Blackfeather Woods DB: The First Consult

@Kove & @Nemesis hope you don't mind the little pp of them arriving.

Burke stood in the forest by the entrance of Ilinalta's Keep a howl echoed through the forest requesting Kove and Nemesis' presence now. It was strange to stand before the entrance. Not much into the tunnel there was a small chamber Meldresi and he used as their alpha den. Yet, after letting out all his grief with Osprey or whatever her name was, Burke felt better. His grief was becoming less and he was remembering the good memories. His ideas were getting fresh again and the male realized that something needed to be changed about the pack. He liked to say his pack but over the years he had become wiser and knew this pack was as much his as any of the brotherhood members. They were becoming more of a family. Burke was even starting to forgive Kove, and taking steps in mending their bond. After all he had agreed to Cicero that he would allow any of Kove's daughters in his pack if they were willing enough. He should mention that to the male later, unless Cicero told him already.

The dusk settled into the forest. The last rays of sun that touched their dark earth also brushed over Burke's red paw print mark. After the whole debacle of Kendra playing with the last dye, the girl had actually done well in making new dye for the brotherhood. Burke wasn't sure if it was the same but the father had been quite impressed with his daughter. He would test the dye now and hoped it would stick as well as the previous one. He didn't know that Kendra had help in the process of making the red dye. It seemed she was more like her mother every day. He had forgiven her and 'rewarded' her with the task of making new dye when needed. The girl seemed pleased to say the least. Once Nemesis and Kove had arrived the male cleared his throat. "Welcome, Brother and Sister," he spoke on a normal yet respectful tone. Yes, he had proclaimed himself as leader of the brotherhood but within the brotherhood there was less of a need to display that leadership. They were brothers and sisters after all.

Burke motioned for them to go inside. The tank entered first and walked not towards the chamber that was previously his den but the infirmary, the keep that had been Meldresi's workplace. Burke stood around the dip in the ground. The rock around it was littered with red little paw prints. "My daughter has been creative, my apologies," he spoke as the looked at them. "Luckily for us she worked hard to learn how to make new dye as an apology. I called this meeting to refresh the marks on our shoulder and discuss important matters about our pack, about the brotherhood. You are my brother and sister in the name of Mephala and Sithis and I most value your opinions. Let us start with a prayer," he spoke, pale eyes eyeing at Kove.

*dramatic arm wave* bEHOLD, MY WoNdErFuL PRAYER WRITING SKILLZZZ

When a howl requesting his presence had sliced through the chilled air, the male was quick to start in the direction form which it'd come. His steps had started off as being quick, fluid and eager to reach his destination. The ghost's ears had perked up though and his movements stopped, briefly, when he'd noticed it was not only for him, but Nemesis as well. Their meeting remained fresh in his mind, reminding him of the uncertainties he'd felt and continued to feel with each passing day. It'd made him hesitant, wondering what might happen to his innards if he were to see her again. With a soft shake of his head all thoughts were either dismissed or put on hold, and then his movements were continued. He'd remained alert all the while, unconsciously searching for a trace of the darkened woman as he'd reached Burke. Once she had arrived, he'd given her a soft nod in greeting, before forcibly removing his gaze in order to focus on the greyscale man.

Upon entering the infirmary, he was met with a rather awful sight. Scattered all around were the prints of a child, bringing him to wonder who exactly had allowed the girl entrance whilst not being properly watched. The pallid man viewed it as somewhat disrespectful to the sacred dye, but more so to the memory of their late queen. It'd been her space, after all, and he'd found himself disappointed by it's current state. Despite that, however, he'd kept silent. Not a single word left his mouth in order to comment upon the mess, and he did his best to push it out of his mind for the time being. Taking the time to instead listen in on what was being said, he gave a stiff nod as a way to accept the apology given; even if it was only for the sake of a reason being offered. That all seemed to melt away to the background when the topic was changed, moving onto why they'd been summoned. "Important matters?" he'd parroted, tone giving way to his curiosity of the situation. Before anything more could be said, however, he'd received a look from Burke and, when accompanied with his final sentence, he knew he was needing to speak.

"In the name of our Night Mother, Mephala, and our Dread Father, Sithis, we humbly request the most generous of blessings to be given," he began, the words seeming to roll naturally off his tongue. "Not only for this meeting, but for our Brotherhood and pack mates as well. For those we've lost and those yet to be born, for our families both of blood and of spirit. We ask for protection during these barren months and for the context of our meetings to be understood and welcomed by Mephala herself, for the sins of those unworthy must be baptized in blood and fear." Never would Kove had imagined himself as a priest, to be reciting words in the names of gods and goddesses in order to receive acknowledgement from those who watch over the woods; the otherworldly forces, those living within the Void. Yet, there he was, doing just what he never would have pictured before—and, to be blunt, he rather enjoyed it.

She had not been summoned before, well, not for the reasons that she was. Technically, she had never finished the dark sister training, but yet again, Kove had not done any training to speak of, so it wasn't like she was in some way cheating the system.. well at least she hoped she wasn't. But she would have to complete all five lessons if she wanted to be the Assassin mentor at all. While deep in though, her gaze met Kove's before prying her eyes away. It was hard to concentrate after the events that had occurred between them, and even more awkward since such feelings between them were unknown to the Alpha before them. 

Silently, her peripherals noted Kove's gaze about the room, and the mess it was in. She had cleaned as much as she could of Kendra's mess though the dye itself had already seeped into the ground they stood on. She had not been furious, but made the girl known to what exactly she had done and how disrespectfully to the Keep it was. Kendra would not be making the mistake again, that was for sure. Pups of her age did what makes them happy, and playing with the dye had amused the little girl, something she could not blame. She nodded at the apology, though Kendra had clearly been apologetic about it herself. She almost smiled when Burke had mentioned Kendra making a new dye in replacement, though she wasn't sure if Burke knew she had been present and that it was kind of her idea. Though, it didn't matter to her. Kendra was accepting responsibility, which greatly pleased her.

She had never embraced her family's Greek culture nor its beliefs though sometimes she found herself thanking the god for what she had been given. Her name in itself was a tribute to the law seeking goddess, Nemesis though until Blackfeather had introduced her to religion she had never taken time to acknowledge her patron goddess. But despite that, she knew that Mephala was tied to the Fates, as apart of the Greek culture. Blackfeather itself did not fall under the culture she was raised in but followed a path of it's own, one which she found herself embracing more and more each day. Her head lowered slightly on it's own accord as Kove prayed, his words speaking not just for himself but for every soul that inhabited Blackfeather's ranks. "έστω," she recited under her breath, remembering the translation from her childhood teachings. It was the first time she had spoken the language since joining Blackfeather, and in that moment, she shocked herself. They had closed prayer with it, the simple phrase yet a piece of her childhood came rushing back to her.

 Shaking herself from the moment of deja vu, her refocused attention was set on Burke. The subject matter of their meeting was one that she hoped involvement the re-printing of their marks. Shockingly, she paint had appeared to be rubbing off as she woke one morning, as it turned out, it wasn't so permanent after all. But she craved for something more, perhaps a mission outside of Blackfeather as an official member of the brotherhood. 

What a wonderful prayer.
 

Burke nodded shortly before Kove started his prayer. The priest, though not officially, had some good words. Burke approved of it. He had the feeling that Meldresi would be proud if she would be here to see this. He often thought about her and if they were doing her justice. He had the feeling they were. Plus, now she was gone he couldn't live in the past, they had to change to stay the same, as weird as that might sound there was some truth in it. "Thank you Brother Kove. And may you soon be reunited with one or more of your daughters," he added as a final word to the prayers, and as a little hint. He gave Kove a small smile so he would at least know that something was in the works regarding them. Burke was indeed clueless what was brewing between the dark sister and the dark brother but if he would know he wouldn't disapprove.

Burke inhaled sharply and then focussed on the dye. He placed his paw inside of the paint for a moment. "My bother come closer," he stated. Especially during periods of rain the paint was having difficulty sticking to the fur. Burke was a bit surprised how the consistency of the dye felt the same, he had not expected that a 3 month old pup could replicate the dye that well. His surprise was seen for a moment, he might ask his daughter about it later how she did it. He pressed his paw against Kove's shoulder. He kept it there for a few seconds before stepping down, holding the red paw up before placing it in the dye again. "Sister Nemesis," he called and did the same for her. Burke held his red paw in the small stream going through the cave to clean it. Then he walked next to the hole in the ground with the dye. He looked at Kove to give him a mark in return, they had done this together before after all.

"In the meanwhile I shall start explaining the reason I called. I have the feeling that the brotherhood isn't well promoted amongst our members," he introduced. "Sister Nemesis, I'd like you opinion on this since I've forgotten how you realized there was a brotherhood in the first place?" Burke wondered if the not speaking rule about the brotherhood was such a good rule. He was thinking of a new system. The whole pack would be the brotherhood. The members they had now showed loyalty, not to mention that Damien and Cicero were more than ready to join the brotherhood too. "This might come as a shock but I was thinking of renaming the pack. We will still live in these woods, refer to ourselves as Black Feather wolves, after all this is our home. But my idea was to move everyone into the brotherhood as apprentices. Xan, Kendra and Pietro will be Novices. All will be members and we will promote the three branches to any of them so they will become trained brothers and sisters. There will be stricter requirements of joining this pack, and with more members at our hand we can possibly do more missions, mentor the inexperienced and learn for those mentoring lessons ourselves. To teach those apprentices and novices about our region and beliefs instantly, not in a later stadium in life. The brotherhood shouldn't be in the background it should be our driving force."

Upon the completion of his prayer, he'd caught the word blown out with Nem's breath. He was curious of it, not recognizing the language, and silently decided he would ask her about it later on. For the time being, however, his attention was placed entirely upon Burke, awaiting whatever it was that he had to share with them. It had to be important, for why else would he have summoned them, the only other marked members of the Brotherhood? Before the topic could be gotten to, though, a thanks was given. Followed by it was a confirmation, and one that he was most pleased to hear. The man had approved of Cicero's idea, he was certain of it, which meant there was a chance still for him to have his daughters at his side once more. While it was possible that he might regret pulling them away from Scarlett, such thoughts were never considered for they could easily be gotten over. It was but a small price to pay if it meant he'd be able to wake up and see his children again on a regular basis. Of course, he was getting ahead of himself, but having learned of the approval placed him in a good mood.

Setting his personal thoughts aside, the Inuit once again focused on that which was going on around him. When he was called to move closer, he did as instructed and welcomed the familiar feel of having his mark refreshed. Afterwards, he'd stepped back so Nemesis could be reached easier, and then awaited for the leader to grow still. Once more, he drew nearer, placing his paw within the dye and then raising it to be pressed against Burke's shoulder. For a moment he'd allowed it to set, assuring that the dye had touched down correctly and would remain there until their next meeting. After the dye had then been rinsed from his paw, he'd returned to his previous position, knowing that that couldn't have been the only reason for them having been called forth—and his suspicions were confirmed upon the continuation of the older man's words.

Kove was intrigued by the idea, in all honesty, though there were some things he was curious of. "I do support this idea of yours. The Brotherhood once held many members from these woods, but as of late our numbers have slipped. I think it would be good to strengthen our forces—expand our family—so that we can possibly reach those standings again," he'd started, pausing only briefly at the end. "But I have my concerns, too. You mentioned that the requirements to join the woods will be stricter, but what if someone manages to slip through the system? I'm not talking about trespassers, but wolves who manage to get into the pack through your approval. Will they be given the same amount of information as us and others who have been here longer, or will there be a system in place to make sure of their intentions before welcoming them into the fold entirely?" Having led Bearclaw, he'd observed members who'd joined and then left, never to be seen again. Though their requirements had not been nearly as strict as Blackfeather, it was still concerning. If, by chance, a disloyal wolf managed to join their ranks and then left after being given information on the Brotherhood, where would that leave them? It would be a tricky thing to manage, surely.

Soooo sorry, I had everything then my stupid old computer ate it all :p

As she felt the dye sink into her fur, she couldn't help thinking about what it meant. Sure, a pawprint was a pawprint, but there had to be more meaning to it. Perhaps she would ask Cicero one day, after all if she was to truly embrace her new life, she would need to know all it contained. Stepping back from her position, she watched as Kove pressed the mark onto Burke's shoulder. It set rather quickly, refreshing the vibrant symbol once more.

Her eyes fixated on Burke, her full attention was clear. Change was a fickle thing, some agreed and others did not. But whatever raised to Brotherhood to a higher plate, she supported. Though, the idea that she had a say in the decision making excited her. Ultimately, the decision came down to Burke, but the fact that this was the start of a new future for Blackfeather would be an iconic day for it's history. This would make her a leader, someone to look up to even. And yet again did the idea terrify her and excite her at the same time. She hoped that one day she would mentor Kendra, for guilty, she felt an odd liking towards the girl. Pietro too, but Kendra reminded her of what she could have been, or, what she might have been during her childhood. While she knew Kendra took an interest in plants and poisons, there was room for growth, if she so desired. Ultimately, she agreed wholeheartedly agreed with everything listed, nodding momentarily at Burke's words. Truthfully, she had wished a long time ago for stricter admission into their pack, and her wish had been granted. Blackfeather was reserved for the elite, and the elite only. The did not take in beginners or the frail and so far, they had made too many admission mistakes to admit. The brotherhood for too long had been more of a backbone than as Burke said, their driving force. This would do quite nicely.

Her head turned to face Kove, listening intently while trying not to stare at him. At least without arousing suspicion. She didn't need Burke suspecting anything, or anyone suspecting anything for that matter. Kove had a valid point. How could they trust these new people with the secret of the Brotherhood if there was a possibility that they could betray its secrecy. Thinking back to something Burke she voiced, "There will always be the threat of betrayal, but the basic two week rule would give an insight to who we can trust with the secrets of the Brotherhood. But that is not to say that they won't leave even after the two weeks," Her eyes turned back to Burke. Of course, even if the new member were to skip out knowing everything about the Brotherhood, there would be a man hunt to the death for that individual. "Though, anyone who betrays Blackfeather has the threat of death upon them already. If secrecy is spilled, their silence would be necessary," Even if someone would whip up a Blackfeather truth serum, actions were sometimes without plan at all. Nobody got away with screwing over the Dark Brotherhood on her watch.

It sucks so bad when you loose a reply!

Burke nodded at Kove's valid comment. He gave him his full attention while listening and then listened to Nemesis her words too. It was very important for him to get their approval. Their new name would be a new beginning. The dark brotherhood would step close to the light. "You are absolutely right, Brother Kove. But if they manage to slip through it means they are good enough for the brotherhood, they just didn't live up to our expectations of loyalty. That was why I want to start the two week rule. They will have to show they worked, do tasks and maybe get a very limited basis of Mephala and Sithis. I will also not allow them to do a rank challenge in the first few weeks, they stay at the bottom," he explained his visions to them.

Yes, Kove was right. there could always be wolves that weren't loyal enough or weren't as they though they be, but at least they would have been able to convince the dark brotherhood and that was a feat itself. But was already rejecting loners more often now. After the whole Misty debacle he realized that he had softened. No more. The brotherhood would reign. They had ten adults now, more than the brotherhood would have. The idea of them working to be a brother or sister sounded to him like the right challenge. He would have loved such a challenge when joining. The ones that stayed an apprentice just didn't have the right ambition to become a brother or sister, they would just stay an apprentice if they didn't work hard. Those wolves would have the right mindset but maybe not the right work ethic. "Any further comments? I also would like to discuss the matter of Cicero and Damien. They have been raised with the brotherhood, both have their trades and are adults now. Are we going to accept them as a brother or sister or do we want them to kill before being embraced into the brotherhood?," Burke questioned.

Just going to speed this up by posting again :)

She nodded, contemplating the new transitions that would shape their pack for a better future. The general few weeks rule had always been there, but a strict two weeks to earn approval was more than generous. But she couldn't help but to disagree with the deceiving nature of imposters. Loyalty should be their first priority, and freelancers with other ideas just couldn't be trusted. Yet, there was always a risk, even with the most promising and they would never be truly risk free. She kept her mouth shut, figuring that her argument wasn't entirely backed up. Burke trusted in the idea, she trusted him, they would survive either way.

She thought of the brothers, who she had just realised did not bare the Brotherhood mark just yet. She hadn't known they even wanted it, afterall, no outward comments on the subject or dire feelings towards the cult had ever arised from them in her presence. But she unbiasedly sifted through their own accomplishments, and they were more than creditable in her eyes. "I see no reason why they must, they have like you said, grown up with the Brotherhood, knowing most of what there is to know about it. Killing another would just prove what we already know about them, they are dedicated and that's what matters, I believe," She answered, feeling quite merciful to their case. Afterall, she had not finished the training either, so she was nobody to speak of following the proper rules. Killing another wolf would just delay the inevitable, and she did not like to waste time. "I, for one, think that they are more than creditable to be considered already one with the Brotherhood," She addressed Burke before turning to Kove, awaiting any comments he may have on the subject as well. 

Frick, sorry for not posting in so long, guys

It was concerning, still, the risk of potential members being unfaithful to the pack. However, he could see from where Burke was coming from, and held no qualms with giving the notion of a trial period a shot. If it failed, it failed; there was nothing they could do about it. If it worked, though, well... it would be especially helpful in the times to come. The ability to assess and make work of who had access to the pack and who didn't would certainly be put to the test, and for the safety of everyone, he hoped everything panned out. If it didn't, he would ensure some sort of peace was restored, only so that there might be no disorder among their family. He kept quiet on the subject thereafter, giving only a stiff nod to make note of his agreement towards the idea. Perhaps it might even be interesting watching it all play out—maybe, just maybe, he could even recruit his son to help out in working the new recruits over. After all, if that kid didn't drive someone to break their act and seek blood, then they had to be clean.

"I'm in agreement with Nemesis," the Inuit stated. "During my time away, I missed out on seeing much of their development, but even still I am positive they are both ready to be made official members of the Brotherhood. It is their right, both for the manner of their births and the things they have accomplished since then. I have no doubt that they will honour the mark of the Brotherhood." Kove strongly believed the boys were ready to acquire their marks, to be made official Brothers. He could only wish that Meldresi could have been there to witness it.

Burke nodded in appreciation when both voiced their opinions. He was glad to know them and pleased to hear that they were the same as his opinions. With that in mind he could start preparing they knew dark brothers. Burke was pleased that the spiderlings had grown old enough that they were able to join. He thought of Meldresi and how proud she would be of her children. Burke was full of pride too and was not going to hide that.

"Thank you. I will start preparing and ask if Kendra makes enough dye. Maybe another meeting next month, then we will talk about the next step and how this new change is going," he explained to them, leading the meeting. "Hopefully we will also have some input from our newest members," Burke spoke and with that he signaled to them that the meeting was over. Now it was important that they would communicate the name change and the after math of other changes that resulted.

Last round. Last one to reply can archive!

Sneaking this in~

The male was looking forward to the boys' ceremonies. He could remember back when they were born, back when the forest hid dark forces at every turn. They'd been born into it all, the princes of the woods, and it was high time they were given the mark of the Brotherhood to show as much. It would have been wonderful, he knew, had Meldresi been there to witness it—her time had come too soon, he believed. No matter, that could not be changed. He liked to think she would be proud to see them earn their colours, so to speak. Who wouldn't, though, in all honesty? It was a great honour, and they were more than ready.

As the meeting was drawn to a close, Kove gave a nod of his head, missing not a single thing said. Once dismissed, he would give his farewells to the both of them—though a certain someone would receive his lingering gaze, too—and then take his leave. In spite of the name change and altercations made to the system of the Brotherhood, it was highly unlikely he would ever utter more than the obvious about the pack. It'd been engraved into his mind, after all, that the order was meant to be kept as a secret; a secret he would take to his grave.