Oops short post! Maybe
@chakra could intervene next post before Tuwa gives away all of NWF's food?
It was if all of the fight and fire had abandoned the young woman's spirit, and it left her in a shell of broken indifference. With a raised brow she queried the urchin's answer, but accepted it all the same. "Kòbo," she parroted after the youth, oblivious to the lies she spun, "wait here." Her narrow body turned away and disappeared over the ridge to a cache that had been planted by another the day before. Swiftly she turned earth, and retrieved half of a decaying rabbit from the hole. A few moments later she returned with the prize in hand, ready to offer it to the emaciated yearling.
Tuwawi hoped that an act of generosity would draw forth some sort of emotion or good feeling she desperately desired. Yet, as she stood prepared to give this beggar a meal, the bleak void remained.
So sorry for keeping you waiting! Last few days have been very hectic. Btw, even though Chakra's kind of dismissing Bayou here, you don't need to consider it a rejection yet; Bayou can still talk her way into the pack. :)
Chakra watched Tuwawi go, a bit of sulk evident in her slink as she left with the food. Despite her harsh exchange with the red-coated subordinate, Chakra felt an undercurrent of warmth and affection for her. Tuwawi was
hers. It was
her duty to protect not just their pack and their pack's interests — such as the food Tuwawi had been prepared to give away — but also her pack's members, including Tuwawi herself. If this strange little wolf was a threat in any way, it was better that Chakra deal with her and any dangers she might bring.
Turning her attention back to the dark wraith, she growled in distaste at the other's attempts to lick her chin. A quick snap, white teeth coming together with a sharp
clack, put some space between them again.
"I have neither the desire nor the resources to feed every beggar that comes crawling at my borders," she replied coldly to the other's pleas.
"Go away."
Cold and hard, that was Chakra's exterior. Yet inside, she was raised by a mother who had taught her mercy. She may have had savage Feralheart in her blood, but she had a kind and merciful Endore heart. She preferred to ignore it most of the time, because such emotions seemed to get her into a lot of situations she'd regret later.
Like now. As the young stranger crawled, crumpled and pathetic on the ground, begging and pleading for something, anything, Chakra felt something kindle inside her. Some miniscule iota of mercy sparked in her heart and she found herself considering, despite her overwhelming desire and instinct to just tell this carrion crow to get lost. Another growl rumbled in her chest, born more of her own ire with herself than with the stranger. What was that bizarre babble that she kept lapsing into anyway? Was she mad? Her voice was cold and direct: "What is your name?"
Kòbo, the other answered, and Chakra had no idea that it was a lie. To her, the name of this stranger was no more special or noteworthy than the name of countless other strangers who showed up at their borders for whatever reason. The young she-wolf inched a step closer, her narrow head on its skinny neck stretching toward her like a hand reaching for a gesture of charity. A soft growl of warning again reminded Kòbo of her place. She was not so tolerant with older wolves; only this one's youth earned her the benefit of the doubt. "I don't have room for the useless here. If you have any worthwhile skills, let's hear them."
Gah, I just love Bayou. You write so beautifully, and I love how she talks. :)
As the little crow went over what she knew — which was, not surprisingly, very little considering her youth — Chakra listened with a neutral expression on her face. This scrawny little shadow of a wolf had very little to offer Neverwinter, a fact which under any other circumstances would have resulted in a quick, sharp-toothed dismissal. But something Kòbo said
had caught the pale Alpha's attention; when she fell silent again, Chakra considered for a moment before commenting,
"Hmm, I could use a good spy." She arched a brow at Kòbo, thinking she looked very much like the slick, sneaky sort who could do whatever "quiet work" needed to be done and keep a low profile about it. Chakra liked that idea very much, actually.
"Is this something you would do? Be my eyes and ears where I have none, in exchange for food and shelter?"
omg ty ;-; i am trying to write her really simplistically so im glad it is working.
"I could use a good spy, The pale woman revealed, which was a surprise for the dark girl. It was not often that others sought out a creature with those skills; but she was eager, and willing.
When questioned further, Bayou simply gave a nod. The motion was more like a vibration that started in her neck and trembled through to her haunch, ending with a violent batting of her tail. "Oui!" The spider's voice bellowed, crackling in pitch.
Happy little sounds chirped and chattered out of Bayou as she peered up at the big woman, fully alert now and not dragging herself in the dirt; such an arrangement was the most favourable to the spider, who could continue skittering through the dark at her own whim.
It just meant she would have to return from time to time, to tell this ghost some stories. The level of entertainment in that thought was bountiful indeed.
"I pledge my service!" Bayou crooned, while her limbs unfolded and she stood proudly before the woman. "Kòbo is thankful - trè rekonesan!"
Time would tell if her pledge was true. It was always hard to trust a spider, after all.
Gah, so sorry for dragging ass with finishing this. Last post from me. Welcome to NWF! <3 Bayou will be ranked as a juvenile until her first birthday.
Chakra's brow furrowed in a brief moment of puzzlement as the scarecrow girl spoke words to her in a language she could not understand. She assumed, however, from the yearling's pleased demeanor that whatever she said was good. Chakra nodded, uncertain of the wisdom of this decision but accepting that it was too late to go back and change how things had unfolded. Motioning for Kòbo to follow her, she turned and made to head back into the forest.
"Come," she said, her previously harsh voice taking on a slightly softer tone.
"Follow me and we'll get you something to eat. Perhaps Tuwawi has not yet buried that carcass."