Jade Fern Grove nervous, but hopeful

SET BEFORE GREZIG RECRUITED THORLEIF. sorry for the wait on this. Please let @Corvus Vlad reply first. @Liri @Kavik

Grezig and Corvus arrived in Jade Fern Grove to speak with Liri and Kavik. She hoped that they would accept Corvus. He seemed incredibly capable. He was a good hunter and seemed to have a good head on his shoulders. “All right,” she said, “I’ll call for them. Mind your manners and I think you’ll be fine. They’ll be glad to have extra numbers.” With that, she tilted her head back and howled. She hoped this would all work out and that her alphas would not find it presumptuous that she had recruited a wolf without asking them first. She had been right, after all. They did need the numbers.

I don't think Hela will be back today but Liri's here to meet ya

When the call came, she could not say she had been doing something of extreme importance. They'd settled here to rest for a time before attempting to trek into the mountains as this was likely to be a more treacherous path than the last. The healer, having spent much of her time attending to the needs of their to-be pack and had taken a healthy chunk out of the afternoon to simply bask in the warmth of the sun - dozing until Grezig's howl demanded attention. 

Lurching to her feet, the fae padded in the direction of the summons, surprised to see a male at her right hand's side. The healer bristled, mainly because he was so close to where their group had taken up camp and she disliked strangers near the family she considered to be hers. Her tail flagged on sight of the dark man, her gaze challenging as she approached. 

Perhaps it was the part of her that had become skilled at recognizing evil for what it was, but the healer was almost immediately put off by the newest wolf to be found by their grouping. Her gaze could not move from him; she could not look at Grezig nor could she speak.

Liri raised cool eyes to him, waiting.

Finally, the pair arrived at their destination. Corvus simply nodded in acknowledgement of Grezig's words. Knowing that his scars and odd demeanor could be unnerving, the raven would need to be on his best behavior. This situation was foreign to him, having been willingly taken in by the band of mercenaries he called a family alongside his brother as an adolescent. This felt like it'd be more of an interview, so he needed to convince this pack that he could be trusted.

After a short wait, an astoundingly tiny woman with pelage white as snow approached. Upon one glance at her, he could see the hardships she had faced in her life. Her small body wore scars more gnarly than any of his, which astounded him. Scars of that nature were that of torture, not battle. As if that weren't enough, she carried a deformed hindlimb―broken and set improperly, not a birth defect. Her hackles raised at the sight of him, and he'd yet to even open his mouth yet. That wasn't a good sign. Then, her tail raised straight up in the air, and here dark eyes bored holes straight through him. At least he could deduce that she was an alpha from the display.

The cloud did not speak even a word to either of them when she came to a stop before the pair, and her eyes stuck to him as if glued. Many wolves would've become anxious from the strange way this meeting was already going, but Corvus was not one to crack under pressure. He wasn't sure why she reacted to him this way, not recognizing her from his past life, but perhaps the trauma she'd endured was awakened at the sight of his scars, or his looks were familiar. If he didn't get in for whatever reason, so be it; he'd just take his business elsewhere. Joining a pack this soon hadn't been part of his plan, anyway. Still, anyone he pledged allegiance to could rest assured that he would serve them well.

Despite the intensity of the white woman's demeanor, the shadow coolly gave a polite dip of his head and introduced himself. Greetings. I am Corvus, He said, speaking in a gentle, hushed tone to hopefully ease her worries just a bit. I am looking to join your pack. Corvus left it at that, giving the alpha the opportunity to speak. He was highly curious to know what words she would have for him.

Liri seemed upset. Shit. Perhaps Grezig had been presumptuous. Perhaps she should have gone to Liri or Kavik first, kept Corvus away from this forest, let them know and then brought them to him. Well. It was too late now, wasn’t it? Liri was silent and staring and seemed far too uneasy for this to go well. Shit, shit, shit. Grezig had fucked up. She kept silent, praying to unknown gods that Corvus would, indeed, behave himself and not go randomly insane. Especially since Kavik hadn’t shown up. Where was he? Usually the alpha pair were inseparable. Grezig scanned the forest behind Liri as Corvus spoke.

“We met a day or so ago to the southeast of here, in a forest. We went hunting together. Corvus proved a competent hunter and seems to have a good head on his shoulders. I…” She hesitated. “I was thinking we could boost the numbers for our pack.” She bowed her head. “But you make the final decision, of course.” Grezig did not outrank Liri, and she knew this. Liri was an alpha and Grezig was not, and she would do whatever the female decided.

He dips his head and though it takes a moment for either of their words to reach her through the roaring in her ears, reach her they do. The healer gives a tiny shake of her head, no more than a twitch, as if to clear it before a polite smile finds her face. Her stance morphs into something less intense, though still reminiscent of who she is to the other wolves. 

"I'm sorry," she tells him firstly, not above apologizing. "You looked rather like someone I knew," she muses and by the way she scans over Corvus's features, it's obvious she's thinking of that someone. Though whether she thinks of the man who defiled her, the captors who tortured her, or the woman who caused her miscarriage is unclear. "I suppose all the travels have gotten to me, put me a bit too far on edge."

She says nothing more on the matter, eyeing him over a bit. He's possibly the best muscle they'll have recruited, excluding possibly Kenkou whose size would be formidable if not for his clumsiness. "If Grezig thinks you should be here, I have an inclination to believe her. She's had yet to lead me astray." There's a touch of pride there, for her right hand. They may not be the closest of friends but perhaps they are something greater - allies or colleagues. 

"Welcome," she gives him another smile, more genuine this time, and gestures for the pair to follow her.

Grezig did the explaining he was too reserved to do, trying to clear him of any suspicion that the alphess may have of him. She seemed a tad on edge and highly appeasing, understandably. The woman was perhaps more desperate for him to join than he himself was.
 
From the alphess came a twitch. Then, a smile. Her muscles uncoiled, eyes softened, and tail relaxed. She even gave him an apology. Corvus would've been visibly taken aback at this complete 180 shift in demeanor if not a collected man. Instead, he only raised his brows in surprise. The white woman explained the reason for her initial reaction. That "someone" he resembled likely played a part in the scars on her body. Her dark eyes scanned him for a moment, which he didn't mind. I understand, He said regarding the matter, truly feeling no offense.

Despite Corvus' initial expectations, the northerner trusted Grezig's judgement and welcomed him. She gestured for the pair to follow, and he obeyed. The shadow dug around in his memory for what Grezig said the alphess' name was. The alphas were... something starting with a "K" and... Liri. Liri sounded feminine, so he could assume that was it. Still, she hadn't given her name yet, so he said, I don't believe I caught your name, alphess.

Grezig watched Liri closely, looking for some sign of more or worse distress. Or anger. Or whatever the alpha was feeling. But Liri merely shook her head, a small action, as if she were confused or coming back to herself. Grezig’s brows drew together in confusion, but she kept her mouth shut.

’I’m sorry. You looked rather like someone I knew,’ Liri said.

Grezig’s head pulled back just a bit, and she tried not to look as if she were studying the white wolf. Who did Corvus look like to cause such a reaction in Liri? What history was there, hidden? Grezig would not ask, of course. It was not her place, and as long as Liri could still function as an alpha, then it didn’t matter to Grezig what Liri was hiding, if anything. The earth-colored wolf held her breath as Liri appraised Corvus, looking him over.

’If Grezig thinks you should be here, I have an inclination to believe her. She's had yet to lead me astray.’

Grezig’s mouth literally fell open for all of a nanosecond, and then she caught herself. “Liri,” she murmured in surprise. “I… Thank you.” She bowed her head in respect and gratitude, feeling a warm flush to her skin that had not previously been there. As she followed the two of them farther into the woods, she could not help the very out-of-character smile that plastered itself to her face.

The healer was silently relieved that she hadn't seemed to offend anyone overtly with her reaction to Corvus. Both seemed to move on rather quickly and Liri followed suit, smiling at the pleased stammer that fell from Grezig's lips. It occurred to the fae that the stoic woman smiled entirely too little and it was a personal goal to make Grezig's life a little happier.

"I am Liri Blackfoot," she introduced with a small sweep of her snowy head. "My mate is Kavik Tonrar, I'm sure you'll meet him very soon. We have an adopted son," she found herself pausing, finding it odd to think that she again had a son. "Illidan. And a growing number of wolves who have deemed us worthy of following. They seem like amiable folk, I expect you'll fit in fine." 

Liri was not entirely sure of this, as they had a rather odd band of followers - a seemingly jumbled group of personalities that either clicked or clashed. At the end of the day, they could only hope there weren't too many clashes.

Liri, he burned into his mind. Liri described the other alpha, Kavik was his name, and the boy Grezig mentioned―Illidan. What happened for him to be adopted by another pair piqued his interest, but that was to be discovered another time. The nosferatu nodded in affirmation of her words and remained silent, never having been one to chat unnecessarily.

Like the alphess, Corvus wasn't sure just how well he'd fit into this pack due to his own unorthodox nature―which he was keenly aware of―and having no clue what the others were like. But even if they didn't hit it off, it'd be no skin off the mercenary's back; he was here for his own benefit, which came with cooperating with others for survival. It was selfish, but who wasn't, in his situation? Perhaps he would stay for more than his own interests, but only time would tell whether that would become true or not.

Wrap up?

Whatever nervousness had held Liri before, it seemed to have disappeared now. Grezig now listened as Liri introduced herself, and she noted that Kavik had been mentioned as Liri’s mate. She had suspected as much, but it had never been exactly confirmed. Grezig logged the information away into her brain. She’d already assumed that they were mates, because her only understanding of pack life was that the alpha pair were mated.

What was more interesting was that Liri had called Illidan her adopted son. For some reason, a reason she knew well, but kept hidden deep within herself, this description of Illidan bothered her. She had, quite by accident, begun to see the boy as a son also. Someone who needed looking after. Someone who had gone through so much trauma already in his short life. Her jaw set as she thought of Illidan growing up thinking Liri and Kavik as Mother and Father—if he even would. Perhaps he remembered his own parents too much to ever think something like that. 

What did it matter, anyways? Grezig had come later and was not an alpha. It made more sense for the alpha pair to take on an adopted son than it did for Grezig to do so. Still… she remained silent on the remainder of the trip farther into Jade Fern Grove.