Dragoncrest Cliffs Advent of a new era

Black nails dug into the sand as the massive gray male traveled southerly towards the packlands of the Drageda. Evening was stealing upon him, the sun turning the sand a deep gold and even adding some color to his monochromatic pelt. Thuringwethil...rather, Heda or Commander, he supposed he should now call her, had told him he was allowed in the forest surrounding the cliffs, but not any deeper into the pack's land.

Corranochender understood this. He was yet a stranger and to allow him into the innermost reaches of the pack could result in tragedy were he a duplicitous, ill-meaning wolf. After spending a bit more time on the beach ensuing their parting, Cor decided it was time to aqauint himself with his new home and it's borders. The forest loomed before him and he put on a burst of speed into an all out run. Due to his size and muscle mass, Corranochender wasn't the swiftest wolf around, but he could keep up a decent clip.

Finally the sand gave way to grass and the grass gave way to the forest line, full of shrubs and ferns. The gray juggernaught slowed himself once within the forest, head thrown back in awe as he gazed at the largest, tallest trees he had ever seen. Again he felt dwarfed, much the same as he felt upon first seeing the ocean. This land was so different from where he grew up and even more different from where he had established his own pack.

Feeling his neck begin to stiffen in the unnatural position, Corranochender righted it, amber eyes searching the forest in front of him. It was quite beautiful, he could definately get used to living here. He continued walking deeper into the giant redwood forest, stepping over the invisible scent-line that marked a border for the pack. Cor added his own scent to the marker, for he was part of the pack now. A cool evening breeze filtered through the thick forest to twine it's fingers in his pelt. Cor was home.

Now that both mothers had given birth Tirgatao, more than ever, wanted to do her part and then some for Drageda. So after taking some time to observe the twin dens from a respectful distance, the Shouna set off towards the north to inspect the borders and reaffirm her mark upon them. As far as they knew, no other packs resided this far north; the nearest was, of course, the Nereides, but the sea witches mostly kept to themselves as per the agreement of their truce. Thankfully, no issues had sprang up since, and Tirgatao was hopeful that the tenuous peace would settle into an amiable friendship.

As she moved beneath the towering sentinels, Tirgatao's attention was suddenly drawn to movement between the trunks of the great trees. She inhaled to stop her breath and ducked into a nearby heather. Her sternum hit the ground and she crawled forward to peek beneath the verdant spring growth at the figure who moved into the territory and added his own mark to the borders. Tirgatao bared her teeth in silence as his offending musk hit her nostrils and rose, shoving harshly through the brush, and revealing herself to the larger, older, male.  

The smaller advisor was unafraid. Her usually warm brown eyes reflected none of her usual benevolence, and her tail flagged high over her rump dominantly, demanding his submission. "Who the hell are you?" she growled.

What little evening sunlight filtered through the trees caused the bark of the monumental red giants to look like they were wreathed in flames. It was beautiful and quite enchanting. Shortly after Corranochender crossed the scent marked border, he scented another in the near area and sure enough a rustling of ferns and other plants heralded their approach.

Amber eyes beheld the petite, fair pelted female as she burst through the undergrowth. She was a sight to see with her tail like a banner in the air and a growl rising from her chest.

Corranochender, wanting to make a good impression on his packmates, did what he wasn't used to doing, what was almost against his nature. He tucked his tail between his legs, up under his belly and he lowered his head. This was about all the submission the big gray male could do. He honestly didn't think he had it in him to lower himself to the ground or roll over, exposing his his soft belly flesh.

"Greetings! I am Corranochender of Drageda. I met with Thur-Heda, only a few hours ago upon the beach. She graciously has accepted me into the pack." Cor spoke lightly, genially.

A tolerable amount of submission was offered to placate her concerns, and she moved closer to get a better look at him. He was far, far larger than she was—standing at least a foot taller at the shoulder, and nearly as long in length. If she was any other wolf, she might have been intimidated by his impressive stature. But Tirgatao was no ordinary beast. With the pride of her clansmen forebears flowing through her veins, she'd learned to stand tall against even the fiercest adversary.

Thankfully for them both, he seemed smart enough not to challenge her demands. Her earthy gaze raked over his prostrated form, and she sniffed at the scent clinging to his fur; it was the same familiar make of Heda's own. Tirgatao retreated a step and relieved him of his posturing by lowering her tail and flicking her ears back to rest casually against her ruff. 

She popped a single brow, arching it high, and smiled. "Corranochender is quite a mouthful though, to be fair, Heda's given name is no less a puzzle for the tongue." The advisor remarked with an amiable tilt of her head. "Sorry for the greeting, but one can't be too careful. I'm Tirgatao the resident advisor, or Shouna."

Sorry for the slow reply. I've been really sick. x.x I'm alive now!

The capacious male relaxed as she stepped back and out of her dominant posturing. His fluffy gray tail untucked from his belly to hang relaxed against his hocks and his ears popped forward in interest to the female in front of him. He quite admired her. She was unflinching when she approached him to protect the border-and he so much larger and massy than she.

Corranochender chuckled as she mentioned the mouthful that was his name. He would never live it down. What had his parents been thinking? Granted, he was a large pup. Maybe they thought the bigger the name, the stronger the pup? He nodded, a grin upon his maw as she mentioned Heda's name as well. Hers was indeed a tongue twister as well and she large and powerful too.

"Tirgatao, it's a pleasure to meet you. No apologies needed, of course!" He paused and his tongue lolled out of his mouth in a grin. "You almost had me fleeing for my life though. A fierce figure do you cut!" He hoped it wasn't too early to joke with the Shouna. "Oh and you can call me Cor for short, if you'd like."

My, he was a friendly fellow for being so intimidating, Tirgatao mused, smiling as a joke fell from his glib tongue. Though she could stand fast with the best of them, she was not predisposed to ferocity in either frame nor form. Cor, on the other hand, seemed as if he could transform in the blink of an eye from a friendly chap to a veritable barbarian. His size being the operative point of which the idea pivoted around. "Cor, then." She confirmed with a nod.

Her gaze wandered towards the inner territory, then back to him. "Since our leaders are busy with their coming litters, I was patrolling the borders in their stead. You're welcome to join me if you like, or continue with your exploration. Your choice." She remarked with a sidelong glance to the large gray male, and a friendly wave of her tail.

Corranochender was glad that the petite pale female wasn't offended by his jesting. He had a generally upbeat, humorous personality and he liked to make others smile and laugh. That isn't to say that he couldn't or didn't know how to be serious, he was when the occasion warrented it.

He wagged his fluffy gray plume in response to her invitation to patrol the borders with her. "I would enjoy assisting you with safeguarding the border." He felt like that was his calling anyway. He believed he'd best be able to serve the pack by being a guardian, a protector and possibly even a mentor for the young some day.

Tirgatao smiled and began to walk in the appropriate direction, knowing Cor would soon follow. When he did, she spoke up again, "I'm sure you just got asked a thousand questions, but tell me about yourself." Though it was a command, it was issued in the same friendly, albeit serene, tone that Tirgatao often employed with those she knew little about. She trusted Heda with ascertaining if an outsider was worthy or not, but it was normally left to the pack to decide wether or not their personality merited the honor of being counted as one of their own. 

Seeing as she was their advisor, with her eyes set on greater things, she felt it was her duty to get to know him—take him under her wing, for a time.