Altar of Twilight 'don't wait for me, don't wait for mom,'

@Ira <3

arcturus had taken his bad mood and left the mountain, feeling his general uncharitability was, well, uncharitable: his brother deserved his promotion, and at this point it was just sour grapes.

still, it sucked to feel overlooked.

the boy picked his teeth with a claw as he considered his merit. maybe he was not the dutiful son he thought he was, or maybe at the end of the day he was just not good enough.. but he knew revui was, and he knew revui deserved his betaship.. still, it did little to lessen the sting.

with a low growl the boy placed his head on his paws and watched as the moon slipped out behind slim conifer trees. given his sourness towards his family as of late (a sourness he held close to his heart and did not speak upon any further), it was best he took a short jaunt away from the mountain. maybe sleeping here tonight would do him a world of good, and tomorrow he would wake up feeling refreshed and way less bitter.

It wasn't often that the mountain wolf trecked past the borders of Easthollow. Perhaps that's why she lingered, taking in the world that laid beyond the small piece of land she had made her home. It felt like forever since she lived like this, traveling on with no knowledge of what might lay ahead. Yet even then it wasn't quite the same. Now she had a home, companions, and as small as it might be, a limited knowledge of some of the packs that lived in this land.

Life will not wait though, and sooner or later she would have to return back to her pack. She did not want to wait long anyhow with the pups getting older and few wolves capable of truly defending the borders if something were to happen. Ira would never forgive herself if that wolf, no... beast made it's way back to Easthollow when she was not able to defend her newfound family.

Troubled thoughts were forced away as Ira returned her attention to her surroundings and the black figure that sat up ahead. She paused assessing her options before realizing the lingering scent in the air belonged to Moonspear. Surely there was no need to fear aggression? After all, they were away from the pack's territory and one, Hydra? Mentioned an alliance. But what brought the male out past his borders? Ira approached slowly, letting her presence be known with a low boof. It wasn't until she saw his face that she recognized him from the borders. Greetings. The one word was enough to know if her presence was wanted based on whatever response she was given.

arcturus had heard the approach of another, but in the rather reckless mood of a teenager, he adopted a devil-may-care attitude and roughly ignored the wolf's presence, as if to indicate he cared very little about anything right now... even a threat.

it was not until ira was upon him did arcturus deign to meet her gaze and acknowledge her; it was then he realized she was the guardian besides korei julia. he had similar questions -- why was she here, especially alone? did that mean his sister was nearby too?

he felt a prickle of defensiveness, but did not act on it. feigning absolute indifference, arcturus remained draped across the forest floor, his tone deadpan and flat. "greetings," he pantomimed back, giving a lazy flick of his tail. "you're that girl from the other day."

The boy's tone was not particularly friendly, but he furthered the conversation...so he didn't want her to leave? Or perhaps he could care less. For now, she would stand, in case he'd rather not indulge her presence. Yes, and you hail from Moonspear. What brings you out from your home? Ira never was one to beat around the bush...perhaps she was being too forward with the stranger when it simply was not her business nor her lands to question, but it was better than asking about what had his mood so sour.

ira may have believed herself forward, but the truth was, arcturus appreciated a wolf who made their intentions plain. he was tired of subterfuge, of dishonesty and secrets — he needed a break from his family, which at present was just one crisis away from an implosion. 

he was not about to answer her question honestly, though — for it painted his family (and by proxy, him) in a poor light. shifting just enough to hold her down in his sights, arcturus gave a shrug of his rough shoulders. just resting after a hunt. where is Korei? he cast a glance about him as if expecting her any moment.

The man claimed to have been hunting, yet she saw no trace of food nearby, perhaps he had moved since then, she had no real reason to question it. The roan woman shook her head lightly as the conversation turned to Korei. She would cast a glance back to where she had come from with a small frown. She is about, but I'm giving her some space. I'm sure it was not the reunion she wanted.  Ira turned her attention back to the male and took a seat a small distance away, still courteous to give him some space. If you are going to rest here for a bit, do you mind telling me about your pack life?

she is about,  the easthollow guardian intoned. arcturus instinctively searched about them, his eyes narrowed. he did not wish to know korei any better than he knew of her by rumor -- if she was nearby, he was ready to leave. arcturus was that loyal to his family that if they made one the scapegoat, well, he would too.

korei julia did not appear magically from the forest. arcturus' attentions slid to ira as she sat a distance away, just far enough away to not be intrusive. unfortunately for her, arcturus was in a stormy mood and her presence was intrusion enough. ira's well-meaning question was completely ignored; the dark brute rounded his rough shoulders and shot ira an accusatory glance before blurting: "are you her girlfriend or something?"

The boy seemed to pause as she asked her question, but Ira was willing to be patient. Arcturus did not owe her any answers after all and she was still fairly close to his territory. She just simply wanted more knowledge to take with her as she departed. However, what she received wasn't a response but a question, possibly even an accusation to some.

The mountain wolf now took a pause herself as she wrapped her mind around the words. Arcturus seemed to dismiss her question altogether, instead more interested in her relationship with Korei. Confusion painted the roan wolf's face before she finally responded. Korei? No, she's a packmate. That's all there is to our relationship. Had she given off the impression that there was something more between the two? Normally she gave off an air of distance between herself and other wolves.

the full bore of arcturus' hardened gaze was focused on ira as he waited for his question to hit her. make no mistake, his prying eyes would catch any flicker of hesitation, any shadow of dishonesty... but all he scryed from her expression was that she seemed confused.

arcturus would admit it to nobody, but he felt rather content by ira's reaction. good, he thought - for some reason, he felt protective of his estranged sister he had met but once; it made him jealous in an oddly insecure way to think that korei julia would have a relationship with others while neglecting her family. "alright." he responded, satisfied with ira's answer. "to respond to your question, trust like that is not freely given."

wow, arcturus could be a real dick.. but... he was not about to tell a stranger about the intimacies of his family.

It seemed that whatever Arcturus had thought of her with Korei was just a passing question. She was still confused, don't get her wrong, but she was willing to push the question off as general curiosity instead of delving further.

Once he was satisfied, the topic returned to Ira's original question, although she still did not receive an answer. Instead, she would nod understandingly, Of course, I apologize. Let me rephrase then, how is your pack structured? You need not give anything personal, I would just like a better understanding of what kind of packs live out here. I only know a few in these lands and I've lived here for some time now.

After a short pause, the warrior realized her question was still rather forward and perhaps concerned none of her business, but her curiosity was getting the best of her. That is, if you feel like sharing. You owe me nothing and I'm simply feeding my own mind.

arcturus expected something reactionary from his words - they had not necessarily been friendly.. frankly, they were douchey.. but in arcturus' defense, his family meant everything to him and he was always very tight-lipped about his life with strangers. ira just happened to be no exception.

she seemed perfectly malleable to his curtness, offering an apology when it should have been him to do so. he knew he ought to apologize, but his throat caught and he did not. it was his family, and he was perfectly justified to be mum, right?

right.

the way ira restructured her question earned her a long, hard, stare. it was exactly the same kind of question before, wasn't it? did she think he was stupid..? he shifted, ready to ask that -- but then he realized since she was guiding korei julia, that she was just trying to make pleasant conversation."it's a pack." he shrugged, scowling. "like any other pack. has alphas.. betas... omegas.." he thought of speedy, his gaze narrowing. "why are you asking me? are you going to measure what i say about it against what korei says about it? i'm sure she's told you everything." arcturus finished bitterly, crossing his paws with a cold motion.

This time the boy gave in, and while his answers were curt it was enough for Ira to see that Moonspear had a normal pack structure. Perhaps that's why her question seemed odd to him. Maybe Arcturus had never experienced a pack that ran differently.

He was quick to question her motives, and she could understand why. They barely knew each other, for all he knew she was collecting intel that could be used against him or his pack. That was the last thing on her mind however, she genuinely just wanted to learn more. With a quick nod, she decided to put his worries to rest. I'm only curious about you. She paused assessing his current reaction before spilling a growing thought on her mind, You seem to be rather obsessed with korei Julia.

Most likely to the boy's surprise, Korei had told her nothing about Moonspear or her past and whatever troubles had plagued all sides of their family. Whatever had happened sure was explosive, that's for sure. Perhaps Korei's fear to return had justification to it after all. You might not believe my words, and that's fine, but I travel alongside Korei blind. She gave me no information before we left, only that she desired company.

arcturus listened with an ear canted towards ira and his gaze elsewhere: he did not wish to be grilled on his family, and it was plain on his dark features. he was about to soften, to possibly concede to ira's questioning when she accused him of being obsessed with korei julia.

arcturus snorted, his gums curled back and ears flattened. up until ira and korei walked into his home, arcturus did not ever think of her. "she is my sister," arcturus defended himself sulkily, his blackened gums still pulled back. "you seem rather obsessed to know every intimate detail of my family's life. why?" he ignored the rest of ira's explanation - he did not care if she had come in blind.. ira was associated with korei julia, and therefore, was guilty by association.

Soon enough her words had gone too far and Arcturus made it plainly clear to see. Good luck getting more info now. The boy's sharp words turned on her as he questioned her yet again about her interest. If he wanted the truth, she didn't care. She has no use for family squabbles and petty drama (ironic given her past dealings with her father). She had simply seen an opportunity to learn about another pack, but it was different for the other.

If I'm perfectly honest, I could care less about the intimacies. She is still a packmate though and as such, I thought I'd try to learn more while the opportunity arose. If I'm a bother I can leave now. If she was going to waste her time talking to a brick wall, she was better off venturing elsewhere where she did not risk soiling Easthollow's name. Ira was smart enough to know when to back off, even if she was not the most careful navigating conversations forward.

god, why was she being so reasonable? all arcturus wanted in that moment was a reason to unleash some sort of verbal diatribe.. but ira gave him nothing. she said she did not care, and then just as tactfully wrapped up the conversation by suggesting she could leave at any time.

arcturus was torn. he hated feeling like this, angry with nowhere to direct it -- but he resented the idea of asking her to stay, too. it sounded like he was begging, and he was not a wolf that begged. he was far too much like his father in that way. he shrugged his shoulders the zillionth time, refusing to meet ira's gaze. "i don't care," arcturus replied - the tone was far from venomous, and it sounded more an admission than a statement meant to insult her.

Ugh I want to help the poor boy but it's not Ira's nature. Wrap up here unless he changes his mind? thanks for the thread!

The boy shrugged her off like he had been doing. There wasn't much to do when he refused to interact or tell her to go away, and she never was one to pry into others emotions. Especially if she wasn't close to them. She could tell something was bothering the Moonspear wolf, but she was not the one to comfort him. The roan woman could only hope that whatever pried at his thoughts would release him from the burden soon. I see...well thank you for the words. I do hope you and your family take care. I will not bother you anymore. Just as she said she stood and turned to leave unless she was called back.

<3 i get it! thank you for the thread

arcturus watched as the woman composed herself to leave. he was resentful: resentful of his sister for leaving. resentful of his family for being so piggish and prideful. resentful of himself, for not calling to her as she turned her back...

in the end she was polite and she had done little wrong, and still, arcturus did not call for her. he remained sphinxlike on the ground until well after she had left, sulking in his own turbulent thoughts.