Hushed Willows We all make mistakes...it's what makes us human.

Once he had turned away from Octavia he headed down the path the older wolf had cut through their lands. Stark closed in, giving a low call for @Nova Rose to alert her that he was coming. When he had made it a little closer he finally called out to her, "Ma'am?" He hadn't mean to make her angry by suggestion she wait, but it seemed important to be secretive and the pack's safety was more important than his own. 

"I worded that wrong. I didn't mean to suggest you not go - just...once we get closer." He explained. "Sometimes my thoughts don't come out as clear as I'd like them to." The dark wolf said, able at least to let go of his pride enough to tell the woman that. 

Nova turned her pained spectral eyes on him, a soft smile splitting her features. He hadn't been the one to earn her ire, but he had added fuel. Nonetheless, his apology lightened her heart and gained neutral ground with her again.
     "I understand, and I'm not upset, but I do intend on carrying out this mission to its fullest extent."
Though she be old, she is fearless. Either way, a scent trail was easy enough to follow no matter what the scent actually was. One way or another, they could possibly be followed a day or two AFTER their journey. 
                 "Plus, anyone stupid enough to come too close to the border will be set straight by Warbone or the rest of the pack."

Stark gave a nod, watching her to see if she had calmed herself or if she was still worked up from earlier. He didn't want her to be upset, although he could understand some frustrations Octavia was still their Alpha and demanded her respect. "I figured since we're to maintain secrecy it'll be better if I pass the word alone. By the time we find this place I bet the pack scent will have faded even more from me." Stark said calmly. 

"I'll dunk myself in the ocean a bit, we'll figure it out." He offered a goodnatured smile to the woman, shaking his coat out a bit as she spoke. "Oh of that I have no doubt." He said with a toothy grin - the pack had a sense of family, he understood that. "Any chance you're familiar with some of the lands Octavia was talking about?"

Had she known his thoughts, the elder would've been quick to burst his bubble. Nova couldn't accept the "you're going to bow down and deal with it" additude that alphas usually took on. It was a sizable reason why she'd left her birth pack and never again was able to stay in another. She would not give respect unless it was given, and that was that. Tavi couldn't kick her from the pack when she was doing her duties, and nobody could deny that she did everything she could. The golden woman ignored his argument, still fully intending on going to the borders of Larksong Grotto with him. Instead she thought about what little information Octavia had given. She did indeed know of the burn out lands of Redtail Rise, but nothing to the north. It seemed that was all they needed, though, and Nova Rose took the lead on to the north-east of their home with a smile to Stark. 
           "I know the burnt place she was talking about, and we should be able to find our way from there."
And if not, I'll gladly come back to tell Tavi her vague instructions were shit. 
The spiteful thought went unspoken, but there was no regret. She meant each word, even if it meant she would be dealing with Warbone. Surely he would see her error, and keep good on his promise to house Nova? After all, she was living up to his terms with flying colors: She patrolled the borders daily, hunted when she could, and gave the alpha male her undivided loyalty. So undivided, however, that there was none for Tavi. Obviously, this was leading to a hefty problem.

"I don't doubt that I can find it, but, since you're familiar with one of the points it'll cut out some of the questions about where it is." He could track, he could find the place, he could scout it out. He was much happier to find the area and save the time though. Stark followed her lead and found his footing easily next to her. "Have you lived here long?" He was curious about her and the pack itself, looking for more information than he had gotten from Octavia and his random interactions with people.

After one last comment, they seemed to fall into an easy walk. The silence was broken by his questioning, but it brought a smile to her face to think of something other than the alpha.
        "I've been here since the beginning claim, but that was only around a month or so ago." 
She wondered if he was only making smalltalk, or he had legitimate questions. Either way, it was nice to talk.

So the pack was brand new. He'd basically come along at the start, same as everyone else. He wondered just what had lead to the rise of the Keep and how Octavia had come along with it too. "Where did you come from before that?" He asked, watching his feet as they moved - his gaze moving frequently to track the terrain as much as his nose was working. "Octavia found me shortly after I'd arrived - it believe it was just after Tambourine was born." He hummed out. "I'd only been here a few days - maybe a full week. Maybe."

As Nova trotted along, she couldn't help the laugh that fell from her silver masked face.
      "I don't come from anywhere, really. I left my pack at none months old to travel, and did so up until this pack here. Between a hell of a wanderlust and a craving for knowledge, it was hard to pick a life of never getting respect and being someone else's bitch. No alpha was good enough to rule over me, none could give me the only thing I asked for. Respect."
High standards were a must in the regal elders mindset, and it was clear she took great pride in it. Finding Warbone was a stroke of luck, having needed somewhere to call home in order to be close to Grace. Not only did he capture her affections and loyalty, he also gave Grace a chance to join and soon they were together. What more could she ask for from him?
So Octavia was the one to accept him? She wasn't surprised it'd taken a week to find a pack willing to take him, such it went for her as well. Days into her Teekon Wilds adventure, Warbone had her settled onto the willowy land. Here, if anything went right, she would die and be buried. Right at the roots of a willow.
                        "Were you looking for a pack or did you just kinda get swept in?"

Respect was earned. Age didn't entitle you to it, gender didn't, Stark didn't consider those traits enough to immediately give anyone respect. Nova's words didn't quite sit right with Stark in that regard but it he didn't feel like dealing with another outburst so he bit his tongue and said nothing instead. It seemed to him that Nova had a tendency to have a more dramatic response to things, considering how she'd responded earlier. 

"I wasn't aiming to join a pack - I'd told myself I wouldn't burden any of them during the famine." Stark explained. Finding Octavia had been a stroke of luck, specifically because he'd found that hare - he might have kept going if not for that. "The Keep was the only pack I approached, I guess you could say."

Nova didn't expect respect right away of course, but she did expect them to be neutral until then. It wasn't her fault that some wolves just couldn't NOT be an asshole. 
The elder could tell he was holding something back, assuming correctly that it was the fault of her outburst. The golden female had to refrain from speaking out, but that wasn't exactly hard to do. Usually, she was a quite stable and calm female. It was Octavia, personally, that just set her off. Perhaps it was the way Nova perceived her as rude, or entitled. 
Instead, she only gave him a glance laced with wariness. No more would information flow freely, if he wasn't willing to be open with her. 
         "Any pack should know that more paws, though that also means more bellies, is overall beneficial to their survival. You were right to be accepted, even if that isn't what you originally wanted."

"I don't think it the wisest to take in any wolf off the streets when there is no food to feed them. Not unless you're hoping them to succumb to the famine so you can feast." He said grimly. He was confident the only reason that Octavia had accepted him was because he had offered her the hare. It was the little things, like being decent in life, that drove people to their best. Stark's ears flicked back, tail still loose and neutral, even though the grim thought was a very real reality. To sustain the pack was everything and he had been doing everything he could to keep it's Alpha and her young cub alive. 

"I'm young, and willing, and most of my days have been spent trying to scout out food sources. I'm fortunate I had a decent bulk built up before I came here and that I ran into Octavia quickly enough." Otherwise his tale might not have been so happy. If he had joined the other pack he had met, he wasn't sure what would have come from their either. They were more exposed than the Keep - it might mean that they waited longer for their prey to return.

Nova didn't share the same opinion, so instead gave a nonchalant shrug and padded along. Both had stated their opinion, and that was enough for the golden woman to drop the conversation even if she continued to go over his side to herself. No point going at each other and being annoyed the entire trip. Better to lapse into a happy silence, or even change the subject. Her anger towards Tavi had already dwindled away, and the thumping of her creamy paws against the ground was soothing. 
         

short post ? feel free to keep going or fade, but I'll throw up a thread with Reek.

The silence was better than arguing, and Stark could tell that their opinions varied on a number of things. As they made their way across the lands, only occasionally exchsnging words, Stark couldn't help but drink it in. The lands were beautiful, they were without fail gorgeous. He just wanted to explore more. 

The Scout hopeful made sure to track the lands he was in, learning the scents as much as he could for future benefit. It was a sizable journey for someone unfamiliar with the lands and the only thing that kept him from lolly gagging more was the fact he didn't want to let Octavia down.