Wild Rye Fields Wild Rye Fields Pack Thread

 @Neko, figured they could have a convo. Wants to see how their new medic is getting on. Takes place mid morning, before askan goes out to throw pebbles at lach.

He was glad that he was allowed to sleep in his own den once more. He liked the pups and all, and it wasn't like the others smelled bad it was just...Privacy was nice and he'd never get used to waking up with a toe poking at his nostril. So there was that. It wasn't to say he avoided the communal spaces, he liked his pack mates well enough. They weren't the worst, not by far, they were family almost. A little rag-tag, they didn't always get along but it worked them and that's what counted.

The wolves they had here now were reliable, he trusted them to stay and keep to their words. Not like the others who had come before. Or so he hoped.

Bending down into an arch, Askan stretched before straightening out. He wondered how their new resident was faring. She seemed to be making herself busy, which was good. Couldn't hope for better really.

Letting out a bark, Askan summoned Neko and settled down in front of the communal den to wait and see if she was around to heed his call. He hoped she was, but he wouldn't throw a pissy fit if she wasn't. He had stuff to do, places to be.

Neko had spent most of the morning gathering herbs and had spread them out on a big rock so they could dry out in the sun, having found that some of them would be better preserved if they were dry when she cached them. She was just finishing spreading out the collected herbs when she heard a bark calling her to the main den. She perked up when she heard it and immediately recognized the voice as Askan’s. She gave a quick bark to acknowledge the call before eagerly bounding off towards the den.


Things seemed to have settled down since the incident with the Hearthwood River scouts. She had only heard bits and pieces about the incident, but she’d heard enough to make her worry that Askan and Reyes might leave the pack. She was glad they stayed. It was true that Askan came across as grouch sometimes, but Neko believed that his heart was in the right place.

She broke out into a sprint when she saw Askan in front of the main den. She slowed to a brisk walk as she approached, letting her tongue hang from her mouth and lightly panting while she wagged her tail. She didn’t think she was in trouble and was eager to receive attention. She matched Askan’s stance and settled down a respectful distance from him and said, “You called for me?”

To Askan's satisfaction wasn't left waiting long. From the fact that her tongue was lolling out of her mouth he assumed she had run a fair part of the way, which was a little amusing really. It wasn't that big of a deal, nothing overly important, but he was pleased to see that she was so punctual. That she was willing to put the effort in to pull her weight, unlike some other, former Rye wolves.

"Yeah." Askan affirmed as he shifted down into a more relaxed sitting position, as his tail curved around his side. "Wanted to see how you were going, found you den the other day. Good spot." She might be young but Askan had quickly decided she had a good head on her shoulders.

Her stay here had been uneventful, which was honestly a relief to the Guardian. He wasn't sure how much drama he could deal with these days, he didn't have much patience and whilst that was something he was working on he wasn't looking to test it anytime soon. Unless he could help it.

"What I actually wanted to say was, if you needed someone to watch your back whilst you're plant picking, or whatever, ask me or @Reyes, or even @Adelayde  if you want. It is usually safe around here but, nothing wrong with being cautious. See, the lead female of Hearthwood River was killed by a cat the other day so...You're small, doubt you could hold one off for long."

It wasn't meant as an insult, he was simply stating the facts. It was his job to keep the Rye wolves safe and this was one of the steps he was making to go about that.

Neko appreciated Askan’s compliment regarding the den and was about to about to answer his question about how she was doing when he offered his protection while she was out and about. For the time, she had stayed close to the Fields, never straying too far from the safety of the pack. Well, relative safety. She couldn’t forget about the recent raid on the food cache. She was glad that at least nobody was attacked during that incident. However, she would soon need to travel further to collect a better variety of herbs and to visit other packs, and she knew she would want someone to go with her. She had already made such a request of Adelayde and would probably make similar requests of Askan and Reyes. She was about to say so when Askan told her about Hearthwood River’s alpha being killed by a cat, at which time all other thoughts left her.

Her expression turned serious, and she glanced backwards to the scars on her flank. They had long since healed and her fur grown back to conceal them, but she wouldn’t forget about them. Both were caused by trees, but the first one happened when she was fleeing from a big cat, the very creature for which she was named. She also figured the Hearthwood River alpha was probably Risaela’s mother and that maybe the pup had run away in an attempt to escape her grief, something Neko had done more than once. She really had not spent much time around the pup, nor had she asked any questions about her presence, but she did wonder. After a brief silence, without thinking, she asked, “Is that why Risaela’s here? Is that what the argument was about?” Immediately after she spoke, she realized she might have made a mistake in bringing it up, but she had already blurted it out.

"Wouldn't call it an argument, but yeah. That's about it. From what I heard she saw her Mum die, that freaked her out and she ran till her legs about gave out. At the border, so I was told." He shrugged.

He didn't know and had never even met Kisla, but as both the River Queen and a mother he assumed she would have fought with all of her might to protect what was hers. As far as Askan knew the cat was still roaming Kingsfall, waiting for an opportunity to strike again, to shed more River wolf blood.

Askan had never been the sort to wish misfortune on others, after all he made his displeasure known loud and clear. There were a couple of River wolves he wasn't so found of, but even then he wouldn't go as far to want them to be slain by a cougar. It didn't sound like a good way to go, not to mention they'd both created a damn pup so it was both of their responsibility to look after it.

The Guardian sighed and shook his head. Whatever, wasn't his problem.

"The point is, it looks all serene and nice out there, but it isn't. Not long ago Percy-uh, the Boss' pup from last season - and a Whitestone wolf pup were both attacked by this stranger. This big black guy no one has ever seen or heard of since. For all we know he's still out there, doing how knows what."

Bears, cats, dangerous loners and possibly even naked bears with their fire sticks. What was this world coming to?

But that's why Askan had to be ever more vigilant, watchful over his proverbial flock.

"Not tying to scare you, I'm just saying how it is."

Neko couldn’t imagine what it must feel like for a pup to see her mother brutally attacked and killed. She had lost her own family recently, but she had not had to watch them die, and she was old enough when it happened that she could survive on her own. Still, she remembered her overwhelming grief. She remembered being mad at the gods for allowing it to happen. She remembered feeling like the gods had abandoned her. She couldn’t begin to imagine how much deeper Risaela’s sorrow must run.

Not to mention that hearing about a big cat being on the prowl in the area didn’t exactly comfort her, and her concern grew deeper still when Askan told her about the stranger who might still be out there in the area, not to mention more recent events like the raid on the food cache. He made his point, and he made it well. He said he wasn’t trying to scare her, and she believed him, but all the stories did scare her. She would have to be more attentive when she was out and about, and she would certainly want to take Askan's advice to have someone to protect her whenever she traveled, which she would probably want to do soon.


“Th- Thank you for the warning,” she said, her ears flat against her head. She straightened her posture to give him a proper response. “I’ll be more careful whenever I’m out, and I’ll be sure to ask for help whenever I might need protection.” She wasn’t really aware of it, but it was possible that she might mistake a desire for company for a legitimate need of protection.

Askan could see the fear in her, the mounting nervousness. He grimaced, wondering if he'd laid it all on a little too thick. Tact wasn't a skill of his but maybe he should have at least tried to soften the blow. That said, there was no use in sugar coating things. Even when Percy had been young he'd made it clear that the world was a dangerous place, it was just a shame she had to learn it the hard way. That he hadn't been there to watch her back.

"Mm good." He pushed himself to his feet and looked down at her, his gaze just a little softer than usual."It's safe her though, safe enough anyway. There's a lot of us and Jessie, only a fool would mess with her."

And as much as he was smiling, it was the truth. She was pretty damn terrifying, or at least Askan thought so.

Shaking himself off, Askan decided it was about time to get back to work. A small break was fine, but how did that saying go? No rest for the wicked?

"Well...Good talk. See you around Neko."

Askan exit

For Queen @Jessie and/or beloved old man @Drestig Askan wants to do some whining. XD Leaving it vagueish at this point, as I'm not sure if she will return.

Another stranger came and joined their ranks and seemingly left without a word or an excuse.

Askan made it his business to know everyone else's, and from what he could tell their newest recruit hadn't been up to much before she'd more or less vanished. He understood that not everyone was a social butterfly, but it seemed a little odd that she'd chosen to join their pack, only to disappear into obscurity.

If he'd known her, he might have been worried for her well being. She could be hurt, gotten lost in the wilderness, or who knows what else. But he'd never met the damn girl, never even seen her, had only picked up traces of her scent. How was he supposed to care for her if he'd never even spoken a damn word to her?

The point was, Askan had already been burnt more than once by moochers, youngsters looking for free meals and an easy ride. For all he knew she, whatever her name was, was just like the rest. And with winter fast approaching, well Askan was worried. By no means did he want to step on the Rye Monarchy's toes but...He wouldn't be able just stand by and keep his thoughts to himself, he would say his piece and be done with it. They made the rules around here, he merely...wanted to put forward a couple of suggestions, if they were willing to hear him out.

So with that in mind, he rushed to the communal den site and tilted his head skywards to let out a call for them. And then, he settled down on his haunches to wait.

for my prince @Aleksei. I'm assuming the alphas didn't hear/ chose not to heed his call

It seemed as though it was final, that he was actually going to leave the field.

Even then the thought sent a chill down his spine. Like there was some unforeseen force leaning over his shoulder and whispering in his ear that he shouldn't leave. That this was his home, that he'd worked so hard for this place and had done everything in his power to protect the wolves that dwelled here. And yet it wasn't enough, it would never be enough.

Askan sighed and shook the thoughts from his head. It was done. He'd said as such and  it was time to deal with the consequences. In just a few days time he'd be gone from these fields, like all those that had left before. He liked to think he had left his mark here, that he'd be remembered, rather than resented. But like all things, time would soon erase all traces of his life here. It would be like he'd never even lived here at all. Which was...incredibly depressing. Since when had Askan gotten so sombre? Ugh.

As to where they would go? He honestly didn't know. He'd leave that up to Reyes, he was the wanderer, he knew these lands better than Askan did. They'd agreed-in one of their many secret moments- that it didn't matter where they were as long as they were together. The comign days would soon put that to the test, but Askan had faith. Not in the world, but in his mate.

Shuffling down onto his haunches in the oak tree clearing, Askan let out a long, timberous call for his friend. The Queen already knew, and had likely already told the Old Man. So now seemed about the right time to tell Aleksei. After all, the last thing he wanted to do was to vanish without a word or a trace.Not again, anyway.

Something felt … off. The mood had shifted, and Aleksei wasn’t entirely sure why. It was as if someone had bumped into a picture on the wall and left before taking the time to straighten it out again. It made him uneasy—what had changed?

Askan’s call couldn’t have come at a better time. At least Aleksei could ask some questions and maybe get some answers. The swarthy second of the fields was a good guy; a good friend. He was an important member of the pack, as the second in command. Actually, sometimes he felt like more of a leader than anyone else.

Aleksei had always had structure—he needed some rules beyond ‘just be good’, and his superiors were always the guideline he would work under. What leadership was Drestig providing? Was it enough? Did this pack really suit the Baranski? Shrugging off the worrying thoughts, Aleksei picked up the pace. He didn’t want to think about this, not right now. He just wanted a distraction from the atmosphere.

The agouti male gave a chuff of greeting as he approached Askan, tail wagging behind him. “Something up?” Because, really, what point was there in beating around the bush? If Aleksei had noticed it, then surely Askan would have too.

Let the roots & soil drink of me
Whispering leaves & pointing branches will tell them where I'm lying