Drooping Willows do not go gentle into that good night

AW; but hoping to rope in some WR wolves!

Do not go gentle into that good night,
Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Though wise men at their end know dark is right,
Because their words had forked no lightning they
Do not go gentle into that good night.

Good men, the last wave by, crying how bright
Their frail deeds might have danced in a green bay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Wild men who caught and sang the sun in flight,
And learn, too late, they grieved it on its way,
Do not go gentle into that good night.

Grave men, near death, who see with blinding sight
Blind eyes could blaze like meteors and be gay,
Rage, rage against the dying of the light.
- Dylan Thomas, "Do not go gentle into that good night", 1914 - 1953
+ mood music from Interstellar: "Stay" by Hans Zimmer

old age should burn and rave at close of day;

rage, rage against the dying of the light.

January 23rd; Morning; Freezing fog; -7 ° F, -22 ° C.

Stupid, stupid, STUPID! Niles paced in circles around the old willow tree, whining to himself, and stumbling over this one particular root that stuck up through the earth with every turn. Damnit! With a swirl of ground-bound fog, he rounded now to the pile of fur that was his father. Twice, now, he had set his nose to the old wolf. Twice, Angier had not responded. The yearling's nose was burning, his ears ringing, his head becoming foggier than the world around him.

Dad, he wordlessly whimpered, standing over the lifeless Lyall. A dark paw lifted to press into the ashen shoulder and applied pressure. Nothing. Niles' eyes glossed over, the fog rendering Angier into a smudge of tan and white. You were supposed to be back home with Mom, his thoughts turned wistful, knowing fully well that no matter what it looked like, Angier was not simply asleep. His muzzle began to wrinkle and a thunderous growl left his chest. WHAT ARE YOU DOING OUT HERE?!

His dark crown lowered, his head sinking as he picked his way over the old willow's roots and rested his head on his father's side. The fur over Angier's cold body was wintry, made even more so by the fog. "Dad," his voice only able to manage a whisper due to his disregard for verbal interaction. Stay... "You weren't supposed to leave this way."

He grazed the underside of his jaw across the old patriarch's bony spine, shivering as he, too, closed his eyes. They might not have managed their little trip to Torbine, but that was not what Niles rued now. More than anything, he wished he had his father back... old and blind, perhaps, but still sharp in the mind... whose old age should have burned and raved, whose words should have kept him from leaving Willow Ridge.

we can say goodbye, just head home, but if we're going to be alone
Chimera is currently traveling with Niles and may hop into this IC thread!

crawl on my belly til the sun goes down

Sven watched at a distance, soaking in his age-mate's distress as he discovered the frozen corpse of @Elettra's lover. He was nothing but ice, both in his bones and in his heart. There was something not right about discovering Angier like this. He wasn't sure if it was because he knew what it would do to his grandmother, or if it was because he'd never been able to hurt the man as he had always felt justified to. Hopes, bother tender and malicious, were gone. It wasn't a sick relief, as Isolde's death had been. It wasn't the misery Adele's passing had inspired. It was limbo.

He moved, prowling forward as resolution began to set in. Whatever this was, this loss was not just Angier's fault, but Niles' as well. That old familiar rage ignited and began to burn against the glacial encasement of his organs, warming him like the smile of an old friend. The little prince, the one that had always been preferred, despite how many times he had fucked up while Sven stood tall and had done what this pack needed. It should have been the fucking mute that had stayed tethered to this land, that had kept the pack together and sought control, that had cared for his parents in their twilight years, that had been a beacon of hope for the Archer name.

He was just another damned Lyall.

"You should have stayed," he told him, voice hollow of humanity as his hackles raised.

This is your fault.

i'll never wear your broken crown

(This post was last modified: Jan 24, 2017, 03:17 AM by Sven.)

NILES ARCHER LYALL

The smell of death was slow to come to Niles' nose, the winter weather quick to preserve and practically freeze Angier in time, but when it did, Niles nuzzled his face into his father's ribs then shakliy stood up. Tears had welled up in his eyes but as soon as they had fallen, he saw him there. Sven. His nephew, Skoll's cub, the one who had (accidentally) harmed his sister once when they had all first met... Only he wasn't as little as Niles remembered; instead, he was just as large and tall as he was. Time, it seemed, had been kind, but where Sven had a pack and the bulk to show he was well-looked after, Niles was thin and much too lanky for coming up into adulthood.

"You should have stayed," the white-pelted brute stated.

The Lyall sniffed, inhaling loudly as if it pained him to breathe. The corners of his mouth trembled. More tears fell from the corners of his eyes when he blinked, staring hard at Sven. They had been separated for so long, all that remained were those fleeting memories of their days as cubs, but even then Niles still had no words for his age-mate nephew. It should have been clear: Angier had died sometime in the night the day before and Niles was in pain because of it. Surely, Sven still had his father.

Though Niles' shoulders and limbs had squared in what seemed like an aggressive fashion, his ears folded back and his twitching muzzle remained smooth along the bridge. He wasn't going to fight it, fight what the Archer had said. It had initially been his fault. They shouldn't have left, but that had been months ago before Angier's vision had gone completely and before the time when his back and joints had constantly ached. It had been Angier's fault for not heeding his son's words, for believing that it was possible to bring Niles back, for not staying close to home once his son had abandoned him there; but, in the end, it was Niles who shouldered the blame.

His tail fell slack and hung at his heels and he turned to glance at his father's face once more. There was no blood, no sign of struggle, not even a hint that some larger predator had gotten to him. By the tracks in the snow - which had been covered from the previous weeks' snow storm - it would seem that he had chosen this particular willow and laid down to rest. Niles' tail tucked and he looked to Sven once more, his colorless eyes anticipating something more from him. It was probably going to be more words, more blame, more means to regret the choices he had made, but Niles was ready now to take it all. Goodness knew just how long Niles had waited for the paler man to snap...

rage, rage against the dying of the light

(This post was last modified: Jan 24, 2017, 04:40 AM by Niles.)

we can say goodbye, just head home, but if we're going to be alone
Chimera is currently traveling with Niles and may hop into this IC thread!

i'll take the road & fuck it all away

He saw nothing but misery in the face of his accusation. It was tangibly clear in the grooves of his face, in the tears and the snot that ran through his dark fur. It did nothing to abate the fury that was Sven. He felt not a shred of empathy for his age-mate. All he could do was transpose that anguish onto his grandmother, imagine the suffering she would soon be enduring. She deserved better, she always had. Sven wished so dearly he could have given it to her, but how could he when lesser men insisted on fucking up the world for them?

Why were they relied upon at all? What had brought Elettra to love a man as miserable as Angier, how could something as fickle and faint as Niles crawl from her loins? Morganna? Skoll?

Niles didn't speak to him, looking instead to the corpse. Of course he didn't have a response for him. Sven honestly couldn't recall if the other wolf had ever deigned to utter a word to his lesser nephew. Yet unheard, a growl was building in the depths of his chest. When those grey eyes raised again, boldly meeting his, as though asking to be put in his place, the Archer could no longer hold it in.

Lurching forward, he gave not even a whisper of vocal warning before aiming his jaws at Niles' scruff. He wanted the other teen on his knees, and would put in whatever amount of force was necessary to achieve that.

in this twilight, how dare you speak of grace

Sven attacks. The attack was a HIT. Niles: 12/26; Sven: 38/38. Niles attacks. The attack was a MISS.

NILES ARCHER LYALL

It went without saying - even now, after months apart, the static between the two youths crackled, violent and turbulent. Then, at long last, Sven's true nature revealed itself. Niles' eyes narrowed and, though he might've had time to react, he didn't. His head bowed, chin tucking to protect his throat. The Archer's teeth found purchase on the Lyall's nape, again... and again... and again.

Niles had been built to intimidate but, for him to fight, was costly in energy and time. Sven's attack had his willowy legs splayed and gradually his kneels and wrists gave way, the sting of sharp teeth radiating across his neck and shoulders. The force was too great - his will too weak to even attempt such a thing - Niles was unable to bare his teeth. Angier could not protect him; his mother was probably far and well away to hear the panicked yelp that escaped his chest. There was no one to protect him; and, to poor, pitiful Niles, there was little he could do. He had always let his lithesome sisters @Ravenna and Isolde win their little puppy spars.

He rolled, his right elbow reaching the ground first before the rest of his body followed. Stop, stop, stop, his whines sounded out. Another sharp cry of pain and his body was wracked with sobs. Please.

rage, rage against the dying of the light

we can say goodbye, just head home, but if we're going to be alone
Chimera is currently traveling with Niles and may hop into this IC thread!

We're not broken, just bent

Attica Grace Archer

Her brother had left her behind again! Well, not really, Attica had tried to sneak off to the Rise but the recent trail of Renier turned her around. There was still a small thrill about leaving the territory unaccompanied and she didn't particularly care to have one of the willows wolves following after her to make sure she was okay. They coddled her really, and she couldn't quite wrap her head around why. At least if she followed after Sven, well, they tended to think her looked after and left her be.

Her paws were lifted high to break through the freshly fallen snow, small dark smudge bobbing up and down as she went. She was just about to break away from Sven's trail when the sound hit her ears, yelping and snarling. Brows drew down in worry as the girl slunk forward, eyes falling on her brother, the prone wolf on the ground and the sleeping old man. Jaws were agape in horror as the child's startled yelp filled the air. She finally got ahold of herself and ran forward, the dark one not even bothering to try and defend himself. "BROTHER! STOP! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" The young girl pleaded, only hoping her scream was enough to grab the attention of one of the adults if this kerfuffle did not.

(This post was last modified: Jan 24, 2017, 09:50 PM by Attica.)

my heart was flawed, i knew my weakness

The lesser yearling struggled against the hold he'd secured, but Sven was rabidly determined to hold him down, to force him into the slush and ice where he belonged. It wasn't long before Niles buckled and rolled, his submissive fit piercing against his ear drums. But he liked it, gobbled up those wordless pleas as his teeth released only to click viciously in the other teen's face, eyes wide with his unabated rage. Standing over him, staring him down and listening to him beg, it all felt so right. It was only a fraction of the vindication he had sought for so long, but it was intoxicating. This was what he was and where he belonged. Violence with purpose, preeminence that would not be stifled.

There was no more pretending that things could be different. Sven Archer knew what the world needed of him.

Then her voice rended the air, and he turned his attention away from his prey to bark out a warning; "Attica, stay back!"

He remembered how Adele's death had made her so violently sick, and while she did not know Angier, he would not risk her suffering the trauma again. What she had witnessed him do was not the heart-stopping dilemma it would have been with @Sahalie or @Piety. She would understand once he explained it to her. Attica was the only wolf he could trust in that way.

Molten silver flashed to pin Niles with their glare once more, words dripping like acid off his tongue: "Remember this: your worth died with him."

so hold my hand and consign me not to darkness

(This post was last modified: Jan 24, 2017, 10:50 PM by Sven.)

NILES ARCHER LYALL

The threats and obvious dominance displays continued and Niles' eyes fully closed, perturbed now by the snapping of Sven's teeth just inches from his masked face. He cried now, snivelling, until another voice broke through the other youth's bullyragging. "BROTHER! STOP! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" Niles shook, blinking as he tried to see just who it was that had disrupted his age-mate's display. She sounded young; it made no sense to assume it was Ravenna. Ravenna, if she, too, had not changed from how Niles remembered her, might have countered Sven rather than call out to him; and, what was more, she never would have called Sven brother. That was his title, not Sven's.

"Attica, stay back!"

Niles stole a glance at the side of Sven's jaw, the fur along his throat, but never did the though of attack cross his mind. He sniffed loudly, unable to calm the tremors in his chest from where he laid in the snow. He opened his mouth to speak, to utter some terrible word to bestow upon the paler man, but when Sven's gaze whipped back to him, Niles' lips sealed. He made an effort to glare, but the furrow in his brow made him seem more hurt than before, bruised in side and out.

Sven wasted no time, getting his point across as though he held a dagger dangerously close to Niles' throat. "Remember this: your worth died with him."

The Lyall held his tongue. Sven wasn't worth it, not matter how much he yearned to put his nephew straight. Family, to the Archers, should have been everything; but, granted that Niles still had his skin, proved that there was some sort of code at work at the very least. When Sven's sister had told him to stop, he ceased the snapping of his jaw. Mentally collecting himself and fortifying the broken pieces within, he stared into those pale, ghost gray eyes. The first chance he got, he would tell someone - perhaps, first and foremost, @Ravenna - of this attack. Angier death could have broken him, but Sven Archer bestowed upon him a chance to remember just who he was.

In a bout of pride, he {blew} spit into the Archer's face, ears still flattened to his skull. It would take a long while to believe it, but Niles knew he was worth so much more. For now, this would have to do, anything so that he could properly grieve...

rage, rage against the dying of the light

we can say goodbye, just head home, but if we're going to be alone
Chimera is currently traveling with Niles and may hop into this IC thread!

"Enough!" The voice ricocheted off the frosted willows in a deep, authoritative command that felt so foreign to the magpie whom had often been nothing more than a gentle soul, but today that would change. A new side to the dappled woman was metamorphosing with each impetuous stride that brought her closer to the commotion, the sound of Attica's scream betraying whatever it was going down between Sven and another and lending direction to just where the matriarch needed to go until the sound of echoed snarls, incoherent words and yelps had guided her the remainder of the way. The beginning stages of death's putrid stench sending a massive dose of adrenaline through her veins until her stomach felt queasy from it all. 

Unlike young Attica; whom she wasted no time walking past, there was no force great enough to stop the piebald train as it came barreling for the two boys, Enoki allowed only a fraction of a second to vaguely try and put pieces together of what exactly was unfolding. Sven's teeth snapping at empty air near the other's muzzle while standing over a submissive Niles; filling the air with wordless pleas, and just behind the cowering child the frozen remains of a wolf adorned in shades of tans and whites against the roots of an old willow. Unmistakably the source of the decaying stench her nose had faintly picked up on and the corpse of none other than Angier Lyall. Albeit a sharp jab threatened to shatter her fragile heart to pieces; for what felt like one time too many recently, there was a larger ordeal that she needed to attend to first. Quelling the lawless rage that was Sven Archer, but not after a shocking twist.

To the greatest surprise the Ashrelle watched as the dark masked child lifted his head beneath the dagger like stare of Sven, parted his jaws and blew spit into the other wolf's face. Had Enoki not been worried for the young Archer-Lyall's safety with his attacker's rage running rampant she may have let lose a bout of laughter, but alas the situation remained too dire for such lighthearted responses. Tail curled dominantly; another foreign sensation, along the curvature of her spine the patchwork woman halted with an intensity burning behind smoldering amber irises that lay pinned on the colorless wolf once her dappled frame shoved the domineering man's off and away from Niles. A small curl of the lips daring him to retaliate against his superior's intervention. "I said enough, Sven." The boy's one and final warning before the woman contemplated using her own set of teeth to remind him he was below her now that she had arrived on scene.

(This post was last modified: Jan 25, 2017, 12:14 AM by Enoki. Edit Reason: Enoki is drama queen )

we're not broken, just bent

Attica Grace Archer

She was still several wolf lengths away when her brother barked at her to stop, fresh snow thrown out in front like a wave as her legs locked, breath coming in short sharp pants. At least her words seemed to be enough to stop her brother attacking the dark stranger more but why wasn't the old wolf intervening? Surely he couldn't... sleep... through... and then the familiar scent hit her.

Oh no.

Tears bit the back of the dark child's eyes pale, her throat constricting and stomach turning at the possibility that maybe... maybe he couldn't intervene... because... The image of Adele flashed across her mind, small steps taken backwards, and further still. With Sven's attention so focused on the stranger she almost considered fleeing back to the willows, back to the den where she could bury her face in her nonna's flank and hide.

She barely noticed Enoki charge forward, barking her demands and backing them up with the weight of her body. Who was the stranger and was he some relative of the... sleeping one. She had to keep telling herself he was just sleeping... Did her brother know him to react so harshly? The girl was utterly torn between standing her ground and just slinking quietly away. She turned once on the spot, an anxious whine in the back of her throat before her attention turned back towards the gathering. What was a girl to do?