Moonspear no scrubs

In hearing of the recent engagement of Rannoch and Loseriffey, Hydra kept away from the both of them so they could enjoy their honeymoon. Instead, Hydra sought the company of either Terance or Dirge and was otherwise perpetually surrounded by family. More often than not, she could be found along the borders patrolling. With her siblings growing interest in exploring the realm outside of Moonspear, Hydra felt they could never be too careful.

Today, she was lucky due to this.

A lanky wolf, lean from the impending winter and its time alone, lurked near their borders. It seemed they desired to join, but with nothing to offer, Hydra commanded that they leave, and when they did not and decided to (attempt to) trespass, it came to blows. She saw red—everything she pent up within her was unleashed on this stranger—and whoever this wolf was knew that if they did not seek to escape now, they would die. Of course, trespassing was a fatal mistake—but there was also the fact that truly, Hydra was out for blood.

This blood did not satisfy her, however.

As the other struggled, they eventually tore from her grip leaving her with a significant patch of their fur. With their tail between their legs they tore away, but Hydra was not very forgiving. She caught up to them quickly—she in full health and angry—and was quick to be rid of them. Their death was swift, and they collapsed beneath her in a limp sack of defeat when it was done. Releasing them, she licked her chops and sniffed at their fur. Though the Beta could not detect hints of Blackfeather upon them, she did not regret her actions. This stranger seemed spiteful, and if they saw Galaxy or Vela out in the wilds she imagined they'd act on said spite. Jarilo could handle himself, but her two imaginative, star-loving sisters? They did not enjoy fighting, and she could not imagine their success. It had been an easy fight for her, but for them? It might have been their first true fight and their last.

Hydra turned on her heels, bleeding some herself from several bites the other landed, moving to return to the border to continue her patrol.

Alya happened upon Hydra near the last few minutes of the loner's life. Seeing that Hydra had the situation well in hand, the darkling simply watched from the borders, not wanting to take her sister's focus from her task.

But, when the wolf was dead, she appeared to the dark beta with a stoney face and unreadable eyes. The tension was just too much for even Alya to be cheerful these days.

"Something's got to give," said Alya, gaze turning beseaching as she and Hydra closed the distance between each other.

Hydra was not shocked at all to see it was Alya who was nearest to her, and the sight of her alone allowed a significant weight to fall from her shoulders. The proud Ostregas both closed the distance between themselves, and Alya's voice had Hydra looking over her sisters shoulder for a moment. Lyra was surely near. 

We have given everything, Hydra's tone was bitter as she tasted the words. He is a weak man. It is no wonder he would wish to end up with a weak woman, these words she wholeheartedly believed. Rannoch was a good man, sure, but had yet to prove himself as truly strong. Perhaps in time, he would. But as it stood? Her gaze falls again to Alya. Like calls to like. Our Lyra is too good for him. Strangely, she imagined that the sweetest of them knew this long before she and Alya did.

Lyra had been largely scarce — both physically and emotionally — since her encounter with Rannoch weeks ago. She still felt drained from the entire ordeal and so had been avoiding the two as much as possible. In fact, she had been avoiding most of the pack bar her sisters. She had neglected her growing siblings, slipped in the ranks, and felt all the more terrible for it. As sunny as the girl could be, when she crashed, she crashed hard.

She still harboured resentment for the cerulean-eyed boy, however, but could not see that she was the one who was at fault here. That her bitterness turned misery was entirely self-inflicted. Hydra's mysterious new friend had managed to pique her curiousity, though, at least just enough to coax some sort of positive emotion from the girl.

She followed her dominant sister's scent until it merged with Alya's, and trailed them both until she came upon the borders. They both stood solemnly, expressions near unreadable to any other wolf. Lyra's ears flew forward in concern as she smelt the blood upon Hydra's fur (though it wasn't unusual for the other girl to be dressed in either her own or someone else's blood). She caught the tail end of her words and felt a burst of love for both of them, yet did not show it. Instead, she silently strode towards the two before delicately sniffing at Hydra's shoulder, licking the wounds there.

Alya gave a little nod and experienced, for the first time, the sensation of divided loyalties. But Rannoch was no more than a tickle at the back of her mind, and thus, the feeling did not last very long.

"We'll get you a hunk," Alya promised as Lyra padded up beside them. "And you're always welcome to Nikai - I know you don't like sharing, but I don't mind."

Alya licked Lyra's cheek and then began fussily grooming the blood off of Hydra. Lately, she'd been feeling these strange protective and nurturing instincts. Hydra and Lyra had learned to deal with it.

It was Lyra's crash that had effected Hydra so. It made her dark, and it made her nigh unapproachable to any who noted her with the exception of her (preferred) family members. As she and Alya spoke, she sensed the nearness of their mourning twin, and one ear pivoted to listen to the sounds surrounding them. Sure enough, Lyra was among them—she truly always was—and Hydra relaxed significantly as her sisters preened her.

Hydra mulled over Alya's words. She knew that soon, the situation with the Blackfeather wolves would be acted upon. And after that, once all was well and Winter passed, Alya would, for a time, be among Nikai as they had spoken of. But their togetherness at present was a comfort, and surely in between then and now things would settle.

But she did not want to speak of boys or war then. They themselves had their own established bond that surpassed everything and anything they endured. What shall we do today? She breathed, licking the blood off of her chops.

The seething darkness emanating from Hydra affected Lyra, too, and caused her to adopt a persona similar to her sisters' own. She glanced in the direction Hydra had come where a blood trail was visible upon the dusting of snow on the ground. Had she been just a little earlier, she could have participated in the fun. She didn't have to wonder who or what had brought on her sibling's wrath; they were close enough to the borders for that to be clear.

Alya spoke and drew Lyra's attention upwards. She looked to her sibling with a soft smile, grateful for their encouragement. Their enabling certainly didn't help her, but the girl was blind to that and so loved her fellow triplets all the same. Still, the thought of sharing anyone with them riled up her possessive streak. She bumped Alya's nose back as thanks as she gave her an affectionate lick, knowing her silence communicated all the other girl needed to know. Nikai was Alya's, and Alya's alone.

Hydra shot them a question, then, and Lyra pulled back with a thoughtful look. She wanted to more thoroughly comb through her sister's fur to make sure none of her wounds were too deep, but on the surface, they looked to be mostly superficial; and she trusted Hydra enough to clean them later so they wouldn't become infected. "Find more trespassers to kill?" she suggested quietly, only half-joking. She turned back to Alya, figuring she would have a far more sensible answer.

Alya grinned, finishing with her grooming of Hydra and turning to Lyra with a bound and a bow. She felt suddenly very light and free - Lyra was smiling again, and they were all alone together.

"Let's wrestle," she suggested, pouncing upon her sister and giving Lyra's ear a rough tug. It had been some time since the sisters had shared this intimacy. Something about the constant threat of the Blackfeathers, their shared low spirits, and the need to better themselves combined. But there was always room for fun between the three sisters, and Alya thought it was about time they indulged themselves.

Hydra grinned at Lyra's words. She was keen to take the other up on that offer, but Alya's suggestion was equally appealing and, watching her set upon Lyra? How could Hydra resist? She rose to all fours before rearing and throwing her forelegs over the back of Alya, seeking now to tug at her ear in turn. Her tail waved as she sought the attention of Alya, knowing that this would best aid Lyra in her efforts to retaliate.

Just like that, the mood flipped. Lyra's head whipped around to face Alya who had suddenly dipped into a play bow. She smirked playfully, but was not ready for the sudden lunge. She shrieked joyfully, a piercing sound that quickly turned into giggles as her ear was assaulted. Her legs buckled underneath her sister's weight, only further compounded as Hydra threw her own paws across Alya's back. The three then collapsed into a mess of black fur and flailing limbs. They spent the rest of the afternoon in a similar state until they exhausted themselves and retired for the night, stopping by Lyra's cache to patch up Hydra's injuries from earlier (as well as some of the ones they gained wrestling each other).