Firefly Glen the bittersweet between my teeth

Hoping to catch a @Tulip, @Liffey, @Kaori, or @Pyro! Open to Brat-Pack, of course. <3

Still nursing some bruises from his altercation with Rannoch, Rian decided to head out to the nearby stream to soak his weary paws and tend to his aches. The scuffle had ended with no serious injuries, excepting Rian's pride. He'd failed to unseat Rannoch from his position as leader, but a growing part of him was thankful for it. He wasn't ready to lead the group and, in fact, would have chosen to disband them if he had succeeded. But now that he was spending more time among them, the O'Malley boy was beginning to understand. Even Cypress had little complaint, though the elusive raven was still untamed and unpredictable.

Rian reached the shore and slowly waded into the stream. The water barely reached half-way up his limbs but it would work for his purpose. The boy turned to face the bank, and gingerly reclined into the water. He sighed as the biting chill pierced the throbbing ache of his sore and bruised muscles, and slowly worked up the willpower to lie down completely. With his lower half submerged, and his upper supported by the bank, Rian closed his eyes and set his muzzle down on his paws.

Above, the mid-afternoon sun peaked out from behind a threatening raincloud to warm the ground around him. He grunted and rolled half onto his side only to heave a great mighty sigh.

It hadn't slipped Charon's attention that a group of young wolves had settled near his pack — too near. He wasn't sure where they'd come from and he didn't think they were here to stay, at least judging by the lack of borders they had created; thankfully. But it worried him nonetheless and so he went off in search of answers to his many questions. The Glen felt like part of his territory in many ways, and definitely too close for another pack to come to.

When he saw a youth laying down not far off after going into the Glen's territory he approached, tail held high like a banner and composure dominant, maybe even arrogant; he wasn't going to be outwitted by a bunch of children.

Yet there was no aggression in his demeanour, and it was clear that while he was dominant, requesting a form of respect, he was not here to shed blood, or anything more than egos, if it were up to him. "Are you part of the wolves staying here?" he asked, direct and to the point.

The sound of footsteps normally wouldn't cause him any measure of alarm, but he was sure no one from their group followed him. His eyes snapped open and his head whipped around towards the sound, while his nose flared and his lips quivered from a restrained warning growl. A large, pale wolf emerged from the undergrowth and he carried himself with a bearing that bespoke his dominance. Rian felt a flash of fear mixed with wounded pride. He didn't like being caught unawares, nor did he take kindly to the expecations of submission laid out by the older male. 

But, seeing as he was bruised much younger, Rian had little room to argue. He rolled upright and stood as water cascaded down his lower half from the sudden movement. He didn't bother to shake it off, as the other wolf was upon him now and there was no point getting him all wet as well (though a small petulant voice thought it might be a bit funny). His brows rose at the question—were they that obvious? 

He splayed his ears and frowned, "Yes." Something about the other wolf was keenly familiar and if he wasn't so preoccupied with the moment, he might have remembered that both Hydra and Moonspear itself shared the male's scent. "We plan on leaving as soon as everyone is rested." He continued, elaborating on their plan to sate this rogue alpha's curiosity.

There was pleasure in seeing the youth jump up, feeling like he had the upper hand from the start and had taught the youth a valuable lesson in the process. He didn't show it though, keeping a stoic face for the moment. He received what he wanted and so did not press further, but when the youth remarked that they were leaving soon he relaxed visibly. His tail fell to his hocks and he said, "Ah, you're not staying? Good." And with that, a somewhat awkward moment was created — there they stood, the very reason for their fiery conversation bled out, for Charon did not need to demand they move away or find another territory. They weren't even planning on staying. Perhaps, he then realised, he had been a little preemptive with his defensiveness; the Glen had always been special to him and he enjoyed the thought his children could grow up chasing fireflies here, his last as well as his next batch. To notice movement there was always disturbing, and while he wouldn't notice as much with any of the other bordering territories, the Glen felt like his second home.

"You're looking for a feasible territory, then?" he went on to ask, though he had little desire to stay much longer now that everything was figured out.

He could sense the scarred male was expecting Rian to put up much more of a front, but the answers he sought were easily offered. If it was reassurance that their budding pack would not be infringing on his percieved resources that he required, the O'Malley boy was happy to give it to keep his group safe. He flicked one ear back against his neck, and the other followed a second later as they stood in awkward silence. Rian was not in a position to ask any unwarranted questions, and he had no way of knowing what sort of ones could be considered offensive or rude. So he remained quiet. 

"Yes, hopefully away from the other claimed areas. We're not looking to upset the status quo." He replied with an honest, but slightly strained, urgency. He wanted, above all else, to be understood in this—their pack was composed of young individuals, and they didn't stand a good chance against the other established, and older packs of the region. "If you have suggestions, I'd be happy to pass it along to my brothers."

The boy seemed almost nervous that Charon might think poorly of him and was eager to please, which cooled Charon down considerably. He didn't think that this boy or any of his band were much of a threat any longer and so, after a moment of awkward silence, he felt that they could continue conversation in a proper manner while he found out more about this group.

The boy said they were looking to settle elsewhere, and asked for suggestions. "Maybe somewhere closer to the Sunspire mountain range," he suggested, even though he hadn't visited there in a long time and didn't know about the current status of those lands. Then he decided to introduce himself: "I'm Charon Ostrega, by the way. From Moonspear." He gestured back towards the largest mountain the range behind them; it was probably evident who he was already, but he never grew tired of pointing out his majestic home.

The initial tension faded somewhat, and both Charon and Rian (as a result) were given the space to relax now that they'd both come to some sort of understanding of one another. He was glad for the suggestion, too, and made a note in his mental banks to bring it up to Rannoch and Cypress. They were leading the band that direction, anyway, and he trusted (perhaps too blindly) that the scarred male wouldn't lead them into the unwelcome jaws of another rival pack. He didn't seem the type, or so Rian assumed.

"M-moonspear?" He spluttered as his previous train of thought was derailed, almost violently, as Hydra's mirthful sapphire eyes flooded his memory. Miss Ostrega... Miss Ostrega. The yearling recalled Amekaze, his friend's mother, though he hadn't had the chance to meet her father. Rian inhaled, nose flaring as he drew in the older male's scent again. His mood brightened considerably, despite his soreness, and he perked his ears without thinking much of it. "Do you know Hydra? We met when the snows were still around." He explained only to balk and splay them apologetically. "Sorry, Charon, sir—um, got ahead of myself. I'm Rian O'Malley."

"Yes, Moonspear," Charon repeated impatiently, not sure why the boy was suddenly acting weird. But then he mentioned Hydra, which gave instant realisation and also triggered a protectiveness. "She's my daughter," he responded coolly, a warning tone to his voice that he better never hurt her in any sort of way or he'd find the boy.

And now he knew his name. Rian O'Malley didn't come familiar to him at all, but apparently the boy'd met his daughter and was now acting like a bumbling fool in front of him, which didn't earn much trust either. Charon didn't respond beyond that, just staring at the boy while he tried to utter words that didn't come easy, and then there was silence.

If Rian was the lovestruck teenage farm boy from down the road, Charon was the stereotypical over-protective father sitting in his chair on the porch with a shotgun across his lap waiting for the farm boy to ask permission to court his precious baby girl. Of course, Rian was no where near that stage of his infatuation, nor was he really brave enough to even consider the idea. Hydra was bright, beautiful, and whole. Rian was dark, shaggy, and a bit broken. He thought of her often, yes, but with how often their group moved around and how many responsibilities he now had in regards to keeping them safe, he didn't have any time to visit like he'd promised. He felt bad, and missed her sorely, but there was little could be done for it for now. He could only hope she would forgive him when she found out exactly what he and his brothers set out to accomplish. 

Her father. Rian sucked in a breath and lowered himself further, "It's nice to meet you, sir. Sorry the circumstances aren't, uh, better. I met her mother, Ame...Amekaze. She's, um, very scary." He admitted with a nervous chuff. "Hydra is a good wolf, um, and she's one of the only friends I have. I'm lucky to count her as a friend. It just took me by surprise to meet you here is all, sir. Sorry." 

The boy turned even further down south on the fidgetty-road and Charon frowned as he looked at the boy, feeling what little respect he might've had for him seep away by the second. It didn't help that his mate was called 'scary'. Maybe if the situation was a little different Charon would've inwardly laughed at the boy's nervousness but as things were he didn't see the humour in the situation. "Are you calling my mate scary?" he asked with a mirthless expression.

Every 'sorry' further diminished Charon's opinion of this 'Rian' boy. Seemed to him that if Hydra was really friends with the boy, the only reason she cared at all was because she was a good kid and was trying to be inclusive, even with the losers. He wasn't too sure he was proud for that or wished she'd up her standards a little. "Hmm-m," he rumbled in a not-very-convinced answer to the boy's words.

"NO, no, ah-heh. No." Rian stammered as his mind backpedaled to the frantic flutter of his heart. MATE, obviously! GREAT JOB RIAN! In truth, he didn't much care what Charon thought of him. He was far more concerned about how his friendship with Hydra would change as a result of this meeting. There wasn't much he could do to impress the older wolf—he was young, bruised, and lacking any sort of ties to any of the more impressive families or packs of the region. Rian was, essentially, a nobody. He wasn't a prince like Cypress or Rannoch. Really, he was just some kid. 

The tone of Charon's unimpressed rumble casued him to splay his ears as far to the side as they could physically go. He, too, frowned. It was typical of older wolves to judge him unfairly, or completely miss the mark on his intentions, and he was a fool to think this conversation would end any differently. He decided to change the subject (a bit abruptly at that): "Is there anything else I can do for you, sir?" 

Once Charon might've empathised with this fellow — when he was just a kid and everyone saw him as such. But now he was an adult and he held respect just by being who he was after fighting hard for it. He didn't even stop to think he was ever anything like this boy — should anyone suggest it he would've likely laughed in their face. He thought the boy weak and certainly wondered what his daughter thought hanging out with such a dweeb. The only thing he could think of was that his daughter was compassionate to befriend such a loser.

Upon the question, Charon's face remained cold as he said, "No." He then turned around, glancing over his shoulder once more before vanishing back in Moonspear's direction, unless Rian said anything more.

Charon's short dismissal was painful. The pale Alpha turned abruptly and departed their conversation as quickly as he arrived, but left Rian feeling far more befret and hopeless for it. Rannoch was right—he wasn't fit to lead. He'd probably damaged any chance of fostering a relationship with Moonspear, and potentially ruining any possibility of him ever being allowed to see, let alone be friends with Hydra again. 

He swallowed thickly as he watched the pale wolf depart and, once he was out of sight, turned and unleashed his frustration and disappointment on the stream. Rian stomped through the water and lashed out at the droplets only to collapse in the shallows with a sigh.