Jade Fern Grove That's why you're you, and the same goes for me as well

Yeah can I get uhhhhh @Arbiter?

Dusk arrived, and he rose from his restless slumber. Corvus began the ongoing search for prey with his nose down, except it was not prey he scented, but a band of wolves. One such scent stood out in his mind: Treason. They weren't merely acquaintances, but she was familiar nonetheless. He felt conflicted. She'd offered him a place in her pack moons and moons ago, and a pack meant security. He'd survived against all odds thus far, but he was a lone wolf in winter. To say Corvus was pushing his luck was an understatement.

He was a fool.

But he'd been avoiding others of his kind for so long now that fighting against that inertia was almost painful. He wouldn't be able to ignore his own hypocrisy if he thrust himself into a pack only to avoid everyone he possibly could. Dread settled in his belly like a stone, rooting Corvus in place as he fought with himself.

Heck yes you can!

Arbiter couldn't say she felt bad about any of her life. The only failings she could find were ones that were the fault of other wolves, not hers. She couldn't control the world, even though she might want to. What was easier was just coming to terms with the fact that most individuals out there were lacking in certain things that in the end made them unreliable.

She'd been out hunting (and investigating, two different things) and now headed home with half a hare and the information she'd gained. Nearing the territory, she smelled a scent that was one of those people. Hm. He was one that at this point she'd entirely written off -- stand her up twice, after all, and suddenly Arbiter wasn't very interested in spending too much effort finding out what happened to them. Corvus.

However, she was curious. Curiosity was a good thing and a bad thing, and really it all depended on him what it would be. Winding her way towards him, it didn't take long before she spotted the black man.  She strode towards him with usual confidence, her usual critical stare as she noted what may have changed. He was thin, but that was something not unfamiliar to her given what had happened over recent months -- she wasn't as burly as she had been in the past, but going from tank to more normal size wasn't as ridiculous. Things were getting better here, after all. She dropped what remained of the hare at her feet, You missed another spar. Yeah, that's Arbiter's way of asking what's up or something.

Nearby footsteps drew him out of his inner turmoil. Speak of the devil, and she shall appear. Treason placed the remains of a hare at her feet. Corvus gave it a passing glance before returning his gaze to her as she spoke. "You missed another spar," Was what she had to say after a year of radio silence. His lip quirked; she hadn't changed a bit, it seemed.

Forgive me. I'll make it up to you, if you want, He apologized with a dip of his head. He would give no excuses this time.

She had an eye for weakness. Yes, so did every predator, but she applied it to everyone, noticing it was a tool she applied to all in her life. In his current state, what did he have to offer to make up for it without hurting himself more?  Selfish as she was, she freely assumed that others would also put their own well-being over whatever words or loyalties had previously been promised.

Arbiter looked him over from head to toe, You don't look like you should be wasting the energy right now at least. But she currently made no offer to give him what she had gathered. Not a wolf of charity, she had intended to bring it back for her family and given the last few months wasn't keen on surrendering her catch so easy, even for a wolf she knew. Have you been somewhere that hasn't started recovering? She couldn't smell Diaspora on him, but if their mountain or whatever had suffered especially, then perhaps he'd been wandering far. Where did his loyalties lay at the moment?  She had made past offers, and now she made no assumptions.

Not now, no. But in the near future, I'd like to. Corvus was acutely aware of his bony composition, but he could linger around a while. A question was shot his way. I've been in and out of the Wilds. Prey has started to return in its own time, but I currently stand alone, He explained, somber.

At that, she grinned -- a toothy, devilish one, so very Arbiter, Good. Then you'll be sticking around rather than risking disappointing me a third time. There were only so many times she'd tolerate it before her greeting would be hostile. She wanted reliability from those she dealt with.

Did Diaspora turn out to be not to your liking? I think you were the last wolf I ran into from that pack. I don't even know if they're still there.  We've moved just north of here, obviously -- a new start or whatever you'd want to call it. A slight tip of her head.  Certainly he couldn't have had foul luck and gotten attacked by something blah blah whatever happened again. If Corvus brought that kind of luck with him wherever he went, then he'd best be more careful in the future.

She really didn't pull her punches. As you wish, He agreed. Treason went on to ask about Diaspora. No, I didn't agree with Stigmata's style of leadership. I didn't stay long, and I haven't been part of a pack since. When she mentioned a new start, he asked, What prompted you to move?

Could she say 'I told you so' to that? She at least had the vague recollection of saying she thought Stigmata was a rather odd wolf. She held off asking an obvious question for now, replying to his question first, We decided it was best to move away from Easthollow so that we could both have more prey when it returned. Unfortunately a different pack has settled nearby now as well, but I think the way our territories are position is better than before. They both had their own forest to hunt in if their territories were for some reason not enough. She did rather hope they'd go elsewhere -- whether it was by dissolving or just finding somewhere they thought was better -- but that was mostly Arbiter being antisocial. In the end, it should be good. The fact that now we get to discard everything from our old alphas and do things our way is just a bonus. It was unfortunate that Rannoch had proven to be too easily swayed by a woman that must have felt threatened by Arbiter's ambitions.

Then would come the obvious, What are your plans? She had invited him.. Twice was it? She did idly wonder what would have happened had he taken her up on it. Perhaps things would have been very different -- or very much the same, that was the thing about speculation, and part of the reason she didn't do it too much for fanciful things. It was better to be bound to actually likely things. Still, she watched him -- his reply would be rather telling, she thought.

Treason explained their reason for moving and nodded, he wouldn't be comfortable with another pack bordering so close, ally or not. He wasn't aware of another neighboring pack, so when she mentioned it, he asked, Where is this other pack? They must've been new-ish. He was mildly curious about what happened to the previous alphas, but it wasn't enough for him to ask.

She asked of his plans, and he huffed. You caught me in the middle of asking myself the same thing. I know it's foolish to wander about on my own in the dead of winter, but every last experience I've had with packs has been torturous. Maybe he could stomach settling down somewhere just to avoid starving, but what was the point of it all? He was tired.

North of our territory -- Whitebark Stream. It feels farther from us than Easthollow was. Whether it is or not, I don't know. Less contact point between borders, each positioned in a better way. As long as they proved to be a reasonable sort of wolf, she'd deal with it.

At least he was thinking of it. Winter was certainly here, and it likely wasn't going to be easing up any time soon. Well, you recall my opinions of the packs you joined. The question is if your next choice is better than the last. What would you be looking for? She didn't directly offer. She already had, and her opinions hadn't changed. More the question was if he for some reason just was avoiding her pack because of her or some other unknown reason. As such, she'd be a little cagey -- if he asked directly to join Legion that was one thing, or seemed to be interested in what they may be offering, perhaps she could more directly re-offer. She wasn't keen on continuing to make offerings to continue to have them rejected.

He noted the location of this new pack. Given the name, he knew where it was located, though he didn't visit the taiga much.

Treason ended up being right on the nose about both packs he joined here. Apparently, she knew something he didn't. But given that track record, he had a reason to trust her opinion. What more, her pack still stood, & now she was leading it. "What would you be looking for?" She asked, and he took his time to think on that. What had he lacked all his life?

Stability. His eyes, which had been fixed on the ground, turned up to look at her with confidence in this answer. That's all. He thought it was a simple request, but apparently not. If you can offer that, I will join you... should you welcome me. Corvus wouldn't take it personally if she denied him; nurtured by instability, he himself became unstable in just about every sense of the word. It'd be no surprise if that wasn't welcome in her ranks, especially since he'd turned her down before.

There was a reason that Arbiter was her given name. She would always judge, and often her judgments were not too far off base. But here was Corvus' response, and it pleased her -- she had been wary, keeping cards close to her chest so that he would have to make the choice. And he had. It wasn't quite like an "I told you so" but it was near enough that it did quite please her. She was right, was she not? It was always pleasant to be proven right in some way.

She smiled slightly, That is one of the things I aim to offer. Security, stability, and the opportunity to better oneself. He would have a chance. Perhaps not as open and warmly welcomed as it would have been either of the past two times, but it was a chance for him to prove himself. I go by Arbiter now. She reached down and nudged the rabbit she'd dropped at her feet towards him, Come, we'll go back to Legion, get you settled in. There would likely be more time to talk later, once he had a good meal and some sleep without wondering whether anything would come chomp him in the night. She lead the way.