Wolf RPG

Harley had time to calm down from seeing Charon utop his mate, but the rage had set in early this morning when he had crossed the borders yet again into Moonspear territory. There was no hesitation, and he headed alone towards the strongest scent of his alpha female. Not only did Harley know it would cause hell, the dark woman deserved to know her mate wasn't loyal. He didn't howl for her, not wanting Charon to come in and wreck the party like yesterday. Hopefully, the ebony female would be alone so he could talk to her, but in all honesty he didn't care. If the pale man was there, he'd say it anyways and take what happened.

She'd gone up the mountain and taken a few greedy days to adjust to things as they were. It had been the furthest up she had gone in quite a while, and not since before the lightning strike. Evidently she'd needed something like it. Now a bit more settled, physically and mentally, she skimmed gradually down the slopes, feeling ravenous with a craving for something fresh and bloody. That was what guided her most of all, especially now that dizziness and nausea had backed off to leave behind a purposeful, instinctual hunger.

While her nose sought game trail, she started to key into other subtleties. Before she could find herself investigating them any, a curious scent caught her focus and she grunted before shifting course towards it.

When she approached him, he was alone, although her nose quivered. She had not spent very much time around him lately. Or really anyone. "Harley," she greeted with a swish of her risen tail, a little stiff on her overall tone but if his eye was sharp enough, he'd probably realize why soon enough. She was intent in her stare upon him and the dark alpha curious to see what this was about, so assuming the explanation would follow shortly. So long as it did, she'd remain tempered enough to converse and not hunt for a moment.

She found him, it seemed, without his calling, and he was grateful she was alone, even though a little cold. At first, he wondered if she already knew, but surely she'd be more upset than this that her mate had cheated. Maybe she was sick? His eyes scanned over her, and in seconds he realized her belly was just a little distended than he'd last seen her, and her scent was.... Off. 
She was pregnant. 
He'd scented the heat in the territory, but hadn't bothered to sniff it out. Why would he? His time was spent caring for Althaia and himself, he barely talked to or saw anyone on the mountain anymore. 
She'd be even more mad. 
Lowering his head, ears and tail, Harley loosed a long, sad sigh. This wouldn't be good on him, he knew, but it'd be worth it. He wasted no time, and got right to the point. 
                 "I hate to find you on such a bad note, Amekaze, but I feel you have a right to know: I'd just found Althaia, in heat, and had brought her prey. Just as I was about to send her to the den to sit it out away from any males.... Charon came up, and chased me away. I'll admit, I had to see what was going on and... Well, he approached her, groomed her, and eventually mated her." 

She'd begun distancing herself from everyone even after the lightning. Everything that had happened afterward was just more to encourage her, and even when she did mingle with anyone, Harley seemed far away from her focus. Usually it was someone else. She smelled him around here and there and it all led her to believe his minded his own business, elsewhere, likely mingling a bit.

So when his explanation unfurled and the details came to light, she felt her eyes narrowing and head tilt. At first the best thing she could think was along the lines of a simple: why? A hesitation followed, because why would he? And even hearing her called Althaia struck her as strange. But her hackles stiffened anyway and she knew she'd been staying away from him recently, so it was not so unbelievable -- even if it hardly seemed like something in line with the wolf she knew. She was keeping him at what felt like a mutual arm's length so long as his distaste in her general direction remained and perhaps this was some.. hint as to the whole depths of this. Meanwhile she didn't want to put up with any of his shit when she had so much else to concern herself with.

There was a lot here to take issue with. Harley's information had been.. plenty detailed already.

Now, where to begin?

"Where are they now?" she asked, licking her lips and eying him carefully in her effort to gauge when or where this was. Charon was who she wanted, mostly, but Althaia may not be far behind if the dark alpha had anything to do about it. She took care to measure her exhale, even while rippling her rising hackles anxiously -- the first outward signs she'd dare to show while she still could gain from this. In part, she understood why he told her this considering Charon's involvement, but why was it Harley here before her telling her this, of all wolves, and why the hell was her mate mating with the thrall?

She was not as outwardly angry as he'd expected, and the wolfdog kept himself low to appease her. Harley knew full well Althaia might be partially in the red zone now, but upset as he was he knew that he would protect her at all costs.
Ame didn't say much, but stared him down and asked where they were. Charon, he had no idea, and he'd entered the territory at a different place than his mate so their scents weren't directly intwined. At this point, he really didn't care who knew, and was at all times preparing himself to hurry to her and run away should it come to that.
                 "She is likely in the den or hunting, not sure, but I don't know where he went. I turned away after they started, didn't want to stick around and watch them go at it."
Bitterness laced is voice, a venom that was unmistakable, and his sorrowful amber eyes did their best to stay focused on her chest, her swollen belly, her paws, anything but her own eyes. She was angry, hormonal, there was no need to make her feel challenged on top of it all.

She was scheming already past the hard look on her face and lack of outward riling herself up. Several approaches to this laid out before her and while none held the utmost of favor, she was not about to tolerate anything bound to inconvenience her in these coming weeks. These were her last chances to deal with it all before she eventually went denbound with these whelps in a few weeks, and she did not feel like it was too much to ask because that was the very purpose of a pack -- provide for and protect her and by extension these puppies, not make her want to rip into all of their hides for bothering her. All she wanted was peace and quiet while she worked through this, her first fledgling attempt at motherhood and the very precious future of the Spear. "I see," she hissed through a frown. The bigger picture was coming together for her and she was not liking the look of it.

This was not meant to come off as an interrogation, because almost, she was thankful he did come forward like this and answer her so readily. His mindfulness of her was helping. Her short patience would just have little other way, though. "And you have stayed away since?" she questioned purposefully, suspecting some closeness between Althaia and him since he had been helping her mend. A friendliness at least, but males were disgustingly weak to the wills of the season, so matter their mindfulness. This was further proof, and all the more reason for her to hate it.

Harley's paws already itched to go, to find his mate again and hover around her from now on. No doubt, Amekaze would be upset and who knows what Charon would tell her. They needed to be ready to go asap, and every moment he spent away with her was nerve wracking. He fidgeted with his paws, slowly inching away before she began to speak. Did he lie? No, that would get him in more trouble.
           "No, I didn't I took her to the lake and kept her away from anyone else who would do the same."
She didn't exactly seem upset with him, but perhaps that was because he was quick to answer.  He turned to look around and sniff at the air, and looked quite clearly ready to leave the presence of the hormonal alpha female. 

The iciness of her stare deepened and with certainty, anger was churning in her heart. Her next move remained unseen so far, although she clicked through several options in rapid succession. She was frustrated above all else, enraged that this would be how they served her, and that all of this should come to light so soon after her own strife with Lazarus -- as if that alone had not been enough.

She nodded, although bristled more obviously now, despite him saying he had taken her to the lake and kept her away from others. That still admittedly inspired unease. Males protecting a female in season seemed like a place for a lot to go wrong. Well, evidently it already had if Charon had taken the opportunity as his own. Thinking of Charon draped over the thrall, presumably as Harley had seen happen, made her lash her tail. She had to address this with him and see if he would have any justification for his actions. Not that it would help him much if he did.

She growled something inaudible towards him that meant to announce formal leave from this, as some sort of unclear appreciation for answering her, and began to turn away. Her lips now pulled back into a silent snarl, one that hinted on the edge of a warning as she glanced at Harley pointedly once more. For the time being, he was safe. She didn't know how deep his involvement went. For now, Charon and Althaia were the ones with the bullseyes on their back. The dark alpha stalked off to see what she could find out with a new mission in mind.