Larkcall Lowlands here's to love

He had hidden some of the sweet grass that he and @Inna had collected away from the packs medicinal cache when she wasn’t looking...

Lorcan had risen early one morning, before the sun had even risen in the cloudy sky, to sneak over to the area where he had buried a few sprigs of the plant. Large pale paws had made short work of unearthing his secret stash and it wasn’t very long before he was able to tip-toe his way out of the pack territory without any other members noticing.

He had told Inna that he planned to go for a hunt out on the lowlands for a couple of days, to fill Heathwood’s caches in preparation for the arrival of the pups, but as he snuck away in to the shadows of the early morning with those sprigs of sweetgrass held delicately between his jaws, it was clear that the agouti male had other plans in mind. 

As he travelled through the maze of tall trees which led him out towards the great tundra expanse to the north, he’d happened across an old decaying deer carcass and promptly paused to break off one of the worn antlers which were still available to scavenge. There had been little meat left on the corpse, already picked clean by ravens, but he managed to nibble off a few scraps of flesh to keep him going. 

The male had rested overnight at the edge of the woodlands and again risen early the following morning. Lorcan then spent a few hours chasing hares in the early morning light as the first few appeared from their warm burrows, and managed to catch a large female on his third attempt. 

Now hauling a dead hare, deer antler and sprigs of sweetgrass awkwardly in his mouth, his golden eyes fixed upon the imposing sight of the familiar monadnock which loomed in the distance. It took him a little longer to travel to the border than he had anticipated, having been forced to stop and readjust his grip on the menagerie of items clenched between his teeth. A few more hours of hauling though, and he finally reached the marked borders of Whitestone. 

Dropping the gifts at his paws, Lorcan took a moment to inspect the scent which lingered along the boundaries of his old home. @Wraith and Piety were still around and apparently they had recruited a few new subordinates too. Good for them, at least they weren’t suffering up there with just eachother for support. For a few more moments Lorcan lingered there at the edges of the territory, his golden gaze cast up towards the spot where he and Piety used to sit and watch the stars together. Secretly he hoped to see her familiar pale shape staring back down at him, but then he remembered Wraith’s request for him to give his mate some space.

Glancing down at his gifts, Lorcan carefully placed some of the freshly fallen snow over the items to prevent them from decaying any further beneath the warmth of the sun, before finally pressing his paw into the soft snow besides his concealed pile of offerings. He hoped his friends would take them in good faith. He wanted to at least provide them with some items to help @Piety through the birth and arrival of her pups. It was the least he could do after departing so suddenly. With a final glance up to the monadnock, Lorcan turned around and began travelling back in the direction of his new home, his figure but a familiar shape through the falling snow as he moved off into the distance.

~Lorcan exits~

Lorcan is no longer there to interact with, but he may still be able to be seen in the distance. This thread is open to any Whitestone wolves <3 *Music inspiration*

(This post was last modified: Apr 11, 2017, 12:18 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

There is a rabbit's nest nearby. +1 Health

The longer she was in Whitestone the less she felt nervous about everything like she had in her past. She kept telling herself that this was her new beginning and that she didn't have to be afraid all of the time. Wraith and Piety seemed very supportive especially when she had told them she wanted to work toward being a scout.  Sometimes she felt like a pup again just learning her place in the world and figuring out what she needed to do in her life.  This was the first time that she had to support anyone  it herself in a long time. Cheedo felt it suited her to be a member of a pack, one where she wasn't just a wife of the alpha but where she could actually contribute.  Her time living on her own had improved her hunting skills, they really were a big help when it came to providing for the pack.  Everytime she was able to bring something back to the cache and do something for the pack she felt a little better about herself.

It was time for her to move past the things that had made her Cheedo The Fragile, the scared, timid little wife of Craw. She didn't have the others to hold her back any longer save for Roosemooth.  She'd talked to him though and he seemed to be on the same page, not a problem to her. More and more she felt like she could do this make Whitestone the new chapter of her life where she had the confidence to know she didn't have to have the protection of a man to ensure her safety.  What had happened with Rory had also helped, a similar situation in which she'd lost part of her ear.  This time she hasn't lost part of her other ear or her meal, she'd bested the girl of her own merit.

Moving down the goat path from the Monadnock Cheedo held her tail out from her body instead of tucked up under her.  Her hindquarters didn't tremble constantly as they once had and she carried herself with a smooth, quick gait as she made her way toward the border.  She had a mind to go for a hunt knowing it was important to keep the caches full for Piety at this delicate time in her life.

The memory of her dead children still haunted her everyday but with each passing day she thought the pain lessened a little more. It was still much too soon to know as there were still some nights the sight of their lifeless forms on the den floor came to her when she closed her eyes. She didn't want that for Piety, the alphess was so sweet that she didn't deserve to have those images haunt her.  So Cheedo had put her emotions aside to help the expectant mother ensure the health of her pups.

When the little agouti came within a distance she could smell the border strongly she noticed a figure there.  It was one she recognized as Lorcan, the former member of Whitestone, he had either been gone when she joined or hadn't stayed long after.  She didn't know what had caused him to leave exactly but he had and now as she watched him from a distance she did wonder what had caused him to go. The real question was what had brought him back? It was clear he was up to something as she watched him disturb the snow in front of him.  She made to go and speak to him but there was something that told her he didn't want that. Perhaps there was something about the way he carried himself, or the way he looked up at the Monadnock that struck a chord with her.

Whatever it was she waited until his retreating figure had shrunk in the distance before she stepped out from her hiding place. Slowly she approached the place he had disturbed the snow.  As she did so the scent of blood filled her nostrils.  A little less strong was the scent of vanilla, she knew it well from the night she had given birth to her stillborn pups.  Cheedo used her paw to uncover the items that had been left to find a dead hare, deer antler, and Sweet Grass.  She already knew what she would do with each item before Lorcans figure was but a spec on the distance.

The hare would go to the cache and the Sweetgrass she knew was for Piety for when she gave birth to her pups.  She would take that to the infirmary den until it was needed and lastly was the antler, which she could easily keep for herself of Mitt.  That wasn't who she thought should get it, Wraith was the wolf that came to mind and so he would be the one she would offer it to first after she told her alphas of the visit and gifts.

Picking the items up the best she could I'm her jaws Cheedo turned back toward the Monadnock to deliver the items to their rightful places.

Cheedo is still at the border with the gifts if any other WM wolves would like to pop in.

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Piety busied herself to keep her mind off the losses that the Whitestone had gone through. It was hard some days, though. When she settled in the old coyote den for a nap or just alone time her thoughts usually plagued her. She had everything she wanted with Wraith but there was a place missing where Morganna had once been. Piety didn't think it would hurt so bad but it seemed the peachy eyed Archer had unknowingly grown roots within the pale female's heart. No matter how much she buried herself into Wraith's fur at night it seemed the cold stone haunted her. Maybe that's why she found herself growing to a place with no ties. The coyote den held no real importance to the pale Kael. Or maybe it was something more primal such as, wanting a safe place to be.

There was Lorcan too. Piety came to terms that if anything she likely pushed him away and she didn't deserve his attention or forgiveness. That didn't make his absence easier. Sometimes she lingered like a ghost near the infirmary like he might come crawling out to teach her more about plants. Of course, it was always empty and silent. She did her best to keep any herbs sorted the way he had left them. There wasn't much due to the harsh struggles of this winter but some were better than none.

Numbers were small but they were all still alive. No one went hungry usually and everyone seemed to busy themselves with jobs. Perhaps Piety should have been out there working too. Instead, she laid with heavy eyes in the old den. Body half in and half out. Her muddy eyes occasionally glancing around to see if anyone was nearby. She wondered briefly about what Wraith was doing. Piety felt like he was working himself to the bone just for her. Maybe she would pull him aside and tell him to have a relaxing day to himself. Everyone seemed to be working to feed her so he shouldn't be out there straining himself. Besides, she worried that he would wind up injured. The thought scared her beyond belief.

Slowly she raised from her den, eyes looking out into the horizon and by mere chance, she caught the sight. A tawny spot far off in the distance that kept going and closer form of Cheedo holding something. Her heart beat fast and she tried her best to move quickly. Piety's tail raised as she grew closer to the third ranked female. "Drop those." She ordered with a bit of a panicked tone. Those couldn't have come from who she hoped they had. That just seemed impossible. But in the slim case they had she didn't want them to be tainted, as rude as that sounded. "Who left those?" Her eyes flickered between Cheedo the spot that seemed to grow smaller in the tundra.

# C W T

Being that she wasn't sure of when the agouti make had left the Monadnock Cheedo also wasn't aware of the relationships that he held within the pack.  So she did find it a little odd he would be dropping gifts at the border for those who lived within.  The fact that he had dropped them and gone was also arrange however her experience with man...Well he seemed the type.  If she hadn't seen him she would have known it was him by his scent left on the items, so perhaps he did want someone to know he was the one to have left them. The small agouti had every intention to let Piety and Wraith know that Lorcan was the one to have left them.

For a moment she regretted not coming out to speak with him and maybe ask him about his intentions.  She still felt she had good reason to have stayed hidden, something in her recognized something in him that told her he didn't want that.  As she watched the retreating figure for a moment she wondered if their paths would ever cross again.  She truly had liked the man and he had been a big help to her but it was good to know he was still around.  He also seemed to be doing okay for himself as home held the scent of another pack.  Whatever the reasons for him leaving it seemed he had done so on good terms, at least in his eyes.  Cheedo did hope to see him again sometime and perhaps hunt with him too, he was rather good at it.

She had gathered the gifts and was getting ready to distribute them to where they needed to go, especially the hare since she didn't want the meat to go to waste.  The small agouti hadn't taken but a couple of steps in the direction of the cache when the voice of Piety reached her ears giving the order to drop the gifts.  Not wanting to anger the woman and have to endure her wrath Cheedo did as she was told and placed the items gently on the ground in front of her.  Any amount of confidence that had been building in her since her arrival in Whitestone immediately left her at Piety’s tone.  Her posture became crouched, tail tucked between her legs and her ears flattened against her skull  while she waited for the alpha to make the next move.  She didn't have to wait long  as she was asked who had left the gifts, “Lorcan,” she stated shakily.

It seemed that perhaps she hadn't come as far as she had hoped, it was rather disappointing really as she has hoped things were going better.  Perhaps she hadn't changed and couldn't change.  Maybe she had spent too many years as Cheedo the Fragile and now she was stuck as the scared little rabbit.  The urge to run into the depths of the Monadnock were strong but she stayed rooted to the spot over the gifts.  She waited for her next order or for Piety to speak with more questions because she feared that running was the worse idea and would only cause her more problems. She didn't know what would happen next but now she wasn't sure she could have a fresh start if this was how she acted.

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She hadn't realized perhaps how sharp her voice had been until Cheedo seemed to cower. Her gut did flips out of both anxiety and guilt. Before she could apologize she heard that name. Lorcan. "He didn't say anything or even call..." She mused aloud and stared at the bundle of gifts. Her eyes quickly looked at Cheedo's face with concern. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to sound so harsh I -" The pale leader paused and tried to find the right words to say. "I just thought I'd never see him again. I didn't even expect him to still be around." But perhaps he wasn't around. Maybe he still cared enough to travel who knew how long to give gifts.

Very gently she moved in to plant a lick over the small female's crown. A silent apology for seeming to scare the woman so much. She then moved to pick the gifts up. A dead hare, deer antler, and sprigs of sweetgrass. It was awkward to hold in her mouth but she managed to make do. As she turned about she softly ushered with her muzzle for Cheedo to follow her. She might need the small subordinate's help.

Her paws carried them to the old coyote den first. She set down the gifts and stared at them. With care, she placed the antler in a corner in the back. She picked back up the gifts and headed towards the goat track. The hare could easily be placed in any cache but the sweetgrass belonged in the lonely infirmary.

# C W T

The tone that had been used with her as she moved to disperse the gifts to where she'd decided they should go was unexpected. Piety had always been so kind and warm to her that Cheedo wasn't sure what she should do in the face of this change. She gave name of the man that had left the gifts for the Whitestone wolves to find. The agouti was surprised by how her alpha spoke of him, the way she seemed to question why he had just left the gifts without speaking or calling. She couldn't offer the woman any comfort in that since she didn't know of the circumstances surrounding the healers leaving or the relationships he held in Whitestone.

Her ears perked a little and she raised her head slightly at the apology that was given to her. She hadn't been expecting the apology but it was appreciated and to show it Cheedo gave a small nod. “It seems he still cares,” she stated, “At least enough to make sure you are taken care of during the birth of your pups and that you have something to eat.” Cheedo may not know Lorcan well but she did understand his leaving the sweet grass since she'd used it before.

Cheedo lowered her head a little as Piety approached her to place a lick on her crown which helped to reassure the agouti that the alpha wasn't angry with her. Piety took the gifts and motioned for the agouti to follow her which Cheedo did without hesitation. She followed the pale woman to the coyote den and waited while she place the antler inside before she came back out and picked up the rest of the gifts before heading down the goat track.

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