Secluded Spring called to the torture

There was so much more about the Notch that made it home for Emrys and part of the reasons that he had made his choice. However these weren't things that he would be comfortable sharing with a stranger such as Craw. For that reason he gave the information that he had and then waited for the scarred man to ask further questions. That seemed to be put on hold however as the sound of footfalls reached his ears and they definitely didn't belong to an adult. This was confirmed when Lucia joined them. This caused Emrys to have some uneasiness having the pup so close to the stranger. Still he returned her greeting with a soft nudge to her shoulder before returning his gaze back to Craw.

The youngster professed her love for her home which Emrys was sure she would feel that way considering she had been born there. Lucia also gave them the information about her father that they were looking for, he would be there shortly “Thank you Lucia, that is just what we needed to know,” he said with a smile to the pup. He was grateful to the pup because she had been able to give them a more definite time of her father's arrival. The man spoke of having a Monadnock which Emrys was unfamiliar with that term and didn't have the chance to ask about it. He would have to ask Lorcan about it sometime.

Sylva’s footfalls reached his ears and he glanced back just as she came out from the trees. Emrys nodded as she told that what she knew about the leader's arrival, “Yes Lucia said it shouldn't be much longer,” he confirmed for Sylva. Emrys couldn't help but wonder if this was how it always was with every pack that had strangers at their door. Did they all gather to greet them or find out what they wanted and perhaps it had been good that he had greeted the man instead of continuing his patrol. It would be easier to judge if he'd done the right thing when Gent arrived.

Sylva and Craw seemed to know one another seeing as they started a dialogue about Craws travels. It was his use of her name that made it rather obvious, as well as curious. So it would seem that Craw wasn't much of a stranger after all, he put that tidbit away for later as he heard the man speak of their neighbors, “Which neighbors might those be?” He asked curiously since he hadn't quite learned everything there was to know about the area. When asked about her leg Emrys waited to here her response on the matter as he was interested in it as well.

(This post was last modified: Dec 16, 2016, 11:06 AM by Emrys.)

Please see Kajika's OOC profile for OOC preferences, thank you.

The call was rough, and it was that feature which gave him an inkling as to who might be standing at the edge of his domain. Never had he met a wolf with a voice so damaged as that silver Northerner that @Sylva had pissed off. It was highly likely that was the man beckoning for attention, and Gent was highly interested in what would bring the Lowlander here. He could hear his daughter race ahead, and the king trotted after her at an easy pace, tail lofted behind him.

The closer he drew, the more scents commingled, and he was pleased to arrive onto the scene to find that several of his subordinates had responded to their visitor. Approaching from behind, his forward-perked ears were able to catch the last few snippets of conversation before slipped into sight. His cheeks puffed out as his chuffed, amiably greeting his fellows before taking his place at his daughter's side, opposite of @Emrys. His smallteeth nibbled at Lucia's black and copper cheek before his glacial eyes settled on Craw and a nod of acknowledgement was passed to the other man. So it was the spider-faced wolf from before. Curious.

With no intention of interrupting the conversation he had evidently walked into, he would observe their guest as the questions that had been uttered were answered. Sylva was well-composed, her lesson having finally been learned it would seem. He hoped too, with the time that had transpired and the reassurances it provided, that this calmness was internal as well. She was an adult now, and if she stayed on track, she'd prove one to be proud of, idiosyncrasies be damned. Not that she hadn't already impressed in several areas; that was very much the reason she was still with the pack, as White Fir Notch was by no means a charity.

It interested him to know both what Sylva had to say for herself and the incident that had taken from her a quarter of her mobility, as well as how the outsider would choose to describe the Notch's closest neighbor, and so he merely listened.

The man's answer clearly perplexed the girl, as she'd never heard the word before in her life. Golden eyes wide with interest, she tilted her head to the side until Emrys' voice picked up. His praise earned another smile from her, and her tail gave a few pleased wags. The movement picked up when someone else moved through the forest to meet them.

"Yesss, Sylvaaaa," she whispered under breath, bowing down and curling around the obstacle of Emrys' forelegs to playfully bat at the other girl. Her favorite wolf in the pack (that wasn't family, anyway), because wherever Sylva was, things got fun. Yet she was acting more serene than usual, and Lucia realized that now was not the time for shenanigans. Ears pulling back, she sat upright again, this time without lazily supporting herself on Emrys.

Nah, this was good to. Interesting, and adult-y. She listened intently as more words were exchanged. Neighbors, she knew of only two; the Woodlands and the ones dad wasn't exactly happy about. From this man's tone of voice, she wanted to assume they were speaking of the latter. She was glad Emrys asked for clarification though. And of course, Sylva's bum leg was brought up. While she knew the whole story, had proclaimed it several times over as simultaneously the most thrilling and terrifying night of her life, she hadn't been asked for her testimony, and it felt as though it would be better if she wasn't her normally intrusive, obnoxious self. Dad always said, impressions, especially the first, were vital, and she wouldn't be the one to mess that up.

And as she'd declared, Gent was right along. She grinned and returned his affection by headbutting his chest, before whispering, "dad, what's a monadnock?"

Sylva glanced toward Gent as the towering behemoth arrived on the scene, her ears perked at Craw’s question, the gesture he made making it clear to what he was referring too. She paused for a moment, no longer filterless babblings floods of thoughts rushed out in the form of words as her hazel brown gaze noticed Gent waiting expectantly too, maybe to see how she’d put it. Many things may have changed about Sylva for the better, but her blunt and directness wasn’t one off them. Directness when it came to honestly that is, she still had thousands of thoughts a minute that ran through her mind, some thing wouldn't ever change.

“My leg got crushed by a tree while saving one of the pups of my pack.” She eventually said, it was simple, direct and without embellishment or the stray thoughts that used to accommodate the eccentric wolf’s speech. “I may have a limp all my life but I don’t regret it or how it happened one bit and I’d do it again to save someone’s life without hesitating.” In a way, it had become a badge of honor for the small wolf. Though she was limited now in her movement, she wasn't going to carry out her life limping in shame, she felt pride in the injury because it had come from a selfless act.

@Gent @Sylva @Emrys

Often when coming to the borders of an unfamiliar pack, one was met by a single border-walkers or the leaders, and matters went by with this distinctly civil kind of detachment - for better, or for worse. As though the visitors and locals were able to talk in this little bubble separate of the real workings of either pack. Yet as Craw stood at these particular borders and was quickly surrounded by its inhabitants, he was rewarded with a little insight into the dynamics of this White Fir Notch. Even as they spoke to him, he watched them interact with each other, how the young black girl was pleased with Sylva's arrival, moving to paw playfully at her, at how comfortable the subordinates were with their leader's child, at how cooly and yet respectfully they regarded each other, at how diplomatically they treated their visitor.

By the time another wolf emerged, huge and black and with eyes piercing blue, Craw was not entirely surprised that the lord hung back and let the open questions be answered before swooping in himself, for clearly his subordinates had things under control and there was no need for posturing. The child went to her father eagerly, and Craw watched her for only a moment, lowering his snout in the large man's direction just a fraction out of respect, before refocusing on Sylva.

How had he misjudged this pack so entirely? Or was this just a fluke?

"I'm sorry to hear that," he rasped, and found, bizarrely, that he meant it. "But it is a noble reason to come to harm. If you need medical attention, my pack has a skilled healer." The way this was going, compared to where he might have thought it was, was just hilarious and twisted and he found he rather enjoyed the possibility of being wrong. "That of Wild Rye Fields," the spider then said to Emrys, "Just to the north of you. I'm sure you've noticed; by my judgement, they've settled as close to you as they have to us."

Having answered the questions levelled his way, the silver wolf then looked again to his rank-equal, but in all ways kept his posture neutral. This wasn't his lands, and when faced with a pack whose attitude impressed him, he held absolutely no desire to challenge that. "Craw," he said evenly with a dip of his head, introducing himself again for the benefit of the wolf who he had truly come to see. "Of Whitestone Monadnock, in the northern tundra. I came for... for a chance at a new first impression."

His own had certainly changed.

Emrys had been curious about the injury to Sylva's leg since the moment he'd seen her and wondered how it had happened. So when Craw asked Emrys perked his ears to listen to what she had to say. What she said about it only help to show him how much she cared for the pack and what she was willing to do for it. He felt she was the definitely the kind of wolf any leader would be happy to have in their pack. He also felt that she might be willing to work with him and he would be happy to work with. He agreed with Craw that it was a noble reason as sad as it maybe but she showed her courage and that was important.

He became aware of Gents arrival when he heard the large males footfalls and Lucia going to her father. The Alpha didn't step right up and take control of the little meeting which gave a little more time to learn about the new neighbors they had. As it turned out the reason it took longer was due to the proximity to Craws lands and their own. Emrys nodded at Craws words but something else about the situation interested him. “Do you feel they are a threat to our packs? I mean with their proximity they could cause a lot of trouble for either of us.” Emrys wasn't familiar with the new pack and he hadn't been down that way in a long time so he didn't know if the pack was a good one or not.

Again it was brought to his attention that Craw must have been here before and something went wrong especially if this man was looking for a new first impression. Since the gray man had directed his last words in Gents direction Emrys waited to see what his alpha would say.

(This post was last modified: Dec 29, 2016, 07:58 PM by Emrys.)

Please see Kajika's OOC profile for OOC preferences, thank you.

A soft shhh was issued against his daughter's temple as her question was overlapped by Sylva's answer, the latter he didn't want to miss. (It didn't help that in all honesty, he had no idea what a Monadnock was). Her answer was direct, as she had always been, another thing that the alpha had not failed to appreciate amongst all of her less appealing qualities. It could be trusted that whatever you asked the youth, you would be given an honest response.

Craw's next choice of words were less expected, however. While he hadn't seen much of the wolf during their previous encounter, sympathetic certainly hadn't been a word that drifted into his head during it. Rather, there had been a sharp edge to the man, one that was highly familiar to the shade king. An offer of assistance was even levied, and while the Notch was  far from lacking in practiced medics, it mattered greatly that it had been made at all. All of this was rather forthcoming and amiable; just another thing going right for the Notch that had burned away at the Crest. Taking all of it in, every bit of information and sentiment, Gent was rather pleased already with this surprise visit.

"Gent Lieris," he returned, "welcome to the Notch."

Emrys' question then alit in the air, drawing Gent's gaze. He was swift to assail the notion.

"Not a threat, just an inconvenience," he spoke with the whisper of a smirk on his muzzle. The medic had joined long after the leadership's run in with Drestig and his subordinate, and so the details had not been explicitly shared with him. It was expected to be a given that any subordinate would not traipse about another pack's territory, and so not much had been said on their closest neighbors.

"We've already established that their claim won't keep us from hunting the lowland herds."

The information was meant for Emrys but purposefully spoken freely in front of this Craw, in hopes that the open flow might carry in both directions. If there were to be tensions amongst the Notch's neighbors at any point in time, Gent wanted to know.

"Sounds like you've had a long trip," two days, if Craw's own estimation of each pack's proximity to each other was correct, and surely he had measured it out on this very mission. The goodwill already extended by this man urged Gent to do the same, even while suspicions did still exist (the man still was a rather paranoid creature after all). It was not often that he would allow a stranger into the pack's territory, but he knew that trust had to be extended if he wanted to maintain a good relationship with the other packs. Hearthwood River need be the only wolves that they were wary of so long as the Notch leadership continued to play their cards right.

Gent tossed his muzzle, motioning over his shoulder, into his own home.

"How's a rest and a meal sound?"

(This post was last modified: Jan 07, 2017, 08:15 PM by Gent.)

Her ears leaned back as her father, instead of answering her question, directed her attention back onto their unexpected guest and his conversation with Sylva and Emrys. She soaked it all up, and several times wanted to interject ('we have three medics!'), but knew better and kept her tongue still. Almost the most interesting, were the names dropped. His was Craw and she found that something about it was rather fitting for the unusual but likeable man. What took the cake however, was that final statement.

A new first impression? Her eyes jumped up to her father, taking in his reaction before leaping over to Craw once again. Sounded like there was a story there, because if they needed a new one, then they'd already met and it hadn't gone so well. But Gent was welcoming, and that mention of these Rye Field guys being trouble was brushed away too, so she didn't see any reason to feel anxious about any of this.

She was certainly going to have a lot of questions after all of this, however. A single paw lifted as she was ready to move, hoping she could stay with the adults longer and didn't get shooed away. She was keeping a running list and wouldn't mind it growing.

The small wolf listened quietly to the others as they spoke, her curiosity to what a Mondanock not yet sated, but she’d have to worry about that later, it looked like Craw and Gent had something to speak about. The other packs they had mentioned, she slowly realized that she may have met a wolf from them, what was his name? “@Asken!” she blurted out loud as the name of the grump spewed over her tongue. She paused for a moment, blinking as she realized that she had said the name out loud, she quickly added “I was just trying to remember something….” a nervous laugh escaping the medic as she tried not to ruin the good impression that she had just made.

“The springs are a good place to rest, you can smell how clean the water is, listen to the soft murmurs of the water, the whispers of the plants..” Dammit Sylva, you're doing it again. The small wolf didn’t care at this point, if someone wanted to think she was bat shit insane just because she wasn’t going to hide who she was on their own territory then so be it. “Is there anything I can do to help Gent?’ She eventually asked, she could do a lot of things, except acting normal, but he should know that by now.

Last post from me :) Thanks for a fab thread, everyone.

The question of whether or not the Fields were a threat, while directed at Craw, were smoothly answered by the medic's own lord - whose answer implied that he was not concerned by their presence. A silver ear flicked at the notion and all of its implications, but Craw did not yet know the dark wolf's mind enough to know whether there was much left unsaid. The neutral manner it had been announced implied that there was no strong sentiment between the two, only cordiality. That was fine. The only truly undesirable outcome woukd have been to learn that the Notch and Fields considered each other close allies, for, at that point in time, anything which benefited the Rye wolves was undesirable.

And for any foreseeable point in the future, probably.

Gent's observations continued to be on point, as the journey had indeed been long and his need for rest growing quite strong, though he hid the weakness while it was necessary. And while he felt the residual seed of distrust in his gut, the situation had surprised him plenty already, and the Notch had provided a warm reception - so when the offer of hospitality was made, Craw decided to take it at face value.

"Very much so, thank you," he wheezed, tail waving slowly behind him in gratitude and pleasure, ever satisfied when presented with a leader who knew their manners. Sylva's blurting of that damned name might have given him pause and reason to question it, but with the proximity of their packs, it was no surprise that she would know the man - and Craw could only guess that the Rye wolf had not been kind to the strange girl. Taking a few slow steps toward Gent, he bowed his head and tail further in acknowledgement of his host's rights and generosity, dipping his head at the white sentry as he passed, impressed by the man's decorum.

As a guest, he would follow their lead, and show them the respect that their curtesy deserved.