Blackfeather Woods Relax take it easy

A word Akela had not been able to do in real life since his return from his finding the missing slightly up north had been relaxing.  He had been literally running around and cutting off on his sleep. It wasn't as much dedication than duty that bound him to check 3 times instead of one, and hunt all he could for the royal couple. Most of what he caught was given to the mother for her pups. He had not seen them yet, nor will he until they were weeks older and would officially be introduced to the pack, but he smelled and heard them every time he got close to that den. He was probably one of the few Burke did not drive away, although he did not stop either to talk to the Alpha much.  He had nothing to say, for the most part and past the  hi how ya doing, he did not want any obnoxious and forced conversation.  His loner side was coming out these days.

However, he decided to take advantage of a more sunny day , to just lay down , stretch his limps aaaand chew tobacco ...again. He just let the taste fill his mouth and relax his muscles when sighing contently.

Early that morning, the man had been awoken from his light slumber. To what he needed to show his gratitude towards for waking him was unknown, and he didn’t bother tracking the source down, either. It was of little importance, anyways. As he’d looked around, he found his son had yet to return to their sleeping quarters, but didn’t think too far into it—or at least he tried not to. He’d encouraged the child to go out and explore, to learn of things that interested him, and he’d done just that. The thoughts of potential danger where there, nagging at his fatherly side to try and get him to seek the boy out, but he ignored it all. The child was fine, he knew that to be certain. No matter how arrogant young Xan was, the ghost believed him to be capable of knowing what battles to fight and which ones to run from. Still, despite his forceful shoves of any intrusive urges, they would continue to pop up and try to catch him off guard. Having felt the need to keep busy in order to quiet his mind, Kove had set off to take care of some things around the pack.
 
Since then, he’d been out and about, doing what he felt needed to be done and keeping himself without a single free moment. From hunting to inspecting a few of the tunnel entrances, and even to looking into the “spirit” situation within the swamps. When things within the territory had been checked out, he’d found himself heading straight towards the borders—which he then went to work patrolling. It all managed to exhaust him just enough to keep the tempting thoughts at bay, and allowed him a moment of silence. It was nice to not having his parental worries hitting him from every direction, as was it to have gotten some things done.
 
Kove was returning from a trek along the northern borders, when his eyes landed on a form positioned off a little ways. Though he did not recognize the male, a quick intake of air revealed he was another member of the woods. It only served as a reminder for how much had changed, and how many new faces he’d yet to become acquainted with. Feeling it to be important to know who he worked and lived alongside, the Inuit did not turn to head off in a different direction. Instead, he set his course straight for the dark figure, chuffing a greeting as he grew closer. “Enjoying the day?” he asked, stopping a short distance away as he did so. He didn’t know what the man was chewing on, nor was he overly interested in finding out. After all, it wasn't his business what the stranger put in his mouth.

Akela turned his head to see who was talking to him, since he did not recognize the voice.  He tilted his head.  "Yeah ...you could say that. " he spoke.  He noticed the paw of the brotherhood on the wolf, must have been Kove, the recent old member coming back home. He had not meet him yet , but guess that was about to change. He spit the tobacco out and licked his lips. He had only had contact with the son, but he wondered if the man who was rising him was the same as the kid or not.

He took another leaf in his mouth.  " You must be the new guy with the pup.  I'm Akela, Beta of the pack. " he introduced himself.

The Inuit was to be granted the pleasantry of a conversation, it would seem, which made him glad. With each unfamiliar member he met, the closer he was to knowing of all who lived within the woods again. Once, a long time ago, he had known. Even if he hadn’t necessarily met everyone firsthand, he could still go through and repeat each of their names as if he’d known them their entire life. Good memory, really, and attentive ears. He watched as the darker man spit something out, and the scent of it making his nose twitch. He did not recognize what it was, and wasn’t too interested in finding out, either. Despite that, a bit of information on whatever the other was chewing was revealed to him as a leaf of some sort was picked up. A plant of unknown origin, but why he was chewing on it, Kove might never know.
 
He gave a nod of his head, confirming his identity. “Kove,” he voiced, uncertain of whether or not his name had been given with the information of his and his son’s presence. “Beta, huh? Congrats.” He was still getting used to how much had changed in his absence. The aging of the princess and princes, the promotions that had been given out, and far more. Many things had been missed by him, and yet he was still set on reclaiming all the information he’d lost in his time away. “Would I be wrong to assume you’ve met my son already?” the ghost questioned, curious of what the boy had been up to. He knew the younger had been busying himself, going out and figuring things out on his own. Even so, he knew the younger could be trouble when he wanted to be—thanks to Kove’s side, most likely—and also knew he had no problem with going out and meeting strangers. Though he had never scented the man on Alexander before, he couldn't go by that alone. There were water sources that could easily wipe the scent away, or it could have been covered by that of another.

Akela chewed contently.  He did not really react to the congratulations. He did not really understand why you congratulated someone on a position as beta after it happened.  He took pride in it, but it was just another job in the pack. However, he did gave an appreciative nod.

When the male brought up his pup, he huffed. "Yeah I have. Fiercy little thing. Arrogant for his age, but I had much less problems with him than others. " he spit the leaf out and licked his lips.  "You are lucky your kid is still alive, he's been getting on Burke's bad side, mouthing back, he killed for less than that. You must be pretty important to this pack that he turns a blind eye and goes crazy for you and the kid"

A slim frown found its way across the Inuit’s lips as the other spoke, though the exact cause for it could not be so easily pinpointed. Perhaps it was the realization of his son’s behavior, or the way the other man had worded it all—maybe it was neither, in truth, but brought on by something totally unrelated. He did not let himself be read, as was often the case nowadays, but did not relieve his features of the faint frown, either. “If Burke had his way, I’m sure the sight alone of my son and I would have led him to act out when we were welcomed home,” he stated, tone dull but serious. It’d been made clear that the tank of a wolf was not content with his presence in the woods, but he didn’t allow for such trivial matters to get to him. Meldresi had welcomed him back, appeared to have forgiven him for his absence, and that was what really counted in his book. He respected Burke as a fellow Brother, had since he’d been brought into the Brotherhood, too, but the priestess would always been the true leader to him. It was not a lack of fondness or trust that drove him to feel that way, but due to how things were when he’d first joined so long ago. His loyalty had been pledged solely to a Queen, not a King.

Kove gave a slow shake of his head, dismissing the thoughts he’d been wrapped up in. “I’m sure Alexander will calm down once he’s settled in better and has gotten to know everyone. The move was a big change for him.” For a wolf who’d been raised surrounded by his blood-family, he could not imagine what it felt like to be separated from the majority of his relations. He had left his birthplace by choice, not because he’d been forced to make a decision. For that, he felt sympathy towards the boy, even if he didn’t often show it. “He’ll calm down, and then hopefully things will go back to how they’d been before I left,” the ghost voiced, a grin flickering across his face before his lips then straightened back out. It was not malicious, or anything negative, but something that lingered on the lighter spectrum of things. Not everything had to be so cold in the shaded forest, after all.