Bramblepoint Choke the chicken

He didn't intend to leave the den for long, much less the territory, but when Peregrine's hunt led him afield, he had no choice but to follow his prey. The black wolf managed to fell the wild pig beneath the trees of Bramblepoint. He fed there, the March sunshine dappling his back through the bare treetops. He tried to eat hastily so that he could take the remains back to Fox.

But he wolfed it down a bit too quickly. When a splintered bone lodged sharply in his gullet, Peregrine's neck stretched and stiffened into a column as he began to choke, loudly and violently.

he had intended to travel to moonspear, to check upon wildfire and see if raven had joined her there. he did not fault the dark redhawk for leaving donnelaith -- she needed to be with family. the initial grief of casmir's abrupt departure had faded, for he had not been surprised. and unlike constantine, for whom the druid pined each day, he felt that the younger of the pair was very much alive, perhaps in the south. casmir would not have gone to the coast, not with all that had gone on.


yet as the familiar spire of the mountain came into view, taltos shied aside and loped along his chosen path, choosing in that moment not to worry himself with the red she-wolf -- surely she fared well.

the springlaced sunbeams fell in bars across his sable fur as he passed 'neath the proud boles of a forest; the tang of blood came to his nostrils, but it was the desperate hacking of a wolf that caught his ear.

and though he dreaded it, taltos drew swiftly forth to see the vision of his former lover, murderer of his niece, abandoner of the plateau. but without thinking did lasher dash forward, eyes widening with horror at the dogs'-head spectre of looming death that threatened peregrine, and he struck at the man's side firmly with a rushed shoulder, hoping to dislodge whatever sought to choke the devil.

This wasn't the first time something had gone down the wrong way (or the wrong pipe entirely), yet try as he might to clear himself of the obstruction, Peregrine simply couldn't budge the stubborn bone. His breathing became ragged and he made some truly disturbing noises as he began to retch in earnest. He could still breathe, though only partially, and the vision in his single sighted eye began to darken around the edges as he struggled to oxygenate.

Something struck him from the side, the unexpected impact knocking him clean off his feet. He went down like a sack of potatoes, the bone finally jarring loose. It came up with a gush of chewed meat and gore and Peregrine immediately righted himself to avoid asphyxiation. He blinked, still gasping, and finally thought to look sideways for the source of the blow.

Recognition nearly made him choke all over again. It had been nearly a year—seven in dog years—since he had last laid eyes on Lasher. By now, all the memories of him, both good and bad, had acquired a motion blur and faded, frayed edges. But Peregrine remembered all too well his hot, seething words screamed at him beside the lake. And for all his hideous death wishes, Lasher had just abruptly saved his life.

Peregrine didn't speak. He couldn't. His throat just rasped and clicked emptily as he continued sucking in deep breaths.

lasher had not forgotten the things that had been said, but he did not think of them now -- his swampwater eyes watched peregrine carefully as the other drew in shaking breaths, restoring the breath that had been lost. masticated flesh had spewed to the ground, along with an offending shard of bone -- the druid sniffed at them, checking to see that it had not lacerated peregrine's throat upon its forced trajectory outward.

the realization of what he had done, and before whom he stood, struck the man -- he straightened, backing away some feet, out of range of the caldera wolf's teeth. yet his gaze remained gentle, trained again upon the face of the man he still loved, if he was being honest within his innermost soul.

"glutton," he murmured, but it was a word tinged not in mockery, but relief.

Nearly the same instant Lasher spoke, Peregrine finally found his voice. "Bet you're regretting that right about now," he drawled sardonically, rising back onto all fours. His eyes both followed Lasher as he moved back a few feet, the swarthy Alpha making no effort to close the gap. He simply gazed at his former flame, jade eyes slightly narrowed. This entire situation was so unprecedented that he was momentarily at a loss for not only words but actions as well.

"What are you doing in my neck of the woods, Lasher?" he eventually commanded, voice quiet.

"i was going to visit wildfire," lasher revealed, equally unsure of what to do in this situation. "but i continued on." he did not yet know if peregrine was aware that the plateau wolves had relocated, and saw no reason to inform the dark wolf of such. lapsing into silence, the druid met the hard emerald gems set in peregrine's face --  he saw strain there, age. perhaps the man carried with him the scent of his new litter, but lasher was disinclined to take the other's scent.

"i do not regret saving you, peregrine," taltos rejoined softly, and the words were true. had peregrine died of his own accord -- or perhaps from the glen-man's curses -- in some far off place, lasher would not have cared. but to see the man die before him! to choke! to watch the breath fade from the panther's eyes and assume no help -- taltos could not have done it, and perhaps this was his weakness.

The black wolf narrowed his eyes, not really sure what to say to that. It didn't exactly jive with his former flame's horrible words of yore. The more he thought about it, the more it actually sort of rankled him a bit. Why hadn't Taltos come to stand over him and watch him die a slow, agonizing death? After all of that?

"Uh, well." He still didn't know what to say and wasn't really inclined to say much at all, considering the tenderness of his throat. "Thanks," he finished lamely, his voice going rather hoarse at the end as he paused almost awkwardly and then moved as if preparing to gather his kill and leave.

SO AWKS

taltos did not wish to stop peregrine, for this was not a time for banter. never could they have that again, and so he stood silently by as the panther turned to his tasks. and yet he wanted to remain in the shadow of the man's presence for a moment longer, though he did not understand why. he should hate peregrine, and it should be reciprocated in the other's hear -- perhaps it was, though lasher felt he would have already been attacked if that was so.

the tension betwixt the pair was tangible, a hot breath of unresolved words and unspoken emotions. and still he was quiet, until he felt he simply must speak. though he had been prideful, spiteful, that the man's daughter had come to donnelaith, taltos straightened and regarded peregrine. "raven ... came to us and remained for some time before she went upon her way." he did not reveal the circumstances of her departure, nor her arrival -- lasher paused then, listening to see if peregrine had anything with which to respond before he left the uncomfortable scene.

momentarily he let the vision of the panther's visage fill his eyes, remembering the last gentle moments they had shared in the twilight of their love for one another.

He gathered the leftover meat in his mouth and straightened, the weight bearing on his neck. He turned to look at Lasher one last time, blinking, and almost set down the bloodied kill when the man mentioned his daughter by name. Raven had gone to live at the plateau? Something about this bothered him deeply. Rather than drop the dead pig, Peregrine's jaw clenched, tightening his hold.

Of course, he wanted to know of his daughter's current whereabouts, yet it seemed she had already moved on (notably, without returning home). Peregrine had no desire to give Lasher the satisfaction of his worries. And with the only clear memory of Taltos remaining to him the exchange of heated words, he had no personal desire to draw out this surprise encounter either.

While grateful for the other man's life-saving interference, he merely nodded his head and walked.

here goes nothing

he said nothing, nor did taltos, who had not expected a rejoinder to his revelation. peregrine hefted his kill and moved away, but lasher was somehow rooted unto the earth, eyes following the panther helplessly as unsurety rooted his tongue to the floor of his mouth and clenched his jaws closed with the force of his own want.

and then

"peregrine," the druid called, limbs moving of his own accord after the swarthy man. "there was an attack upon donnelaith," he blurted. "my daughter -- she would have died had i not killed her assailant. i understand your actions now," he added in a pleading tone. 

forgive me

but peregrine was not a forgiving man.

and so lasher glanced to the earth, shouldered the burden of his own desires, and turned to depart the uncomfortable scene.

:o!

He wasn't so beyond reach that he would walk away when beckoned directly. In fact, the instant Lasher shouted his name, he froze and began to turn, mouth still full of bacon. He quirked a brow at the mention of Donnelaith; who the hell was that? Quickly, the man clarified. It was the name of his daughter, who had been attacked. He had killed the assailant. Bottom line: "I understand your actions now."

By now, Taltos had cast his eyes down to the ground in evident remorse. Peregrine slowly lowered his head to drop the remains upon his broad forepaws, quietly studying Lasher. God, he thought, schooling his face to remain blank, karma really is a bitch, isn't it? He was glad, for Donnelaith's sake, at least, that Lasher had turned out to be the worst kind of hypocrite.

Peregrine sighed. "Like I said," he spoke, "when your child's life is at stake, you do not stop to think about who is trying to kill her. You just do what you have to do." He paused, curious despite himself, brow furrowing as he added, "Was it one of your older children?"

taltos had fully expected peregrine to ignore him and continue on, but instead the dark man paused with a sigh. the cadence of his voice was soft, familiar, and lasher nodded grimly at the reiteration of his earlier words. within his heart, he felt that if casmir or eilidh had been the attacker, he would not have slain them, but such rage had filled him at the sight of the woman thrusting her jaws through the thorns for deirdre's tiny body.

even if he had know the thoughts within the panther's mind, taltos would not have been angered, for it was true! he had cursed peregrine in the name of the glen, but without a clear heart and soul, and it had come back upon him. he had not lost his witch, however, but peregrine had been made bereft of a child.

"no. two daughters were born to me upon the coast this past winter," he murmured gently. "the plateau is no more. we brought ourselves nearer the sea." 

he was relieved, deeply and completely, to speak so openly with peregrine once more.

The news about the relocation caused Peregrine to fall silent for several beats, as he thought back on their (brief) conversation so far. Raven hadn't gone to live at the plateau, then. Something in his chest loosened in mild relief at that. It was strange, knowing the plateau was no longer claimed. Briefly, he mused about going back there for a visit, now that he could, but he pushed that thought to the back of his mind.

"And Donnelaith? She's okay?" He didn't know why he was asking. He didn't care about the affairs of other wolves, least of all Lasher. Except that he did. And somehow conversation with the man came easily, as if he had never hurled curses at Peregrine's back.

"deirdre," lasher murmured softly. "deirdre and emaleth. donnelaith is the name of the pack i lead." perhaps by explaining his disjointed exclamation he could begin to unravel the knots between them, as mad as that would sound to a listening ear had he said it aloud. there were many steps of space between them, enough to speak without calling but it was not an intimate length.

however, it was warranted for their stilted talk. "deirdre is shaken. she ... avoids me. there was much blood." he felt as though he were admitting his failings as a father to peregrine, but somehow this did not chill him. the man had once known each one of his weaknesses -- perhaps that was the reason he spoke as he did. "i am sure in time that she will regain herself." 

a silence passed between them -- he wanted to inquire about peregrine's life at the plateau, if fox had given him children yet again, but knew this would be overstepping the very firm boundaries between the two of them now. and yet perhaps they had softened somewhat. 

he did not know.

Lasher gently corrected Peregrine's erroneous assumptions and the black Alpha said nothing, letting him speak. His daughter was understandably shaken and he nodded as if he understood. He did, all too well. Raven had been frightened of him for a while following Junior's execution. Eventually, she had come around, of course, but Peregrine knew that scenario had played into their more distant relationship, in contrast to the one he shared with her brother and sister. She had been scared by what she'd seen and she had unwittingly reminded him of the very daughter he'd slain. They had never been as close as a result. Perhaps it even had to do with her absence now.

"Raven was scared of me after what happened with Junior," he said only a little haltingly, "and I'd tell she'll get over it in time. She probably will, for the most part." The but... lingered silently and he let Lasher draw his own conclusions from that. Hopefully Deirdre would make a complete recovery, though it was possible she would never forget her father's cruelty, even on her behalf.

"They're Blue Willow's?" he found himself asking next, still inexplicably drawn into the simple back-and-forth. He dearly missed his old friend, even if he could barely remember her face nowadays. He would always recall the healer with utmost fondness, even though there had been times (perhaps even now) that she had hated him too.

he did not know that raven had feared her father -- maybe that was the reason she had hesitated to return home. and despite the vague hope of peregrine's words, taltos heard the unsurety of their undertones. if deirdre never trusted him again, it would wound the druid beyond measure -- he must work now to piece together that which had been broken, but was not sure if such a thing could be done. yet he would do all that he was able; he must, for the sake of both her soul and his own.

"yes," he rejoined. "five, now." five children -- he could scarcely believe it. "my oldest daughter is with us still, but my eldest son went to wander, and my youngest has gone to seek a new life also." perhaps it was the way of boys, though he knew it had not been so for casmir -- the boy had run away in a fit of grief and overwhelming emotion.

"blue willow misses you, peregrine," he murmured. she had been horrified to know of what had happened to junior, but lasher did not believe that she had ever hated her brother. it was not within the healer's heart to loathe a creature she had once loved so very deeply.

"They tend to do that, don't they," Peregrine rejoined, although it wasn't really a question. At length, he elaborated, "Raven's gone and Wildfire's moved, which you already know." He was glad his elder daughter was still close by, even if he hadn't seen her since her departure. He wondered briefly about Lasher's relationship with her but decided not to touch on it at the moment. "My son, Nightjar, remains at the caldera. We just welcomed four more sons," he added with a proud little switch of his tail. He would be lying if he said he didn't feel a little smug, having seven to Lasher's five (a full dozen if you counted the adopted and the dead!).

"I miss her too," he admitted readily, letting his final walls of resistance to this encounter drop away. "How is she? Is Osprey still with you as well?" he found himself questing after news of those he missed and loved, even after all this time.

"congratulations to you both," lasher responded with a wan smile. he felt no sense of competition with peregrine in terms of progeny -- he had already known the panther to be a prolific man, and fox was young enough to provide him many more children through the years they would spend as mates. the caldera thrived, obviously, and while that would have stung taltos some weeks ago, now he accepted it, was relieved by it, even. 

"osprey is with us also. she is well; she is her usual story-telling self, and we all adore her." another curve lit lasher's lips, this one warmer; he glanced into the green eyes for a moment, the same that he saw when he looked upon the greyscale she-wolf. he did not comment upon her mateship to dante, for that was their own personal news, and was not his to give.

He shrugged unconsciously at the congratulatory words, which felt odd even to him. There was no love lost between Fox and Lasher, after all, and despite whatever healing time had evidently done to the wounds between them, Peregrine did not imagine it extended to his wife. There had been no foundation of love or even like there, after all.

"That's good," the swarthy Redhawk replied. It was actually pretty wonderful, hearing that his sister was doing so well. "We just passed a birthday, I think. You can tell her I said 'hello,' if you like. Blue Willow too." Peregrine's tail switched and he had to ask next, "You're on friendly terms with Wildfire?" It didn't bother him—he had never deigned to drag his children into the darker parts of his history—but he was curious.

taltos did not care one whit for fox, but peregrine loved her, and after all, she had carried the children of which the panther spoke so fondly. lasher nodded. "i will tell her." another year, and what a time it had been for everyone. lasher was not sure what to make of it, nor what to say next, but when peregrine spoke again, he gave a nod of his muzzle. "she seems to be intrigued by the family she has among us," he rejoined, knowing that the fiery girl and his silver beta had spoken, and assuming it was upon the subject of familial ties.

a silence came, one that lasher filled with his own inner musings on what to say. "there are pirates upon the coast," he chuckled softly, still surprised by the sheer stereotypical occurrence that there should be corsairs upon a beachfront!

"Ah," he said simply, wondering if Wildfire and Osprey had met and what they thought of one another if they had. He didn't ask, though, partially because Lasher introduced a total non sequitur into the conversation. His eyes narrowed slightly as he thought briefly of Atticus, his brother's tryst with a so-called pirate, and the resulting children who had come looking for him...

"Are they from that place? Uh..." Peregrine searched his memory. He had only met Bones and Kraken a handful of times and, even after a moment, simply couldn't recall the name of their pirate port. "Never mind. What about them?" he asked, once more curious despite himself. There must be some reason Lasher had thought to mention them to Peregrine.

lasher was not sure of this place peregrine referred to, and left off it. "i do not know where they came from. it was from their crew that the pair who attacked us came. their captain denied involvement, and i threw her head upon his beach when i had killed her." it was a dark thing he had done; the memory of her lolling tongue and blank eyes often haunted his dreams, when he was able to sleep.

"i do not know that they will come farther inland, but they may band together and rove from the sea. if they are like the woman who sought deirdre's throat, they are merciless and completely mad." a warning.

He lifted a brow as Lasher described his own merciless violence. It shocked him a little, though Peregrine didn't comment. He shifted slightly as Taltos warned him of these rogues, though nothing about it troubled the Redhawk Alpha. He was practically a pirate himself; all he needed was an eye patch and maybe a peg leg.

"They don't scare me," he said evenly, "and they shouldn't scare you, either." His eye twinkled as, again, he imagined Lasher carrying a decapitated head. "We have shown what happens to those who try to mess with our families," he added, flexing his black toes into the soil. "We may have both relocated and moved on with our lives but we both came from the original plateau pack. We have survived and prevailed where many haven't. That's not going to change now," especially considering their respective virility.

Speaking of which, he glanced down at the cooling pig at his feet and felt a twinge of regret as he said, "I should really get back. Fox and the pups are waiting."

peregrine spoke with a shine to his eyes that had not been there previously -- lasher was emboldened by the other's strong words, and smiled fervently through it, though his gaze found the earth as if to ground himself from time to time. he too moved his paws against the ground, sunwarmed above though cold lingered just below its surface. "this is true." 

he glanced to the pig, nodding. peregrine had always been a man of responsibility. it was a characteristic that lasher had treasured since he had met the sable man. "of course," he murmured, but made no move to pull aside -- not yet. 

"is there a chance that we could speak again, perhaps another time?" the druid asked gently, unable to keep a note of hope from his voice.

His black ears flicked, picking up on that hopeful note in Lasher's familiar, lilting voice. He paused a moment, as if considering, then Peregrine said, "You know me: I don't make much time for outsiders." He let those words dangle between them a moment, then his lips curved into a faint smirk. "But I guess I can make an exception, though only if you promise not to curse me to a lonely death again." He chuckled briefly and darkly.

"When and where?" he asked next, voice curt but not unkind as he scooped the pig's body toward him in preparation to lift it once more and be on his way.