Hush Meadow I said the joker is a wanted man

For Lorcan. Perma {M} tag for probable language. Early morning day after said the man to the dog

rather die on our feet, than keep living on our knees

Odin Archer

Odin had given both @Bojay and @Sterling a stern warning to keep south of his markers, and to keep travelling west. He had no intention of walking them to the borders, but he would shadow them to make sure they didn't fuck things up more than they had. That being said, today he was lingering, certain he had caught @Lorcan's scent on the breeze and assuming that word hadn't yet passed among the subordinates of what had taken place on the borders.

When the russet man came into view he greeted him with a chuff, masking the bruised wince in his smile with a tip of his head, as though he had just tripped over an errant snowdrift. "Yer heard th' news?" Of course he was smirking, at the end of the day he was still his mother's son.

Lorcan, of course, had been oblivious to what had gone on between Sven, Odin and Kip. So when he caught a sniff of the one-eyed male towards the southern borders of the pack territory, he thought nothing suspicious of it. Lorcan still regarded him as a member of the pack and his subordinate and could only presume that the younger male was out in the meadows in search of prey or perhaps Greer’s missing offspring.

Trailing after the dark wolf, for he had always enjoyed his company, Lorcan greeted @Odin with a small smile and a wag of his tail. Of course it didn’t take the male long to notice that something was off. Pale brows began to furrow even before Odin spoke. He tilted his head to one side in concern, his golden eyes narrowing as he noticed the yearling's smirk. “No..” He answered hesitantly. “What have I missed?” The question came with a despondent sag of his shoulders. If that smirk was anything to go by, there was undoubtedly trouble.

(This post was last modified: Jan 20, 2018, 10:07 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

rather die on our feet, than keep living on our knees

Odin Archer

Odin snickered, unsurprised that word hadn't yet passed through the ranks. Being with his younger brothers had awakened a lost feeling of mischief and for a moment, he even considered recruiting his companion and his siblings to raid a cache on their way west... But that would be unfair to his friend. "Me an' Kip got run off fer pullin' Sven up fer pickin' a fight with ma'." Because, at the end of the day, that was exactly the message that had been sent. Hell may hath no fury like a woman scorned, but when that woman was a mother and the slight was against her children? Well, he'd be surprised if the Willows survived the winter.

"Bojay an' Sterling were lurkin' on the borders, ignorant shit of a thing decided ter step over an' Sven took exception." It would have been fair enough under other circumstances, like maybe if they'd been caught with their noses in a cache or if they were more than a step in the wrong direction with borders shifting and changing on a daily basis based on where the last spray of piss was laid. "Brace yerself Lorc, she'll be comin', an' if yer not with 'er, yer against 'er. Get ready fer th' line in th' snow." It was a dire warning, but one he wanted the healer to have none the less. It might be the only heads up he got with the way communication worked in the Ridge.

A single brow rose as Odin snickered, curious to know what was so amusing. Still new to the pack and the southern area, the agouti male had not yet figured out all the tangled Archer family connections nor the history that went along with them. Lorcan was still struggling to decide who to trust or who he stood with after the recent events.

Golden eyes widened in disbelief when @Odin told him that Sven had chased him and Kip out of the pack. The dark fur along his back bristled and his brows furrowed deeper as he lips pursed, about to ask what had happened, when the one-eyed yearling continued. His gaze narrowed. “Bojay and Sterling…Morganna’s pups?” He asked, to confirm his own presumptions as to why the dark woman should somehow be involved.

Russet ears folded back at Odin’s warning. If Sven had harmed Morganna’s children there would surely be trouble coming the pack’s way. “Fuck.” Lorcan snapped, white fangs flashing out from behind his charcoal lips as he glanced away for a moment. “First Greer and now your mother. Does the guy get a rush out of starting trouble?!” Since becoming leader, Lorcan had noticed that @Sven had been particularly short-tempered.

(This post was last modified: Jan 20, 2018, 10:55 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

rather die on our feet, than keep living on our knees

Odin Archer

All Odin could offer was a shrug, "Ma always said 'e had a chip on 'is shoulder but if 'e doesn't wanna pull 'is head out of his arse an' start thinkin' about the consequences Aunty Rav is gonna burn with 'im." The boy might have only had one eye but he wasn't blind. He knew Lorcan favoured his Aunt and from an outsiders perspective it was easy to see the healer fitting into whatever role it was that Renier held for his mother. He could see Lorcan keeping a level head and supporting her, rather than lighting fires behind her back.

"Ma doesn' move withou' givin' Greer a heads up. If things're shaky with the Heights they aren't about to improve." By his reckoning it would take a full day to travel to the Lagoon, two if he slowed his siblings down, another day for his mother to send word to Greer so maybe four days, if they were lucky."A change in lead might be th' only thing that saves 'em. I can buy yer four days, after that... Well," Four days would be stretch enough but the healer only had two wolves to get through and one had been ill since before they had joined. "Not like Nicolo's in a state ter put up much o' a fight." He suggested, a devious light in his eye and an arched brow for emphasis.

Lorcan was quickly growing uncomfortable. Pale paws shifted uneasily beneath him in the snow as he attempted to calm the sick feeling in his stomach. Golden eyes narrowed at the ground at Odin’s comment, as potential the consequences of Sven’s recent actions began to sink in. Sven had seemed so nice when he had first met him – but then, the male hadn’t held the position of male leader at that point.

“It’s not right that this should effect Ravenna or anyone in Willow Ridge.” He eyed Odin then with an apologetic frown. Lorcan understood that it had been wrong for Morganna’s newest offspring to step over the territorial borders, but what he couldn’t understand was how it had all escalated so quickly into Odin and Kip being chased out. From what @Ravenna had mentioned, and from his own observations, the pack had only recently grown in size and now, with winter arriving, Sven was starting to undo all the progress the pack had made in the past months. It put all the remaining members at risk, including himself.

Golden eyes glanced off to one side in thought as Odin continued to speak, his ears perking up suddenly at the yearling’s suggestion. Lorcan’s chest tightened anxiously. He had never been one to desire leadership. Earning the rank of second in the past had been a privilege, occurring as he naturally progressed through the pack, but to purposefully challenge for control over an entire pack – one which he had only recently joined – that was a big deal. Odin’s suggestion was not one that the agouti male would ever wish to consider lightly.

It seemed, though, that time was not on his side. If he were to sit around and contemplate for too long – or wait around for Nicolo to step up and deal with it – Morganna, and possibly @Greer, would have already come for them. Lorcan didn’t want to imagine the carnage that could occur if both packs set upon Willow Ridge. He feared for Ravenna, Adeltra and Romanov, even Leotie who he had come to appreciate as of late…

Lorcan gave a heavy, shaky sigh, causing a cloud of hot air to billow out in front of him as he rose his head. A serious look was shot to Odin, his bright golden eyes swimming with mixture of fear and determination. “If I do this, if I challenge Sven and win, do you think your mother would let this slide?”

(This post was last modified: Jan 20, 2018, 12:24 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

had a one way ticket to the place where all the demons go

Odin Archer

Would she let it slide? That was the $20,000 question wasn't it? Lorcan's guess was as good as his own as far as his mother's response was concerned. "She loves th' willows, she loves 'er sister... But she loves 'er kids more." He let out a shaky sigh of his own. "I'll do what I can ter calm 'er down, but she's Morganna Archer," he punctuated the name with a lofty lift of his chin and put on pompous airs before sagging in on himself with a sigh, "Old gods know what way she'll jump." It was small solace, but worth adding none the less, "But I feel she'll be less inclined ter meddle if it looks like th' pack're dealin' with it 'emselves." He finished with a hopeful shrug, it wasn't his circus anymore, but that didn't mean he wanted to see the big top ablaze.

(This post was last modified: Jan 20, 2018, 12:47 PM by Odin.)

Lorcan waited for an answer with nervous anticipation. Of course, it was a difficult question to answer for the one-eyed yearling. Who was to know what plots and schemes were raging through Morganna’s head at any given moment. Still, the agouti male liked to think that Odin possessed a deeper insight into the potential thoughts of his mother compared to him – and Lorcan trusted the younger male’s opinion. Lorcan had helped to bring up to the dark wolf at the monadnock after all, and he had never been given a reason to distrust him.

Odin’s answer wasn’t definite but it gave Lorcan, and the rest of the pack, some hope for a slightly more peaceful future. The agouti male swallowed nervously, a moment of silence passing between the two of them as the sick feeling in his stomach suddenly grew more violent as he realised what he was about to do. “Okay..” He said decisively. There was no turning back now. “Talk to your mother, promise me four days, and I’ll see what I can do.” He said quietly with a serious frown. “Deal?” Lorcan offered with a tilt of his chin.

(This post was last modified: Jan 20, 2018, 01:00 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

had a one way ticket to the place where all the demons go

Odin Archer

He might like to tell himself that he wasn't taking a leaf out of his mother's book, wasn't pulling strings and playing with emotions like one of his sisters might... but he'd probably be lying. If things were going to go down, better to go with a bang than fizzle into nothing and if the game panned out? Well, everyone would be better for it and the boy might find himself a place among the willows yet. "Shouldn' be too hard, they dunno th' way yet an' I may as well be herdin' cats. If I let 'em get away from me I might be able ter get yer five, but don' count on it." His face was solemn, meeting the healers eyes with genuine warmth. "An' if things don' work out, get ready ter save yer own arse. Better ter be a traitor with yer tail still attached than dead." They did things differently in Torbine, and Odin wasn't certain how much of it his mother had taken on board. Better to be safe than sorry.