Shallows Edge Bury Me Alive

Rank Challenge | @Remington | Light Snow, 24.8 ° F, -4 ° C

The seasons had changed.

The dry, sunny heat of summer had faded away as autumn fell upon Relic Lore in what seemed like the blink of an eye. What felt like only weeks ago the earth had been dry, parched even, as the warmest months of the year lingered on with little rainfall. Now, as she stood perched atop the Edge's ridge, her paws planted firmly on a thin layer of ice that clung to the river's stony banks, snow blanketed the world around her.

Truth be told, she preferred it cold. Her already thick, tawny coat had grown to be plush and long, a perfect sort of protection from the wind's biting cold. The girl's breath escaped her body in the form of a meager, steamy cloud. The rhythmic beating of her lionheart was slow and steady. Shifting her weight, the crackle of fracturing ice sounded beneath her. She was ready.

Tilting her muzzle skyward, she issued her summons to Remington. This was hardly personal, but she had every intention of rising to the apex of the hierarchy - starting today.

(This post was last modified: Oct 11, 2018, 06:14 PM by Lyanna.)

Gonna assume like late morningish?

Remi didn't have a numerous list of reasons why Lyanna would be calling her. She'd already seen her challenge one wolf, who had unfortunately left, and since it wasn't urgent it couldn't be because she needed a Keeper. Could anyone just call for her to ask how she was doing? Go for a hunt or friendly spar? Whatever. She wasn't the kind of wolf which others sought for her company. Something that bothered her at times since she wondered if she stank that bad, or was just that irritating without meaning to be. A sigh slipped from her lips as the falling snow dusted her silver coat. She probably better get to it as much as she wanted to plod along. Test the girl's patience. But the sooner she dealt with the matter the sooner she could get back to things that mattered. Or at least she tried to tell herself. There were those days when she didn't feel like anything counted and it seemed like this might just be one of them.

As she wove through the underbrush she was beginning to wonder why Lyanna wanted to rise. Phoenix she had understood but what did this girl want? With an array of ideas from breeding season,titles, and ambition she couldn't quite focus on a single one as she eventually made it to the caller. The silver Keeper held a neutral posture for the time, not hesitating to let her eyes sweep over to the similar golden pair. "Little sooner than I expected," was all she said with a half-smirk of ease. Masking all other emotions. She wasn't sure how she wanted to play this one. If she should even bother to do a thing.

(This post was last modified: Oct 12, 2018, 03:05 AM by Remington.)

Sounds good

Eventually the sound of steps in the snow broke the morning quiet, and she watched as her silver-furred pack mate emerged from the white-crested tree trunks between them. The dark girl's expression gave nothing away, the mask she wore clear to see though the expressions it hid remained elusive. Mirroring Remington's neutrality, Lyanna met her gaze openly.

"Little sooner than I expected."

Perhaps it was. Soon, or too soon, depending on anyone's given perception. In the world she knew, challenges like this one were common, natural, even. It was the right of a wolf to ascend, and it was her will to do so here. This wasn't about power or the like - it was for proving to herself that she was capable, worthy of the ambition that drove her to do better and be better. Shallows Edge had a way of fostering equality within the pack, and it wasn't like the outcome of her challenge to Remington was going to change that. And it was hardly her intention to make it feel that way. For the briefest moment, she couldn't help but to wonder if the girl standing before her knew it or not.

At this point it wouldn't make a difference.

"Life's too short to wait around," she offered calmly with a flick of her tail. High in the sky, the light of the sun struggled to shine through the scattered grey of the clouds that loomed overhead, yet she could still feel it creep up along her back. "You know what we're here for." Her challenge was clear - how her counterpart chose to proceed would be the preamble to the situation's delicate unfolding.

Clearly amused a chuckle broke forth. "You do seem to be in a hurry don't you..." A brow raised quizzically, that smirk still clinging to her muzzle a little more mischievously. She had acted as swiftly as her injury allowed her or maybe this whole thing would have been over with. If only.

She entertained the idea of telling Askan just to stick her at the lowest so she wouldn't get any more calls like this. Especially because she had honestly been surprised it wasn't where she had been put to begin with. When the Edge had first formed. A question she sometimes wanted an answer to. But she found no real comfort in speaking to him about any of it. It would all just be noise she felt.

What did any of it matter now?

Because now she was just trying to decide how much to care. Remington was familiar with the workings of a pack. How she wouldn't be looked at any less. It just seemed like making way through the ranks wasn't something you did straight off without good reason. Especially because she had a feeling Phoenix place would only be next on the list. Why would Lyanna need to be there? If they were all "equals" this all was pretty moot wasn't it? Briefly, she closed her eyes, to push silly irritation back. This wasn't personal, but there were things that nagged her about this one.

Her chosen words only prodded further at the Keeper. "Yes, but not why, " the statement had no trouble falling from her lips as she took two steps forward. Her gaze narrowing in the slightest despite the few inches the Herald had on her. "There is nothing wrong with ambition just wonder what you're trying to prove by wanting to keep your already higher head above mine." It was what it really came down to was it not? Or was she going to enlighten her it wasn't?

(This post was last modified: Oct 12, 2018, 06:21 AM by Remington. Edit Reason: spell what )

Among the short string of words accompanying the chuckle that ultimately came from Remington's mouth was "...your already higher head above mine." And to this, Lyanna's expression became utterly stoical.

Firstly, she wasn't quite sure why she was expected to explain herself. This wasn't twenty-one questions, and quite frankly the way she was being regarded with - suspicion? - was unwarranted. To imply that her intention may be questionable was a disrespect she hadn't earned, not by a long shot. It was simple enough - she was challenging for rank, and Remington was next in line. And as far as Phoenix was concerned, well - she had been but a ghost since the day Askan brought Lyanna in. Somewhere between letting Remington's doubt roll right off her shoulders, frank - though ultimately fleeting - annoyance with the girl's demeanor, the extraneous questioning, and resisting the impulse to say or do something brash, Lyanna drew a quiet breath.

"You don't know me - I get it," she returned, taking her own two steps forward and planting her feet, lifting her already higher head further, her tone as steady as the ground they stood on. "...But actions speak louder than words, Remington, and mine have been clear. If you came to know me, you wouldn't question why. I have more to offer Shallows Edge than what may meet your eyes, and the best interest of every wolf in it at heart - yours included." She didn't want to have to explain her why - it just was. It was who she was to strive to be better, it was how she'd been raised. Really, she'd rather put her bite where her bark was at this point, but a little finesse would leave them both better off in the long run, and she was fairly certain neither of them would be going anywhere any time soon. The pair could throw down any time, but perhaps her words could, should they not fall on deaf ears, possibly offer some reassurance. "This isn't about being higher - it's about proving my worth to myself, to you, and to this pack."

It should have gone without saying.

"Step down," she went on, her russet ears pressing forward in as her tail rose at her back, "or show me that you deserve your rank."

(This post was last modified: Oct 12, 2018, 03:30 PM by Lyanna.)

S FOR SWEARS.

If she was surprised to be questioned Remington didn't care in the least. It was her own naivety to think a long standing member wouldn't question her motives. Especially considering Remington's role was to keep this pack safe from outside threats or in. And ambition, in her eyes, could be a dangerous path because there were so many who were never satisfied. But this one clearly only had the noblest of intentions didn't she?

She rolled her eyes for the first in a long time. Phoenix had rubbed off on her no doubt.

"Man you are the master of flowery bullshit aren't you? Tiptoeing the question so carefully as if I shouldn't question you to begin with. How highly you must think of yourself with your all good heart... knowing what's best." Made her want to retch really. Was this how she talked all the time? Especially because the rest was all the more entertaining, and she snorted another good laugh.

"Get to know you? When would I have done that with your nose up everyone else's asses? It was clear you've had no reason to buddy up to me. What would that have gotten you?" A thin smile slipped on her lips as her ears pinned back because she didn't get any less annoying with her little speech.

"Then you have a warped view of worth," she murmured her mind elsewhere for a moment. She didn't want to go a round about why that wasn't true either. Hell she had to keep going didn't she? Like Remington wasn't the only one she had to convince cause she was doing anything but assuring the Keeper. Where on earth had Askan found this one under a rainbow where'd she'd perched in wait?

Oh the best part was when she said to step down or prove to her she deserved her rank. Remi lost it. She laughed with an ache in her sides as if she'd just been told the funniest joke. Going on a good round, and start of another. Now wasn't the time to forget herself so swiftly she caught her breath with a faint sigh and held tight to her twisted smirk."Now I must prove myself to you? Bravo."

She squeezed her eyes for a second not to laugh some more but it seemed in that single action she was no longer amused. "If I didn't deserve it don't you think Askan and Reyes would' have put me at the bottom? But maybe you know better then them too?" All humor left her as if the last word had left an awful taste on her tongue and she needed rid of it. The silver hair along her spine rose, and there grew a crinkle in her snout. "You take the damn thing since it will help you feel so good...but don't act like you earned anything. You've only proven you have a desperate need." Her teeth clicked together as she finished, a clear warning in her eyes. But she was through with this one. So with her tail at her hocks she left the Herald alone to celebrate her new rising in ranks.

{exit}

(This post was last modified: Oct 13, 2018, 07:48 PM by Remington. Edit Reason: double word )

Lyanna watched carefully as Remington unfolded, dishing out what words she could to cut to the bone. This wasn't personal, to her, but obviously it was to the woman standing across from her. In what world had she been offensive enough to warrant the reaction she received? No matter. Nothing was going to change the damage done to whatever dynamic existed between them now - not anytime soon, anyway, judging from the bitterness spewing from the other's mouth.

Heaviness settled in her chest as the seconds crept by. Lyanna's face was like stone as the judgments and insults tore right through her, the look in her eyes giving nothing away as her words were twisted and used against her. It was all a bit dramatic, but it wasn't hard to stay - she knew better than to grasp for truth in Remington's spoken perspective, and everyone was entitled to their own opinions, weren't they.

She found she didn't have any words to offer as Remington finished her lashing with a click of her teeth before turning her back to leave while the cinders of their confrontation burned out and settled to the ground like the snow they stood on. She didn't linger for a moment before doing the same.

{end}