Razorback Ridge Crumbled up and falling down…

For @Chaudry <3. I might make some assumptions about hearing howls of wolves in the Vale, but I can change that if it doesn’t make sense!

The weight around his neck grew heavier with each step he took across the mountains. His silver eyes narrowed in pain as the cold metal bit into the pale flesh of his neck. With a low, irritated growl, he gave himself a rough shake, hoping the chain might shift. But Noctaryn knew it wouldn’t. It hadn’t budged an inch since the day he escaped that wretched place he once called home among the humans.

Now, he stood on a windswept ridge, pausing to rest his aching paws. The jagged terrain had torn them raw, each step sending sharp pangs through muscles already burning with exhaustion. 

Easing his rather large frame down onto his belly, limbs tucking close for warmth, he sighed heavily, listening to the calls of the wolves below. He dared not make a sound, not that he would anyway, for he wasn’t quite in the mood to deal with a pack. But—there was no denying the pull he felt with each twitch of his coal-dusted ears. The urge to lift his nose into the air and join them was strong, just as strong as the day he escaped captivity.

Would there ever come a time where his own howl mingled with others? Did he even have one? He wasn’t sure, so he would keep that want locked away in his heart. Someday, it will come. Right?

Content for now to listen to the songs below, his head dropped to rest on his paws, eyes heavy-lidded as sleep attempted to claim him.

That works fine for me! I hope you enjoy my mean man bahaha

A stranger lays ahead. Chaudry watches with a hard, unexpressive stare as he watches in silence.

With two litters coming in the approaching days and weeks, a stranger so close to the vale gave him reason to be concerned. They were smaller than himself, but still rather large compared to the average wolf. With a single lash of his tail, he made his approach.

Sleeping so close to pack lands is dangerous at this time of year, is it not? Most packs expected their litters around this time after all, not just Montagne de Cigue. Borders were are guarded far more viciously when children were involved; risks could not be taken in that area for those who wished to preserve their bloodline.

I welcome it!

It appears sleep would not claim him as he had hoped.

Though startled by the sudden intrusion, a single eye cracked open at the male’s words, Noctaryn remaining still save for the forced even rise and fall of his chest. Weakness was not welcome in his world, and even less in the presence of an opposing force that was this wolf. 

He pondered the male’s question—rhetorical as it was—for he didn’t quite truly know if it were dangerous or not. Having spent his years chained, alone in the care of humans, he was not privy to the nature of packs, especially around this time of year. 

”I wouldn’t know. Care to enlighten me, then?” His voice, rough with disuse, was deep and permanently raspy due to damage from the noose around his neck. Years of straining against his permanent metallic tether and raging against his captors were enough to alter his voice. 

The ghostly male remained impassive. He was not a threat, not really. Merely a spectator of the Teekons, searching for a place to call home. Though, should this male become his opponent, a danger he himself would become.

He raises an eyebrow at the response. Children come in the spring, wolves start to bite harder. Was this one not a wolf? Surely he should know such a thing if he was. He does not voice his question, rather lowering his head to sniff at the other. Where have you come from, mon ami? He certainly was not from here. Of course Chaudry was not either, so he was not bothered by it.

Naturally he questions what his mother would think of this man. She always had good intuition on other's - it seemed to come to her naturally. His interpretations were often far more base level.

The male’s nearness was unsettling, enough to cause Noc’s haunches to bristle ever so slightly. There was nothing threatening in the man’s tone or body language, but old habits die hard.

“Ah, little ones. I see. I can assure you they are safe from me. I am merely resting here before I continue my aimless wandering.” There was nothing to hide; he had nowhere to truly go. A Spector amongst the living.

Shifting to stand, a heavy sigh broke from his lips as he readied himself to answer the male’s question. “I am not from here, as I am sure you have guessed.” He found no reason to disclose more—the past was the past for a reason. 

The only reminder clinked as he shook himself, his muscles stiff from exertion. The recent travels have been hard on his body.

To wander without purpose was a completely alien concept to Chaudry. He can see the fatigue in the other's movements, and it creates more questions. Why wander? Your paws look sore. His words were blunt, an honest observation. The vale is more welcoming than other packlands. Come rest. The invitation felt natural now - it was the same thing they had offered to many others.

By nature Chaudry was a cautious man, but these days the vale had collected enough members to keep eyes on a stranger. He supposed it was a bit cynical of him to think that way, though. This man did not seem much of a threat; he was not snarling, baring his teeth, or hiding intentions behind honey-coated words. He was the fit of a warrior, someone who while he was weathered from travel now would soon be well-rested and strong. Chaudry assumed as much, at least.

Noctaryn’s ears perked slightly at the invitation, a flicker of surprise crossing his guarded face. The male’s offer was unexpected, and he couldn’t deny the allure of rest and safety, even if temporary. It wasn’t lost on him, either, that he may hear their songs a bit more intimately than on this ridge.

“Your generosity is… appreciated,” he replied cautiously, his voice carrying the weight of his hesitation, his paws shifting to ease the pain. “I have wandered for so long, the concept of a welcoming place is foreign to me.” In truth, any kindness was a foreign concept.

“If your pack is willing to accept a weary traveler, even for a short while, I would be grateful.” His silver eyes met the male’s, a mixture of hope and wariness reflecting in their depths.

His head dipped in a rather belated greeting, chains clinking with the movement. “I am Noctaryn. If I am to be amongst your pack, we must be a little less than strangers at this point, hmm? What do I call you?”

Chaudry. He responds, offering only his name without the company of his title. My pack is called Montagne de Cigue. That of course, felt a bit more necessary. Staring a moment longer he then turned back towards the vale with the expectation that the other would follow.

It is my maman who leads us. I can bring you in as a guest, but should you wish to make your stay permanent you speak to her. He gives his usual brief explanation of their leadership; there is not much to it in his mind. She is good to travellers. Though he was not sure that Noctaryn could get any bonus points for being young - he looked to be about the same age as his mother.

Part of him was a bit wary, but then again this one did not have the same attitude that put Lucifer under the Grande Gurrier's careful eye. Not in the slightest. Chaudry thought him to be far more pleasant so far.

I am good to leave this thread here and move onto another within the Vale! Feel free to start another, if you’d like, or I can, too :)

“Well met, then, Chaudry.”

Noctaryn’s gaze lingered on the other male as he spoke of his mother and pack. Unbidden, his thoughts drifted to his own family—faces blurred by time, voices and scents long faded. The day he was taken had been the last time they were whole. Years had stolen their memories from him, piece by piece.

A pang of guilt gnawed at him. Accepting this offer of shelter among Chaudry’s pack felt almost like betrayal. He should have searched for them after his escape. But tracking was a skill he’d never learned.

So he wandered. Alone. Drifting through unfamiliar lands, far from the reach of humans. For that, at least, he was grateful.

He didn’t want to be alone anymore. However, the idea of assimilating into this pack rattled him; social bonds were not his forte, but not by any fault of his own. It was hard to remember that.

“I shall keep that in mind, thank you. Lead the way, I will follow.” He limped after the male, his steps ginger as his paws throbbed, eyes wincing with each touch.

The promise of rest propelled him, yet the closer they became, the more anxiety built in his chest. His breathing became a little more heavy with the weight of it. Or, maybe it was just the exhaustion catching up to him.

Yes, that was all this was. He was just tired. A heaviness settled deep in his bones, yet he kept pace with the male until they reached their destination. Sleep would claim him then.

Totally up to you! I love Noctaryn already <3

As they walk towards the vale Chaudry's eyes were keen to the limp in the step of the other. It created a pang of sympathy in his chest that usually would have been reserved for his brother's alone. Stopping so Noctaryn could catch up, he briefly placed his tail over the back of the other man before continuing forward. A simple gesture of reassurance. Maybe he really was growing soft.

Releasing a careful, calculated breath he was quick to change his focus to the more important matters ahead of him. Maman would soon be bedridden from her pregnancy, Pala was preparing for labour, and Chesley was still injured. They needed his focus; he could only hope that this man would be able to handle himself.