Oak Tree Bend Past, Present and Future

@Serach

- Before Noon, Sunny - 64 ° F/18 ° C

The change had been building up, slowly but steadily, pressing harder on the male second every day. He had realized a while ago, what was coming, and his heart was full of conflicting feelings. But what had to happen would happen, and for now all he could do was try and prepare himself; If that's even possible... The most important thing was to get himself out of the funk, as much as he still hurt from his loss, he had to get over it, at least enough to function properly. The Bend needed to move on, and if he should be part of that, he needed to move on first.

With a sigh, the dark male shook out his fur, continuing on his route through the territory. Lately he had been pushing himself to step out of the solitude his sorrow had thrust him into; He had tried to reconnect with the pack, to find his way back to what had made this his home in the first place. The restlessness within him had driven him to start moving, but instead of just rushing off the territory every time he felt the need to do something, he had decided to use some of this energy to merge himself back into pack life.

It was no easy task though. Most of Oak Tree Bend was still weighed by grief, and Triell's absence only added to the tense atmosphere. Most of the wolves were keeping as much to themselves as he had, and besides the pups, he had yet to really talk with any of them. Poor kids... The pups had had a rough start on life, with their mother disappearing so early, they probably couldn't even remember her, and not much better from their father; They disserve a proper childhood! No child should grow up surrounded by sorrow and anger and loneliness. He would do his best to rectify that.

But today he was searching for someone else, yet another wolf that he had seen very little of over the past months. It was as much his own fault, he knew that, but now he wanted to change that. Finally deciding that running around the Bend searching would take too long, Drestig Avalon leaned back his head, calling out for the young Donata - a casual summons, telling the boy that he would like to speak with him, if he had the time.

Word count: 402

"Speech" Thoughts

WHEN YOUR DREAMS ALL FAIL,

AND THE ONES WE HAIL,

Drestig Avalon

ARE THE WORST OF ALL,

AND THE BLOOD'S RUN STALE.

This post got a little long. Still trying to get back into the groove of things with Serach, don't feel like you need to match length. :)

The sun wasn't yet high in the sky, but it's rays were warm. They beat down upon Serach's sleeping back, comforting and welcome. The young adult had never partaken in helioltry, but as he shifted about in his sleep, letting the sun shine down upon his belly, he could understand why somebody would. Sleepily, the boy opened his eyes and yawned. Forcing himself up into a sitting position, he lifted his hind leg to idly scratch behind his ear. Satisfied and now thoroughly awake, Serach hoisted himself into a standing position, only to lower his front-end down to stretch his back. It was a part of his post-wakeup routine, and not something that he idly gave up.

And why should he? Oak Tree Bend was a shadow of its former self. He had returned from his visit with @Kisla with such high spirits, only to have them dashed by the realities of a particularly harsh life that, at this point, just felt like the norm for them. The pain caused by Silver's death had just begun to dull when Hotei, too, had passed. To make matters worse, Nayeli had disappeared again, leaving behind two pups for the rest of the pack to care for. He had seen @Sahalie and @Drift from a distance, but had yet to approach them and introduce himself. They were cousins, but at least so far, Serach felt less of a connection to them as "family" as he did to @Darrah and @Zera. Maybe it was because @Triell, the uncle that tied them all together, was also more absent than normal. Perhaps, he thought as he trotted off into the woods, it is time to take Kisla up on her offer.


He didn't really have a destination in mind, so his path was slow going and rather aimless. He paused to investigate interesting scents, sniffing around the bases of trees and urinating on top of them when he wanted to mark them himself. He was midstream when his ears perked at the sound of a familiar voice. Lowering his hind leg to the ground, he stood and listened to the dark timbre voice of @Drestig. Not just an idle howl either, but one meant specifically for him. Tilting his head to the side in a curious manner, the boy wondered what it was that the pack's second could want with him. Not that it mattered - Serach liked Drestig - but it was rare that anybody in the pack reached out to the creme furred wolf. Tilting his own head back, he howled back in his own tenor voice. He would be there soon.

Setting off again, his path this time was much more direct. Having been born and raised in the Bend, Serach knew virtually every inch of the pack's territory, and he was quick to pinpoint Drestig's position in the forest. Abandoning his lope for an all-out run, the subordinate raced through the trees, his mind racing at wondering why the pack's second had sought him out specifically.

When Drestig came into view, Serach slowed his rapid pace. His tongue rolled out as he panted; the sun's warm rays were not as nice when exerting physical effort. The corners of his lips turned upwards into a smile as he approached, the tip of his tail waving ever so slightly. "Hey, Drestig," he said in greeting, closing the distance between them to nudge the older wolf's black muzzle in greeting. Stepping back to give Drestig his space, Serach spoke again, "How are you?" It was a potentially dangerous question, given the pack's recent history, but although they had grown distant, Serach still cared about Drestig very much. If there was something that the boy could do, he wanted to know.

Oh but i love long posts! <3

His call was answered almost instantaneously, Serach's voice ringing clear and strong through the oaken trees. It made the dark man happy that the boy reacted so readily, perhaps their relationship had not been as badly damaged by his recent reclusion as he had feared. His tail twitched a little nervously while he waited, eyes scanning over the surrounding trees, ears flicking back and forth, listening for paws moving through the underbrush. As he heard the faint sound of someone approaching, he turned, smiling at the sight of Serach, running towards him. He was surprised when the young man offered a physical greeting, gently returning the light nudge; "Serach." He answered, smiling palely, not really knowing how else to welcome the lad.

The question made his smile shrink further, eyes growing distant for a moment; How am I..? It wasn't exactly an easy question, and many potential answers ran through his mind, before he finally settled his attention back on the younger male. "...Better." He said, voice low; "A little more each day." A reassuring smile was attempted and, he felt, mostly succeeded, then he shrugged lightly, meeting the boy's chartreuse eyes; "I doubt it'll ever stop hurting... But you know all about that." His gaze grew even more sorrowful, smile disappearing as he thought of all that the young Donata had lost in his short life; A father, a mother... Wolves he had known and loved for a long time before they were taken away.

"How about you?" The elder man asked, full attention turned on Serach, ears raised in a show of honest interest. Drestig cared a lot about the boy, feeling closely attached to him after seeing him grow from gangly yearling to full adult, even if they didn't talk overly often. Especially lately they had drifted apart, both caught up in their own quandaries. This let the black wolf to his next question: "Any news about your brother?" His voice was low but steady, expression serious as he looked at the young man. The Bend second felt deeply guilty about Sceral. So many things had been going on around them back in winter when he disappeared; But that's no excuse! Most of the Bend having been caught up in Nayeli's return and the threat she brought with her, way too little had been done to try and locate the second Aesir-Donata brother; Though the ebony scout had made several trips out into the land surrounding them, he had found no trace of the boy, and, he was ashamed to say, he hadn't been the first priority. Then Silver came and... Well, suddenly nothing else mattered..!

Word count: 439

"Speech" Thoughts

WHEN YOUR DREAMS ALL FAIL,

AND THE ONES WE HAIL,

Drestig Avalon

ARE THE WORST OF ALL,

AND THE BLOOD'S RUN STALE.

Drestig greeted him with a smile, which was all that Serach needed to ease any anxiety he might have felt about being called out of the blue. It had been a very long time since anybody had made a point of reaching out to him specifically, so while he was mostly curious as to what Drestig wanted, there had been a little bit of anxiousness as well. Reclining back down onto his haunches, he waited for Drestig to answer his question, noting with some dismay how the older male's smile seemed to fade. It was a good answer, and Serach had no doubts that it was also an honest one. His pale ears flattened against his equally pale head, and he lowered his eyes to the ground respectfully. He could relate, but he was no so naive to assume that the loss of a mate was the same as a loss of a family member. "It does get better...but you're right, that pain never really goes away," the boy admitted, his voice mournful. "But it isn't all bad - there's always something good to help counteract the bad, even if it's just a small thing." He spoke again, this time with a bit more joyful defiance in his voice. Lifting his head, he tried to grin at Drestig and give his tail a little wag against the grass. Even if it was only watching a baby bird learn to fly or finding a warm patch of grass to lay in, Serach had found enough of life's good things to keep him moving forward, day by day.

The conversation was quick to move on though, transitioning from Drestig to Serach himself. The older wolf's follow up question resulted in a show of physical surprise from the boy, his eyes widening and ears perking up on his head. It had been a long time since somebody had asked about Sceral, and although his heart ached as it always did when he thought of his missing littermate, there was a little bit of joy there too. It's a small thing to remember...but it's the little things that keep us going, Serach thought as he prepared his reply. "I'm alright. Some days are better than others," he replied, pausing while he decided just how honest of an answer he wanted to give. But Drestig had called him here to talk to him, and Serach would not shy away from being honest - not now, anyway. "I'm sort of lost sometimes. Around the Bend. Not physically, of course, but it's hard to know where I fit into everything these days. I was so preoccupied with trying to find Sceral for so long that I kind of lost touch with what was going on here." Hopefully Drestig could understand what he was saying, it was kind of difficult to put into words.

"No news on Sceral. I've looked everywhere, even ventured up to Silent Moon Plateau to see if they had run across him. They still don't like us," he admitted grimly and with a gentle shrug of his shoulders. But his search had not been entirely fruitless, and he perked up and smiled as he recounted to Drestig who he had found instead. "I did find @Kisla though! I headed up north, a lot further than I've been before, past where the Plateau wolves used to live. She lives there now, with her pack and her family. I've got nieces and nephews!" His tail wagged excitedly behind him as he shared the news. It had been Sceral the boy had been looking for, but that did not negate the excitement he felt over discovering his sister instead.

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

It took a lot of prodding to get this one out, sorry if it's a bit disjointed :/

The boy spoke with a wisdom far beyond his years, and the elder wolf felt both proud and sad at the response. It was admirable, that Serach could keep a positive attitude after all he'd been through; But he shouldn't have to... Still the dark man returned his defiant smile, wagging his own tail lightly, he had always tried to enjoy the small pleasures and hearing that same advice from Serach was amusing; And heartwarming. Seeing the surprise on the pale face as the attention was turned on him though, made an ebony eyebrow arch, ears perking attentively. Yet again he was reminded just how little attention had been paid to the boy lately, and he silently scolded himself once more for taking so long to have this conversation. Sitting down before the younger male, Drestig tilted his head slightly, eyes focused on the other as he gave him his undivided attention.

The initial reply was neutral, but no different than what the Avalon had expected, quite similar to his own; One day at a time... Then a short silence fell, and Drestig remained silent, seeing the churning thoughts flash in the boys eyes. Finally he spoke again, and the listener took care to remain open and uncreative until he finished. The words were both surprising and not at all, Oak Tree Bend and Serach seemed eternally tied to each other in the older wolf's mind, it was his mother's pack, his family. And yet, the feelings were such a perfect mirror of his own lately, that he could understand completely; We all seem to be drifting apart..! All of them had been caught up in their own doings, searches, sorrows and heartaches, and now that things were dialing down, they were realizing just how dethatched they had become from one another. The question was if it was too late to turn things around.

Drestig nodded slowly, expression thoughtful as he pondered Serach's words. He didn't have much in the way of answer, but he wanted to show that he understood the boy and could relate. In the end he simply met his eyes and smiled lightly, hoping that they could work on becoming closer once more, to each other and the rest of the pack. He remembered a thought that had been rummaging around the back of his mind lately, but before he had time to ask, Serach spoke again, and he held his own tongue for later. There was no news of the lost brother, causing Drestig's face to warp into a grimace of dejection, a frown on his silver tipped muzzle. The mention of the Plateau wolves brought a grim smile to his lips though; "Yeah I'm not surprised, with that leader of theirs..." There was obvious scorn in his voice, but then he too shrugged his shoulders, he wasn't particularly concerned with their neighbors on the mountain.

Seemingly determined to end on a high note, Serach added the discovery of Hearthwood River with a smile, and the black chap grinned back; "Ah yes, I heard they moved up north!" Seeing the young man's excitement was a joy, and Drestig was easily infected by it; "I ran into one of their lieutenants a few days back, I was gonna talk to Triell about making an official alliance." It seemed a bit silly, with the close relation between the two packs, but it had seemed the proper thing to do; Like a good little scout! Ember eyes drifted over the surrounding trees for a moment, ears flicking in the shifting breeze, then he added thoughtfully: "Maybe I'll head up there myself... I could use a little change of scenery."

Word count: 611

"Speech" Thoughts

WHEN YOUR DREAMS ALL FAIL,

AND THE ONES WE HAIL,

Drestig Avalon

ARE THE WORST OF ALL,

AND THE BLOOD'S RUN STALE.

Sorry for the wait!

The boy watched Drestig's facial expressions closely. They mirrored his own emotions in many ways, although now that he had told Drestig of his concerns, he did feel lighter, as though a weight had been lifted off of his shoulders. Besides during his accidental run-in with Kisla, he had not had very many outlets to share his concerns. They were all struggling with their own sorrows, and with Sceral's absence several months behind them, it almost seemed trivial to continue to bring it up. Wolves came and left all the time - he had known that from a very small age when he had seen strange wolves welcomed into the Bend, only to eventually disappear, their names, scents, and stories forgotten. But there was a nagging sense that Serach should not allow Sceral to be forgotten in the same way, and by voicing his concerns to Drestig, he felt better about what some would surely call an unhealthy obsession with trying to find his sibling.

To his surprise, Drestig did not seemed surprised to hear that Kisla was nearby. For a moment, that unnerved Sceral - why hadn't he been told? If others had known, then surely he should have been one of the first to know about their new neighbors? In the end, it didn't really matter, and his concerns were quickly mollified when Drestig continued, suggesting that perhaps the two packs could form an alliance. "Can I go with you?" he asked, visibly perking up at the mention of Drestig's proposed trip. Serach would take every opportunity he could to go visit Kisla, with the added bonus of being able to learn about diplomacy. "If I can help at all, that is", he added hastily. "It's just that I've never been at a meeting like that, where packs agree to be allies. I don't really know what that means." He had offered to help Kisla resolve her issue with the infamous @Rook if he should ever bother the Hearthwood River wolves again, but he wasn't entirely sure what it meant for the whole pack. As far as he knew, Oak Tree Bend had no alliances anywhere else in the Lore. Their closest neighbors were Silent Moon Plateau, and they certainly were not allies in any sense of the word.

@Serach
I think we can safely say, that YOU have no thing to apologize for <3

Gaze fixed on an unspecific point on the horizon, Drestig did not notice the younger man's immediate reaction to his words. Despite his best wishes, the dark scouts thoughts had begun to wander away from their conversation, and it was only when Serach spoke up again, that the ember-like eyes were turned back on him. The question came as a complete surprise, despite always making himself useful to the pack, the young Donata had never shown particular interest in more specific aspects of its affairs or leaned towards any defined role. With his own scout aspirations, Drestig was immediately piqued by even the smallest sign of curiosity towards that same area. True, Serach's eagerness might simply stem from a wish to see his sister again, but even if that was his major motivation, the older wolf was ready to take it; It would be nice to have some company... Some company that wasn't grey, grim and grumpy.

So the ebony chap smiled at his younger companion, ears waving favorably in response to his words. "I'm sure that can be arranged." He said confidently, not feeling like it was his place to say anything for certain, but feeling quite sure that Triell would not have anything to say against it either. After a short pause, he added, wanting to underline his own appreciation for the suggestion; "It would be nice to have someone along who's close to the leaders and can vouch for me. Not to mention knowing the exact location of the pack." He finished off with a wink, tail waving happily, already looking forwards to this trip. Little did he know that it would be postponed quite a bit.

In the ensuing silence, Drestig's eyes began to drift again, sliding over the densely growing oak trees, innumerable in the uniformity. Finally, he saw the time to ask the question that had been rummaging around the back of his mind for quite some time, tearing his eyes away from the deep green leaves to look into Serach's much lighter eyes; "How attached are you to this place? The land I mean," Silver tipped muzzle made a motion back out towards the woods, gaze not straying though; "I understand the pack was originally formed somewhere else?" It seemed an odd change of subject he realized, but he had been curious about the precise history of his home for quite some time, and Corinna's son seemed the right one to ask. Drestig had originally come upon Oak Tree Bend by accident, Silver having brought him to Pitch Pine Trail further south, only to have the pack disband shortly before winter fell on Relic Lore, leaving the rebellious lad to beg for shelter at the first border he came upon. Since then, he had come to deeply love this home, most of all the wolves though, even if he appreciated the territory; It was rich in both prey, water and shelter, and seemed to have served the pack well for several years, even before his arrival. But with recent happenings, a lot of bad memories had attached themselves to the oaken forest along with the good ones, and he had began to wonder...

But that was less important at the moment, for now he simply wanted to know how those who had lived there longer felt about the land; How important it is... To him personally, Oak Tree Bend had never been anything else, yet he felt quite mixed about the old woods. In any case, he was quite interested to hear Serach's thoughts, as well as maybe learn some deeper history of the pack that was now so dear to him.

Word count: 609

"Speech" Thoughts

WHEN YOUR DREAMS ALL FAIL,

AND THE ONES WE HAIL,

Drestig Avalon

ARE THE WORST OF ALL,

AND THE BLOOD'S RUN STALE.

Serach's proposal to accompany Drestig was a farfetched one, if only because the boy had never been involved in any sort of official pack function besides meetings and hunts. The possibility of obtaining a pack role had never really crossed his mind, and the older wolves in the pack had never really done much to try and encourage him towards one role or another. Nayeli had taught him how to spar, but he had been young and clumsy - not particularly suitable to be a guardian. So when Drestig responded positively that Serach's accompaniment could be arranged, the boy smiled widely, his tail wagging on the ground behind him.

His grin dissipated and his tail slowly came to a stop as the older wolf continued the conversation in a different direction. His meeting with Kisla was the first time he had said aloud to anybody that he was no longer happy in the Bend and wanted to leave. And as much as he liked Drestig and cared about him, Serach wasn't ready to share those thoughts with him, so he went with a more neutral response instead. "The Bend? Pretty attached, I suppose," he said, following Drestig's gaze into the familiar woods. He had learned to walk, to howl, and to hunt here; and he would certainly miss it when the time came to say goodbye. "I was born here, you know. I haven't done too much traveling either, so there's really nowhere else for me to be attached to, if that makes sense." It was the wolves he loved that he was attached to, and many of them had left the Bend behind long ago.

Shifting on his haunches, he settled in to get comfortable, his face furrowed in thought as he tried to remember what his mother, @Triell, and his siblings had told him over the years. "They used to live in a place called Swift River, on the other side of the mountains in Sacred Grove," he explained, hoping that he had gotten the place right. "Triell's brother and my mother's first mate, Indru, had founded the pack there. That's where Kisla and Fenru were born, and my other siblings." He took a breath, looking at Drestig to see if he was still following along. "I had a sister named Rissa, she'd be a year older than me now. She was kidnapped and taken across the mountains where she was killed. In Red Fern Forest. The way I understood it, my mother wanted to relocate the pack to be closer to where Rissa was." He wasn't entirely sure on why his mother had made that decision, but he knew that Rissa's death had played a large part in the decision.

He was happy to see the joy on the young man's face, smiling back as his own tail waved in response. Yes, surely there was nothing in the way of Serach coming along, and perhaps the experience might inspire him to take up scouting himself; Regardless it would be wonderful to have him there, for the trip and the meeting with Kisla and her mate. As the conversation moved on though, the boy grew more serious, in tune with the seriousness of the subject his elder had brought up. Drestig watched as the boy turned his own eyes to the woods, speaking slowly and thoughtfully. Ears perked, the man followed along silently, his own brow wrinkled. And understanding noise left him and he nodded at Serach's first sentiment, it was true that these woods had been the birthplace of Corinna's youngest boys; Guess I didn't think that through properly… He hadn't had the good fortune of being able to stay where he was born, and, perhaps because of that, he had never truly grown attached to any place. From the pale lad's words, it was hard to gauge exactly how much the Bend meant to him, but it made sense that it would mean more than any other place.

He went on to speak more of the history of the pack before his birth, probably handed down to him by his mother and older siblings, and Drestig found himself leaning in a little, deeply interested in the story. The mention of Rissa made his eyes widen in surprise, and then more in shock as he heard what had befallen her; I never knew… Of course, something like that wasn't exactly easy to talk about; I know that..! And it wouldn't exactly be the first thing you disclosed to a new member.

Serach's last comment made his lips purse, embers narrowing again as he thought for a moment. When he parted his lips, his voice was soft, but he made an effort not to sound condescending or overly consoling, time for that had passed, and he wanted to make it clear that he was addressing the young man as an equal; "I'm sorry, I didn't know about that." He began, meeting the Donata's golden-green eyes; "…Do you feel that way too? Being close to your mother I mean, is it… Comforting?" It was a bit hard for him to formulate the question, but he hoped the boy understood. He had felt like that at first, having somewhere to go, where he knew she was resting. But at some pint he had realized that it wasn't real, she wasn't actually there. Now her grave seemed more like a ghastly marker, than a place of rest.

Word count: 453

"Speech" Thoughts

WHEN YOUR DREAMS ALL FAIL,

AND THE ONES WE HAIL,

Drestig Avalon

ARE THE WORST OF ALL,

AND THE BLOOD'S RUN STALE.