Stone Circle got off on the wrong foot

@Steady : happening after Grayday & Akuti get back from their...escapades.

She was bummed.

It wasn't that Akuti had been excited about jumping into a new relationship with someone who was more or less a stranger, nor was it that she had been looking forward to watching children who were about the same size as her every single day. It was the fact that she'd had hope. Akuti had invested time into Grayday, only for him to tell her that it was all a waste.

She plodded through her corner of the territory, sticking her nose in flowerbeds to see just how well they were coming along. Occasionally, she would take a moment to just study one of the tiny buds before moving on to the next, repeating the process. This was where she'd spent most of her time since joining Easthollow, and there was no sign of her leaving anytime soon.

While Steady had thought about the small female often, he had yet to check up on her since their first meeting. He was waiting for the day that her scent no longer greeted him around the territory, as he fully believed she would leave to go back to her pups. If she didn't, then what kind of mother did that make her? She left her offspring with a pack even she didn't want to stay in. How was it good enough for them, but not for her? There was simply not a redeeming quality about the whole situation in Steady's eyes.

And then there was the fact that he had smelled her scent mingled with Grayday's. He liked that even less. His brother had already been abandoned by one flighty female. He didn't need to have that happen again. Maybe Steady was reading more into than what was really going on, but he was highly protective over his Beta and he didn't want the pair to get close and have Akuti leave.

He had been following her scent for a short while, deciding today to see what she was up to. He finally saw her in the distance, sniffing flowers as she went slowly along. It wasn't hard for him to catch up to her, since she didn't seem to have a destination in mind. He didn't chuff in greeting, as he might have normally, instead opting for a more formal hello. Akuti, he said. Well, formal, and incredibly short. His tail hung over his back, but it was still instead of waving. While nothing about him screamed aggressive, it didn't scream friendly, either.

Akuti was a bit startled by the large male's approach, though she soon regained herself. She was often startled due to her tiny size, so this was nothing particularly shocking in her eyes. G'morning Steady. How are you? she asked, her tone professional as she could see from his stance that this wasn't going to be a happy-go-lucky sort of event. As she awaited his response, she turned back to her flowers and began sniffing at the roots for any quick signs of disease. This place is gonna be beautiful in a few months time. You must love living here, huh? I never imagined something like this when I first made it into the area, but I'm glad I've found it. Akuti smiled warmly as she went about her routine of preening and pulling.

Her greeting was formal, but not unfriendly. I'm well, he replied, watching as she went back to sniffing the flowers. What was so interesting about them? Sure, he liked them, but it wasn't often he would stop for so long and smell them. But, then again, he hadn't been here in spring yet to see the full beauty of it. 

We moved here last fall, so I'm not sure how it looks when in full bloom, he admitted. They had gotten a taste of what it would be like, but it was all too quickly gone with the coming of winter. He had to admit to himself, though, that he did enjoy what little time they had gotten of the foliage. How are you liking it here? he asked, wondering where her head, and her loyalties were. He would, for some time yet, still question whether or not she would go back to her pups. He had been burned recently by Chaska and his betrayal, and the freshness of it made him more aware that it would happen again. Maybe he was being unreasonably doubtful to Akuti, but right now, he just couldn't help it.