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+--- Thread: Neverwinter Forest you walk along the edge of danger (/showthread.php?tid=63667)
you walk along the edge of danger - Y'var'la - November 23, 2024
The moon hung heavy in the sky, a pale disk casting silver light across the dense forest. The air was crisp, laced with the scent of pine and damp earth, quiet save for the occasional rustle of leaves and the distant call of an owl. She wasn’t entirely sure what kept her out tonight—perhaps the moon's pull, or maybe the thought of solitude—whatever it was, it had brought her to this familiar stretch of forest.
Y'var'la padded silently through the trees, ears flicking at the faintest sounds. The pack had long since retired for the night, curled in their dens or scattered throughout the underbrush, but not all were asleep. As she rounded a bend in the woods, a fresh scent wafted through the breeze — loosely familiar.
She spotted them first—a dark shape nestled against a fallen log, their form barely discernible in the dim light. A packmate. No doubt still awake, lost in thought or perhaps simply enjoying the peace of the night. Carefully, she approached from behind, padding lightly over the underbrush, her claws barely grazing the earth until two paws were firmly planted upon the log, lifting her up. For a moment, she studied them—still and unaware of her presence.
"Couldn’t sleep?"
for @Luhtar
RE: you walk along the edge of danger - Luhtar - November 24, 2024
The soft crunch of paws against the earth stirred Luhtar from his thoughts. He had been lying near, but not within, his hollow tree. His body pressed against a fallen log just short of his home den. His broad frame half-sunken into the mossy ground, his yellow eyes fixed on the moon above.
When the stranger woman's voice broke the silence, Luhtar’s ears twitched, but he didn’t startle. He'd been unaware of her approach, and if he had, he hadn’t expected her to speak. Turning his head slightly, his gaze met hers, the silver moonlight glinting off her dark shape as she perched atop the log. For a moment, he said nothing, his expression unreadable as he considered her question.
“Not tonight,” he replied finally, his voice low and rough, carrying the faint rasp of disuse. He pushed himself upright, shaking loose a few stray bits of moss from his coat. “You either?”
Luhtar’s gaze drifted briefly back to the sky, the pale glow of the moon catching the edges of his muddied fur. He wondered if it was the same pull that kept them awake—the quiet draw of the night, the need to step away from the confines of the pack for a time.
RE: you walk along the edge of danger - Y'var'la - November 24, 2024
Her tail swished idly as she maintained her perch atop the log, her narrowed gaze studying his movements. “Mm, restless legs,” she replied with a trace of a smirk, her voice smooth. She followed his line of sight, her own silvery eyes narrowing against the light of the moon. “Figured if I stayed in the den any longer, I’d go mad.”
Sliding her claws lightly along the bark beneath her, she eased herself down, her lean frame slipping off the log with practiced elegance. “What of you? Pining for some long-lost love? Or just brooding because it suits you?” The words were pointed, but her tone held a wry humor, a jest to cover genuine interest.
RE: you walk along the edge of danger - Luhtar - November 25, 2024
Luhtar huffed softly at her words, his lips quirking into a faint, crooked grin as his yellow eyes followed her descent from the log. Y’var’la’s easy confidence was something he’d come to recognize, though he wasn’t sure if he found it amusing or infuriating. Tonight, at least, it leaned more toward the former.
“Brooding, mostly,” he replied dryly, his tone matching her humor. He shifted his weight, his broad shoulders rolling as he settled more comfortably against the fallen log. “As for pining…” His gaze drifted momentarily to the moon before flicking back to her, a sharp glint of mischief breaking through his usual stoicism. “It isn't my style.”
Her smirk wasn’t lost on him, nor the wry edge in her voice. It reminded him of sparring—not with fangs and claws, but with words—and while he didn’t often engage in such games, he wasn’t about to let her have the upper hand so easily.
"What about you?"
RE: you walk along the edge of danger - Y'var'la - November 26, 2024
Y'var'la’s ears tilted slightly at his response, the hint of mischief in his tone drawing a rare flash of approval. A faint smile tugged at her lips as she leaned back against the log, the cool night air brushing against her fur.
"Didn't really peg you as the type anyway," She mused with the lax shrug of her shoulders before turning her gaze back to him, "Then again, maybe you’ve got your pride to keep you warm."
The teasing tone faded just enough for her to peer at him with more intent, a deeper curiosity lurking beneath her usual guarded exterior. "What, pining? S'not really my thing, either."
RE: you walk along the edge of danger - Luhtar - November 27, 2024
Luhtar huffed lightly, her remark drawing a faint twitch of his tail as he leaned back against the log, basking in the cool of the moonlight.
“Pride, huh?” Luhtar echoed, giving the woman a amused look. “Maybe. It’s good insulation.” His lips quirked into a faint smirk, his stained teeth just barely visible from beneath his curling lips.
Her own admission stirred something faint in him. He could empathize with that reluctance. Ever since Sivahild... a grim shadow torched his gaze, just for a moment, and he shook his head to rid himself of the sudden brooding that grappled him.
“Think that makes us stick out around here.” he mused, ears flicking in thought. His thoughts drifted briefly to the fast love that Solharr and Callyope had found. Not all of them could be so lucky.
“Not that I’m complaining. Makes things... simpler.”
RE: you walk along the edge of danger - Y'var'la - December 01, 2024
"Simple," she repeated quietly, her lips twitching into a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. She had heard that before, from others who were content in their solitude. It was an easy justification, one that gave the illusion of control, but she knew better than to let it comfort her too much. Simplicity was often a lie.
"Nothing worth having is ever simple," she added, almost to herself, her gaze flicking to the moon again. The words had slipped out before she could stop them, an old thought she'd carried for longer than she'd cared to admit.
Her ears perked slightly as she tilted her head toward him, her voice regaining its edge. "Y’var’la,” she introduced finally.
RE: you walk along the edge of danger - Luhtar - December 01, 2024
Luhtar’s ears perked slightly at her introduction, and he gave a slow nod, the faintest flick of his tail betraying his interest. “Y’var’la,” he repeated, as if testing the weight of it upon his tongue. “A good name. It suits you.” A compliment, he supposed.
He shifted his weight against the log, his large frame leaning back just slightly as he regarded her. “Luhtar,” he offered in return, ears twitching as he did so.
His gaze lingered on her for a moment before he spoke again, curiosity flickering in his yellow eyes. “Where were you before this place?” He trailed off, lingering for a second before he added on. “What brought you here, to Forneskja?”
RE: you walk along the edge of danger - Y'var'la - December 01, 2024
Y'var'la's eyes flickered with something akin to amusement, though she kept her face carefully neutral. She inclined her head just slightly, acknowledging the rarity of his kind of praise.
Her gaze flicked to the dark edges of the forest, where the shadows seemed to stretch endlessly, swallowing the pale light of the moon. For a long moment, she was quiet, and the words she had rehearsed to explain herself felt suddenly too much, too complicated. She wasn’t one to share the full scope of her story—not unless she had to.
She gave him a brief, knowing glance, almost a challenge. “I grew up in a place where people didn't play fair. They didn’t trust easily, but they trusted what they could see. Or what they could buy." She offered him a rare, sardonic smile. "I was just another piece in that game, and left before it ended and took me with it."
Her gaze shifted again, focusing now on the dark, misty horizon of the forest beyond them. ”Forneskja is… a change of scenery. A place to breathe, maybe.” She tilted her head slightly toward him, a small spark of curiosity flickering in her eyes. "What of you?"
RE: you walk along the edge of danger - Luhtar - December 01, 2024
“Sometimes, staying is harder.”
When her curiosity turned back to him, he straightened slightly, rolling his shoulders as if shaking off the heaviness of his own memories. “I come from the same lands as Solharr. My home was Huldfall,” he said, his voice steady but lacking the usual pride of one describing their homeland. “It was a frozen swamp, home to one of many Northern clans. Always cold, always dark. We lived… quiet. Kept to ourselves. Respected the land, the spirits.”
He paused, the faintest shadow crossing his face before he continued. “But… not everyone agreed with me. I was soft, they said. Too soft.” His lips twitched into a humorless smile. “I wanted to forgive. They wanted to punish. Mercy wasn’t a good quality to have as a Chieftain’s son. So, my father let the Elders send me away.”
RE: you walk along the edge of danger - Y'var'la - December 01, 2024
Her gaze remained fixed on him, not in pity, but with a quiet understanding, something they both shared despite the differences in their pasts. The stories of home—those places once familiar, now distant—had a way of leaving a mark on the soul.
"Funny, isn’t it? The things we’re called when we don’t fit their mold."
Her tail flicked lightly against the ground, her posture more relaxed now, but still guarded. She understood the feeling of being too much of one thing, or not enough of another. The idea of softness, of mercy, being something to cast aside in favor of strength... It struck a chord within her, though she didn’t show it outwardly.
Her voice, when she spoke again, was steady but not without a hint of the sharpness that defined her. “And they let you leave? No punishment?” It fell from her tongue like disbelief. She’d known leaders who held grudges, who didn’t let even a small defiance slip by. Wolves who would kill you for much less. For his sake, she hoped his father was a different kind of leader.
“Must have been more than mercy you offered for them to send you away like that,” she added, her lips curling just slightly.
RE: you walk along the edge of danger - Luhtar - December 01, 2024
Luhtar’s ears flicked slightly at her words, but he didn’t react outwardly beyond the faintest tilt of his head. “Leaving was the punishment. Outcast from everything you've ever known. Your family turning their backs on you. A lover unwilling to look you in the eye. They don’t take you back, not for any reason.”
He shifted slightly, his amber eyes narrowing as he thought back. “My father, though... he wasn’t like the others. Practical, always. He let the Elders make their call because it solved their problem. Didn’t have to fight me if I wasn’t there.” A humorless smile tugged at the corner of his lips. “Mercy lived. Just... not in Huldfall.”
Her next question made him huff softly, the sound more amused than annoyed. “Mercy was just the start. The rest was... fire. Fought them when I should’ve stayed quiet. But they were wrong.”
He tilted his head, watching her carefully. Then, he spoke. "Your people." He paused, tail swishing. “You ever think... they were wrong? Or are you just glad to be done with them?”
RE: you walk along the edge of danger - Y'var'la - December 02, 2024
Y'var'la’s gaze didn’t waver, though the quiet tension in her posture shifted slightly, the hint of something far more calculated flickering behind her eyes. The question didn’t catch her off guard, but it was still something she didn’t take lightly. She was used to navigating the darker corners of her world, and some things—like the past—were best left in shadows.
"They were never wrong." Her voice held a measured calm, but there was an edge to it, as though she were weighing every word. "At least not in their eyes. My people... they did what they needed to. They thought they did. Everyone’s just trying to hold onto power." Her lips curved into a thin smile, her eyes distant as she glanced away, reflecting on years of invisible strings and calculated moves.
She shifted her weight slightly, a quiet but deliberate movement that made her seem more poised, more distant. "I don’t blame them for what I became, or for what I had to do." The faintest trace of bitterness lingered in her tone. "I would do it again, given the opportunity." Her tail flicked thoughtfully, and she looked back at him, the spark of something sharper flickering in her gaze. "I never stayed for the approval. Not before. And not now."
"I’ve made my peace with it. Just as I’m sure you did with Huldfall." She raised an eyebrow, almost as if daring him to contradict her.
RE: you walk along the edge of danger - Luhtar - December 02, 2024
Luhtar’s gaze held steady as she spoke, his expression unreadable but for the faint twitch of his ears as he absorbed her words. He didn’t interrupt, letting her voice fill the quiet between them. When she finished, he gave a slow nod, his tail sweeping the ground in a thoughtful motion.
Peace.
"I'm not sure I know what that looks like.” His lips pulled into a faint smirk, though it didn’t reach his eyes.
He shifted his weight slightly, his thick fur ruffling as he straightened. “But it sounds like you had a choice. You didn’t stay for them. That’s different.” His yellow eyes narrowed slightly, a flicker of respect glinting in their depths.
“You chose your own path. That's harder than it looks.”
RE: you walk along the edge of danger - Y'var'la - December 02, 2024
Y’var’la’s lips curved into a small, sharp smile at his words. There was something in the way he spoke—something almost begrudging in his respect—that made her pause.
“Different doesn’t always mean easier,” she replied, her voice low but tinged with a touch of pride. She looked down for a moment, her gaze narrowing as her thoughts drifted. “It had its downsides. Plenty of them, actually,” she huffed a humorless laugh.
She glanced up at him again, her expression more guarded now. “Some of us stay because there’s something worth fighting for. Even if it costs everything. And walking away didn’t come without its consequences.” She shifted her weight, the sharpness of her words lingering in the air like an unspoken threat.
She exhaled slowly, as though releasing some tension that had been building within her. “In the end, you take what's yours. No one gets to decide for you.”
RE: you walk along the edge of danger - Luhtar - December 02, 2024
The conversation settled into a quiet lull, the cold air wrapping around them as the forest beyond the glen whispered softly in the night. Luhtar let his words fade, his heavy head lowering as he stretched out and rested his chin on his broad paws. His amber eyes remained fixed on Y’var’la, the flickering light of the moon catching faintly in his gaze.
She was not like the wolves he had known, but perhaps that was part of what made her so intriguing.
“You’re different,” he said finally. “I like that.”
His tail flicked once against the snow, his tone shifting slightly, almost playful. “Good talk. I haven't had one like this in a while.”
He gave her a faint, crooked smile before letting his eyes drift to the stars above them. The tension in his body seemed to ease near her. “Maybe we can both get some rest now,” he murmured, his voice growing softer.
RE: you walk along the edge of danger - Y'var'la - December 02, 2024
Y’var’la’s gaze lingered on Luhtar for a beat longer than she intended, a flicker of something uncertain passing behind her eyes. She caught the shift in his tone, the warmth in his words settling around them like a quiet blanket. It wasn’t often that someone—anyone—saw her as 'different', and she found herself unsure how to respond to the sentiment.
His crooked smile caught her off guard, and for a moment, her own lips twitched, almost returning the expression. "Thanks," she replied, her voice lightly teasing but not unkind.
She glanced up at the moonlit sky, her thoughts momentarily drifting with the night winds. The idea of rest seemed almost foreign after their conversation, but she found the quiet between them... comforting, in its own way. "Maybe." She let the word linger, her voice softening. "Maybe sleep's overrated anyway."
Her eyes met his once more, a slow, deliberate gaze before she stood. With a small, almost imperceptible nod, she turned to leave, though not without a final glance over her shoulder. "Good night, Luhtar,"
And with that, she slipped into the shadows, her figure merging with the night, leaving behind only the faint scent of white cedar and lavender.