Stone Circle A new expression for you to marvel at.

Vespera was gone. She had assumed so but still when she came upon the border and howled for the female there had not been a response. Valette didn't understand what had been the trigger for her mate to exile a member and that without even discussing it with her! Valette really disliked how @Greyback handled things.

Normally, she went to the Stone Circle for comfort but now she knew it would probably sill be crowded. What always comforted her was just looking at the bison herd. She loved to seeing their interactions. They were almost like a pack as well. Valette moved to the forest, and where the forest stopped to make room for the plains she went to lie down and brood in private.

What was hurting her the most was that he went into the announcement without her. They were leading together. Vespera had been the one now but what if this continued? Greyback had been getting grumpier after last year's breeding season. What if it would get worse each year? She realized she wasn't looking at the bison at all and her mind just kept on going. The female got up. She was not just going to move out of the way and make room for this type of behavior. She was going to talk to her mate about this. When she found him the female approached him with a scowl on her face for the first time ever.

He had been quick to follow his mate after the events of the exile, quick to tear away from the Stone Circle and form a wide gap in the snow as he charged after her. Her face—filled with shock had set an empty pit in his stomach, something that indicated that perhaps what he did was wrong. And given the general response of the crowd, the realization was slowly dawning on him. Yes. Perhaps he was wrong.

He found her soon after, sitting—brooding, silently. She was sitting where she always tended to be when she was upset: up on the hill to look over the bison. For some reason, he didn't understand why she always found solace here, but it helped her and that was all he needed to accept it.

Greyback gulped at the sight, knowing he had possibly gummed things up upon seeing her. He lowered his head down, laid his ears back and slowly, ever so softly, approached her from behind. He said nothing as he did so, choosing to remain silent until she decided to turn around and face him or even say something.

She could hear him approach as she watched over the bison. The female slowly turned her head to her mate as he was approaching her. She noticed how he carried his head low and his ears back. Her upper lip trembled, not yet fully revealing her teeth but it was clear she was mad at him. Valette had been leading Easthollow since they started. She had been the sole leader, and even though it was heavy, she always tried to be fair in her decisions. She wondered if Greyback had been fair or his annoyance had taken things too far. Yet, that was not the thing that bothered her most.

She slowly turned to her mate. She had missed the outage from he others as she tried to go after Vespera. The female had hidden herself or at least ran far enough that Valette couldn't catch up with the young female. She knew Vespera had her quirks, but it seemed that something about the female triggered Greyback. She kept her glare at her mate for a while longer. "Since when do we not discuss big decisions like this anymore?," she questioned. "What made you decide that my opinion did not matter?" Valette kept her strict gaze to the male, holding her tail higher than she usually would.

As expected, Valette had turned around, and when their eyes met he winced once more at the glare directed at him. Olive pools filled with anger and something else the man couldn't quite pinpoint—something strong. It dug deep into him, planting its claws under his skin and turning him hot with embarrassment and recluse. Never before had the man felt like this, and never would he assumed he would with Valette.

A sigh escaped his lips and his brows upturned to a worried expression as she directed a question towards him. He quickly looked to the ground, seemingly more interested in the dirt than the conversation. Was he wrong? 'I was not.' Greyback knew he wasn't. Vespera had been a thorn in his side was far too long, and despite his increasing efforts to help her with anger manag- ... anger.

A thought slammed it's way into the man's mind, halting his thoughts enough to look up at Valette. Anger. He had let such an emotion consume him in his public sentence that he hadn't realized it. But to Valette, it was more than that.

"I didn't!" He snapped, not realizing his voice was too loud after he said it. "I did not-" he repeated. "think of that.. Your opinion always mattered—matters to me, Valette. I just was... too caught up in my anger."

Valette held her ground when Greyback snapped at her. Her ears flattened and her eyes darkened with anger, though she was in control of it. She looked at Greyback with a strict gaze. Greyback continued how he had been too taught up in his anger, too angry to even think about her. To even reason with her about this whole ordeal. If he might have come to hear and talked to her about it she might have agreed with his statement. Then it would be something they decided together.

"If you lead your life by anger I am not sure if you are fit to be a leader," she stated, her voice calm but it was clear she was very upset with him. She was not going to kick him out of leadership but she wanted him to know that this was not the way to lead Easthollow. They were a family. Valette had been unaware of the backlash the family had given to Greyback. Valette sighed. "Honestly, why are you so angry?," she asked. "Are you unhappy here or... with me?," she asked, if there was something bothering him then she wished to know.

He saw the swirl of emotions behind her eyes, the anger that festered there. He wondered if she was going to snap, to yell back, but as soon as that emotion appeared, it vanished—leaving the man perplexed as to what happened. He swished his tail behind him, uneasy, and took a step forward in an attempt to get closer. Valette was far away, too far away.

"You're right." He agreed empathetically. "It shouldn't have happened, it was unbecoming of me." He winced at his own words, regret bubbling up again. He didn't want to admit he was wrong, hot shame flooded up from his paws, flushing his body with embarrassment. His sire wouldn't have acted like this, nor had he raised Greyback to do the same.

But then a sigh and a question he could only assume that was being kept for so long was finally spoken, asked. "No. I—" a pause "No. It's not you, it never will be you." He took another step, breathing in deeply and exhaling. "It was the girl. She was erratic! A child in her ways with a behavior that was frustrating to put up with. I tried. Oh—I tried to be patient and teach her, but she refused, Valette. She was convinced I was the devil himself." He snorted at that, thinking it was humorous. "But I am not upset here, nor am I upset with you."

He took another step, now close enough to extend his neck and run his nose along her cheek. He moved slowly, tense enough to draw back should Valette retaliate, his eyes watching her every move.

Valette kept her eyes on her mate. However, surprise came upon her lips when the male did agree with her. Valette had her arguments ready for him but it seemed she didn't need them. The female sat down and felt a bit calmer than when they began. She could tell that he was embarrassed which told her enough. He didn't need to be shamed even further. The matriarch allowed him closer. "Perhaps it is better than you step down from being Patriarch," she spoke, though there was no hesitation in her voice.

"You have been working so hard, we had children, and had to battle the famine. There is no shame in stepping down when it all comes too much," she stated to the male. Valette was glad that it wasn't her. But it was interesting to see him so riled up with Vespera. He spoke about trying to keep his patience but failing. The female had been patient with Vespera as well, and it seemed Vespera only noticed it with Valette. The matriarch's eyes turned a bit stricter. "Blaming the girl, Greyback? Come on now, love," she returned calmly to her mate and glanced at him with a questioning expression. She was certain he knew better than to blame someone else for his behavior.

"Vespera got on my nerves as well, but I never got angry with her." Perhaps she had a mother's virtue with the girl and Greyback hadn't. Valette shook her head. "Anyway that is besides the point. The reason I am upset with you is that you took this big decision without me. Our main ethos is that we live as a family. You were out of line to exile Vespera without the consent of the family, but most especially me, your equal," she stated. She couldn't stay mad at him for long but she did want him to truly know that this was not how they dealt with things. "Lucky for you, I do like you enough not to exile you either," she spoke then, hint of a smile showing.

As Valette drawled on the man cast a glance to the side, his head following as he refused to look at her like a scolded child. His brows furrowed and he worried his lip as he always did when he was thinking. He had not thought about stepping down, it never occurred to him that a break was needed.

'Should I step down?'

His tail flicked behind him absentmindedly. "I do blame the girl," he muttered. "but I also blame myself. What I did was careless and.." he paused, fumbling on the words he didn't want to admit. "thoughtless— I will step down, only for a bit. Just till I make peace with the others."

He turned back to Valette, shocked that she was joking at a time like this. He stared at her, not quite catching the drastic change of the situation. What did she mean? Was exiling him ever an option? He raised a brow, looking her up and down with a frown till it occurred to him that perhaps she was flirting. "Mm, we'll see about that." He smiled.

"By the way, what do you think of Arlette's new... friend?"

Valette then nodded at her mate. She felt that it was a wise decision for Greyback to step down for a bit. Perhaps after a bit of rest he felt better to lead again, and maybe found a new perspective. She wasn't thinking any less of her mate. It would be weird if he didn't have flaws. Even she had enough flaws, even though Vespera seemed to think that wasn't the case.

She tipped her head at the question about Arlette. Did he mean this Kaito? 'That Kaito boy you mean?," she asked just to be sure. "Well, he seemed polite enough. Plus he is going to teach her about medicine. So if he helps Arlette become a healer we could really use I am not really against him. He seems alright. Why? Do you think he has ill intentions?,' she asked curiously. Now wondering what Greyback new about this young man.