Horizon Ridge anathema [j]

Private for @Akhlut but if Sophie wants others to come in, they can!
(im so so sorry for long post)

Who knew how long she'd been traveling? Searching, it seemed, endlessly; she'd succumbed to her needs and entered into this place, this proposed haven, in the hopes that she could find somebody. Anybody. And yet every stranger she met, she cowered, and the fear and loathing of what she'd become would drive her away. Her search was unending and she would forever haunt this place until she was satisfied with herself. Which, it seemed, would never happen.

The golden girl had exhausted herself in her journey. She sought the refuge of forests, where the sunshine still parted through the dry twigs and branches and bled onto the forest floor. Where the snow brushed away, leaf litter, brown and copper, absorbed the light. The forest danced in hues of gold and red and white, and for this brief while, her afternoon was at peace. She spent it walking slowly through the snow, half-heartedly attempting to find a meal. Her nose twitched and sucked in scents, but she could not discern prey from the smell of rotting litter her footfalls exposed with each step. She was distracted, and hopeless; on the brink of simply giving up. If Inkenoah wasn't so foolishly stubborn, she would have, and ended this misery long ago.

She found respite when the sun began to fall. No longer would it be day, and not yet was it night. Having failed, Inkenoah could resolve only to curl up and try to find sleep. Within the breast of a large tree trunk, whose unearthed roots curled around in an arc, Inkenoah dropped onto her side and curled up. Seeking warmth from her own body, she nestled her nose into her tail and closed her eyes. Through the long moments awaiting sleep, she wished dearly to slumber all ready and not waste this precious moment - and it would seem the girl was too eager, for she did sleep. She slept as the sun fell down and darkness began to envelop the forest, and the moon took its place, shining brightly in its sickly cold glow. For as long as she slumbered, the phoenix felt no threat from the night. Not until some creature had rustled the dry growth nearby and piqued her attention.

Slowly, her eyelids peeled back. The golden gaze of the girl adjusted to witness the darkness that had fallen over her. Immediately she tensed; her chest tightened and she raised her head, scanning her surrounding. The rustling that roused her continued; she locked her eyes on it. Dread mounted in her head and her eyes widened, her lips taut. She parted her jaws with the essence of speech, but none came forth; her throat too dry. The darkness had come for her again. She slept too long, and now she was victim to its shadows, its tricks; slowly, carefully, she unfurled herself and rose.

The bush shook.

Without second thought, Inkenoah burst into a sprint. A sharp whine left her throat and she ran as fast as her legs could take her. The svelte body of the phoenix glided through the forest, ignorant of the snow beneath her paws, the rotting litter beneath that, the scents that laced these trees. In the darkness she ran. From the shadows, from the creature beyond what she could see; imaginary hounds baying, barking, snapping at her heels. The memory manifested itself behind her and pushed her forward into the territory of strangers. Her heart raced as quickly as she moved and subtle cries, sobs even choked from her lips. Stop chasing me! Please, please leave me alone! She begged silently, though nothing pursued her but fear itself.

Eventually, she had broken through the jungle into a clearing. The moonlight bled out onto the earth and illuminated the glittering snow around her. The trees had grown sparser and rock crept out from beneath her paws. Inkenoah finally stopped and whirled around. There was nothing behind her. Her fur stood on end, her eyes wide; tears threatened to breach the edges of her gaze. Without hesitation she thrusted her head back and uttered a sharp, desperate cry. A call for help, a plea.

Don't apologize for a long post! <3 Sorry this one's a bit shorter than yours.

An unearthly howl jerked Akhlut from his sleep, and for a moment the undead wolves that had been slavering and snarling at him in his nightmare were the stuff of his waking life, until he realized that the zombie canines and the eerie howl were unrelated and only one of them was real. The Alpha had taken to sleeping somewhere along his borders each night, the better to guard the Ridge, and so he took quickly to his paws and began to seek out the source of the desperate call. He was unsure how late it was, and supposed he might have been asleep for mere moments or for several hours; nevertheless, his tired eyes were soon wide awake with the adrenaline of an unexpected wolf on his territory's fringe long after a reasonable hour for social calls.

It took longer than he would have liked to find her, but there she was, golden fur touseled and tangled with sticks and brambles, equally-bright eyes wide and round, showing their whites in her fear. "You've come through hell to get here," he observed, "but what can entering Horizon Ridge do for you? There is only the sea beyond us. What are you running from?" Perhaps they could offer her shelter, depending on the nature of her pursuers; perhaps not, if asylum would throw them into an interpack war. Akhlut's features contorted into a frown as he peered questioningly at her, taking in the scars and the slightly misshapen hind paw. Perhaps both were a trick of the scant moonlight, but they spoke of a harsher lifetime than most two year olds had yet posessed.

don't feel the need to mirror my posts!! :'D i just have lots of muse

Her tail, thinned by malnutrition curled between her legs. The girl inched into the clearing, swallowing up the moonlight as it fell from the heavens and onto the rock and snow. All was light around her now, and only the edges of the clearing held the darkness of night. Shadows through which she could not see, through which she knew, surely, creatures were moving. Her ears pressed flat against her head and she began to lower herself in a crouch, perpetually slinking back as her gaze flitted around the edges of the glade. Watching, waiting; she was tempted to throw back her head and call a second time, urgently for another to come to save her from this nightmare. Her chin began to rise slightly, and her lips quivered. Somewhere beyond her vision, evil beasts roamed. She could see their eyes gleaming by the moonlight and hear their growls. Or was it just her imagination? Just memories replaying in her head, projected into the darkness like some twisted dream?

Without warning, he emerged from the twilight, as though made of the shadows themselves. It fell around him and he came towards her as a being of the darkness - Inkenoah sucked in a breath and tucked her chin again, taking a few rigid steps back. Was this the monster that had been chasing her? But he spoke. His words lit up the quiet atmosphere. Her eyes struggled to make details; they had fought to reach him, even, but once he broke the silence she flickered her gaze up to his face and watched. Each crease and subtle change in the landscaping of his expression, the reflection of moonlight in his eyes, blue as the sea, spoke of life. He was real, and suddenly, he was questioning what she had been running from.

Inkenoah caught herself for a couple seconds. Still some part of her accused him of running with the nightmarish hounds of her imagination, but she knew he existed, she could smell him and see him and hear him, all before her, and if she scooted in close enough, she could touch him. His breaths fell like liquid into the cold winter air, then to mist. And she wanted to crawl towards him and revel in his presence, but fear kept her rooted and she again averted her eyes. "I-I'm so sorry." She mumbled, dropping her gaze to her paws. "I thought. I thought I was being chased." In the recesses of her mind, in true honesty, Inkenoah knew that it was no more than figments of her memories. She had run from nothing to get here, yet the terror remained.

She hesitated again, trying desperately to come up with an answer. Something that was adequate; none of this bumbling and begging. Inkenoah furrowed her brow. She shook; her skin trembled, but she tried not to let it phase her. "Please don't hurt me. I didn't mean any harm. I was just - just running, I'm afraid, I've been alone for- for I don't know how long." If honesty never did anything for anybody, then all sincerity be damned. She had already gotten herself into a hole by running like a scaredy-cat into this territory, she supposed digging herself a little deeper would would either win his favor or have her killed. Swallowing, she tried to summon the courage to look at him, but found herself staring meekly at his paws. For as much as she hated the darkness, she was prepared to run again, should he decide that he would rather not have Inkenoah on his front lawn.

She thought she was being chased? Akhlut brows rose as he considered the girl's words and demeanor. She was frightened enough, certainly, that he didn't need to intimidate her further; he maintained a stiff carriage but a merely serious expression, not a menacing one. The few hairs along his back that stood on end did so not because he wished to aggress the girl but because he didn't know what manner of beast might be in hot pursuit.

"I don't make a habit of harming women seeking aid in the middle of the night, " Akhlut reassured her, his outward surliness belied by the gentleness in his voice. There were all manner of evils in the world that might prey on a female travelling alone, and while he had been raised by two fiery and independent mothers he still felt protective of and was perhaps more lenient on what some would call the fairer sex. "We all have our baggage. As long as yours isn't going to create havok or harm for our pack, you might find shelter here on the Ridge, if that is what you seek. "

A part of Akhlut wanted to sweep her immediately into the pack, regardless of the consequences, for they needed members to pad their border patrols and stock their caches and raise theirs next generation. Yet he had to be careful that doing so would not undo all the hard work they'd done to make Horizon Ridge a haven and a home.

Inkenoah could not control the degree to which she shook, although she pleaded inwardly with herself to stop. The way her skin crawled and her legs trembled, she could only imagine how helpless and pathetic she would appear. And she knew all too well the consequences of a demeanor that didn't look promising. But, perhaps, her father had been a crueler man than most. She had never suffered the wrath of his judgment, but she'd witnessed others who had, the consequences of failing to meet his expectations - how would he act, if he saw her now? The thought only filled her with shame, and she tried to strengthen herself, to turn her legs to rigid stone, but whatever rationality her mind attempted escaped that of her nerves.

His voice came with the sweet promise of assurance, beckoning her gaze again. She moved the warm gold of her eyes, looking only sickly pale yellow in the moonlight, up to his face. Only what he spoke held consolation - she could find no comfort in his appearance, only in his presence alone. And she did feel some sense of relief, if only to fret that he was going to make a fool of her. Darker creatures had spat more tender promises than he. She pressed flat the ears on her head and remained at her distance, indecisively letting her gaze wander from him, back down to her paws, and then to the edges of the glade again. But did she really want to subject herself to the darkness again? To submerge herself into the unknown, when this man before her spoke of safety?

It was enough to drive her forward a couple steps, inching towards him as her belly lingered just inches from the earth. For the moment, she chose the risk of death over the darkness. She could never be free of this terror unless she took a chance, and, she supposed she would be lying if she said her heart hadn't jumped at his offer of sanctuary. It was what she wanted all along. The place she was searching for, safe, hospitality... other bodies. It was not home, no, she lost home - but it could be something like it. "I bring nothing. I am alone," She hushed, fixing her gaze on her paws. A promise of her own - but even that Inkenoah was unsure of. Still she teetered between believing the monsters that chased her, or knowing they were but mere ghosts. "I-If you will have me. My name is Inkenoah Hoheliel." The phoenix mustered, letting herself draw forth another step. Already she could begin to feel the warmth his body radiating, or was she just imagining it? Desperately reaching out for some form of companionship? She huffed, holding her breath. "My eyes are keen and my legs can run fast, far. What ever you wish of me to do, I can, in exchange for... for letting me stay." As soon as she finished, she pursed her lips to a taut line, feeling it necessary to redeem herself despite the offer he already presented.

She put herself out on the line. And should he make a fool of her by leading her to her demise, so be it - Inkenoah only hoped that it would not be his intention or his will. The golden girl, finally, flicked her gaze back up to reach his face, to interpret the shifting of his expressions as she waited on his response.

Inkenoah introduced herself with a mouthful of syllables, and though he tried he knew he would not keep her surname for long in his memory. Between the Nereides and Kesuk lines there were names both Greek and Inuit and from other tongues besides, but most were simple enough to pronounce and carried over from one generation to the next to honor the dead. Still, Inkenoah was a pretty name, and Akhlut smiled at the golden female, hoping to encourage her to lighten up. Submission was one thing, cowering fearfully another, and she was erring on the side of the latter.

"Inkenoah, I swear that no one of this pack will harm you while you are under my protection. Outside of these borders, I cannot vouch for the behavior of other packs or vagabonds, but if you are in trouble, howl and if any of the Ridge hear you, they will come. " Akhlut had been about to mention the alliance with Blacktail Deer Plateau, but something made him hesitate; he had heard little from those quarters lately and knew not how Hawkeye's pack faired.

"Come, let's find a stream and perhaps I know where a rabbit is buried. You are no longer Inkenoah of nowhere in particular. Now you are Inkenoah, Kappa of Horizon Ridge, and for tonight you may be the guardian companion of Akhlut, its Alpha. I'll do a quick patrol of the southern borders before we sleep for the night. " Though couched like a demand, the suggestion was only that, intended to familiarize her with the borders and give her time to relax around him and feel secure within their claimed lands. If she preferred to eat, drink, and fall into a deep sleep somewhere in the territory' midsection, then that was just fine as well. Regardless, Akhlut was pleased at the new addition.

SCREAMS AKHLUT IS VERY CUTE

~~~~~~~

Did he speak the truth? Were his words truly in earnest when he made a promise for her safety? She feared it may be premature to make claims such as his - she had never met any wolves of this Ridge before he, would they even hold her in the same regard as a packmate? She was still but a stranger... To this male, even. But she had to believe him. If anything would lift her spirits, it was this promise, and if anything would boost her confidence it was this. Inkenoah summoned her courage to keep her gaze on him, to nod as he gave her his word and spoke of the protection this pack could offer. She was happy for it, and to show, she let her lips dare twitch into a tentative smile.

Then came a command. Something she was no stranger to - she would receive her responsibilities and perform them dutifully, though his was more of graciousness. Kindness. Again she found herself doubting some part of this offer - what seemed to be too good to be true, as if presented from a dream. Only minutes ago had she been running, driven by primal fear, pushed by imaginary and foul images. She feared death itself. But before her now stood a savior, Akhlut, with promise of shelter and food and partnership, did she deserve it? Had she died, and this was her gift, her final destination? No, she was not dead - she was very much alive, but she couldn't help but hold skepticism towards these new circumstances.

Inkenoah sucked in a breath and straightened as much as she could, rolling over the words he had spoken. Food, he introduced himself - the Alpha, and she found sheepishness in the faster pace of her heart. Had she realized his rank prior - maybe she did, but barely considered it - she would have shown... So much more respect. Surely he thought her a fool. She bowed her head, and stared down at her paws.

Only to shoot her gaze back up at him as he went on to speak of the borders and patrolling them. Where were the borders? Were they in the forest, the darkness? Or here in the moonlight? She didn't know. A swell of panic hit her. "I'm scared - scared of the dark." She blurted, wide-eyed as though the admission and caught even her off guard. Inkenoah pressed her lips together again, frowning this time. A couple seconds passed as she wracked her brain to make up for her words. "I'm sorry. I will join you. D-Don't mind me. I'm very hungry. You're very kind." Inkenoah added, her voice picking up its speed. She inched closer to him again, mentally kicking herself - she would accompany him, without a doubt, anything to earn his favor. She would simply have to suffer through the dark, besides, it wouldn't be so bad. She wouldn't be alone.

Akhlut frowned when even his acceptance into the pack did naught to improve the girl's posture from crouching fearfully to at least acting like she belonged there, since she did, now. "We do not bully newcomers or lower-ranked wolves here," he pointed out as he began to lead her away from this spot and further along the border lines that encircled the territory. He paused now and then to lift his leg on a tree or kick leaves out behind him, marking them with his pheromones. "If anyone makes you feel out of place, they can take it up with me. Rank is important, of course, and you should show superiors respect, but mostly it's determined by jostling, sparring, those sorts of thing."

"You should never feel threatened or afraid of injury, or they're crossing the line." He hoped the reassurance would encourage the girl to straighten up a bit and move with more confidence. There were sometimes exceptions to the rules he was laying out for her, such as a partiularly nasty rank challenge back home at Echo Cove where two males had been fighting over rank, a mate, and hurt feelings all in one. It had gotten bloody, and his mothers had been forced to discipline both men. Still, Akhlut wasn't going to trouble the female's mind with those kinds of exceptions; he suspected that being treated decently was a novel enough concept for her.

"So, to the southeast," he jerked his head to the left, the moonlight showing off a sheen in his fur like that of a raven's plumage, "we have a forest and river, then the claimed lands of Blacktail Deer Plateau. They're hard to miss, being a large rock formation and all. Further abroad I hear talk of other packs, but I know none of their names, and our other nearest neighbors, Neverwinter Forest, seem to have fallen very quiet lately. I'm not sure the cause." Akhlut did not yet know that the pack was no more, but soon enough, one of their own bearing the fading scent of the great trees would land upon his doorstep much as Inkenoah had. "Within the pack, we have many good wolves, but one you might wish to seek out is Pied. She's been recuperating from an injury and I'm sure she'd enjoy some company," not to mention, she'd surely be gentle with the newcomer.

"If you are fast," he added, leaping over a fallen log, "perhaps you'd make a fine Outrider. They scout out the lands, take trips to other packs to establish relations, and relay messages both within the pack and between our pack and others." He flashed her an encouraging smile over his shoulder, though he knew that she'd need to gain some public speaking and negotiating ability before the co-rank was really a possibility.

He gave her some reassurance, in that she would recieve no repercussions for being a newcomer to their ranks. That was a plus; Inkenoah would probably die if she had to fight her way into anybody's respect. Respect enough to not be bullied, that is. He moved away, and Inkenoah was surprisingly quick to follow him, preferring the cleave the distance between herself and her new Alpha. The darkness remained close all around them, and though his fur held the depth of the darkness as well, he was not the nightmare she fled from. No, rather the opposite. A dream, a hero, and she would abide by his presence for as long as he allowed. She nodded and listened, stopping next to him as he marked the territory and explained - so in order to gain higher ranking, she would need to prove herself, her worth - as she expected. Well, a high standing in any pack was not particularly her first priority.

He seemed to pay no mind to her admission, too, which relieved her - perhaps she would recieve no judgment from him, but Inkenoah would be cautious to avoid allowing her fears to slip out to anybody else. It was only him she had taken a chance to put her trust in. The phoenix tuned in, following his gestures as he explained the nearby lands. He spoke of another pack, and she stored it away in her mind. It may come in handy later when toeing that fraction of the borders. He made mention of another wolf, Pied. Inkenoah too stored that name away, although was quick to move on to other thoughts.

She watched him closely, and as he cleared the log, Inkenoah instead leaped upon it and dropped back to the earth on the other side, scurrying after Akhlut to keep his company. "That sounds... Good." She answered, eying the shadows of the forest and maintaining a peculiar closeness to the body of her new leader. "Are there other Outriders here?" Inkenoah prodded, turning her gaze to him. It may serve her well to speak with them, if that was the job Akhlut thought best for her. "What other duties do the wolves here have?" She added after a moment of hesitation - already she figured she could learn the ways of the Outrider, but it wouldn't hurt to ask.

This thread is winding down in any case, so I'm going to fade here, as I'm tying up loose ends with Akhlut/leading HR. =)

Akhlut spoke as they trotted along in the dark, every so often throwing back a concerned glance to make sure the girl was keeping up alright. "There aren't yet, but we're growing as a pack. I myself do the work of an Outrider sometimes, working to keep the territory secure and going to seek out other packs and meet their leaders." His voice drifted on into the night, and soon enough they came across a cache with food enough for each of them. Near a small stream, Akhlut settled down for the night, and whether Inkenoah chose to remain close by or to wander in the territory that was her new home, Akhlut did not know; having gauged the female as not a risk to himself or his pack, he fell soon into a deep and peaceful sleep.