Drooping Willows only the fool would tempt fate

<blockquote><i>Evening; Cloudy.</i>

Since meeting Remy Geddes, Angier Lyall had done nothing but mind his own business - namely continue on his usual agenda of filling Swift River's caches and minding the territory borders when he wasn't off hunting something down. In fact, Remy had not even come to mind until he had a slender rabbit hanging from his jowls. And with the memory of Remy, the recollection of Elettra's dark features came to the forefront of his memory. Abandoning his plan of returning to the Grove, the Lyall ventured further south of the River until the first of the Willows came into view. He wasn't sure why but he opted to search for the dark lady starting at the very first place where he had encountered her underneath the seemingly forlorn boughs of Relic Lore's Drooping Willows. At this rate, now that he was this far into Southern Eden, he was sure he would not return to Swift River soil well into the early hours of the morning.

He shrugged the thought away. It wasn't like he had a curfew or had other important duties to tend to - namely pup-sitting - anyway. No one, he believed, would miss him over the course of a day or so. His aimless path wove through the trees until Elettra's familiar scent, accompanied by a male's subtle cologne, stung his nostrils. He had to stop to shake his head and reassess the sudden emergence of her perfume. Careful to mind the invisible border that separated him from the pack lands he walked with her markers to his far right, only stopping when he felt he had meandered far and long enough. He cautiously craned his neck forward to inspect another one of Elettra's markers, just to make sure that the scent in question belonged to her.

The distinct aroma that he only now vaguely remembered was indeed there, just discernable underneath the musk of willow leaves, moss, and moist earth. He set the hare down for a moment then let out a loud, wary bark at first before beckoning to the wolves of Willow Ridge with a warbled howl.</blockquote>

(This post was last modified: Aug 10, 2012, 06:36 AM by Angier.)

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The day had fallen to evening, the sky growing darker and duller with each collective cloud. They rolled in, each set larger, darker, and deeper with a future threatening of rain, though the woman was confidant that it would be a time before this happened and so, scouted on her borders with lack of care yet much confidence to make up for this.
Each stride was with a bound of her brisk trot, her thickened hips nearly at a sway as she made way, her tail whipping to and fro upwards like a banner as she scaled the layout of her home with seemingly little to do. After all, she was a pack leader now and it was without question that she had a significant amount of wolves under her to do her bidding for her: she'd a trusted second pair, both there to back her up a strongly as her leading partner would. She had guardians under her belt, a young huntress at seemingly perfection to her art. She had a fisherman of striking colors, and a few soft heartened women of youth surely to put the pack at ease in ways her otherwise hard exterior could not. There was trust in her pack members which allowed her to roam far from the den site (and without children to weigh her own unlike the rest of the packs) without fear.
As she moved, it was with the same manner as she had when she was a part of Torbine's empire - tall on the length of her long limbs, proud with the wave of her plush blackened tail, and royal as though each step she had taken was on a trail of red rose petals and golden lace. Nothing would stop her from her happiness which remained hidden behind the plaster of darkly and dangerous expressions. Though even this could not keep her from the shock and deep curiosity of Angier's call. She would not recognize his howl, having never heard it before, but as she lopped in closer, closing the distance between them, his scent would go without question, and his presence, evermore. He was much as the man she remembered: a soft timber coloration, pale more so along the length of his face and throat, with pale liquid golden eyes and a mass which demanded attention with brute force alone. She remembered thinking of him as handsome a time or two before, and the thoughts had no been fleeting even if she had set her eyes upon some grander before.
She creeps forth closer, not shedding from her upright body but moving with delicate steps along the damp earth of her patchy canopy of a home. He smelt of river wolves she had met formerly, though however briefly. Both times she had met him prior, he had been a loner though would not express her disliking of him no longer being available to her any longer. In fact, the river wolves were seemingly closer then she had come to realize on her travels along the mountain side. Even her former home in the Hollow was no where near as close though she had no intention of a visit in the near future. "Couldn't find your own place to wait out the storm?" Though cloudy, no thunder had growled just yet, no flashes of lightning to flash the falling day with new light. But she could not help herself. It was the very same thing he had said to her the first they had met, within the very same lands, in fact. Now, this truly was her place.

<blockquote>For several moments it seemed that the world stood still and, after a second thought, he wondered if calling for Remy's pack, <i>Elettra's</i> pack actually, had been a mistake. It had occurred to him some time ago that a storm was on the rise but that hadn't been enough to stop him from visiting. He scanned the area around him with cautious eyes but the familiar voice he had not expected to hear caught him by surprise. <i>"Couldn't find your own place to wait out the storm?"</i> It took him a while to realize that the string of words she had chosen to greet him with were also familiar, but when it did, his masked features lifted with a captivated smile.

<b>"I couldn't,"</b> he answered, turning to face her completely in the gathering darkness. His black-tipped bottle-brush of a tail, swayed before growing still. <b>"I had to come an' see you,"</b> he admitted. <b>"I heard from Remy about a month or so ago that you finally broke free... She offered me a handsome rabbit in return for a favor, but I've come t' repay a more tangible part of our deal... just for kicks."</b> He lowered his tawny head to nose the stiff hare towards her then donned a rather facetious grin. <b>"I hope it will suffice, <i>m'lady</i>."</b>

When his eyes returned to her shadow-like figure he quietly looked her over then civilly bent his limbs to make himself smaller in stature and dipped his muzzle downward as if to apologize for staring... to physically gesture to her that he bore no ill will or any interest in challenging her air of authority. <b>"I wanted to see with my own eyes, scent with my own nostrils, that fate has served you well... given you what you, above all others, rightfully deserve."</b></blockquote>

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He turns then, recognition lifted over his features with a smile, and the swaying of his paint-brushed tail in which, as brief as his own, did she offer the same swaying. She stands silently, her eyes of pale silver fluttering between his own pale gaze, though of gold, before dancing over the rest of him; still he is all she remembers but she takes him in further to remind her brain should there be any differences since the last she had seen him. No graying of age, no newly scars, but plumper obviously, with a healthy weight that he could not quite obtain fully as a rogue. Now, he was everything of the intimidating size he had grown to become, and still it led her to wonder why it was his brother that had been so successful instead of he. But Elettra was only led to wonder that perhaps a need for leadership and a family was not exactly in his line of work.
He admits he had to come and see her, after 'breaking free' from the Hollow. Perhaps it was something he had to see to believe, much as the reaction of Ruiko. Elettra could not blame them, for she had been devoted to the Hollow until the very end and there was nothing in her that would have led others to doubt her willingness to stay. But the business of the Hollow was its own, though perhaps if any, Angier himself would be most understanding as to why Elettra had a need to break from the Hollow in the long run.
She nods then, a smirk forming over her lips as a gray-toed paw lifted to pull at the stiffened rabbit which had been nosed into her direction, thanking him for the gesture. It was not like Remy to go and hand out food to others, but it had been made obvious by Angier she had done it in order to gain a favor in the long run, something to which Elettra understood. Elettra was about business and equal favor - she gave to no others for free savor the members of her pack and for those she did offer her service too where expected to pay her back for her kind gesture.
"How sweet." She murmurs teasingly, the dark air of her words never relenting. She smirks further more at his staring, her body remaining as tall as it was naturally as he bends before her slowly and, apologetically. "Seeing is believing, is it not, Angier?" She muses, her eyes dancing over him, silken black ears flickering to catch every sound of his being as he stood before her. "...But why such an interest in my success? Since when is it that you care so much about little ol' me?" She ponders, still a push to his nerves, a test of his words with curiousness of what he might say. There first interaction together had been tense at best, both uncaring and untrusting. This had been when Elettra still had faith in his brother. There second meeting had been better, but nothing of friendships and true bonding on any manner. Elettra had accepted him to be right and Angier had done what he could to help Elettra with the situation at hand, though only to come to counters with there being little she could do in the long run. Jaysyek had chose her own fate, despite what may or may not have been best for her.

<blockquote><i>"How sweet."</i> The Lyall's eyes glanced up to peer into Elettra's silver irises. Her tone might have teased his ears but he just had to be certain it was simply lightheartedness and the way the dark lady usually lent her words. The smile he wielded touched his bottom eyelids and he nodded in reply to her question. <i>"...But why such an interest in my success? Since when is it that you care so much about little ol' me?"</i> she questioned further. It made the single butterfly in the pit of his stomach flutter in his ribs then plummet downward again.

<i>Veneration. Admiration. Lingering curiosity...</i> <b>"Fasc'nation,"</b> he offered. <b>"<i>Respect…</i> Though, truthfully, it delights me to see you elude Borden's... <i>tyranny</i>. To follow up an' find that you've established a place of your own is something that proves to me that you're someone worthwhile in my book."</b> Another memory of their first encounter surfaced to the forefront of his mind and he couldn't help but to choke back a chuckle, <b>"I'll admit to it, but you've snagged my interests from th' start. I've never met anyone else who was so sure of everything, so loyal an' more than bold enough to stand up to a rogue like me."</b>

His hind limbs lowered him to the ground and his tail swept over the forest floor. <b>"You seem like the type with a chip on each shoulder,"</b> he prompted. <b>"Granted or adorned with power, I could only imagine what your reign over a part of Relic Lore could provide or offer. And, I'll be honest. I'm here to strike a deal, an alliance if you will. If there is anything you could ever want or need, I am willing to provide it… granted <i>Willow Ridge</i> offers <i>me</i> the same terms. You scratch my back, I'll scratch yours. What d'ya say?"</b></blockquote>

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"I suppose a congratulations to me, then, for making it into Angier Lyall's book." Her words purse, pushing at a sarcastic air, yet still the subtle smile upon her lips is not wavering. She needed not ever prove to him, nor anyone else, of her worthiness to anyone - that she was fitting to be of alliance and that with her power, came the power of others whom called themselves a friend. Though her trust was increasingly hard to come by with each disappointment, her word and honor was a strong one and those whom she considered an alliance were protected with an iron paw and a ferocity that matched no other. She angered easily and was quick to temper, but it was those whom broken the trust she cradled with care that received the deepest pits of her hatred. Which, naming, happened to be his own brother.
He chuckles then, recurring a memory of their first meeting and bringing it to light once more: her sureness, boldness, loyalty. Her smile all but fell to the thoughts of whom exactly she had been standing up for against Angier and it made her stomach lurch. Every memory of Borden was tainted in sour bad and anger, savor their time alone together shifting the waters for shells. Borden Lyall had hurt her (and all the pack which he pledged to protect), deeply, and he would never be forgiven for it.
When he settled, she would settle with him, poised and erect though otherwise eased within his company, which she could not say for many. He mentions something to which she did not expect, though cursed herself for not having expected it. He seemed forever a rogue at heart, making companions only to make alliances and secure himself safety should things turn out badly. She could not blame him, for often did she work in these same manners. And not she began to wonder, was it true that she had interested him from the start, or was it a way to try and butter her up for this exact moment?
She is silent a while, the moments ticking on as she watches him and then, finally: "I'll accept - should your needs not mix with my alliances as of already. I will not choose between you or my pack-mates, nor someone I've called 'ally' before this agreement." She ends there, awaiting his response to this agreement. Although it would mean he would not be able to tangle with her current friendships and expect back-up, what else could he possible expect? She would be offering her entire pack for only the help of a single wolf.

<blockquote><i>Ah, but of course...</i> It had taken Angier the better part of a year or two to understand the dynamics of a fully and properly functioning pack but his observations had clearly paid off. All his patience and whims to just jump ship and give asking Elettra's favor a shot landed the ball in his court. <b>"By all means,"</b> he extended, a courteous nod accompanying his grateful sentiment. <b>"I bear no means to divide yer interests between your pack an' myself, and will not ever subject you to choose. I could be no one to you after all, even if there may be a day where you could be the difference between my demise or survival. It's only fair an' I understand."</b>

His pale eyes swept over her dark face before uttering a brief <b>"Thank you, though. Truly."</b> His smile softened and he quickly glanced around. When his eyes returned to her, he pointed with his muzzle to the land, her territory, behind her, <b>"Is there anything I could help with for the time being? I'm sure you've had quite the start in establishing your grounds."</b> He figured he would not be allowed on Willow Ridge soil, and quickly added, <b>"Could I entice you with a few sprigs of <i>skunkbush</i>? The next time I hunt I could easily pick some for your stores. I'll already be in the area, so there's no need for repayment an' it's not much of a hassle, really... Or maybe some <i>hellebore</i>? I'm sure you've harvested quite a bit from around here, but they grow in abundance within Sacred Grove also... if you need a little more."</b></blockquote>

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tis too bad this is before the flooding. they will def. need the help with herbs now. XD

"...I wouldn't say no one." She objected with his words. He was understanding. And more so, he was very understanding to which a single, silky black ear would fold back against her crown. Otherwise, she remained lax at her pack's boarder, offering a glance to the further hardening hare and then back to the large, timber colored male before her. He was certainly a man of much personality, firstly having been grumpy and stand-offish, to cunning and plotting before his brother's fall and now? However sweet and understanding as a wolf could come, offering gifts upon more and a promise of alliance. Through her times with Ruiko, with all their spats, irrational behavior and fights, she'd a better understanding of him then the wolf before her now. However, business was business and she took the opportunity to have eyes outside of her pack in stride and full acceptance.
And then there was the pale of his golden gaze, to linger with the pale of her silver. His words offer a thank you, a true one and in that moment, she could sense not an ounce of questionable intentions within him. His face softened upon a smile and in the moment of him turning away, her body quivers. Not with affection, fear, or sexual desire, but purely out of the oddity of it all. Elettra was accustom to much in life, but never a delicate moment, nor one even close.
He speaks on then, offering what he could to seal their agreement and begin their alliance formally. Though his ideas of aid come to shocking interest in her, causing that one fallen ear to perk with the other, her eyes alight with a new found interest. "You know of herbs?" She speaks and for a moment, wonders how he knew she might be interested herself. Recalling their time together, she had mentioned upon their first meeting she was out in search of herbs. Had he possibly remembered that remark from long ago, or had this been a lucky guess? "Both would be well, really. There is never too much in my opinion. However, we've a patient currently, and more Devil's bite, the hellebore, may do us some good." She speaks this, not relieving much details, but sought not a need to hide the information, now that she could call him ally.
She falls a bit silent then, her silver pale eyes sweeping past him and the lands beyond. North of here was his own home in the Sacred Grove, closest to her home then all of the other packs for that matter. "So it is then that you speak for an alliance of yourself and not on the behalf of your pack." She pauses only long enough for her gaze to once more sweep over the pale mask of his face. "Will you not just join me?"

If anything, I could "delay" Angier's next visit to sometime recent/after the flood. He could have easily kept busy with maintaining his trust with SR... or something (especially since now I have Fenru <i>somewhat</i> aware of his comings and goings off the territory). Apologies for the shortness of this post, wanna free up your threadlog asap. <3

<blockquote>To hear that he could possibly be <i>someone</i> to Elettra was flattering and he took it in stride with the slight widening of his grin. She questioned about his proficiency with botany and, again, he nodded. <b>"Yes, ma'am. I was well-trained by my uncle, he specifically taught me about the uses of medicinal plants."</b> Having an excellent sense of memory, the skill of memorizing names, places, and what had been said was something he had always taken pride in and he was thrilled to see the glimmer in her eyes upon his mentioning about the plants. She gracefully accepted his offer, revealing to him what her infirmary was in need of: <i>Devil's bite</i> and <i>hellebore.</i>

<b>"Of course,"</b> he noted. The fur on the back of his neck prickled as she looked him over. <b>"Indeed,"</b> he confirmed. <b>"One day my servitude to Swift River will be up. I would be honored to join you, <i>m'lady</i>, but I am afraid the timing is not yet <i>right</i>."</b></blockquote>

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[ Sure thing, that could work. Perhaps whilst Elettra is on the search for new herbs just outside the boarders? Since she is likely to be in need of doing much of that. ]

She nodded, but otherwise said little more on the manner of his uncle teaching him about herbs. Perhaps, in time, she would come to learn exactly how much he knew and if he was something to be considered a novice or a specialist at the profession. Still, she was happy to learn that they had something in common, seeing as he would be on her list as a new ally and with it, gaining both her favor, friendship, and in time of course, trust. This would of course, be of much use. Now, she would have to search for herbs even less herself, with both Angier and Kyrie's help. It seemed the only thing Elettra was lacking in the pack was suitable teachers for the children, but granted there was no children and Elettra without even a mate to begin thinking of them, this was not an important falter to fix.
She listens to him deeply then, mentioning that he would like to join her and her pack in time. Any secret alternative she thought he may have would be smothered by this, for surely all those he, a single wolf would benefit much from a whole pack behind him should he mess up, him joining the pack was another manner. It would therefore be his family, his life and he would have to give it his all without ploys or plots. But a debt was in need of erasing from Swift River and for whatever reason it was Elettra did not question, but only nodded once more. "I'll be in wait for the time then, Angier Lyall." She speaks lastly, to which she would dip her muzzle in farewell for the time being and leave off from which she came.