Moonspear wherever i may roam

There was one last hurdle to leap before Revui would take his rightful place beside Hydra as the Beta of the pack, and that was @Charon. After all the fuss and talk about his father and Speedy, the issues Hydra raised, the problem that was Yami, the tension between the rulers of Moonspear - he wasn't sure if it was the right time to seek the man out for comment. He would be able to hold back on questions or any voiced opposition easily enough; but would his father be able to read the boys nervous energy? 

He decided to get it over with, and began to patrol sections of the mountain while hunting his father down. Revui crossed paths with Amakaze's scent a few times, then Hydra's, even trailed Dirge for a bit - and finally found an inkling of where his father may roam. The boy sought out that path eagerly enough, and tried to think of what to say if he found Charon anywhere.

There was a lot on his mind and so Charon had more or less forgotten about the challenges he had set for Revui. Honestly, he'd remembered it but it had taken its place somewhere at the back of his mind with all the other "stuff that isn't immediately life-threatening". When Revui found his father's trail Charon was midway up the mountain, where the wind grew colder. A light drizzle had just stopped, leaving Charon's pelt damp, but the hike up the mountain had made him feel alive and more energetic than when he was crowded by displeased family. Honestly, at this point Arcturus seemed the most reasonable of them all to him, though he had yet to speak to some of them -- his other sons included.

Charon's ears perked forward when he saw Revui as he headed down a path close to where he had gone up, looking lost in thought. The father chuffed to grab his son's attention, not expecting any subject bar Speedy or the things Charon had said that day when the season of not one, but two females had filled his nostrils.

The scent of his father had waned across the mountain and in its place rose the aroma of Hydra, of Dirge, of the strengthened scent of his mother Amekaze, as they had been busy patrolling the many paths and protecting the claim while the patriarch had abandoned them. When Revui sought his father now, the scent of him seemed out-of-place for its strength; he thought he'd find traces of Speedy with him for some reason, but was glad when the wind gusted something pure his way. Revui tracked that scent and soon found his father's trail - then was waylayed as the sound of a chuff hit his ears. He had no desire to surprise his father but it took the boy my surprise instead, knowing that his father had sensed his arrival and was waiting for him.

Had someone already spoken of his failure? Had news gotten back to the mountain before Revui could speak of it...? He thought of all the wolves that could have spurned him in this way; those that were present when Yami was found were the obvious choices, but Revui could not make the assumption that Arcturus had spoken of the event in any detail - so he thought of Dirge, and fought back a grimace. If his sister's mate had spoiled the boy's ascension, he would be in for a world of hurt from the angry leviathan.

The silver boy approached, having assumed a prideful air despite how poorly he felt about the entire situation. He got right down to business, and stated: Arcturus and I are brothers again. Speedy has taught me of healing — and Yami, here he paused, finding that his anger at his wayward sister had transmuted in to some kind of sorrow tinged with dread, drawing the false pride from him and casting it away. Yami ran from me. She is not worthy of the mountain, however, but I am. I am your Beta. 

It was not a question; he had fulfilled the bargain, proven himself thoroughly, and saw this as the only possible result.

Charon listened as Revui cut to the chase as he approached his father. Revui spoke of his ascension to Beta and Charon, admittedly, had completely forgotten about that. His nose had been so filled with the different seasons and the consequences that rose from it that he hadn't been too busy with ranks or Revui's place in the pack. He explained eloquently about becoming brothers again with Arcturus and learning from Speedy about healing. Then he mentioned Yami, and paused a bit, probably trying to find a good way of telling his father that she had got away from him and did not want to return home.

He left little space for response other than proclaiming himself to be Beta. Charon nodded, looking impressed. You are my Beta, he agreed then, choosing his wording well. I'm proud of you, my son. Charon smiled and nosed Revui's shoulder roughly to express how he felt.

After a few heartbeats he continued their conversation, after looking around to see that no one else was near (though he didn't expect anyone up here, really). What do you make of the tension on the mountain? Hydra seems to grow bolder every day. I'm proud of her, I love her, and I forgive her for breeding without asking for my permission first, even though I don't understand why she didn't seek me out to ask. I just want to put all of the season's hysteria behind us. Charon could only imagine a gruff wolf without big vocabulary such as Revui would feel much the same. He looked at Revui, hoping to hear his son's opinion.

The boy anticipated more fanfare; perhaps a howl to share the news with others of the mountain, but the affection and praise of his father made his pride swell and ego too, regardless. Revui now understood that words could have some power - that had been part of the exercise after all - and even he noticed the shift in Charon's emphasis as he spoke. Revui was claiming his rightful title; it sounded more like his father was trying to praise him rather than exalt him. It didn't sound entirely right.

Then the patriarch moved on to talk of politics. Tensions that every wolf of Moonspear had felt. The questions made little sense to Revui as he had limited understanding of the season or the impropriety of Hydra's behavior; but to hear his father reference hysteria after, Revui couldn't tell if he was paying his own daughter an insult that the boy couldn't quite grasp.

Something had changed on the mountain, as well as within Revui, and it took until this moment for him to awaken to it. His father's praise settled uneasily within him; it felt good to get what he wanted, but was tempered by the way his father spoke of the mountain and his family, as if they were all possessions that were under his full control - and however briefly, Revui gleaned some of what Yami had felt deep down inside, the day the boy had moved against her.

Revui did not know what to say. To speak ill of Hydra felt disingenuous but at the same time, he felt like he was being made to choose between his father's constant, beloved, heavy-handed and controlling nature versus the free will and growing power of his idol sister. So he ruminated a moment, then fell in to his usual habit of speaking little: Didn't notice.

Revui remained silent for a while. Charon wasn't fooled when he eventually said that he hadn't noticed anything. Charon found it hard to believe that; the tension that day with Speedy alone was enough for someone to have noticed. A beta should keep the peace, so he should notice these things, he reminded his son. I only want things to be normal and well again within our family. But I can't do that alone. Charon frowned as he looked at Revui, wishing he knew what went on in his son's head (well, maybe not so much if he actually would've known), and hoping he'd help him get things fixed. His family was his life; all he wanted was that back.

His father was right, of course. It was his duty to speak up when necessary even if he wasn't entirely comfortable, and especially if he was confused about his own feelings. Only through communication would Revui learn and adapt. To be granted his wish—this spot in the leadership—and then to be given his first real lesson was a jarring experience. He knew he should not feel such negative thoughts for his father as Charon advised him, but blame it on his youth. He couldn't help the slight rise of acid in his throat.

Charon spoke of normalcy as if something had come in and swept the family aside; as if he were missing out on something, when nothing had changed as far as Revui could tell. Hydra was still Hydra—powerful, confident, putting the mountain first. By comparison it was Charon who appeared to have changed, if Revui thought about it. It was the man who abandoned the mountain, forsaking his mother, leveraging his rank as their patriarch to forgive any wrongs. Revui wanted to trust his father's word of course. To make things run smoothly, and to keep the mountain strong. He kept his thoughts internalized as was his way.

More was expected of him. He accepted this—for now.

We are at peace, he finally says. The warring is between you and mother. I have no place in that. It was one of the rare moments where Revui was clear and to-the-point with his pronouncements; deep down he knew his father would see the truth in the statement. Any issue that had arisen of-late was not something the yearling could police regardless of his status, he would not wedge himself in to the uncomfortable position between his mother and father with the tension that had been apparent throughout the season.

Charon did not like to think that there was any war between himself and Amekaze. Things happened, things were said, but they were all in the heat of the moment when hormones were sprinkled around. Though he still thought it a beta's task to look into inner turmoil within the pack too, Charon did not further press this. Good answer, he said, his words seeming to suggest that his questioning about the tension on the mountain was all a test to see if Revui would give the desirable answer. And we will figure it out. Charon smiled confidently at his son, even though he wasn't entirely sure if they could figure this one out. Things simply would not be the same, and his midlife crisis was still in full swing. It didn't help he had no one that he could truly confide to, that understood him in some way. His family had always been everything for him, and now that they turned against him Charon did not know where to turn. Hydra and Amekaze may have each other, but he felt lonely and rejected and as if everything he had was slipping through the cracks between his fingers; which only made him all the more dangerous. To himself most of all.

There was much to consider and reflect on. Things that Revui needed further clarity to understand, but he did not feel comfortable in asking his father or playing his hand, so to speak. His first instinct was to depart from his father's company and seek out Hydra; but he would not leave until given the order, ever the resolute soldier when his father was present. Loyal, trusting, wishing to give Charon the benefit of the doubt despite the confusing words that they had shared—so Revui turned to silence, nodding leisurely as his father promised some sort of resolution.

After a few moments of quiet Revui chose to break it, glancing at his father's good eye for only a moment to garner his attention, and said: May I leave? There was a slight edge to his voice that he could not control (a clear downside to being mostly non-verbal was this inability to regulate the emotion in his voice); but he caught it after speaking and clarified: I want to tell Arcturus— his tail raised and waved, and soon enough Revui had managed to hide away his doubts behind a very real sense of pride and purpose, focusing on his new rank as opposed to the tumult all around.

Revui asked if he was allowed to leave then, so that he may give his brother the news. Charon nodded and said, Go ahead. He imagined Arcturus must be excited about the news too; Charon never pegged his other son ambitious enough to actually be sour about this all. Charon waited for him to take off and then continued his trek up the mountain.