Northstar Vale The Animal I Have Become

Months alone broke down Zephyr until he thought himself bare, broken. He spent so long sating a wanderlust that didn't want to exist, chasing the shadows of dreams he still almost posessed and memorizing land he'd long since mapped. Moments from ending it all, chasing away the wisps of hope, Warbone found him, took him from the literal edge and leading him into the safety of the Vale. 

Then, he'd been stripped again -- his first had demanded this of him, but in the light of a new purpose, it'd been an easy transition to make. Easier than the words themselves, really: each day, Zephyr moved with the pack as one, feral of mind and light of heart. 

Today was one of the rare times he didn't move within the unit, helping them hunt, or just plain keeping close. The strong need to protect was evident in his bones, and though border patrols were basically nonexistent, the ebony Maverick paced the edges of their home. His snowy paws carried him forward in a stalk, apple eyes scanning the vale with a fervor of a wild animal.

Most often, if Saena was not familiarizing herself with the surrounding mountains, she was traveling with the pack. On occasion she dipped away and struck into the taiga, chasing ideals she no longer believed in and dreams she no longer had a grasp on, but these occasions were becoming fewer and fewer. She found solidarity in her partner and in her pack, and the need to be alone with her thoughts waned by the week. So when one wolf, the black one with the white toes, broke away from the group as they tracked an elk, Saena rose her head to watch him for a time, then unabashedly followed.

Her posture never faltered as she tailed Zephyr at a distance: ears erect, eyes up, chin lifted slightly. Her gait was rolling and graceful, but also imperial; she knew her place among her wolves. She acknowledged that Zephyr had a place among them, too, in keeping herself relaxed as she strode after him. A more stiff-legged gait would meet any wolf she was unfamiliar with, until a hierarchy was properly established, but she felt confident that Zephyr and she knew that she was higher and he was lower. He was also a male, and so rank did not concern her so much with him. Keeping rank among the men was Warbone's job. Saena was higher than Zephyr by default, Zephyr being below Warbone and she being a female (and so far, the only female).

Saena uttered a low sound as Zephyr turned to prowl along the edge of the vale, calling attention to herself if only that he might know she was behind him. Of course, he probably already knew. Wolves were incredibly intuitive that way. She picked up her pace, seeking to close the distance that she might know him and his temperament better by engaging him properly.

It wasn't long that he'd split from the pack until he felt the soft footfalls of another. It was a familar feeling now, knowing where the others seemed to be even when he wasn't in view of them. He knew now that it was only one following him: what one he didn't know, but know he did. It didn't stop him from stalking forward, nostrils flaring as he scanned for any passerby -- the different rules here were harder to adapt to than Warbone's command to leave his troubles behind, really. 

When a woman's tones called softly behind him, Zephyr froze in his tracks, body bowing from slinking to submissive beneath the gaze of his First before so mch as moving. Once he felt like he was properly respectful, the ebony brute turned fully to face Saena. He knew damn well right who she was to both the pack and Warbone, remembering well the threat to his life. It was not fear that drove him, however, and not even his respect and promise to Warbone, but his own respect for the russet-marked woman-- Zephyr hadn't been a fully willing follower and subordinate since his yearling days back in Shadowfax. Even with the Seadogs, he'd strove to get to the top, to make at least Beta, to earn his way. When that hadn't worked, he'd set off from a temporary place in Rosings to join Aggie -- she hadn't promised him a place at the top, but he'd been willing to earn it and her in one go. 
But then she'd vanished with Chusi, and any attraction he'd had to the wild woman was null and void. 

Now, though, was different. Maybe it had been the repeated breaking of his very soul, stripped of who he was and all he had so many times over. Abandoned, mistreated, hated -- here, none of that was valid. Here, he was home. He was needed. The pack was better for him here, he liked to think, and though it was a feeling he'd like validated in his vulnerable state, Zephyr didn't ask for such. One day, he would earn praise. Even without the busy buzzing of his once very active mind, the Maverick was not as feral as might've been easiest: some days, he wished that all civilness would leave him, and he could truly be wild and free here in the Vale with his newfound, dare he say it, family?

Bowing his head further in respect to the white woman, Zephyr's apple eyes refused to meet hers -- instead, they politely roamed her frame, silently awaiting a command from the First. 

Sorry his posts are a little all over the place, still trying to settle his emotions and turmoil! Anyone else can still jump in, btw!

Saena accepted Zephyr's show of submission with a quirk of her lips and the final relaxation of her figure. She arranged her ears neatly at the sides of her head, roughly forty degrees slanted upward, if only to maintain authority. She'd never been one to demand absolute submission, and she was one who easily let formalities go when she was given what she wanted the first time. Saena could certainly be one hell of a little bitch about it if the situation called for it, but it didn't. Zephyr was a perfect subordinate, and she sought to be the leader he deserved.

She drew nearer now that she'd let the formality of hierarchy rest, hardly hesitating as she reached out to offer his shoulder a companionable bump, should he allow it. Saena wasn't used to being touchy-feely, but she craved it now that she'd embraced this lifestyle. The contact of her fellow wolves was a great comfort to her, and she hoped it might comfort Zephyr's restless soul as well. She didn't know what made him wander away, nor did she wish to drag up ill feelings or memories by asking specifics. Instead, she aimed to join him, to walk alongside him, shoulder-to-shoulder, as companionable wolves might, while he traced the edge of their truly massive claim. "Zephyr, right?" she asked, searching his downturned face with pale blue eyes.

She didn't verbally instruct him to rise from his posture. She didn't think she needed to. Beyond keeping his line of sight out of hers, something that was simply expected of a subordinate wolf whether or not you were the leader of the pack, Saena needed nothing more from him, and welcomed him with her own stance to stand neutrally and equally once more. "May I join you?"

Zephyr was pleased to see that he'd appeased the First, and though he stayed bent until she drew close, her touch sending shivers down his spine, a smile pulled at the edge of his lips. After so long of being alone, he craved the touch of others just as Saena did, weird as it now seemed. He'd always been an affectionate being, and it was no surprise that he gave a friendly nuzzle to her shoulder. He didn't realize her intent was, in fact, to sooth, but it worked. 

                        "At your service, m'aam." 

The gentleman bent a knee and bowed, smile widening in the slightest, before straightening at her neutral pose. Her offer surprised him, but he nodded nonetheless -- Warbone hadn't lied, Zephyr would never want for company again -- and continued on their path. 

                                                                         "I didn't mean to go far from the pack, I just like to check the boundaries when I can be spared."

She aimed an affectionate nip at Zephyr's shoulder before following along on his set course. Though she was the leading female of the pack, Saena deferred to others when the situation called for it. In this case, Zephyr was the one who had broken away from the pack, and so Zephyr led the way. She fell in alongside him, leaving him space to be a step or two ahead, and therefore, the authority. She swivelled her ears, one back to listen to the trail they left and one sideways to listen to him. When he explained his reason for leaving the pack's side, she shook her head and said with a smile, "you needn't stay with us all the time, Zephyr."

"I like to get away now and again, too," she told him, twisting her head to watch a small bird dart away from their path. "I was a scout once, so traveling does me good. I don't blame you for taking time to yourself." The instinct to guard the borders was just as strong in Saena as it was in most wolves. She'd been raised with the belief that a wolf's territory was its exclusive land, and any wolf not pledged to that leader was unwelcome. Warbone, as well as heeding her instincts, had changed her way of thinking on that, but that didn't make it any easier to abandon the habits she'd built.

"You don't need to worry about the borders," she shared, just in case Zephyr felt he had to. "Passersby don't concern us, and if they stumble across us and don't behave themselves, well... they'll know us by our teeth then. There's not much here for them otherwise." She grinned, showing off her off-white incisors, then said, "but it's a damn hard habit to break, I know. I catch myself patrolling sometimes, even though I don't actually care if someone passes through here, so long as they treat us with the respect we deserve."

Zephyr's gait was hesitant at first, her deference muddling his brain, but eventually they settled on a shoulder-to-shoulder pace that the brute was happy to steer. He didn't chose to step forward, but as he realized the snowy First was really allowing him this, a little more of the pride he once felt trickled its way into his being; like the streams of water returning to the lake after a thaw, each day in even a fledgling Duskvale brought Zephyr closer to who he once was. Part of that, of course, was his politeness, but Saena kindly shot it down with a breathtaking smile and a shake of her head. "You needn't stay with us all the time, Zephyr."

The rust-marked woman went on, explaining that she used to be a Scout -- this time, her want to soothe was more obvious, and the Maverick's shoulders fell from their tensed position as he finally relaxed in the presance of his first.... This, he could get used to. While Shadowfax hadn't exactly made him into a soldier -- he, himself was more like their General, chosen as he'd been as an alpha -- Twilight had morphed her son into the kind, respectful gentleman his father couldn't be. Saena's gender alone gave her an edge over him instilled by his mother, and he listened to her with cupped ears following her slight movements.  
"I don't blame you for taking time to yourself." Unfortunatley, Zephyr did, for no matter how much Shadowfax had built him, life in the Teekon's had broken his alpha-trained mindset. Leading, perhaps, was no longer his destiny, and as loathe as he was to admit that Shadowfax wouldn't be reborn, living here in the Vale seemed a good prospect. Screwing this up would be, decidedly, his death. Without Duskvale and the pack, Zephyr could be nothing; even his weakest spots had been abandoned on the Ridge where Warbone found him. 

                                            "Duskvale deserves my attention foremost -- I'd hate to be away if you or Warbone needed me." 

Saena went on to explain that borders weren't a big thing around here, and those who dared come close were nothing to worry about unless they deserved the teeth of the pack. There wasn't anything here for them, the First pointed out, and even as his brow raised and his head tipped to think about it, he knew she was right. There were no pups here, no caches, so tresspassing wasn't so much as annoying, perhaps a way to recruit. Even the First, however, found herself patrolling -- that brought a more genuine smile to Zephyrs ebony maw, and he nodded just before his deep voice rumbled between the space between them again. 

                                                                                                           "A good way to keep your mind off things and not waste time away from the unit."

Before they'd taken a few more steps, a wuestion came into his mind: what did the subordinates do when faced with said strangers? Some places, he knew, were loathe to give up even a name without knowing if a wolf was going to pledge or not. 

                                                                                                                                              "Assuming we aren't all together when a stranger is found, how are the subordinates supposed to greet strangers? Are we to keep quiet about our ways?"

For a time Saena was content to listen. She could relate to wanting to be present and available should a need arise, but Saena had never been a very present presence even in the pack she led in the past. The truth was that even if she wanted to always be around, she never seemed able to settle. The call of the horizon was always stronger than the call of duty. In a way, she supposed she'd always heeded the wild's whispered word, letting her paws take her where they would with little heed for those affected by her absences. To this day, she didn't know it was her ceaseless wandering that drove her former mate into the arms of another, and even if she did, she'd have hotly denied it, preferring to hold ranging dear to her heart than any wolf.

But that was something she kept deep inside, where her pack mates need not know about it. Saena was and always had been a bit of a flight risk, and Duskvale would not stand with the knowledge that its first female was not often content to remain at home for long periods of time. Better that they not know, lest they think her irresponsible, whilst she attempted to wrestle that part of herself under control.

The first had no thoughts to share on his statements except quiet nods and mmhms, but his question brought a wry smile to her lips. "We don't need to be secretive," she opined, not knowing whether Warbone felt similarly on the matter or not. She'd never been one for secrecy, and in fact, found it a very off-putting quality of anyone, pack or wolf. Ironic, given her previous private thoughts. "Any wolf can easily smell us out and know our numbers and our compilation," she explained as she picked her way around a fallen log, "so to try to keep any of that under wraps is sort of a futile effort. Better to be frank about it if anyone asks, lest they seek us out themselves anyway. Of course, if they're haughty about asking, or you don't feel respected enough, it's your discretion whether to speak with them or bite them. Never forget that despite our differences from other packs, Duskvale belongs to us, and being disrespected on your own turf is the worst kind of insult."

It was nice to have a companion to talk to, to listen and hopefully understand his worries -- he suddenly felt much more relaxed around someone he knew as an alpha -- and Zephyr hoped he wasn't droning on. In truth, he'd felt little need of words lately, finding it much easier and more effective to show what he meant through body language. His outgoing and friendly demeanor kept his mouth moving though, and since Saena didn't seem to mind, he kept going. She listened, but it was quite obvious she was glad to answer his question: they held no secrets, but feeling disrespected was nothing to be tolerated, and that was something Zephyr could surely agree with. Nodding, he walked in silence for a few paces before delvving deeper into the being that was Saena -- if he was going to be following her rule, he wanted to know a little bit about her -- with full intentions on returning the favor. 

                             "So, Saena -- where were you before Duskvale?"

Across their paths bounded a squirrel. Saena started, momentarily drawn by the inherent desire to chase, but she didn't follow up on it. She let the squirrel go, and turned her attention back on Zephyr. Her eyes traced the line of his jaw and neck, then flicked back to his face. His question was a loaded one, and she needed a moment to think on how best to answer it.

"I was born not far from here, in the mountains," she shared, "but the pack wasn't suited to me, so when I got old enough, I left and created one of my own. I led it ever since, up until a few months ago, when something happened and I forgot everything. When I came back, someone else had taken it over, and my ex-mate had taken my daughters. That's why I'm here. I came north to find them, but they weren't willing to come with me, so I chose to stay close. That's when I met Warbone." There were so many nitty-gritty details left out, but they were all things she'd either forgotten or didn't want any but those most intimately involved with her to know about, so she spared Zephyr the boring parts of it all.

In an effort to show she cared, and also because she was curious, she asked, "what about you?"