Lost Lake Grains of the Past

For @Aleister @Chan @Nash

Bitter winds of winter combed through coarse agouti fur, nipping at her ear tips and stinging her eyelids. Neha paid it all no mind. Aged well into the prime of her life, she had done more than enough travelling through conditions far harsher than these. Never in a million years did she imagine she would be back here again, of all places. They had sworn on it, promised each other never to return, the day they left. But some untouchable force had pulled them back.

She was not alone. He was by her side. Aleister. As he had always been from that fateful day so many years ago when they reunited. He had held true to his word, sticking with her through thick and thin. A true brother, made of the one missing for so long during the early days of her youth. Back then Neha had always thought Cernan would be her lifetime companion. But she had never been so wrong and Aleister's re-emergence had opened her eyes.

Standing together on a high, stable ledge of slate, she gazed down with him into the bowl like shape that housed the valley of their birthplace. Instead of mirth in her chocolate eyes, there was contemplation. "This must mean something. It feels so surreal to be back, but I think fate brought us here for a bigger reason." Locking her eyes with him, the unsaid message echoed in the space between them. Family. They were Vuesain's by blood. This was their birth right. Namid was long dead. She never knew what had become of Vesperito. Her son was out there somewhere, wanting nothing to do with her. Their parents she knew, would not have wanted them to give up so easily. Namid especially, would have wanted the Vuesain legacy and that of Fallen Tree Cove to live on.

This time of year was always hard on Nash. It was harder to keep up hope that he'd find someone home when he was surrounded by untouched snow. The coyotes were long gone, but the wolves of Fallen Tree Cove had not returned. Sometimes Nash wondered if they'd all been killed.

But that would have left signs, and besides, Nash wasn't inclined to think like that.

Before heading to the main denning area, Nash steered towards the rock pile like that served as his father's grave. While the Cove's guardian hadn't been completely buried by the rock slide that killed him, the pack had elected to cover him where he lay rather than dig him up and move his broken body. Tagg would have understood.

That was when things really went wrong.

Nash stood a moment over his father's grave to pay his respects, thinking back on hazy memories of playing with Tagg and his siblings while his mother napped, of pine cones and sticks and bits of fur. As he always did when he visited, Nash tipped his head back and howled.

(This post was last modified: Jan 11, 2021, 02:40 AM by Nash. Edit Reason: Fix typo )

You smell the remains of an elk nearby. Enjoy your feast! +10 Health

aleister vuesain

blood is thicker

He never imagined stepping back into the lore after him and his sibling vanished from the lands last. Promising her a better life where happiness was attainable. The Wildwood once only gave the Vuesains pain and misery. No reason for the duo to stay, nothing to fight for. Aleister was still confused on why they came back. What could possibly be here for them?

Happiness found the Vuesain littermates or at least he thought it had. For him, he was happy to succumb to the wanderlust that had allows plagued his soul. For Neha he was unsure what happiness found her, but after their leave from the Lore, the dreadful weight that tore down his sister had seemed to of slowly lifted away. Aleister was happy to see her finally healthy and happier than he had found her that fateful day many years ago where she had mistaken him for her son. The bond between them had grown exponentially since then. Aleister promised to never leave her again and to this day, he had always kept that promise.

The winter breeze nipped at his nape as the duo graze down off the ledge at their birthplace. The land of which the Vuesain legacy grew stronger. The land that was once their family’s. Granted for Aleister, he hardly knew his family. Neha taught him all about the wolves he didn’t get the chance to know. His true family would only ever be Neha. His circle will probably always be small, but he was improving his social skills.

I swore I saw you dragging me back here by my scruff. A smirk tugged on his ebony lips as his mismatched gaze met his sister’s. If she had the chance many years ago when he first left the Cove, his sister would have been the once to drag his ass back here. Aleister wished she would have found him, she would have him from the guilt that had once devoured him. Fate brought us back home. They were home, but they were alone. Their dearest mother was long dead, their father’s existence unknown as well as the rest of their siblings. It was just them left. Or so he thought. The howl rang out as his gaze flickered to where the source of it had come from.

Chan had expected to come home. From the red hills to this, the heart of the Lore, he had come across no one. Not a scent, not a trace. His feelings on the matter were mixed. At the least, he hadn't found their skeletons. The utter lack of evidence gave him hope that they had simply moved, but what the hell could scare his mother away from her mountain home? Not to mention the other packs that used to dwell below in the forests...

If it had anything to do with Roland, Chan was gonna kill him.

He'd been following the curve of the lake, seeking clues when he heard a howl. His ears lifted, flexing his muscle memory and instincts. The den. Chan turned fast and beelined for the place he'd been born. The wolf he found there looked like a stranger, but something clicked inside the man's head as he approached.

"Nash... ?"

CHAN EASTFALL

(This post was last modified: Jan 11, 2021, 05:44 AM by Chan.)

Sharing a light little chuckle with him, Neha nodded. "Indeed it did. It feels odd being back here, but somehow, right." Should she tell him of the visions she had been having in her dreams? She decided to hold off. What was more important was the present. Of scouring the remnants of the Cove and seeing what remained. When they had left, the coyotes were running rampant. But gazing down into the whole of her home now, all was quiet. Like it was deserted.


Only it wasn't. A howl cut through the silence, causing the Vuesain's ears to prick. It was coming from within. Rather than being alarmed, Neha felt a prickle of hope in her heart. But also a certain sense of territorial defensiveness. "We should check that out. C'mon." She gestured to her brother and best friend, before leading the way to descend down the naturally carved stone staircase leading into the valley.


On their way, a scent drifted towards her nose. Not of other wolves, but of Elk. Long since dead. Nature seemed to see it fit to provide the fractured Cove wolves a feast as a welcome home present. It's body, water logged and partially submerged in the shallows of the lake, told of it's end. It had likely fallen through the ice and froze to death. While soggy, it was largely intact. Neha paid it little more than a sparing glance, much more interested in the two other wolven shapes in the distance. She approached with confidence and purpose in her step, but without hostility. "You there...have you been here long?" She addressed them both, eyes flicking between the two. Yet to realize she was laying eyes on two of her own lost kin.

(This post was last modified: Jan 17, 2021, 02:11 AM by Neha.)

Neha can often be found close to Aleister's side and therefore may appear in any of his threads.

Nash should have known other wolves were present; he should have smelled them. But he was used to being alone, despite his ever-pressing hope, and the tart scent of elk remains mixed with his focus on his father’s grave to blind him.

Until he looked down from how howl and found himself suddenly surrounded. First he saw the pair coming down into the bowl, then heard a familiar voice from behind, saying his own name in what almost sounded like disbelief.

Nash whirled around and for a moment he thought Tagg had come back from the dead to speak with him. Only, instead of one blind eye, it was blue.

”Chan!” Nash jumped at his brother, butting his head against Chan’s shoulder maybe a little harder than he intended but was too caught up in his excitement to care. His tail whipped back and forth behind him, nearly unbalancing him. Even though the older Eastfall had been gone for almost two years, he still smelled like home to Nash, who had been alone all that time. ”I missed you!”

Then one of the other two, whom Nash had nearly forgotten already, spoke, and he turned to face her. There was something vaguely familiar about the pair, in both scent and visage, but Nash couldn’t quite place it. ”I got here this morning, but I come back every month or so to see if anyone’s come home… don’t I know you?” he glanced at Chan, hoping to gain some sort of clue from his older brother.

aleister vuesain

blood is thicker

Nodding at his sibling's word, the rogue followed behind her while they both set out to discover who was calling from within their homeland. Perhaps, not everyone had deserted the Lore. Whoever this was, would be the first soul they encountered since returning. Hopefully, this wasn't going to be an uncomfortable meeting. Though, anytime Aleister had to partake in conversation with those he did not know was always uncomfortable for the rogue.

As they descend upon the Cove, the lingering scent of dead elk entered the air around them. Glancing at where it lay, for later, he continued to follow his Vuesain littermate as they descended upon the wolves that currently occupied Lake. One ebony and the other donned a tawny coat with a mismatched gaze like him, however the colors were unalike to his. Neha stood commanding, while he kept at her side his posture stern and ready. The rogue didn't want any funny business arising as his mismatched gaze pierced the strangers.

His sister addressed the pair, with the ebony one answering first. Who did you know here? The rogue questioned. Did they know the same wolves or had others claimed this land after the Vuesains left.

The black-pelted wolf turned around, and those green eyes immediately confirmed Chan's suspicion. A warm wave of relief and comfort immediately washed over him as he rushed forward to meet his baby brother just as enthusiastically. Of course, Nash was no baby anymore, very far from it. The ungainly paws and floppy bat ears were long gone, he noticed as he took a step back to look the young man over. They both looked so much like each of their parents, together creating a distorted mirror image of Tagg and Moonshadow. It made him a little bit emotional, but there wasn't an immediate opportunity to catch up; other wolves were approaching.

Chan was clearly guarded as he moved forward, placing himself just a few inches closer to the strangers than his sibling, just in case. This wasn't to say he appeared hostile, however. His ears tipped toward Nash as he answered the woman's question, several words catching his attention. Came back from where? Nash didn't know where the pack was?

"We were born here," he asserted evenly. "Our mother led Fallen Tree Cove."

His mismatched eyes focused more often on Neha than Aleister, something about the woman's appearance in particular tickling at his memory...

CHAN EASTFALL

The two wolves before her seemed to know one another, she observed, judging by their happy exchange. She squinted her eyes, studying their features while taking in their scent. Something about them seemed very familiar, but she just couldn't place it. The dark one affirmed that he had been visiting the old territory frequently, which peaked her curiosity. 

Then Chan chimed in, stating that their mother had led Fallen Tree Cove. Brows pinching, Neha wracked her brain for memories. "What was her name?" Tail swishing, her posture relaxing some, she glanced to Aleister. Whoever their parents had been, they weren't here now. Not that hers were ever destined to return. "Our parents were the founders of Fallen Tree Cove. Namid and Vesperito Vuesain." She stated, keeping the pride out of her voice. She was hoping for unity here, depending on who she found out these wolves were. Not a competition between members of once the same pack.

Neha can often be found close to Aleister's side and therefore may appear in any of his threads.