Verdant Mosses Beauty and the Beast

For the lovely @Inali

It had taken a bit of deliberation before Yuka decided to return to the lands he left. His companions were a loyal traveling band of assassins and, in the end, understood why he left, appreciating his sense of loyalty. The Thorben’s year outside of the lore had taught him more than he could imagine. He appreciated the knowledge he acquired over the years. Sometimes, he almost laughed at how he used to think that his knowledge had peaked with Ash Hervok’s tutelage, though Yuka still valued his teachings greatly.

An uncertain tightness had entered his chest when he entered the lore. Despite his desires to tell Nina that he the mission she sent him on was complete. Though he was returning without Narime in tow, he was sure that Nina would be pleased. The man was worried about how Ash would react, along with his half-siblings. After all, at this time Narime and Yuka would have been gone for years. He would not have blamed them if they gave up hope. At least they had Secret Woodlands at their backs.

The cream russet-hued man traveled at an easy pace he would be able to keep for a long period of time through the Verdant Mosses. It would be days before he reached Secret Woodlands to come to peace with his past and possibly reunite with his past. The Thorben did not know how they would react to his return. Would they already know that Broken Timber Pines had fallen? Sent another scout to the area and found that they were no longer around, along with Yuka and his mother. It was a worry that he did best to bury into the recess of his mind.

It felt odd. To be alone again. To explore again. At one point in the scarred woman's life, she had lived and breathed for the joy of exploration, the satisfaction of finding a new place to map and traverse. Now...the older woman didn't know what her emotions were. They were a confusing mingle of joy, peace, and frustration. Joy due to finding this place she hadn't really ever explored, peace due to her lone wolf living, and frustration at the fact that though she was content in exploring she was not content in the feeling she was being watched. Yet, as she turned her head again to look over her surroundings, she found no one. Was paranoia getting to her? After all, she wasn't getting any younger. However, she wasn't old enough yet to be senile. Right? The petite woman shuddered at the thought. She wanted to keep all her mental faculties until a very old age, thank you very much. Inali tried to shake off the feeling as her paws moved slowly across the moss and scattered tree stumps. As she walked, she pondered over her decision to abruptly leave the Woodlands. She had left with no word, and had no naive hope that they would accept her back with open arms. Miccah was not exactly known for his kindness towards betrayal. The thing was, she didn't want to go back. For the first time in a long time...she felt peace in her decisions. Being a lone wolf gave her the freedom she hadn't felt in what seemed like ages. Her decisions and her past and her grief no longer felt like they were a cloud above her head that followed her everywhere she went. Smiling lightly, the russet colored woman continued her trek but it didn't take long for Inali to stop dead in her tracks. Her brain was playing tricks on her, right? It had been over a year ago that she saw him last. Oh gods, she was going senile. Was she...hallucinating?  The woman took a shocked step back. Once again, Inali was facing her angel of death. And she was terrified. "speech"”Speech”

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(This post was last modified: Jul 01, 2017, 06:47 AM by Inali.)

The fallen prince was not expecting to run into anyone. He was making decent time on his journey back to Secret Woodlands and had not accounted any unexpected visitors into his travel time. Had he bumped into anyone, he would have brushed them off, told them he wasn’t in the mood, perhaps even flashed his teeth in warning. The Thorben was not a man who appreciated delays. Yuka had not anticipated running into her.

All had gone well until he heard approaching footsteps approaching from behind before they paused. Even though the past year away from the lore had treated his confidence and self-esteem kindly, the man still did not appreciate those who would stare at him. The eyes that burnt his back made his skin crawl and fur stand on end. With the end to tell off whoever had the mind to stare so openly at him, the russet-hued man turned, eyes landing on the one woman he did not expect to see until he returned to Secret Woodlands.

Eyes dilated and widened when they landed on her slim form. What was she doing all the way out here? Confusion stirred within him, however, when she saw the indiscernible look of fear within her blue orbs. Dark lips twisted back into an ugly half-smile, due to his scars, unsure of himself now that he was facing her. Was she scared of him once more? The man thought they had repaired things. Stepping forward, his deep voice rumbled softly, “Inali, what are you doing?” What was she doing out here? And why did it look like she was about to turn tail and run from him?

(This post was last modified: Jul 03, 2017, 10:39 PM by Yuka.)

Thank you TABs

"I'm hallucinating," she murmured to herself still not quite believing what was right in front of her eyes. Inali took a slow breath as he spoke, his voice soft. This wasn't real. Right? She shook her head slightly, taking a step back for his every step forward. He looked just as surprised to see her as she was to see him, which now that she thought about it, was a reasonable emotion. He currently expected her to be in the Woodlands, while she expected him to be gone. She had heard nothing from him in over a year - not a single word or warning that he was leaving. Last she had known he had been on his mission within the Pines pack. But she had later visited again, seeking him out, and it was clear that the pack had disbanded and he was nowhere in sight. It had hurt, of course. Her heart had taken worse beatings, but in time her new wound formed that familiar scar tissue over her heart and she had moved on. Or that's what she had tried to convince herself of. Yuka Thorben was not a man easily forgotten. "Am I hallucinating?" she questioned him, her voice soft. "I didn't think you would come back," Inali continued after a few beats, her voice trembling slightly no matter how hard she tried to keep it steady. "speech"”Speech”

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Her statement would have made him laugh were it not for the situation. Had she not been looking at him like that. It seemed as if a pastime of Inali’s was coming back to bite her in the ass but he would allow her to keep up these foolish thoughts for the moment. He would delude himself into thinking that this was the reason for the look that she was giving him now, because if it was not he would not that small part of light within him die. Despite how much he enjoyed the past year of his life and everything he had done, he still did not want that and he did not particularly want her to know where he had been. Yuka had perfected his lying techniques and had decided on the one he would tell her should the time come. Only, it was much earlier than he anticipated.


He finally came to a stop, not wanting to see the panic within her blue gaze. His voice was smooth when he finally responded, “We’re not playing those games anymore, Inali.” Yet, even as reality crashed down upon her, there was no denying the fear that laced her voice when she acknowledged his return. Amber teal-flecked eyes racked her form once more before returning to her eyes, a frown tugging on his lips. “Why are you looking at me like that? With such fear.” Had she finally found out what he had been sent to do to Broken Timber Pines? Marked him a monster and feared him for the rest of eternity to be damned to the pits of hell upon his death. His amber orbs were blank as they searched hers in question.

Thank you TABs

He was real. There was no doubt about it. The way he walked and talked was all Yuka. As he grew closer, her fear slowly faded. Her heart beat slowed as she calmed, and she ignored his words as her blue gaze shut, letting his voice wash over her. He was real. And he was here. Inali took in a shaky breath as her gaze reopened, finally content in the knowledge that her perceived hallucination was actually real. However, Yuka's words finally registered in her mind and she frowned. He had been gone for over a year and that was what he had to say for himself? "I thought you were dead!" she snapped at him. She looked away from him for a moment. This wasn't how she had wanted their reunion to go. "I don't want to fight," she found herself saying. Fates knew, they had done enough of that over the years. One of them pushed, and the other couldn't resist pushing back. Inali was tired of the constant back and forth within their relationship, from despair one moment to euphoria the next. Yet somehow, she could never fail to resist his pull. The woman had cared for him as a child, loving him the way a mother would. However, somewhere between that stage of her life, between the years and the fights and the despair and the regret...her love had evolved into something more. So she slowly walked towards him, and moved to press her head against his chest. After a few moments of silence Inali murmured, "I'm glad you're back." Her heart was content. "speech"”Speech”

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There is a family of deer nearby. Hunt Opportunity

And yet, another transformation overtook her. When he eyes shut, he was unsure of what to do with himself. The Thorben almost took it as his cue to leave. As soon as he was about to turn tail and run, the russet-hued man saw the frown that tugged on her lips and just like many times before he stood rooted in place, wanting to relieve Inali of whatever was bothering her. Of course, in this instance, he was the problem and he should have known well to acknowledge that during the beginning of the confrontation. Her passionate words shocked him and he was glad she instantly looked away so that he could regain control of his features.

When he left, Yuka had not considered telling the creamy woman where he was going. He knew that she would have tried to stop him and he did not want that. The response almost passed his tongue when he stopped, she would ask him where he was and he did not want that either. Before he could think of anything else to say she spoke again, her voice quieter. The large brute found words stuck in his throat as it constricted, almost closing off his airways. The man remained silent, contenting himself to simply watch her.

She surprised him again by taking the initiative in closing the distance between them. This time, he would do nothing to stop her. They had been apart for far too long. When she touched him, the man remained still, hardly daring to breathe as he stared into the expense of Verdant Mosses. Inali spoke again and suddenly it felt as though his chest were caving in. It hurt so much, or was it just hurting in a good way? Finally, he settled to wrap his neck around hers in a gentle embrace, his words hardly above a whisper, “I’ve missed you.”

(This post was last modified: Jul 11, 2017, 05:43 AM by Yuka.)

Thank you TABs

His touch was gentle, and Inali couldn't remember the last time he had held her like this. In the past, he had rarely ever even allowed her to get this close, let alone touch her. It was a nice change, and Inali savored it. He spoke, and his words brought further warmth to her heart. Inali didn't know what exactly had changed in his year away from the Lore, but whatever it was, she liked this change. She said nothing to his words, just burrowed further into his embrace. Nuzzling him affectionately, the older woman let out a content sigh. She had missed him as well - achingly so. He was back however, and that was what was important to the petite wolfess. It did make her curious, however, of what had occurred in his year away from the Lore. After a few moments of silence, Inali sighed as she pulled away slightly and looked up at the scarred man before her. Determined to satisfy her curiosity, Inali spoke up. "I'm curious, what were you up to while you were gone?" Her eyes roamed over him once more, wanting to reassure herself that he was indeed okay. Locking her blue gaze with his amber one, Inali then waited for his response. "speech"”Speech”

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If Inali would have allowed it, he would have been content to sit with her in silence for the remainder of their visit. The Thorben knew that he could not stay with her, he had to return to Secret Woodlands to tell Nina what happened, to reunite with his family. Even as the petite woman nuzzled him affectionately, he knew that her silence would not last forever. She was a vocal one and would eventually voice her curiosity. Luckily, he had come prepared with a lie.

When she pulled away, he flushed, amber eyes returning to her face now devoid of the fear the Wayha woman had greeted him with. The question was to be expected coming from her and when he spoke the lie slipped easily from his tongue, “I went to look for Narime. She went missing a few weeks into our mission and left me alone. After Broken Timber Pines disbanded, I was so angry, I just wanted to find her and bring her to justice. My family didn’t deserve to be abandoned again. We went on the crusade for them.” The russet-hued man huffed, adding anger into his voice for effect.

After a few moments of silence, he continued, “But after coming up with nothing, I decided to return. I need to tell Nina that I finished the mission she sent me on, which I’m sure she’ll be more than pleased to here, after all this time.” Unless, she already knew, in which case, Yuka was unsure in how he would be received. It was not a complete lie, what he told Inali. He did go look for his mother initially but after running into the band of assassins had found them to be better company than the absentee woman he never called a mother.

Eyes narrowed upon his little Scout. “And you? Why do you not bear the scent of The Woodlands?” he questioned.

Thank you TABs