Kingsfall i'm quiet like a fight

@Aleksei I hope you don't mind me dating this to yesterday?

She couldn’t sleep again… it was becoming a reoccurring habit and it was one that had started to take its toll on her – she just couldn’t find it in herself to actively talk to Lachesis about it. It meant she’d have to explain, and talk about her troubles, so he could understand what was happening and why and give her something to fix it… or worse, he wouldn’t have a solution and she’d just be a burden for the pack to deal with. She was still trying to figure out what had brought it on after almost two years of it raging through her head but never effecting her ability.

Perhaps that was why she was waltzing just outside the border, but still in the Kingsfall, in the middle of night, her head down, intent to watching the way the earth held firm and steady against the weight of her paws rather than on her emotions and the fact that she felt dead on her paws. She was humming to herself, some tune locked in on her subconscious, though she wasn’t really processing what she was doing and she was almost lost in through, though it was clear from her features and the way she was so tense that those thoughts weren’t happy ones.

No problem ♥

God, Aleksei was so tired these days. Not in the sense of exhaustion, or feeling weariness in his muscles, but lacking any motivation—simply succumbing to the faux-boredom that depression has a tendency to conjure up.

Some days, it was worse than others. More often than he'd like to admit, Aleksei simply wanted to lie around and wallow in his own pit of misery. It was easier than getting up and facing a world that seemed to want to rip any claim to happiness he had out of his hands, shred it to pieces in his face, and then mock him, laughing the whole time. Ah, but that would be admitting defeat, and ruining the name of his father.

Now that was something Aleksei couldn't ever sit by and idly allow to happen.

Hauling his carcass from it's resting spot early on in the morning, he decided that the best thing to do would just to be walk. And, so, he walked, with nothing really in mind other than just trying to not look like a corpse. He had no set plan. No “today I will hunt”, or “today I will border patrol”. It was a rather miserable case of “today I will not look like a dead man”. 

Off he went, trudging through Hearthwood, past the borders, and into the surrounding forests of Kingsfall, with nothing but a dull buzzing in his head that reminded him how empty this land was these days. How lacking life, despite its abundance of prey animals.

Aleksei couldn't really be sure of how long he mindlessly walked around, and he only realised that it had been the whole day when he saw the moon's reflection in the waters of the river beyond Hearthwood. What a “not as wasted as it could have been, but still pretty wasted” day. Lifting his head, he turned with the relieving realisation that he'd have to head back home soon and get some rest before the next sunrise came about.

It was during said journey home that he came to a stop, ears perking atop his head as a odd, soft noise stood out against the night-time ambience. Humming? His brow furrowed—birds didn't hum, did they? Scenting the air, Aleksei would've slapped himself in the face for his obliviousness; it's another wolf, you bloody idiot. Not to mention, a Hearthwood member at that! He stole as much information as he could from her scent—a female, roughly his age, alone. As much as he wanted to go to sleep, Aleksei figured he shouldn't leave a young woman wandering about in the dark without some form of company. His conscience wouldn't allow it.

Following his nose (and his ears) to find her, it didn't take long to discover his quarry, shuffling along. She looked as if she were somewhere else, like her paws were just carrying her along for a jolly midnight ride. Aleksei couldn't help but frown as he trotted closer. Like hell he was going to let her be by herself when she seemed in such a state. She'd probably end up hurting herself if he left her to it, and then he'd have even more to feel guilty about.

“Hello?” He finally spoke, concern obvious in the way his lips pulled into a tight line. “Is everything all right? If you keep walking without watching where you're going, you'll likely trip and hurt yourself, or fall into the river.” And she probably wouldn't last long in it—it was freezing.

(This post was last modified: Jan 01, 2017, 10:19 PM by Aleksei.)

Let the roots & soil drink of me
Whispering leaves & pointing branches will tell them where I'm lying

She’d become so familiar with these parts during her nightly walks that she could blindly and mindlessly move through the forest with very little effort. She needed to get a handle on it. Kisla was back but had yet to come find Lilya and regain her rank, as it were… she was almost certain there’d be some kind of conversation about it… and what if she didn’t? What if Lilya got stuck in a role she certainly didn’t want? It wasn’t good for the pack either… a lot to think about, all of it bad, and not all of it from the dark depths of her past. She had to have faith that it wouldn’t happen and that the queen would reclaim her crown soon enough.

She heard a voice, causing her to snap out of her daze, her head turning with confusion hinting at her features, her nose twitching. Male. Hearthwood River. Those two facts alone caused her to calm down quite a bit, her icy blue eyes making out the figure in the dark thanks to the moon that hung overhead. She’d never met him before… in fact, she couldn’t recall ever seeing him before. She’d smelled him around, sure… but the only male she really knew, or more of males if you were counting the pups, were Kyrios and Lachesis. “I guess… it’s a little hard to define what’s ‘all right’ anymore.” She sounded almost nonchalant about it, detached even.

“Ah’ve walked th’paths too much ta fall… even if Ah’m not payin’ ‘tention.” Of course, that wasn’t necessarily the best plan if a predator approached or something. She hadn’t even noticed the man until he showed up and spoke to her. “M’names Lilya.”

There is a family of deer nearby. Hunt Opportunity

Aleksei scowled at her words, though he couldn't help but agree with them. It was a hard thing to define for sure, when your family was either dead or scattered, but it was the lack of care that irked him more than anything. Was … was that how he sounded? Moping around, miserable, unfriendly? Like he didn't care?

It didn't paint a pretty picture of himself.

He huffed at her stubbornness to accept his advice—forest floors were constantly changing beyond the borders Hearthwood kept, didn't she know that? “I guess that's how I managed to catch you completely unaware, right?” There was a slight edge to his voice, something that warned about the fact that he wasn't messing around. Didn't matter how much you knew a place, something could go wrong and you could wind up dead.

Just looking at Aleksei's own damn father was evidence enough of that.

He wasn't saying it to be spiteful, he was saying it to be helpful, in reality. Walking around with your head in the clouds, making your presence known in the form of a little tune, may seem like a weird, cutesy quirk, but it was a death sentence in disguise, an accident waiting to happen. She gave her name at least, and he nodded. Lilya. It was pretty, really, but it reminded him Nightingale, and so he left the comment he would have made as a boy unsaid. “Aleksei,” he replied. “And that's my point. You walk around not paying attention, something—or someone—could easily knock you down.” And you might not be able to get back up.

Sigh. “Look, I'm sorry, just … be more careful. We don't need to lose any more wolves.”

Let the roots & soil drink of me
Whispering leaves & pointing branches will tell them where I'm lying

@Aleksei

Begrudgingly, he had a point, and he was certain to get the point across that it wasn’t some joke. “Sometimes a walk help clear ma head… it’s easy ter get lost ‘n thought.” She shrugged in return, though she made it clear that she wasn’t making an excuse, merely giving a reason as to why he managed to sneak up on her. His point continued after he offered a name. Aleksei. She stored it away for memory along with his features. Sometimes, she thought she couldn’t do anything right. She wasn’t meant for all of this. A pack? Sure, she was fine in a pack… leading it? Hell no, and she felt that’s when things had started to go downhill for her.

He apologized and just pleaded with her to be careful… she could respect that. “S’alright… Ah understood what yer were tryin’ to say.” He cared. He didn’t know her, but he cared that she stayed safe because she was a member of the pack that he was in, and she could respect that. “Care ta join me?” She asked softly. She still had a bit to go along the familiar path and some company wouldn’t hurt by any means. Besides, wasn't she supposed to talk to wolves? Wasn't she supposed to get to know the packmates she would fight and hunt alongside? She'd done a pretty shitty job of it over the past couple months.

Aleksei hadn't intended to scold her—all right, maybe he kind of had—but surely she at least recognised he was making sense? He wasn't so sure, honestly. Hell, she didn't even seem to realise that getting lost in thought was exactly the danger! Whatever. It wasn't his issue to press any more than he already had. If she wanted to throw that caution to the wind, she could be Aleksei's guest. But couldn't she at least do that closer to the borders, or even the pack den?

He watched her quietly for a moment as she extended an invitation of company, asking if he'd like to join her. He was heading in that direction any way, so it couldn't hurt to at least spend a little time with his pack mate. Besides, he wanted to fully immerse himself back into the pack (to at least attempt moving past his father's death, difficult as it would be), so getting to know Lilya a little better would be far from the worst possible thing. “Sure,” came his smooth reply, “I'll-” catch you if you fall and break your neck because you're being a dozy daydreamer “-come along. I was intending on making my way back to the river any way.”

Falling in step beside her, Aleksei gave himself a good shake, hoping to disperse some of that frustrated energy fizzing against his skin. “How long have you been part of Hearthwood?” It'd be better to pass the time with idle chitchat than it would be to sulk the whole way home, right?

Let the roots & soil drink of me
Whispering leaves & pointing branches will tell them where I'm lying

The scolding had reminded her of times before she was on her own, just not to the severity her parents had used. Then again, they weren’t at war. Aleksei was not stressed because of encroaching enemies on his children – the circumstances were different. He agreed to her company, saying that he was intending it anyway. She fell in beside him – part of her thought it was kind of weird but having someone at her side, no matter what they were doing, put her on edge. Old instincts had to have died hard, right? How long has you been part of Hearthwood?

She had to think about it for a few seconds. “Ah’ve been ‘ere since late last Spring… arrived shortly after th’passin’ of Naia and Maksim.” She’d heard they were good wolves, and she felt as if she was at a loss because she’d never been able to meet them – they’d been important and influential members, a leader, a founder… still, she was doing her best with the wolves she did have the honor of meeting. “Th’River is ah lot more peaceful than where Ah come from.” She noted with a soft smile – even with the fallout from Kjors, it was tranquil in comparison. “It’s nice…”

It was funny, how Aleksei had blossomed into such a fatherly man, given he had no children and was far from a leadership position.

He hummed at her words, smiling sadly at the mention of his father and Naia. He would never meet two greater wolves, of that he was certain – Maksim had been a steadfast leader, a dependable wolf, one who was given respect without ever demanding it, and Naia had been a loyal second, focused wholly on her duty as second and scout of the River, kind and compassionate, always with a gentle smile whenever she spoke to any of the pups. “I'm … it's a shame. You didn't get a chance to meet them.” That sad smile lingered a moment longer; he missed them.

Lilya briefly mentioned that the River was more peaceful than where she'd come from originally, and Aleksei huffed a gentle sigh. “My father struggled to carve this peace out of turmoil,” came his response. “We were forced to leave our home – our first home, my birth place – after a betrayal from within the pack.” A reoccurring theme for the Baranski family it seemed. “We crossed the mountain range to find this place, and I- I made some foolish decisions.”

So many. So reckless. So stupid.

Suddenly, he felt uncomfortable in his own skin – stop opening up to strangers, you weirdo – and he desperately wanted to shift the subject away from his past to something else, anything else. “You have an interesting accent,” he mumbled. “I've not heard anything like it before.” Her clipped words were interesting – of course he'd met wolves who liked to string words together, and even create Frankenstein words (he briefly remembered an encounter with a young male who asked the older wolf to go “deunting” with him – it meant deer hunting, apparently), but Lilya was different.

Where had she come from? And who had raised her?

He wasn't entirely sure he wanted to probe about that, considering her passing comment from earlier; the River was a lot more peaceful than where she had come from.

Let the roots & soil drink of me
Whispering leaves & pointing branches will tell them where I'm lying

A sad smile found her features when he spoke… she’d heard so much of the two, but never enough to know what they were truly like. He then went on to explain, to tell her about why it was so peaceful… a betrayal within the pack… her heart went out to them. It had to have been a rough experience for all of the wolves. They’d seen so much hardship and yet they clung together, stayed strong, for survival. That had been something she’d been unable to do. Perhaps if she had stayed, her family would have stood a chance… or maybe she’d be dead alongside them.

“E’eryone makes foolish decisions…” She defended him to his own doubts. She’d been an idiot, run from her blood… sure, she’d survived, but she’d still abandoned her own family… something she was keen on not doing with this one. “Y’all talk funny… Ah talk jus’ fine.” She jokingly defended… had they been in her neck of the woods, maybe, but this was their home and their ancestral homeland. “It’s n’accent from my homeland… ma ‘ntire family has… had it.” She forced herself to correct her wording with a soft frown. “M’parents n’siblings are dead… m’all that’s left, really.” She felt the need to explain, so maybe he’d get an idea of what she meant when she’d said it was so peaceful.

“S’rry… didn’t mean ta get depressin’ or nothin’.” She apologized quickly as she walked. She missed them, Lia most of all… Lia’d been her role model, and watching her gruesome death… it still haunted every step she took, and every dream she walked.