Shallows Edge all that hate is gonna burn you up

For no other than @Askan, just him please! Lemme know if you want anything changed || Midday, Mostly Cloudy, 12°F (-11°C)

Hawthorne had more than enough time to brew in her own thoughts when she was on her own. While usually she had Plant Boy (@Sachiel) by her side, they weren't always chattering away. Sometimes she even found more thinks to dwell on thanks to her companion. And who better to ask about things than one of her Edge Lords?

She was hot on Askan's trail, his scent fresh enough to let her know he was still in the area. It was when she neared the actual shallows that a friendly sort of look settled across the usually brooding girl. This was a more peaceful place to find the Edge Lord at. Which meant she wouldn't have to holler over the water to have him hear her.

A deeper than intended woof escaped her, hoping it was Askan she stumbled upon and not another one of their dark-furred members.

With a sigh, Askan slowed to a walk as he took in the slight of the frozen over shallows. Winter was a real pain, wasn't it? In comparison to Gabe he didn't mind it as much, but that wasn't to say he enjoyed how it made border patrols all the more difficult. Shuffling through knee deep snow wasn't his idea of fun, but at least his land wasn't as steep as the Field was, in some places. He cringed at the memory of climbing the damn lookout, it granted a great view of the Lowlands but shit...It took more effort to climb than it was worth.

Shuffling to a stop, the Edge Lord had just been about to sniff out a cache when a woof caught his attention, and sure enough he turned to see Hawthorne emerging from between the trees. What did she want now? It was always something. With an exaggerated roll of his eyes, the Selwyn huffed so hard his lungs ached a little. He was putting on a good show of annoyance, as though he didn't want her company, but it was more than welcome. Askan wasn't against the prospect of spending time with any of his pack mates but he was awfully fond of the pups, in his own way.

"Yeah, what?"He asked, cutting right to the chase.

A lynx has left behind the remains of a deer. +5 Health

The shortness of his words didn't bother her. In fact, it was a trait she had picked up on her own from the male. She smirked softly as she answered back quickly. Wanted to ask ya about some things you said up at the lake with that girl Oksana. Hawthorne was only bringing it up so late because she had been stewing in her thoughts. That and there was a sliver of doubt in her mind that he would even be willing to share what he had meant.

Why don't you like her parents? Hawthorne jumped right to it with a rugged curiosity. Certainly not being a big fan was about the same as saying you flat at didn't care for them one bit. The Edge wolf could have easily and blindly taken his words for what they were but she wanted to know.

She had other questions to ask, specifically about the lowlands but she knew better than to bombard her superior.

"Uh huh." Askan rumbled, not at all surprised she wanted to poke her nose in his business. If she spoke out of turn he'd say as such, but for now he let her continue, even if his response didn't sound entirely welcoming. He liked her well enough, but he was still Askan,still just as tactless and scowly as ever.

And what a question she asked.

"Never liked her Father, stuck up bastard." He sneered, his lips pulling back a little to reveal the points of his teeth.

The first time they'd met hadn't gone so bad, he'd stepped on Lorcan and called him a fool but considering all the ugly and vicious things he said in his life that was pretty damn tame. It was from their second meeting onwards when things started to go downhill fast. The fact that he'd attacked him because he thought he was hurting Percy wasn't really relevant in his eyes, what else was he supposed to do? It was Lorcan's fault that things kept going south. Or at least that's what Askan believed.

Craw was the catalyst. The shit that kept whispering crap into Lorcan's ears making him think he was better than he really was, inflating his ego till it was like rotting corpse, all bloated and disgusting. He was just a prat, everything Askan resented.

"He's just so..." Askan fidgeted, looking for the right word. The more he thought about it, the more bristly he got, till the fur down his back stood on end and his tail lashed behind him. "He's scum, a coward. Never takes responsibility for his actions, always has to pin the blame on someone else. Then acts so fucking offended when he gets called out on it. I'm not a saint, I know that, but at least I know what I am, don't try pretending otherwise."

He huffed and shook out his coat, shooing away his mounting frustration as best as he could. It didn't work very well.

"Didn't mind her mother at first, hunted with her even. Then she got together with him and well...it's like he passes it onto other people, like a sickness."

What a burn to the father, but Hawthorne didn't say anything yet. She let Askan go on and explain more in depth just how this girl's father was. The young female fed off of his energy and she could feel her own annoyance grow. Scum. Coward. Words engraved in the walls of her mind for later. He even used that fancy F word she had originally heard from Reyes. This time she understood that the word was not a good word.

Her nose crinkled at the thought of it being like a sickness. Bad moods did seem to fester, though. Even good moods did. Hawthorne knew she had changed (likely for the better) after joining up with the Edge crew. She was more rough-handed now, rugged and ready to judge the world for what it was. But in no way did she think she was the description of the coward father - or his supposedly infected partner.

Maybe he passed it on to his kid too. She had ignored me until it was convenient for her. A priss if ya ask me. Hawthorne huffed strongly with furrowed brows. Obviously she was a little stung by the situation. Despite all of her grown-up ways, Hawth was still a child at her core.

The Lowlands was a place she wanted to ask about also and now seemed as good as ever. If she recalled correctly Askan had mentioned something about knowing them when he used to live there. That Lowlands place you said you used to be in, they got a lot of wolves like her parents? A brow switched from a narrow to raising up. If it was, Hawthorne was content to ignore the place until she was fully ready to whomp some scum.

"Wouldn't be surprised."He admitted, idly wondering just how much he'd inherited from his own Father. Not a lot, by this point it was obvious they were cut from a different cloth."She really rubbed you the wrong way, hm ?"He turned to look at her once more, a little amused at her solid impression of the 'Selwyn squint.'

Oksana was just a kid, she still had some growing to do so he hadn't written her off as a lost cause quite yet. Which wasn't to say he had faith that she could turn it all around, his faith was for those he trusted, those he kept by his side. Not the spawn of a man he hated and a woman (or child really, judging by her behaviour) who had made his life harder than it had any right to be.

Then Hawthorne steered the conversation in an odd direction, one that made Askan tilt his head a little as he pursed his lips in thought. The Lowlands. They had served as the stage for so much drama and tension and yet... these days they were quiet. Too quiet for Askan's liking.

The thought of Craw wanting to rule the north used to make Askan seethe, brood and scowl till the hate he felt for that spidery bastard was all he could think about. What gave him the impression that the Lowlands were his for the taking? Was he really so arrogant, did he really think he could snatch prime hunting land from everyone's grasps? But now his anger had faded somewhat, the embers were still there, flicking and sparking whenever the Spider came to mind but...It wasn't as intense, nor did he really even care about the north anymore. Not like he used to.

"It used to be but...I guess it's better now." He shrugged. "There's a pack to the north, atop a tower of rock. It has different leaders now, but the old ones, the ones who founded it were worse than Lorcan could ever hope to be. They're probably the ones who made him that way." He snorted, knowing full well that they had both whispered maniacal shit into his ears. Talked him up till he thought he was the best thing to walk this earth. "Their plot of land was never enough for them, they always wanted more and more. Not wanting others to hunt on your doorstep is one thing, I get that, but the whole of the Lowlands? Bullshit."

"Their leader, Craw, was a conniving piece of shit. But he's gone now, hope he's dead."He spat, his voice all venom like those snakes Reyes had told him about all those months ago. And then he paused and his expression shifted, lost most of its bitterness as a frown tugged at his lips "What's all this about anyway?"Where had all these questions come from? What he'd said at the lake?

Yeah she did. Perhaps it was petty of her to hold onto the sour feeling but she hadn't been the one to pretend to be all sweet. Hawthorne knew she was a little rugged around the edges and she didn't bother hiding it behind some fancy words.

She listened intently as Askan painted a picture of the north. A tower of rock? She wondered if it looked anything akin to the mountain looming to the pack's west. Hawthorne sat patiently with an eagerness to hear more. Her mind tried to wrap around the idea of a pack who tried to claim everything around them. It seemed odd but also...thrilling? Hawthorne knew she would hate to have someone encroaching on the Edge's territory but how did it feel to be on the other end? Powerful and hellbent?

But maybe she didn't want to be like those wolves. Hawthorne didn't want her name to be spoken in the same way this Craw's name was spoken. So her lips gave a sharp frown as she was pulled away from her thoughts by his question. She was forced to think over an answer for a few brief moments.

I just... She trailed off as her shoulder's shrugged. I wanted to be in the know. You two understood each other so clearly and I felt...left out. Hawthorne finally admitted. It sounded so much more dreary than she had intended but it was the truth. And what good am I if I'm not trying to learn? You're one of the best sources I got too. Her face lightened up a bit, a kind gleam in her eyes and her lips threatening to smile. You won't bullshit anything like others might.

Askan supposed he couldn't fault her for that. He'd always hated been left out of the loop and more often than not he barged his way in if no one made an attempt to involve him. It was brash and probably all sorts of rude, but what else was he supposed to do? It seemed as though Hawthorne was following in his footsteps, picking up more and more of his habits as time went by. In all honestly, the Edge Lord couldn't tell if this was a good thing. On one paw, he liked Hawthorne, she was a good kid. But on the other, he wasn't so self centred to believe that everyone should be like him. Though he'd never admit it he knew he had more than a few faults, what if she started picking those up as well, what if he ruined her?

Askan scowled that thought away. It was dark and those damn self-loathing thoughts were all too eager to rear their ugly heads whenever he gave them a chance. So he shoved them down and shook off his coat, his tail swishing behind him as he did so.

"I suppose you have a point." Askan admitted, his words slow as though he was being forced against his will to say them. In reality though, he was having trouble suppressing a smile. "That's true...And oi, language."He tutted, shooting her a disapproving scowl. He had a potty mouth, but that was fine wasn't it? He damn well thought so.

At first her tail gave a few hearty sways at the words that she would gobble up to be a praise but her posture briefly closed to something more submissive as a cheeky grin pulled at her lips. A quick Sorry. escaped her before she shuffled her paws on the cool earth.

I think we've talked enough 'bout the bad stuff. Wanna go check a cache with me? She asked as her head gave a curious tilt. The girl wasn't hungry more so as she wanted to make sure there was food for others as well. Perhaps if she wrangled in Askan to help they could even restock the caches if needed. Although she figured winter would make it hard to find so much as a plump hare.

It was still worth a shot, right?