Stone Circle cold return

@Steady

Selkie had trodden this path before – but now her paws were sore, numb with cold and careful, infinitely more careful. Selkie didn’t know what awaited her at the borders of Easthollow, and part of her didn’t know why she had returned. Hers had been a brief stay, she told herself, and there was no guarantee she would even be remembered. But if it was a choice between her name and her face being misplaced and being remembered as an abandoner, but being able to make up for her abandonment of the place, she knew which she would go for.

It had been a fool’s errand, trying to ascertain the whereabouts of a young man she’d barely known, and it was only in the fullness of time that Selkie had realised her error. She should have stayed, she should have partaken in the security Easthollow had so graciously offered her. Instead she had gone on a wild goose chase. And now she returned while the lands were encased in snow and ice. The bitter cold raked through a copper coat which was a little less lustrous than it had been the last time she’d stood near these borders, hoping for a home. Now she hoped for more than that, yet it was something which couldn’t be given quite as easily: forgiveness.

Her jaw clenched for a moment before she let loose a short – decidedly meek – call for an audience with one of her former pack mates.

Steady wasn't all that inclined to entertain visitors at the borders, especially since he was really waiting for Chaska to regain himself and come back to them. But, the howl that reached his ears was not Chaska, but it wasn't overtly a stranger, either. He had heard that call before, but couldn't pinpoint it. So, he veered his course in the direction of the wolf calling. 

His head and tail were carried to show his place in this pack, and confidence glowed from him. He was comfortable in his own home, surrounded by wolves he could trust, and none he had any questions about. The female that stood before him was certainly someone he knew, but for a brief time. It took him a moment to even recall her name. Selkie, he greeted, coming to a stop. He recalled Rickon brought her here, and with his departure came hers, as well. What was it about wolves leaving for love? Maybe Steady was just lucky he got to keep his family and his love all in one place. What brings you here?  he asked. His voice was curious, though not overtly friendly. It was all business until he knew her motives.

Cameo. He's just hovering around the edges, waiting. Feel free to skip.

Unfamiliar voices and activity at the borders always bred a strange excitment in him these days. When those two events combined, Day couldn't help the growl that began ticking in his throat.

He'd do anything, he realized, for another fight.

But there was no fight to jump into when he arrived at the borders to see Steady already answering the woman's call. No matter his recent activities, aggression was not truly in the male's nature - even if he'd encountered the woman alone, he would not have attacked unprovoked. So he stood at the edges of the alpha's vision, still as a sentiel as he watched their exchange. I am ready, his eyes said, but beyond that, he might as well have been a rock.

The horizon had felt like it would stretch on, flat and white and cold, forever, of late. No matter which way Selkie turned there was the whiteness of ice and snow, the bite of the wind against her cheeks and ears. But over that flat horizon came a figure as dark as the snow was white. His head and tail were held high, but Selkie didn’t need to look at them to know his rank in Easthollow - his scent was strong enough on the borders.

Her own ears fell back, her tail sweeping into a wag before she reminded herself that she shouldn’t get her hopes up. Her stance drooped, her muzzle lowering and her leafy eyes wandering over countless crystals of snow. Steady remembered her name, at least, and she of course remembered his, though there hadn’t been a great deal of interaction between them. And that was Selkie’s fault.

“I’m here – I’m back – lookin’ for forgiveness.” A short sigh left her and her eyes squeezed shut for a moment. “Never shoulda left Easthollow. Went lookin’ for Rickon, but I didn’t find ‘im.” A frown cast soft green eyes into shadow momentarily as she tried to order her thoughts, and her voice turned self-deprecating. “Figured I was too old to be runnin’ off after a guy like some googly-eyed yearling, but I guess I figured that out too late. I know times ain't the easiest, but I'll pull my weight, if ya'll have me.”

She didn't see Grayday hovering nearby. If she had, she might have felt still more foolish.

Steady had had about enough of wolves betraying him over love. Is that what it really came down to at the end of the day? Did the rest of the family not matter if your significant other wanted to leave? Chaska didn't seem to care about his family once Evelyn had come, and it seemed Selkie hadn't, either. Of course, she hadn't even been with them long enough to establish any type of loyalty, either. Did that make it better or worse than Chaska's betrayal?

Selkie was at least honest. She didn't hide the fact that she had gone after Rickon, and she seemed to have realized it was a mistake. You'll be welcome back, if you show your loyalty to us. If you leave again, without so much as a word as to why, you will not be welcome back again, he explained. Would Chaska ever get the same second chance if he returned to Steady's borders? Probably not. Wolves did come and go, but Chaska had been his brother, for all intents and purposes, but he had turned his back on his family. 

He didn't notice Grayday hiding in the distance, but he would have been glad to know his Gamma was watching his back, should something happen.

The road had been long and laborious. The coppery female had fought an internal battle to get here – to not shy away from facing the consequences of her flightiness, her stupidity. It would be even more stupid to give up the chance of acceptance now. That didn’t make it easy, but the things worth having in life were rarely easy.

Her ears were slicked against her skull, her gaze cast to her own paws. She didn’t know what she was expecting from Steady, or from the wider family of Easthollow. Did she expect them to welcome her return, when her stay here had been so brief and her departure without notice? No. She found she was holding her breath, and it ached in her chest.

But Steady didn’t turn her away. He was honest – she would have to prove herself – and Selkie offered a swift nod, her gaze daring to lift from her own paws. Her voice emerged in a soft breath of relief:

“Yessir – course - understood.”

And her eyes swept up and around, finally managing to rest upon the territory before her.

“Thank you.”

He nodded, and gave her a brief smile to ease the tensions a bit. He didn't remember her as a daft wolf and so he figured she understood what he was saying about loyalty. It would be her last chance, but at least the chance was given. You're welcome to roam and check things out. I need to get back to my duties, he informed her. 

With that he turned in the opposite direction of Grayday and Selkie, and continued his efforts of marking the borders. 

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