Edge Stone Pool rain clouds come to play again

All Welcome - Midday, Mist, -12°F, -24°C
Music inspiration: Evanescence - Good Enough 

Jaws clenched hard around a single frost-covered antler, the last remnant of the caribou skull he had claimed  from that successful pack hunt which had happened almost two months ago now. A deep sigh was forced out his moist black nose, sending a hot cloud into the freezing winter air.

Almost two months ago. It had been almost two months since his last decent meal. His stomach growled and vibrated against the slick rock he was sprawled out upon, as if on cue. The dark bridge of his muzzle wrinkled into a silent snarl and his russet ears pressed back against the smooth arch of his skull in contempt. Black tipped tail flicked sharply behind him before he suddenly snapped his jaws around the thick base of the antler, causing pieces to splinter off inside his mouth. It felt good to take his frustration out on something.

Shaking his head, his salmon pink tongue snaked out from the confines of his mouth and scraped against the sharp edges of his front fangs to remove the shards of bone. Smacking his charcoal lips together, his golden eyes wandered down casually to the frozen pool of water which sat further down from the ice-laden ledge he was currently sat upon. He hardly recognised the blurry reflection which stared back at him. His fur was greasy and un-groomed. His eyes narrowed as he judged his reflection for a second or two, feeling his heart sink a little, before he quickly forced his focus back on to the antler that was still gripped between his paws.

The Whitestone healer had lost condition too. Where lean muscle once rippled beneath his thick agouti pelt, his ribs were now subtly apparent. It was almost as if he'd given up with looking after himself. Grunts and growls filled the air as Lorcan continued to attack the antler, head twisting from side to side as his jaws clamped down on it from different angles. The male would have been contented to lay there chewing his toy for hours had his hold on the damn thing not slipped...

The antler rattled down the side of the small cliff before settling atop the thin ice. Golden eyes clenched shut and his fur bristled as he desperately tried to resist the urge to release a howl in vexation.

(This post was last modified: Feb 09, 2017, 09:56 AM by Lorcan.)

# P O R C A N

sometimes, two people have to fall apart to realise

how much they need to fall back together

Figured they could use something a bit more recent <3

She hadn't meant to follow him out here, or maybe she had. They weren't on the best terms but they weren't on the worst terms either. Piety had shifted her schedule greatly. Where once every spare moment would have been spent trying to learn or see Lorcan it was now usually seeing @Wraith or working with Morg. She had even invited Wraith to come with her when she said she was heading out. She had no idea if he would come after her this time, though. Her tone had been a little sadder and she left him with not much more than a nudge.

The pale female simply watched from a distance at first. A frown crossed her face as he seemed to so aggressively beat up the antler. His condition wasn't good either. He looked messy and thin. Of course, she figured no really looked that good up in the Monadnock right now. So many mouths to feed and so little to hunt.

She heard the antler hit the ice and she guessed now was her time despite him seeming so aggressive. Slowly she moved forward and nudge his back. Piety wouldn't be shocked if she was met with aggression. "Lorcan," She nodded to him before taking a spot next to him, her muddy eyes looking down into the pit. "I think we're both overdue for a talk." She made it obvious she wasn't going to take no for an answer.

Art/Code by Becuffin

(This post was last modified: Feb 09, 2017, 12:34 AM by Piety.)

# C W T

Piety knows how to spark up my muse c:

He hadn’t known that she had followed him.

Where he was positioned, at the edge of the small rocky cliff face which towered above the frozen lake below, he was upwind and so he hadn’t detected her scent until it finally engulfed him. The soft growling in his throat suddenly ceased and his dark nostrils flared, breathing in her familiar scent. White brows began to angle downwards into a frown, but his immediate reaction was stifled when he felt a cold nose prod his back.

His head jerked quickly around to face the pale female, his half-frown quickly melting into a neutral expression when he caught a glimpse of her rich earthy-brown eyes. Russet ears perked up at the mention of his name and he continued to stare at her, his golden eyes silently questioning the reason for her presence, as if she needed one.

He felt uncomfortable. The last time they had spoken, @Piety had seemed less than impressed with him, which had caught him off-guard. That had been two weeks ago now and they hadn’t spoken since.  In fact, he’d hardly seen her at all – but then again, Lorcan himself hadn’t exactly been very sociable lately. Hunger had made everyone more grumpy and irritable and with so many new faces around, ones which the healer still wasn’t sure he could entirely trust, the male had spent more and more time wandering the lowlands by himself just to get away from it all.

When Piety suggested that they needed to talk, Lorcan’s ears pushed back against his head anxiously and he shifted his paws a little with uneasiness. It was clear from her tone that he couldn’t back out of it and so, even as his skin prickled hot to contest it, he didn’t argue. His golden gaze glanced up to her face in defeat and he nodded silently... and then winced in embarrassment when his stomach decided that it was the perfect moment to growl.

(This post was last modified: Feb 09, 2017, 10:32 AM by Lorcan.)

# P O R C A N

sometimes, two people have to fall apart to realise

how much they need to fall back together

Piety Santoro

Let's go down the waterfall
Think about the good times and never go back

He didn't speak to her. He didn't even touch her. "Have I really messed up that badly?" A frown was obvious on her face as she let her eyes rest on his face for a bit. He looked so uncomfortable under her gaze after what she had said. She wouldn't let herself become uncomfortable, though.

"We live together, Lorcan. It's been two weeks you know. I haven't spoken to you, barely seen you, haven't even felt you." Her brows furrowed as she looked at him. "I'm sorry if I busy myself with Wraith and Morganna but that fact that you haven't tried to even say good night to me bothers me." Her tone was soft but showed her hurt. "I'm sorry if I was in the wrong when I was a little rude but. Jesus, Lorcan. Two weeks? It's like you've vanished altogether. What do you even do anymore?" Her eyes drifted down into the pit. "Just chew up antlers in the middle of nowhere?" A soft smile tugged at her lips.

A soft sigh fell from her lips and her eyes looked out into the distance. She hoped she hadn't said too much or said anything to further offend him. Who knew how much of a hermit he'd become if she upset him again? She suspected she wouldn't see him for months.

# C W T

@Piety-explodes-

The frown that plagued her freshly-scarred face all too quickly reminded him of the look she had given him that night when he had returned back to the monadnock with Anaia. His ears pressed back against his head, wondering what exactly he had done to upset her two weeks ago, fully expecting to find out in the next moment or two.

He nodded slowly as she began, getting swiftly to the point. It had been two weeks since they had last spoken, it was true. His golden eyes flickered down to his paws, feeling a bit comfortable with how direct she was being. “I know—” He began, but she wasn’t done. Lorcan bit his lip and once again began silent as allowed her to continue without interrupting.

At the mention of Wraith and Morganna, his golden eyes darted back up to her pale face and his ears perked forwards. So that’s what she had been doing the whole time. Lorcan had always been aware of her frequent trips with Morganna, but spending time with Wraith was something new. It made sense though, the second had only recently returned to Whitestone. The fact that Piety was noticeably upset about the fact that he hadn’t spent time with her recently was a surprise though and his golden eyes widened to match his feelings.

“I thought you wanted space!” He finally retorted, a frown wrinkling his own brow and his tip lip pulling back into a sneer, before he whined quietly, immediately regretting his harsh tone. “After that night, when you acted so coldly to me after I asked you how you were, I figured you didn’t want to talk to me.” He admitted, fangs flashing slightly in retaliation. “I thought I must have upset you or something..” He added on, the frown melting off his face as his voice softened.

Charcoal lips screwed up to one side and his ears flattened when Piety then went on to apologise for how she had reacted all those weeks ago and then unscrewed into a soft smile. “I’m sorry too—” The words blurted out from his mouth quickly as she continued, saying that it was like he had vanished. Golden eyes looked towards her apologetically as he gently lifted his forepaw up to place it on top of hers.

“What do you even do anymore?” His paws jerked quickly away from hers and his fur bristled and he cast a resentful look across to her.

That hurt – Nice way to kick a wolf when he’s down.

“Just chew up antlers in the middle of nowhere?” Her laughter filled the air, mocking him. “Really?!” He spat back, immediately shifting up onto his paws to stand. “You know that’s not fair! You know there’s no plants to found in the winter.” He frowned down at her, black tipped tail flicking sharply behind him in irritation. “I’ve been trying to hunt, to provide for the pack. Why do you think I was gone for four days with Anaia?!” He barked, moving to turn away from her. “But I guess my efforts just aren’t good enough because guess what?!” He paused a moment to catch his breath. “I can't bloody find anything!” He wheezed, before finally looking back to Piety.

“So yeah…I come out here to think, to get away from it all, because there’s no one else around that I trust enough to talk to.”

(This post was last modified: Feb 10, 2017, 08:58 PM by Lorcan.)

# P O R C A N

sometimes, two people have to fall apart to realise

how much they need to fall back together

Piety Santoro

I do not cry because of you
but I think you hope I do

She had pushed the wrong button somewhere and suddenly he was mad at her. Even if she had wanted space, she didn't exactly want that much space. Perhaps because her eyes were always trained on someone else she never noticed him. A guilt started eating away at her. A feeling that she thought she had escaped came crawling back up.

This was all her fault.

Her good ear leaned back as she frowned. She hadn't said anything wrong or incorrect. At least, she didn't think she did. But when he apologized just to so sharply jerk away she followed suit. Her body pulling away from the healer as her hackles rose. She let him spit his words at her. Muddy brown eyes did not once move off of him. When he was done she couldn't help herself but retaliate. "That's not even what I meant when I said it! It was a joke!" She explained with aggression. Without guilt, her mind drifted to Wraith and how the large shadow would understand her joke. "I know you're doing your best! I didn't fucking lose an eye in that fight, we can see who's working. But don't act like you're the only one with failed efforts, Lorcan." She spat. "We're full of wolves who lack common sense it seems and providing has become a chore for everyone." Her tail lashed angrily about as she went to turn around and leave. She had come to apologize, not be yelled at because Mister Sad Boy got offended by a comment.

"Then I'll leave you to think. I guess talk to me when you're done having your space." The pale woman was fully content to leave. There were much better things to do than argue over things that couldn't change.

# C W T

@Piety

Her paw jerked away seconds after he had recoiled his own. All of a sudden, the pair of wolves were shifting away from each other, hackles raised, and the space which grew between them in that moment felt so cold and empty. She didn’t interrupt him and she allowed him to spit out every word which was conjured from heart directly to his mouth, without a second’s thought.

He stood there, his body physically turned away whilst his head was angled around so that he could still look at her, with a frown etched onto his face, as she digested his words. “…It was a joke!” His brows lifted and his golden eyes widened in disbelief. His tip lip curled back and his eyes narrowed, judging her.

“…don't act like you're the only one with failed efforts.” “I’m not!” He spat back instantly, denying it, as his black-tipped tail lashed angrily behind him. She was taking it all wrong, twisting his words. He clenched his eyes shut and shook his head in disbelief as she continued, just wanting her to stop. The bridge along his muzzle wrinkled. He hated this.

He wanted to turn and run, tail tucked between his legs, and escape her verbal torrent of contempt. The agouti male turned his head away from her, and then a moment later, her words finally stopped.

Russet ears perked up and Lorcan once again turned back to face her. She was turning to leave and he didn’t stop her. He didn’t say a word. He was just happy that all the shouting was over. Slumping back down onto the rock, he buried his muzzle between his outstretched paws, as he listened to the crunch of her footfall as she began to walk away.

Eughhh! He growled. How had everything just got soo fucked up?

He’d given her space, they’d not seen each other for weeks and now she was about to disappear all over again. A sudden ache swelled in the pit of his stomach and he felt sick. His ears pushed back against his head and whine whistled in his throat. This was all just some big misunderstanding.

He turned his head around to look for her and he whined again at the distance she had already placed between them.

“Wait—” He yelled as he clambered back onto his feet and spun around to face her. “Wait, Piety, I’m sorry!” He called out again as he pushed his paws into motion to chase after her, tail tucked between his legs. He just wanted her to turn back around. “I don’t like this.” he admitted as he caught up to her, ears falling back to press against his head. “We shouldn’t be fighting like this..” He frowned and his head dipped down low in shame. “I—I guess I was just being too sensitive. I’m sorry. Just, please don’t hate me.” He whined, slowing his pace to see if she would stop and turn around.

(This post was last modified: Feb 10, 2017, 08:28 AM by Lorcan.)

# P O R C A N

sometimes, two people have to fall apart to realise

how much they need to fall back together

A lynx has left behind the remains of a deer. +5 Health

Piety was not gonna let me sleep when we caught your reply <3 muse music

She knew in that moment leaving was the right thing to do. The fact that he hadn't even bothered to stop her was even more of a reason to leave. Showed how little he truly cared about her. "What do you know, seeing his true colors just now..." She mused in her mind. The distance was growing between them by the second and she could not care less. Piety already knew she'd need to spar with Morganna or Wraith to let out all this unnecessary frustration.

Then she heard something. A call out to her. She kept walking for a moment. He had made this decision and he had to face the consequences. It wasn't her fault no matter how much she wanted to think it was. Something he said caught her attention, though. "I don't like this." She stopped and spun around to face Lorcan with watery eyes. "You think I do?" She whined softly. In no way was she accusing him anymore. "I don't hate you, Lorcan. I could never hate you." Watery, mud-colored eyes looked to the healer for some sign that he too didn't hate her.

"Remember that night when you asked me if I've ever lost something?" Her voice grew soft and fragile. "I've lost lots of things and wolves but I don't want you to be one of those wolves." Her tone was pleading. She didn't want to fight with him. She wished she had never been so bitter to make him leave her alone for two weeks. It all hurt so much.

Her paw lifted to step towards him but she halted. Hesitation seeped into her bones. A look on her face practically begged for permission to come close to him. Put her face into his scruff and forget all this stupid stuff. To just have her friend back with her again was all she wanted.

(This post was last modified: Feb 10, 2017, 08:49 AM by Piety.)

# C W T

@Piety

His heart sank when she kept walking.

Russet ears pressed back against the smooth curve of his crown as he hesitated and wondered if all his yelling was even worth the effort. The woman could be stubborn once she’d made up her mind, but then again, so could he. With a sharp inhale he resumed his chase after her.

His words finally seemed to catch her attention and his ears pricked up the instant that she spun back around. He continued forwards a few more paces before pausing to leave a few large strides between them. Golden eyes gazed towards her in apology and it was only when she looked back towards him with her deep brown that he noticed their unnaturally lucid shine and he frowned at her in concern.

He didn’t respond to her question, scared that whatever words he dared to utter would somehow be misinterpreted and make things worse. Lorcan stared at her silently with baited breath, hoping that she would save him the torment and answer the question for herself, which after a long moment of silence she did.

A heavy sigh of relief pushed a hot cloud of air past his charcoal lips and he felt compelled to close the distance that he had previously left between them, feeling more confident in her opinion of him. Black tipped tail swayed behind him as he approached her slowly, still keeping his body hunched down in submission as he moved in to bury his muzzle into the soft fur of her neck. “I’m sorry Piety, I didn’t mean to..” His voice faded into silence as he embraced her.

Pulling away slowly, he tilted his head to look her in the eye. “I just wasn’t sure if you were mad at me and I didn’t want to make things worse by pestering you.” He admitted as a sheepish expression plagued his features. “I know that you can take care of yourself.” I shouldn’t worry so much. He added, eyes dropping down to dance along the snow covered ground.

“I’ve missed you.” He breathed, a small smile creeping across his charcoal lips as he shifted to stand back at his full height and allowed his eyes to dance back up to her face. Slowly he took another step towards her before circling around her to stand parallel at her side. “You’ll never lose me Piety, I promise. Even when you’re mad at me, I still care about you.” He said, his voice deep and serious in tone as he went to place his muzzle over her shoulder protectively.

After a moment he pulled away, a cheeky smile etched upon his lips. “..Besides, who else would stay up all night with me to gaze at the stars?” His tail wagged behind him and he gently nudged her side teasingly.

(This post was last modified: Feb 10, 2017, 09:09 PM by Lorcan.)

# P O R C A N

sometimes, two people have to fall apart to realise

how much they need to fall back together