Attitude

Constance had traveled west today, though he didn't have any rhyme or reason for which way he decided to go. As long as it wasn't toward his birthplace, he would be fine. The yearling was uncertain what the future would hold for him, but he knew that he would have to find somewhere to stay before the winter decided to creep up on him. This may have been only his second winter, but he was smart enough to know that he wouldn't be able to survive it on his own. He was fragile, like any creature who lived and breathed, and he wasn't about to let his stubbornness kill him outright. Besides, dying of cold and starvation was just such a stupid way to go. He'd be much better off getting killed valiantly while protecting some maiden from a bear. (Not that he wanted to get killed by anything at this point.)

On his way from his current haunt (Red Fern Forest), Constance had snuck through a valley between two mountains. It wasn't the kind of valley that really dipped down, but it was enough that he managed to make it without ever feeling in too much danger.

And now Constance found himself in some bushy field, not quite sure what to do with himself. Then again, he'd never really known what to do with himself. He just floated through life somehow managing to keep himself alive along the way. One day, that sort of attitude would catch up with him. For now, though, he was content with himself as he wandered eastward, occasionally sniffing the ground.

(This post was last modified: Sep 25, 2013, 06:52 PM by Constance.)

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<3

With the summer season slowly grinding to a halt, Mirren was keen on enjoying the warm sunlight while it still lasted. This was something that wasn't easy to do back home in the thicket, where light speared through the thick canopy only in places that didn't seem suitable for sunbathing─a rock, a mud puddle, a thorn bush. Of all the wonderful attributes the thicket exhibited, he had accepted that plentiful sunlight wasn't one of them. Early on in the afternoon he'd crossed the borders and headed anywhere the trees weren't. He'd meandered through the Blackberry Fields a few times before, mostly to scout for deer or other things he could kill. Always he'd admired the feel of the open space and they way the greenery danced in the wind, which rustled through the thick ivory tuft of his broad chest and up between his ears. Even the smell of this place was fresh and sweet, nothing like the earthen, woody smell of the forest or the crisp ring of the spring. Trudging through the treeline with nothing but the anticipation of a long sun bath and sunset view in his mind, the swarthy boy's golden eyes fell upon the vast meadow with a glint of satisfaction. It didn't take long for him to find a suitable place to settle. Nestled in a soft patch of verdant grass, clear of the prickly berried bushes, Mirren laid his cheek against the cool ground, closed his eyes, and listened to the quiet sounds of the world. For a time things were uneventful, as planned─staring into the dark of the back of his eyelids, the sounds of the wind and the buzzing of winged insects were soothing enough to nearly put him to sleep...Until the distinct swishing of leaves and sniffing in the near distance roused him. Statue still, his eyes opened wide, looking idly to the blue sky as he listened. Quietly rolling from his side to his belly, the yearling peeked his head above the level of the shrubbery to find a dark furred wanderer moseying through what was supposed to be his peaceful sanctuary. Great. With a distinct lack of amusement plastered to his dark mask, he watched for a short time before he was no longer able to pretend like this wasn't happening. To his feet in an instant, he wasn't sure he was really capable of not making an asshole of himself. "Looking for something?" The inherent sarcasm of his statement was muffled by boredom.

(This post was last modified: Sep 25, 2013, 05:42 PM by Mirren.)

A rustling piqued Con's interest, and he shifted his golden eyes in the direction from which he thought the noise had come from. An instant later, a large male rolled to his feet and asked him if he was looking for something. "Not anything in particular. I'm much better at smelling, anyway," he replied, satisfied with his oh-so-clever answer. Then again, somebody could take that the wrong way... "I don't mean to say that I'm smelly," he added, to clarify, "I mean that I have a decent nose that sometimes allows me to smell other things pretty well." Now he was just talking too much, a flaw that he'd had for as long as he could remember. His parents had downright loathed him for it.

"So… you live around here?" he asked, curious to know whether or not this was a loner or a wolf well-versed in the lands around here. Then again, maybe he was neither of those things. Maybe he was a homebody who never left his pack and didn't get out much. Or maybe this stranger was simply a newly-recruited guy who didn't know too much about the land and was only just getting settled in. Perhaps his parents had been killed in a terrible accident and this guy was just waking up from his first night alone. The speculations continued to roll through Constance's mind, though he didn't voice any of these proposed histories for the stranger. Instead, he merely waited for some kind of response. Be it, "Fuck off," or, "I love you; marry me!"

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At the stranger's initial response, his dark lips pulled into a subtle, rueful smirk. He would have almost thought that he'd been one-upped, had it not been for the words that spilled out next. "I don't mean to say that I'm smelly, I mean that I have a decent nose that sometimes allows me to smell other things pretty well." His brows lifted as he stared blanky back. Who was this guy kidding? Not him. Not yet. "Hmm." Pleased at the boy's slip, he let a moment of awkward of silence come to pass before pointedly adding "─I'm sure your smell is...finely tuned.'" The next question posed by the boy was straightforward, and he didn't know if he liked that or not. It was one thing to be disturbed by someone who could smell better than he could see─sometimes─and another thing entirely to discuss his residence with someone he'd known for all of ten seconds. Mirren was a generally a good judge of character, and his first impression of this guy was that he certainly wasn't a thread, not to mention he was small and a smart ass. While he wasn't prepared to converse with anyone, or really wanted to, for that matter, the winner in him wanted to give the boy a run for his money. What did he really have to lose? "Maybe," he retorted, his black-tipped tail flicking slightly as he studiously narrowed his eyes. "Where I'm from, we smell well all the time. What's it to you, anyway? And what are you walkin' around for?" His words may have been rough around the edges, but he meant well.

(This post was last modified: Sep 26, 2013, 12:57 AM by Mirren.)

The awkward pause wasn't awkward to Constance at all, for he tended to deal with silence quite well, despite his constant drivel. This guy seemed to want to one-up him at every turn, though Con had no idea why he'd want to do that. The yearling wasn't in it to win it, and he was very content at being the loser whenever he didn't feel like putting the effort into things (which was most of the time). Unlike some, who would have said that they could have done better if they had just tried a little harder, Con knew that—in his case—that simply wasn't true. He would never be the best. He'd never be the top dog, but he frankly didn't give a shit. It was all a bunch of bullocks.

"Oh," he replied when the male gave him a non-affirmative answer as to whether or not he lived nearby. Constance was unphased, figuring the stranger had some kind of stick up his bum that didn't allow him to give straight answers. Or maybe it was a terrible curse, set upon him by a very angry wolf witch who really hated direct answers of any kind. Whatever the reason, there were questions to be answered. "I just strolled into the area yesterday, so I'm lookin' for a pack hookup for the winter, y'know?" he replied, sufficiently answering both questions in one go. "That's why I asked if you were from around here. I thought you might belong to a pack 'round here or something."

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The darker boy was unphased by the Tainn's snarky passes and basically wasn't beating around any bushes, which Mirren altogether viewed as a positive attribute on the boy's part. Really, the stranger's story sounded much like his own when he'd first returned to Relic Lore. Only a month ago it had been him roaming around without reason or a distinct plan in place. His face remained stoical as he noticed things about the boy he'd overlooked when he'd had his nose in the air and his head in the sky. He couldn't have been much older or younger, and the fluid shades of black of his fur reminded him fondly of his brother. He had a smart mouth. Was looking for a pack "hookup". Having only been a member of his current pack for a short time, perhaps he could kill two birds with one stone by bringing home a young, seemingly healthy recruit. He'd be doing the roamer a favor─something he wasn't keen on─and it could make him look good to rein in a new face. Shifting his weight and considering the other's words, he let loose a quiet breath. "I do, just west of here, actually." He eyed his counterpart for any sign of untruth or anything else that could be suspicious, as was his cynical nature. As flippant as he'd been for the entirety of this encounter, Mirren was a proud, lawful creature and highly protective of the things he cared about, including Secret Woodlands and every last wolf who called the thicket 'home.' "─Secret Woodlands. If you're looking for a place to eat and sleep, don't bother going there. But if you want to be part of a pack, you might find that the forest and its keepers suiting." He wasn't into promotion, but Secret Woodlands had been a good fit for him, and, hell, maybe he might actually make a friend his own age. Perhaps he could start with an introduction. "I'm Mirren."

The guy seemed to loosen up (at least a little bit), which a part of Constance was a little disappointed in. He missed the days when he could have snarky conversations for hours on end. Then again, maybe it was time to grow up or die. He preferred the former to the latter. He might as well attempt to be likeable since he was trying to find a place to settle down... at least for the winter. Constance wasn't sure if he would stick around longer than that, but he figured he'd make up his mind later. Besides, what was the worst they could do if he vanished in the night? Hate his guts? Somehow, that kind of thing just didn't scare him too terribly much.

Constance liked to think of this whole pack thing like dating. He'd put on his best front now, and then as they got to know one another, he'd let himself slide a bit. Y'know, stop working out and fart whenever he damn well pleased. For now, though, he'd put on the cologne and keep his beard trimmed nice. There was all the time in the world to show his "normal" side to this pack later on down the road.

"Nice t'meet you, Mirren. I'm Constance." The yearling dipped his head in a polite gesture, though nothing overly-showy. He didn't want to freak the guy out or anything. "Have you been around at that Secret Woodlands place long?" If Mirren had only been there for a day or two, Constance wasn't sure how much he could weigh heavily on the guy's opinions.

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Constance. What a strange name. He supposed it was fitting, though, with those eyes the color of the sun. The tawny boy acknowledged Constance's introduction with a simple nod. He'd thoroughly enjoyed being oppositional with the guy, but manners─and being polite─were respectable attributes to have. When asked about how long he'd been with with Nina' s pack, he realized that he hadn't really been keeping track. His timeline wasn't quantitative, but qualitative. Returned to Relic Lore. Met Arlette. Returned to Copper Rock Creek. Met Nina. Stayed with Nina. Nap in Blackberry Fields. "For a little while," he shrugged. A month or so. They're...good company, a loyal bunch." Inwardly, he winced as the thought of the prince's recent death crossed his mind and was immediately suppressed. Nina was nice, and things were a little slow around there and he hadn't met everyone yet, but he wasn't complaining. Mirren lacked his brother and sister's desire for interaction; while he preferred pack life to solitude, he enjoyed peace and quiet and time for himself. Maybe he hadn't found the right crowd yet. Aside from @Arlette, who was perfect and who he could talk to for hours, probably. Such was the reason he'd been discovered here by this asshole, who was starting to seem like he wasn't so bad after all. Really, they seemed to have a lot in common, except that Mirren was exceptionally good looking. "What about you─what's your story, Constance? I mean, where'd you come from?" The male had alluded to a sort-of-reason previously, but even with that the yearling didn't know anything about the boy before him. For all Mirren knew, Constance could be a murderer, or one of those crazies. Though born in Copper Rock Creek, Mirren wasn't technically from around here, but from Sequoia Vale. There were other neighboring packs there─maybe Constance had grown up in the north, too.

(This post was last modified: Sep 27, 2013, 07:05 PM by Mirren.)