Dead Empress Backwater appeal

North, again. Even further north, into the cold, lonely nothingness. At least that was what she had thought until she’d found the trail of another. And then several others, a whole pack full of them. Numerous scents dotted the area around what seemed to be the main territory, a likely indication to Tyra that the pack was healthy and strong.

Or so she hoped, anyway. While that cast some doubt into her mind as to whether or not they’d need an extra body, she decided that she would attempt to appeal to them anyway. She didn't particularly like having to resort to this. If it were possible, pride would've had her just bypassing them and continuing alone. But it wasn't. Pride didn't do anyone any good if it got them killed.  

So she would hunt, work, patrol, whatever they needed. She could be sociable or an outcast, whatever they preferred. She didn’t particularly care, just as long as she had support and a place to rest at night.

As long as they weren’t crazy psycho murderers or something.

To hopefully sweeten the deal and prove she meant business, the loner had spent most of the morning tracking down two plump rabbits to provide an offering that she hoped would earn their trust.

With one at either paw, Tyra sat back just outside of their borders and sent up a call for their leadership.

-Tyra requesting DEB leaders to possibly join - @Clover and/or @Viorel

(This post was last modified: Nov 25, 2023, 03:16 AM by Tyra.)

Mentions of the DEB pup, tags for awareness @Sonnet @Tuwile @Dacian @Torianna @Jacynth

The Valle man had gathered as many of the pack children as he could muster given that they were now at the age they had a lot more freedom. It was getting harder and harder to keep track of them as the days went on, but for the most part they seemed alright. No longer did the daytime temperatures reach above freezing and parts of their territory had begun to freeze flimsily. Which meant it was time to discuss ice safety. After last - no he wouldn’t think about that, and instead just went through a brief but stressed warning about staying off of the ice unless you had someone else with you at all times, that it wasn’t safe.

Whether or not they would listen was another story, but he had done his part and the rest would be up to their parents. Viorel had been in the middle of demonstrating how the ice creaks when it is weak when the call came out and he was immediately distracted. It was not a voice he recognized and that was extremely rare for them. His lack of attention meant he leaned too hard on the ice and his paw broke right through, splashing cold water up his leg and causing him to cuss in surprise.

Shaking off the moisture and ignoring the chorus of giggles from the children he took his leave, trotting towards where the call had come from. Yellow eyes swept over the loner, female, fairly well kept though a little on the thin size and overall rather average looking, except for the eyes that were so green they were almost a little startling. Holding himself proudly, though his expression remained rather pleasant, he waited for the loner to speak.

(This post was last modified: Nov 25, 2023, 04:43 PM by Viorel.)

She didn’t have to wait long for a man to appear. Taller, dark, with bright eyes and appearing in good health. The way he carried himself suggested some sort of leadership role. Maybe even the man himself.

Except for an initial once-over, Tyra kept her gaze lower, averted, somewhere closer to the man’s chest rather than at his eyes. She didn’t like not being on equal grounds, having to submit herself to another, especially knowing next to nothing about him and his group. But she reminded herself that she was at his mercy, here. And she’d probably needed this if she wanted to live. Who knew how far away the next pack would be, if there even were any.

She wasn’t quite sure what to make of his lack of a verbal greeting, but at least he didn’t appear dismissive or miffed by her arrival.

”Sir,” she greeted formally, head tipping down in respect and subservience. ”My name is Tyra. I come seeking a place to belong for the colder months. In return, I will devote myself entirely to your cause.” Her voice remained steady, and she’d gesture with her nose to the offerings she’d brought. The loner couldn’t hide a glint of desperation in her eyes, though. She’d need a place to be, and he probably knew that.

”I can track, scout, hunt, patrol, and.. try to fight. Not sure I’d be so good at that, though.” Tyra let one corner of her mouth tug upward in a wry grin with the last part, hoping a note of humor might help her cause.

The leader felt one side of his lip twitch upwards into a smirk at the word sir. In this case it felt appropriate, but it reminded him of Seri and Sage and the way they almost insisted on addressing him so formally. Tyra. And seeking a home for the colder months only? On one paw that meant another mouth to feed and wolf to keep alive during the harshest time of the year, on the other hand she seemed capable of keeping herself afloat this long and that might be helpful with their gaggle of cubs.

Plus, at least she was being honest about what she was intending to do. Which was more than what he could say about a lot of his own family members who had just disappeared in the night. Smiling for real now he gestured that she could stand and there was no reason for the formal submission anymore. His voice was pleasant as he continued, ”Thankfully we have a few members dedicated to guardianship and fighting. We could always use the extra paws for hunting and patrolling though.” Then his yellow eyes fell on the rabbits at her paws, ”And clearly you’re capable enough to hunt.” There were still a few more questions though.

She was able to hunt for herself and young enough she should be in good health so, ”what has led to you seeking a new resting place?” As long as the answer wasn’t that she had murdered her whole family things should be fine.

He didn’t dismiss her, another positive sign. In fact, he even returned her smile. And when he spoke it was pleasant, welcoming even. Even without his gesture that she could relax, Tyra felt a portion of the worry and weight she’d been carrying come off her shoulders. She wouldn’t relax completely until he said the words, but it was a good start.

”Thank you, I won’t disappoint,” it was a hefty promise, but one she had every intention of keeping for however long she stayed. Tyra wasn’t afraid of hard work if it meant survival. Still, the loner thought to add to her statement after a moment. ”And if I do, tell me. I want to earn my keep, however long it lasts.”

She didn’t doubt the man would, anyway. Back home, her leaders were typically forthcoming with their expectations.

His follow up question though, while reasonable, was one that had Tyra gritting her teeth a little. She hadn’t thought about how to explain that, or perhaps she’d hoped it wouldn’t come up. She kept her gaze level and directed at him though, albeit still not quite to eye level. She wouldn’t feel comfortable with that unless he chose to grant her stay.

”My brother made a stupid decision. Got himself branded a traitor, exiled, and the rest of our family blacklisted back home.” The animosity for him was clear, Tyra made no attempt to hide her disdain for both him and the situation she was in because of it. ”Decided I’d rather try to start over than be punished for something I didn’t do.”

If he was going to let her into his home, this man deserved to know both the truth of her past and how she felt about it. Whether he’d believe it or not, though, was the question.

(This post was last modified: Nov 28, 2023, 02:44 AM by Tyra.)

Happy to fade here or keep going for a couple of posts if you want to reach 10 for lp!

She promised that she wouldn’t disappoint, though that would remain to be seen. Viorel thought himself a fairly good judge of character but it would be foolish to think that it was impossible to trick or surprise him. Tyra wasn’t promising much, she would hunt and patrol borders and would earn the protection that they could offer her, the bare minimum really so it would be a sincere disappointment if she couldn’t live up to that.

Her answer was rather vague, but acceptable and the leader nodded once in acceptance. He thought about it for only a moment more before speaking, ”You’ll be judged on your own actions here, pull your weight and be respectful and you’ll do just fine.” Taking a step back he made the clear move to allow passage over the borders and into the territory.

He had one final thing to say before they went any further, ”Welcome to Dead Empress Backwater Tyra. If anyone gives you any trouble you can tell them they can take it up with Viorel.” Not that he expected they would, but Vayko and Rochus could be unpredictable when they got into one of their moods.

Tyra would let out another breath she hadn’t quite realized she had been holding when he nodded his acceptance of her story, and approval of her request. ”Thank you, again,” she spoke, genuinely glad and relieved to not have to go on alone. Even if she didn’t see them all that much, just knowing other wolves were around would help.

”And if there’s anything extra you think I can help with, I’m all yours.” If this place was truly a meritocracy as he had said, she wouldn’t mind putting in the work. Tyra wasn’t quite sure what her goals were long term, but she definitely didn't want to be someone content with commoner status

She would bow her head and tentatively rise to move past the man and into his - now her - home, at least for now. The scent was different, but one Ty believed she could adapt to. If not, it need only be temporary. ”Dead Empress Backwater,” she breathed, testing it for herself. An odd blend of… noble and macabre?

Once she crossed, she would turn to the man again, this time meeting his gaze. ”That’s unique. Why is it called that?” She posed the inquiry, genuinely curious. There had to be a reason, she supposed. Just maybe not one that was immediately visible.

-i'd appreciate all the LP's I can get for my fledgling characters (:

(This post was last modified: Nov 30, 2023, 04:01 PM by Tyra.)

For sure! Viorel is just having a crisis, what else is new

Anything else she could help with...and for just a moment Viorel’s mind went somewhere that it probably should not have. But, Vasco had been his ear for a few weeks before the trip about strengthening his bloodline and not letting Vayko edge him out of the pack. The rationale part of him knew this was ridiculous, but given the lack of sleep he had been suffering from the last few months he wasn’t the most logical himself anymore. Plus if Vanadis returned and found him sad and moping around…

Then he snapped out of it as Tyra walked into her new home and asked a question about how the name had come to be. It brought a bit of a cheeky smile onto his face and he glanced sideways at the woman moving beside him, ”It’s a bit hard to tell given the season but most of these are empress trees. In the spring they’ll grow heart shaped leaves and tiny purple flowers.” That sentence only reminded him of flirting with his old mate, bringing her flowers and planting them into her fur. Suddenly he felt really guilty over his earlier thoughts and tried to move subtly a half a step further away from Tyra.

But, the story wasn’t done, ”A long time before we settled here a bunch of them died, and some fell across the creek and changed the flow and flooded a small area we use as a water source. I guess when we were coming up with the name my cousin and I were not that creative and had a flare for the dramatics.” Then, because he felt it was important for her to know and not at all because he could hear Vasco’s voice in his head, ”He no longer leads beside me, his mate is now my co-lead.” And frankly, the man hoped it stayed that way.

The man, Viorel, smiled at the inquiry. An expression that felt warm and seemed genuine, maybe a little beyond that of just cordial introductions. The sort of reaction a more personal inquiry might bring about. Empress trees… purple flowers, he explained, and she listened, ears turned forth with intrigue. Some had fallen and created a flooded area for a water source.

He and his cousin, settled, now the cousin’s mate was a co-lead.. so they were not a traditional, mated-pair leadership type. Intriguing in its own right, but also neither here nor there. It didn’t particularly matter to Tyra who was in charge, so long as they were fair.

So far, Viorel seemed to be.

”Don’t undersell your creativity,” she would choose to comment, in a tone that was both sincere and yet ever so slightly teasing. ”It’s a good name. And one I’d imagine you take pride in, rightfully so.” It was one thing to lead a pack, but another thing entirely to create one. The man’s pride was certainly well-earned - but it was a refreshing change of pace to find that he didn’t appear to flaunt it.  

”I hope I get to see what you describe, with the trees. It sounds beautiful.” Living in one place for most of her life hadn’t afforded Tyra a great deal of experience with habitats outside of her own. She certainly hadn’t ever seen anything like the empress trees described by her new leader.

Tyra teased the Valle man back and it only caused the smile to grow. He realized that this was the first time in a long time that he was interacting with someone who didn’t know all his baggage, didn’t know the gory details of the last year. It stirred his ego a bit, and any feeling of guilt that he had instantly vanished. He gently flicked at her with his tail, a playful gesture in response to her words, ”It’s everything I’ve been working for for the last few years.” And almost none of it had been easy.

He looked back at the trees they were passing, ”And they smell fairly sweet, it’s my favourite time in the territory.” And it was true, it had been a painful time for him last year, but he couldn’t deny when the Empress trees were in bloom it felt pretty magical. Their whole world transformed in just a few weeks, the promise of warmer days to come. He continued on, his pace casual and slow, ”You’ll have to stick around until the spring if you want to see it, but until then let me show you around.”

FADE