Northstar Vale bottomless vales and boundless floods
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Ooc — KJ
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Cypress had made a full recovery. The wounds he’d sustained during his desperate, foolhardy attempt to protect his family from the bear had been blessedly mild, all things considered; and although he still moved a bit gingerly, it was more preventative than reactive. Rose’s skills were growing with each new patient, so he was happy enough to be her guinea pig, and his relationships with Rian and Rannoch had remained intact despite his breaking rank. The public apology had been a little embarrassing, but it’d been worth it.

Today Cypress sought out his littermate with the intention of reconnecting. They would always be close, but pack duties kept all three of the Frostfur brothers busier than they knew what to do with. He’d already spoken with the turquoise-eyed alpha regarding the treaty with Moonspear, and he believed it was time to act on that — but more importantly, he wanted to see how Rannoch was doing with the heavy responsibility that’d been laid across his broad shoulders. It was a fair bet that he’d find the grayscale bruiser either walking the borders or dealing with interpersonal affairs, so he began walking the perimeter in the opposite direction that Rannoch usually picked for this time of day, hoping they’d run into one another.
Ghost
he came and stole the wild
1,808 Posts
Ooc — Chan
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#2
Routine was the best way which the blue-eyed alpha managed the gravity of his new role. Each new day provided him with some comfort that all was going well a voice in the back of his mind stoked his fear and reassured him that something bad was just on the horizon. Never expressing these concerns, as Rannoch did not want to appear weak to those who had so agreed in following him, he often brushed the thoughts aside for another time, abandoning his fear for farrier thoughts. Time would only tell what would happen if he kept these thoughts buried for too long, but, for now, he seemed to be faring well with this process. 

On this particular day, Rannoch was not handling well with the stressed that often caught up to him. For a majority of the day, keeping himself in isolation, Rannoch had been upon the borders with only his self-doubting thoughts. Though it wasn't the healthiest of companions, Rannoch kept it close in his brief excursion and dwelled almost obsessively over the subject matter. it as he gently sniffed the puddle that he had just made.

All seemed well upon the borders; no smells seemed out of place, and it was at least with this reassurance that the weight of his worries lifted slightly. Satisfied in this, as it was a small light to combat the darkness that plagued his mind, Rannoch turned from his marking with a spring in his step and, as he often did, used the fuel of his victory to extinguish his dark thoughts.
a crime so old as the sky and bone
he came untied, solid as a stone
all is almost lost and it starts to show
288 Posts
Ooc — KJ
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#3
It didn’t take long for Cypress to intercept Rannoch just as he’d hoped, and when he caught sight of the burly grayscale figure in the near distance he picked up his pace to an easy trot. “Noch,” he called out softly, checking the turquoise-eyed alpha’s shadow for the telltale signs of his entourage. An eager half-grin found its way to the raven’s lips when he saw that his brother was alone, and he didn’t hesitate in his approach. Ducking his head just slightly to butt the crown of his head against the underside of Rannoch’s jaw in affection as much as respect, “Hey,” he said simply. “You doing okay?” Cypress couldn’t be sure — Rannoch was quite adept at masking his emotions — but he had a feeling there was something on his mind.
Ghost
he came and stole the wild
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Ooc — Chan
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Cypress' approach was the motivation that Rannoch needed to fight off his self-deprecating thoughts. Giving them a final, definitive shove as he turned to meet the merrily bright eyes of his sibling, Rannoch expression lifted. A kiss was returned to attend his brother's show of affection and subordination, pulling away quickly to get a better look at the Gamma. 

Rannoch was met with a question he hadn't been anticipating, and it showed with a brief widening of his eyes. In his mild panic, Rannoch still pushed to acknowledge his sibling's greeting, as their mother did not raise rude children. "Cy, hey," he replied breathily, attempting to wrangle his emotions. Even with the simplicity, this was enough to help calm his nerves. "Yeah, I'm all right," he said, rebounding smoothly and a wide-set grin. "Are you doing okay?" Attempting to get the subject off of him, and genuinely finding himself interested in his brother's wellbeing as it had been long since their paths had crossed.
a crime so old as the sky and bone
he came untied, solid as a stone
all is almost lost and it starts to show
288 Posts
Ooc — KJ
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#5
Something wasn’t right about the way Rannoch responded to what Cypress believed was a fairly innocuous query, and his lantern yellow eyes narrowed briefly in mute scrutiny at the canned reply. After a beat, “Okay, Noch,” he said gently, and his quiet baritenor was as unobtrusive and nonthreatening as he could make it. When Rannoch was ready to talk about what was troubling him, Cypress would be an active audience — but pressing the grayscale alpha would only add to his stress. “We’ve got ourselves a real pretty place here,” he said instead, seeking to turn his brother’s attention to the positives. “I bet mama and paw would’ve loved it.” The words didn’t bring him pain this time — he missed them, and he always would, but with Rannoch and Rian’s help he was learning to be happy again.

“I’m…” The raven weighed his words with typical meticulousness. “I’m doing a lot better.” He found a smile for his littermate, a rare glint of emotion working its way into his sulphureous gaze, and said with uncharacteristic optimism, “It just feels like things’re gonna be better here.” For Cypress, this level of faith in a bright future was next door to gushing. “Please, Cypress, contain yourself; this level of excitement is unacceptable,” said his harried muse. “There’s something I wanted to talk to you about. It’s about an alliance — but it’s not just about an alliance.” His voice was sly, and he waggled his eyebrows with what he hoped was comical suavity — but it probably just looked like he was having some kind of weird aneurysm. “I can leave it for another time, though,” he teased.

With deliberate casualness, “So. What’s up with you?” he asked.