Swift River Portrait of a Dying Heart

The scent. The scent caught his attention. Black ears swiveled forward listening for hispack mate voices if they arrived first. Once more the dark wolf found himself being one of the last to appear on site.

Padding through the forest Burn shook his mane and growled. He'd been in an okay mood for the last couple of days while he looked over borders. The burnt man rarely came to the den as most of his pack mates did not favor the dark wolf. Instead the shadow had made a makeshift nest at the base of a large tree. Ironically the snowy walls around Burn kept him rather warm at night when the wind blew just above his head. If the pack wanted nothing to do with him then Burn was fine with that. However he was not going to let the last of his family down by leaving them like the bastard older brother of his.

Coming upon a large number of wolves it was immediately appearant that Burn was not needed. With there being three other River wolves there including the primped up snowball the dark man stopped at te edge of the little group. He dipped his head and flicked his ears in greeting to those who would take it then glanced around at his pack mates reactions to the stranger. Neither Hotei nor Burn had known this ex River wolf previously so when the scarred male stared into this "Ren's" eyes a small snarl lit his features.

"I'm not needed here though.." Burn looked once more at his pack mates, golden yellow eyes lingering on Jessie for a moment. Then the black wolf backed away into the shadows of the nearby trees. He would watch quietly from his place until he was needed, and IF... the wolf decided to be ornery. Burn might get a chance to chase the bitch out.

(This post was last modified: Jan 12, 2013, 02:05 AM by Hotei.)

It appeared there was a nice little audience gathered, all ears and agitated eyes focused on the sorry state she was in on the other side of the borders. The white female remained stoic and studying, while the two toned younger girl demanded to hear of her tale of departure from the very beginning. Ice generously (although generously was probably the wrong word of this moment, but it was the meekest thing to give to Ren) requested Ren to have her just, fair explanation of her departure. There was an uncanny heat radiating from every single one of them, even the male wolf in the shadows who instantly appeared to listen in. Her gold eyes flicked, her heart skipping a beat momentarily. She thought her nose smelled of Indru, thought Indru was silently watching her from the shadows, interested in hearing what judgement was to come about all this. But... it wasn't him. It was just another pack member, leering in the back just in case anything was to maliciously rise from this.

As to why this felt more uncomfortable than expected to Ren, she couldn't explain. Sure, pack members were pissed off someone was wandering on their borders. Sure, outsiders were often regarded with upturned noses and telling them to take a hike. There was something about this moment, however, that might have expressed frustration of another caliber. Perhaps Swift River was having a bad season with hunting, the pack suffered a fatal loss amongst the leaders, who knew what. There was just some sort of added agitation Ren felt, and would wonder if she directly had anything to do with it. Heaving a sigh off her chest, her gaze narrowed down for a moment. Where to start, where to start. Ren didn't believe she had ever shared her history with anyone before, not even when she was a part of Swift River previously. To share her history with four irritable wolves, all of which were practically strangers to her and probably couldn't give a damn about her no less? Ren didn't like that at all.

Do you have a goddamn choice in the matter right now? Raising her head back up, her gaze stood solid on Ice's momentarily, then danced amongst the two females to also include them in her reasoning (as well as shooting an occasional glance toward the shadows of the male wolf, who was in earshot). "My birth pack, long before Swift River, I had a cousin who was my best friend. The only other wolf who gave a damn about my existence." Ren began, uneasy to tell this story to those who weren't on an intimate relationship with her, but this was for the sake of her survival. "She was my stronghold, my support growing up. We thought we'd conquer everything together; become leaders, be the lead huntresses, have our pups play with each other everyday. Until she betrayed me over backstabbing rumors. In my birth pack, everyone worked hard, everyone was family, there was no nonsense. Somewhere, it all started, and I had to leave. It was getting out of control." Ren paused before continuing. "I felt by coming to Swift River, I actually found a place where nobody would speak bad behind my back. Everyone was hardworking, tight-knit, confident, everything I had in my birth pack, besides it was so much better. I felt for the first time I could actually start over and anew with my own goals and choices." Ren explained, as Swift River initially was a blessing for her to find in the beginning.

"One night, I thought I caught her scent on the wind. I haven't seen or heard from her since I left. I knew... I should have ignored it. I had everything going for me here. But I couldn't help it. She was my blood relative. Who turns on their blood relative, or forgets them truly?" Ren shook her head, narrowed it down in almost shame. "She traveled so far. Must have been wounded by another predator, I found her on her deathbed and last breath. I wanted to bring her back here, to Swift River, to have you heal her. Give her shelter, show her this new way of life. I had no time to. I couldn't simply drag her back. And if I left... she would have died alone. I couldn't do such a thing." On the edge of breaking again, she took another deep inhale, holding the tears back. "Listen... I didn't leave because I wanted to. I didn't leave because I was unhappy. I loved my place in Swift River, I felt like I had purpose again here. Everything just happened at once, too fast for me to really act appropriately on. I just did what instinct told me." Her head was still down, not daring to look at any of them, who she felt had to have been still gazing at her with judgmental, angry eyes.

"I have nothing against any of you, nothing against anyone in Swift River. If you don't believe me, well... I understand. But, Swift River was the greatest thing that happened to me. Ever. I have nowhere else to go, except crying against my cousin's dead body out in the cold." Ren was suddenly done talking. That was all she could say. She was exhausted, emotionally and mentally. If they would take her word, great. If not, Ren would come to the harsh reality of her mistake.

Cali listened to all that the girl had to say, when she finally got around to telling her story. The white fae had not been here when the girl had first joined, but she knew that desertion was just about the touchiest subject to the river wolves right now. She had to admit that she felt for the girl. She'd been through a lot for one so young and she seemed more than sincere in her desire to rejoin Swift River. She glanced over at Ice for a brief moment, wondering what the large male was thinking, having known Ren before she left.

Although her first instinct was to support the poor girl, she had to remember that she represented the pack now. She couldn't cater to just her emotions. The welfare of the entire pack was affected by every wolf that was allowed in. It was winter now and every wolf counted. They needed to do their part and they needed to be relied on. As desperate as she seemed, could Ren be counted on to stick around a do her part? Fortunately, it was not her decision to make. It was Cori and Marsh's.

Before any of them called for the leaders though, Cali wanted to be perfectly clear that she was sure this time around and she wouldn't vanish into thin air once more. She leveled her normally kind-hearted gaze on Ren, green fire dancing in them. "I'm sorry for your loss, but we need to be clear. If you are truly seeking a home here and if you are graced with a second chance, then you would be expected to pull your weight. What do you have to offer now? And how can we be sure that you will stay?" She felt the need to protect Cori from yet another disappointment.

Never Underestimate a Heart of Fire...

This meeting was certainly not going well for Ren, in Jessie’s perspective, and if the multi-colored girl would have been in a better mood, perhaps she would have felt pity for this female. Today was obviously not the day for the girl to stumble across the Swiftpaw sister when she would have been cheerful. Ice insisted on her story to be told and the gray girl listened quietly, her ears twitching and tail flicking back and for angrily. When Hotei…or Burn, whoever he happened to be at the moment arrived, she took deliberate amount of time to catch his eyes, a look of admiration in them, before her ears flicked back towards the new voice of Ren. Her story seemed so long and strenuous. Certainly not a summary of what she had gone through. The bits and parts that Jess had caught she noticed kind of sounded like her…only once she was committed to a pack she wouldn’t leave. And that was the bottom line here…she had left Swift River…just like Indru had.

It was why when Cali spoke, that Jessie’s blood went ice cold. She was suggesting giving this girl a second chance after deserting them once. Same thing had happened with Indru…and look where that had led them all. She was sure that Ice could feel her built up tension, so when she gently licked his shoulder and backed up towards the shadow, where Burn was, she was hoping that he would understand. She would be there, but she wasn’t going to be up close and personal. She didn’t want to send up unnecessarily snapping at someone, mainly her sister. She never wanted to hurt her warm hearted sister’s feelings, it would just be cruel of her. Her head did move over to Hotei to gently nudge his shoulder affectionately, before bringing her eyes back to Ren.

you do not know who is your friend or who is your enemy until the ICE breaks. We are not healing. Briefly his white head flicked around, his silver gaze burning into the yellow of Hotei's, a silent acknowledgment of his presence. We are not healing. That rift ran deep, so deep he didn't know if it could ever be bridged and mended. Could they co-exist? Learn peace? The black wolf backed away, listening to Ren's story, and with a heavy heart Ice did the same. So the cousin from her past, who had once betrayed her, had come, and she had betrayed them to go to her. And now she was back. The story repeated itself in circles forever and ever, and Cali's voice bridged the silence after her tale. Beside him, Jessie stiffened, and it was as if someone had said Indru. Closing his eyes he gave a low whine and licked the side of her face before she pulled back, to stand with Hotei in the shadows. One sister was not wholly disinclined to let her back in, the other wanted nothing to do with "returners", and Ice was stuck in the gray zone inbetween, unsure of what he wanted. To heal. To have Rissa back. He opened his eyes, staring at the girl in front of him. "We have suffered," he said abruptly, something coarse in his voice. She had lost a cousin; they had lost two sons, a daughter, and a father. Lost, by different means, one branded traitor so that his only return to the River would be in death. "We have always suffered at the whims of those who come and go, only to return to break our hearts again. We are faithless." Bitterness edged his voice; Indru had come and gone once in his time, but he had been told that it had happened before. And then one day he had gone, and not alone. A deliberate act. Driven by will and intent. Was going to the rescue of a cousin, and being consumed by sorrow, the same kind of evil? Slowly Ice took a step forward, his tail rising a notch higher as his silver eyes bore down upon her yellow ones, as if mere willpower could force her to skulk lower, push her against the snowy ground. "We are faithless," he said again, a whisper, as if afraid of this, though he knew it to be true. He could take it no longer. No more. It was one thing to be wary, one thing to bury yourself so deep in the past you never moved on. I will not bow anymore. "We live in the shadow of a king who left one time too many, under the burden of children dead and lost, and each day we rip the wounds open again and bleed," he continued, his voice nearly a snap in the air as he finally stood before her, his eyes hard. "We, are not healing." Slowly his gaze left Ren's face, and he turned his head to look upon the loyal River wolves; Cali, Jessie.. Hotei. On the last two, his eyes lingered. "We are dying." Their spirits were crumbling, the thing which bound them together growing infected with their wariness and hatred, with their grief. He was far from blameless himself, always fueling the feud with Hotei each time it had begun to cool off. He turned back to Ren, pinning her with his eyes again, speaking a hard, forceful verdict. "Leave again, and your life is forfeit upon your return." And then, fulfilling the depth of his insubordination, he lowered his head to grasp her muzzle in his, to hold the most sensitive part of her cranium between the points of his teeth and the pressure of his jaws. After a moment he released her, and self-consciously looked at the others. "Stay here," he growled, before prowling into the shadows. They had something to settle once and for all, he and Marsh. .ice aesir

Hokay! xD So. Uhm. This thread is now officially dated Jan 27th, courtesy of everyone's approval. C: Whether or not Ren is accepted hinges on a, Ice becoming Leader and b, Jessie not eating her liver in his absence. xP I pp'd the muzzle grab a bit Thea, as Ren was looking to join, let me know if you want me to change it. <3

let the stars above shine in your soul

Cali's heart bled as Ice moved forward and spoke harshly to the girl of their pain a suffering. It was all true. They were slowly dying and the bitterness that grew in each of them, even her, threatened to overtake them. Despite her words to the fae Borlla that they thrived, she had know that in fact that was a falsehood. She could hardly tell a complete stranger that her pack floundered with their heads barely above water though.

When the large white male moved forward and grabbed the Ren's muzzle, her emerald eyes went wide. His was the action of a Leader. Then he looked at them and growled, "Stay here." Her first thought was to do just as he said, but she was his equal and she had a feeling that something momentous was about to take place. The river pack was in for a storm and she felt that she needed to follow the gruff male. He acted so strangely. There had certainly not been any love lost between them in the past, but respect had grown over time and she worried for him nonetheless.

Pulling rank for the first time ever, the snowy female glanced at Jessie and Hotei and said, "Watch her!' Then she glared harshly at Ren for she had been the catalyst for the storm. "Don't move a muscle!" With those words, she turned and her own snowy form followed in the wake of Ice's.

Never Underestimate a Heart of Fire...

What the hell was Ice doing?

A snarl appeared on Burn's face as Ice allowed the female to join. However that wasn't his job to do. His snarl radiated deeper as Ice stalked away into the shadows completely ignoring him. Apparently he wasn't the only one outraged by this. Cali, the white sister to Jessie, also growled at the white ass Mr. Prince. Ordering Jessie and himself to watch this "Ren" wolf. As much as Burn wanted to tear ass after Ice he would much rather watch a female rip into his hide.

So he stayed stalking forward next to Jessie and growling at the lone female. She was not a member of the pack yet in his books. Her earlier remarks about Indru had already angered him to the point of bristling what little fur he had. Now she was going to sit still until everything was settled or face his hungry teeth.

"Stay..." He ordered the female while staring her down. Whatever happened with Ice he wouldn't know. Ice and Cali's scents were lessening. So they were headed someplace inside the territory. I wonder who Ice is looking for. Marsh? He growled wondering if the white wolf was getting the alpha to join this lady or for another reason. He did just do something the alpha was supposed to do.. Is he challenging for Marsh spot? A deeper growl settled in his throat. That would not goad well with him. Burn gave Marsh a silent "Get that bastard. Push him to the mud.." to Marsh hoping he would easily beat the white ass to the ground.

Lord knows he wouldn't be able to put up with Ice at a higher rank. If anything he might become more of a problem to stay around.

Alright kids, given Thea's hectic life I don't know what's up with Ren, but I'll be taking the liberty to wrap this up. If someone disagrees about something I write, let me know and I'll edit. Get your end posts up before the 27th March, that's when I'll archive this. <3

you do not know who is your friend or who is your enemy until the ICE breaks. And so, things had shifted, for better or for worse and there was no return. While Ice suspected Marsh had been glad to be beaten, he knew that the copper-furred wolf was far too much wolf to have just rolled over — he would've wanted to make sure Ice deserved it.. that Ice would do well by the honor.. the duty, the responsibility. But nothing could've prepared him for the sudden spike of fear once the adrenaline cooled off, and for many long moments he simply stood still, peering into the dark world and knowing that, for the first time ever, he stood above Marsh in rank. Vaguely aware of Cali somewhere behind him. Vaguely aware of the world, of the stars, of the spin of the earth and scent of Swift River. His heart stumbled in his chest and his breath quivered, until finally he sighed, forcefully. It was done. It was over. He had followed his instincts, his heart, and he had ended up where he'd never thought he'd be. The way back had been a blur: he'd licked Marsh's face profusely out of affection, and Cali had accepted him as the new leader without a fuss. All was well, right? He'd retracted his steps with the white female by his side, feeling a bit odd about it — his scent bore the signs of a fight, of a shift in position, of dominance, and his tail pointed high, against the primaveral sky. Finally he saw them again, through the trees, little Ren and Jessie, Hotei's dark shadow. Moonlight edged his fur silver, the sun having set and its night counterpart risen by now, and his head was held high. There would be no doubt what had happened, who had won; Ice slowly made his rounds, to stand before each one of them and ask them to accept him, to sink down upon their belly against the ground and let him hold their muzzles within his strong jaws before rubbing his flank against theirs. They were still Swift River, they still smelled of Swift River, and he smelled so much of Swift River very little would change. And once he had completed this, his first task as leader, a small smile tugged at his dark lips, the barest hint of teeth flashing in the night. "Let us go home." .ice aesir

Kind of pretending Hotei/Burn would run away once Ice shows up, or tries to dominate him? But yeah anyway, let me know if you want anything changed. :]

let the stars above shine in your soul

Just gonna have him stalk off.. XD

The howl proved it. Ice had gone after Marsh to take his position as alpha. Burn snarled deeply feeling rage, jealousy, and some sick feeling he could not describe. His fiery eyes glanced to Jessie and a deep growl ripped through his throat. How the hell was he supposed to deal with this. Keep Jessie happy and stay while living in his own personal hell? The pack will break up because of the inner strife being cause by us. The image of Burn and Ice constantly battling raged through his mind.

Or should he leave Jessie and let the pack go on by its own? She would keep her family.. I'm nothing but a love to her. A love that can be easily replaced. Jessie can find happiness again within Swift River. His thoughts churned while a growl settled deep in his gut. The black wolf did not have long to sit and decide upon things.

I could always challenge him for his position.. Burn growled delighted at this thought, but another force tugged at his heart pulling him away from the fun idea. If he fought with Ice Jessie wouldn't be happy. The sound of rushed paw steps came to Burn's ears. Ice's scent flowed into his nose and sent a flame of anger through his chest. The moment he saw Ice enter the clearing near the border Burn's head and tail lifted and the bits of fur he had left fluffed up. A menacing zombie to those around, and a clear sign of dominance to the new alpha of Swift River.

"Come here bitch! Lets have some fun you white a--." His head yanked upward in a strangled yelp as Hotei fought Burn for control of his body. Another series of whimpers and yelps streamed through his mouth until a few seconds passed and Hotei stood there gasping lowered to the ground in a submissive pose.

"I..I. I'm so.. sorry.. That wasn't me.. That was.. I don't know. I can't.. do this anymore..." His voice, previously anger filled had turned to a child like sad sorrowful voice. This light kind personality, the Tainn that the rest of the family had known so well, Hotei bowed his head averting Ice's eyes then quickly skittered away low on his belly across the border.

Run...Run..Keep running.. From him...From them.. From her..For her, to keep her happy. Run... From that other me.. From Burn...I don't think you can run from me pussy.. Hotei's wailing howl echoed through the tree's as he sprinted away from all his troubles and worries. He could escape the pack. But he would never be able to escape himself. All the kind male was doing was digging a bigger hole for himself.

Much happened in such a short time, it was hard for even Jessie to keep up with. The woman watched as Ice quickly stalked over, Cali following quickly behind and her own sister quickly freezing at the order given by her sister. She still was not use to being below Ice, and by the sound of his call…if he did end up succeeding, she would be even lower. With a distasteful snort, she shot a glare at her sister’s back before keeping her eyes transfixed on Ren. By the looks of it, everything seemed to be going fine in Hotei’s paws. That was all until Ice came back, his head and tail raised higher than she had personally ever seen it. Lowering her gaze from him, she submitted, baring her neck to him as he passed and stepped towards the stranger. Emerald eyes glanced over at her friend, waiting for him to submit to their new alpha as well, but the submission never came. Instead all Jessie heard was the threatening words from the male, knowing that this was not the doing of Hotei but of Burn, his other side.

Panic seeped into the gaze of Jessie as she watched the transformation again, before the burnt male took off, he would not be able to handle her Guardian being alpha. This hurt the lady as she watched with sadness as she saw the Tainn fade away from them. Each second she could feel her heart splintering into tinier pieces, until there was no possible way for it to be broken anymore. She had put her trust in Hotei and now he was gone…for good. There was no way that Ice or Corinna was going to accept him back into the pack after the stunt he had just pulled. She dud not hear Ice’s words, but she did feel the unbearable pain creeping up her chest. Taking a deep breath she nodded to her two pack mates before quickly disappearing from the undergrowth and returning to a place far secluded from the rest of the pack, where she could be alone and think about what he friend had done, how he had betrayed the pack…and how he had betrayed her.