made him want to reconsider anyway.

<font style='margin-left:20px;'>Finally ready to return to the den, the pair had barely gotten close when the scent of yet another strange female filled Marsh's nostrils. Not <i>again.</i> It felt like his life these past few days had revolved around clamping his jaw around these newcomers' muzzles. A low, frustrated growl escaped him, his nose wrinkling in distaste at the thought. She smelt of Indru, but not of Corinna. Seriously, where did he find them all?

Reluctantly, he glanced beside him to the white giant at his shoulder. He was so<i> tired</i> of putting all these young bitches in their place. With a gruff sigh, the Second forged ahead, tracking the foreign scent until the child came into view, watching the stars, humming softly to herself. He stopped at the edge of the trees, unable to muster the energy to care enough to march in. She was barely a yearling, no threat at all.

Glancing back at Ice again, Marsh grinned darkly. <i>All yours.</i></font></blockquote>

you do not know who is your friend or who is your enemy until the   ICE breaks. He couldn't help it. He couldn't help the rush of words from his mouth, he couldn't help the fact that he seemed to be in the presence of Marsh night and day, and he could certainly not help the fact that he enjoyed it more and more with each passing day of their partnership. Sometimes it amazed him that the scars and the cold iron gaze had bothered him at first. These days, he didn't even notice it. Of course, the couple of times that he managed to strike a nerve in Marsh or accidentally become the object of his scrutiny he felt like shriveling up and dying, but those times were always fleeting, and once they had passed, they were forgotten. Still.. more often now than in the past, he found himself randomly trying to groom Marsh's mess of a mane. Whenever he realized what he was doing, he stopped, though. Marsh's appearance was his own thing to deal with, really. Ice gave his head a quick shake. Sometimes it felt like Corinna was the vessel of numen, for when she was near Ice always felt at peace and content, but to be honest, Marsh's presence sometimes did the same - though, in different ways. Where it was pure joy that Corinna woke in him, it was confidence, strength, stability and security that radiated from Marsh and into Ice's soul and heart. It was a sign of their long day and now night that he'd fallen silent some time ago. He kept staring straight in front of where he went. Up until the point they had decided to return to the den he'd been chattering and bouncing and nipping at Marsh's cheek and scruff and being a general nuisance, but now it was like someone had drained all his energy. That was, until the female's scent hit his nose and Marsh gave a frustrated growl. Ice's reaction was to sigh, though it had sparked some adrenaline and begun to wake him up again. "Well well well," he said with a faint smile. "Yet another one." He'd paused momentarily, and gave Marsh's hip an encouraging nudge. Time to go greet the latest girl! Though, his steps lacked enthusiasm and on the whole they looked more like tired, worn old warriors and not eager pack brothers. And when they found her, she was sitting and staring at the stars, humming. For a moment, Ice was dumbstruck. That's what he usually did! He was so busy staring, and blinking, at her lithe shape that he nearly missed Marsh's grin, but when he saw it he snorted. She was just a kid, no reason to squish her too much. But.. she did need to be squished a little, and it seemed Marsh wasn't up to it. Uncharacteristically silent he nudged Marsh's cheek before padding out from the darkness. The girl was plain in appearance, ordinary of build and color with yellow eyes, unlike the two sets of gray that stared at her. "Welcome," he huffed gruffly, not certain why he'd suddenly adopted Marsh's demeanor. Usually, he was a lot more upbeat and friendly, but... He guessed it was part being tired, part Naira. Damn that female, she'd left them and yet she haunted them. Without much further ado, the large, ghostly pale wolf bent down to gently clasp her muzzle in his jaws, marking him as senior and dominant in the pack. If she allowed it, he'd let go after a second or two, but if she didn't... she was bound to regret it, because he was fairly certain Marsh would flip in the shadows if she did. .ice aesir

let the stars above shine in your soul

Wrapping up. Fen, post or just archive <3

<blockquote>He hung back, not at all interested in the domination of yet another female, and watched with muted interest as Ice did the deed. The copper wolf sat down with casual impatience, eager for it to be over so that they could continue their work. He heard Ice's greeting, saw the muzzle grab, and was satisfied by her compliance. At least she was not likely to be a troublemaker, but reliable? Well, they'd had too many come and go to really have high hopes in that respect.

Marsh was not interested in being a part of it; if she stuck around, he'd have plenty of opportunities for asserting himself. He wasn't in the mood tonight. With Ice's display complete, Marsh caught the white wolf's eye and jerked his head, motioning for them to go back to the den, which had been their intention all along. They didn't need to waste more time here.</blockquote>