Firefly Glen [PHE] ice bite

@Akavir :O

she had taken a small meal in the foliage-draped settlement which kvarsheim would call its home for now. laughing; speaking with the others.

"who is that?" she asked of herself; eivor excused herself from amid kvarsheim and stepped lightly among groups of wolves standing here and there, laughter and shouting abuzz around them.

"heil og sæl," she said through the din into one dark ear. "i do not think we know one another."

>.> Tags for reference, or as an invitation to kool-aid man your way in this thread too!

They had settled—aching limbs were ignored in favor of mood and joviality—even if brief in his grief. He ensured @Mae was settled, fed and in decent spirits before he would consider making rounds. @Cygnet had disappeared from his sight. He had promised @Sven and Kvarsheim some time—the reality that Gunnar was not among them drawing more intricate thoughts—he had heard of the man’s passing, and had mourned it quietly. But he could not shake what had transpired—even when the previous Gamma in question and his ex-mate were both long gone and eager to rid him of their minds.

Foreign words were whispered close to the curve of his ear—catching him off guard and drawing his muzzle to swing closer to the cheek of the one who spoke—ivory—Kvarsheim.

His pale champagne eyes roved over her—guarded, yet the trace of a smile threatening the edges of his lips. “Beannachdan, bian aingeal,” he offered, amusement lacing his tone. “We do not.”

His gaze asked it all: should we?

Sven followed behind Eivor happily. Slate grey eyes taking in the foliage. But the scent caught him sharply and brought with it a dark day. It was the scent his father had worn the days when he had died. Upon his return. 

So this was one of the swiftcurrent wolves. He had met the larger one once but the man had quickly left after delivering a message.

A bow of his head. Hallo

eivor appreciated the intelligence of a seasoned warrior. at once the blackfurred wolf understood the warmth of her greeting upon his ear. she did not know the words he spoke; she resolved to learn them.

the grey eyes danced. sven came up from their camp, and her eyes diverted to the leader. "hallo. will you introduce me?" she asked of the stranger in his night cloak, teasing out their conversation as her interest grew.

cameo!

Cygnet roved, winding her way through the campsites with a strut, her fierce labradorite eyes missing very little- her nose missed even less. She caught the scent of herbs and medicines, of pelts and furs musky still with oily skin, of dried fish that made her salivate and of preserves that made her nose wrinkle. 

She noted others her own age, and children who were younger. Oddly enough, the other young children were just as ugly to her as Arlette and Arric’s children were. Still, she was not convinced that this was simply how children looked; it was more appealing to believe that the beta pair had conceived and produced extremely ugly babies.

She might have meandered more had she not caught sight of a fair, buff looking woman who spoke to Akavir, her smiling muzzle close to his ear. Cygnet’s hackled lifted, but by the time she rooster-strutted her way back, another young man had intercepted the flirtation. She recognized their scent and her eyes narrowed as she moved brutishly to Akavir’s side.

Mae and Cygnet had left him unsupervised for all of what, ten minutes and he’d already picked up the attention from some chick? This hunt was going to be exhausting at this rate if they had to keep fending off women.

”You,” she brazenly interrupted, jutting her jaw toward Sven. Kristjan-brother. She stated. You and me- spar later.

She nodded. She looked to Akavir and paused, so she could arch one eyebrow, roll her eyes, huff and then walk away.

Kvarsheim—he spared them little thought, most days, not out of bitterness, but simply because the failed alliance had left him feeling bitter regarding the state of his hopes for the valley packs. When the darker youth came forward, initiating a greeting—Akavir’s champagne eyes met silver, and he felt a rueful smile pull at his lips. “You have your father’s eyes,” he offered Sven—and while there was no ill will toward Gunnar, the motives and accusations of the man still stood before them—and he found one ear flicking to the lilting sound of the ivory woman’s voice as she asked an introduction, idly wondering if young Gunnar knew who he was—though his attention soon stolen as Cygnet brusquely swept forward.

His gaze turned wolfish as she set out an invitation to the youthful man—Kristjan-brother?

More so, he remained silent for a moment, stunned. Had Cygnet ever spoken so much in a sentence, prior to this?

Her eyes rolled at him as she huffed away—his gaze landing to Mae, he believed, before diverting back to the wolves who were their neighbors for many years—and yet remained the most unknown to the creek than some others here.

“Akavir—Alpha of Swiftcurrent Creek. You both are?”

Sven blinked surprised as the girl all but told him they were fighting later and he wasn't sure what to do at first. But he gave her a sharp toothed smile and a softly uttered. Bet.

Eivor will you referee when the time comes?

Then he looked to Akavir with a kind smile. Apologies I didn't introduce myself. My name is Sven Lodbruk and this is one of our esteemed pack mates, Eivor. It is a pleasure to meet the fadir of Swift Current Creek.

A small dip of his head and he shifted. Apologies are owed sir on our behalf. My fadir was Gunnar and though he had the best interests of the pack mates at heart. He did not handle it as well as he should have. And we are sorry. He told us before he passed of what transpired. And asked that we apologize on his behalf and on behalf of our pack. So we are sorry. Sir.

a girl arrived, long-legged and still coming into her form, as were the others of her age. the expression on her face was most intriguing: a protective scathe that was territorial in its own right.

a daughter?

eyes were rolled hard, and eivor hid her smile as the youth strode away, but not before judging the man that the warrior knew now to be akavir.

kristjan. sven. gunnar. she waited to see how her young leader would respond to the swiftcurrent man. it seemed there was a history she had not known, and her jarl handled it with aplomb.

eivor approved. "of course i will watch over your spar. call to me when you are ready. i will be close."

how deep now, this glimpse of the lore in kvarsheim which she had not known.

The dark Kvarsheim leader accepted Cygnet’s issued challenge—the newly introduced Eivor was requested as a referee, and Akavir idly wondered what Cygnet would think of this as the girl stormed off.

His eyes followed her—a paw tapping lightly on the ground once, claws extending, wondering if he was going to have to keep a closer watch on their spitfire Gamma.

Sven drew his attention back, though—his expression sombering at the proffered apology—biting his tongue to question why only now they reached out if Gunnar had wished them to do so on his deathbed There was much to be said—but there was also little point.

A few that were affected were gone from them at this point—Eshe, having given him the proverbial finger before she skipped out the door, as had Wren. Trust had been shattered—he did not know it could be rebuilt—not for what his vision had been for the valley, and he gave a wane smile to the youthful man—for maybe Sven's rose-colored glasses remained set firmly on his own snout. “Thank you,” he murmured, muzzle dipping down in a gesture of gratitude.

He could have noted to them that Cygnet—with the flash of her half tail that had been ripped from her in that fight—had been the truest victim in that entire scenario… But it would do no good for anyone, nor did he wish for that to paint her for the rest of her life. For all he knew, she held no memory or knowledge of it.

His gaze slid solidly upon Sven—apparently, the one who had taken up the mantle in place of Gunnar. “For what it’s worth—your father was a man with a good heart. I don’t think anyone doubted that. I am sorry for your loss.”

He gave a soft smile to Eivor gently. And then lifted his head to listen to the leader of Swift Current. Sven was young, but he was also not a fool. He knew this apology maybe a little too late, but they had other things to attend too before this that he felt had taken precedence perhaps he was wrong. 

He watched the girl go. She has a fighter's spirit. My grandfather if what fadir says is true would have called her a shield maiden.

Sven's tail twitched and he tilted and ear. His thoughts racing. I would have come sooner to you with our apology. But for a time our leadership was in the air. There has been much we have had to see through to ensure that we did not disband or lose members. And our rise to leadership was not seen as fortuitous. Even now, but we are trying. But we are young. We have to earn the respect and the trust.

Sven dipped his head with a small sigh. A little lip wobble, his youth showing then. But he nodded. Thank you. That is kind of you to say.

eivor out! <3

the heaviness between swiftcurrent and kvarsheim could be mended, eivor felt.

as akavir gave condolences and sven began to speak of a delayed apology, the kappi dipped her head before anda and alpha.

her tall frame soon wended away among the crowds, headed vaguely toward the sprawl of denser forest which marked the hunting area.

her mind considered much, but eivor did not look back.

The woman who had originally garnered his attention drifted away with a quiet nod given to both men—perhaps feeling the tension of the topic was something she did not wish to witness, or, perhaps she felt Sven would be more comfortable.

His gaze followed her a moment before steadily focusing on the dark youth before him—who shared of Kvarsheim’s recent hardships. The boy was Mae and Cygnet’s age—the idea of either of them leading the Creek was both intriguing and potentially horrifying in one sweeping thought—and yet he also believed firmly that the two would do their best by their pack mates, even if their demeanor and age left them with much to learn.

“It seems you’ve come to the other side of it,” he pointed out, feeling inadequate in manners of offering any type of advice—most days, it felt as if he was trying to stamp out one fire or another himself. “Continuing to provide stability and growth to your pack mates should give you all a solid foundation as you move forward.”

A flick of his ear, his eyes drifting to see if he could find traces of either Cygnet or Mae—both vanished, for now. “Don’t mind Cygnet,” he finally offered, uncertain how the girl would react to being called a maiden of any kind. “She seems eager to prove her strength… She could use a decent sparring partner.”

Sven smiled at Eivor's passing back. She'll be back around. She likes handsome faces and sparring. So trust me Eivor will seek you out again. He chuckled to himself and shook his head. He was not privy to all the adult things. But he knew some things, enough things.

We hope so. We have a new crop of members who are much older than us. Their children are having difficulty adjusting. But we are trying.

Sven looked the way the white wolf had gone and he shrugged a stocky shoulder. She will probably beat me. But i'll do my best. We were not taught many skills and we are learning as we go. And sparring has never been at teh top of the list.

He gave a soft laugh. But all you can do is try, right?

Sven spoke of Eivor—or so it seemed—and Akavir blinked in surprise as the youthful man spoke that she would return, particularly as she enjoyed handsome faces and sparring.

He didn’t quite know what to say to that—nor quite where the thought had come from, and instead chose to dwell upon the topic of Cygnet and her own challenge of the Kvarsheim leader. “Each spar will lend you more experience—better your skill, or at least understanding of it,” he offered the young man, though he did not worry for him.

Quietly then, because he felt he needed to at least offer some insight to the man and let him know he was not singled out: “Cygnet didn’t have the opportunity to play with others her age. Sometimes, I think she feels she needs to prove herself more because of that.”

With that, hew drew back, casting the Kvarsheim youth one more small smile. “I should continue my rounds... Until we see one another again, Sven.”