Bearclaw Valley I don’t want anything more from you

Following the discovery of Indra’s maimed body, he was more alert than ever; it didn’t matter that she’d been attacked outside of the valley, the risk of danger was still there. She had survived her encounter with the assailant, but who was to say that their next victim would be as lucky? He wanted to say with full certainty that the valley was safe, that no one would dare to trespass, but he couldn’t—he couldn’t lie to himself. There were those out in the world that didn’t respect the boundaries put into place by packs, as well as some that viewed themselves as far too great to ever be caught. He knew these things and could not deny the authenticity of either, not wanting to imagine what might happen if he did.

 

Alexander took to the entrance, pissing and leaving his scent behind where he could all along the Boulder Path, set on making his claim—and message—clear: stay out. And when he reached the end of the path he stopped, staring out into the distance, momentarily standing guard outside the walls of his kingdom.

Laurel was shocked by what had happened and she didn't know how to deal with it. She didn't understand how something like that could just happen. Yes, the world had often been cruel to her and her sister. But this was the first time that something that happened seemed so random, so unprecedented. Though if there was anything Laurel'd learned from her time in this world it was that the world was unfair, and perhaps, she told herself, she should've seen coming something terrible would happen sooner or later.

For now they were a part of Bearclaw Valley, for however long or short it'd be, and she was happy for that, at least, knowing there was a place where Indra could rest. As Laurel approached the borders she saw Xan there. Not exactly the person she wanted to spend time with, but for now Indra was asleep and resting and she had nothing better to do. When she approached him she squinted eyes as she watched him... Was he... Is that -- Was he actually posing? What, he thought the asshats'd stay out by staring them down? Such a slimeball. Anyway, she approached him neutrally and chuffed to let him know she was headed his way. At least the borders seemed safe, for now.

Past observations of his father at work along the borders made him believe he was doing as any proper guardian might. It made sense to hold still and gaze at his surroundings, that way he might spot any unwelcome visitors long before they reached him; he had seen Kove do something similar in the past, though the albino was most definitely lingering for far longer than his father ever would. He didn’t think himself to look ridiculous, nor was he able to sit in silence long enough for the thought to eventually cross his mind as his ears twisted back. The sound of incoming footfalls wasn’t so easily missed, though he didn’t turn back to see his company until she chuffed—and when he saw her, his expression softened ever so slightly and he nodded in turn, extending a silent greeting whilst he considered what to say.

“How is she?” was all he could come up with. He wasn’t sure about checking on Indra himself, having left her in the company of her sister and the medic instead; caring for the wounded was far from a specialty of his. In fact, he was probably the least qualified to be left alone with someone recently hurt, his sympathy not so easily given—only, this time, he felt genuine concern for her well-being, which both confused and bothered him. Perhaps, he reasoned, it was something that came with being a leader—he would have to ask Desna about it sometime.

There wasn't really anything good anyone could say in these situations. Indra wasn't gonna get well just because someone heartfeltly said "oh, i'm so sorry she got hurt" or asked how she was. Any questions in that direction were more towards the benefit of Laurel than Indra at this point. She wanted to talk about it, she wanted to be angry about it, she wanted to be consoled even though she knew Indra was the only wolf in the world who could truly console her.

At his question, she responded with a frustrated-sounding "Shit." They both knew that this would take some time to heal and that the mental scars may never. Laurel thought of the time she had gotten badly wounded, by Jhala... Except Indra hadn't been there to console her. "How are the borders?" she asked, even though she could see that there was no one there right now.

Although he secretly hoped that she was, by some miracle, doing a lot better, logic kept him from getting too sucked into the desire; her response further contributed to this, though the former was what really kept reality from crashing down around him too harshly. In time, her wounds would heal, he was sure of it. As long as Poet continued to tend to her, then she’d pull through, physically, and then Laurel could handle the mental and emotional aspects of her trauma—yeah, they could handle it, they’d fix her right up. And though it was his belief that they had everything covered, he still wanted to help in some way—it was what kept him by the borders, hoping that her attacker might just appear out of thin air someday so that Xan could tear out his throat—if only he would realise that he did not know the attacker his entire fantasy would come to an abrupt close but, like with many things, he remained selectively oblivious.

Nodding—he didn’t know what to say, how to console her, for he’d yet to even notice that she, too, needed someone’s support—he looked back out over Rising Sun. “Fine, for now,” he answered, looking to his right before back at her. “Want to walk with me? I haven’t checked around the walls yet.” Not that anyone could get in that way but, still, he felt better knowing that no one was even attempting it.

At least something was fine, Laurel thought to herself when he responded. Indra sure wasn't, though Laurel, much like Xan, didn't want to believe in a reality where In wouldn't be alright again. She believed that her sister would be fine again, it just needed some time. She didn't trust in the healing abilities of the Bearclaw Valley medic but Indra's healing qualities were superb so everything would be good in time.

"Sure," she said, though she didn't feel much like walking at all. But while they were here anyway and Laurel didn't want to have awkward silences and boring small talk, she decided she might as well ask: "So what's your story, anyway? How'd you get here? Are you from here?" She remembered he had said that he was heir to this place, so maybe he'd been born here or something.

Normally, there was no need to check on the exterior walls of the valley, given just how sturdy they were, but he had to keep busy somehow—besides, the more done meant the less likely anyone else was to get hurt, which prompted him into action more so than just needing to keep in motion. As soon as she agreed to walk with him he was on the move, having turned right outside of the valley’s entrance. Honestly, he’d expected meaningless small talk, despite not really wanting it—but it was better than delving into his past, as the topic wasn’t one that he visited with others too often.

He slowed and glanced her way, considering the questions as they came before resuming his previous pace. “I was born here, yeah,” he said, seeing no harm in telling her the basics. “My parents led a pack here at the time—that’s what I’m trying to rebuild. Eventually, everyone went their separate ways, though. I was taken away from here and grew up farther south, on the other side of the mountains.” The finer details were left out, such as names and everything that had happened between then and now. “Stuff happened and I found my way back here,” he finished with. “This was always home, so I guess I’m glad that I have others sticking with me here.” Like Laurel, he noted silently. Her, her sister, and everyone else—they were breathing life back into the valley.

Laurel followed as Xan turned right and started to walk along the side of the walls. It seemed safe, to have a pack in such a secluded valley, though she wondered if there really weren't any places where one could breach through and cross into the territory. Laurel made a mental note to keep an eye on the wall as they walked so that she could see if there were any weak spots.

Absent-mindedly she listened to what Xan had to say about his past, saying he was born here and he'd grown up here. It was better than small talk though Laurel wished that she hadn't said a thing and just let silence settle in between them. Now she had to show interest in what he said. She kept walking beside him and nodded as he spoke, though she didn't look super attentive. His parents had a pack here, he wanted to rebuild it, blabla. Sounded like the perfect fairytale story, except they didn't live in a fairytale but in this world of shit. She did, at least; but apparently his life was ~ perfect ~ and it annoyed her.

"What happened to your parents?" she said, hoping silently that they'd abandoned him or died or something else that was bad to prove her point that the world was shitty.

As they walked, his gaze scaled the walls countless times, searching. Although it’d been a while now since he’d seen the children climbing, he couldn’t help but look out for them—and anyone else. Really, he didn’t worry too much when he thought about someone trying to sneak in that way. The walls, though climbable as some points on the outside, were far too steep to maneuver down on the inside. Anyone that tried would surely fall to their death—or, at the very least, fall and nearly die. Still, he kept an eye out anyways, wanting to get rid of any potential infiltrators before they fell into his home; the idea of having to get rid of a body somehow didn’t appeal to him, seeming like a total waste of time.

He didn’t answer her immediately, her question taking him by surprise. He’d never liked talking about his parents or what happened, especially when every time he’d made an attempt at bringing the topic up a fight broke out between him and his sister. But Laurel wasn’t Desna—she didn’t have the same connection to the events as the siblings did, so the chances of an argument occurring were slim to none. “They split up,” he told her. “I don’t have all of the details, I just know that my mom ended things and took my sisters away with her. And then she died soon after.” And for a long time, he’d hated her because of it. For breaking their family apart, as well as for dying. “I don’t know where one of my sisters is, but the other two live in the pack next to us,” he added after a brief pause. “One of them leads that pack, actually. Only reason we haven’t had any trouble with them.” Had the pack been led by someone else, he doubted his sisters’ presences there would have mattered—his claim to the valley still would have been challenged.

Glancing her way, he asked, “What about you? Are you from around here?” She’d asked him questions, so he figured he should make an effort to get to know her better in return.

The story started out pretty satisfying, with a tragic notion of how his parents had split up and had torn apart the family, the siblings even, bringing his sisters to a different place than he had gone. It also explained why the pack that was so close to them didn't give trouble; Laurel had actually been wondering about that. She "hm-hm"'d when he finished speaking about that, glad to know. If she'd ever run into trouble she would know the pack was a good place to go, or at the least not the worst place to go. She would just drop Xan's name.

He then asked about her own story and Laurel wrinkled her nose, unable to hide her annoyance at this question. Yeah, she'd asked questions, but she'd hoped to keep the conversation completely on him, hoping it was all sadness and gloom so she could feel a bit better about herself. She shrugged and said, "Oh. Yeah, I grew up somewhere around here, I think. Place called Larksong Grotto." Silver Creek wasn't too close, but she didn't remember that place much at all; Larksong Grotto was the unfortunate place where she had grown up. If only she and Indra had never been taken by Reek. It would've been better growing up with adoptive parents like they had in Silver Creek than anything else. She wondered where Reek and Jhala were, and where Saena was. She hoped they were all dead now.

There wasn’t much shared on her part, and he wondered if that was because there wasn’t much to say or she just didn’t want to tell him. Whatever the case, he nodded and thought about the name, wondering if he’d heard it before—he hadn’t. “Never heard of the place,” he muttered absentmindedly, momentarily distracted. His attention latched onto an area at the base of the wall, which looked like the footing was sturdy enough for someone to get up. He crossed over in front of Laurel to rub his side against the edges—which snagged a few tufts of loose fur—and then continued walking, remaining on her right.

“What about your parents?” he asked, this time more attentive. “Are they alive?” It didn’t really matter if they were—Laurel and Indra were both adults, their parents couldn’t drag them away, but he was curious.

Laurel was glad that he hadn't heard of Larksong Grotto, hoping that that meant the subject passed. She followed his gaze to the wall, which she'd pretty much forgotten about by now, and watched as Xan rubbed against the wall to warn possible intruders. By then she guessed that they had passed from the subject and she was fully happy to continue the patrol in silence...

... Except Xan didn't seem to think the same, deciding to ask her about her parents. She visibly startled for the smallest of moments before regaining her self-control and staring at the environment as if nothing ever happened. "Don't care," she said coldly and continued the patrol alongside him, her gaze hard and clearly not too eager to further discuss this.

Last from me!

He maintained partial focus on her, watching her from his peripheral—but, because of this, he assumed something was amiss when she appeared to be startled. He slowed and glanced her way, assessing their surroundings before figuring that his words had been the thing to take her by surprise. Curious, he wondered if he should ask more questions on the same topic, but her frigid response put an immediate end to that rumination.

Instead of asking more about her family life, he just nodded; Alexander understood how touchy of a subject family can be, given his own background and emotional issues developed from it. He just kept moving, tossing her a sidelong glance every once in awhile, but continued the rest of the patrol in complete silence.

Silence was good enough for Laurel, for now; she preferred it over further talk of her family. Indra was the only family she had left, as far as Laurel was concerned. Indra was the only one that'd ever truly cared about her in any sort of way. The packs along their way had been short stays and truthfully Laurel wondered if this one'd be any different. As long as Indra didn't get too attached, 'cause she didn't think that it'd work out for them in the long run. Xan was obviously not interested in her and though it was nice to have a place for Indra to rest up while she was injured Laurel felt that it would only be a matter of time before this pack, too, would show her their ugly true faces and would cast her out in some way or another.. For now though, she continued to trail along the borders with Xan to make sure that Indra was safe.