Arrow Lake rivers and roads

Rue's departure, dated April 1. @Stigmata @Mahler

How had Rue found herself at this point again, for the second time in almost as many months? 

A little more time here, and the bonds she was forming with these wolves might have been unshakable. Loyal creature Rue was, there was really only one thing that could have pried her away from the calming, comfortable safe-haven of Diaspora. 

Liri's return. 

Liri was back from the dead, she was building a pack and a home, and she needed her former beta. And that was what Rue would always be, she had realized... no matter where she was, what pack she served, or what position she served in, she would always be Liri's beta.

the birth of the motherdove's children, the looming potential of takiyok's own — these events had sharpened in mahler a distinctly unwelcome longing for a renewal of his own, a family. he was cast adrift onto a sea of his own thoughts, a haze through which only one particular face swam. to these wants was she tied also, though it had taken the gargoyle some time to admit any sort of feeling for the honey-eyed counselor.
but once recognized, it could not be ignored, and mahler roamed the lake-grounds as he attempted to reconcile the coldness of his bearing with the little ember now glowing in his heart. lost in his own ruminations, he stumbled upon a pensive ruenna quite by accident — or was it? he did not trust himself.
"ruenna," mahler greeted, pausing as her back was turned to him for the moment.

Going to continue the conversation for a round or two, Van feel free to drop Stig in at any point and/or have him listening in.

As soon as Rue turned around, Mahler would know something was wrong. It was written all over the young woman's face. "Just the man I was seeking," Rue replied, voice far more upbeat than her stormy expression. 

Rue met his eyes for a snap moment, but she found herself unable to hold his gaze for long. Averting her eyes, she flexed her paws in the melting snow and heaved a heavy sigh. Finally, she came out with it. 

"Mahler... It's-- it's Liri. My former alpha. She needs my help to found a new pack, and I'm.. I'm going with her." Rue swallowed, and she continued in a smaller voice. "I'm so sorry. I-- when I joined here.. I thought she was dea-- ...I thought she was.. gone." And now her loyalties were torn in half. Rue would be wracked with guilt and loss no matter what she chose at this point. Timing is truly everything, isn't it? 

Rue took a hesitant step toward the musiker, drawn toward him with the desire to offer some sort of comforting touch but unsure of whether she would be well-recieved. Stars, this never got any easier.

she turned, and the sunlight cast a glow over her harrowed expression. mahler frowned, putting thoughts of himself away to ponder what had beset ruenna so, but she began to speak, her anguished gaze meeting his only for a handful of seconds.
liri, the woman he had met in the vale. it was embittering to know she had closer ties in the sunspire than he had realized, but mahler was relieved that he had not antagonized the aspiring leader that day, not if ruenna was to be leaving diaspora for liri’s side. as the optio spoke, mahler looked down to hide the flare of his nostrils, the tightness that had entered his jawline.
the soft step of the counselor brought up his head; he allowed her touch as long as he was able, gingerly returning the gesture and telling himself it was only one of goodwill, refusing to allow indulgence in the soft brush of her muzzle. 
”i vould ... i am not able to fault you for your loyalty, ruenna,” the gargoyle rumbled when they had parted, gaze narrowing and falling into a blink, the only other sign of his own turmoil. ”diaspora has been blessed by your time here.”
”i met liri not long ago. she is kind, vise. i do not know if stigmata vill take kindly to her settling, nor your departure, but i vill speak vith him.” 
on your behalf, mahler added silently to himself, for now he knew he could never raise violence against the vale, not while ruenna lived and throve in its embrace. nor did he wish to tell her of the little flickering ember, for he would not seek to keep her here on a whim.

stigmata trailed anxiously after mahler's most recent set of tracks, his tail lashing in agitation and his ears were set forward intensely. his concerns were torn between the recovering ketzia and the ready-to-pop takiyok, leaving him in desperate need of assurance from his kill-brother that neither of them would be lost to him.

as he made a rather sudden appearance on scene, mahler had just finished speaking, and stigmata froze briefly - looking quite ruffled and sunken eyed, like he hadn't slept in a couple nights - as he unhappily tried to decide if he wanted to let an additional party in on his private insecurities or not. but when he looked towards the prim advisor, lady ruenna, she seemed halfway about to speak herself, so he remained quiet and canted his head - suddenly concerned about this new thing set before him, and forgetting briefly why he had approached to begin with.

"what is going on?" he asked with a low note of concern; wariness sounding unusual on his tone.

Mahler accepted Rue's touch, and so her the side of her muzzle rested across his shoulderblade for a brief moment. Even now, with her stomach twisted up in knots, the contact triggered a heart-flutter. "I won't be far," she murmured into his fur, though it would remain a mystery as to whether the words were simply a reassurance or a shared hope for something more.

Mahler was a absolute picture of composure, and understanding emanated from every line he spoke. It was a reaction that was almost more heartbreaking than if he had been angry, or upset. Rue ears twitched forward in curiosity as he spoke of his encounter with Liri, his words and tone indicating that he was aware of the alphess's intention to settle in the Vale. 

Rue opened her mouth to thank Mahler, but she was interrupted by Stigmata's rather abrupt arrival. The General's harried appearance suggested that this was not the time to be imparting bad news, but he had asked, and Ruenna was nothing if not honest. 

Saying it once was hard enough, but stars above-- saying it again almost killed the poor girl.

"It's my former alpha, Liri. She's as close as a sister to me, and I thought she was--" Rue cleared her throat. "--lost, until very recently. She hopes to raise a pack, revive what we have lost.. and she needs my help." She shook her head. "I have to go. It's.. it's family." 

Ironic that the one Diaspora woman for which Stigmata was-- perhaps-- least worried was the one he would end up losing.

composure was mahler’s retreat; later he would grieve the deep loss of her presence. but moreso than his own mind upon the matter was his sheer unwillingness to persuade or influence her decision in any way. 
still, the warmth of her breath against his fur damned the gargoyle further, for in his heart leaped first the silverlike hope of what could be, followed by the cold realization that surely it could not.
his kill-brother came upon them then; mahler turned to see the leeriness in stigmata’s bearing, upon his countenance. ruenna spoke again, repeating herself with a heaviness that mahler longed to take from her.
”liri intends to settle in the vale,” the shadowpriest murmured, knowing stigmata would know the place of which he spoke. and though he was unsure that he should bring up talk of an alliance now, he kept his gaze trained loyally upon the ironstar, a silent reassurance that he himself belonged for all of his days to diaspora.

as the news delivered first hit him, stigmata became eerily still, unaware that he had begun holding his breath.

what?

he appeared quite dumbfounded, for a wolf usually so intimidating; his shock laid as bare as if he had been struck. this was a complete blindside - for while he had worried about betrayals from nearly all fronts, there was one he had neglected to fear, and he had never once considered that the threat might come from lady ruenna. so he stared at her - gaped, really - speechless until mahler saw fit to name the place of their claim, and his eyes snapped to the gargoyle manically.

WHAT?

shrieking eyes darted back to ruenna; he saw in her hesitance and shame that it was true, and that they both knew how he would receive this bittersweet decision. he started to prickle uncontrollably, but with a great bit of strain, the wolf creakily resumed a neutral posture, and his expression became a steel grimace to conceal the genuine sorrow he felt. stigmata's ears folded back. "could the timing not be helped?" he started off bitterly, unable to help the way his thoughts fled to his soon-coming pups and the crew of fresh strangers among them.

he sighed, and tried again. "i am... glad to see you with your family again, ruenna. it is where you belong." he returned steadily enough, though as he continued he seemed unable to completely keep the growl from his voice. "yet, this feels dangerously like betrayal, though i know such a thing could never be your intention. i am simply confused as to why you would chose to settle your family in a region you know very well we have named for the descendants of diaspora. you must already know my decision, if i am compelled to choose between aligning with foreign allies or with the children of my own wolves, so why do it this way? why not continue to expand under our stead, instead of subtly challenging it with your own?"

As the news washed over Stigmata, his composure degenerated further, morphing him into a creature that was all but harrowing. Rue shifted away from Mahler, unwilling to have him thought somehow guilty by proximity. 

The words word out of Stigmata's mouth were about the timing, of all things. Rue suppressed a wince, allowing that accusation to ride out in silence. All who were present no doubt understood that there was never a perfect time for these things. If she had been waiting for a good time to leave Diaspora, she would never have left at all. 

Stigmata spoke again, and his words were kinder this time. Rue chanced a small wave of her tail. Her eyes cut over to Mahler for the briefest of moments, to check if she was hearing things correctly... was there really a possibility that Stigmata could simply be happy for her?

...But of course not. A growling tone entered his voice as he spoke again, another accusation woven through the undercurrent of his speech. Betrayal. Rue shifted uncomfortably. If betrayal was how Stigmata chose to view this situation, how could Rue possibly argue with him? She had no leg to stand upon. 

He ended with a rather strangely-worded question, leaving Rue guessing as to what he was suggesting. Was he asking why Rue didn't simply bring Liri here? Rue had certainly tried, but Liri could not be dissuaded from her dream of building a home of her own. Or was he suggesting that Rue ought to have forsaken Liri and instead procreated for Diaspora? ...Of course.  Why bother getting involved in our family's messes if we have the option to simply abandon them and replace them with newer, cleaner versions? ...Is that really what she was hearing?

Since the nature of the question was unclear to Rue, she didn't answer it. When she opened her mouth to speak, it was on a different subject Stigmata had touched upon. "But we will not be foreign," Rue began, voice even smaller than usual. She swallowed. "I envision a close relationship, one that is symbiotic. What of the wolves of Diaspora who become permanently injured, ill, or too old to travel extreme distances? The Vale offers a central, protected location, allowing them to remain in the mountains they call home and easily visited by Diasporan loved ones." 

Rue continued. "And the young of the Vale, once they age and become restless... Many will no doubt seek to join the ranks of the intrepid Diasporan conquerors." If each pack fed the other, then those of future generations would not be in conflict with one another. They would be family. 

"It is my hope that the descendants of Diaspora and those of the Vale will be one in the same." Okay Rue, time to put your money where your mouth is. "Certainly mine will be.." she added quietly, "..if you both see that as fit. Any Diasporan of your choosing to father one litter, and to come and go as he wishes while our children are pups." An alliance sealed with blood.. it was a timeless tradition, and the best way Rue could think of to show her commitment to the proposed alliance and the version of the future she had illustrated. 

Rue fell quiet, allowing the leaders to digest the proposal. She did not expect an answer immediately-- they would of course need to discuss it with their wolves, as Rue would discuss it with hers.

there was no pleasure in stigmata's voice, and mahler could hardly fault him for his ire. it was sudden; it was a compromising of values that ruenna had professed, and now she sought to leave diaspora to be within another place. there was a strange emptiness that replaced the space where she had stood when she placed distance between them, and mahler was befallen by a deeper sense of woe. as brother, as kapitän, his place was here now, to be part of the talk of peace that would herald ruenna's departure, and mahler clung to that task and willed it to drive the pain from his spirit.
such hopes were dashed when the little counselor offered herself as mother to diasporan children, to forge an alliance between they and the vale — the gargoyle glanced away from them both. it was not necessary; he would not allow it. but ultimately the decision was not his, it belonged to stigmata, who surely would rejoice at the idea of more sons and daughters from his line.
ruenna's bravery in the face of the fierce ironwolf's resolve was nothing short of admirable, and she offered a great thing to lay a bridge betwixt the budding vale and the soldiers who called the mountains their own. a chance for new growth to come of this, for their bond to be blood-bound and permanently affixed.
the ember must die, then, for if stigmata accepted this marriage for the good of their two packs, who was mahler to allow such frivolity to stand against it? perhaps this was the best way, the only way: tradition in the springtime to bring bounty in the autumn months, more wolves to be raised against outside threats.
desperately, mahler wanted to be dismissed, but stood steadfast and looked now to stigmata, silent unless he was called upon to share the most succinct of his own thoughts, burying the remainder of them to stay interred for as long as it took to forget how ruenna's honeyed gaze had made him feel whole for a moment.

as ever, ruenna sought to exceed the steel wolf's expectations of her, and each time he thought he had her proverbially sequestered away into a box he intrinsically understood, she would spring out of it - and bite him in the face. they had been harmless nips before, but this one would scar. stigmata felt misunderstood and tenuously disrespected at her proposal, though the idea of it all was so glaringly logical to a wolf like him that he couldn't find the mental fortitude to be angry with her for suggesting it.

but in reality, the idea of such an alliance frightened him, and if not properly convinced by those he trusted most, stigmata would never go for it. he wanted only wolves who bowed to him to form the packs in this area, and without being the true commander of the vale wolves, he would be opening himself up to the same agony that had befallen him in the legion. for it had been supposed allies, aligning with his own manipulative son, that had been his very steep downfall, and he was reluctant to accept such a possibility again. this very experience was what had driven him to form diaspora's creed in the first place. what would become of him if he did not learn from his past?

the bottom line was that she didn't get it. her presence was wanted here. he wanted to be her family more than liri was; but neither he nor his kill-brother had yet earned it, and it simply hurt to find out. her departure was painful, but attempting to settle in an area she knew would rouse him only added insult to injury. her offer did not go unheeded, but one glance at the almost overly stoic mahler told stigmata that discussing it much further in this moment would end well for no one involved.

"i will consider your offer," he said clinically, tiredly - the tone of an imperator trying not to succumb to some internal weight. "in your head there is a utopia in which we coexist - a beautiful one, i admit, ruenna... but reality does not often meet expectations, and i fear we have already begun on the wrong foot." he looked at her solemnly, for a beat, and then dismissed her with a firm nod. "for now, my lady, go in peace. until we meet again."

When Stigmata next spoke the growl was absent, replaced with a weary, clinical coldness. It was obvious Rue had misstepped somewhere in this conversation. To be fair though, there was probably no way she could have phrased her plans that would have achieved some other, more optimistic result. A quick glance at Mahler was all she needed to see that he was swiftly detaching as well. Rue had lost her audience, and she had likely lost whatever tenuous bonds had developed between herself and these men, both of whom she admired greatly for starkly different reasons. 

Had Rue known of Stigmata's present thoughts, of the past that plagued his memories and dictated his present choices, Rue would have been able to tell the General exactly where he went wrong the first time. His failure had not been in trusting others, it had been in perpetuating this all-or-nothing, absolutist mentality which alienated anyone who failed to fall in line.

Far more fanciful than Rue's beautiful utopia was the notion that Stigmata could rule over the mountain range with total authority. It was a ridiculous pipe dream. Diaspora had not even managed to expand past Arrow Lake, and now that pups had dropped they were forced to remain stationary. The only feasible way to spread Diasporan influence across the entirety of the Sunspires was to cultivate strong alliances-- and truly, this was what Rue had imagined when she first heard Stigmata's vision of a united mountain range. 

Rue would not argue. She would not tell Stigmata that she had once lived in such a utopia as the one she described, one in which interdependent packs thrived and ruled over stretches of territory even more expansive than the Sunspire mountain range. She would also not point out that "beginning on the wrong foot" was a chosen mentality, not an inevitability. No. Rue had been dismissed, and so she would withdraw with a succinct farewell.

"Thank you both," she murmured, turning to depart before any other words could fight their way out of her maw. 

Rue's outtie, unless spoken to again. So much love for you two beautiful souls, and for the rest of the DA clan <333

<333!

that was all. in his heart, mahler begged ruenna to turn away, to find solace in her newfound liri, for as the moments ticked by, he could scarcely stand to be near her. the touch of her soft gaze engendered a deep guilt in the shadowpriest, for he could not return it, nor look at stigmata. a poor leader indeed, a weak brother. had he been worthwhile at all, mahler might have sought to mediate between the pair, urging the stonewolf to take up ruenna's offer, to end the possibility of conflict between them now and forever.
but he could scarcely breathe, let alone speak, the crush of her soon-to-depart presence gathering 'round his throat like a proverbial millstone. stigmata looked to him then, and only out of allegiance did mahler return the glance, remaining mute as the silverchased general opted to give his word later, and dismissed ruenna with a grudging peace.
mahler did not watch her go, though despite himself, his senses drank in the sound of her retreating footsteps until they were lost to sound. only then did he clear his throat, a clear anguish he could no longer veil settling like a shroud across his dark features, and surely visible to stigmata.
"brother," and the strain of his voice made it unrecognizable even to his own ears, "the choice is yours. i fear my ability to be unbiased in this matter is compromised." a failure; the gargoyle wilted. he would support stigmata in whatever outcome the ironstar foresaw for the vale, but the horrid little flame in his chest countered al logic mahler attempted to grant in this moment.

as ruenna left, taking the general's fragile trust with her, stigmata posed stoically to watch her go. out of the sharp corner of his eye, he spied on diaspora's warden - watching the cracks in mahler's facade widen and deepen the further their former packmate went from them. he could almost hate her in that moment, for fracturing his second wolf, but he hated himself more for being here to witness it. for stymieing the gargoyle's reaction to this unrepeatable moment.

"i know," he replied grimly, turning his chin up towards mahler, and huffing quietly. none of this gave him any pleasure, and if he were to make a decision in that moment, with the way he felt, then stigmata knew that he would irreparably fracture their bond. "i need to calm down," he muttered. i need to kill something, he thought, turning away from mahler and leaving him to the day alone.

what had i even come here for?