Northstar Vale friends in high places

tryna meet some new NSV peeps! @Airi or @Genie or @Rian or @Regan? AW!

Northstar Vale was a mountain paradise.

Crystalline streams meandered through the valley, shadowed by towering conifers trees and the ever-present looming crags. Rolling hills of green spanned miles and miles, trees turning golden brown dotting the landscape. It was vast and wild, and Miyako was in love with her new home.

The only thing that seemed to be missing was companionship. It was a small pack, this band of young wolves in the Vale, and she had only gotten to meet two of its members so far. She threw back her head and howled, looking for someone new to answer.

Her nostrils picked up the scent of a deer herd close by. Their feet--click click click--seemed to move a little bit away because of her call, but they were still near, and she wondered whether she could convince one of her new packmates to take down an old buck or two.

Regan had been accepted into this beautiful mountain pack, but he was surprised to find out exactly how small it was. After taking his time in sniffing the borders he was able to identify only a small group of wolves that lived here, and some scents were rather faint. A howl sounded from somewhere nearby in the territory, calling for new members and he instantly began to head that way. He hadn't really met anyone yet, he didn't count the conversation on the borders with Chusi and Genie as meeting them. 

As he grew closer he could smell a deer herd, the scent making his mouth water as he played with the idea of trying to locate others and take down a herd member. Would two wolves be enough? He doubted it, but it never hurt to try. With the intention of trying to convince the one he was meeting to help him hunt, and unaware she had the same idea in mind he picked up his speed.

Finally he spotted her up ahead and he chuffed softly to announce his presence. He stopped a few feet in front of her and dipped his head in greeting. His eyes looked her over admiring the blackness of her fur, something that was a rarity where he was from. He may have looked at her a bit too long but if so he wasn't doing it intentionally. "Hello. I am Regan, You're new here too?" he asked drawing in her scent.

After biding her time a little while, a figure finally emerged in the distance, gray pelt fluttering in the breeze as he loped toward her. As he grew closer, she noticed he had a couple years on the young wolves she had met so far in the Vale, and carried himself as such. She saw his eyes linger on her and smirked, but said nothing more about the matter.

"I'm new here, yeah. Assuming you are, too? I'm Miyako," she introduced herself. "Got in just the other day."

She nodded toward the direction where the scent of deer kept wafting tantalizingly her way. "I'm hungry, and I need to meet new people. Figure I might as well kill two birds with one stone," Miyako said practically. She regarded the newcomer coolly, though without open scrutiny. "Care to join me on a hunt?"

Regan only realized he had been staring at her when she smirked at him, and slowly his own lips quirked up into a lazy grin of his own almost as if daring her to say something. However she didn't and instead introduced herself stating she was new here and asking if he was too, to which he nodded "The name's Regan. Got accepted the other day." He stated with a smile eyeing her with amusement as she stated she was hungry and asked if he wanted to hunt with her. 


"Funny. I was going to ask the same thing, So of course I'll join you Miss Miyako" he said and dipped his upper body to the ground in what was a joking and dramatic bow to the obsidian colored woman before him. His eyes flashed with amusment and he lifted himself back up properly and moved toward the scent of the deer, his tail swaying behind him slowly.

She smiled at his exaggerated bow. She quite liked this charming, formal guy, and hoped to get to know more about him as the days progressed. Miyako flicked her ears, listening for the deer herd. She heard no more clicking, so she figured they had finally stopped to rest and graze in one place. It was time to get a move on.

"Follow me," Miyako told Regan quietly, and stalked off, keeping pace with the gray-pelted male beside her. While they trotted toward the herd, she cocked her head to the side to look at him. "So you're new. Where are you from originally?"

She kept her nose engaged with her environment, keeping track of where they had been and where they were going. The deer trail took them through a tiny glen full of firs, and when they left the shade of the trees, Miyako saw them. A small band of mountain deer, maybe about seven or eight of them. She began to look at each individual member, deciding which one was best to take down.

Regan nodded silently and followed slightly behind her, keeping up with ease as they passed through fir trees and out into the open. The deer were up ahead in a small herd and he too studied them picking them apart. There were three does, two bucks with full racks that would make it difficult to take them down without getting injured, one young male with just the beginning of antlers, and- Aha! There was a doe off to the side of the herd, the hocks of her knees shaky and trembling as she slowly lowered her head to eat the grass. He squinted and tried to focus in on her, not seeing any sores or patches of missing fur that were signs of disease among her pelt. "There to the left of the herd a few feet seperated. An old doe" he said in a hushed whisper motioning with his snout in the direction he was talking about.

"Looks healthy enough. I suggest either her, or the young male whose antlers are beginning to come in" he finished and looked to her for her opinion. He was fairly good at the physical part of taking down a deer, but the plotting and plan of attack was not his cup of tea.

Her eyes followed the direction of his gesture. True to Regan's word, an old female loitered just a little bit away from the rest of the group, eyes glazed with age. There was that young male, as well, but. . .

"The doe will work. Let's leave the young buck alone," she said decisively. "He'll have fawns one day and grow the herd. The doe is at the end of her life cycle."

Her mouth twitched as she began to formulate a plan. "You're big, and I'm fast," she murmured to Regan, taking in his barrel chest and brute strength. "If you wait here at the edge of the glen, I can chase her towards you and you can take her down. There's a ravine right in front of us that we're agile enough to cross, but I doubt she is. Wait here for her."

Before she slinked off, Miyako turned her head and added, "If I can nip a leg for you to slow her down, I will. But I don't know how fast the old gal is." Like a thin shadow, she lept across the ravine and prowled a wide oval around the herd, darting slowly between points so as not to catch the deer's notice. When she was just a few feet away from the doe, she lunged forward, teeth flashing white in a snarl.

Bleats of alarm rose up from the herd as they caught her in their periphery, and the deer began to scatter. Her eyes, though, were on just one, and she bore down on the doe a black fury, obsidian pelt rippling in the mountain breeze. The deer whipped her head up and took off slowly, arthritic knees struggling to get into motion.

Bracing for impact, Miyako pushed all her weight back into her hindquarters and launched herself at the doe, latching onto a rear leg and clamping down. But the old girl still had some fight in her, and her other hind hoof caught her square in the chest, causing her to lose her grip. Despite the setback, the doe was badly hurt, and was limping toward Regan waiting in the glen.

"It's your time to shine!" she called out gleefully to her new packmate.

Regan listened to the plan silently his eyes still focusing in on the old doe. He nodded his consent and crouched low in some shrubbery so that he was at least partially hidden from the view of the herd. He watched Miyako closely, admiring the stealthy way she avoidede the attention of the herd until she was right behind the doe. He grinned to himself as she lunged at the doe, who seemed to have trouble moving at first. Silently cheering her on he felt his muscles tense as he crouched preparing to leap forward as soon as she was close enough.

Miyako's call didn't go unheard, but he was already on it leaping from the bushes and propelling himself forward until he was close enough to make the kill bite. However he took too long and the doe reared up, forelegs flailing in the air and aiming kicks to his face. He ducked low and leapt backwards knowing the doe would come down eventually, and snarled fiercely. Now lowering to the ground the doe gave a frightened bleat as she realized she was cornered, one wolf in the front and one wolf in the back. Regan took this moment of recognition to leap forward, wrapping his massive jaws around her throat and swinging his weight so that she leaned over onto the injured leg losing her balance and falling to the ground.


Regan was not one to draw out the pain of anyone,So he shook his head until he heard a loud snap of her neck and released her panting heavily. He stood up and looked at Miyako, pride in his eyes as he licked the blood from his jaws. "Great Job. I'm afraid I am a bit rusty, almost got a nasty hoof to the face there" he said between pants.

Miyako had skidded to a halt after the deer clipped her in the chest, and watched the big male take down their prey, giving it a merciful killing blow with the snapping of its neck. Delighted, she trotted to meet him, relishing the scent of fresh spilled blood heavy in the air.

"Nonsense! You did great," she replied, shaking off his last statement. "She was very determined not to die." Ignoring the dull ache from the doe's blow, she gave him a curt nod toward the carcass. The light was quickly leaving her eyes as she bled out. "You can have first go." He was, she had deduced by scent and posture, just a step above her in rank, and thus deserved to eat before her.

There hadn't really been a strict hierarchy in her family's pack. Perhaps that was why they had been so dysfunctional. And perhaps that was why Ichiro had been so adamant on claiming the alpha title after their father's death and batting back all challengers toward said title. Maybe packs with set ranks just worked better. It would be a slow learning process for her to remember her place--she had been top dog for so long in her family--but she would figure it out in the long run. She had to, to survive.

Miyako sat and looked at Regan. She wondered where he came from. He hadn't answered her question earlier, and she hoped that wasn't a bad thing. God knows there were enough wolves in the Teekon Wilds with bloody and sordid pasts.

Regan looked at Miyako as she approached and studied her for a moment. He had seen the doe lash out with her hind hoof, but wasn't sure if it had struck or not. "Are you alright? Did she kick you?" he asked with concern in his voice. He had heard her say that he could take the first few bites, but he wouldn't eat until he was sure that she was alright. A kick from a deer could be nasty whether it was from a young or old one, He had seen wolves have internal bleeding and blood clots they had gotte kicked so hard.

Vaguely he recalled that he had been asked a question before they set off to hunt, but he was embarrassed to realize he didn't remember it. "Did you ask me a question earlier, before we set off? I apologize for not answering I just got distracted" he said with a lopsided grin.

She brushed off his concern with a shake of her head and a smile. "I'm fine, really." It was sore, and it would likely bruise, but nothing she hadn't recovered from before. The cut on her head from the hunt with Drogon had healed within a few days--didn't even leave a scar.

"Go ahead and eat, but yeah, I was just wondering earlier where you come from originally," she answered, giving him a curious look. "You said you were new here. I wasn't sure if you're a northerner like me, or if you come from someplace else."

Her stomach rumbled quietly, and Miyako hoped that Regan did not hear. The gallant wolf would probably nudge her toward the carcass, when he really should be taking his rightful place at first dibs. Let's eat and take this back to the others, she thought impatiently. Maybe Chusi will start to warm up to me once I start proving myself useful.

Regan held his gaze upon her for a few more moments before he nodded once "Okay. You'd know better than anyone else" he said with a quick smile. At that he lowered his head to the chest and tore it open,ripping a chunk of meat away and dropping it between his paws where he set to eating it. He did listen to what she said, and once he swallowed the food in his mouth and licked his maw he looked up at her "I come from a place called Canada. It is huge, with many territories. I specifically come from a pack in the mountains of Labrador. We called our territory River's Divide." He said with ease his eyes going distant for a moment as he lowered his head to take another bite, while remembering the beautiful mountains and valleys he used to live in. It was one of the reasons he chose this pack, it reminded him of home.


His ears flicked and he looked up at her, a smirk forming on his maw as her belly rumbled loud enough for him to notice. He had already taken a couple of chunks away so he motioned to the Carcass "Eat with me. I am not one of those wolves who cares about rank order, unless I am put into a rank like beta or alpha which I cannot see happening" he admitted with a grin.

Canada. For some reason, that sounded vaguely familiar. "Is that up north? Because I think I might have come from there, too." She had never heard of Labrador, or River's Divide, though. Perhaps if Canada was as vast as Regan said, they could have been on opposite sides of the great land.

Sure enough, gallant Regan beckoned her to come and eat. He must have heard the stomach growl, she thought sourly. But his speech about it was at least charming, and Miyako, nodding in acquiescence, stepped forward and started to eat, ripping pieces from the fleshy part of the belly tucked into a hindquarter.

"Why can't you see that happening?" she asked between bites, swallowing thickly first so as not to choke mid-sentence. "You're the most seasoned wolf here that I've seen, and you're clearly a capable hunter and packmate."

Regan nodded in response to her question about Canada's location, his mouth full of meat leaving him unable to vocalize without sounding rude. He moved to the side so she would be able to get better access to the good parts of the carcass without having to be pressed against him, something that normally the flirtatious male wouldn't mind in the least but for some reason he didn't want to behave like that with this female.

Her next question made him pause and he finished chewing as he though about how to answer it. "Maybe.....Maybe I can't see it happening because I do not want a high rank unless I see the need to step in and take it to help the pack out" he responded choosing his words carefully as he puzzled over the reason why he couldn't imagine himself as a high rank. She was right though, everyone here was so young and he wondered if they had enough experience to get themselves through the winter. Young Chusi, the girl who had accepted him at the borders seemed intelligent enough and he hoped she knew what she was doing as Alpha. 

"From what you've seen so far.....does this pack seem capable of surviving the winter?" he asked her, turning his attention fully on her instead of the carcass. He only asked because if not he wanted to do whatever he could to get them all through, even if that meant having a one on one meeting with Chusi about it.

He did not want a high rank. She understood him, at least a little. The pressures of leadership were immense, especially in a territory as vast as the Vale. At the same time, though, she wondered if it didn't get under his skin just a little bit to know that young upstarts like Chusi had the run of the place, when Regan was much older and more experienced himself.

Nevertheless, she shrugged it off, choosing to answer his question instead. "I don't know," she answered truthfully. "I've only met a couple of you guys. I don't even know how many wolves live here. Or how much game there is. I know I can survive the winter. . .but it would be sure as hell easier to survive with a structured pack."

Bending her head to the carcass, she began to eat again, though her mind was swarming with questions. Where was everybody? Even in her own fractured family, it was still easy to find everyone around, save her absentee father. They banded together and put up a strong front. In Miyako's time here, Chusi had not made any effort to bring the pack together for hunts or gatherings. They were wolves bound by allegiance, not necessarily by loyalty or trust.

Miyako wondered whether Mouse had painted a rosier picture of the Vale than reality warranted. The physical beauty was there, but the camaraderie was sorely lacking.

Regan tore off another chunk and set it at his paws. It was an odd way to eat, while he usually saw wolves tear straight into the carcass he preferred to seperate a piece and take it for himself. He listened as she said she hadn't met alot of the Vale wolves and didn't know how many the pack held within their ranks. His eyes widened at this and he paused in his eating. "That sounds like everyone pretty much keeps to themselves. I've only met you,Chusi and Genie. If we are going to survive the winter as a pack, then we all need to work together. The cache can't stock itself." he said in a worried tone.


He would speak to Chusi whenever he got the chance to do so. He wanted to get a feel for her, see if she struck him as someone who could lead without help. Even if he couldn't become Beta he could still try to gain her trust and provide her with support and tips that would help the pack in the long run. "I'll talk to Chusi. If I don't think she knows what she's doing I will try to help her as much as I can. If my help isn't wanted......I don't know" he said his voice trailing off as he took a bite of the meat and chewed thoughtfully.

She chuckled at a sudden thought. "Maybe we should run off and start our own pack," she quipped. "A pack for wolves who stick together, who know what they're doing." Her ears flicked. Was that treasonous? Regardless of whether it was or not, Chusi and her gang were never around to hear anything she had to say, anyway.

Miyako noticed the odd way Regan ate the kill but said nothing, keeping to herself. She was nearly full, and with one last tear with her white canines, the meat came free, slid down her throat, and satiated her at last. Now her mind worked as to where they would take this bounty for the rest of the pack to enjoy.

"You mentioned a cache," she said to Regan, licking the blood and fat from her chops. "Will you show me where all of them are in the Vale, so I know where to take my prey?" Miyako, if it was possible, wanted to be the pack's main hunter, the one that brought home the bacon for her brothers and sisters in arms. But she needed to know where to put the food in the first place.

His head shot up at the suggestion she made, though he realized she was only joking. The idea had appeal despite the fact that he had sworn his loyalty only days ago and didn't really want a high rank as he stated before. Running a pack and having it be succesful was a great achievement for any wolf and it was one that he would lie if he said he had never actually considered. "That would be interesting. Quite an experience i'm sure..." he said thoughtfully before returning to the meat by his paws. He swallowed the last of it and set to cleaning the blood off his lips and paws before responding to her next question.


"Sure can! There's actually one by the den site, it's where we keep the larger prey. Easier to keep an eye on I suppose" he said and smiled at her nodding to the carcass. "It's actually where this will go" he said and wrapped his jaws around one of the forelegs of the fallen doe.

Miyako smiled at his willingness to help her find the caches. In a pack where she had found few members so far--let alone friends--it was nice to have an ally in her formative days as a resident of the Vale.

"Thank you, Regan," she said, her voice full of gratitude. "For helping me bring down the deer--and to be someone to talk to. It gets lonely, sometimes."

She bent her head and seized an opposite leg of the doe, so that they could carry it easily between the two of them. It would be slow work, but a pair of strong adult wolves could lift a frail carcass from here to there without an insane amount of effort.

"Lead the way, boss," she mumbled through her mouthful of flesh and bone, eyes sparkling with mirth.

 

gonna fade here :)

Regan smiled back at her and released the leg of the carcass to speak "If ever needed, you can always speak to me. I'm not shy and I like to help out the best I can in any situation" he said earnestly. With that being said he took the leg into his jaws once more and tugged at it to get it sliding across the ground. He glanced at Miyako one more time a snort of amusment leaving his nostrils to show he heard her comment before he gained a steady rhythm and leaned his weight into it, trying to make it a bit easier for Miyako so she wouldn't cause herself any more injury if there really was a problem with that shoulder.

archiving!