Wolf RPG

Valette made it safe over the mountains. Thunder dome was quite the experience, and she knew its name now thanks to the female that she met there. She decided that she wouldn't go over the mountain again by Thunder Dome, the lightning deemed her too dangerous. It was good that she knew. As she came over the mountain she suddenly smelled a pack of wolves.

The dark colored girl was instantly interested, yet stayed a respectable distance. She didn't want any trouble with this pack of course. But as a scout it was good to know that there was a pack located on the other side of the mountains. She hoped to speak to one of the pack members, perhaps, know more about this location and ask a confirmation that these mountains were called the sunspire mountains.

It was ludicrous that she be made to wait. For every minute they waited, for every damnable hour, Harlyn's group could do true harm to the pack. It wasn't really the pack that Tavi worried about though — she thought of Tambourine, of the wound to his throat, and all the things she'd do to the next person to even breathe the same air as him. Her protection of him was overabundant, but to Tavi it was with good reason.

Still, she could not be with him all of the time. There were moments where hunger got the better of her, or the need to urinate, or even to scout bits of the border in an attempt to find some semblance of control over the situation; eventually she'd return to Tambrouine and the Crook, throwing the evil eye at anyone who dared to even shift their weight, and stay up till the long hours of the morning on guard.

Today, this moment anyhow, she was away from him. Tam was left in the care of Stark or Banner or one of the other very rare, very trusted wolves she hoped to take with her. While tracking the signs of a rabbit (somewhat poorly, as her mind was elsewhere) Tavi came upon a familiar scent. Or, it was familiar, but it wasn't, and it was layered. She slunk through the willows and cross the various ridges of the rocky terrain until the dark figure came in to view, and instantly Tavi was bristling, lifting her head like one might lift a hammer — and all she could see around her right now were nails.

Valette sniffed the marks once more. She was surprised that she could linger around this pack's borders for so long. Maybe it was better to howl and just summon someone? She didn't want to take them from their duties just because she had a few questions.

The girl was not aware that there was someone close by, someone she was very family with. She let out a howl, or was about to when she saw a figure. The dark girl turned to what she saw, a bit of a head perhaps. "Hello?," she called out. Valette stepped a bit back to give more respect to the borders. Was this pack aggressive? She might take extra responsibilities. "I saw you!!," she let out. "Or.. I think so," she mumbled more to herself.

Tavi wasn't sure if she should chase this stranger off, or linger, and maybe ask questions. Did she need more strangers to deal with? No, not really. Was this a messenger from another pack perhaps? Their scent indicated as much; it also told her this was a woman, not a man as she'd first thought, so there was little to fear. If this was a member of the Larksong then they were approaching from the wrong angle — but maybe they were scouting further afield? This thought brought a new chill through Tavi, and she let it manifest up her spine, and then creep from between her clenched teeth as a low rumble, probably too low to be of consequence. She did slip forward in the next moment though. Sweeping steps taking her closer to the stranger, but with the mind to stay protected by the many trees and their sweeping boughs. As she crept between the fronds of a drooping willow and then slipped out from its shadow, she saw Desna, and was immediately surprised.

Her voice rang out just before she emerged, but it didn't really matter; Tavi wasn't listening the way she ought to be. The sounds went in one ear and out the other as if she'd lost the ability to comprehend words — but when she saw Desna, watched her mouth moving, she clicked back to herself, and that rumble subsided.

In fact, she gasped audibly and jaunted towards her, and Tavi's expression was all kinds of bewildered, but also happy and slightly confused. Desna! she called out as she danced towards the girl, reaching with her snout to bop her on the shoulder, and then slipped around her, eagerly drinking in her scent and trying to identify others that she carried. She didn't smell like Saena, so that meant... Well, something, but Tavi couldn't really figure that out at this exact moment. What are you doing here? I thought you were... I dunno, on the prowl for something. I'm glad you spoke, or I'd probably have eaten your face. Hah, ha ha ha, something about her tone suggests this is a joke, but there is a seriousness to Octavia that could make any legit deadpan snarker recoil.

Valette gasped in shock when a wolf came rushing towards her and called out her name. Her old name. She snapped her head up and recognized the female instantly. Her friend! Tavi! What was she doing at this pack?? Was Reek here too? They left together right? She was flabbergasted, though her tail was moving when the other came close. She let out whines of happiness in the reunion. She hadn't seen her in so long! The girl had learned her a valuable lesson during her youth.

That was something she wasn't anymore. The charcoal girl was over a year now. She had her adult sized body. Just a beautiful and elegant as her mother, only higher on her feet and more bolder, though raised with her kindness. Valette's hazel eyes looked over Tavi. "I-- I was scouting for my alpha! He wants to know more about the taiga!," she let out, and couldn't help that tears sprung in her eyes. Because Tavi reminded her of her youth and her mother, and just, all that she had lost. "So much happened. I'm-- I'm with the Silvertips now on the other side of the mountain," she explained. "I was all alone. I had no one anymore," she let out to the female. "Is Reek here too? You were at Larksong before right?," she asked. She had so many questions. She wanted to tell Tavi everything.

Desna mentioned scouting, and initially Octavia was at a loss; yes, she heard the words, but she thought of the Maplewood and wondered if somehow Saena had found them — but then her mind corrected her, because Mordecai had mentioned the woodland being abandoned when the famine hit, so clearly she was not one of the Phoenix wolves any longer. These thoughts were tiny blips, insignificant, while Desna continued to explain, and Octavia chose to dwell on the fact one of her friends had survived the famine, as not everyone would be so lucky.

Except then, she mentioned Reek, and the Larksong, and a flood of new thoughts and feelings (or truthfully, old ones brought to light, rising to the back of her throat like stale dinner after a night of drinking), and Tavi returned to her world of suspicion, hurt, distrust, and high defenses. Her spine bristled and she let out a hmmph from her nose. He's not here, thank the powers-that-be. Did she have the energy to explain everything? Not really, but she'd try, for Desna's sake. 

Tavi licked her lips and, with a breath that was only a little more steady than before, went on to explain in snippets:

I did live at the Larksong, but now I live here, and I'm one of the Alphas. Reek and I... We don't see one another much anymore. He did some things I did not agree with, put our family at risk, so I chose to leave. I assume he's still there, but he doesn't know where I am, uh.. Where we are, actually.

At this, the tail-end of her very vague synopsis, she added with a warmer tone, I had a baby, Desna. A little boy that looks just like me - he's a little shit most of the time, but I love him, and... I had to keep him safe. Briefly she smiled, but it would be hard to tell if it was a genuine smile or a facade put in place to hide the sadness in her, because the situation was sad. Tambourine did not know his father, and at this rate Tavi wasn't going to subject either of them to that boatload of drama.

His name is Tambourine. And he was the love of her life.

Valette approached her with care. The last few meters she trotted closer and nuzzled herself against Tavi. It was good to see her and she had missed her, terribly so. She listened to her story, how she and Reek split. Oh no. So Reek didn't have anyone anymore? Like her? Oh. She reminded herself that if she would go visit Reek that she shouldn't talk about Tavi, that might be bad. She stepped a bit back at 'we'.

Her hazel eyes looked at the other. A baby? A pup? She opened her mouth a bit and then nodded. She wanted to ask if it was Reek's but she didn't feel like it was her place to ask. Tavi was an alpha now. Valette looked at her friend. "I'm so happy for you Tavi. I mean-- that you have a family. I am sad things didn't work out with Reek, but... I realize now that some things are not meant to be," she let out, sounding a bit bitter herself. She had liked Mason, and she had been scared to act on it. Though, he left before anything became serious. She knew that men were useless and that they would leave. Even someone like Mason.

"Can I meet him someday?," she asked. "You were always a good friend to me Tavi. I could teach him a few things from my travels if you like," she spoke with a nod. She then looked down. "I missed you." Valette was not so quick anymore to admit that, but now she was. She had been pretty distant from others but with Tavi she shouldn't. Someone who knew about her past, somewhat. Tavi didn't know what happened to her afterwards. She had left Phoenix while she was traveling. They never got to say goodbye. She was not even sure if Tavi wanted to know what happened with her. She liked Steady and his pack, she was starting to feel at home, but if she knew that Tavi lived here, she might have joined them... "Can... Can you tell me something about your pack? And its name? Are these the Sunspire Mountains? I'd like to know for my Ranger trade," she spoke then.

She passed a wan smile across to Desna, but didn't know what to say. It was unfortunate that things failed so miserably with Reek - but it had been her choice. She had been the one to leave, to run away, to not try and fix things or deal with them. Maybe the Larksong had ended up being a safe environment after all? But it was too late now. She couldn't let herself dwell on thoughts of what if or maybe. She centered herself upon Desna's praise, her proximity, and breathed a sigh as the girl burrowed against her. 

You can meet him, sure. Maybe when he's older. But by that point, whose to say they'd be here? Maybe she could scoop him up and - along with Stark - they could go with Desna back to her mountain, wherever it was. This was a fleeting thought too, something she let flutter in the pit of her stomach and then crushed mercilessly as the conversation flowed. We... Don't like to talk about the place. I mean, its meant to be secret, that was vague, and ominous, and totally old hat, because it was Warbone's rule and he wasn't here.

Y'know what, screw that rule. I'll give you a whole tour if you want, Des. Tavi snorted softly, clutching to the idea that she had the power and the control to do as she pleased, but she knew such things were fleeting, and her recent failures hung heavy upon her shoulders. This is Marauder's Keep. It was formed by a guy named Warbone, and then the famine hit -- he went to find food, or something, I dunno. He appointed me his partner, but when he vanished I kinda took over. Its been.. hard, she wanted to say, but that wasn't a strong enough word, thus she was left to breathe a tired sigh, and looked at the dirt. But uh, tell me about -- what'd you call it -- Silvertip? What's that like?

Valette nodded to Tavi, though it felt a bit weird she used her old name. She would have to tell her sooner or later. "It is on your terms Tavi. Whenever you feel ready you are the mother," she smiled. She had a great respect for mothers, she had seen how tough puppies could be with Saena and what her mother had done to protect them. Now hearing Tavi's story she had also gone out of her way to protect her young. It seemed that most females needed to protect their youth from their fathers. For the girl it started to make sense. Mothers were better, and the ones that would care for the pups. Fathers weren't caring. It was clear now.

Valette nodded respectfully. "I understand--- Oh," she let out in surprise when Tavi started telling anyhow. She instantly listened. She nodded when she talked. "I won't tell anyone about your location. Only to my alpha to have proof for my Ranger specialty. He is a good guy, he will keep it a secret too," she spoke. Tavi then asked about Silvertip and about her life. Valette only felt right to tell more about herself now Tavi did. "Silvertip is very nice. It is a mountain, so I had to get used to that in the beginning. The air is different. I knew Steady, the alpha, before I went to this pack. I knew his nephew, Mason, too. They visited my mother when she was dying. Anyhow. Phoenix traveled to a new place, but I lost them while traveling. I wanted to visit Mason at Silvertip and when I returned--- they left. So I went to the wolves I knew at Silvertip. Though I must say that Mason isn't around anymore it is a nice place to be. He left too...," she explained to her.

"Steady is loyal, for now at least, and there are others that I can say are my friends now. They even take my advise with the pack hunts! Because well, you know how much I liked hunting back at Phoenix," she spoke. "Life is alright. I can't really complain, though I don't have many to talk about what happened in the past. It feels weird to talk about mother, and what happened at Phoenix. They weren't there, Steady knows a bit but he might leave like all the others... It is just nice to see you, because you understand. You moved away from Reek too to protect your children, mom did and even Saena did. So, um... Silvertip is nice, truly, though I am not sure if I can trust anyone there. How do you know males are there to stay? Steady has a mate now. What if he gives her pups and then leaves too?" She then realized she had talked a lot and looked down. "I guess I needed to let out some of my thoughts," she then whispered more softly, feeling a bit embarrassed. "I also don't go by the name Desna anymore. It is a Northern name from my father's culture. But he is an asshole and I don't identify with his family. So I named myself Valette, a name that kind of sounds like my mother's name."

Octavia did not anticipate all of the information that came out of her friend, but as she spoke, she listened. Her mouth occasionally opened, hinge-like, but she did not inturrupt at any points - only felt like responding sometimes, but Desna moved on, and on, and there was questions in there for her to answer but she didn't have much of a shot. Little by little Desna showed off her distrust of her home, of the men in her life, and Tavi could only think, good! Because it was an accurate view of the world, at least according to herself. While she had never been too close to any women, she had begun to understand the trials of dealing with men, and it was interesting to hear similar things from her friend.

Then, as Desna re-introduced herself with a new name, the explanation for that name made Tavi sort of... Pause. There was a moment of silence and then, out of seemingly nowhere, she began to laugh. It was a sound she hadn't made in such a long time, and it felt good to feel her lungs fill with air and her belly begin to ache, because she just couldn't stop laughing. It was intense — and all because she had never heard the girl swear before. Or she couldn't remember the last time that happened, anyway. When her laughter finally died out, Tavi gasped a few times and used her forelimb to wipe tears from her eyes.

Oh, shit, Des -- Valette, sorry -- ahhh, if Valette could get these things off her mind, then Octavia could do the same. She felt her heart slow down a little bit, but it pounded in her chest, and she was filled with all kinds of silly emotion. You were just so straight faced - I didn't think you knew any curse words, hahaha, she snickered again, and sank back upon her haunches, breathing deeply. It sounds like you've made a home for yourself, and that's good. That's really good. As for your boy problems - I dunno, really. Its hard to figure out who to trust, and its not like anyone can forsee anything before it happens. You just gotta find someone that keeps you feeling good, and stick with them. I guess... Its a two way thing. It was something she'd not done with Reek. Maybe things could change - maybe she could stick around here after all if she had Stark with her. Tavi didn't want to rely on anyone anymore, even him. But her son was what mattered to her, and if there was good reason for her to stick around the Keep, if she could trust that they were safe and Stark could be there for her, maybe....

Still, Tavi was resistant. Something... Something had changed in her. Ever since that experience with Harlyn, or maybe before that. Silence engulfed her again, and she had to shake her head to rid her brain of the immersive thoughts. I think I've found someone I can trust, but I'm not sure. He... Reminds me of Reek, actually. And my friend Ukko from the Maplewood. I dunno if you ever met him - he was around when I first joined up, and briefly a memory flashed through her brain, an image of her younger self toying with the boy, lying to Saena, trying to sneak in to the pack lands -- but that had been a lifetime ago, she realized. She wasn't that person anymore. I miss her, she found herself thinking, and then once more shaking her head.

I dunno. Everything is so much more complicated than it used to be.

Valette was super surprised when the female started to burst out in laughing after she told her heartfelt story. She felt her body flush and even stepped a bit back because he reaction was so unexpected in her eyes. Valette battered her eyes at the other, confused look on her face. What was it that made her laugh? Had she even listened to her heartfelt story. Tavi calmed down and then explained that her cursing made her laugh so hard. Valette calmed down a bit more. "You knew me as a child, Tavi. I'm an adult now," she reminded and tentatively smiled. She wondered if her outpour from before was misplaced or not.

However Tavi seemed to have calmed down now and get more into her fears. Valette realized it was nice to have her feeling spoken out to someone. Tavi seemed to give her opinion in return and Valette was grateful. "I guess being in Steady's pack does feel good. So I will give him a chance then," she agreed. And if steady failed her, left Silvertip mountain. Then she would just join Tavi's pack. That seemed like a nice back up plan. "If he disappoints me I will come to your pack. I guess girls have to stick together," she decided, so Tavi would know. The female also spoke about trusting someone again. Valette was happy for her.

The girl instantly remembered Ukko. He had been there for her when her mother died! She had actually really liked him. "I remember Ukko! He was very nice. If this male is someone you can trust then you shouldn't hold back, Tavi. I might be all broken trust-wise but, then you should follow your own advise. It is a two way street. Actually, it is some great advise. I will remember it from now on. Maybe try it with some friends at Silvertip," she admitted. She let out a long sigh and nodded slowly, agreeing with Tavi's last words. "I can only agree, Tavi. Each day I grow older life seems to get more complicated."

Tavi smiled as she listened to Desna speak -- er, Valette -- gosh, that'd take time to get used to. A part of her wished the dark girl would stay, but the more she talked about this Steady, and Silvertip, the happier she seemed. But there was a glimmer of hope when the girl indicated coming back should things go awry, and Octavia wasn't sure if she should be happy for that or not. It catered to her wishes, but at the same time Tavi knew she wasn't comfortable here; perhaps if Valette returned she'd find Tavi gone, and then what? A brief doubt flooded her, and she looked away, frowning softly, only to resume her listening and pleasant "smile and nod" expression a moment later.

Holding back was what she was good at - but Valette was right. It didn't do her any good at this point. She would need to confront Stark and set things straight, and then sort out what to do about her issues with the rest of the pack; at the same time, Tavi couldn't help the nagging feeling that she was doing things backwards. That she should figure out Tambourine, and Harlyn, and the Keep, before bothering with something like her relationship with Stark. Was it a relationship? She wasn't sure.

The sooner things chill out, the better. It was nice to see you Vee -- do you mind if I call you that? She hastily pinned on, realizing after the fact that maybe Valette didn't want any extra nicknames. It would take time for Octavia to adjust to this new name and new person, but she was taking baby steps. I'd love to give you a tour of the place sometime, and have you meet Tambourine, but I have a feeling his sitter is going nuts without me, so I should get going -- but it was really good to see you. I missed you a lot, which was something she hadn't anticipated. Tavi gave the girl a friendly bump, shoulder-to-shoulder, before pulling back and away; she wouldn't depart entirely until she'd given Valette a moment to respond, but it was clear she was in a hurry.

Valette wasn't aware she had helped Tavi with something, yet the female did notice that the other was in a hurry and wanted to go back to her child. "You can call me that," she spoke with a smile. It was good to see her friend. She didn't want to lose her again. Yet Valette wasn't aware that Tavi wanted to leave.

"I understand. I will drop by later once I have finished my travels. And, you can also always come to Silvertip. They are all very welcoming especially if you tell them you are my friend. So if Tambourine can travel you can always come visit me too," she spoke. "It was good to see you Tavi. Glad to see that you are well," she wished.

With that Valette knew that it was her time to go. She didn't want to stop the mother from seeing her child. She also had no clue how old her child was. It didn't matter. If she needed her mom she was always glad she came quickly. She briefly thought about her mother and then nodded her goodbye. "See you," she smiled and then trotted off towards the river she was following earlier.

- End thread! -