Blackfeather Woods You can repent but I warn you,

@Maegi @Jakoul
Would it be alright to forward date this to 10/11?

He staggard some as he arrived at the borders. Blood caked his fur in various places, concentrated most on his face and head; he hadn't thought it necessary to waste time cleaning it.The journey here had not been easy. His ribs were so painful that he was having trouble breathing, which meant descending from the mountains had taken far longer than it normally would. But he was fueled by his new mission; he had never felt more sure about anything in his life aside from his love for Alarian. So it only made sense that he did this for him now. 

Despite his persistence to get here, he had exhausted just about all of his energy doing so. Midar stumbled back on his haunches and drew in a painful breath, lifting his head and calling for whomever was leading the woods. And that took the last bit of his dwindling strength. As soon as the howl cut off, he slumped to the ground and lost consciousness again.

yes!

A howl. Maegi sighed deeply, rising to her paws from the hillock where she sat. Shouldn't they know the trees were unsafe, and thus they had fled? She supposed that no one could know everything, particularly about the internal affairs of an unfamiliar pack. At least, she assumed it was unfamiliar to them—the voice was unfamiliar to her.

But as she approached the edge of the trees where he lay, she realized she'd get no answers at all, at least for the time being. Since Miryam can't read, we'll try again with the greeting. There would be no greeting. He was out cold. Maegi padded up to him, frowning, nothing familiar in his raven-black pelt, either.

Hey, she muttered as she drew close, prodding him lightly with her injured foreleg (damn, that hurt!). Are you dead? His ribcage rose and fell, but otherwise, he looked it. And she'd dealt with way too much death lately for this to be anything but a hindrance and an agonizing reminder of what she'd lost.

Feel free to skip.  :)

That voice.

He remembered it so vividly, and the sound was enough for Venamis to feel as though someone had kicked him right in the gut. The young Melonii, having been resting when the howl went up, gathered to his paws and prepared to get the hell out of dodge before he could be found.

His family no longer inhabited the Haunted Wood, but why? Where had they gone? Were they looking for him? Had they finally found him? Venamis felt real panic grip him, chilling him right to his core, concerned that his father might've sent his second to retrieve him - that they might seek to invade Blackfeather if Maegi did not oblige.

Venamis went to the source of Midar's call, certain that his fate would be decided by others on this day. He crept through the trees and remained hidden in shadow, Winter-white eyes finding the collapsed figure of the former Melonii lieutenant at the forest's edge.

The ebony youth paused some distance away, watching quietly as Maegi moved to investigate. He refused to join her, reminding himself that this could easily be a trap to snare him - and Venamis was not prepared to play the part of a frightened rabbit.

A nudge brought him back, but he did not immediately move, not until he heard her question and realized he had lost consciousness. Slowly, he pushed himself up from the ground, too weak and in too much pain to try and stand just yet. His violet gaze shifted to the woman. Not yet, he answered with a painful intake of breath. Before he would have been disappointed by that but now, he had a mission. He just needed to be allowed within the borders, to gain their trust. I am Midar Melonii, he offered. At first he wondered if he should give a fake name but his real name was likely to get him farther here. I want to come home, he said next, his breathing becoming more ragged. Talking this much was difficult when breathing was so painful, but he tried to hide just how much of a toll it was taking. 

Damien's child went unnoticed by the beast for now while he was distracted by the pain and trying to persuade this presumed leader to allow him entry into the pack.

She knew what he was before he spoke a word. The indigo eyes gave her all the answers she needed. Why, though, was still a question that hung between them. He gave his reasoning and she fixed him with a suspicious stare, in no mood to be charitable after the past several days. Especially if he was—

One of Damien's? Maegi asked succinctly, voice cold. If so, this was never your home. . .but it could be, if you prove your loyalty. Your worth.

She wished there was an easy way to verify his identify. Maegi thought of summoning @Aries, but the Svartell had been quite absent lately, which displeased her. Or Venamis, perhaps. . .however, the boy had seemed keen to leave his past behind. How could she drag him headlong into it again?

Her brows arced high as she added, scanning his battered frame, What happened to you?

One of Damien's?

He nodded. I was, he said first, growing quiet at her demand that he prove himself useful and loyal. He couldn't blame her for placing stipulations on his joining; it's what he would have requested had their roles been reversed.

He coughed as she continued to speak, the motion sending jolts of searing pain up both sides of his chest. He kept his face a blank mask despite the hurting, unwilling to give away just how much pain he was in. I got caught under falling rocks, he said through his wheezing. While I was trapped, a voice told me I needed to be here, he continued. So I dug myself out and walked three days to get here. His cold gaze met hers. So I will do whatever you need.

He had to be. She shouldn't be surprised. It was just more difficult this time as opposed to Aries; Maegi had known the Svartell almost since birth, and even his disloyalty hadn't fully swayed her good opinion of him. Midar, she didn't know from anyone else. Why should she trust his word?

A voice, she said flatly, incredibly unfairly, considering that she'd been hearing voices all her life. Ah, well. No one ever said she was perfect. I suppose you could stay here and heal, at least. And if you're going to be loyal, live up to your word, then you might as well stay after that, too.

Maegi was feeling more deflated with each word, feeling the weight of past days pressing hard on her, pushing, pushing down. . . But we're not staying in these woods, she added, and jerked her head out toward the meadow. If you can walk, I can find you a place out there. It's too dangerous with all of the trees falling down. But then. . .you'd know that, she added, frowning as her eyes scanned his wounds.

Could he even walk? By Jaes, he looked as if he were on death's door.

Relief. The first hurdle was cleared; she had accepted him within their ranks. The beast almost couldn't contain the evil grin that begged to spread across his banged up face; the pain radiating through his body with every breath quickly snuffed the desire, though. But it would take more than just a tentative allowance within their borders...or wherever they now resided. Midar knew he would have to gain the trust of the pack, which meant he would have to prove himself. So, he would be watching carefully for just the right opportunity to do so. He dipped his head. Of course, he replied.

Could he walk? Barely. But he wasn't about to tell her that, and he wasn't about to stay here where the pack would not be. Midar nodded. I can walk, he said, his breathing labored and raspy as he took a slow step. Lead the way— he realized she hadn't offered her name or title; he had just assumed she was the leader. But what if she wasn't? You never told me who you were, he pointed out. He coughed a little, sending a wave of nauseating pain through his frame. It almost knocked him to the ground, but he fought the weakness, instead taking another step as if to prove he was still able to make the trip to wherever they needed to go.

He could walk. Didn't really sound like he was up to the challenge, but he did rise, asking her to lead the way. She noted the hesitation, the fact that she'd been remiss in introducing herself. Her lips twisted in a slightly wry smile as she responded, Maegi. . .Melonii. Granddaughter of Meldresi, twice over.

What relation did he have to Meldresi, she wondered? He very much resembled her uncle, Miraak, and Ramsay, though without the stunted spine. A Melonii, for sure.

She walked slowly, allowing him to keep the pace. Not that she would have gone racing ahead anyway, with her crooked paw and all. Still, Maegi remained mindful that he kept close by as she left the treeline, heading for the meadow. Damien is my uncle, she explained, casting her voice over her shoulder. I'm sure he had nothing but bad things to say about me.

He could not believe what he was hearing. Claws dug into the earth as Maegi chose to welcome Midar among her flock, frustration causing his brow to furrow and his teeth to grit together. His pent-up rage threatened to blow over with the raising of hackles and trembling of his limbs.

Venamis, silent on dark paws and biting back the growl that swelled in his breast, retreated from the scene. His heart yearned to go to his pallid leader, to plead with her, tell her that allowing his uncle into their ranks was a mistake, but what was the point? She'd tell him she was the adult, she was the Alpha, her word was law.

And he was just some dumb kid. Damien's dumb kid.

Suddenly resentful, venamis disappeared into the foliage of their beloved Blackfeather Woods. He would remain there for some time, stubbornly evading any who might hunt for him and resisting spending even a moment on the meadow for as long as his father's second called it home.

It was true, Damien didn't have anything nice to say about her. Pretty much, he said, siezed with another painful coughing fit brought on by just the exertion of walking. His lungs burned, the pain nothing like he had ever felt, but he tried his best to keep it to himself. He wheezed and looked back to Maegi. But he isn't here anymore, so his words mean nothing to me. It was a lie, one that was painful for him to speak. He still owed a lot to the Melonii leader, even if he was doubting his family as a whole lately. He hated speaking against him, but standing up for him would hardly paint him a good light with the blackfeather wolves. I'm interested to learn all the ways he was wrong, the beast added. That part wasn't necessarily a lie; he did want to know more about his relative, just not for the reasons she probably thought.

Interesting. Maegi's mouth curved once more into a smile as he spoke, continuing to make her way into the meadow. And I'm looking forward to having another Melonii around, she said sincerely, wondering if he could tell her more about Meldresi. Did he know her, or Miraak?

Plenty of time to pick his brain later. For now, she just wanted to get him to the rendezvous before he collapsed again.

last post from me!