Wolf RPG

surya had initially intended to bring @Aphrodite to the new mother, as the healer would know how to care for her and the newborn babes. he hadn't factored in her trauma, though, and when aphrodite had panicked in the maplewood, he realized she needed time. it would be cruel to bring her out into the world so soon after what had happened—especially to a place where the worst might have occurred.

he gave a rueful explanation to @Artyom, knowing that the alpha would not be altogether pleased with him departing again. but he had to go, had to, and after letting @Satya and all other relevant parties know where he'd be, he set off toward the coast at pre-dawn.

it was high afternoon when the waves came into sight. surya had snared a rabbit and was hauling that prey down the cliffs, trying to find the grotto by scent. it was a strange, solemn place, made even more eerie by what had transpired here. he hoped that he would find a mother and pups, and not. . .bodies.

he kept the gruesome thought at bay (no need to ruminate on worst-case scenarios), following the meager traces of scent left behind from the wolves that had attended to the young woman. entered the grotto, going deeper into the shadows.

was she here?

Raleska's proximity to the ocean -- specifically, to the cavern's central pool -- might have been her saving grace. The saltwater had aided in keeping the wound clean, and acted as a brace in the coming days.

Despite all of this, Raleska did not find herself so lucky. She felt trapped, miserable -- and now, she had two children to care for. Children she couldn't bring herself to resent, but she didn't love them either.. And now that they were more than a few hours old, the idea of killing them was somehow ... She couldn't.

Someone's shadow cast over the back wall; Raleska turned her attention to the entrance, which was now engulfed by the shape of a wolf. The glare made it impossible to see her approacher's features (and hare), only his outline -- but she instinctively hunched her spine. She had been so out of it during their initial meeting that it took her more than several seconds to recognize he was friend and not foe.

she emerged a dark shape in the dim grotto, and as he drew closer, he noticed her guard was up. obviously—a new mother, presumably now all alone? and he not more than a stranger, approaching suddenly? he couldn't blame her, nor could he feel hurt by any lack of recognition.

surya set the rabbit down close enough for her to reach, and then took a couple of steps back, settling on his haunches. i don't know if you remember me, he said softly, the words echoing faintly off the cavern walls. my name is surya. i found you right after. . .after you gave birth. i called for help. i wanted to see how you were.

he glanced at the children, nestled close to their mother, and then returned his gaze to her face. how are you? he asked. he dipped his muzzle to the kill. please, eat. i brought this for you. she needed to keep her strength up, after all. in lieu of medics and herbs and knowledge he'd barely gleaned. . .he knew this, at least.

All these kind souls. Raleska didn't deserve them. Never once had she been a generous wolf, and now karma was serving her a big buffet of bitter irony. It was a stringent thing to think of and pick apart: she was selfish, and all of these wolves had wasted their selfless energy for naught.

Or maybe not naught; there were two lives still to be molded, after all. Raleska glanced at them as Surya introduced himself, offering the hare for her to take. "I don't deserve all of this." She suddenly blurted, an edge of panic in her voice. Why were all of them so nice, helping a random stranger? She would have left a wounded stranger to die, she was sure of it.

Realizing a question was hanging in the air, she looked down at her paws sheepishly and shrugged. "I mean -- thank you. I'm okay." Okay was a feeble way of saying well, at least I am still alive. "The .." Grimace. "children are well." She hadn't even named them yet. "I'm Raleska, by the way."

his brow wrinkled as he frowned at her statement, looking quite troubled. of course you do, surya replied, his voice gentle, but with an undeniably firm edge to it. you and them. he nodded at the puppies, letting his face relax into something more blissful. they were so small, so precious—

how could she think she hadn't deserved their help?

raleska, he repeated, smiling. it is nice to properly meet you. he noticed she declined to name the children. and there was no father, or at least one that had named himself as such. . . had it been the earnest white wolf, so willingly come to her aid?

he hoped they had a father—it didn't even have to be a blood father. just someone to raise them as rajendra had him. surya felt the all-too-familiar sense of guilt as his (not)-sire entered his mind; he must worried. about him and satya. they all must be worried.

do you live nearby? he asked, for surely she couldn't dwell alone in this cave forever.

Raleska feigned a smile under Surya's kindness; she felt so out of world, so alien -- and even though it was very real what she was going through, it was surreal so many wolves had come to her aid. No matter his firmness she deserved it, Raleska would believe otherwise -- call it survivor's guilt, or something similar.

Her gaze fell to the children as he spoke of them, and then asked if she lived near by. "No, I traveled really far to come here." She didn't know why. She had been sick, she had not been in the right state of mind.. It was all cloudly. "I was born here." She suddenly added, as if that would make all the pieces fall into place. "What about you, do you live nearby?"

surya was confused as she explained her travel, though some of the puzzlement left his face as she added she was born here. he supposed there might be some comfort in having one's own children where they themselves were whelped. but did she have a way home? did she have help?

the scent of the healers was relatively fresh, which was good; that meant they were routinely checking on raleska and her children. at least there was that.

he shrugged nonchalantly. a day or two's travel from here, he remarked, but the yearling was much more concerned with her welfare. you live far? do you have family that can bring you home? unless. . .unless she didn't want to go home. he definitely understood that desire.

she really didn't have any other choice, though. the healers wouldn't be around forever, nor could he stay.

Raleska wondered where his pack was, if it was a day or two's travel from here. She had not been in this neck of the woods in a long time -- and so much had changed since Rusalka had moved from the Sound to the Plateau. She winced as pain stirred along her hips; stifling her awareness of it with a dull smile as she forced herself to concentrate instead on what Surya had asked.

She had no idea how to explain why she had come here. She'd been.. she didn't even know. Not in her right mind, maybe? Sick? Overwhelmed by fear, by pain? Instinct? Maybe it had been instinct that had guided her here, to a place where she had always been safe; a natal place -- the place where her mother rested eternally. Maybe it was that -- she grimaced again as another nick of hurt flared -- no, it couldn't be that.

But it likely was. "My pack lives down  by the moors. It's more than a day or two's travel.. It took me.." She counted with a sigh, being ginger in any movement she had to do to be comfortable. "Five days. No, I don't have family." How final that statement was. Raleska frowned, feeling lost in a world that once, had held all of the lives she held dear. "My leaders are probably worried but -- I don't think they can travel right now either. I'll make it back eventually.. I just got to.." She trailed off, a frown heavy on her brow. She did not finish her thought. "Did you find who you were looking for?"

a pack, but no family. he knew the feeling. before satya had come to the stream, he'd been the only one of his blood—and while the connections he'd made so far were growing stronger, they still fell far short of parents or siblings. surya frowned gently, then nodded at her question.

yes, i did, he replied, and felt a surge of relief. he had found aphrodite, and raleska and her pups had survived. both catastrophes had been remedied. he cocked his head. do you have anyone to help you go home?

the healers, perhaps? neither of them had carried any sort of distinct pack-scent; perhaps they were loners, able to accompany the young mother back to the moors. she would need help, anyway. travel was hard enough on one's own while healthy. still recovering from childbirth, with young pups in tow. . .it would be a herculean task.

surya hoped she was up for it. he hated to think of her here, all alone, in this dim, salt-crusted grotto.

he left her eventually. he had to. but, hopefully, she would make it back—and he vowed to see her again, no matter how far down the road of life that next meeting occurred.