Whitefish River we just keep swimming, swimming, swimming upstream

For Kavik. It struck me that we could both use this as a trade thread if we combined the yule-hunting and the much-needed conversation, soo herewego.

Oh oh oh also, please excuse the pp/assumption that Kavik would agree to come on a hunt, I just.. wanted to get them more quickly to the action. I'm happy to make edits if need be.

Rue's mind was burdened as the two Plateau leaders traversed their pack's familiar hunting grounds. Their excursion so far had been a quiet one... perhaps @Kavik had his own thoughts to mull over.  They were coming into view of the herd, so Rue figured if she was going to bring up what was on her mind, it was now or never. 

"I have to admit, I didn't just bring you out here to help me cull the lame buck," Rue divulged with a sigh. She could certainly use the help with the buck, and they most definitely didn't want to show up to Yule empty-handed (or empty-pawed?). But Rue had another reason for drawing Kavik away from the territory to where they would not be overheard. 

"I hoped to talk to you about Minori, and her.. request," Rue continued on, in hushed tones. Rue gestured for them to start circling the perimeter of the herd. Her eyes scanned the herd for the lame buck she had spotted earlier, before she had retreated to fetch Kavik. It was Kavik who had the hunter's eye for these things-- he would likely spot their target first.

"I know you'll want to talk it over with Liri--" Rue's speech cut off as her voice broke with emotion. Her expression clouded. Truly, neither of them knew when they would be able to approach Liri for such a talk, if.. if ever again. It was a heart-wrenching situation. Rue swallowed, pushing through the pain. Kavik was Liri's mate, and if he could find the strength to carry on, Rue would too. "..But I  thought I might just.. put my thoughts in the mix, I guess."

Thank the stars for the deer. If Rue hadn't had the hunt to occupy half her mind, she probably wouldn't have even made it this far into this conversation.

Kavik was in dire need of a distraction from life, so when the beta asked him to help her hunt one of their pack's namesakes to bring with them to the yule celebration, he gladly accepted. The pair sat watching the herd in silence for a little bit. He found that he didn't always have much to say these days--mostly because he assumed others didn't really want to hear about what dominated most of his thoughts. He watched the deer sift through the snow in search of food, eyes briefly flicking to Ruenna when she began to speak. Her words caused concern to fill his expression as the alpha wondered what might be troubling her. 

He moved silently next to Ruenna as they began circling the herd, a slight nod of his head stating he was listening as she started speaking about Minori. His gaze was drawn to the lame buck in question as he spotted it on the other side of the herd, it's limp making it stick out like a sore thumb. Ah, her request to be beta? Kavik asked, lifting his head to motion for her to follow.

The mention of Liri gave him pause, but only briefly. Swallowing the lump of despair that always formed at the mention of his sick mate, he started moving again. Yes, he said quietly, keeping his gaze firmly trained on their prey as he tried to remain stoic. I'll have to...speak to her about it. But your opinion is an essential part of the decision. They wouldn't promote anyone to leader unless Ruenna was also on board with their choice. Admittedly, he hadn't thought much about having another beta. He already had so much to deal with, that replacing Grezig just kind of fell to the back-burner indefinitely. He wasn't even sure they needed another beta right now, but he would hear the silver female out--see how she felt on the subject. It was very possible that he was just blinded by grief and stress, and maybe she would be the voice of reason.

It's totally fine! I don't mind at all :)

Rue nodded at Kavik's question, although she suspected it had been rhetorical. There was only one request of Minori's that would require them to leave the territory for discussion. Kavik nodded for her to follow, and Rue did so, noting that the hunter had his gaze trained. It seemed he had spotted their target. 

As they better positioned themselves to run down the buck, Kavik invited her to speak her opinion. Rue took in a long breath. Although they were now speaking of Minori and not Liri, Rue found this topic no less challenging. It did not bring her joy to speak doubts of a packmate, especially not one as loyal and hardworking as Minori. 

"I think that you and I are managing well as a leadership team," Rue began, "But I am not.. not confident in my ability to lead alone, should any events.. um.. compel your absence." Rue was beating around the bush a little bit here, but she figured Kavik would understand more or less what she meant. For one specific example, if anything should happen to Liri, and Kavik should need to take time to himself-- as would likely be necessary and quite understandable-- Rue did not wish for the weight of sole leadership upon her shoulders. 

"This is a dilemma for me, because I also cannot confidently reccommend anyone for the position," Rue admitted, almost feeling dirty for saying it. "..Yet," she ammended, hoping that someone might yet rise to the occasion and change her mind. She certainly meant no disrespect to any of the Plateau wolves.. Many of their packmates were skilled in their trades and dedicated to the pack, but Rue felt that alone was not enough to warrant nomination. Leadership required something extra, and Rue just hadn't seen it consistently in any of their packmates. Yet. Rue inhaled a long breath before continuing. 

"Minori is quite enthusiastic for the job. I.. I think she is devoted to the pack and makes a fine mercenary, but.. I am not impressed with her diplomacy." Or lack thereof. Rue knew that Minori's quite-unnecessary posturing during Takara's recruitment would be fresh on both their minds. There were other examples too, such as her hostility toward Corvus when he returned. "She seems to be.. reactive," Rue pointed out, "And I worry that if we appoint a leader who is so ruled by emotion, we will end up with another.. another Grezig situation." Rue's mouth set firmly. 

"I also worry about her erratic behavior after her head injury..." Rue continued gently. Surely Kavik knew what she was talking about, or he had at least heard the whispers. Minori had been startling easily, calling people by the wrong name, slipping into her native tongue seemingly by accident... She appeared to be much improved now, but Rue worried that the pressures of leadership might trigger a regression.

"And.." Rue added her final worry, "..the way she relates with packmates." Male packmates specifically, but Rue was not bold enough to say so aloud. Rue had only really heard hushed rumors about Minori and Corvus, Minori and Issun... but she had seen for her own eyes Minori overreacting in situations involving both of these men. Of course a leader should be allowed to pursue love, but in Rue's opinion this pursuit should not come at the expense of the pack's greater harmony. This had been Grezig's crucial mistake. 

Rue was proud of herself for speaking her concerns, but pointing out flaws in a loyal packmate was incredibly uncomfortable for her. Her jaw was quivering with the effort of it, and she felt like she was wound up tighter than a caterpillar in its silk caccoon. She needed to run, needed to expel some of this negative energy, and she hoped Kavik might consider felling the buck before pursuing the conversation further.  

He listened patiently while she laid everything out for him. He was glad she felt comfortable enough to tell him these things, especially since Liri wasn't really available for these kinds of discussions. His gaze followed the buck and just as he was about to speak, he saw an opportunity. The creature made a fatal mistake and ventured too far from the safety of the herd. He knew their time to take advantage of this was limited, so he quickly turned to Ruenna. I think this is our chance. I'm going to go at him from this side and push him farther from the herd. If you go around the other way, you should be able to intercept, and then I can jump right in to help. Assuming she had no issues with the plan, the alpha nodded and took off. 

He had the element of surprise on his side and made it pretty close to the herd before they became spooked and started sprinting away. The injured buck began to run in the direction of the herd, but Kavik was in front of the creature just in time, making it whip around and start running towards the area he had instructed the beta to wait. He picked up his pace then, pushing his muscles to carry him at top speed across the snow-covered grasslands. They were nearing where Ruenna should be, and he kept up his pace, waiting for her to jump out and take over.

Rue nodded eagerly at the plan, grateful that their conversation would have a natural intermission. Rue moved in unison with Kavik, reaching the spot to which she had been directed just as the buck changed its course. Despite any differences of opinion held by the Blacktail Deer Plateau wolves, it was undeniable that their hunts were rarely less than perfectly synchronized. 

It was unusual for Rue to play the role of "interceptor," but she stepped up to the challenge gladly. It would be a good channel for this anxious, restless energy. Noting the buck's limp as it barreled toward her, Rue chose to lunge at the shoulder directly above the deer's injury. Her teeth closed around flesh and her weight sank heavily onto the buck's bad leg, causing the lame limb to crumple. Rue and the buck tumbled down to the ground together, collapsing into a pile of flailing paws and hooves.

Moving quickly on inky paws, Kavik watched Ruenna lunge for the shoulder of the buck's injured leg. He came up to the pair just as they fell to the ground, and the alpha jumped into the pile, jaws aiming for the creature's neck so he could end this swiftly and kindly. As he landed on the deer, his teeth found the tender skin over the the major vessel in the buck's neck, and he tore into to the area causing blood to start falling down the deer's neck and pooling on the ground. He held on tight, trying to glance at the silver beta from the corner of his eye to make sure she was okay. He couldn't really tell, though, so he did the next best thing and sank his teeth deeper into the deer's vessel; it had the desired affect, because within minutes, their prey took its last breath and fell limp. 

He released his mouthful and stepped back, panting and searching for Ruenna to make sure she was okay.

Kavik slashed open the buck's throat, so Rue simply held on, hoping to hold the prey steady so the alpha could finish his work. She stepped away as the creature stilled, breathing a bit heavily. 

Her eyes found Kavik's, exchanging the silent reassurance that she was fine. "Nicely done," she commented on both of their performances. If there was one thing that the Blacktail Deer Plateu wolves were good at, it was hunting blacktail deer. 

She allowed silence to stretch out after the comment, prepared to give Kavik as much time as he needed to respond to her previous counsel. There really were no easy decisions here.

Once they had both had some time to settle after their successful hunt, Kavik looked to his beta, ready to offer his input on her current concerns. I have to disagree with you. I think you make a fine leader, and in the event that something happened to me, you are more than capable of handling things; Liri and I would not have offered you the position if we believed differently. He drew his tongue along his lips in an attempt to clean whatever part of his muzzle he could reach as his emerald gaze searched the field around them, making sure no visitors had come to try their luck at stealing the wolves' hard work. 

As for Minori, she is a hardworking, valuable member of the pack, but I agree with your observations; she is far too ruled by her emotions, he answered first, resting his gaze on the silver beta's face again. The mention of Grezig caused a flash of sadness to shoot through the alpha, but he was used to the feeling by now. He had essentially lost his closest friend, and it would take a while to move on from that. But, he had to agree with Ruenna's observation on the matter--she had been too ruled by her emotions and in return, they had lost a leader. He of course did not blame her at all, but going forward, he would be looking for more stoic wolves to help him lead things. If the day comes that she learns to handle herself in a more diplomatic way, then I would gladly welcome her into leadership but until then, I agree that we should look for a better candidate. It tore at his kind nature to speak openly about his reservations regarding Minori, but it was something they needed to discuss. I suppose we'll just have to keep our eyes out for a packmate that stands out, he suggested. That was really all they could do. He hoped their numbers would begin to increase soon and with a new batch of recruits, maybe there would be a loyal wolf with leadership qualities.

Rue's ears flattened when Kavik first voiced his disagreement. Had she read Minori incorrectly? 

...Ah. He disagreed with Rue's assessment of herself, not of Minori. Rue lowered her muzzle humbly at the praise, but surprisingly (most surprisingly to Rue herself, perhaps) a small, almost imperceptible smile tugged at the corner of her expression. Perhaps it was just her reaction to the endorphin rush after a successful hunt, but it felt nice to be supported… to be appreciated.

As for Rue’s evaluation of Minori, Kavik agreed. It was a relief to Rue, to know their views were concurrent. Kavik urged her to keep watch for a packmate who might be suitable, and Rue nodded. ”My eye is on Corvus,” she admitted, and then hurriedly added, “..for leadership.” Thank the stars wolves couldn’t blush. “I’m interested to see how he resettles.” Corvus had only just arrived back to the Plateau after (in Rue’s opinion) a rather mysterious period of absence. More time would tell whether the man truly was committed to the Plateau, and if he should prove such loyalty, Rue would have no problem leading beside the perceptive and sharp-minded Corvus.

With a sigh of finality, Rue switched the subject back to Minori. ”I think she—Minori—ought to be told this decision, and some of the reasoning behind it.” They could just say nothing and simply not promote Minori, and eventually she would come to understand that she had not been selected for the position. But wouldn’t it be more helpful for Minori to know immediately and to know why, so that she knew what to focus her self-improvement efforts upon? It would also go without saying that Kavik needed to be the one to speak to Minori about this, as he was no doubt the most respected leader in her eyes.

His mouth twisted a little in thought as he considered Corvus; he had many leadership qualities. It was not hard for Kavik to picture the mercenary helping him lead the pack; he was a clear headed and strong--both things that made for a good leader. I think Corvus is a good choice, he answered. I'll keep an eye on him too.

Her next suggestion was met with a nod of agreement. I think that would be best. I'll talk to her about it. He would be lying if he said the thought of that conversation didn't make him a little uncomfortable. He'd hate for Minori to think they thought any less of her; she was a founding member and a valuable part of the pack. But being a leader came with difficult tasks sometimes. 

He stood then, shaking out his thick coat. I suppose we should take this back to the plateau, he said. Thanks for helping me take my mind off things. This was a good idea. He grabbed onto the beast's shoulders and readied himself to pull once the beta gave the cue that she was ready.

Kavik agreed with both Ruenna's observations about Corvus and her suggestion that he have a conversation with Minori. The beta let out a long, relieved breath. She was glad to have this conversation behind them, and that she and Kavik seemed to see eye to eye on pack matters. 

Rue smiled as the alpha voiced his gratitude. "Of course. Thank you for lending me your ear." She then bent down to assist Kavik in pulling the deer back to the Plateau. With any luck, they would come across additional packmates on their return journey who could assist them in getting the meat home and safely cached.