Secret Woodlands Secret Woodland Pack Thread

She waited. And waited. She saw Nina's eye grow cold, mouth firm; She won't let me..! The russet healer was already feeling her defeat, a small knot forming in the pit of her stomach. Still, the stern words hit Aideen like the lash of a paw over her snout, her head jerking slightly, eyes widening. She hadn't expected complete understanding, but it was seldom that she had seen the Woodland queen so cold. She didn't know how to react, but stood unmoving, facial expression frozen in her painful surprise. Technically she hasn't answered yet... A voice in her head prompted. A small flare of hope relit within her, but she didn't dare believe, not until Nina began talking again. Despite the continued strain in the golden dame's voice, her words were warming, even drawing a smile out on the nervous healer's lips. She flicked her ears up, feeling the grin tuck more at the corners of her mouth as Nina kept going, and then finally; Yes! A wave of joy and gratitude washed over Aideen and she almost jumped on the spot in her excitement, but managed to rein in her emotions. Her leader was still speaking, and the faithful subordinate continued to listen, smile fading a tad. Once again, she noticed the change in her mentor and friend, the weakening of her usual resolve. The last injunction send a stab through the vixen lass' heart, her ears falling back in hurt at the insinuation; Not come back..?! Did Nina really think that was a possibility?! Is it? She asked herself, and suddenly she felt uncertain. It was true that she had not felt as connected to Secret Woodlands after her return, that the changed pack was not the home it had once been to her. But leave?! It seemed so extreme. Aideen shook her head, as if to convince both Nina and herself that she would not leave, that she would return within the limit. Meeting her alphess' emerald gaze, she found both clarity and a touch of the strength that had once characterized the woman, it was still in there; She can bounce back from this! Once the slight healer came back, she would give her all to help that. She nodded once, strictly, acknowledging her leader's command; "We will return before then." She said confidently, and, at least in that moment, she believed it wholeheartedly. Then she stepped forwards, ears, shoulders and tail lowered submissively, and stretched up to nip the underside of Nina's jaw-line in show of respect and gratitude; "Thank you Nina, for indulging me in this, I won't disappoint you." That was all, she could go. The overwhelming joy blossomed within her again, and she felt it unfurling like thousands of butterflies in her stomach. Once Nina dismissed her, the tri colored girl would hurry back to the infirmary to rouse her escort so they could get going, after all, they had a time limit to keep within. She let herself be consumed by the excitement, pushing back that small, nagging doubt that was forming in the pit of her stomach, that wonder if she would truly ever return. Word count: 525 Thoughts ”Speech”

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Unitas lurked around a large rotten stump careful not to trip over its decaying roots as he slipped through the shadows. The young rebel could not be trusted to answer a call or return from a hunt on his own. He did as he pleased, meandering across the territory learning to hunt at his leisure. The dark wolf had also been scouting the lands outside of their territory lately. His interest in those places grew and grew, but somehow he always managed to turn back around and head home. Even with Wanderlust washing across his soul, Unitas couldn't leave. He couldn't help but fear what his mother would thinking and do to him if he actually left without saying anything. It was that fear that kept him in line mostly. His young neutral temperament had faded away into a selfish evil one. With his brothers out of the picture and no one willing to really forcefully educate him on pack law about what is good and right, Unitas had turned confident and cruel. His actions were almost completely comprised of selfish needs and wants. Right now he needed physical comfort, from whom it did not matter. Just as long as he found someone to stick around for a while until he ultimately became tired of them. His mother was usually the wolf he found to stick around by. He could tolerate her for long periods of time, maybe because their personalities were somewhat close. Or at least they both like to brood the same way, and Nina had done a lot of brooding the past year so he had no trouble being around her. It was only when Nina tried to socialize and bond with him that Unitas ultimately grw bored of her and tried to slip away. For now though, he wouldn't mind anyone coming around. If only for a short while he wanted company. "Speech"

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ooc; Hoping perhaps Siji can meet a pack member here. Can be brief :)

Sijinali enters the clearing, her jaws clenching a slightly emaciated rabbit.
Vegetation was almost all gone; frost had claimed it with its icy grip. The gray-brown coat of the
rabbit is softly lit in the afternoon sun. The sun itself wavered behind and out from the clouds,
constantly playing a game of peek-a-boo with the Earth's inhabitants below. Padding quietly over
to the cache, the lithe woman lowers her head, dropping the rabbit into the pile. She licks her
ebon lips a few times, attempting to rid the fur from her mouth. A rather displeased look graces
her features before she turns away, shivering slightly before she seats herself near the den opening.

The winter was definitely here. The ground was hard, the soil unforgiving. She shakes her coat out,
hoping in doing so she'd get a bit warm. Siji hadn't really met any of her pack members, especially
after the unfortunate event of Daniel's passing. She was adamantly hunting for her new family, trying
to keep the cache full for the winter time. It would be nice to have a chat with someone; she'd grown
a bit lonely on her hunting and scouting travels.

     

@Sijinali

The thicket was beautiful in the winter, there was no denying it. As much as she was grateful for the shelter it provided, Bella could not help but worry for the children who had not joined them here. It was their first winter without their parents, first on their own, but she was reassured by her faith in their resourcefulness. Truly, it was only her youngest who she could not have abided to be apart from - but he had come, like she knew he would, so all was as well as was within her power to ensure.

Her warm breaths puffing out as pale mist before her, Bella padded back to the den, her jaws disappointingly empty and a chill in her bones. Upon spotting a figure sat serenely by the densite, the woman perked up, letting a soft woof alert the other to her presence. Drawing near, Bella regarded the soft brown female, a gentle wag in her tail as greeting, her head kept just a little bit lower out of respect for the other's superior rank. "Nice catch," she said lightly, eyes glancing over to the pile and the rabbit she was sure hadn't been there a short while previous. "I've not been having much luck lately."

Coming to sit near the other, the chocolate woman offered by way of casual introduction: "Bella."

Sijinali turns her head slowly at the woof of another pack member.
Her tail thumps the ground slowly, and a warm smile spreads wide across her muzzle. Dipping her head in
polite greeting, she notes the compliment of the wolf named Bella. "Thanks!" She coos, her teal gaze
now upon the woman. "Sijinali." After a moment, she speaks again "I've been out so often. This is
the first critter I've caught in two days. The winter is so pretty, but it's so harsh." Growing quiet, she thinks
about how many wolves could possibly be wandering out on their own at the moment. The winter was only going
to get worse. It would be damn near impossible to thrive on one's own.

"I really haven't had the time to meet anyone" Siji openly admits, rolling her shoulders lightly. "I've a lot
to learn about those who have been in this pack before me." She was incredibly curious about her packmates;
she'd seen them here and there, but there wasn't much interaction. Sijinali was determined to get to know everyone.
The light coated woman had gotten a bit thinner from her constant hunting trips. She wasn't exhausted, but she
was definitely craving sleep. "I've been here for about two months now or so."

     

@Sijinali

Easily mirroring the other woman's pleasure at having friendly company, Bella dipped her own head at the returned introduction. Sijinali, a curious and beautiful name, and one that Bella made sure to remember. It was reassuring to hear that she wasn't the only one struggling with solo hunts in this weather, but hopefully some of the more seasoned hunters were having more luck. The cache always seemed to have something available anyway - the pack was hardly in any dire situation. But that didn't mean they could afford to be complacent, and while it was a relief not to be relying entirely on herself anymore, Bella had more responsibilities now than just to her own children.

Sijinali confessed to being a relative stranger to the others in the pack, and Bella nodded, feeling much the same. "It's nice to meet you. We're very recent additions too," she said, before quickly adding: "my son and I, I mean. We were living on the mountain before, but I wasn't comfortable trying to sustain us alone during winter. Never spent one outside of a pack before, don't really want to start now!" Smiling, her tail drumming a soft beat against the frosty ground, Bella trained her gaze on Sijinali. "Would you like to go for a hunt tomorrow? I'd like to start properly encouraging my son to catch something other than just fish, and it would be nice to aim for something a little bigger. There's a small herd of mule deer taking shelter in a small glade just beyond our south borders, I stumbled across them the other day. They don't seem to have really moved since then, I don't think they realised I found them."

A wave of relief rushes over Sijinali at Bella's comment about being newcomers as well.
Her ears perk up slightly as she mentions her son. With a slight tilt of her head,
Siji chimes in "Oh, you've got a son? That's wonderful." The woman cannot
help but to think about if she'd ever have her own young. Allowing the thought to
dissipate, her focus returns clearly. Siji was quite relieved that her first personal
interaction with a pack mate was going so smoothly. Bella seemed level-headed from
the way she spoke and was so friendly. The smile remains on Jin's lips as her tail
continues to wag.

"That would be great!" she says enthusiastically. "I most certainly hope
we will be able to take one down. That would be great for the cache." A chuckle
emits from her throat before she speaks once more "I've gotten pretty tired of
eating rabbits and small game as of late." Her teal eyes scan around as her mind
conjures more thoughts. Her head was growing a bit cloudy. Sleep was beckoning her.
"It'll be a fantastic opportunity for your son, as well." An expression of wonder
comes across her features "What's your son's name?[/align][/align]

(This post was last modified: Dec 21, 2015, 07:53 PM by Sijinali.)

     

The smile which swept across Bella's face at the simple, warm comment about her darling child was instantaneous and genuine. Yes, yes it was quite wonderful indeed. As Sijinali continued her support of Bella's suggestion, the smile only grew, the chocolate woman's pleasure showing in her tail as it gently swept across the ground. While she had harboured some reservations over her hasty decision to join this pack, there had been so many signs to indicate that it had not been a poor one, and her amiable packmates were certainly one of them. "We should organise a hunt," she suggested lightly, wondering if Sijinali knew of others who would be willing to make the trip. Bella was keen to pull her weight in the pack, and while she was no naturally gifted hunter, she had more than enough skill to survive.

"Duckweed," she replied, and felt a strange compulsion to continue: "It's a small plant which grows on bodies of water. It covered a pond near where he was born, and I always thought it was beautiful. Strong and resilient." She didn't think that she'd ever told him that before, actually... perhaps it was time she did. She knew that her duckling wasn't overly fond of his name, but he'd come around if he understood the heart behind it, surely.

Pulling herself out of that unbidden thought, she refocused on Sijinali's warm face. "Do you have family here?"

There was the very lightest of clearing in his throat when he entered the opening of the pack den only to find two others settled within. In his jaws, hung a snowy white hair. Not a particularly large one for it had been weak, tired and slow, though he still had every means to present it to the pack, more specifically Nina or Inali. It was only these two woman, really, that he shared any one on one interaction with. Although he had seen his other pack mates plenty of times before and might have shared a word here or there, the reclusive male was just as this - reclusive. He dips his head now politely to them both and then settles the meat down on the cool flooring of the den. A small smile is offered, though little words. Something for which they probably already expected of him. They had both been here for a number of months (if anything wading out the winter) and knew them far less then he knew Aideen or Miccah which is all honesty was not much ether. For the time being he leaves them peacefully to their conversation whilst deciding to take out "some of the trash" while he was here. ""

SECRET Woodlands

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The king looked around as he neared the den, his paw steps slowing as he noticed all was quiet. After his little excursion earlier in the day, the man had decided he needed some quiet time. And that quiet time would be spent within his territory. He still didn't know exactly what was bothering him, but clearly something was. Miccah made a mental note to speak to his wife later about this, but for now, he would enjoy his solitude. Letting out a questioning chuff, and seeing there was no response given the man still did not enter the den. He did not want to rest, he just wanted to sit and relax for a few minutes and then resume his usual duties. Maybe, he would get to the point of why he felt something was very, very wrong. Or maybe the king was just losing his mind. Miccah grunted softly, not amused at where his thoughts were heading. So he sat, and focused on relaxing. "speech"

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(This post was last modified: Jan 31, 2016, 10:44 PM by Miccah.)