@Kove :3
Star had taken Ibis' advice on finding what had happened to the Swiftcurrent Creek wolves. She had followed the girl's directions, heading east as directed, hopefully towards Lost Creek Hollow, where the leaders may have some information. She had passed Duck Lake, a place that had been once familiar to her, now distant and empty. It brought up memories of hunting birds alongside friends there when she was young- now the Lake's namesake seemed to be missing- so the famine was true.
She had continued on, now she found herself upon a series of rolling hills. The sun shone upon the long stretch of grasses. Trees littered the land here and there, but she had not yet met the forest Ibis spoke of. She could see it in the distance, a green line on the horizon. She was walking in this direction, onyx eyes fixated on her destination, her pace determined, yet significantly slower than it had once been.
Star was unaware for a bit as the man approached. But after not too long, she realized something had appeared in the corner of her eye. In her peripheral vision, there it was, a glistening figure not unlike herself in color. Her head turned in curiosity to get a glimpse of the stranger who seemed to be headed straight towards the old woman. A white wolf with a build much larger than Star's. Surely they could see her... did they specifically head in her direction with intent to address her, she wondered? She was confident she had not crossed any marked borders, unless her nose had begun to fail her in her old age.
After standing and staring at the distant man for a moment, she began to approach him as well. She politely let out a friendly bark in his direction to inform him that she was approachable. The closer she got, the more she seemed to squint at him even as his figure became clearer. Her forehead creased in thought. There was something familiar about this man that she couldn't quite put her paw on. It felt as if his name or story was on the tip of her tongue, and yet, she could not recall the slightest detail. She wondered if perhaps at this age she was becoming delusional, recognizing wolves she had never known. Surely she would have remembered the friends she once had? What was still unknown to her, floating at the edge of her memory, was that this was not exactly a friend.
Even though the appearance of the man was only something she distantly recalled, his voice had been one that bounced around the walls of her brain for years after, a voice that told her how nobody had come to search for her, how loyalty wasn't as important as she once thought it was. But her memories had not yet come back to her. So she put on a slight smile in the direction of the man, hesitant to ask if she had once known him, lest he believe her a crazy old hag.
It was his voice, breaking the clear air, which awakened the most vivid memories within her.
"Little warrior?"
And then, she could hear the same voice, once upon a time:
"Your pack does not seem to hold the same loyalty to you as you do them, because I have not seen a single wolf come to try and save you. No one has even come to ask of you."
"You are alone now, Star."
Of course she knew him. How could she forget? He had not once laid a claw on her, no, he had not hurt her at all- physically. But he was one of the many factors in those caves to break down her mind. To truly convince her that she was alone and that her believed friends did not care for her, in the same way she cared for them. They had changed her mindset permanently, she no longer held the same dedication to loyalty that she once did. In her mind he was one of them all the same, despite the relative kindness he had shown her in comparison. How unfortunate that they had met under such circumstances.
Her eyes widened the moment she recognized him, with an almost instinctual flash of terror, before she took a slight step backward without even thinking about it. But despite what her muscles told her to do, her mind held confidence. She was no longer in that situation; she had no need to be afraid of him. She had grown as a warrior too, her scarred pelt was enough to prove that.
"Yes, I'm that little warrior. And you were Ko... Kova? Kove?" She fumbled a bit as she tried her best to recall his name, buried deep in her memory. There was an awkward pause as she was unsure of exactly what to say to him next. What do you say to someone, who traumatized you long ago, but so long ago that the wounds are not fresh? She tried to look into her heart. Did she forgive him? But even she was not sure what the answer to that question would be. It would certainly be more mature of her to say that she was completely over it. But she was still unsure of whether she was able to take that step. On some level he deserved her forgiveness, considering he had only interrogated her. But on the other hand, he had taken advantage of her lack of mental stability in a difficult time, and his position of power.
The man confirmed his name as Kove. And then, Kove asked if he should leave. Suddenly Star felt overcome with shame- he had seen her fear. Had it been that obvious? She cursed herself for letting her eyes and movement betray her feelings. Even through that small action, she had already made it clear to him that he still had power over her.
No.
She was his equal now, she would not allow herself to be scared of him. Before responding she took a few deliberate steps toward him, as if to say, I'm not scared of you anymore. As she got closer, something became clearer. He was no longer the powerful young man he was so many years ago. Age was reaching him just as it was reaching her. He was old now. Maybe it was just an illusion of his old age, but he seemed to have a greater gentleness to him. And though she had made herself act as if she was fearless, now she felt on some level that she really was. She had nothing to fear from this old man on the last leg of his life.
"No, no... It's okay. You shouldn't," She responded. There was a moment of silence before she spoke up again, "It has been a long time. I shouldn't dwell on it anymore. It was my fault, for trespassing." It pained her a bit to say those words. She stared awkwardly at her feet as she spoke, avoiding eye contact as she accepted the blame. It was hard, forcing herself to forgive him on the spot like that. But she felt that perhaps it was the right thing to do. Who was she to hold a grudge against this old man who had never scarred her physically? She had been the one who had gotten high and trespassed, it was an idiot thing to do. And even though their torture and interrogation had pained her so greatly, she could not help but feel that it was her own fault.
"So... how have things fared with you, with Blackfeather?" She inquired, some part of her hoping that Blackfeather had fallen. How her heart would hurt, to hear that after almost five years, the pack remained. Of course, she had no idea that the man had moved on from his darker past towards a better lifestyle. Or that Blackfeather had shifted their morals as a whole.
I'm sorry for keeping you waiting so long!! my muse for threads comes and goes (and of course that's no excuse) but yeah T_T please forgive me hh
Her shift caused him surprise that she could see in his eyes, before he became seemingly more relaxed. And then, Kove disagreed with her- saying they had gone too far. Well... maybe they had, she would admit to herself. Even if she had been the one to trespass, they had taken it to an entirely new level. But she wouldn't agree out loud, and so she said nothing.
The man then shared of Blackfeather, saying all those who had wronged her were dead or gone- she wouldn't voice her relief, but the corners of her mouth tugged a little, as if she wanted to smile in hearing it. So Crescendo was dead (or gone). Among the others. She wasn't a cruel girl but the thought made her joyful, as if she could now find peace in the Wilds. Maybe her friends were long gone, but so were her enemies- and she never really had real friends anyway. She could start again here with a clean slate, even if she was well into her life.
Kove explained how he had left the haunted lands to live with his daughter's pack. If he'd hoped that'd help her to see his change- it did. The way he spoke was more mature, the voice of a wise man who had come a long way from where he began. And, a daughter- a privilege she'd never had, children. Green envy grasped her heart momentarily, but she shooed it away. Perhaps she was never meant to raise kids- she'd likely fuck up as a parent anyway, she thought. It was best this way- she could devote all the passion within her to serving her pack. Anyway, a smile came to her eyes, as if to acknowledge a newfound respect for the man, without a word.
Then Kove returned the question, which instilled the same surprise in her. "It's fine, I have no qualms with answering you," she laughed light heartedly, before continuing. "When I came back home from Blackfeather, my pack was angry with me of course. And looking back on it now, I behaved very immaturely. But I was chastised, and in my emotion I left and took to the North. Nothing especially notable there- I spent my years in one pack, and then another. Things happened, of course, but nothing worth the time to tell. I never had kids and I spent most of my time serving the community." She sighs, letting a tad of emotion strike her. "About a year ago, I became a nomad again and made my way back here." She finishes anti-climatically with a twitch of her ears.