anyone welcome, but
@Cara specifically <3
pre-warning anyone who joins that lecter is in a fouler mood than usual and your character has a huge chance of being greatly insulted.
He emerged from his den stiffly, sore and angered at the pulsation of pain in his foreleg from the badger's bite. It would have tolled him to travel to the sea, and his store of opiates was quite diminished. The shaman would not admit his addiction to the tiny black seeds, but each day was tinged with the comfort of the hazy drug, just enough to chase away the spectres of pain that had settled into his hips and back.
Now, as the midday sun rose, and he limped forth from his den, a surly visage clothed in a stinking ragged pelt, he felt keenly the ache of his ageing body and snapped at a sparrow that drifted too close.
Any creature with half a brain in its skull would have avoided the healer, as he lay down outside his den to soak the sun into his decrepit bones. Had he not been in Jinx's love, Lecter would have tossed himself down the mountain to avoid the stab of long-arriving death.
oh god now im scared
The reeking fragrance of another wolf made the yearling's nose scrunch in disgust, the scent was heavy with a mix of herbal essences and necrosis. She pricked her ears and awaited to see any sign of movement between the slopes of the mountain.
Then a raggedy white figure materialized in the distance, carrying with it a feeling of discomfort that dragged behind him, like a chain stuck to his ankles. Cara didn't move, she watched the figure in the distance, her ears moving like little radars and her tail flicking slowly from side to side.
The yearling didn't approach the old man, nor she retreated. She just stood, giving him the decision whether to approach or not..
bwahahaha jk
Lifting his head from prolonged lapping at his foreleg, Lecter's eyes settled on the slim wolfess watching him from some distance away. She was quite lovely, but her beauty was a mere annoyance to him this morn, and he snapped his teeth together in irritation. "Have you no sense, that you stand there gaping as if you were some insipid bird? Did you fall and hit your head?" he scoffed. "Come here," Lecter suddenly demanded, plume slapping once against the earth.
Whether or not she attended him was her own affair, though it could be noted that if she declined to obey, his sense of worth would become deflated, and enrage him, though perhaps anger in an aged beast was nothing short of impotent.
The yearling vacillated, her paws shuffling before she gave in and slowly made her way towards the male. Her ears uncomfortably positioned backwards showing her waryness of the man. She ingored his snazzy comment about having hit her head, knowing that arguing wouldn't favour her.
When she was standing a few steps away from him, she brought herself onto a halt and looked blankly at the male, as if she could see right through him. Little did she imagine this pure white male had more than tricks up his sleeve than Houdini himself.
"Yes?" she barked, her yellow eyes scanning his face, starting from his eyes and making their way slowly down his snout, finishing off at his charcoal colored nose.
Don't mind me~
Kaname patted the last of the dirt over his cache of the remaining badger kits, ermine and other small, furry creatures. Lifting a lean leg, he marked the buried treasure as
his. No one else could touch it.
It's mine! the scent declared. He preferred to keep one cache of food all to himself whenever he joined a pack. He actively added to the pack caches, but his greedy nature made him hoard like a dragon did with its gold. His tail wagging happily, the dark wolf trotted off into the territory, looking for a meeting with one of his own.
A familiar scent wafted into his nostrils: Lecter. The old wolf was probably in pain after that badger bite of his. He sighed and went over towards the reeking scent. No point in letting him suffer, the pack would not benefit from a cranky old witch doctor wandering around angrily. As he grew closer, he smelled another familiar scent, the fiesty white female he met at the border. The assassin suddenly felt a small bit of pity for the yearling, since Lecter was most likely snarling at anyone nearby. When he reached the pair, he found that his prediction was correct. Lecter was sitting there, growling at the girl. He chuckled softly and walked closer without a word.
She approached, and he basked in the momentary feeling of dominance and pleasure as she heeded. It passed soon enough, and he shifted with a wince. "Who are you?" He had an inkling of who she was, but wanted to take the time to toy with her; if the shaman was to be miserable, then he would drag another down with him.
Kaname approached silently and Lecter turned the slow burn of ice upon him, but greeted the male otherwise with a low grunt. So long as the other male did not act foolish, the madman had little quarrel with him.
He returned his gaze to the feckless little girl, and lapped at his foreleg, grimacing at the taste of the herbs with which he had packed the wound. "How did you come to be here, among Jinx's wolves?" he demanded, presumably upon the heels of her first response.
The yearling rolled her eyes slightly, in her mind running over the options of inventing an excuse and escaping the conversation. She tried to take a small step back from the crabby older male but tensed up when another figure approached, a brown male she did recognize.
It was the male that had come to her aid during the altercation near the borders, the very same day Majesty had begun to show signs of treason. She nodded to him and gave him a welcoming lash of her tail, her eyes shooting a silent plea of help. She wanted out of that conversation.
Then the senile male spoke again, demanding her name and the reason she was in the pack. Caea sighed and swung her head around to meet his face, "My name is Cara Penn Moretti, daughter of Freud Moretti." she barked, not caring whether he knew about her father or not. Chances was that he had never heard of the lad, but she didn't really give a damn. "I'm here because your precious leader saw potential in me, as I suppose she did with you too.." she barked non-chalantly, oblivious to the fact it was Jinx's mate she was talking to.
Kaname looked up at the yearling, who had a silent plea for help in her eye. He merely snickered at it. He would not assist her, not with Lecter. He knew that the old man was Jinx's mate, and not one to be enemies with otherwise. He left the young girl alone and walked over to the elder.
Lecter occupied himself with talking to the girl, Cara. Asking about her purpose in being in the pack. Kaname meanwhile sniffed Lecter's injured leg. It was packed with herbs, but it looked like it did not dull his pain. "It smells rank. Has it become infected?" he asked Lecter, ignoring the pretty white wolf.
Why did the place have to be on a Mountain? Dakota thought to herself miserably as she trekked through the territory of her new pack, attempting to learn it better. This had to be coarsest terrain she had ever been in. Her paws were sore and she had a pounding head ache. The scenery is flawless through, she had to admit. She could see the top of the trees of the Neverwinter forest and she felt as though she could stand on her hind legs and touch the clouds above her.
Dakota was not completely sure where she was going. The mountain was large as far as she could tell, and one wrong turn would get her lost. The paths were narrow and winding and they connected in many places. Fortunately for her, she did catch the scent of other wolves, and was following it right now in hopes of finding other pack members.
Success! Just ahead of her, Dakota could see three wolves. One of them, an off whitish male, was lying down and licking at what appeared to be a wound. A dark colored male stood near him, examining it, and idly talking to a light colored female, who seemed slightly agitated. Dakota began to bound forward excitedly and then stopped. Was now a good time to introduce herself? The whitish male looked cranky and in pain. She hesitated for another moment and then slowly approached the small group, her tail low and waving in a submissive, friendly greeting.
Cara's eyes followed Kaname as he made his way next to the senile wolf, smirking when she had asked for his help. Feeling quite irritated at his gesture, she huffed loudly as if to say, oh, thanks mate!
Then she watched as the male sniffed a wound on the white wolf's leg, noting its putrid smell. She was tempted to ask what had happened but stopped herself as she thought the crabby male probably wouldn't care to explain, and truthfully it was not really of her interest.
Before anything else could be said, yet another wolf appeared, this time a female, one she did not recall meeting before. Cara studied her face, and gave her a simple ear flick as greeting. The yearling didn't even bother to shoot a desperate glance at her, she was already in the conversation, she might as well get it over with..
lol sorry in advance
He did not care for her tone, but her feisty answer amused the injured madman. "My precious leader is quite precious to me, indeed. She must have seen something in your empty head to admit you into her ranks; now, Cara, what was it?" he purled rustily, holding her eyes with his own. "It is not your pretty face ... no, no. What could it be?" he mocked.
Kaname approached, and the shaman grunted. "Such wounds grow worse before they heal themselves. You smell the poison the herbs draw out of the flesh; when I have mended sufficiently, I shall go to the sea and wash it." He saw no reason to explain himself to the assassin, but Kaname had proven himself a loyal wolf to Jinx, and for that he had earned Lecter's limited respect.
The trio were joined by a much newer wolf, and the shaman's ears fell back against his skull in immediate dislike for her injection of herself into a gathering where she was not known. "One more foolish than yourself," he snapped at Cara. "What do you bring? insipid words? womanly wiles?" Lecter growled, now addressing the newest arrival to the terse conversation.
The young wolf huffed with annoyance as he smiled at her. He payed no mind and listened to Lecter as he responded to his comment. He answered in the anylitcaly tone of one versed in the medicinal arts. Not surprising, seeing how the old wolf always smelled like herbs, underneath that disgusting smell he always carried. If he trained for most of his long life, then the white wolf must be well versed in healing. Good.
The sound of rustling near by made him look up as another wolf came nearby. She was young, almost Cara's age. The assassin glared at her suspiciously. She smelled of the pack, but he had not met her yet. Lecter snapped at her, just like he did to Cara. Kaname only snorted in amusement. Someone needs a nap.
shall we assume Dakota slinked away after Lecter's harsh welcome? :p
The light grey female clamped her jaw as the white senile male mocked her, she would've spat a snarky comeback in his face if there were no concequences later, but she had the feeling this male held a higher place in the food chain than she did, so she stayed silent. Finally using the little common sense she had.
She ignored the grumbling the old man gave the other male and instead took the moment to draw a tiny circle on the grond with the tip of her toes. A small gesture that hinted how bored the young female was. But then the sound of approaching pawsteps and Lecter's gruff voice made her look up. Only to find yet another wolf join them. A female she didn't know and honestly didn't care to know. Right now the pale girl did not care about anything.
But once the stinky veteran began nagging the other girl, Cara could not help but snort in amusement, was there anything this fossil didn't growl at?
sounds good to me!
The young wolfess was rebuffed by the harsh words of her superior, and with flattened ears, she slunk away from the small group. Pleased with himself, Lecter brightened somewhat, though Cara earned a cold look for her amused sound. "So what will you strive for here? You are slim and I am sure fast; perhaps a scouting rank will suit you." His tone had softened somewhat, though he still wore a pained expression.
"I am Lecter, Jinx's mate and the healer here. You will come to me if sickness finds its way into your palate or injury befalls you." It was not a suggestion; he would not have a foolish newcomer falling into the trap of seeking out Tyrande for dubious aid.
After being chastised by Lecter, the young female skunk away in defeat. Kaname chuckled lowly in his chest. Cara made a similar noise, only to get an icy glare from Lecter. He kept silent then, but internally he was laughing at the cranky, slightly senile, old man.
He snorted softly. "Jinx's mate? How did Jinx ever fall in love with you?" He was generally surprised by this. It wad not every day that you saw a mated pair where one was that much older than the other.
The sly smile that had planted itself on Cara's face faded quickly when Lecter gave her a shunning glare. But instead of drooping like the other female, Cara just pursed her lips and gave the male a blank look, until he began to ask about her future aspirations in the pack.
The title of Outrider certaintly called the female's attention, she liked to know new places and as he said she was agile and perfectly built for speed. Whether she'd be a good recruit for new members was questionable.. her nasty personality would probably scare off potential candidates, though her finnicky nature when it came to strangers could also play to her favour, since it'd be guaranteed she'd only pick the absolute best.
Cara nodded to the male, "Yes I'd like to persue an Outrider title" she barked full of confidence. Her eyes beaming with pride which later changed into surprise as the male introduced himself as the pack's medic, but more shocking than all Jinx's mate. Before she could give any reaction, Kaname voiced her thoughts.. what did Jinx ever see in him?
Lecter was amused at the shock of the two; Jinx was fierce and beautiful — and much younger than himself. He recalled fondly the ferocious bundle of sinew and soft fur she had been when he took her beneath his tutelage, though there was not a reason for Cara and Kaname to know such things. "I know not her reasons, or perhaps I would share them," he told them with a wry, twisted smile. "We have a long history," the shaman said vaguely, before his attention turned to Cara.
"Outrider." The title was unfamiliar but he figured out the basic premise. "Perhaps your budding skills could be put to use tracking the comings and goings of Majesty's feckless little band. With the Horizon Ridge wolves there to contend with, they may not pose a direct threat to us, but any prey taken from our borders is meat stolen from our mouths."
The assassin only snorted softly. He reminded himself that it was not his place to question his alpha, though her interest in her Beta surprised and even revolted him. If she really did love this cranky old bastard, then let her. Long history indeed, he thought. She must have been only a pup when he was three years old.
The healer turned towards the young white wolf. She claimed to have interests in the field of outrider, a trade he was familiar with. "I am trying to gain an Outrider trade myself." he said to the yearling. "Perhaps we could go patrolling to start you off." He already had a schedule of patrols that he kept. One at morning, one in the afternoon, one at night. He varied the locations he monitored each day, keeping track of where scents were found and otherwise. He felt rather proud of his skills as a scout and patroller, as well as his hunting abilities.
Cara ignored the bried -and painfully uncomfortable- explanation Lecter gave the chocolate coated male about his..relationship with the pack's queen, Jinx. Honestly she did not want to know just how far back their relationship went, considering Jinx was significantly younger than him.. The image of Lecter making lovey eyes at a pup was one she did not want in her mind.
Then as the older male adressed her, the yearling lifted her chin and pricked her ears, only to pin them back to her skull when Majesty was mentioned. Her former packmate's betrayal still stung the young girl, like acid being poured over an open wound. But the idea of being in charge of keeping his ass out of the borders and showing him Jinx's meant buisness excited her. Then the other male chipped in into the conversation and Cara turned to face him now.
She actually liked the idea he suggested, Kaname shared part of her cynical sense of humour and had shown himself to be a trustworthy individual. Still Cara wouldn't let her guard down around him just yet. But she could not deny she'd like to have him around, especially if they did encounter Majesty. "Sounds great, just tell me when" she barked with a much nicer tone that the one she had used for the majority of the conversation.
They were perturbed, he could see, and Lecter snickered inwardly. Yet he said nothing, enjoying the discourse between the two, though the pain in his foreleg was beginning to become somewhat unbearable, between the rent in his flesh and the itch of the healing. "You could depart now for such tasks," he suggested dryly, suddenly wishing to be alone. Icewater glare floated first to Cara, then to Kaname. "If you find anything of interest, report it to me."
His mind had traveled to Jinx, and quiet contemplation of how they had come to be where they stood presently was what he wished, for it was a beautiful thing to him, almost impossibly so.
Kaname was not bothered by Lecter's sudden dismissal of the pair. He supposed that the Beta wished to be alone in order to let his wound heal without being bothered. Nodding at the older wolf, he walked off in the direction of the closest border, gesturing for the ambitious young wolf to follow. He assumed that the yearling knew a bit about marking and patrolling borders, but he would teach her the basics regardless.
fade then, thanks to both it was a really interestinf thread <3
Cara just gave a silent nod at Lecter's command and slowly began to step aside leaving the old medic on his own, it was clear the wound on his leg was making him uncomfortable so it'd be best to leave him to treat himself. Who knew what kind of sick rituals he was capable of doing, she felt silly for thinking that way of him, but he really did look like an odd individual.
She then trailed behind Kaname, her tail swaying from side to side.
Kibätį, a new member, walked in with a gash on her side, though she seemed to not have changed a bit since falling off those rocks.
<3 guys
He watched as they departed him, and gave a satisfied chuff, both that they had heeded and also that they had gone off together. Such solidarity was to be commended. Gathering himself to his paws, he limped a few paces, only to snarl in irritation when he was joined by a pale, gashed female. "I do not want company. Begone," he growled in her direction, shifting himself to hobble the other way.