Hearthwood River sail with me into the dark

She knew it -- the she-wolf witch would only come and gobble her eye if she was really bad -- and what pup ever thought they were really bad? "Nope," she chirped, brightening slightly at the promise the dragon bestowed upon her. She released a soft sigh, her nose leaning forward to touch against Kjors much larger one for a stolen moment. "Promise," she mumbled, repeating his words now. Kjors would protect her -- and almost as an afterthought, a scowl bunched her slender features. "Protect Inna too," she insisted, her tail giving a light whip behind her.

Before she could enforce the equivalent of a wolf's 'pinky promise' upon her newest friend, Maksim's presence was upon them. The impressive man placed a kiss upon his daughter's head, and Lekalta practically cooed at the attention. She loved stolen moments with her father, and this would prove to be no different. Completely missing the tone the Baranski patriarch used upon Kjors, Lekalta greeted Maksim by up righting herself instantly, rubbing her much smaller tawny frame against his chest in cat-like grace. "Daddy," she brightened, her eyes drifting now to Kjors as a grin plastered itself upon her face.

Maksim's attention was upon the other man now, though, and gingerly, Lekalta slid her rump back to the grass, her eyes raptly drifting between the two adults as conversation was about to unfold. Did her father know that an evil she-wolf witch had gobbled up Kjors eyeball because he had been very bad?

are you deranged like me? are you strange like me?
lighting matches just to swallow up the flame like me?
do you call yourself a fucking hurricane like me?

"Promise," Kjors mumbled right back, perfectly at ease with the pup and her requests. The woman would never find him, but regardless of the witch and her wicked ways, he would defend the tiny princess. "An' yer sister, too. She wanders an awful lot. Y'sure yer—" But he never got to finish his thought, story time interrupted by the appearance of the mighty titan who laid claim to the Queen and sired all the heirs to the River clan. Finally, they met. If Kjors didn’t know better, he'd think the elusive king had been avoiding him all this time. Ears rolled back as he lifted his snout, allowing the princess to toddle to her father's feet without protest. He could expect little else of his darling girl, no? But the tone was not lost on the dragon, and the griffon was met with a mouth full of daggers. "Ah imagine y'have," he replied with a twinkle in his golden eye. "Ah have tha' effect, y'know. Comes when y' actually pay attention t' folk." But I don't suppose you'd know much about that, would you? he sang in his head. The dragon roared to life inside his chest, the rush of blood almost deafening in his ears as he lifted himself off the ground. Something in his better sense warned against the sway, the casual wag of his tail and the tip of his head, but how could he help it? Maksim had come with only one thing on his mind, that much was obvious. Why else would he interrupt his child's obvious joy? "Y'need somethin', 'er y'come t' ask 'bout th' eye, too?"

Burtn @DA & Dawnthieves.de - Table by PuppyThief

Maksim's eyes widened, locking with the one eye of Kjors, and he offered a flash of his yellowed teeth to the dragon. He did not miss that little quip, he made that known. Lekalta and Inna had been taught from a young age that respecting hierarchy was always necessary -- for the tawny princess to see the king like this was not rare. They were wild, those Baranski wolves, but with noble hearts. Respect went both ways. "It would be wise to remember who you are in the presence of," he rumbled lowly. "I had waited for you to seek me out, as any wise man would do when it came to their leader."

Rolling his shoulders, he could not help the protection placement of his leg, between his daughter and the dragon. He had already stolen one of his daughters, something Maksim would soon rectify. Kjors would not take another Baranski child beneath his leathery wing.

"I heard enough of your little story. Enough to know that only very, very bad wolves lose an eye." He nuzzled his daughter behind the ear for a moment. It's alright, little one. Lifting his gaze once more, the king gave a tilt of his own head, eagle-like focus trained on the swarthy, and certainly slimy, wolf. "I can only wonder what it is that you did that was so very, very bad. Would you perhaps share that tale?" His expression was locked into a stoic, steely glare that would not shift. Whilst his words appeared almost friendly, there was an obvious knife hidden behind it. Maksim could be slimy too.

we are shining in the rising sun, as we are floating in the blue

Oh, yes, what any wise man would do, Kjors thought bitterly.  His lips fell, but the smile did not dissipate, the threat of teeth dancing in his single eye as he fought the urge to laugh.  Large, powerful and healthy, @Maksim was not a wolf to be underestimated.  The male had no interest in a fight, not today, not with Lekalta underfoot, but it was clear that he would not simply bare his neck and allow the King his throat on command of it.  If @Karina asked him, he would relent without question – if @Kisla asked him, he might consider it for a moment, and relent all the same.  It had come to the point that he'd begun to trust the Queen, and wished to please her and her offspring. Her mate, however— His tail swished behind his rump in a snaking serpentine, unable to keep still as his gaze shifted from the posturing king to his young daughter.  The smile the princess was offered was much more genuine, ears tipping forward as he hummed.  "Oh, aye.  Only th' bad ones lose an eye t' a witch.  Th' thing is, she was a witch, an' Ah'm a dragon – there's no love lost between th' two.  Now, understand, in th' Greenwood there was only one beta.  A King, and his lover, an' directly beneath 'im a beta – an' tha' was th' witch, slowly stealin' th' man away from his wife," he hummed, thoroughly enraptured by his story.  His eye was only for Lekalta, gauging her reaction, hoping she found the story as entertaining as she did the last.  "Now, see, witches can use magic t' do such things – some wolves don' know, 'er mebbe they don' much care.  Either way, she'd a spell 'round the King of the Greenwood, an' Ah sought t' stop her.  Knock 'er down a rank, 'fer a dragon knows magic when he sees it, though he's got none of his own.  Got in a argy-bargy with 'er, terribly fierce, an' then th' teeth an' th' claws." Ah, how desperately he wished to knock S down from her post.  He'd have killed her, had she not gotten the upper paw on him. "Bu' she used her magic on me, my dear, and 'fer me insolence, she took th' eye, made sure Ah'd never challenge 'er again.  Suppose she wasn' wrong – Ah didn'.  Ah left, after tha'.  Ain't much point stayin' there, not when no one would listen.  So y'see, Ah was very bad, an' she punished me fer it.  But ye'll never have such pro'lems, mhm, Lekalta?  Yer a good lass." Eventually, his gaze drifted back up to Maksim, something self-satisfied in his gaze as he hummed softly.  Was the story true?  Was it fiction?  He gave no indication, though he certainly sounded earnest enough.  Clearly he believed some of it, if not all, though Kjors made no attempt to continue.  "Y'need another story, 'er yer curiosity's satisfied, now?"

Burtn @DA & Dawnthieves.de - Table by PuppyThief

(This post was last modified: Aug 29, 2015, 02:05 PM by Kjors.)

Lekalta practically beamed at the attention her father bestowed upon her – her child’s eye did not take the placement of his leg as anything other than posture, nor did she seem to notice the shift of tension within the air. Her muzzle lifted upward to Maksim’s nuzzle – bumping her head to his chin before beginning to weave around his leg much like a cat would. If she could, the girl would have practically been purring like one as well. She reveled in the individual attention from her parents, and this would be no different. Inna was off somewhere e—and Maksim was all hers!

What she took upon the conversation was that her father wanted to know more of KJors story and the evil witch. Captivated once more by the tale, her eyes widened with delight at the one-eyed wolf, and as he finished with the assumption she was a good girl, the honeyed pup batted a paw playfully on the ground, her rump giving a wiggle. “I’m a good girl,” she chirped brightly, her gaze flickering back to her father as if requesting assurance on this matter. “But @Inna! Daddy, what if the witch comes for Inna’s eye?”

Did she really think her sister was bad? No. But she had daddy’s attention right now, and Lekalta was bound and determined to be the best daughter for this stolen moment. Blinking, her gaze drifted between the two, completely oblivious of the challenged dominance that might have just slipped from Kjors mouth.

are you deranged like me? are you strange like me?
lighting matches just to swallow up the flame like me?
do you call yourself a fucking hurricane like me?

@Kjors @Lekalta -- so sorry for taking so long. ♥

There was a strained, not quite genuine look on Kjors' face, and the king was tempted to send another shot of dominance his way ... however, it seemed that the subordinate, however unruly, was quite quick to spin his little tale. Maksim chuffed to his daughter softly, nosing her crown whenever it peeked into view, as Kjors began his exaggerated story about witches and dragons. Ah yes. There it was. I'm a dragon. A self-sung hoarder of gems and trinkets. Truth be told, his distaste left him barely listening, though the lord of Hearthwood caught bits and pieces here and there -- a Beta, a plot, a fight, and a lost eye.

He eyed the one-eyed Timber warily, but offered a soft chuckle to the princess who questioned the potential of some nasty woman stealing Inna's eye. Had Inna been bad? No, of that Maksim was fairly certain ... but children played, and the smallest things seemed mischievous to them. "No one will steal Inna's eye, my star," he rumbled soothingly, "I'll make sure of that. If there's one thing your daddy can do, it's protect you and your siblings, hm?"

His head slowly rose as he gazed coldly at Kjors. The bromide left him with a quirk of one creamy brow. Is that how he wished to talk, then? "Far from it. What is it you plan on teaching my Karina?" My Karina, he thought bitterly, my flesh and blood; my little rabbit-heart. "She's been neglecting lessons with Lachesis, and it has me ... concerned." Answer wisely, serpent tongue. The beast was hiding behind that stoic gaze, ready to leap forward and pounce. If there was one thing daddy could do, it was protect. "I want the best for my children, Kjors." And as it stands, I think you far from it.

(This post was last modified: Oct 12, 2015, 09:45 PM by Maksim.)

we are shining in the rising sun, as we are floating in the blue

Perhaps it was too much to hope that satisfying the princess would satisfy her father, too.  Already Kjors regretted his presence, though he did his best keep on his bright expression and relaxed composure.  If only it was as easy to be around Maksim as it was his mate – inherently, he trusted women less, and mothers even less than that, but something about Kisla had earned the dragon’s begrudgingly loyalty.  Apparently, it did not extend beyond the woman herself, for the River King was met with considerably less enthusiasm. “Naw, Ah think yer sister’s alright,” he drawled softly, bobbing his head towards Lekalta.  He’d met the darker pup before, and while she’d been wandering perhaps a bit too far, he thought the young Baranski princess to be no more rambunctious or wandering than any other pup her age.  She was polite enough, she was well-meaning – there was no reason for any of the Baranski princesses to fear.  (It was unlikely the witch would ever be seen again, and even if she were, Kjors had no doubt the wolves of Hearthwood River would rise up to run her out, especially if she hinted at harm towards any of the pack’s youth.) Eventually, his attention was drawn back to the alpha male and he puffed softly.  He should have known, Maksim couldn’t leave it at story time.  Oh no, he’d have to ruin the pleasant time @Lekalta was having with questions of the eldest princess.  Ears flattened out to the side.   “Been teachin’ her t’ defend herself.  With her visual diability, tha’ is,” he rumbled, tilting his head so the empty socket was all the more apparent.  While his lost organ limited his depth perception, and @Karina struggled with the clarity of images, to find another wolf who had visual issues at all was something of a boon, and they took what they were handed.  “Also teachin’ her t’ accept it.  Ain’t somethin’ wrong with her.  Jes’ her.  Jes’ th’ way it is.  Ah ain’t keepin’ her from Nineteen, y’know.  She does an awful lotta practice on her own.” But this couldn’t be going anywhere good.  Shifting his weight, the subordinate took a step back, glancing from princess to king, and back again.   “Now, s’tha’ all…?  Thought t’ catch meself somethin’ t’ eat while th’ day’s still in.” Fade.

Burtn @DA & Dawnthieves.de - Table by PuppyThief

Maybe another post from Lekalta/Mak and we can archive?

(This post was last modified: Nov 29, 2015, 01:57 AM by Kjors.)

Lekalta was at a keen age to pick up the most random pieces of a conversation, and blinking with sudden awareness, the exchange between Kjors and Maksim suddenly held a different meaning to her – long forgotten were eyeballs and witches. “Kurrina not wrong,” she puffed out, casting a glare between either beast, uncertain as to why her dearest and elder sister was brought in to a conversation with words she did not quite grasp. “Kurrina my friend,” she ushered quietly, stamping a itny paw on the ground as if this would drive that fact home.

Oblivious to whatever showdown was happening – or Kjors attempting to dismiss himself, Lekalta had determined that she was now bored and would resume her quest to seek Inna out once more. Tilting her muzzle upward, she pecked a light kiss to her father’s nose, uttering a gentle chuff. “Goin’ t’find Inna,” she brightened, her muzzle breaking in to a wide smile. “Love you, daddy!” With that, the honeyed girl spun, casting a shy glance at the wolf who had enthralled her only moments before. Planting a hesitant kiss upon his cheek, Lekalta gave a tiny giggle before skipping off, her muzzle tilting back as another bellow issued from her – her hunt continued! “INNNNAAAAAAA!"

are you deranged like me? are you strange like me?
lighting matches just to swallow up the flame like me?
do you call yourself a fucking hurricane like me?