Lost Creek Hollow The number of places in paradise is limited.

@Arbiter, maybe?   :)

Having spent the weeks since his arrival at the edges of Lost Creek Hollow territory, Artyom kept mostly to himself as he acclimatised to new pack life. It wasn't that he was actively avoiding any new pack-mates, he simply wished to recharge his depleted energy sources and sleep. He scraped himself a small den in the dirt where he could rest without feeling vulnerable out in the open.

Finally ready to integrate and earn his place, the pale wolf ventured from his burrow to hunt. He pressed on through unfamiliar woodland quietly in search of prey's fresh trail. Sunlight broke through the canopy above, dappling the old deer path before him, but he focused on the sounds all around him: morning birdsong, the distant roar of flowing waters, the rustle of leaves in the Summer breeze.

When at last he successfully felled a lonely fawn, the young wolf sent up a howl to alert nearby comrades to his kill - an invitation to feast alongside him in an effort to forge a bond with the wolves he'd chosen to live alongside.

I do not know why Arbiter is listed as a lone wolf when she shouldn't be... I assume this'll get fixed soon. On mobile for the next few days, so gonna be short!

She had been glad that @Terance had been able to find someone on his journey. It made the trip seem at least a little less useless in her eyes. There was a lot of waiting to see what would become of well... everything, but that was nothing new, honestly.  Wasn't that the story of life? 

Anyway,  she was at least the first one to turn up on the scene, having been off on a patrol nearby.  Had to be the new guy. And he seemed to be reasonably lucky in his hunts as well.  A good sign.  After a polite dip of her head, she spoke, Artyom, was it? I see fortune favored your hunt today. She made no move to take the kill or anything, even if by rank she certainly could, and was sort of waiting so she could tell if, how, and when it would be formally offered.

She was an impressive creature, a she-wolf of powerful stature who carried herself in the way only a leader could. An impenetrable figure, Lost Creek Hollow's leading female differed entirely from the slight-frames women of Timiryazevskaya and, quietly, he found her incredibly appealing. He could appreciate that not many men would, for he imagined there weren't many that Arbiter Dokuga could not best.

"It was," he confirmed with a hint of a smile as she spoke of his name, and offered a polite dip of his pale muzzle to accompany his careful step backward. "Пожалуйста," he insisted, eager to present his prize for his new Alphess to do with as she pleased - as a sign of his submission and respect. "It is not much, but it would please me if you would have it."

Either way, it seemed he did the right thing.  These first meetings were always a bit of a game.  Thank you.  She bowed her head, took another step forward and paused.  Though if you wish to enjoy some of your catch, do so. She was the sort who was always keen to take the advantages of her rank, but this was likely some play on her own part to make sure that she kept the new member's favor.  Her trio of pups would quite easily polish off the rest on their own (and then some, probably).  Couldn't let the rest of the pack starve, even if it was a joke.

Regardless of his answer, she continued. Have you settled in well?  I do appreciate the fact that you've joined us.  It hadn't been the best of times of late.  Even if that sentiment was a little odd for her.  But at least strangers didn't come with the baggage that was now firmly attached to Liffey and Rannoch.  A clean break, that was all she wanted.  To turn the page and not have to worry about them lurking around, even if they may have slowly signed the death of the pack as a whole.  It wasn't fair to those who remained.

The Alphess welcomed him to a share, to which Artyom politely declined with a smile. "That is generous," he said, "but I would feel better knowing that it filled your pups' bellies. My gift, to you?" He pricked his golden ears forward, hopeful that his gentle rejection would not offend her. It was never appropriate to feed before a leader in Timiryazevskaya, and he was not quite prepared to break that particular habit.

She went on, asking if he'd settled, which caused his expression to brighten. Artyom nodded in response, though his smile faded as Arbiter went on to include that the Hollow had faced some rough times recently. Terance hadn't gone into detail of the difficulties his pack had faced, though his newest recruit was eager to help rebuild. "Oh?" Artyom blinked up at her, curious to know but not bold enough to ask outright - this way, Arbiter could either choose to share the details or simply breeze past the question.

Okay, it wasn't quite barter but it certainly had a little bit of that whole metaphorically passing something back and forth.  Arbiter had no doubt that at the very least the majority of the fawn was going back with her, but this had been an interesting test of the newest member of the pack.  She was pleased, nodding with a slight wag of her tail, Then it shall be so.  Arbiter definitely allowed for a bit of greed, but if he wished to be selfless, she could work with that as well.

As she explained the following thing, she didn't particularly dampen her distaste of what had happened, Before you arrived, the pair that founded this pack decided to up and leave without warning.  They said they wanted to be near their family, but instead of moving the pack, as would be their right, they took themselves and their children and left us with half the wolves we started with.  Okay, maybe not exactly half, but close enough to half that it wasn't much of a stretch -- especially since others happened to vanish at about the same time.  Related or not, she wasn't sure.  Apparently our loyalty meant nothing to them -- they almost destroyed what used to be their great achievement. They sure as hell didn't seem to give a damn about anyone who didn't share their blood.    Seriously, why found a pack if you're just going to abandon it?  If you weren't going to give them help and a chance to survive, what did that say about how nice and friendly they actually were supposed to be?  Hypocrites -- not wanting to kill to protect, but plenty happy to dispassionately smash what they'd built.  So now we find our own way.

If it wasn't obvious, this grudge against Rannoch and Liffey wasn't going anywhere any time soon -- it went against Arbiter's core beliefs, even if hers didn't always line up with the rest of the world.  You never betrayed the loyal, especially the ones who bowed when they had every right not to. ... Well, unless you wanted to risk your head being removed from your shoulders.  If fate gave them their just desserts and they came crawling back, they would find no pity from her.

She pressed on to explain their recent misfortune in greater detail, openly sharing with him her distaste for the wolves who'd wronged her. Artyom thought solemnly of his own family, recalling the tension and sorrow among them following his own announcement of his intention to disperse. Did they speak ill of him in his absence, considering the high expectations they once had of him? Despite the pain that every day in Timiryazevskaya without Anastasia brought him?

The goodness in him wanted to believe that his new leader's previous friends had good reason to relocate, as he did, but he was reluctant to ruffle her proverbial feathers. The ghost remained quiet, listening and frowning thoughtfully, until she presented him an opportunity to weigh in. "It is unfortunate that they left you behind, as opposed to inviting you along," the blonde wolf decided to say, "we can rebuild though, yes?"

He hoped his inclusion of "we" would solidy that he, at least, had no plans on taking leave.

Yes, on both, she said with a nod.  Moving on to a less aggravating topic quickly would soothe her mood a bit.  It was gonna be interesting seeing just how long the vicious edge was on that grudge, but probably not a good thing for her to dwell on in the long run.  After all, those who remained had something to prove -- that they were better.  Even if this thread takes place after Gannet, Mona, and Ashlar leave, there was the fact that they at least seemed like they were likely to return at some point in the future? She would have preferred they stay but that wasn't a choice now, was it?

I assume it will take some time, but I think that we can make the pack better than it was.  At least she wouldn't have to worry about decisions being made that were counter to the security of the pack.  Arbiter wasn't going to have pity just for pity's sake.  Or in general.  Of course, if your hunts and adventures make you cross paths with other wolves that might be of use, do bring them back.  She said this with more amusement than before.  Like it should go without saying that should be something that should be done in general, but she knew that some packs (including her own) didn't typically go searching for other wolves, but these Wilds were an odd place and they weren't exactly in a place to sit back and just expect fortune to bless them.  Of those here, if hunting is your specialty, it will be a while yet before my children will be able to assist with larger prey, anyway.  Which was kind of an issue.  They only had a handful of adults that were capable, and Arbiter certainly wasn't built to solely survive off of small, very quick things, though she'd try if needed.