Hearthwood River A Matter of Trust

 @Lorcan @Lachesis. Backdated to the 11th. Set directly after this thread.

They had finally returned...four days late. Inna was expecting that wouldn't go well especially after they had promised to make it a quick trip. They had stopped at the border to talk to Laike but Inna knew they needed to see Lachesis as soon as they could. She'd told her daughter to return to the den and she would be there as soon as she and Lorc spoke to the pale healer. As they made their way to meet with the leader her stomach felt like it was twisting up. For the first time in her life she was scared to tell the man who had been almost like a father to her what she had to. She didn't know how he would react to the news of what she had done especially after she had messed up so epically in the spring.

A nervous glance was given to the man she loved as he walked beside her. She had been brave when she had told him that she had to accept the consequences of her actions but she didn't feel so brave now. Being back in Hearthwood seemed to only put more weight on her shoulders. Her sides heaved with a sigh as they weaved through the trees toward a place where she felt it would be okay to speak with the pale healer privately. Finally she came to a stop not too far from the den where she hoped Lachesis was resting but it wasn't too close either. She brushed her muzzle against Lorcan’s cheek as if to gain strength from him. The she called for the Alpha, what had happened had been her doing and she was the one who needed to tell him. She took a deep breath before turning her gaze on Lorcan once more, “We will know soon what our punishment will be.” Then it could be done and they could move on from this horrible experience. She then waited for Lachesis to appear gaze trained on her paws with her ears flat against her head, tail limp. Inna tried to not think about what was coming.

~Table by Jacqueline

(This post was last modified: Aug 19, 2017, 08:11 PM by Inna.)

Please see Kajika's OOC profile for OOC preferences, thank you.

 

Lorcan hadn’t felt nervous when they had first arrived back in Kingsfall, but now as Inna glanced back towards him as they moved towards their leader’s den, he could feel his heart quicken with uneasy anticipation. The agouti male traipsed closely by her side, like a shadow, as they weaved their way past the last few tall red woods and sequoia trees which stood between them and their inevitable punishment.

Noticing the sigh which heaved at the dark female’s sides, the male moved in closer to brush alongside the length of her body in an attempt to remind her that he was there with her. They were in this together. Dark nostrils flared and his russet ears pushed back against his head as the scent of @Lachesis became more potent in the cool evening air a few moments before they finally came to halt outside the hollowed entrance of his sleeping quarters.

Leaning in to accept the comforting nuzzle which Inna placed against his cheek, he released a final deep sigh before quickly placing a small lick upon her muzzle in encouragement. He then moved aside to place a more respectable distance between them both. A shiver washed over him as her howl echoed through the trees, causing him to remain silent for a few heartbeats before he lifted his head to call alongside her.

As they felt silent, Lorcan’s pale paws shifted anxiously in the dirt and his tail moved to sweep submissively between his legs as he quickly composed himself. A small nod was made towards Inna in acknowledgement as she whispered to him, his golden eyes holding her warm orange gaze for a long moment as if to say ‘Good luck’.  

(This post was last modified: Aug 20, 2017, 02:22 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

They had been gone much longer than expected. His lips were carved into a dark frown as he paced the forest, his tail curved high over his back. Reyes had shared an overwhelming amount of information with the ghost during their encounter at Edge Stone, and the pale leader was still trying to process it. He was going to get a different side of the story, he knew that, but XIX did not know what the duo would share with him. Despite the lack of relationship established between himself and Reyes, Lachesis believed everything the ebony wolf had shared. Why wouldn’t he? The scarred male had given him no reason to doubt him and in an act of word vomit, he had shared more than what Lachesis had asked for. There was no reason for him to lie—not when relations were still (sort of) good between the packs. The ghost had also come to Reyes’ aid before and delivered herbs for Jessie’s birthing; he had given Reyes no reason to distrust him.

He was fuming.

The ghost did not care that Inna had not shared the identity of Oksana’s father with him—her mother hadn’t. It was none of his business and he did not want to pry, in case the topic was sensitive. But, after Lorcán had joined the pack, and spent a considerable amount of time with both the raven and her daughter, the Baranski continued to keep his true identity a secret. Were they ever going to come forward? He thought grimly to himself, his tail lashing out behind him. If they were willing to keep that a secret for so long what else were they hiding from him? With Inna’s bold actions at the Rye border and telling Jessie how to do her job (as told by Reyes) Lachesis began to wonder if it was the throne the raven was after.

The Fields pack was important to Hearthwood. Although the Stark had been skeptical of their presence in the beginning, for he feared they would spell trouble for the established pack (and his mind had been clouded by Craw’s opinions), he was know valuing their presence. It was important for the northern packs to get along with each other. Lachesis had no desire of severing ties with their western neighbours and now he was would have to visit them and issue Jessie a proper apology. That was not Inna’s call to make. Regardless of how Reyes and Askan were acting (which the former had admitted to pestering her and apologized) it did not warrant the raven’s brash behaviour. Although he missed the little Tainn he did not worry about her being in the Fields. The little girl was grieving—she had witnessed something terrible and was no doubt scarred by the incident. As long as she was safe he did not worry that she was spending some time at Wild Rye. He knew she was in no danger with their neighbours and that she would be returned when she was ready.

His head turned as he caught scent of the two scouts. They had returned. Quickly he trotted back toward his den, his brows narrowed darkly as he dreaded the conversation that was about to happen.

He approached quietly, spotting the two wolves at the entrance of his den. He frowned as he stopped, his tail still arched high as his toes dug into the soft ground. “Tell me what you two know and I’ll tell you what I know,” he greeted, his expression level as he waited for them to explain their lengthy absence.

stick with those who stick with you

The conversation was something she wasn't looking forward to, she knew her behavior was unacceptable. Lorcan had wanted to keep it between them what had happened but Inna knew she couldn't. She had to tell Lachesis what had happened because he was so important to her and to lie to him would be a betrayal to him and the relationship they had. She never lied to her parents and she wouldn't lie to him. Dread it or not she would have it and hope that everything would be fine, that he would understand.

After her nuzzle he placed a lick to her muzzle as her heart pounded in her chest and her stomach did flips. Inna watched as he stepped away from her and as much as she wanted to seek comfort in him but she understood. His call rang out after hers leaving the only thing left to do is wait for the pale healer to arrive. They had been late getting back, Inna was sure that there would be repercussions for that. The words she offered we're met with a nod and look that she returned.

Lachesis approached from behind asking what they knew before he would tell them what he knew. Inna turned ears still flattened against her head and tail tucked under her. “I'm sorry Lachesis, the rye wolves have Risa and they wouldn't let her come with us or let us see her. We don't know for sure how she is doing, we are late because we were trying to see her or make contact with her, bring her back if we could.” Inna explained meeting his his gaze. That wasn't all she had to say either. With a sigh she opened her mouth to speak again, “And I am sorry for my behavior towards Jessie, it was completely out of line.” Inna lowered her gaze to her paws as she waited for whatever would happen next.

~Table by Jacqueline

(This post was last modified: Aug 21, 2017, 06:55 PM by Inna.)

Please see Kajika's OOC profile for OOC preferences, thank you.

 

If we go down then we go down together,
They'll say you could do anything, they'll say that I was clever
If we go down then we go down together,
We'll get away with everything, let's show them we are better ♥

Lorcan lingered anxiously outside the den alongside Inna as they waited for Lachesis to appear. As the sound of quiet footfall reached his ears, his head stooped low and his golden eyes peered out nervously into the dark. Nostrils flared uneasily when he eventually spotted the large pale figure approaching them and his black lips pressed into a thin line as Lachesis moved to stand before them, immediately noticing the frown which adorned his brow and the dominant arch of his tail.

Lachesis was not impressed, which only made the prospect of telling him what had occurred at the rye fields even more daunting. What made it even worse was what he said next.

“Tell me what you two know and I’ll tell you what I know.”

What he knew?!

Pale brows rose to express his immediate confusion before they quickly furrowed downwards in concern. Lachesis must have heard word about what had occurred whilst they were away – very quickly the healer came to the obvious assumption that someone from the rye field pack must have reported to him. Immediately his stomach turned. He had no doubt that the rye wolves would have taken the opportunity to cast them in a bad light to their leader, considering how hostile the meeting had become at one point.

A fearful side glance was given to Inna a moment before she spoke.

Golden eyes stared awkwardly at the ground as he listened to her answer, not wanting to give anything away until he knew what Inna was willing to share. His heart jumped at her apology as he silently grimaced to himself. He wanted to support her, back her up in some way, but did he dare to jump in when Lachesis was already seething?

He grit his teeth together as his head lifted slowly to meet Lachesis’ chartreuse gaze, his expression indignant. “–but it was provoked.” He said in defiance, a scowl sweeping across his features. He looked back across to Inna then, his expression softening. “It is my fault we are late, sir. I was the one who suggested we try and check on Risaela before returning.” He confessed, lowering his head back down submissively to avoid the leader’s stare. “After the way we were spoken to, I didn’t feel comfortable leaving her there with them.” He admitted, golden eyes glancing up quickly to express his genuine concern to Lachesis before his gaze flickered back down in apology. 

(This post was last modified: Aug 21, 2017, 07:03 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 deer that was killed by a lynx nearby. +10 Health

He was not sure if he was more mad or more disappointed in the pair. They were both highly respected members of the pack, even if Lorcán had disappeared briefly due to poor weather conditions. His intentions had been good—to seek food for the growing pack—and he had returned, even after the time that had passed. Inna had always been there for Lachesis, his right-hand (-paw), and was often the first—or second—on the scene when there were wolves at the border. She was the only Baranski child to remain in Hearthwood. Which worried the ghost, for he wondered if it fuelled her entitlement.

They looked surprised—almost fearful—once they realized that Lachesis was aware of the situation. Good. He was glad he had the upper paw, for he did not know how honest they were going to be with him.

As expected, the raven spoke up immediately, quick to apologize to the willowy leader. She made it sound like Risaela was a prisoner in Wild Rye, which he knew wasn’t true. Reyes would not have told him that she was staying with them if that was the case. If it had not been for the scarred Lachesis would have believed that was the case—that little Risaela was being held against her will. And he would have stormed over to Wild Rye himself to retrieve her, only to discover that she was there by choice. Although he would like to see her back in Hearthwood the Stark understood why she had sought refuge elsewhere. The Kingswood was tainted to her, after seeing her mother mauled by a mountain lion. It was a scene too horrific for the toddler to comprehend; therefore, the only thing she knew how to do was run and get as far away from the bloodied scene as possible. He could not scold her for her actions, even if her absence prolonged. He, too, had wanted to run.

“She is fine. And she is there by choice,” he snapped  back quickly, his eyes narrowing. “I let them know that as long as she is not burdening them she is allowed to stay there. To recover. They are not harming her. She will be returned when she is ready. Not by force,” he added with a growl, his eyes quickly turning to Lorcán. “I am comfortable with her staying there.” The pair had been sniffing around the borders of Wild Rye—obviously Jessie and her subordinates would be cautious about their presence as well as returning the little Tainn to them.

“You realize that she is your family, right? Your mother’s family.” He could only imagine how Kisla would have reacted to discovering that her daughter had lipped off her aunt. Telling her how to alpha… Inna was lucky she returned with both her ears and tail firmly attached. “I understand you are worried about Risaela but that does not warrant severing an alliance with them. Do you know how fucking hard I’ve worked at preserving a relationship with them? For you to try and throw it away—over what?! Aleksei sharing with them that your” he flicked his nose to Lorcán, his words dripping off his tongue like venom “Oksana’s father? Once you discovered Risaela was there—and safe—you should have returned immediately. So I could deal with it. Because I’m the alpha.”

stick with those who stick with you

It had become as Lachesis spoke that he knew something if what had transpired during their trip to Wild Rye but Inna didn't know what. Whatever he'd been told he clearly wasn't happy with nor with the fact they were late. Inna didn't care what Lachesis knew or didn't know. The Raven had every intention of telling Lachesis all that had happened at the border of Wild Rye Fields. She knew she had been wrong and she had apologized to Jessie and now to Lachesis. She didn't want to hide that from him and wanted to trust that he would be the understanding wolf he'd always presented himself as.

She'd gone on to apologize for not being able to bring Risaela back, to inform him that they had tried to at least see her to know she was okay. She'd apologized for how she had been to Jessie because she felt he needed to know she knew she had been wrong and that she did regret it.

Everything went to crap after that because the man that she had always seen as a father figure since her father had died was gone. Instead was a man she didn't recognize. Her ears flattened as far as they could on her head as she averted her gaze. She listened as he snarled and growled at them and more and more as he spoke she realized he didn't trust her any more, he believed someone else over her. Inna decided then and there he could believe what he wanted about what happened. If he wanted to believe someone from another pack over his own subordinates that was fine. She wouldn't waste her breath trying to defend herself to someone who she didn't think would listen.

Her family? Of course she knew that but did they? They had not cared that she had lost her mother like Risaela, that she had seen her mother killed by the cougar. No, they wanted to treat. Her like she was in the wrong when she was trying to show “her family a courtesy”. Inna didn't bother with that either. She had been through too much to care about anything anymore and to have Lachesis speak to her as he was and not even bother giving her the chance. She felt like she had just lost something else, her.mother, her sister, him all in the course of two weeks.

It had registered with her that Lorcan had tried to defend her and she would thank him later but she knew now was not the time. As Lorcan brought Alek into the situation and called them out about Lorcan being Oksana's father Inna didn't even flinch she didn't even look at the pale leader. His accusation that she’d done what she had because of that only confirmed what she had thought all along. “If you wanted to know who Oksana's father was all you had to do was ask,” she said quietly. She did not feel that it was worth her time or breath to explain her reasons for keeping it to herself.

She couldn't take any more, she just wanted her punishment so she could return to her den and be with her daughter. It seemed Lachesis was like everyone else and did not want to take into account she too had lost her mother and her sisters and brothers. She felt completely lost.

~Table by Jacqueline

Please see Kajika's OOC profile for OOC preferences, thank you.

 

Lorcan almost jumped when Lachesis suddenly snapped back in response. He knew that the pale leader was angry but he still had not expected such a reacted from the male. The agouti male swallowed awkwardly and his russet ears pressed back further against his head as Lachesis continued, golden gaze remaining firmly fixed upon the ground between his paws. Black tipped tail curled up tightly between his legs as a growl erupted from the more dominant male, as he suddenly became uneasy, feeling the heat of their leader’s glare burn in his direction.  

His jaw clenched tightly shut as Lachesis dismissed his concerns over the rye wolves, his frown only deepening as he continued to keep his gaze downcast in an attempt to hide the contempt which now glowed like hot embers within his eyes of molten gold.

Was his opinion really worth so little to the leader? It was only last week that Lachesis had called them all to a meeting to ask for their thoughts and feelings about leaving their home, so why was he so quick to neglect them now?

Lorcan couldn’t help that he didn’t trust the other pack as much Lachesis apparently seemed to. His previous association with Whitestone had helped to shape his feelings towards them, and the behaviour exhibited by Askan and his buddy, Reyes, during the meeting had only confirmed everything which he already thought he knew. The wolves of Wild Ryes Fields were trouble and no one could persuade him otherwise. The fact that Lachesis couldn’t see them for what they really were left a bitter taste in his mouth – resulting in the scowl which now gripped at the corners of his charcoal black lips.

Continuing to remain silent as Lachesis directed his wrath solely towards Inna for a moment, he couldn’t help but glance across at her, to try and see what she was thinking. He was surprised to see that her fiery gaze was averted, away from the male who was reprimanding her. For someone who had declared to him that she was ready and willing to take her punishment, she didn’t at all look like someone who was readily accepting of it.

Then all the attention was turned him as Lachesis revealed his true relation to Oksana. His heart froze for moment as he instinctively slunk down lower to the ground to dodge the nose that was now being pointed straight towards him, calling him out. Lorcan’s heart would have remained frozen, solidified in fear, had it not been for the seething hot anger which run through his veins in that moment.

Lachesis was assuming that the reason everything had become so fucked up in the fields was because of a rumour told by Inna’s brother?! Both he and Inna had worked hard to keep their nerve and let the small hint offered to them by Jessie calmly wash over them. They hadn’t gone there to fight or argue.

“No..” Lorcan quietly interjected – voice cracking beneath the pressure – as he spoke up a mere second after Inna, having been too wrapped up in his own thoughts to notice she’d even spoken. His muscles tensed as he stood his ground and lifted his gaze towards their leader as he spoke more calmly. “They asked us why we hadn’t come sooner and rudely implied that we had taken our time in finding Ris, as if we didn’t care about her at all, or what happened to Kisla.” He paused, body quivering a little. Dark lips parted again to speak, but pressed shut again as he stole another glance at Inna.

Lorcan realised then that nothing he could say could prevent the punishment that was about to follow. Lachesis had already made up his mind. His stare settled back on the ground and his head hung low, awaiting whatever form of violence his superior deemed appropriate.

(This post was last modified: Aug 22, 2017, 01:30 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

As he spoke Inna shrunk closer to the ground, her tall ears flattening against the back of her skull. For a fleeting moment he felt bad for disciplining her but he knew it had to be done. He also knew that Kisla would not be okay with her actions either, for she had ensured the river wolves had a good relationship with their western neighbours as well. He knew that she was distraught about the loss of her mother as well but that did not warrant reckless behaviour in the presence of allies. Not when Risaela’s safety was at risk. The Rye wolves could refuse to allow the little Tainn to return home based on the raven’s actions.

His brows narrowed as she spoke, voice small and hushed, and he dismissed her words with a sharp lash of his tail. It was none of his business who the father was. What bothered him was that the father had been under his nose all along and the pair continued to hide it from the rest of the pack, pretending as though nothing had happened between them. Now it made sense why the raven had been sneaking out so often before the arrival of spring…

When he opened his mouth to speak the tawny healer interjected, his voice just as quiet as Inna’s had been. He frowned, his eyes narrowing as Lorcán announced that it had been the Rye wolves who had started the confrontation, which he already knew. Reyes had confirmed that he had opened his fat mouth and said some things he shouldn’t have. “So that means you have to stoop to their level? I know who started it—I know they were rude. They have since apologized and been punished for their actions. I’m sure Jessie is just as embarrassed for how they acted as I am about your reactions.” His shoulders remained raise, upper lip curled. “I trusted you both. I still do. But I expected better of you. This situation could have been handled much better. Now I have to go apologize to Jessie for what happened and assure her that the alliance has not been severed.” He growled with annoyance, his eyes flitting between the two.

He did not know what to do with them or what was a suitable punishment for them. His frown deepened, his toes curled tight into the dirt. “You two are on babysitting duty,” he announced after a lengthy pause, taking a page out of Jessie’s book. Demoting them to lowest seemed too severe, nor did he feel like they deserved it. “There’s no patrols, no border visits. Not until I say otherwise.” He sighed, his forehead still creased. He was surprised he hadn’t started losing fur yet. All this stress was weighing heavily on his shoulders, giving him an almost constant migraine. “I am not defending their actions. I do not tolerate rudeness to my subordinates. But reacting so aggressively, threatening to end an alliance, is not acceptable. You are the best two scouts Hearthwood has and I would have expected you to be more level-headed about the situation, even if emotions are high.” Another sigh. He could not help but wonder what Kisla would do if she was reprimanding them… or what the pair thought about their punishment. They did not seem like they understood why Lachesis was so angry, or that he seemed upset about the actions of both Reyes and Askan. He was not happy about how his subordinates had been treated, but he knew that Jessie had already punished them for their careless words. Now it was his turn.

stick with those who stick with you