Crossroads

@Minka Set after this thread

Inali shut her eyes tightly as she stopped walking. It had taken her no time at all to leave the thickets and head back home. She could already scent the strong smell of blackberries that led to Black Thorn Downs pack lands. This was her home...and she had betrayed it. Once again, she had been torn between loyalty and family. Pack and friend. Oh, the fates, would Minka ever forgive her? She only pleaded that Minka would remember that Inali was her friend, her sister. Inali trusted Minka with her life. And yet, it all came back like an ugly circle. Minka would see it as betrayal, and there was nothing Inali could do but plead her case. Minka knew she was never a woman of war. Inali always wished for things that would be for the better. War was ugly, bitter and evil. She hadn't been the same when all the fighting began in Whisper Caverns, between Ash, Minka, and Narimè. Leaving Whisper Caverns, leaving Yuka had left a hole in her soul. A big, dark, gaping hole. It had taken the new hope of family, of a pack, of Naia and Bane, to truly piece her back together again. The scout couldn't take another step. Inali was close to the borders but fear kept her at bay. For the the first time, she feared Minka. She feared her reaction and what her actions had cost her. Had it cost her her best friend? Her lover? Her family? Would Bane hate her now, like Yuka? Inali took in a shaky breath, and forced her eyes open. Her blue gaze had shadowed, none of the light that was usually present showed. Oh, what had she done? ”Speech”

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When Minka had realized that Inali was not present and had seemingly left the territory alone as no one had seen her the woman's first instinct was worry. Tokino himself had done the same, insisting that he would be alright and back before she knew it and he was still gone. It seemed as if her life and those most dear to her were all slipping away, first Noble was still missing, then Lugh had almost been murdered then her mate had set out alone and now her best friend who was practically her sister. The alpha had stalked the borders looking for her scent to give away exactly where she had exited and once she found it she had settled her rump down to wait. The Lagina woman knew better than to go looking alone, she was already showing signs of her pregnancy and if she was ambushed she could miscarry. Then the pack would be down one previous pup, two alphas, a second and the litter for next year.

Instead she waited as patiently as a worried motherly wolf could possibly wait. Minka didn't stay seated for long and switched constantly between being seated and pacing and standing stock still. Eventually though the golden eyes spotted the rusted hued female in the fields that bordered their home and the woman could contain herself no longer. Leaving her spot at the markers and rushed towards her closest friend, caught between whether to check if she was alright or scold her for disobeying first. That is until Minka caught the scent of the Woodlands on Inali's pelt. Stopping dead in her spot about three wolf lengths away the alpha scanned the other woman for injuries or signs that she had been roughed up. Lifting her gaze Minka locked eyes with the woman in front of her and saw the darkness there, "Inali why do you smell of the Woodlands? Are you alright?" The alpha trusted her second too much to assume what had truly happened, instead she was sure that it had been a chance meeting. Never did she suspect that the one she considered her sister was a traitor.

click!

There is a deer that was killed by a lynx nearby. +10 Health

Her blue gaze locked on Minka's figure and as her queen spoke, Inali lowered her gaze. She was too ashamed. She couldn't meet Minka's gaze, no matter how much she wanted to. She had betrayed her best friend. The scout looked away from Minka, her gaze fixed on a patch of blackberry bushes. Inali knew she needed to say something, but she was so afraid. The concern that she had briefly seen in Minka's gaze would turn into anger and pain. She had done all this to prevent pain and now she was about to hurt one of the wolves that meant most to her in the world. Her sigh was shaky as she opened her maw and tried to speak. ”I...I..," but nothing was coming out. Her eyes shut tightly as she tried to think of how to say it, to somehow soften thr blow. But her mind drew a blank. Inali didn't feel like herself. She usually was good with words! She took another breath before her gaze flickered to Minka's and just as fast latched back onto the blackberry bush. ”You know I've never liked the idea of war. You were all so set on revenge, when it could've well been a big misunderstanding! And it was - a misunderstanding, that is. Nina had no part in this. She was sure that it were traitors that she recently kicked out of the pack. They broke pack law, so they were given their sentence." How fitting. Her eyes darkened even more as her tail tucked between her legs and her form bent, showing submission to her leader and silently asking for forgiveness. What was her sentence?

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Minka's expression of concern quickly changed to confusion as Inali would not meet her eye and then struggled over her words. It was so unlike her second to be so withdrawn so cautious of how she spoke, especially with the leader. The Lagina took a small step forward, her head tilting to the right as she attempted to silently encourage her friend to speak. The expression quickly changed to betrayal and then anger before finally settling into a cold judgemental stare as Inali finished speaking. Raising both her muzzle and her tail the alpha stared down at her scout, seething on the inside but her outer held frozen.

Taking a quick breath through gritted teeth Minka fought with the emotions of turmoil inside of her. Here was her oldest friend, a wolf she had once called her sister and said she would always love telling her that she had betrayed them all. Bringing her front food in line with the other the woman couldn't stop how cold her tone sounded, "So to summarize you chose your friendship with Nina over your pack, you've chosen your friendship with Nina over your family, you have chosen your friendship with Nina over me." As she went one the words turned from a cold sneer to an outright snarl as Minka's lips curled back to reveal her teeth.

Taking another step forward Minka's hackles rose as she tasted bile in the back of her throat, the very sight of her once friend making her feel ill. A full on growl vibrated through her, "You are no better than the traitors of the Woodlands who attacked Lugh." It was as if she saw red now, she cared little for Inali's submission as she did not truly mean it. For so long her second had played both sides of the fence and Minka had turned a blind eye, her trips to see Yuka, her trips to see Nina. No more.

click!

She watched Minka's face turn from warm concern to betrayal, anger, and worst of all, a steely judgement. She could see it in her eyes, Minka had already made her choice. To her, Inali was as good as dead. Her best friend, or better yet, ex best friend no longer saw her as such. She saw her as a traitor. Each word that came out of Minka's jaw was a stab at her heart, over and over again. Though it hurt, Inali knew she deserved every cruel word. The blue eyed woman opened her maw to defend her actions, but there was nothing she could say. With a snap, Inali's jaws closed. Was it not true? She had chosen to aid Nina with the coveted information of war instead of thinking of the good of the pack. But hadn't she been thinking of the good of the pack? She did all this to prevent the numerous deaths she knew would happen if war truly happened between the two packs and their respective allies. She had been thinking smart. But all the defending in the world would do Inali no good. Minka's pained face was etched into her memory forever. She had betrayed her best friend, there was no way around it. But along the way, she had saved her as well. Minka was with children, she surely wouldn't have gone into war, teeth bared. Tokino would never let her. In her heart, Inali knew she had made the right choice, albeit painful. Now she had to accept her punishment, whatever it may be. She lowered herself even further, her stomach now skimming the ground and her ears pulled back. She was ready for her sentence. ”Speech”

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Minka watched as Inali's maw opened before snapping closed and for a time she waited for the woman before her to defend herself. The silence stretched on, tension so thick it would be able to be seen from the first sight of the she-wolves standing there. The alpha advanced no more but instead held her pose, hackles stiffened along her neck and spine, tail and cranium raised in dominance. She had once trusted this woman with her life, with her children's lives, she had given her a high rank in the pack. Inali was supposed to be her when she couldn't be around and instead she had done exactly the opposite of what Minka had asked her to do.

Still the alpha was no fool, while she had deliberately disobeyed pack orders she had saved them all from bloodshed. At least for now, Minka would call off the war against the Woodlands once she had confirmed Inali's words herself but that didn't go for Nina's traitors. Whoever they were, if they ever found them, they would be punished to the full degree of the Lagina woman's wrath. Gold eyes swept over the rusted pelt of her once best friend as she crouched into the ground, her belly pressed against the earth.

She narrowed her eyes but had one final comment before she could make the decision that would change both of their lives. Tawny tail twitched in agitation over her back as she spoke, "At the meeting I asked you to declare your loyalty and you did not respond. I let it go because I knew this was a difficult time for you but I can wait no longer and will ask you one final time. Where do your loyalties lay? If it is within the Downs then you must cut all ties with the Woodlands and the Caverns, no more can I turn a blind eye on your disrespect for pack orders." The expectant mother stared unblinkingly at her subordinate now, her next words would determine her fate and they both knew it.

click!

The silence between the two women was thick, and Inali was terrified to break it. In front of her was the woman who had been her friend since her very first days in the Lore. The woman who had become her best friend, her family, and her queen. And here Inali was, betraying her trust. Minka was the one who finally broke the silence, speaking her ultimatum. As Minka stared down at her, the scout swallowed several times, trying to soothe her suddenly dry throat. Minka was giving her an ultimatum. A chance to redeem herself. If Inali accepted, she would still have family, a pack. She could regain Minka's trust in not only their friendship, but in her loyalty. So why was she hesitating? Why couldn't she answer what Minka so obviously wanted to hear? Because deep down, Inali knew she couldn't do it. It was pack law, but Inali wasn't sure she could follow through when the time came to do so. If she stayed with the Downs, the Woodlands and the Caverns would always be their enemies. Maybe she could cut ties with the Woodlands, but with Yuka? How could she desert the boy who she had raised and loved to the point of pain? It didn't matter that he hated her now. Yuka was like her son, her most beloved. There was a reason she had always gone to seek him. Inali couldn't give up on Yuka. If she did so now, she knew he would fall deeper and deeper into this dangerous darkness that consumed him. Minka was asking her something that she simply could not do. The scout looked away from her Leader, her decision already made in the depths of her heart. Her time in the Downs was over. ”Speech”

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(This post was last modified: Apr 21, 2015, 08:20 PM by Inali.)

Feel free to have Minka miss, once you post your exit I'll be removing Inali from the ranks :c

It was clear from the very second that Inali hesitated what she was going to chose to do. It seemed to be a pattern, the scout pledged her loyalty to the pack and then chose friendship instead. Once it had been her friendship with Minka, a friendship whose bridge she had lit aflame the second she went to the Woodlands. Minka had offered her the water to quench it and instead the rusted fae was staring directly into the flame and not moving. Clenching her jaw the mother moved forward until her cranium was barely an inch from the snake of a wolf before her. Narrowing her eyes dangerously the alpha was practically daring her to strike back, after all she had the pack on her side and Inali had thrown that safety net away. There was no snarl now, just a cold tone that was clear; you're not worth caring for anymore, "Get out. Never come back here. I hope you know exactly what you've done, Cut Rock River will be alerted of your crimes. I doubt Maksim will take kindly to a wolf who chose the Caverns over the Downs and Narimé will never accept you back." The mother moved then, a slow circle.

It was like when a hungry wolf had cornered a fawn, slow circles round and round with her teeth barred. A snarl was rising within her, first deep in her chest until it reached its peak in her throat, echoing in the fields around them. Minka's jaws snapped with every word, enunciating her declaration, "Once more you have betrayed the pack that you were supposed to be loyal to. I see you for what you really are, traitor. The war on the Woodlands is over, but don't expect to ever be welcome by any of my subordinates or they will have the same fate as you now." Snarling once more she leapt forward, aiming to plant her teeth on Inali's maw, this wasn't a muzzle grab, Minka was aiming for blood. She wanted her once subordinate to bear the mark of what she had done until the day she died.

click!

:'( 
feel free to fade

Minka moved closer, so close that Inali could feel the puffs of her breath against her fur. Still though, Inali did not face Minka. Not even when her cold words were spoken, and hit their mark expertly. The scout flinched. The knowledge was clear that Minka no longer felt warmth for her in any capacity. Her now ex Leader began to taunt her, as if she was prey the skilled huntress couldn't wait to take down. Inali grew tense, but she refused to fight whatever Minka decided to dish out. She deserved it. There was a change in the air, and Inali knew Minka was done playing games and she was ready to strike. She lunged quickly and Inali knew that she could've evaded the attack with a quick movement, since speed was on her side, but the woman stood firm. She barely flinched as Minka took a hold of her muzzle, her intent to draw blood succeeding. When the pain was almost unbearable, Inali still stood firm, but mercifully the Lagina woman let go. Not needing any more words of hatred thrown to her already battered heart the once scout of Black Thorn Downs turned tail and ran, her paws tearing across the familiar terrain. The pain of her wound was sharp, and throbbed incessantly, but it was nothing compared to the excruciating pain in her heart. Minka had gotten her wish - she would leave a scar, in more ways than one. {Inali exit} ”Speech”

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