Dead Empress Backwater how we're gonna make it work when it hurts

5/11/2022 -- set 2 days after his OOC join -- AW, please no more than 1 other wolf though!

And so I tell myself that I'll be strong

Seri Donata

and dreaming when they're gone

Seri had neglected to take time for much of anything, particularly when it came to processing the fact that his mother had merely disappeared from his life without a seeming trace… how she had been so upset about questions about his father and how his father had so many other children as well… and they had all gotten to grow up together. His mud brothers knew them better than he did! It didn’t feel particularly fair, but at this point he had learned that life was not fair. As the weather warmed, it was supposed to get easier but the lack of water had resulted in prey being scarce in the territory he now called home.

The prey went for the water… and so he returned from a trek out there to try and bring home something. From what he knew, Viorel and Vanadis had more puppies, and he wanted to bring a rabbit to leave by the den. It seemed like the respectful thing to do and rabbits were the easiest thing for him to catch… it was what he had been raised on. Being respectful was really all he wanted to be. He wanted to be a good pack member… but first, he really just needed to figure out what a pack member was. What was he supposed to do? He didn’t know if he had any one particular job or if he should try to do anything and he didn’t know who to ask about it either. Did he ask Eros and Archer?

Should he bother Viorel with those questions? He didn’t know… so instead, he silently observed and tried to do what he noticed.

Sharlee was really starting to feel the affects of the drought. She had searched the backwater for anything that could relieve her thirst. With there being no water and all fresh kills having been ordered to go to Vanadis there wasn't much in the way of moisture to be had. Sharlee was thinking a trip to the falls for a while might be in order. Getting away might do her some good. Though she hadn't gone to see the new pups she hadn't really left the territory since someone had to watch the borders.

More and more she felt it was getting closer to time that she had that difficult conversation. The one that she didn't want to have but it needed to take place before all that was left in her heart was resentment. She couldn't let that happen. What kind of a mother would she be of it did.

She was panting as she made her way through the backwater toward her den. Maybe the coolness of it would help in someway. It was a logical thought but in practice it probably wouldn't do anything. She happened to notice the young wolf that was Eros' friend. "I heard your one of us," she stated upon her approach.

And so I tell myself that I'll be strong

Seri Donata

and dreaming when they're gone

He carried a nervous smile on him when he noticed Sharlee. He had seen her before… and he racked his brain trying to remember what she was to Eros that was more specific than family. Come to think of it… he didn’t remember if he was ever told, but he assumed that she was family because she was part of the pack… and well, Eros was related to everyone here. “Ah… yeah… I guess.” He offered back almost uncharacteristically bashful in the moment.

His head tilted to the side. “I don’t… really know what it means.” He admitted again with a frown before continuing in the hopes that he could shed some light on his predicament. “I’ve never been in a pack before… so I don’t really know what it means, or what I’m supposed to do. When I was younger I guess my mom and I were kind of like a pack? But we travelled a lot and I heard packs don’t really travel… but we hunted for each other.” He’d never patrolled a border or talked to a superior unless he was to count speaking with his mom. He felt out of his depth.

“I was gonna ask Eros… but I dunno… I’m a little embarrassed because it seems like they all know what they’re supposed to be doing. My mom never really answered my questions all that well when I asked about packs. I don't think she knew either.”

Sharlee didn't really know if she should be surprised that Ero's friend Seri was now part of the Backwater. She supposed that maybe she should have seen in coming. Either way he was there now and seemed a little shy about being there. She smiled when he spoke. She wasn't however expecting the what came next.

It seemed the young man was very conflicted about being in a pack. More specifically what that meant for him. Again she smiled, this was certainly a problem that she could help the young man with since she'd always lived imna pack. "No need to get upset Seri. It's fairly simple for wolves like you amd me," she told. Her meaning that since they were subordinates life was sinple. "You follow the rules and do what you can to help," she explained for him. That was the most simple way of putting it but she thought maybe he woukd like some more information than just that.

"Let's start with I am happy to answer any of your questions. So don't ve afraid to ask, okay?" She took a moment to think about whatbhe said and where to start. She thought that not asking Eros was probably a good idea considering what their whole diaagreememt was about. "You aren't wrong about your mom akd you being sort of like a pack except for the traveling. Packs have a home base or territory as we like to call it. That is our home and the place we always return to. It's ours." She sxplained. Then gestured for him to ask another one of his questions that she could help to answer.

And so I tell myself that I'll be strong

Seri Donata

and dreaming when they're gone

There was stress, and stress was nothing he had ever dealt with. He had been incredibly fortunate in his childhood. Food had been a stressor, but this was a different kind of stress. This was a social stress that he was learning how to manage. He hummed, his head tilting to the side as he listened. Follow the rules and do what you can to help… that was perhaps easier said than done… and then she was offering to help answer questions. It caused his ears to perk up and his tail to thump up and down on the ground. “I guess the easiest question to ask right now is what exactly are the rules?” He knew everyone helped with the hunting and the patrolling, but he didn’t know any of the finer details.

At least he wasn’t wrong. At least he had somewhat of an idea of what was happening around him. “We sorta had a home base too… it was where I was born, but we didn’t have to return there like we do here.” He hoped that made sense as well. “Why is there the rule about not bringing friends across the borders? Isn’t that like… a friendly thing to do?”

Sharlee decided to get comfortable in this conversation. So she sat back on her haunches facing the young Seri so that she could give her full attention. She supposed as an advisor this was part of her job. However, she didn't really look at it in that light. A young wolf needed guidance and she was only to happy to help him along the way. There was much to understand when it came to living in the pack. Seri started at a reasonable place, the rules. "Well, rule number one always respect the ranks, especially that of your leader. That means if they tell you to do something or not to you should obey it. Always help out and do your part in hunting, patrolling, and generally helping to take care of the pack. You don't speak about pack matters with outsiders unless given permission." She had to mention that one since it was a recent issue. "If you decide to take a trip that's going to be longer then a couple days you should speak with Vayko or Viorel." She thought that about covered it.

Sharlee was thinking about if there were some other rules that she might have missed when Seri spoke up about the sort of home base he had with his mom. She smiled at the boy, "Life in a pack will be different and take some getting used to," or so she'd been told, "Having a home base like you had with your mother is a good start to living in a pack. I bet in the first few weeks of your life you didn't go far from there?" She tilted her head to one side when he asked about another rule they had, "You're right it is the friendly thing to do but it goes along with the rule about sharing pack matters. It's also important for keeping the pack and its resources safe. Then there is the respect issue. This is a rule that our leaders have put in place and therefore something we must follow."

And so I tell myself that I'll be strong

Seri Donata

and dreaming when they're gone

The woman’s more relaxed position put him more at ease, assuring him that he was not being a bother to her. She was the pack advisor, and he imagined she had far more important things to be doing than teaching a young wolf what the structure of a pack was like. It was moments like this in which he wished his mother’s education had been more comprehensive when it came to pack life, even if she had been determined that it was not a lifestyle for either of them.

Seri didn’t find anything wrong with it, at least not thus far. She started to explain the ranks, and how leaders should be respected and how information should not be given away. “Are trips allowed? My mom always made it seem like packs were so limited to their borders… I didn’t realize people really traveled outside of them.” He offered, a frown finding his maw as he contemplated it. His mother had lied to him, though he supposed he shouldn’t be shocked. She had lied to him about his father as well.

At least she had seemed to give him a good start. Their home base of sorts had been good. “But if they mean no harm, why do we keep them out? I don’t really… understand?” He looked for more clarification. He never wanted to be scolded like Eros had been by his father when he had brought him across the borders. “So, asking for permission is the way to go… got it… but what if they say no?”

This was the part of her role that she enjoyed most. As much as she liked being able to help her brother and Vi with their decisions she liked teaching and helping the younger wolves too. She was actually pretty ecstatic that Seri had asked for her help in figuring things out. His questions also made her think about things that just came naturally since she'd always been a pack wolf. These were things that she felt she needed to remember and recognize for the younger generations.

Seri's next question was in regards to trips outside the territory. Sharlee smiled, "Of course. If your only going to be gone a couple days it's no big deal. Though if your planning to take a longer trip it would be a good idea to talk to Vi or my brother and let them know. Mostly so that we know where you were heading so if it takes you longer we can come find you in case something happens. It's for your safety mostly." She explained that and let it settled before addressing the second part or what she felt was the second. "Most of the time we don't leave but there have been plenty of times when we've visited other packs or we go scouting for prey. Even going out to recruit new members." She was trying her best to paint the best picture for Seri amd make things very clear for him. She didn't want to see him get into trouble.

Seri still didn't understand about keeping some wolves out of pack territory. Sharlee gave some thought on how to answer him. "It really depends on the friend. If it's someone who is a friend to the pack they are usually allowed in but if they are a friend you made outside the pack that the leaders haven't met then they might not let them in because they don't know them or if they can be trusted. If that makes sense?" She felt like ye was starting to understand how things worked in the pack, "Yes, anytime your in doubt ask. If they say no ypu can ask why they made their decision. That way if it's something you can fix then maybe you can change their minds. Vi isn't an unreasonable man."

And so I tell myself that I'll be strong

Seri Donata

and dreaming when they're gone

Pack life was so confusing, and yet made so much sense at the same time. He truly did not know entirely how to rationalize it in his mind. He supposed it made sense that a pack would need to stay in one place in order to exist to it’s fullest… how could they keep their young safe if they were constantly separate from one another… at that point, they would just be a bunch of loners themselves, just loners with some kind of a fancy title… He listened to her as she explained how trips worked and why they might need clarified.

“I… guess that makes sense, doesn’t it?” He offered almost bashfully as he began to voice it out loud. “If everyone wandered off all the time, it would be pretty hard to maintain the borders, wouldn’t it? And to know who is coming back and who has just left.” He imagined that happened too, based on what he had heard about wolves leaving the backwater, and knowing that his own mother had been born into a pack and chosen a different life for her son. “So… I could go visit my father at the Cove? And it would be okay, right? Or is that too long of a trip?” He asked for his own sake, so he could begin to plan such an adventure.

He frowned at the next statement, only because of the lack of trust that the leaders seemed to put in different matters. “But… shouldn’t we trust each other to make good decisions? And to not bring untrustful wolves to the pack?” He asked for clarification, worry in his eyes. What made Vi’s or Vayko’s opinion of someone better than his or Eros’s?

Sharlee was happy that Seri was understanding her. She'd been a little afraid she wasn't explaining it right. It wasn't something she'd had to.ever explain. The pups had all been born into the pack so they'd grown up learning about it. This was a very different situation for her. She was glad for it though because as the youngan before her was learning so was she.

"Yes, it does make a lot of sense," she agreed. A smile spread across her features as he explained some of the rules back to her. She nodded, "It eould especially if more wolves are away than are staying home to look after things. It's everyone's job to help keep everyone safe amd to help each other survive. It's one of the reasons we live in packs." In Sharlee's opinion despite having never been a loner living in a pack was so much better. It made life easier. "Of course you could visit your father. It's not too far to the cove at all. Tpu woukd only need to speak with Vi and let him know how long you might be gone so we know when to expect you back. Vi might appreciate you journeying to rhe cove since they're our friends"

Seri brought up very good points about trust and visitors. So much so that Sharlee was starting to feel she might not be the ine to answer these questions. That they might be better asked of a leader. "You're right Seri we should trust each other to make good decisions about bringing wolves to the pack. I'm honestly not sure how to answer this. Maybe speaking to Vi can she'd some light on this for us?" She would go with the young man since she was curious too.