Grizzly Hollow It's A Revolution

Sorry for the wait @Veho // Light rain : 48*F, 9*C : 7PM //

It was autumn all right. The leaves were starting to brown, withering and shrivelling as the trees braced themselves for the oncoming cold. A cold which was swift approaching, and with it, rain. With a snort of contempt Yvly shook out her coat and turned back around to make her way back to the main den. It was just her luck it started raining at the end of her border patrol. Lately it seemed pack members were disappearing slowly, one by one, leaving more work for the rest of them to do. With winter right around the corner it could only seem to spell disaster, but Yvly had faith that she and the rest of Grizzly Hollow could pull through, including Veho and Oula's brood.

Ears swivelling in three-sixty degrees on a constant search for bears nearby searching for a place to hibernate, the tawny female pondered as she weaved through the trees. Oula's scent seemed to have been fading from the main den these past few days, and with the pups only four months old, that was never a good thing. A mother always stayed close by, and she had had not enough spare time to talk it over with another member about it. Surely something majorly important had come up that Oula needed to take care of. There was just no way she could have deserted them too. Yvly had trust in Oula that she was here to stay.

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The rain seemed to mirror the Hollow King’s mood of late – dour, dreary.  Miserable.

There had been a lot that had happened in Rook’s life in the past four seasons.  The death of his father, stepping down from the alpha rank, losing Quil to wandering feet.  A relationship with Tomen – the decision to have children of their own, with Oula’s assistance.  All of this, difficult for any wolf to stomach, surely, but--  But he was still gone, and Veho still missed him.

And now he did not have Oula to lean on, either.

Oh, at four months, the pups had long since been weaned – but they certainly could not feed themselves, and with dwindling numbers, it seemed poor form to ask other pack members to feed his children when there were caches to stock up for the winter.  It had been his idea to sire a brood, after all, and it was his burden to carry…even if it was weighing heavily upon his shoulders these days.

“Yvly.”

The children had been put to bed in the pack den, but Veho could not sleep.  Pale eyes noted the female the moment she appeared in his field of vision.  “Do you have a moment?  I might like to speak, if you are free.”

At the sound of her name Yvly paused, dark amber eyes focusing on the wolf that had spoken. "Veho," she greeted in return with a dip of her head. It had taken some time but now she was happy enough to show her respect for the older male by acting as a dutiful subordinate. Her acting out against authority had been childish acts, and now with more experience of the way the world worked she understood that, attempting to fix her past errors. Tawny ears flicked forward at his next words, brows furrowing slightly at his somewhat listless tone. It made her nervous, seeing Veho so... drawn drained. It was not the pups, she would have heard about it, so it must be something else.

"Of course." The tawny female moved closer so as to make it so they did not have to speak in raised voices. She did not want to wake up any of the sleeping wolves currently in the pack den, nor the pups if they were in there. Wanting to reach forward in an attempt to at least somewhat raise his low spirits but not knowing how, Yvly instead chose to speak out, hoping to let @Veho know he could talk to her and get whatever it was that was plaguing his mind off his chest. "What is it you need?"

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The statue moved slowly from his position, meeting the woman halfway; a little distance from the den would surely limit chances of waking the pups, or anyone else who’d bedded down for the night.  Veho settled on his haunches a second time, feeling no need to posture towards the woman who was meant to become his partner – instead, he simply motioned with his muzzle for the younger wolf to follow suit.  Only once she was comfortable did he open his mouth to speak, his tone low…raspy.  Not the usual melody that flowed freely from dark lips.

“Ah – I need nothing, my friend.  Do not trouble yourself.”

And this, at heart, was a boldfaced lie.  But what the alpha did need was likely something Yvly could not give – and frankly, not something he wished to ask the female for.  His heart hung heavy in his gut; with so little of it left, he was reluctant to give more at this particular moment.  Who knew when his children would need it the most?

“I actually wanted to ask the same of you.  I realize Oula’s departure was a bit…sudden.”  He paused, pale eyes flickering upwards to watch the sky.  Not just for her replacement, he noted tiredly.  “You have accepted the change of roles and responsibilities with much grace thus far – but I wanted to make sure there was nothing you needed, or to answer any questions you had.  This is not a job I would wish on anyone unprepared.”

And oh, the tired smile that never did reach his eyes.

At Veho's motion for her to come closer and get comfortable she padded just a little closer before sitting back on her haunches, mirroring the older male, tawny ears perking forwards so he knew he had her full attention. She had never seen him look this grave before, and if she said it did not worry her she would be lying. It may have been a subordinate thing to do, but she had depended and relied on @Veho as a leader and protector of the pack, and seeing him look so... grim, made her feel a bit uneasy. The tawny female dipped her head when he said she had no need to worry about him, though she knew if at any point he changed his mind she would happily comply with whatever order he gave her.

Yvly sucked in a breath, the air hissing softly between her jaws. She had noticed Oula's fading scent, but to hear her leader voice it out loud and with such finality made it that much more real. She really was gone, which meant the second would rise up to leader... and that was her. A brief moment of panic consumed her before she managed to focus on Veho's words. "Thank you," she responded quietly to his praise, even though she only thought of it as making up for lost sets of paws. She could be hardworking when it was needed. Do you know what happened to her? Oula, I mean?" The tawny female queried hesitantly. She did not want to pry, but at the same time wished to know the reasoning behind her absence, if Veho even knew. Yvly could not think of anything else worth asking at that moment other than how the pups were doing, but she could just as easily find that out for herself.

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I am sorry I am a potato.  u _ u

 

“Ah, yes.  Nothing really happened, per say.  She needed time.  Space, perhaps, I cannot say, I did not pry.  But she wished to look for Rook, who should have really been home some time ago – and I suspect she might have needed to sort her thoughts.  But that is only speculation, that last part.  Having puppies is not easy on anyone.”

It certainly wasn’t an easy to task to take on by one’s self – but then, Oula had agreed to become a mother at Veho’s request (well, at Rook’s as well, but he had not been present at the time of the actual asking), not because it was something she’d come to him for.  The brood was his.  They had his name, they had his looks, they would take his Ancestors with them when they walked.  Rook was not here to watch them grow, and Oula – truthfully, Oula had more than fulfilled anything she’d agreed to.

All the same, her absence didn’t sting any less.

He did not miss his lover any less.

Veho shook his coat out and peered at the younger wolf beside him.  “That’s it?” he hummed softly.  “No questions about how things are run?  How things change for an alpha?”

Now it's my turn to be sorry x_x'

Yvly nodded at the older male's answer. She could understand the need for space after having wanted it herself many times in the past, but during all those times she could not bring herself to stray too far away from the hollow. It was her home now, and she could not imagine being anywhere else no matter how much she wished to have some time to herself. A wolf's duty was to its pack, and now that she had made some relations with those in the ranks it became just that much more difficult to leave. "I see," she responded quietly, tawny ears twitching at Rook's name. He had been gone for a while, too, and it made sense for Oula to search for him. Only time would tell if her venture was a success, if she or he ever returned, that is.

The tawny female glanced at Veho, her dark amber eyes staring thoughtfully at him. "How do you do it? You spend so much time caring for the others, for us, and yet you still appear to have the time to do things for yourself. How do you manage it all?" She often wondered how he always appeared so calm with everything that needed to be done. If she were in his place, which was quickly becoming a reality, she was sure she would become a frazzled mess. Leading was not a large part of who she was. In small doses, such as for a hunt, she could deal with it, but for extended periods of time she could not see herself faring too well. It was much easier to follow than to lead, but she supposed that was part of being a leader.

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We can get through it!

 

How do you do it?

Well now, that was the question for the ages, wasn’t it?  Veho couldn’t help his self-deprecating grin, shaking his head from side-to-side as a gentle laughter rolled through him.  Oh, Ancestors.  Sometimes he wondered if he was doing it at all, or just making a mockery of his position.

“Well, I suspect I must have some of you fooled.  It has been well over a year, and I still hardly feel like I know what I am doing.  Why, I am starting to suspect that no alpha every really knows quite how it works.  Each pack is different.  The ones my parents lead is not the same as mine, and my own collection of wolves is different from my sister’s, I am sure.  You just…you just keep moving forward, no matter what happens.  It matters not if you fall, as long as you get back up.  It’s not…  I won’t lie to you, Yvly, it is not easy being an alpha.  Sometimes, it isn’t even rewarding.  I wish I had more time to spend with my children, but--  If I had not taken up this mantle, I would not have them at all, now, would I?”

The man rolled his shoulders in a shrug, dropping his gaze to his own paws as he tried to corral his thoughts.  It felt like a confession, telling the other woman this…but no one had told him before he started.  Would it have changed his mind?  Probably not, but to hide it from Yvly felt unfair.

“It is not easy, but I would not change it.  I love this pack.  I love this pack.  Perhaps that is how I do it.”

A lynx has left behind the remains of a deer. +5 Health

Oh @Veho <3

Dark amber eyes widened slightly in surprise at Veho's diffident grin and laugh, not expecting quite that sort of reaction from him. She suspected it was the first laugh she had had heard from in... forever. One point to her, then. Yvly sat back on her haunches as her now co-leader spoke, head canted a smidgen to the side as she listened. Over the duration of his, well, speech, her expression changed from interest to surprise to finally wonder. He had always seemed so calm that she never stopped to think that maybe he was struggling with all the duties he needed to do on top of looking after his brood. She slowly reached forward with her muzzle to gently nudge his cheek in an attempt to comfort the older male as his eyes fell to the floor. The tawny female was not sure about what to say in response to it all, but felt like she needed to just say something.

"I had no idea," she started off slowly, licking her lips uncertainly. This was not something she did very often, if at all, and did not wish to say something that would upset him. "You always seemed so... calm, and I guess I figured you were handling things pretty well on your own. Guess I was wrong then," a short laugh escaped her maw, but it had no jovial tone to it. "If it... If it makes any difference I'll try to do my best in taking care of my part of the job. Maybe that way you'll have a little more time to spend with your children." Her eyes rested on his face, open and earnest. She meant every word. There was so little time to be with them and watch them grow up before they left to venture on their own, and she wanted him to be there for them as much as he could, even if it meant sacrificing some of her own free time in the process every now and then. It would give her some heartsease at the very least.

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