Ghost Lion Crag Puck-wudj-ininee

@Charon 

Hunts were successful in 1 case out 10 for a regular hunter and 1.5 cases out of 10, if you were particularly good one and lucky as well. Though Wraen did not know this statistic, she was used not to get every single lagomorph, hare or other small game at sight. However, when the same hare kept appearing, teasing her and then taking off not once, but four times, one started to get suspicious. And Wraen, whose imagination loved to fill in and order the natural chaos of the world, reminded her about the little shapeshifters and tricksters of the woods. Some called them fairies, some gnomes, others referred to them as gremlins or wood spirits, Wraen's personal favourite was a name she could hardly spell correctly - Puck-wudj-ininees.

When Osprey had mentioned them to her daughter, she had only a brief description and retellings of their deeds, but not actual stories. Therefore Wraen watched the same hare appear before her for the fifth time and as she half-heartedly proceeded through all the steps of hunting it, her mind was working on the details on, how and wheather she should appease it, and what would become of her, if she continued to follow it. They could be nasty and very cruel, but at the same time - very smart too. And possessed strong magic. Because of the latter (both out of curiousity and maybe, because she had been put under a spell already), Wraen followed in the hares footsteps away from her home and into the mountains.

Though he'd told herself he would return at some point to talk to Dhole, Charon never had. He found it rather odd that she had chosen a territory so close to his home to settle in. He also found it odd to picture Dhole as a leader. Beta, maybe, but top dog of her own pack? Charon just didn't think she had the authority to handle that, really. But oh well. Despite his resolutions he hadn't. Because he wasn't sure what he would even say and truthfully, he wasn't sure if he could say anything that wouldn't result in some shouting match or her pissing off into her stupid copse with her middle finger raised. So he didn't, and kept telling himself he would, and then just didn't.

What he did do though was keep a tighter look on the north west side of his borders, knowing he now had Tuktu neighbours. The western mountains were uninhabitable, but it still wasn't very far from the copse to the spear. If Dhole even cared at all, but whatever.

Another he had thought about recently -- since Vela mentioned having a scuffle with her and meeting with Maia -- was Wraen. He wondered how she was doing now. But honestly, he had no intentions of seeking her out himself. Charon felt that she had been petty when they last met and he still felt wronged bits and pieces. He wouldn't outright attack her if he saw her but he still felt like he somehow was owed an apology of some sort or... well, something to validate his feelings.

Anyway, when he was wandering along the mountain range that day a hare suddenly came running at him. Charon was so caught off guard that he didn't move to grab it right away, but instead stood still. Only after it had ran up to him and quickly took a sharp left did he intend to come into motion. But just as Charon's paws came into motion he was a familiar figure's approach and was caught frozen once more.

You darned little rascal... Wraen thought to herself, when she had lost the hare from her sight again, but spotted a very familiar face in the distance. Charon might have been one of many white wolves in the area, could be mistaken for any one of them, yet, one's memory can be very keen on recalling the exact features and looks of a person, who has not been very pleasant. Setting him up with her was truly a deed of a mischievous spirit. 

"Good day to the King of the Mountain," Wraen said, having decided that she had nothing to lose in attempting to talk with her mother's old friend and that just in case things went really wrong, she had back-up closer than he did. "What brings you here to this area?" she asked, as she would have done to any stranger she would have met not too far from the fence of her house.

Ears perked up at the familiar figure who approached him seemingly casually. His stomach squirmed as she came closer, and greeted him as if they'd not fought the last time they'd seen each other. As if she'd not fought with his daughter on their last meeting. Was Wraen a part of this pack, too? It was as if the ghosts from his past were gathered there, and a new one would find him each time he tried to gather his wits to go and find Dhole.

The surprise was quickly wiped from his face. His face was neutral as she greeted him and asked him what brought him here. None of your business, he derisively thought to himself. He responded, Just exploring the lands close to my mountain. Which wasn't the truth of it really, but he wasn't about to tell her. She'd go running to Dhole, no doubt. What brings you back to this area, I wonder? he then asked. Last I saw you you were still licking Rannoch's butthole after his betrayal. But he decided against saying that. For now.

Had Wraen known Charon's snarky answers that went on in his mind, she would have felt amused by their childishness. When Osprey had told her about her friend the first time and their early adventures together, she had decided that this was person she would like to know. And yet - either he had acted differently around her or she remembered some earlier version of him that was no longer true - Wraen had and still thought that there was hardly any resemblance of her imagined mom's friend and the real life picture of him. 

At least he has not tried to eat my face. She found one positive thing in the rather painful and awkward conversation she was going to have. "I am doing the same from the perspective of my new home," she replied. "Saw a stranger lurking around, decided to investigate."

It was painful just to be around Wraen, because any rejection that she gave him felt like a rejection of Osprey in some way. Maybe because she resembled her mother so in looks, or maybe because part of her reminded him of Dante and therefore of how Dante had ruined his friendship with Osprey for some time. He had stolen her away, and he had felt rejected at the time. Wraen was the personification of that in a way worse than any of Osprey's other children for some reason. He didn't want to be reminded of that. He didn't want to relive it, and he didn't want to be made to feel like he'd somehow done something wrong to deserve it, which was what both Dante and Wraen always seemed to make him feel.

But he shared none of that because Wraen would not understand it anyway. Maybe she would even use it to hurt him further, he thought to himself as he tried to brave the storm that went on in his head. Wraen shared casually that she was doing the same from her new home -- Dhole's home -- and the addition of Dhole to this equation did not help to temper his mood.

Had enough of Rannoch and Liffey? he asked casually, showing none of the pain he felt. I heard my daughter kicked your ass. Charon of course did not realise that Vela's story was complete fabrication and they had in fact not fought at all. But he looked at Wraen to see if there was any recognition. She must know that it was his daughter, and she had not given her real name. Would she be surprised or would she have already expected Vela to have figured it out? His daughter was quite smart and curious, after all.

Wraen did not let herself be provoked by Charon's non-chalant, but still "bitey" remark. Quite the contrary, she appeared to be genuinely rumminating on the subject in order to give the best possible answer. "I had a good time with them and Terance and then our roads led different ways," she replied diplomatically. All experiences had a beginning, a middle and an end and so had Sunspire been for her. She had shelved it now among other valuable memories. 

"Did she really?" Wraen arched her eyebrows and chuckled at Vela's choice of words, when retelling their encounter. Charon's daughter was a smart wolf and Wraen had not particularly tried to hide her identity either. She would have figured it out sooner or later. "She has a very captivating personality," she added. "You have raised her well."

Charon didn't respond to her mention of Terance, Rannoch and Liffey, though he could feel his hackles prick up a bit in indication that it somehow mattered to him. He was annoyed that he couldn't get to her, though he should've known this from the start: Wraen was a lot like Osprey and a bit like Dante, and when it came to these situations she seemed to be unshakable. He wasn't sure why he tried.

Wraen chuckled, almost as if she didn't believe the tale. Charon squinted his eyes briefly, wondering why Wraen was in such a good mood about this encounter. Something was fishy about it all. He was contemplating telling Wraen to stay the fuck away from his daughter -- and it showed on his face -- but then Wraen complimented him on raising his daughter which landed him in a weird sort of limbo because it would feel awkward to tell her to stay away now rather than taking the.. compliment, he supposed?

Charon was caught looking very ??? for about ten seconds before he eventually decided on: Don't touch her again. Which was a bit out of place considering the way the conversation was going but whatever.

Now it was Wraen's turn to feel clueless, because of all the remarks she had anticipated to hear from Charon, this was one that made the least sense. Had she implied anything about physical contact? Or was there something in Vela's lie that did not stick well and therefore caused misunderstanding. Yeah... all things considered, beginning a relationship on a lie was not a convenient thing. Especially, if you had to come clear with their distrustful and protective dads afterwards. 

Teasing Charon would not do any good, so would not a provocation. Though there were many tasty things on her tongue she would have loved to tell him just to see his expression and reaction. "Paws off," she nodded in agreement. "We were just talking. She is into stories, wanted to learn, how to make them," she explained. And after a thoughtful pause she went on: "Charon, why do you hate me so much? I can't say the everything about you sticks well with me, but I would be very willing to get over and past that wall that you have built around yourself. I am not your enemy."

Charon had expected a snippy jokey remark from Wraen, he realised when she responded in earnest that she would keep her paws off. He was surprised and confused when Wraen mentioned that they had just been talking. He wondered if it was Wraen or Vela who had lied to him, but it seemed like little use to contemplate this now. Honestly, Vela's story had been full of holes and Charon felt angry with her that she would make him look the fool in front of someone like Wraen now.

But before he could respond -- the thoughtful pause used to contemplate how he would confront Vela with this -- Wraen suddenly said his name and asked him something that sounded very heartfelt. What makes you think I hate you? was his first response, because honestly, he was rather surprised by her question. You and yours left our pack when we most needed it and since then have not stood still to think for one second how that might have impacted us. Even now you all think you did the right thing and sit on your high horse complaining about how horrible I am while I was struggling to provide for my family and spent much time providing when I should've been a dad. Charon gritted his teeth in frustration and then said: Never mind, it doesn't matter. It did matter, obviously. I'm just tired of being made into the bogeyman and the enemy. He only had his family while they had the rest of the world, it always felt like to Charon. They didn't ever stop to think how it might be for him. All this talk about feelings made Charon feel angry, because he felt tricked into sharing his secrets to someone who historically didn't exactly have his best interest at heart.

Really? Wraen was a bit surprised to hear that Charon did not hate her or anyone, because a lot of past events spoke against that. The way he had almost ripped Liffey apart or how he had threatened to shred her and any Sunspire wolf apart. Or Hydra's lies to Terance, the unjustness of which still sparked anger inside her, whenever she thought about it. 

And all of this, because they - she and the rest - had not cared enough about Moonspear wolves. Their happiness was of more value than the others. A year ago Wraen would have angrily and passionately defended herself and her friends from these accusations, said all she thought about the self-centered wolf before her. Said, perhaps, more things that weren't true, but would hurt very much. 

At the same time she could sympathize with Charon, because the last season had not been easy on her. She had hardly seen her niece and nephew, she had never got to know Olive's children, never properly been there to see Liffnochs grow up. All she could recall was being constantly on the move, working, hunting, sleeping and having very little happiness with all of that. Perhaps, it had been just as difficult for her former alpha too. 

Suddenly she felt sorry for him, because with all the flaws that he would never admit he had, Charon was still a human (in a figurative sense). He could get hurt and feel just as deeply as anyone of them. If Wraen had never understood, why Osprey had been friends with him in the first place, then now it dawned upon her that in a true friendship you do not pick out the characteristics that you like and try to subdue the rest in that person. You take them whole, you value them, for what they are and come to terms with the fact that you cannot change them. 

He expected an apology and he would never accept that they had had their rights to go and leave as well. If she told that she understood, that it had been very difficult for her as well, he would see it as a justified punishment. It was a wasted effort upon him to convince him otherwise. Wraen's righteous side rebelled against the words that were already on the tip of her tongue, but she knew that she had to better than that.

After all a "sorry" had never hurt anyone and she did not have to go as far as to admit that she was guilty of everything she was accused of. Another thing about friends and relationships - you have a right to set boundaries. "I am sorry for hurting you," she said, sincerely. And then with a whimsical smile and a quirked eyebrow she added: "Though bogey-man, in my humble opinion, is not the worst creature of darkness to be called after. A snot-troll would have been a lot more insulting." 

At that moment without her knowing she was Osprey through and through, true to the very core.

It was as if Wraen was not sure what to do with his words, and Charon could understand that. He wasn't even too sure why he was telling her all this. He just wished that things had gone differently. Above all, he wished irrational things -- that Wraen was more like Osprey, as she should be, that things hadn't gone wrong between the pair of them, that Wraen had just stayed...

So many things, but none that he knew he could have. He thought of Maia again and how different Wraen and Maia were from one another.

Eventually Wraen said she was sorry. Charon's first thought was to be snippy about it, or say that he didn't need her pity (because he didn't, of course) and that the point wasn't to make her say she was sorry, but to realise that they had all turned their backs to him and stopped caring at all. But he knew that it would do their conversation no good to complain about whatever little she offered. She'd apologised, after all, and that must be difficult enough as it was between them. An improvement, at the very least.

Charon grimaced at her comment -- stuck between a laugh and a frown at her comment -- for though it was funny and definitely an ice-breaker, he felt that she was missing the point he tried to make. He looked away, his look hardened and the grimace still on his face. I just don't understand what is so hideously unlikeable about me, he admitted further, even though he was pretty much done with confession time. He wasn't really sure what it was about Wraen that day that shook out all of his darkest fears and confessions.

Wraen laughed inwardly at the open invitation of listing the character traits that she did not find great about Charon. But the new bridge between them was still in the making, easy to break apart by inconsiderate words. He was easy to take offence and she could not allow it to happen now. They were going to be neighbours for a very long time and it would be easier not to revert back to throwing dung-bombs over the fence. 

"Uhmm... I think it is more about people either fitting together or not," she said, carefully choosing her words. "I believe that you are well-liked enough by your family and packmates and in the face of the world... that is all that really matters," she explained. "As for me - I believe that neither of us are inherently hideous people, rather two people that have very little in common and that have widely different views about the world order. In brief - we just do not click and that's alright as well."

It wasn't all that mattered to Charon. He wanted to be liked by others, yet they all seemed to crawl away from him like the cowards they were. He wanted loyal wolves to lead, yet they were hard to come by. Then again, others faced the same problems: Even Rannoch had lost some of his wolves already, and when he'd initially come to Moonspear, he had also just lost his pack. It wasn't like Rannoch was inherently more likeable than Charon. And surely he, too, had many wolves that'd left him that he never saw again. Whatever.

Charon regretted telling Wraen all that as she explained that the two of them were just different wolves with little in common. It hurt him to think so. Did that mean he and Osprey had had little in common? And why did having things in common have to be a prerequisite for friendship? Fuck that.

Anyway, he decided not to say that because he had grown somewhat through all of his years, after all, and instead offered: Thank you. It wasn't the easiest thing to say, either, but he was grateful that even though he felt a lot of what she said wasn't true, at least she had reached out like he himself had reached out. I guess we'll just never agree on a lot of shit, huh. And that was perhaps the gist of it all, whether he agreed with what she said or not. That they just didn't agree on a lot of shit.

This left a bit of an awkward silence lingering, and Charon decided: I should head on home.. He opened his mouth, but then shut it again, as he contemplated whether to ask Wraen to tell Maia he'd said hi.

"Look - we just agreed on something," Wraen pointed out, giving Charon a kind smile. This was a start of building friendship No.2 or simply an end to a mutual grudge they should have tried to put behind themselves ages ago. The king of the Moonspear was about to say something else and she waited for him to do so, but it did not follow. "See you around, Charon," she bid a farewell, dipped her muzzle politely, then turned and left for Firebirds. 

On her way home she thought back to the little trickster men of the old legends and how not all of their pranks had such bad outcomes. Sometimes it led to something good.