Moonspear Testing Luck

@Charon perhaps Harley can learn a thing or two from his alpha about fighting?

Most of Harley's days were filled with hunting for Althaia and himself, spending time with his secret mate, and helping her in making her leg stronger. He'd fallen into a sort of routine of late, and he wanted to break it with the strengthening of his own skills. 
So it was early that morning that the hybrid struck out for the higher reaches of Moonspear, pushing his body to take the harder paths. He sought a partner with which he could spar, but in truth he didn't think anybody else would be up so high before even the sun was this far in the sky. 
Things were thriving again, and Harley could tell that the next few weeks would be hard only because they were weak. With foliage almost completely grown maybe not as plush as before the locusts the prey was coming back, and Harley was excited for the coming moons. Much as he would miss this rocky peak, this place he'd come to feel was home, the taking of Althaia even if Charon had led him to the love of his life had been too much for the Quinzel eldest to handle on his soul. He worked hard to heal her, help her, and feed her, and once she thought it was time they would make their leave, likely in the cloak of night. Nobody knew of their plans, nobody except them, and that's how it needed to stay if they were to survive this, get away unhurt if they were lucky. 
Good thing Luck is Harley's mothers last name, right?

Harley was a peculiar kind of wolf, and Charon had seen little of him. He'd offered to heal Filth back up, and it seemed that both she was doing better (despite all of them getting hurt at the ram day) and was spending much time with Harley. Charon wished to spend some more time with his thrall, because he did not want to see her -- nor for herself to see him as such -- as but a slave, but as a part of this pack. He wished that she was a bit easier to find; he had looked on various occasions but it turned hard to find her. His own attention had been divided, too; Ame's heat had taken up much of his attention and time.

It was a surprise to run into Harley so high up on the mountain. Charon himself hadn't fully healed yet from the lightning shock; his head hurt constantly and there was still the scabbed over wound on the right side of his face from the ram's hoof as a painful reminder of the day's failure.

"Harley," Charon greeted after his initial surprise. "How is Althaia? Better, I hope?" Maybe if he could not get an update from herself, Harley knew. He didn't use the name that he had given her; it only mattered that she didn't think herself to be anything but useless, for now. She was still a part of the pack in Charon's eyes, so he treated her as such to everyone else.

Harley had taken more of a hit to his head than anything else from the hunt, and found himself with more headaches than usual. He ignored them completely and went on with life as usual probably not a good plan. He couldn't understand why the pale man looked so surprised to see him there, but dipped his head in respect anyways.
Charon asked of his mate, and the burn in Harley's chest urged to burst free and scream at the alpha, tell him she was his now, and by her own choice. It was hard to keep a neutral position, but the wolfdog did. In his fall colored eyes, Charon was unfair in his treatment of the fae, and assumed he was doing it for the sole purpose of being mean. 
                "She's getting there, yes. But she won't ever be as strong as she was."

Charon nodded at Harley's words, though he found them a little strange. How could he even know how she had ever been at her strongest? She had first come here wounded, after all, so it could only really go uphill. "Will she be able to hunt again soon?" asked Charon as he looked at Harley inquisitively, hoping the answer to be positive. "How did she get out of the ram hunt?" He hoped better than most of them. No one had died, but there had been a couple of wolves who had gotten hurt badly, himself among them. His head still throbbed with pain as a constant reminder of that day.

"And how have you found yourself settling in otherwise?" Charon asked, curious to find out more about Harley because he realised that there was so little he knew about some of his wolves.

Charon flooded the hybrid with questions, but took it all in with his autumn eyes. He let the alpha speak, getting out what he needed to, before even thinking of any answers. In truth, he was thinking about Althaia. True, he'd never seen her at her peak, never saw what she'd really be capable of, but even the woman herself had said it'll never be strong like before. That was what happened when bones broke and muscles are hurt, nothing ever goes back to the way it was before. Dash had scarred her for life, albeit the fact she was alive and starting to gain weight. 
                "She probably could now, but the less she gets time to rebuild strength and the muscle she lost, the less use she'll be. We've just started exersizes, but I think if I could take her down to swim, it would help better."
It was a long shot, one he hadn't planned on even asking for, taking the thrall outside the borders. Harley had assumed it wasn't to be done, and was now hoping Charon wasn't cross with him. 
After a pause, he addressed the next questions. He'd been settled a long while now, and dearly loved the mountain as his home. It was a shame, he knew, that soon the pair would make their leave from Moonspear. 
                              "Truth be told, Charon, I don't know how I got home from the hunt. I remember the lightning, slipping, and that's it. Otherwise, I've been settling well. Maybe a little pent up energy, but I'm sure I can go find a sparing partner somewhere on this mountain."

Charon wrinkled his nose at Harley's answer, since it was hardly an answer to his actual question. "I asked when she'll be able to hunt again. Obviously I meant without fucking her leg up again." The answer told him that Harley didn't know either, which wasn't very hopeful. "It's good that things have started to grow again around here. I wouldn't have liked to see it end that way, if it had been necessary." Charon looked out towards the skies; though his words might seem cold and calculated to some, he saw it as an us-or-them thing. If it'd come down to his pack wolves starving, and he would have decided not to kill Filth for it, he'd be worse off than if he had been able to feed the whole pack by killing her. It was the way of the world, and in a way, she'd chosen for it herself by meandering into claimed pack territory. Charon was afraid that she might run away, but only because he felt she didn't even realise what she had done wrong. She was always submissive and scared when around him -- and that was good -- but the fact he hadn't seen much of her face lately already was a bad sign in Charon's book.

Regardless, the hunt had been a thing for sure. Charon sighed when Harley described the failed hunt and he said, "Yeah, we all got fucked up pretty bad that night. Those Caldera wolves were lucky to get away after fucking over our hunt." If not for the lightning strike Charon would have slaughtered them both, driven by hunger, primal instinct and a taste for revenge. He hummed a 'hmm-mm' at Harley's mention of pent up energy. "Do you intend to stay on the long haul?" he could not help but ask, for times were presently uncertain but they would not always be. Would he look for greener pastures later? Charon couldn't imagine so, but then, he had lost many before so it made him suspicious of most wolves. Only Ame and Flóki had been loyal from the beginning up until now, so far.

Harley grumbled something that was far from words, and an ear flicked back momentarily. He'd given Charon the answer he had, and the alpha had completely ignored his request.
                  "As soon as she gets stronger. Can I take her down to the lake in the next couple days or so?"
He asked directly to the pale man, despite the fact that he was turned away. The hybrid was irritated, yes, but there wasn't much he could do without getting himself into trouble. They weren't ready to leave yet, and he preferred to do it on his own terms. 
Next the alpha talked about the night with the lightning, and how everyone had been hurt. Harley was on the easy end of it all, he knew. But Charon's next question he knew he had to lie about: if he knew they planned on running away together, who knows what he would do. His facial expression dosen't change, and his amber eyes betrayed no emotion. Technically, none of what he said was a lie, but Harley knew damn well right the words were said in a way that was meant to mean that he would, indeed, stay. 
                                    "I don't know why I wouldn't stay, Charon, this is my home and I decided I wanted to die here the day I came."

Charon thought it odd that Harley would ask him about the lake thing again. He didn't have a strong preference about it and though he didn't really want her to stray too far from the pack territories, it wasn't like he could tie her anywhere. It was her word that he could rely on, nothing else; he wasn't sure he could trust her, but hoped that she was an honourable sort. He shrugged and replied half-heartedly, "Yeah, why not -- it's not like I'm relying on anything more than her honour towards the promised she made to keep her tied to the mountain, anyway."

Harley's reply was surprising, and where Harley's face had remained a stoic mask, Charon's showed his surprise. No wolves really stayed long, not bar a handful. Most left. Then again, maybe they had thought once upon a time they'd stay forever, too.

"Not many stay," he admitted. "So I hope you'll be able to make good on these intentions." The Alpha offered a smile, then, happy that he might have another loyal soul on his hands here. He could only hope things would be as Harley intended; though they were no longer too small, they could use a stronger core.

Harley nodded but said no more about his mate, and was rather confused when Charon seemed almost surprised. Had so many abandoned him that there was no trust to a subordinate?
The wolfdogs heart twinged, understanding that he, too, WAS one of those who would leave. The pale alpha gave him a smile despite his troubles, and, though perhaps it was just the loyalty of the German Shephard running in his veins, Harley felt a want to stay here. Perhaps reason could be used? A small, shy smile spreading slow across his face, the milky man couldn't help his tail from wagging slowly across the ground. 
        "Why DID you take her as a thrall, Charon? I don't understand."

There was a moment between them that felt good, a moment in which Charon divulged his fear for others to leave — because others simply did leave, and only a handful of them stayed on the long run — and Harley seemed to react positively. Charon had a good feeling going on, because it felt like Harley was really going to be in it for the long run. He would've been perfectly happy just sitting there in silence — being able to sit in silence together marked the ability to become friends, after all, and this seemed like a perfect moment for such a silence — but it was all tumbled asunder when Harley asked that one question.

Charon didn't think much of it at first, because to him, it was a pretty normal thing. He had heard that vikings did such things and while he was no viking, he had simply looked at his cards and played them right. He could've killed her right away, for she'd earned a swift death at Moonspear's teeth when she trespassed in such dire times. In his own mind, he was her saviour, if nothing more, because if it had been up to his mate she would have died.

"She owes us a debt," he said, his voice business-like as he explained, for to him, it was like that, a debt that needed to be repaid. "She trespassed, and she should have died at our teeth for such an offence, especially during a time of hunger and famine. Our wolves could have died from hunger had she taken any prey that belonged to us. That's why I made her the offer to pledge her life, to repay us in another way than with her life, so that she would be able to live." He looked at Harley, willing him to understand his reasons. "Perhaps one day she'll have done enough to repay us, but not for a long time. For now, it's not a bad life. It's not like we treat her like shit. She's one of the pack, so she's still above any outsider in my books. We take care of each other in this pack." He hadn't meant to talk so much about it, but there it was. Charon was amazed by his own patience but perhaps it was the mixed breed's positive response to his earlier words that had made him want to explain it thoroughly.

The silence was not uncomfortable, and perhaps then he even felt some sort of friendship building, but it was just a question he needed answered. An answer he did get, albeit one that lacked the friendliness of before. He mentioned the female having been killed then, and a shudder ran down his spine. Thank god it hadn't happened that way. He could also see the point he made in that the wolves of Moonspear could've died, but he doubted one measly meal weakened by the famine and feeding everyone would have done much. For the first time, it really did seem like Charon had done her a kindness, despite the name he'd forced on her and the diminishing of her spirit. 
The pale man shot him a look, and he could almost feel the alphas wishes for him to understand. He did, yes, but he couldn't agree with them. It was then Charon seemed to defend himself, and again Harley had to agree: she might've been nervous, skittish in the lands, but he didn't abuse her or anything, and she WAS a part of the pack. After all, he'd let his Gamma nurse her back to health. With a sigh, Harley dipped his head in acceptance. 
                   "I can't say I agree with it, but I have to admit I understand why...."
He still had one question though, even if he'd probably never tell Charon they were mates. He'd already said it was only her honor keeping her here, but did that mean she was allowed to live the way she'd wanted to, just in service of the Moonspear pack? Perhaps there was a chance that they wouldn't have to run, that they could stay here and live life together. 
                              "Does that mean she can't live her own life, though? Have a mate, take trades, go scouting, all that?"

Harley seemed to understand at least on some level, and Charon was glad for it. He was curious as to his motives when Harley asked him if she could never take a mate or have her own life. She could take trades and go scouting, of course — those were parts of her usefulness to the pack — but he wasn't so sure about taking a mate.

After a moment's hesitation, he said, "I don't know. Maybe, in time. She could go scouting and take trades. A mate... Well, I guess she could, so long as nothing came of it. But who'd want to be mates with a thrall anyway, right?" He laughed, unaware he was the only one who would be amused, and added: "Maybe if we'd get a male thrall one day." Little did he know his practises of taking thralls would soon be over, anyway.

Want to finish this soon since it has become a bit outdated over weekend? xD

Charon explained that those things were basically what she had to do, but taking a mate seemed rocky. As long as nothing came from it? Most relationships didn't come with pups unless you were an alpha anyway, right? The pale mans last two comments stung a little, but the milk colored man kept a straight face. 
              "Right."
He didn't say much else, but felt the meeting drawing to a close. Nodding to the alpha, he made his leave with a few sullen words.
                        "I've gotta go help her with her exercises now, so I'll get out of your fur. Thank you for answering my questions."

Charon wasn't sure if Harley's quick departure had anything to do with his words. He did not think too much of it, though, and simply nodded at Harley. "Alright, see you later." He then got into motion himself, deciding to make his way down to the borders for a quick patrol. The journey down was long and trying, but eventually the young Alpha reached the borders and started his patrol.