Wolf RPG

It had been a few weeks after his frightening encounter with the then-Alpha of Silvertip Mountain. Unbeknownst to him, the pack had since moved but Atreyu was still hesitant to go anywhere near the peak, much less the forests surrounding it. Instead, he skirted around the grassy fields just beyond it, recovering from both the cuts on his head and his bruised ego. Between his gnawing hunger, hurting paws and being constantly surrounded by grass and hills, Atreyu's condition didn't improve much.

Moody, in pain and tired, the boy continued his wanderings (unknowingly wandering out of the Wilds altogether). The thrill of exploration had quickly faded since he had left his former pack, excited but blinded with naivety. Now, he just wanted to go back home. However, his family were a nomadic type - he wouldn't be able to find them again even if he tried.

Even the muffled and distant crashing of ocean waves wasn't enough to bring Atreyu out of his foul mood. It wasn't until the ground gave away slightly underfoot that he even realised he had actually been travelling towards the ocean. Stopping, the boy's ears pricked and he stood stock still. He still couldn't see the ocean but the smell was definitely there along with the faint scent of other wolves. The darkness of nighttime blanketed the unknown area he was in but the sliver of moon in the sky highlighted just enough for him to see he was standing on some sort of hillock overlooking a looming crag that seem to jut out in the blackness. Curiosity getting the better of him, Atreyu slowly wandered towards it, again ignoring the tell-tale pack smells that were wafting his way that had gotten him into trouble a few weeks before.

It wasn't long before he was intercepted - though, this time, this pack member wasn't as physical as the one he had encountered on the mountain. Atreyu had slowly let his tired eyes droop as he stood on the hillock, taking in the familiar ocean scents, trying to figure out where he had smelled that other scent before. It was definitely that of a pack, no doubt, but the boy swore he had smelt it before. Maybe he had passed by it unknowingly in his inane wanderings?

The voice of another suddenly broke through the silence and, so caught up in his thoughts, Atreyu missed what she had said. Right ear swivelling around, his head then followed suit, looking over his shoulder at whoever had just piped up behind him. "What?" came his dumbfounded reply. He was slightly surprised by the sight, what little of it he could see in the darkness - a pale-furred female, his own age or maybe a little younger, a single yellow eye gleaming in the moonlight. Atreyu's own eyes narrowed in scrutiny before he spun around entirely with an incredulous snort. Was she...missing an eye? "The hell happened to your face?"

Had Atreyu not been hungry and weary from his travels, he most likely would have felt a small amount of guilt from his comment about her face. He watched with a cold, apathetic gaze as she turned away, the misshapen area where an eye usually was disappearing into a mass of shadows. He was slightly glad that his own abnormality was not as glaringly obvious to other wolves (sometimes he himself didn't notice it) unless of course they had a keen eye for peculiar habits. At her feeble response, the boy simply huffed in reply. As uncaring as made out to be, though, he was still curious how she had lost it - having not even reached a year of age.

As the stranger rounded his side, Atreyu's eyes followed carefully, ears thrust forward in annoyance as she moved in front of him to bar his way. However, as she spoke, a familiar name caused the boy's head to cock to the side. "Ragnar?" he echoed, peering past her into the darkness beyond. He knew that name! A grin almost spread across his face, however Atreyu's eyes gave away his sudden excitement. Was this the pack that the Jarl had mentioned that night when he had helped massacre the crabs on the beach?

"This is...St...Steva..." he faltered and looked back to the one-eyed youth, almost pleadingly. He knew this place. "...the Bay?" Well, at least he got that part right.

His quiet excitement slowly flickered out of existence at the girl's remark, confusion taking place. He was certain this was it, if he was remembering correctly. Ragnar had mentioned the Bay a couple of times, how he was the Alpha that resided here - if here really was the place Atreyu thought it to be.

Narrowed, leery eyes watched as she began to round him again, his right ear twisting around to follow her as she came up his left side before came to a halt before him again. State his business? Now it was Atreyu's turn to dip his head to avoid the other's gaze after their threat (at least, what he perceived to be a threat). In all honesty, he had simply stumbled upon the Bay, however he was unwilling to admit that he also desperately needed a place, a home. He missed having a family, detached as he was from his old tribe.

Travelling alone had its perks but he did not have the experience yet, nor the capability, as was evident by the festering wound on his head and the current situation. With a frustrated scowl, the boy glanced off to the side, conflicted. I'll rip you to shreds, he thought, only barely managing to keep the remark inside his head. "I want to sp..." he started but his voice broke, interrupting him. With another scowl, Atreyu started again, raising his head to meet her yellow eye. "I want to speak with the Alpha."

At her disgruntled huff, Atreyu recalled his conversation with Finn when he had encountered the strapping male. His interaction so far with the younger girl seemed to only cement the idea in his mind that girls were indeed weird and haughty and he wondered how the grey stranger would handle a situation like this. It was obvious Atreyu was woefully incompetent with social interactions, especially ones as serious as border breaches.

While he had missed the stranger's look of concern while he had his head bowed, he looked up in time to catch the glare afterwards that had replaced it, as well as her cutting words. He twitched his tail in response, turning away and pretending to ignore the comment, though elated when she actually heeded his request. He had no idea how he was actually going to ask for permission to stay at the Bay (if this truly was the place, the fellow youth having instilled some doubt in his mind) but he hoped his current condition would be telling enough. Without thanks and defiantly looking in the opposite direction of the strange girl, Atreyu sat back on his haunches, waiting and hoping the scarred white male would make an appearance as the Alpha of this place.

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Ragnar had been in the middle of a patrol when the howl had sounded for him, recognizing the voice as Crysanthemum. The scarred Scandinavian found it interesting garnering that the last time and really first time either of them had spoken had been when he had given her a true induction into the pack. Footsteps paused as he caught the fading vestiges of her call coming to the more fascinating conclusion to him that she was not far. His pace resumed, faster given the wild scenarios of why the girl could have been summoning him. Was Nerian ok? Had something happened to his Priestess and that was why the girl called him? As he drew closer Ragnar's pace slowed as eyes of Caribbean ice examined the scene before him. Nerian was no where in sight and instead he saw the girl at the borders and a young male he recognized as Atreyu though the wound he bore was new since the last time he had seen the youth. "Chrysanthemum," He greeted her in a low murmur as he drew up to her side before his gaze moved to rest upon Atreyu. "Atreyu; it has been a while," And judging from his wound Ragnar suspected that a few things had happened to the youth, as well.

The faint crashing of the ocean waves was the only thing heard after the girl's howl faded into the distance, the both of them falling into begrudging silence. It wasn't until the soft sound of hurried footfalls and a sharp dominant scent presented itself that Atreyu whipped his head around to face the girl, glancing once at her marred face before settling onto the larger figure that slipped out of the shadows. Not realising he had been holding his breath, he let out a sigh of relief, happy to know this was exactly who he wanted to see. The familiarity - even of a wolf he barely knew - was comforting.

The Jarl drew up beside the girl, softly acknowledging her with a word Atreyu assumed was either her name or some weird foreign greeting. He watched with partially narrowed eyes as she put on a display of submission before he himself quickly stood, pinned back his ears and bowed his head in respect - more to one-up Chrysanthemum than to show his submission to Ragnar. He wasn't a pack member. Not yet.

As the white wolf spoke his name, Atreyu grinned in response. "Looks like I found your Bay," he exclaimed with a wave of his tail, his former attitude all but seemingly disappeared - of course, it was all an act, so as not to displease Ragnar and compromise his chances of acceptance.

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Ragnar offered the girl a slight tilt of his head when he heard her speak his name in greeting, and accepted the bump of her nose to his chin. Ragnar's gaze had rested lightly upon Atreyu during that time, however, and found that he was a bit amused that almost immediately after Chrysanthemum had submitted to him that Atreyu had stood and bowed his head in respect. Though Ragnar suspected the show of submission on Atreyu's part was to rival Chrys' own though he had no tangible proof other than the tension he felt that cracked between the two Ragnar accepted it and appreciated it nevertheless. It was not a bad move on Atreyu's part, though Ragnar did not expect the boy to yet know that he valued the strict and very clear lines of hierarchy. "So you did," A coy smirk began to tug at the edges of Ragnar's lips as he addressed Atreyu. Their meeting had been a bit of an odd one and in the end he had left the boy making sure he had, at least, gotten something in his stomach. "How was your crab feast?" Ragnar inquired, eyes gleaming with a brief spark of mischief. As it was he could not imagine how silly he had looked stomping on crabs for the youth to eat but he had felt better, nevertheless leaving Atreyu knowing that he had food. "Are you looking to join Stavanger Bay?" Ragnar inquired not really able to come up with any sort of other conclusion as to why the boy was at his borders.

Ragnar question caused Atreyu's grin to widen and his head to bob up and down in a nod, remembering he had asked the male to help him in his quest to gather up enough crabs. Ragnar had seemed willing enough, though, it did not occur to the boy how silly the endeavour was as he was used to hunting this way with his family. Besides, Atreyu would never pass up on the opportunity; crustaceans were delicious! His gaze flicked to Chrysanthemum again however she seemed to had taken to simply sitting beside the Jarl, watching with her one eye.

The second question caught Atreyu by surprise (although he shouldn't have really been all that shocked given the sequence of events) and he quickly looked to the ground, intently staring at his filthy paws. As much as his pride protested, he knew he needed a safe place to call home, it wasn't wise for him to stay a loner. Young wolves were perfect pickings for predators that had a taste for wolf blood - not to mention nature itself. He stalled for a few moments before looking up with a forcefully nonchalant shrug. "W-well...I mean, if you have room..." he said, trying to be casual but his eyes giving away his desperation. "I'm a very good fisher and...uh, I promise not to cause any trouble."

Like he could really promise that.

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Atreyu responded to his question with a wide grin and a nod of his head, which earned the further spread of Ragnar's lips to form into a wolfish grin at the memory. It carried with it the slight tint of confusion if only because Ragnar was not able to comprehend the entirety of why he had cared at all if the boy had gotten food in his stomach aside from that fact that he was a father (many times over) and it wasn't as if he could simply turn those parental instincts on and off with the convenience of a switch. Instincts didn't work like that to begin with the scarred Scandinavian had came to find. At Ragnar's half question and partial assumption Atreyu looked down at the ground suddenly and in response Ragnar's head tilted slightly, showing the ugly, deliberate scars upon the left half of his face into the direct sunlight as he studied the youth before him once more. It was not precisely the response Ragnar had found himself expecting and he wondered in the brief silence that followed if perhaps Atreyu was at his borders for a different reason. One that, admittedly, fell short of Ragnar's ability of comprehension for the time being. Scarred ear twitched when Atreyu did finally provide him with a verbal answer and a nonchalant shrug, almost as if he had suddenly became shy. Perhaps even that was not the right word but it was close enough to what Ragnar saw even if his sharp eyes only told him so much. "We have room," Ragnar responded in his soft, accented tenor giving a slight nod before he glimpsed from Atreyu, to Chrysanthemum and then back again. "I expect all members of Stavanger Bay to contribute where they can, even the children when they became old enough," And since Atreyu was clearly old enough Ragnar did not gather that it would be much of a problem. "Fishing is grouped into the Gameskeeper trade and for that you might want to seek out Julooke." Of course Atreyu could earn whichever trades he wanted, just so long as he was helping to contribute to the pack. "As long as you swear fealty and allegiance to me and to this family, you are welcome in Stavanger Bay, Atreyu." Ragnar spoke, lingering only further to see if there was potentially anything else either youth required from him.

The boy almost let slip a sigh of relief as the Jarl answered with a slight nod, thankful that they indeed had room in their ranks. Atreyu wasn't entirely too sure how big a pack was able to grow, though he assumed it was when there were too many mouths to feed and too little hunters. He would be sure to help out in that regard, finally having a use for the one skill he actually excelled at (aside from being an excellent trespasser). He listened intently to the rest of Ragnar's little speech, laying down what he expected of his pack members. A few words were new to him such as Gamekeeper and trade and, mentally jotting them down, he reminded himself to ask about them the next time the Alpha had time to spare. Or, rather, talk to this Julooke he had mentioned.

The last part of the scarred man's words caused Atreyu to look down to the ground again, conflicted. He felt slightly guilty for leaving his family only to find a new one in foreign lands. He had intended to become a lone traveller that wandered the world, however, that obviously hadn't worked out in his favour. Yet, it was typical for wolves of his old tribe to succumb to wanderlust - many leaving before reaching a year of age. Glancing back up Ragnar, the boy offered a small but straight smile, accepting that this was for the best. At the very least, his acceptance meant that he could live by the shore again. "Of course," he answered simply with a nod.

It was then that the other piped up, causing Atreyu to look over to her once more, tilting his head a little in confusion. His wife? Perhaps the other Alpha or...Jarl-ess? Did Stavanger Bay have two leaders? He panicked for a split second, worrying that he would have to impress two wolves in order to be accepted but the worry was quickly quelled. Instead, Chrysanthemum brought to attention the mark on his head. Atreyu ducked as if he had been struck, turning away so the infection was hidden in the darkness, his pale eyes staring pointedly at the girl accusingly. True, the boy liked attention but not that sort of attention. He hated to show any sort of weakness, even if it was only in the form of a graze. "No, I...I just got into a fight with a badger..." he stammered. A big, white, enraged badger. "I just need to wash it off in the sea."

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It was only when the girl brought it to Ragnar's attention that the scarred Scandinavian's eyes of caribbean ice zeroed in on the wound on Atreyu's head. Silently, the Jarl ghosted forward a step to better examine it though he was no healer, and Atreyu's denial at wanting to see a Healer made him Ragnar smirk slightly, lips twitching ever so slightly. "That sounds like my solution," Indeed, that was about as much as Ragnar knew: cleanse it with salt water and eat Berserker mushrooms to quell the pain. "You can cleanse it with salt water for now but if it becomes infected call for Thistle Cloud." Ragnar told the boy giving him a serious look before he took a few steps back, intent on giving Atreyu space once more. "Come I will give you a tour and we will hit the beach on a section of the tour," He told Atreyu before he glimpsed at Chrysanthemum, "Would you join us or are you going back to Nerian?" Ragnar asked his Priestess' ward. After he received an answer he inclined his head for Atreyu to follow and heading into the copse of trees.

Quote:Chrys is done in here too...

Chrysanthemum wasn't blind to Atreyu's scathing look. She even correctly figured that this one was due to her disclosure of his wound. Shuffling her shoulders as a happier expression curved her own lips, she teased him while Ragnar was occupied examining the break of skin for himself. However, she was more proud of herself for having had served two purposes. One -agitating Atreyu just as well as he had her, and two -delivering what seemed to be pertinent information to her Jarl. In fact the more that time went on the more interest that Chrysanthemum seemed to have in pleasing the wintery male. Perhaps it was just a sign of her growing satisfaction in her new life, but it was ultimately a good thing that she had started to see her ties to Stavanger Bay as being greater than just Nerian.

So when Ragnar extended a would-be invitation to join them, the puppy accepted with a terse nod. After all, she had been the one -no the warden to first greet Atreyu. Waving her tail as she thought about it in such a way, the juvenile bucked up to see out her first proper acceptance of an outsider. It may not have began with much intent, but considering her effectiveness, and the Jarl's assumed approval -she was more than inclined to think of herself in such a commending way.

Atreyu kept a seething, frustrated gaze locked onto the girl as Ragnar stepped forward to examine his wound. In truth, it looked worse than it was, having not been cleaned for weeks and getting all sorts of dirt and grit in it, blackening the edges of the cut. The boy did make note to seek out Thistle Cloud - a healer, he presumed - if it became worse, though. He couldn't risk getting sick so early into his acceptance into the pack. What if he was thrown out for being a burden? After the larger wolf stood back, Atreyu swung his head up to look up at him again with a nod in response to his advice.

He nodded again when the Jarl offered an invitation to tour the territory. At the mention of the beach, the boy wiggled his tail happily and he, too, glanced over at Chrysanthemum as Ragnar invited her along. In his head, a small voice was screaming his disapproval but he kept a straight face as she accepted. With a tilt of his head, the Jarl then headed off into the forest, the two white juveniles following quickly after.