Arrow Lake donald duck, sunny d, tampico, capri sun

Looking for @Stigmata but all welcome :)

A new home, and new borders to prowl. He paced along them now, taking in the wildly different scenery and wondering just how the fuck he had ended up here. He kept thinking this was a dream, that he would wake up near Hougeda and Aure wouldn't be pregnant and Rusalka wouldn't exist. Or that at least it was some sort of limbo--that he'd really actually died by Caiaphas's jaws, and this was God's way of punishing him for various misdeeds. At least for a while.

Lord, how many good deeds did he have to do before he was released from this hell?

At least the mountains were pretty. The air was thinner, though, up high. Verx had already struggled with getting a good breath, and now, he was finding himself winded far sooner than normal. He stopped at one point, sitting down on his haunches and trying to find it in him to continue. . .and then continued, despite not finding whatever that was.

Say what you will about Vercingetorix, but he wasn't no fucking quitter, that was for damn sure.

i've forgotten how to condense D: help!

with the intention of finding out if any of the burdened beggars had suddenly become ingrates overnight, stigmata prowled about looking for vercingetorix, almost exclusively. most of diaspora did not stray regularly, but some of their geists seemed indoctrinated from their past lives to stalk the borders in lone vigilance. predictably, he found the dark titan roundabout where he had expected, and he cantered easily to the wolf's side; leaving space where he might have bumped a more familiar packmate's shoulder.

the basilisk's ears were forward and his tail was lifted, but it waved back and forth in tentative geniality - testing the air, so to speak - as he observed him. "sir," he greeted him first, then after a steadying pause, attempted the wolf's name aloud for the first time: "vercin.. getorix?" he hated that it necessarily needed to be a question, but stigmata was nothing if not quick to move on. he cleared his throat after the humbling stumble, and nodded out beyond the lakeland's boundary. "anything?" the general asked reservedly for news, though he knew he might take any reports with a grain of salt, if only because he did not necessarily yet trust these supposed defectors.

he could not be sure that they had no reinforcements following then to this very place, but he knew the merits of not being openly hostile. the fact that they had all come in such a vulnerable state helped their case as well, but stigmata had seen dirtier tricks played. he had orchestrated them even, making him paranoid under the right conditions. so every once in a while, until he would eventually relax completely around him, stigmata would surreptitiously test the disavowed warrior to see if the male would meet his eye or do his submissive duty and glance away. they were not equals, after all, and stigmata would show absolute respect to this other breeding male only after he had proven himself as an asset here first.

He couldn't resist a chuckle as the man approached, although he was very aware of the difference in the dynamic between them from their first meeting. Two loners could exchange words free as they wanted; here, Stigmata was his leader, and while he'd otherwise risk a little cheekiness, now he had Aure and his future kids to think about. He'd toe the line (as well as he could, anyway).

That's me, he said, with a respectful nod. You can just call me Verx, though. The brute continued on, trusting that Stigmata would fall in step beside him. He kept his posture submissive as he could; he was quite big, after all. His eyes kept low, on the trail before him.

Nothing interesting, he responded, shaking his head slowly. After the month I've had, I'm okay with that.

the hound fell rather easily into step beside the mountain; the two of them forming a moving blockade built of sheer muscle and intimidation. every living thing seemed to hunker down or flee as the pair made their way, and the world around them grew quiet besides their own drumming steps and collective panting. stigmata had not expected such an ideal transition into their budding relationship, but was glad for verx's subdued attitude regardless, even if it was to be only a temporary side-effect of his gratitude.

he gave a bob of his head at the news, or lack thereof, though seemed more interested in the following comment. he cast a bemused glance at the scarred colossus, and quirked a single brow. "care to elaborate?" he asked, knowing that the details of the newcomers' former situation were blurred at best, and it wasn't in him to pass up the opportunity to learn something he didn't know before. then casually added, for good measure: "i will not be offended if you would rather not." he had his own secrets after all, and he was not a wolf who continued to pry after meeting resistance.

Verx gave a rueful laugh at Stigmata's addition, shaking his head. I don't mind, he responded easily, giving a shrug. Not like it's a big secret. Let's see. . .still trying to recover from my old leader dying. Then the sea witch tried to kill me. Then I had to leave my kru and become a traitor because I knocked a chick up and it's not just me anymore so I had to get her to safety.

He looked over at the General, still not quite meeting his gaze--but there was good humor in his eyes, nonetheless. I've been through some shit but all this takes the cake, Vercingetorix remarked. Definitely didn't ever see this in my cards. Not like he had ever been a fortune-teller. But he'd managed to fuck up so much in such a short time. None of his previous mistakes had ever carried this weight. What the fuck had happened?

Thanks for taking us in, by the way, he added, with a gracious dip of his head. I'd have taken Aure up to my old home, but it's too far and the pups are coming, like, yesterday. I appreciate it, especially since I was such a dick to you that one time.

there was something of a learning curve for stigmata when listening to vercingetorix tell a story. the general was still trying to figure out what sea witch meant when he realized that verx had called himself traitor in what seemed like the same breath. so the dark brute had chosen his own progeny over his pack, and it had led him... here, of all places.

stigmata's head bobbed with a bemused snort, and he smirked. they were in agreement then. this was not something either of them would have ever predicted, but the warhound felt he had received cosmically stranger things before. becoming entangled in the foreign affairs of the seraph-twins came to mind. "i could not hold that against you," he remarked, dismissing the claim that he had been slighted. "you had no reason to be otherwise." manners and respect, after all, weren't a right or something owed to him. not at that time, anyway.


"were you a dick to the sea witch as well?" he asked conversationally, wondering if it had been the wolf's vocal attitude to serve him comeuppance in the form of a throat wound.

yikes i'm so sorry i missed this on my last catchup round :o

Well, he did. Most wolves would say not to be an asshole to random strangers. But Vercingetorix let it slide, glad that Stigmata was willing to do just that with his antics. At the question, he let out a bark of laughter, eyes creasing to slits. He shook his head, chuckling ruefully.

No, that's the thing, Verx responded. I was just passing by. Our packs had beef, sure, but she just jumped at me out of nowhere. I didn't do shit to her. He rolled his eyes, face set in a smirk. But she's crazy. I knew that already. . .it didn't require taking a bite out of me to prove it.

to collect the remaining shreds of my obliterated dignity, i shall close this posthaste xD and apologize for what a horrible partner i've been <3

stigmata tried to imagine verx being an innocent bystander, but such a vision was easier said than done, given his own personal experience with the male... but he wagged his tail, regardless, having decided to believe in unprovoked attacks - at least for the sake of his new packmate's benefit - and he inquired further on details about the sea witch, so that he might know what wolves to avoid trusting in the future.

they exchanged virile pleasantries for a time, padding alongside one another and becoming more familiar without incident, but it was not long before the two parted ways to tend to their respectively pregnant wards. perhaps unable to mingle too long without succumbing to the irrefutable urge to dick measure.