Redhawk Caldera malice through the looking-glass

set for tomorrow afternoon.

for the first time, lasher disobeyed the wishes of a leader. after saena had been settled, the pups put to bed, and blue willow had settled into a fitful sleep alongside her patient, lasher had cast himself ghostlike into the night and set out for the caldera. he intended to return to the plateau the following evening, unscathed and hopefully with answers to the questions surrounding fox's vicious and unwarranted attack on saena. dante would be displeased; he might even vent his ire and perhaps strip taltos of his rank, but the earthen servant's mind demanded to be satisfied.

blue willow would wake to find him departed and the pack would know of his trek. in some small way he dreaded returning unto them, but would not allow his trepidation to blight the needed journey.

the sun was directly overhead when lasher emerged in view of the caldera. what had once smitten him with its grand loveliness now skulked beneath a veneer of ugly hatred, and it was with bated breath that lasher drew near the borders, tilting back his crown in a brief and cold summons for peregrine.

having no intention of harm befalling him, and uncaring that perhaps the gesture would deem him a coward, taltos backed fifty paces from the fragrant line to await the possibly murderous approach of his onetime lover.

He took a deep breath as he plodded toward the borders. He tried to get himself into a fiercely protective mindset by reminding himself of why this was absolutely necessary now. It would be a lie to say he didn't dread the inevitable, however. It seemed like things had just gotten settled between the caldera and its neighbors... and here they were again, given no choice but to drive all outsiders away from their home, no matter who they were. Peregrine didn't look forward to it, though it was a necessary evil. In order to achieve redemption, he must face it.

No sooner had he steeled himself than a voice rose up in the morning air, presenting his first challenge. Peregrine's heart leaped into his throat at the sound of Lasher's familiar voice. Intuiting that Fox or another caldera wolf might be racing to intercept him, the Kappa sent up a loud howl. "I've got this." He hoped his dedication would please Fox. He also wondered what Lasher would make of it. It wouldn't take long to find out, as he immediately began galloping toward the howl's source.

There was nothing friendly about his approach. He ran toward Lasher with his fur prickled and his lips peeled back from his teeth. But whereas Fox hadn't stopped to explain her behavior, Peregrine took a moment to say, "Leave, Lasher, and don't come back here ever again. Pass along the message." His voice was hard and sharp, like the edge of a knife. "There was an intruder," he half-lied, jade eyes flashing tellingly. "He nearly killed Wildfire. We no longer trust outsiders in or around our home. This is my only warning." It was tough to treat Lasher this way but saying his daughter's name gave him strength.

And if his former flame didn't want to believe his story, the shocks of white on his cheeks—called to his attention by a sleepy Wildfire early this morning—certainly made a compelling case for his veracity. Peregrine's suddenly aged countenance seemed to say, I've seen some shit.

peregrine arrived quickly, and lasher swayed his tail at the approaching man with tentative affability. yet the panther did not stop, and whatever joy he had felt at seeing the redhawk man quickly drained. hackles flaring, his teeth flashed in a defensive snarl, though ears did cup the other's words. shock raced through him -- worry for the child he had never met -- and the remembrance of finley's tearstained face. perhaps she had been afraid that wildfire would die.

but there was no time to dwell upon it -- he backed away from peregrine, hurt and anger mingling in his expression. while he knew he would not win against the muscular devil, saena's state must be expressed to her father. and thus, tucking chin to chest, lasher pleaded with peregrine for a moment longer in which to share his words.

"fox nearly killed saena," he blurted loudly, continuing to take shaking steps away from the redhawk man. "she is very injured." surely peregrine knew that no harm would befall his children from the plateau; lasher had been there to watch his first litter grow, along with dante, with willow, with osprey. a father's wrath he could now understand, but this -- this threat of murder, of destruction toward those with whom he had once eaten and those he had loved -- lasher could not understand it.

he paused; outsiders, peregrine had said. those who loved him were also to be grouped, with the assailant who had tried to kill a child. anger welled in taltos, and the seed of hatred was planted in its dark soil. the inkling that peregrine had known of fox's attack on saena began to eat at him, but it was unfathomable -- no father would allow his child to be torn so. 

he saw the white along peregrine's cheeks; his eyes filled with the worry that had become his closest companion these past days. if not for the impending promise of death looming between them, taltos would have swept close to kiss the new colour there and wonder at what tragedy had created them.

Peregrine's jaw clenched when Lasher mentioned Saena. He wondered if his old lover might understand if he knew the hideous truth. Of course, he wouldn't tell it. Instead, he offered a version of it. "It was my own mistake that nearly cost us our little girl. Fox is righteously beside herself about the situation. She's taking no prisoners, Lasher, and that's why I'm passing along this message. The days of tolerance, alliances and mixed loyalties are over for us. I can only trust and look out for those from Redhawk Caldera." 

Of course, the faces of his loved ones—Osprey, Blue Willow, the man standing before him—flashed through his mind. But his family here was more important. They needed him to be strong about this, else he might really lose one of his children for being too weak and trusting. No matter who they were to him, Junior's actions had proven that Peregrine and his wolves could not trust anyone but those they vetted thoroughly and welcomed into their ranks.

"I can't do anything for Saena or anyone else who's not part of this pack except issue this warning," Peregrine said after a long pause. "She's better off with you than with me anyhow," he added. His relationship with Saena had been strained for so long, with the wolves of the plateau becoming her true family. He had tried to make it work, to bridge the gap, but then he'd done the same with Junior and look where that had gotten him.

Feeling a sudden bolt of wrath at the thought of Junior's absolute treachery, Peregrine growled suddenly. "Spread the word. The caldera won't tolerate outsiders of any kind. We are pack." He leveled Lasher with an even glare, then began to move toward him to usher him away—for both their sakes.

he tensed for peregrine to lash out, but instead his former paramour spoke, and lasher gleaned what he could from the panther's cold words. the mention of the ruby gripped his heart with fire; of course she would be behind the attacks, the sudden change of the man before him. he knew not peregrine, not this icy-hearted demon who spoke with such vitriol and vehemence, who denounced the bonds of friendship and family and yes, yes, lust! which had bound him warmly to the plateau.

fox. fox. the bitch. first she had turned peregrine's head, both of them really, and had planted the seed of a new world in his willing ear. the panther had abandoned his pack then, lasher, all of it, for the barely mature loins of a cruel and ambitious girl. and now, here he was, puppetted still -- there was nothing left of peregrine's logic, nor his intelligence. only brutality remained.

succubus! whore! he bit back the words, for whatever magick fox wended, peregrine had always been a strong beast. it fell to him also, to take up the reins of leadership and stand for himself. whatever guilt drove him would now burn his ties to those who adored him -- as she wished. fox wanted the panther to herself, devoid of all history past and present -- and it seemed she had gotten her way.

peregrine did not seem to care about his pale daughter's plight. admittedly, blue willow's masterful and quick skills would preserve the girl, and she would return home, perhaps scarred, but alive. there was more here than peregrine would say, but his refusal to unearth his testicles from whatever dank gutter fox had thrown them into would cost him far dearly than perhaps he realized now.

"outsiders," lasher repeated in a low tone edged with steel. he would not be escorted away as if he were some fool; the earthen beta backed quickly from peregrine and stood aside. his eyes rested on the other's face, but at last the hurt was bleeding into wrath. 

"junior is disappeared also, and we worry," he added, though it was apparent peregrine cared no longer. perhaps hawkeye had been correct in her assumptions of him. 

with that, lasher backed several more paces and then whirled, the flesh of his back rippled with fear, and slid into a quick lope intended to carry him as swiftly as possible in the direction of home.

If someone else wants to hop in to get this to 10, feel free. Otherwise, I'll just archive it. :)

"Yes, outsiders," Peregrine repeated just as coldly. He would have loved for Lasher to join them here, to be a part of the caldera. He had chosen to remain with the plateau. There was nothing intrinsically wrong with that choice; in fact, it had been for the best. But that divided their loyalties and made them outsiders to one another, natural rivals. Junior's actions had illustrated that vividly. Peregrine himself had been banished from the plateau for a long time due to this status, as was within the rights of any wild wolf pack.

Obviously, Peregrine wasn't worried about Junior. He knew exactly what had happened to her. "She came back? She never stayed in one place for long," he reminded Lasher even as the ocher male turned and, obeying Peregrine's wish, loped away. Hopefully he would carry this message forth with him. He might not like it or agree with it and it was highly possible he thought terribly of Peregrine for it. But Lasher's opinion could no longer matter. He wasn't pack.

Obviously, it wasn't that easy. Peregrine turned, feeling restless after that encounter. He knew he had done well by the caldera, standing by his mate, children and other pack mates no matter the cost to his reputation. What did it really matter if everyone in the world thought ill of him? He would just have to get used to it. As long as his wolves accepted him—as long as the caldera stayed fortified and powerful, a haven for the next generation—all else ceased to matter.

It's the way of the wolf, he reminded himself as he resumed his vigil.

Decided to squeeze this in before waking up the kids, heh.

The two howls had been enough to draw Elwood's attention. He was at the borders, but had ventured further south. With Fox's decree ringing in his ears, he decided to investigate; Peregrine's response had been clear, but he set his paws in motion anyway.

It was the first time Elwood had laid eyes on Peregrine since Junior's demise, and he nearly didn't recognize him. The former Alpha's swarthy pelt was streaked with white, as though he had aged overnight. The sight of him was enough to cause a knot to twist in Elwood's stomach. On top of that, he had to swallow the morbid thoughts that rose to the front of his mind -- Peregrine was his closest male friend, and he normally would have confided in him about, well, everything. But he and Finley had decided to keep even Fox and her mate in the dark regarding her failed pregnancy.

The other wolf -- whose voice Elwood hadn't recognized -- had already gone by the time he came to stand next to Peregrine. With a deeply creased brow and a tail held at half-mast, he turned a somber gaze towards his friend. There was a long silence, and then he finally asked, "Who was that?"

A somber-looking Elwood appeared and Peregrine let his posture drop. The Beta was now the highest-ranking male in the pack. He didn't particularly look like he was enjoying the role. Before answering, the former Alpha wondered what Elwood (and the rest of the pack, for that matter) thought of him now. He had put his children in harm's way, for starters, then ended up murdering his own offspring. He reminded himself that no one's opinion—Elwood's, Lasher's, the rest of the world's—could be as low as his opinion of himself.

"Lasher," Peregrine rumbled in reply. "He didn't seem impressed with what I had to say. I told him it was an intruder that went after Wifi." He glanced at Elwood. "It appeared to be affront to him that we should want to close our borders after such a close call. He's more worried about Saena, an adult who can take care of herself. She made the mistake of trying to fight back against Fox." He shook his head, eyes narrowing as he stared into the distance where his former flame had disappeared.

After a time, he dragged his gaze back in Elwood's direction. "I won't undermine Fox's decisions. I agreed with her at first. But now I wonder if we should just tell the truth. They're going to hate us one way or another. And what are they going to do? Attack us for doing what needed to be done to save an innocent life? Of course, they'll probably think I enjoyed killing Junior because I'm Peregrine: the man everyone loves to hate."

Weird post! I'm feeling torn because I know so much about BDP, but I keep reminding myself that Elwood hasn't even met the majority of those wolves, lol.

Elwood scoured his mind momentarily as he tried to remember who Lasher was. It came to him fairly quickly; he was a wolf from Blacktail Deer Plateau, and beyond that, Peregrine had been romantically involved with him at one point. He squinted in the direction in which Lasher had gone, although he was no longer visible. His ears twitched as Peregrine spoke, but he did not offer a reply for a long few seconds.

"You didn't lie to Lasher. It was an attack by an intruder, and any other pack would have reacted the same way," he finally said with a shake of his head. It might not have been the whole truth, but it wasn't fiction. He didn't know these plateau wolves; he had only ever met Saena, and even that hunt had been pure coincidence. He knew literally nothing about Peregrine's short-tailed daughter. There was a lot of history between the caldera and the plateau, which would surely only manage to thicken the plot -- but none of it involved Elwood. Peregrine and Fox were his leaders; his friends; his family. His duty -- and his desire -- was to support them. "Whatever you and Fox decide," he said, casting a sidelong glance at Peregrine's grizzled face, "I've got your back."

Even though Peregrine occupied the lowest rank in the pack, Elwood still felt allegiance to him. And he wanted the former Alpha to know that, however things played out, he would do whatever was necessary in order to ensure the safety of his home and the wolves he cared about.

It's tough avoiding omniscience sometimes, lol. The struggle is real.

Elwood raised a point that reminded Peregrine of his recent discussion with Pan. His wolves weren't batting an eyelash over Junior's identity. To them, she was an intruder, despite the fact that she was Peregrine's daughter and guest. He grimaced slightly. They were giving him too much credit. He had led Junior right into the heart of their pack, literally and figuratively. His judgment had been extremely poor, and that was an understatement.

"I wonder what they would have done in the same situation," he mused quietly. "If Junior had gone after Lasher's and Blue Willow's children, would they have executed her? Or would they have pardoned her? I honestly don't know the answer to that. But I wonder." They would have welcomed her right into the fold without a second thought too.

Little did he know that another of his children (Pura) had been plotting along those very lines. If he found out about that, Peregrine really would have questioned his parenting abilities. Two baby killers in one batch?! Yet he didn't know and likely would never find out about Pura's predilections, including the fact that he was running around the wilderness with Junior's head in tow at this very moment...

He was still musing about what the plateau wolves would have done in this situation when Elwood's voice brought him back to the present. His unwavering support meant a lot to the dethroned Alpha, even though he felt he didn't deserve it. Fox did, though. She had been harsh on him but it had been absolutely merited. She hadn't done anything wrong. It was he who'd fucked up royally.

"Thanks, El. That means a lot," Peregrine answered simply, sounding appreciative but defeated.

Although he wasn't acquainted with Lasher or Blue Willow, Elwood had to suspect that they would have reacted in a similar way had Junior attacked their children. How could that be pardoned? Even he would have a hard time forgiving an act as unthinkable as that, no matter the familial circumstances. But he knew that it would be easy to dwell on those thoughts for days, puzzling and debating over how someone else would have handled the situation -- and that was not what Peregrine needed to do. He was already punishing himself enough.

As for Elwood's pledge of loyalty, Peregrine replied in kind, but there was a certain flatness to his voice that had never been there before. It would take time for him to heal and to exonerate himself, and it was then that Elwood recognized that nothing he said or did would hurry that process along. Peregrine needed to work it out with himself and with Fox. So the Beta simply smiled a tight-lipped smile and nodded his head.

After a moment of silence in which both of their minds surely roved back to the fight itself, Elwood asked, "Is there anything you need me to do? For you or for Fox and the kids?" Already he had stepped up his duties as warden, but intended to support the family additionally, if necessary. He knew that Sebastian and Tiger were taking good care of Wildfire and her siblings, and he almost hoped that Peregrine wouldn't request that he see the firebirds anytime soon; it would be too painful to be reminded of the life in Finley's womb that had been extinguished before it began. He swallowed hard, pushing those thoughts away.

"Just do your part to keep this pack and its members safe," Peregrine answered readily, thinking of his own failure to do so. Of course, there was no need to mention it out loud. It was the highly visible elephant standing in the dead center of the room. As he spoke, he stared out at the horizon rather than looking directly at the Beta.

Eventually, he turned his head back toward Elwood, while keeping his gaze averted. "I'm going to keep patrolling. Lasher wasn't the first wolf to come calling, nor will he be the last. I'll see you later, El." Normally, he might have invited his companion to come along but Peregrine was not particularly in the mood for socializing. The only interaction he intended to have today was showing his teeth to any other outsiders who came banging on the door, demanding entry as if it was their house.

Elwood bobbed his head. Peregrine's suggestion was not unexpected, and it was something he was already actively doing. He had thrown himself into protecting the borders since the incident, and luckily the only encounter he had been a part of was with Osprey. He didn't understand why Peregrine's family couldn't respect Fox's decree and insisted on pushing the limits -- both Saena and Osprey had visited in a short time. But Peregrine was surely well aware of these instances, so Elwood did not mention them.

He inhaled slowly through his nostrils, searching for a sense of calm, but it didn't come. The silence between the two males was filled with tension, and when Peregrine excused himself to continue patrolling, Elwood decided to do the same. "Me too," he agreed, slowly turning and beginning to pace away from Peregrine, moving in the opposite direction.

Once he was alone again, his thoughts drifted to Finley and he squeezed his eyes shut, willing away the pain.