Ravensblood Forest O Brother Where Art Thou?

For her sake, Dagfinn waited a few days before following after his fertile sister, wanting her to have a chance to get through her heat and copulate with her beau before he showed up on her doorstep. He'd been trying not to think about it, but his presence had clearly distressed her. That was an experience that Dagfinn was not looking to repeat.

But enough time had passed. If Lotte was still in heat, she could just stay away from him, but he had business to attend to in Teaghlaigh. Important family business. It was with purpose and authority that Dagfinn approached the borders of his sister's land, and with a summons clear in his voice, despite the politeness of his howl. The call went up and quickly faded, and then, for good measure, the wanderer opened his maw once more and called: "Ar-tur-o!"

For @Arturo, but AW

Hope it’s okay if Olive joins! I’m being incredibly vague about her injuries (from a fight that has yet to conclude), but it’s safe to say that she’s pretty hurt and hobbling around.

 
There was a call at the borders, from a voice unknown to her.  The howl was polite enough to draw the woman from her stony grotto, out from beside the warmth of her husband and fellow convalescent.  Slowly and with a limp she worked her way towards Teaghlaigh’s strongly scented borders. Wounded she was, but still she was able to shuffle about Ravensblood Forest; the sylph was never one to sit still, even when in recovery.  

Olive figured it was not the best idea to be greeting strangers at their borders in such a sorry condition (she was their red herring – wouldn’t a potential enemy see Teaghlaigh as weak if their leadership was both injured and pregnant?) but there was no use belaboring that fact. Sadly, she had been kept from her duties, kept from her family for way longer than had been expected and it was well past time that she started up keeping her and Ceannasach’s deal.

“Hello,” the Red Herring greeted the stranger, limping towards the brute. “You have business with Teaghlaigh?”

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A summons rises upon the border for him, masculine but not a voice that Ceannasach readily recognizes. A slight crease of his brow is given unaware that he is known by name by many these days, with Donnelaith razed to the ground and the radio silence of Blackrock Depths. Still, the gangster alters his course upon the borders making his way towards where the second summon, by name, follows. The melanistic coywolf is weary and cautious as he nears, pace slow and even, the scent beyond Olive’s not familiar. He shrugs through some underbrush, his flank pressing against the rough trunk of a massive sequoia, fiery-red orange gaze taking in the scene. First his attention lands briefly upon Olive taking in her sorry state with a terse set to his lips. He is not the happiest with her nor her ebony mate at the moment but he says nothing: she is doing her job as red herring. The only issue was that this male knew who his name and was probably privy to who he was to Teaghlaigh, regardless Arturo made no moves to discern.

Instead, the gangster’s gaze flickers to the male, assessing him. There is something that strikes Arturo as familiar about him though he knows for certain that they had never met before. There is a resemblance to Lotte in his features and he is confident enough to speak, “You are Dagfinn?” but he does not know for sure. He can only hope that his assumption is an educated one and not the kind that would leave him looking like an ass.

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The first to arrive was a lissome little pearl of a wolf, to whom Dagfinn offered a pompus and elaborate bow. "I do, pieni helmi," he said gravely, flashing his teeth in a charming grin that belied his true nature. But, before he could expand on this, a wolf that could only be Arturo appeared. "Excuse me, tyttö," he said with a wink, turning to the grave coywolf before him. To Arturo, he also bowed, though it was a far more formal motion than the one he had performed for Olive.

"Rakeet, uskonveli," he intoned. "I am Dagfinn Ansbjørn III, son of Aksel." Though the words were formal, they still conveyed a sense of familiarity; as though this was a normal greeting of hey, nice to meet you, instead of the ancient rite he was parading it as. "There are no other Ansbjørn men in these lands, and as Head of the Family, I must invoke my right of Mittapuu​. This test must be performed, lest you risk dishonoring my kaksonen."

This was not necessarily true. Mittapuu was only invoked when a father thought a wolf could not provide for his daughter, and Dagfinn was not really concerned about Lotte needing someone to provide for her. But the dark youth was a trickster at heart, and he could not resist trying to pull one over on the surly-looking mate of his sister. Besides - it would be a good bonding experience! Thus, Dag did not retract his charges, but waited with bright eyes and a wagging tail for Arturo's answer.

She’s in the background, so feel free to skip!

Olive was looking forward to ginning up conversation with such a spritely fellow, but before long Ceannasach was upon them. The stranger’s call had specifically requested Arturo, so Olive quicky realized that she was truly the intruder in this situation. The red herring looked at Arturo [who greeted the man by name], so Olive backpedaled several steps to let them take over the cordialities and conversation. Olive would not leave Ceannasach, but she did attempt to conceal herself amongst the stillness of the background so the two men might have a semblance of sequestration — for it seemed these two had much to talk about.

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Arturo acknowledges his brother-in-law’s bow with a dip of his crown, in acceptance and in greeting. Arturo’s gaze flits to Olive for a moment as she backpedals out of the scene, grateful that she has given them privacy to discuss “family matters”, not knowing that she has not entirely departed and instead remains hidden in the underbrush. His attention does not linger long upon where she has departed, and instead goes back to Dagfinn. He offers Lotte’s twin a small cant of his head, the tongue that he shares with his sister still very much foreign upon Arturo’s ears. Still, he does not tire hearing it even as it flows from this man’s lips. By sacrosanct vows and acts they are brothers already even without the trials that Dagfinn has come to issue him. Arturo likes to believes he is an honorable man, if nothing else, though as it is, Arturo feels miffed for the briefest of moments that Dagfinn would think that he would dishonor Lotte who is the sun that his world revolves around but Arturo does not speak, does not let it show. Dagfinn does not know and he is only trying to do what Arturo does for Chusi: watch out for her. For this, Arturo cannot and does not fault him (and can perhaps understand some of his growing daughter's frustrations with him; not that he'd be inclined to admit it).

“Lotte has never mentioned any trials to me,” Arturo muses thoughtfully, breaking his silence as he is skeptical but not entirely able to refuse. If there is one thing that Arturo Fearghal hates it is the idea that he must prove himself by another man’s conditions. He has no issue setting these conditions for others himself, but he has spent all of his life proving that he is more than a coyote’s bastard and the idea drudges up unwelcome memories that the Fearghal monarch would much rather forget. “What does this right of Mittapuu entail?” Arturo inquires with a quirk of his brow, the smoky timbre of his deep, accented voice low and curious as his tail sways lightly against his hocks.

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Glossing over Lotte's reticence (the explanation is damning, and Dagfinn doesn't have time for that), Dag hurried to answer the coywolf's questions. He was excited to get started, and part of him hoped that Arturo would share this enthusiasm and suggest they hop right to it, even though he had a strong desire to see his sister and hustle her for details on what had happened in his absence. Was she pregnant yet? He hoped so. If she wasn't, he didn't want to waste any of Arturo's time. This could wait until Lotte had a couple buns in the oven.

"We hunt!" he said brightly, bouncing a bit to work some of the excess energy out of his body. "And then I get to paint you with my own blood - to signify your baptism into our family! You can keep your name, of course, and give it to Lotte, but after this, you'll just like any Ansbjorn."

That part about the blood wasn't true at all, of course, but Dagfinn was going to keep up the ruse for as long as he could. As well, he didn't mention that failure to make a proper kill one's Mittapuu would normally result in rejection from the family and probably exile, as he didn't plan on following through with any of that. If Arturo didn't catch anything, Dagfinn would just do it himself. It would mean leaving the Golden Glade behind until Lotte was able to hunt for herself and his nephews again, but that was family what family was for.

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Arturo is apprehensive: not of the hunt, that he can agree to and is not as bad as he might have imagined, but baptizing him in blood is…a strange custom. Arturo is a vain creature in some respects and he does not fancy the idea of being “painted” in blood. “I will join you on the hunt,” Arturo agrees before he offers his brother-in-law a terse look. “We will discuss the …baptism after.” He didn’t like that word: baptism though this is mostly because he perceives it to be a word associated with religious rituals and he does not believe in things that he does not have tangible and physical proof of. He understands well enough that Dagfinn does not mean the word in a religious sense, still, it is hard for Arturo to disassociate it nevertheless. The masked coywolf gestures with his muzzle for Dagfinn to lead the way as he joins his brother-in-law in the no man’s land of free territory outside of Teaghlaigh’s borders. It has been some time since he has stepped outside of them but now that Lotte is on the mend he is not so apprehensive to leave her side. Besides, he does not intend to be gone for too long and in the capable paws of his Queen, their daughter and his red herring he does not worry when he leaves his borders.

“I suppose it might be a good time to announce that Lotte is expecting,” Arturo breaks his silence as he falls into step beside his brother-in-law. Arturo is not sure how Dagfinn will take the news that he will be an uncle but Arturo hopes that he takes it well. The gangster knows that his wife and her twin are close and he does not deign to keep their children from Dagfinn’s life. If the other male wanted to be apart of their lives, that was. Arturo himself has no siblings just as his mother before him did not (Cynbel he didn’t know and couldn’t be bothered to give a rat’s ass about) and he is fumbling in the dark a bit, unsure of what was normal and what was not for the typical uncle and aunt role in children’s lives.

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Dag merely chuckled at Arturo's response, not really caring what the coywolf thought of the last part, since he wasn't really planning on doing it. He dipped his head in what might have been assent, before moving away from the borders, skirting them as leads his new brother toward the narrow ridge he'd seen from the beach before approaching Lotte's woods. "It is customary for the male in question to lead this hunt," he informed his companion, but by the careless tone in which he spoke, it was clear that Dagfinn could not be too bothered by this fact.

Especially not when Arturo shared his own news.

"Todella?" he exclaimed, slipping into his own tongue in his excitment. He'd expected as much, of course, but to hear it confirmed only renewed the dark youth's happiness at this development. "That is wonderful, Arturo! Congratulations." He continued to look starry-eyed as they walked along, and it was clear that Dagfinn did not have his mind on any hunt as he plodded on.

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“Alright,” Arturo murmurs in agreement when Dagfinn let it be known that it was he (Arturo) that was to lead the hunt. Arturo knows that if he is to make their hunt successful that he is going to need to focus upon the task but the truth is that his mind in going in so many different directions and his attention, while give impassively to the actual chore of finding a trail, resides most actively upon his brother-in-law. He does not know Dagfinn and is not sure how the younger male would react as he speaks of the children he is confident that are growing within Lotte’s womb but he is offered respite and relief when Dagfinn congratulates him. For a moment, the gangster’s stoic mask is broken and a smile forms upon his lips. Arturo, despite the potential trouble that Dakarai and Olive’s carelessness might have brought to Teaghlaigh, is happy. He is with Lotte and he is starting a family with Lotte. It was all he wanted: to see Teaghlaigh succeed for generations after him and to raise children and grow old(er) with Lotte.

“Thank you,” Arturo responds with a dip of his crown, before his burning gaze flickers to his nightingale’s twin. “and congratulations to you for becoming an uncle.” This is not Arturo’s first litter and though he feels the same giddy bubble, the same butterflies as he felt the first time he found out he was going to be a father he lacked the nerves that accompanied the first time around; and for that he is grateful. “I hope that you will come to see them when they are born. I suspect Lotte would like that a lot.” Arturo both suggests and offers Dagfinn with a friendly wave of his tail as he pressed on giving pause only to bow his head to drink in the scents of woodland creatures that intermingle to find one that is relatively fresh.

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Even as Arturo agreed to lead the hunt, Dagfinn realized he was not going to get anything done at all. Not with his little nephews on his mind! He hummed under his breath as he tried to picture his kaksonen curled up around a pile of little grey-and-black blobs. Arturo's looks weren't far off from Lotte's own, so he guessed they'd see some very Ansbjorn-looking pups. Some very adorable pups.

Arturo's voice distracted him from such fantasies, soon enough. He laughed when he heard the man's request. "Brother," he said, his voice almost chiding as he bumped his shoulder playfully against the older man's, "we are family, now! You will be seeing a lot of me."

He should probably have asked if Aturo minded him hanging around, but Dagfinn considered it a given. Of course he was welcome. This was where Lotte lived - and she and Dag were part of a packaged deal.

i am so sorry for the wait on this! <3

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Arturo smiles when Dagfinn chides him and calls him brother with a bump of their shoulders. “That is good news.” The smoky timbre of the gangster’s voice is sincere as he speaks the words to his nightingale’s twin. He is glad that Dagfinn intends to be a familiar face for Lotte’s sake and for his children especially because it was made clear to Arturo that Lotte and Dagfinn are close and Arturo would never dream of coming between them. So he welcomes Dagfinn as Family. “You are a very important part of Lotte’s life,” Arturo speaks, letting Dagfinn know that Lotte had already went over all of this with him long before they had made their relationship official. “and I would see that you are an important part of our children’s lives as well.” As to that, Arturo would not take no for an answer — though he suspects that it would not be an issue either way. Dagfinn is not Fearghal but he is Lotte’s twin and therefore he is as good as Fearghal. “I will see that all Teaghlaigh wolves will treat you as Family, brother.” The threat as to what might happen if they did not treat Dagfinn as Family lingered in the words that Arturo was content to leave unsaid; but Arturo did not expect that to be much of an issue either (not unless some unfortunate soul wished to meet with Arturo or perhaps Lotte’s teeth).

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Despite all his boisterous nettling, Arturo seemed to take everything in stride. Dag took a moment to admire his new brother's stalwart nature, finding himself applauding Lotte's choice in a mate. She could've done a lot worse. Of course, she could've picked someone younger and more energetic, but then she'd have two Dagfinns running around, and that probably wouldn't be good for anyone's sanity.

"Forget this hunt," he said at last. "You don't really need to be tested - we haven't done that in generations, anyway."

Turning back toward the forest, Dagfinn bounded away. "Last one to Lotte is a frozen mud fish!"

this seems like a good place to wrap this up, so i'm going to go ahead and conclude this since i know you're looking to drop dagfinn. <3

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Instead of feeling the annoyance he should have felt Arturo simply feels relief that Dagfinn calls off the hunt, stating that they hadn’t stuck to that tradition in generations. Ceannasach rather thinks that his position very well speaks for itself as for his ability to provide for hearth and home. The gangster might not be as young as Lotte but he is experienced and powerful. Not necessarily in physical strength. His jaws will never be as strong as a pure blood wolf’s but Arturo is dangerous in many more ways than his physical prowess. His mind has always been his most dangerous aspect as he navigates and manipulates like a 1920’s mob boss. Perhaps he might even give the devil a run for his money. Arturo is silent as Dagfinn bounds back to Ravensblood in a race to get back to Lotte. Arturo is quick on his feet after his brother-in-law, wanting to be there to see Lotte’s face as she sees Dagfinn.

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