Swiftcurrent Creek death brings life · pack meeting

(Posted prior to his loss of Gamma rank)

The howl sounded while he was knee-deep in a freshly dug grave. Njal heard it but he didn't stop working; the earth was frozen and difficult to carve, and this required his attention more-so than the gathering of the pack. He made a mental note of where the sound came from as he dug the grave, as he pulled the chilled body of the former alpha in to the earth, and before long the man was ready. He lifted himself out of the chasm that had been carved in to the plains and worked on covering the deceased woman's body. When the work was done, Njal was tired. He had never had to bury someone before. The thought of it would have turned his stomach, had he not been so numb. Despite the cold that had crept across his pelt prior - when he had diligently dragged Lethe's body from the river - he was warm now. Not exactly dry, but warm. Heated and tired. His tongue hung out of his mouth when he turned to advance upon the pack's location.

The man arrived in time to hear a stranger's accented voice proclaim loyalty to Fox. He saw Jinx next, and the physical thrust of each wolf as they stood to attention, vying for rank under the new rule. Njal would have been happy to follow at any other time. He was still an obedient subordinate. The way that the stranger - Solene - prostrated herself next to Jinx did irk him. Njal approached with a lifted head and the poise he had been carrying for days prior; he was above them, and he would not let them take that position away. It had been Njal who had found the body. It had been Njal that had buried it, unassisted. The grizzled man's body was weary and his muscles ached from the work. There was a clear wet dog smell attached to his fur, along with the subtle musk of Lethe - a smell which would be covered soon by Fox, and the rest of the pack, as they re-established themselves.

With a low rumble in his chest Njal circled the group and carefully, but directly, approached Fox. He lowered his posture only in that moment; snaking his panting tongue back in to his mouth before slipping it out to lick at her chin, to defer to the small creature that now held ownership of Swiftcurrent. With a bold lift of his tired eyes, Njal looked to the other wolves who occupied the space, daring them to take his position away. He retained this level of authority while placing space between himself and the trio, as he sat down and waited for further additions to the group.