Whitestone Monadnock always the last to know

The adrenaline that had built up in his system during the confrontation had allowed his body to work a little harder, push a little further, run a little faster. All afternoon he ran, his exhausted figure dashing clumsily through the snow which had settled beneath the towering sequoia trees of the woodland. Not caring to be secretive with his whereabouts any longer, the male left a trail of muddy prints and broken branches as he forced himself to take the most direct path towards the monadnock.

As darkness descended Lorcan found that he had travelled as far as the edge of the woodlands, where the trees bordered the south-eastern boundary of the lowlands. Both physically and emotionally fatigued, the male found that whilst his body no longer trembled, it was now impossible for him to go on. Now, every step he dared to place forwards conjured a sob up from his chest. Tears welled up from seemingly nowhere and stung his tired golden eyes, forcing the male to press them shut in an attempt to soothe them. Blindly he stumbled over and slumped himself against the nearest tree, quickly succumbing to exhaustion.

The next morning when Lorcan awoke, he felt stiff and weak, and his mouth awfully dry. Slowly he struggled back up onto his feet and looked around. The sunlight burned his already sensitive eyes, but he could now at least see the shape of the monadnock peaking up from the northern horizon. Encouraged by the thought of familiar, more forgiving company, the agouti male forced his aching paws to journey slowly onwards…

The sun was almost to the point of setting by the time the great shadow of the monadnock loomed over him. Wearily he sniffed along the familiar boundaries of his old home, dark nostrils flaring as he inhaled a menagerie of both familiar and unfamiliar scents. He was relieved to recognise both Wraith and @Piety, as well as @Odin, in the mix. Though to his surprise, not all of the markings were entirely fresh, being perhaps two maybe three days old. Lorcan was too exhausted to ponder over the matter however and so, eager to be reunited with some of the faces from his past, he released a heart wrenching howl.

(This post was last modified: Dec 01, 2017, 04:43 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

How long had he been laying at the edge of this great rock looking out over the tundra below? Hours? Days? Weeks? However long it had been it wasn't long enough to take away he ache in his paws from trying to scrape through the permafrost to give Wraith a decent burial. It wasn't long enoug to wipe his scent from the place, nor Piety's and Cyril's. He knew it was unfair to keep Kip tied here with his presence alomg and again he told himself, just one more night... and then maybe he would muster the courage to slink into the trees on the southern edge of the tundra, make his way through the suffocating forest of bones and down into the grove. Maybe from there he'd be able to find his mother's lagoon?

Or he could piss it all away and go back to Torbine, back to Kara. Anywhere but here, he supposed.

Ears turned forward at the familiar call, singular eye narrowing as he pushed himself up, a passing brush of his nose to @Kip's temple, a silent I'll be right back offered before he descended down the path he could easily run with both eyes gone as he steadily closed the distance that stretched between them. He had never been the fastest wolf after all. His chin tipped up, face grim despite the wave of his tail betraying just how glad he was to see the man. "Well what're yer waitin back there for? They're gone."

Lorcan waited with anticipation, expecting to see the familiar forms of either Wraith or Piety trotting down the old goat track to greet him. He couldn’t help but feel a little nervous about seeing the pair of them again, especially after so long, but he reminded himself that he had departed from the monadnock pack on good terms and so could assume to receive a warm welcome.

Sore golden eyes strained to see through the quickly dimming light as he caught sight of a dark shape traipsing down the path. Lorcan’s first instinct was to assume that it was Wraith who had come to meet him at the border, but as the figure moved closer he quickly realised it was in fact the younger male @Odin. The gentle sway of his tail conveyed to Lorcan that his presence was indeed welcome, but it did not take the agouti male long to notice the yearling’s grim expression and for his heart to thump harder in concern.

Furrowing his brows, Lorcan eyed the younger male anxiously. Odin was quick to get to the point, blunt, just like Lorcan remembered his mother to be. The male’s frown deepened and the corners of his mouth pulled down in confusion as he moved to step forwards. “Gone?” Lorcan echoed, his voice weak from exhaustion. It was then as he approached closer to the young male that he caught a whiff of blood. A cold shiver fell over him and his ears pressed back in panic. “Odin, what’s happened?!” He asked again, his voice rough and desperate. If someone was hurt, he would not think twice about tending to them.

(This post was last modified: Dec 02, 2017, 11:08 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

Shallow water has trapped several fish in a small pond. Hunt Opportunity

Ugh. Why did waking up before you wanted to even have to exist? It was bad enough that the pack had disbanded, worse that Odin was clinging to the place (though she was happy to indulge that need to be there), and now someone had the balls to come calling for them while they were asleep. That was something she couldn't stand for.

She lay still and let Odin go out first, but after the males had exchanged a couple of words, Kip got to her paws and stretched before padding after her companion and staring neutrally at the newcomer. "Not so loud first thing in the morning," she scolded the panicked stranger, flicking her tail once with annoyance. It was mostly a joke, after all. She completely knew it was afternoon. Her stupid writer read a sentence wrong. "Who is this guy?" The young wolf turned her gaze up and up toward Odin to ask, very much not in the mood to deal with a loud stranger at sunrise. Apparently, judging from Odin's stance, this person was a friend. Maybe he even knew Wraith.

"Nothing you can help with. Wraith died a couple of days ago," she told him, more emotionally detached from the situation. She figured it would have been easier for her to say it than Odin, because she desperately did not want to see the boy in more pain. "A massive buck ran him through with its antlers. He was protecting his kid." Her own ears did droop a bit at that - at the emotion and level of love it would take to give your life in such a way. They'd had no such thing on the mountains.

(This post was last modified: Dec 04, 2017, 03:08 AM by Kip.)

After the argument and Ayti, her father's departure Oksana ran like she never had before. She ran to catch up to her father to tell him so .ant things she hadn't gotten the chance to say. Out of Kingsfall and into the Lowlands she followed growing tired but unwilling to give up until she caught up to him. She feared she would never see him again and that drive her on until she just couldn't run any longer. Night had fallen by the time she finally stopped to rest, curling up in a nest of dried grasses the pup tried to sleep but couldn't.

She was up with the dawn still following her father scent across the Lowlands. She didn't know if her mother was following or if she would come. That didn't matter, she needed to see her father one last time before she couldn't ever see him again. She just hoped that he would want to see her after what he had said before he had left her and Inna with Ayti. She came to the place where he had rested and followed in from there.

A large rock that she hadn't seen had appeared and the scent of other wolves though faint. Soon she saw him in the distance taking with two other wolves, a dark wolf like her and a lighter wolf. “Daddy,” she called to him wanting him to know she was there. She stopped though a small distance from him afraid he would be angry with her that she had come this far on her own.

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Where have all the good guys gone?

Odin Archer

The sun was setting so when Kip berated Lorcan for being so loud first thing in the morning he just took it to be her sense of humor shining through, and before he had time to find the words to answer, she cut in for him again. It may have been a little blunt but he doubted he could do any better. "We ended up with a willow pup, so Piety's takin' her home. She'll probably meet up with Ma after that, but Cheedo's followin' her. I almost wish I had'da gone along fer th' laughs that'll be." He didn't mind Cheedo, she worked hard and kept her nose out of trouble, but Odin knew his mother wouldn't be nearly so forgiving. She'd come south with Craw's family after all, and that was crime enough to make for an amusing show.

He almost mistook the girl for Inna, until she called Lorcan daddy, so either the elder healer was into something Odin wasn't aware of (a thought that bought a smirk to his face that he tried to conceal by looking away for a moment), or this was the reason he had left the Monadnock in the first place. "So, Inna huh?" It was a stab in the dark, but he was going to take it anyway.

Lorcan did not recognise the pale figure which sauntered up to stand beside Odin. Pale brows still frowning in concern, his golden gaze met the seafoam green of her stare as she scolded him – then blinked, awkwardly with confusion, when he did not realise her joke. Shifting on his uncomfortably on his paws, the agouti male glanced back across to Odin for clarification, before his attention to the boy’s strange companion as she spoke again.

“I’m Lorcán, former healer of Whitestone.” He answered quickly, with a polite dip of his head, hoping that it would explain why he was so keen to help with whatever situation the wolves of the monadnock had gotten themselves into. Then the girl explained and the news shocked him. “What?!” He exclaimed, almost in disbelief, hackles lifting. “How?” Lorcan questioned impatiently, his voice falling quieter as he felt his heart plummet to the bottom of his chest.

Golden gaze drifted across to meet the single peach coloured eye of @Odin, his russet ears flattening against his head with despair, as he listened to girl’s short account of the events. Lorcan couldn’t help but feel slightly guilty for not being there and so, unable to look at either of them, his eyes fell to settle on the snow at his paws awkwardly. A small, familiar voice stole his attention then, preventing him sinking any further into his guilty thoughts, and he lifted his head and turned to see @Oksana standing a short distance behind him.

“Sana, what are you doing here?” He asked, attempting to chide his daughter, though his voice was weak and fragile from the news he had just received. “Does your mother or anyone know where you are?!” He questioned the girl, his tail flicking anxiously behind him, before he finally signalled with a wave of his head for his daughter to approach and stand alongside him. The father moved to place a comforting lick upon his daughter’s crown as Odin went on to explain some more.

“Willow pup?” He repeated, focusing back on the younger dark male. “Wait, Morganna is back? Where is she?” Lorcan asked eagerly, his tail swaying curiously, as he too imagined the awkward reunion between the woman and Cheedo. He lifted a single brow in amusement as he considered it for a moment, before he glanced back towards his daughter to check that she was alright. She knew even less about the situation than he did and was probably feeling all the more overwhelmed by it all.

He nuzzled his daughter affectionately at Odin’s comment, before releasing a small sigh. “Heh, yeah…” He responded awkwardly. “This is Oksana.” He introduced, his voice warm, before he returned his gaze to Odin and then the pale yearling (@Kip) beside him. “Me and Inna have had a bit of a falling out.” He pressed his lips together and raised a brow towards Odin to show that he was putting it lightly in front of his daughter. “So, I’m no longer a member of Hearthwood. Thought I'd come here...but I see now, I am too late.” He added, giving his shoulders a defeated shrug.

 

(This post was last modified: Dec 04, 2017, 09:13 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

Kip had frowned deeply when the black wolf approached, her ears angling forward upon hearing her call this Lorcan guy daddy. So, either his child, or this was some kind of thing he was into. That line could be so blurred these days. Kip remained quiet as Odin explained further, Lorcan began asking his questions, and the girl who called him daddy was actually revealed to be his daughter.

Thank god.

”Yeah, Wraith’s death was the bravest thing I’d ever seen. Never thought it was possible for a wolf to love another to the point that they’d die for them,” she admitted, swishing her tail once. The falling out that Lorcan and his lover had had was none of her business, so she wouldn’t comment on that.

Instead, Kip remained quiet once more, waiting for Odin to decide what they were going to do. It seemed like he actually knew this guy, and Kip really didn’t want to jam her nose in where it didn’t belong any further than she already had.

When she finally found her father he was talking to another wolf. She didn't go straight to him afraid he was going to be upset with her for following him all the way across the Lowlands. She had no idea that she had followed him to Whitestone but she heard the woman speak and what she said. None of what was said made any sense to the girl just then but she remained silent after initially making her presence known to her father.

He acknowledged her soon enough asking what she was doing there. His voice didn't sound like it normally did but she took a couple steps forward, “I came to find you,” she stated before looking at the other two wolves. She shook her head at his next question before meeting his eyes, “I left right after you. They don't know where I've gone," she admitted. She followed her father's instruction to join him. She brushed her side against his as she came to stand next to him and allowed him to lick her crown. She had missed her father and wanted him to come home with her. Talk with her mother and work things out. She would tell him but now wasn't the time.

She listened quietly as the adults spoke more about what had happened in Whitestone. Her ears perked up when she became the topic of conversation once more. “You just need to talk to her,” she said quietly just for her father when Lorcan mentioned a falling out with her mother. She was trying to be respectful of the wolves before them and not embarrass her father but she really needed to talk with him. As the woman spoke once more about Wraith and his death something clicked in her head, “Cyrils dad?” She asked the wolves in front of her and Lorcan.

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