Blackfeather Woods For the night is dark and full of stories

@Burke @Morgana @Crescendo @Kadence @Ohen @Lusa @Twist @Sabrina @Grimnir @Cicero @Damien This pack activity is not mandatory and no repercussions will be issued if you do not join! Meldresi is calling for a small pack festival where they will feast, share stories, and overall have a good time. Every pack member who does join has to bring food for everyone to share. This will take place in Wispmother's Grotto and will be forward dated to March 20th (the new moon and the first day of spring! (where I live it's supposed to snow that day. Lovely)) The first round will end on Sunday, March 22nd.

The pack had not gathered together in a long time. She sensed the disconnect between them, and worried at the tension. Such a thing could destroy everything she built, everything she loved. The Dark Priestess could not let that come to fruition. So she called for a celebration, a festival of sorts: for the first new moon of spring had arrived; it was the spring equinox.

Meldresi sat perched on a log in the silent Wispmother's Grotto. Her dark blue eyes flitted upwards as she followed the path of one of the trademark wisps floating delicately in the air. She wondered if they would stay to watched the pack gather, or if they would float away and disappear. They were interesting things, dancing in the air, appearing from nowhere, then disappearing without a trace. Meldresi wondered if they were real creatures at all, but spirits instead.

But she had little time to speculate on the wisps. The priestess tipped her head back and howled, commanding her wolves to join her, and to bring food. She hoped it would be a long, boisterous, fun night.

[size=medium]Twist's tail wagged as soon as she heard the howl. A gathering! And bring food. Twist split a wide and unnerving grin and changed direction to follow a faint scent of some creature. She recognized it as rabbit and was soon on its tail. (Ha) She spotted it, a white thing nibbling on some fern. Twist leapt and clamped in her mouth, not killing it yet. Then after a few seconds in her jaws she bit down hard, breaking it's spinal cord that was in the neck. She set down the body. Then she bit off the feet, spitting them all back out onto the ground. The end was now bloody stubs with leg bones sticking out, that suddenly snapped with no feet on them. She smiled. Then she picked up the rabbit, the feet, and headed towards the source of the call. She entered, and bowed to Meldresi. "Well Hello there! Twist brings foods requesting." She said, placing the footless rabbit in front of Meldresi's paws. She also handed her one of the rabbit's feet. "For good lucking!"  Twist said with a wink. Then she sat a foot or two away from Meldresi, placing down the remaining three feet in front of her. [/size]

   The dark star slept soundly in the beautiful garden of red flowers. She had took a liking to this wondrous place. She seemed to be escaping her tension and entering a Garden of Eden. A sudden howl cut through her slumber. It was from her Queen, calling for her Pack and food. It couldn't be a meeting. Why would she ask to bring forth food? The girl had never been to any kind of celebration. So she sat up and went to hunt dumbfounded.


  She had caught a quick little meal. Rabbit and a couple of squirrels. She scooped their bushy bodies and carried it to the gathering place. Her paws carried her to a magical place. Visible blue lights flickered on and of around Meldresi. She dropped her kill and dipped her head. "Hello. May I ask what is this all about? It seems.... odd." Lisa had never had a time to do this with her own Pack. She seemed awkward.

Since Cicero did not yet hunt -- the age that he would go on hunting trips where he would actually join the adults in the hunt rapidly approached but was not yet upon him -- or at least could not kill anything if he did not happen to luckily come across a wounded animal, he did not bring any food. Cicero still mostly ate regurgitated meat, though he was beginning to transition to solid foods now that he was a little over three months of age.

Cicero was nearby enough when his mother called, aware that an activity would take place, so he was swiftly by her side. He saw Twist and a wolf he didn't recognise. Cicero waited along the edges of the meeting, waiting from the shadows in uncharacteristic stoic silence -- for those who had met him before knew him to be excited, playful and always full of laughter -- for other wolves to arrive.

The large tank of a male was always busy for his pack, if he wasn't patrolling he was dragging in meals to feed a whole orphanage. It seemed like that sometimes to Burke. Ever when he wanted to eat from the caches it would be close to empty. Tonight was one of those nights. He was dragging a deer calf with him into the heart of Black Feather Woods when he heard the call. The tank of a male snorted lowly and then continued to drag the animal with him. Burke was unaware what was happening without his knowledge. How his past was calling closer to meet him face to face. 

Tonight that didn't matter. Tonight he would have to socialize with his pack. Burke carried himself with the usual calmness and pride. He was still Gamma after all, currently the highest rank in Black Feather under Meldresi. Even since Bane vanished there hadn't been a Beta to the pack. Meldresi was often enough since she had her young so a beta wasn't really necessary. Still, Burke was curious who would follow in Bane's footsteps... Burke approached the wolves that were faster than him, which wasn't really a surprise, he wasn't fast he was built strong. He dropped the deer in the middle and promptly placed himself by Meldresi and Cicero. He gave him a gentle nudge in greeting. "Meldresi. Cicero," he spoke in greeting. He had been training him to become a spy after all. Burke's pale eyes searched for the dark little pup. Where was the little warrior? Once he sat down he nodded to the others. "Twist. Lusa."

Ohen gave a yawn as he drug a fox carcass with him, towards his den. He didn't want to take food from the pack's cache all the time, so he would kill for himself and store it near his den. He was going to enjoy the fox when a howl went up on the air calling for the pack, and for each member to bring food. Knowing that the wolves in this pack worship other Gods than him, he said his prayer and thanks for the fox away from the pack. He didn't want to hide his religion, but at the same time he didn't want to speak of it.

With a sigh he continued toward where the call came from. He finally reached the meeting place, and with one last tug, he let the fox fall on the ground. There were already several wolves there. Some he liked, others he disliked. He gave a bow to the alpha who he only met once at the boarders, and then sat down saying nothing. He recognized all the wolves there but one. He would try to greet the wolf later, but for now his attention was given to the pack. 

Morgana held in her jaws a large hare, perfect for dinner. She was still reeling from the news Meldresi had given her, and all day had operated like a machine, trying to take her mind of things. She had planned to eat it herself, that is until she came across a small gathering of her pack mates? She came to a stop trying to catch any scent of Him. When she didn't, she cautiously looked around, she had known that he could efficiently mask his scent and might as well be lurking in the shadows that very moment. Her ears flattened partially as she entered that presence of the Alpha, bowing slightly. She stood back up, slightly nervous, but quickly changed that, and adapted her usual feel about her, intimidating and dark. She dropped the creature. "Hello everyone". Almost the whole pack was here. "What is this about"? She asked. It was not common for what seemed like a social event to take place, specially given the reputation of the pack.  

For those who were wondering where Damien was, well.. He was trying to sneak up on Cicero, stalking from the shadows like a ninja. He was about to pounce on him, take him by surprise, show him who is boss, but the mission had to be aborted. 

Burke had arrived.

"BURK!" the pup shouted, jumping out of the dark to greet him by putting his paws on the beast's grey chest with a whirl of a tail behind him. He was pretty excited, it was obvious, and the reason was because Burke was his favorite teacher, he taught Assassination, Damien's favorite subject by the way, and he was used to having fun when he was around. The rest of the pack was of little interest to him anyway.

I'm back!!!!!!!!! I've got HUGE news! I'll be posting it in the gossip thread ;D My move went smooth though, so happy to be back

Meldresi's howl captures Grim's attention, bringing him out of his usual dark thoughts. A pack gathering? What for? And bring food? Lips curl back to reveal thorn sharp teeth. Why should he have to bring food? What was she calling a pack gathering for? He had been lurking through the dark tree's of this beloved forest, enjoying the thoughts of coming across an intruder and ripping their throat out. His days of imaging his pack dead are behind him now. They have grown on him and a certain deadly protectiveness is starting to grow within him. He doesn't know what to think of the feeling. He fears that it is the good starting to eat away at his inner evil. Golden eyes narrow suspiciously. Whatever the feeling is, he does not have to act upon it. Darkness, the voices whisper sweetly. Evil, they say. Of course, even if the light inside him is trying to overpower the dark, it will eventually fail. He has nothing to fear. A twisted grin spreads over dark features. Eyes wild, Grim makes his way to Meldresi.

The scent of several wolves reach him before they come into sight. Others have made it here before him. Grim snaps at the first one he comes up behind. One called Ohen. Grim spots a fox at the paws of the wolf. Teeth glint as a growl deepens in his chest. Pack meetings are irritating. Why does Grim even bother coming? Why should he care? These kinds of things are below him. What they do does not matter. Grim could care less. Rough ground brushes against a bushy tail. Grim sits with golden eyes scanning the clearing. He spots Damien greeting Burke. Grim silently growls at the brute. Always an aggrivating sight. The large male is annoyingly intemidating. There is also Morgana. A hare sits at the paws of the female. Questions drip from her mouth that echo the one Lusa asks. Cicero was there as well. Last he notices Twist who also has brought a rabbit.

A narrowed gaze lands upon Meldresi. Grim angrily glares at the alpha. What will be her reasonings behind this meeting? It had better be good. Her call has darkened his mood. Grim waits immpatently. Teeth slightly showing beneath a scowl.

Potema idolized her mother. She loved the dyes her mother had dancing across her side, especially the red pawprint. With the snowmelt, Potema took the opportunity to put designs on her side, using mud. She found that by rubbing her sides on different colored mud, she found had different streaks of color from black, black-green (from the swamps), and brown. The princess actually found red mud! Now...if only she could make in into a pawprint..

But she could not mull over that for any longer. Her mother had called the pack together for a meeting, and bid that they bring food. Potema squeaked happily. She had the perfect thing to bring to the pack, for whatever this was. She'd never had a pack meeting in her life.

The white princess ran towards her little hiding spot, where she kept the crow she found dead on the ground, and the giant crickets from the swamp. The pack would enjoy the meal; she was certain. Potema clasped her prize and teetered towards the meetingplace, one of her favorite spots in all of Blackfeather: Wispmother's Grotto.

She was late to the party; already most of the pack was there, including her brothers. She hardly recognized the others, and instead scrambled to her mother and yelped at her. "Look mama!"

What a turn out! Next round ends whenever everyone posts, or by next Sunday! @Twist @Lusa @Cicero @Burke @Ohen @Morgana @Grimnir @Damien

They had come calling, with food as she had asked. It was too early in the season for a large, proper feast, but that had followed her orders and brought the best meals they could. Later on, as the days warmed, she would call a hunt. By then, her pups would be old enough to run with the pack, and it would be their first hunt. But that could wait.

Twist was the first to arrive, with a rabbit in her jaws...but it's feet detached. Meldresi's eyebrow slivered upwards in curiosity, but she soon recognized the practice. Lucky rabbit's foot. "Thank you, Twist." She said, placing the rabbit's paw under her own. After her came Lusa, with rabbit and squirrels, who seemed confused at the meeting. Her confusion was not unwarranted. Meldresi did not do this often, what with all of the business that the pack had to attend to. It did not seem natural. Her son, Cicero, strangely calm, stuck to the shadows, but she sent a little chuff to him as a welcoming gesture.

Out of them all, Burke had brought the largest kill: a deer calf. It was one of the white deer that stood out amongst the black forest, and its coat shone in the light of the wisps. She nodded in thanks to Burke, then to Ohen and Morgana as they entered. For now, the Queen kept silent about the purpose of the meeting until everyone had gathered. She would hate to have to repeat herself. Then came...Grimnir, of all wolves. She had seen little of the wild and insane male for a few weeks, and was interested to know where he had gone, but that was a conversation for later. She nearly didn't notice her son Damien's presence as she focused her gaze on the previously MIA wolf. Finally came little Potema, bearing her own kills: insects. She flashed a smile at the white princess, but settled on her log and swept her gaze at the contingent.

"All of you are asking why I have called you here today, either silently or vocally." She began. "Winter has come and gone. Wolves have left our ranks, but many have joined and swelled our ranks. My pups are growing strong and our pack's name is whispered fearfully throughout Teekon Wilds. Is that not cause for celebration?" The queen paused for a brief moment, her eyes flickering to the edges to catch any signs of stragglers. When she found none in the silence, she took a breath and spoke again. "While we may call ourselves a pack, I find that some of us, especially the newcomers, have not had the chance to socialize with the others. Some of us have barely seen some of the wolves gathered here tonight." Her gaze found Ohen, Lusa, and then Grimnir. Those three came first into her mind when she thought of how disconnected the pack was. "Tonight we will celebrate the first new moon of spring. I, and many others of my religion, treat the new moon with reverence. We are creatures of the dark, Mephala's followers. Night may be our ally, but the darkest of nights, when the moon has fully disappeared, is our closest friend. Tonight, we will feast together, as a pack. We will share stories, sing songs, even, as a pack. Tonight we celebrate."

With her speech over, the dark priestess took another breath. She hoped this would go as planned, but that was not in her control. "I would like to begin with a story of the Night Mother, the mortal form of Mephala, my goddess. Does anyone else have anything to share?" She looked around the crowd and flashed a smile. "Don't be shy."

It didn't take long for Damien to arrive, and boy, did the pup greet him. The teacher and mentor couldn't help to crack his face a bit into a smile. "Hey, Killer," he spoke softly towards the pup and gave him a quick fond glance before nudging him playfully. He felt like Damien was always in for a 'play' fight. He also nudged Cicero so the two brothers might double team him and try and tackle him down. Burke was slowly forgetting that most pack members were watching. Potema seemed to be attached to her mother. When Meldresi started speaking Burke instantly stopped and sat down. His pale eyes stayed on her. He found it was an excellent idea to share stories and celebrate.

Burke wasn't much of a story teller more of a listener so instantly the tank moved down. He comfortably laid down. "I don't think many of us are shy," Burke grinned, looking rather amused. "I am not much of a chronicler so I will be listening today." And probably trying to keep the youngster's noise level down once they got bored. His pale eyes glanced over the others. Most of them Burke met. He tried to be there for new members. These stories would help the future counselor. 

 She looked up at her leader. She was proud of the queen's strength and power. How she ran the Pack. But when she gazed at her, Ohen, and a stranger she hadn't seen, she felt awkward amongst the bunch. But she shook off that feeling as Meldresi asked for stories. It would have been nice to tell the Pack about her ancestors, but decided not to. Maybe a classic that her mother always told her. She cleared her throat and spoke, "If you don't mind, I would like to tell a story." She glanced around, looking at the others around her. She stood up to face them. "It's a story of the Lone Wolf. How one wolf started the loner trend." She looked into the distance, brining back the words.

  "In the quiet woods a long time ago, all wolves where in Packs. None where alone. All had family. Back then, you would be categorized impure without a Pack of your own. But there was one wolf who was against this. He thought it was unfair, for he knew many wolves would rather carve there own path. So one night, he snuck out, away from everyone, everything. The wolves of the land presumed him dead. But no. Instead, he had started a great quest. An adventure. Soon enough, he found a beautiful  sanctuary. A place more grand then any other.

One day, one of his old Packages found him, and copied his loner ways. Then another, and another. That is how it all started. Being a lone wolf is a sign freedom." When she finished, she studied them all.

When Burke greeted him, Cicero stepped from the shadows and licked the underside of Burke's chin in respect. Then Damien came bursting into the clearing, and Cicero watched his brother with calculated silence while more wolves streamed onto the site. The three-months-old listened to his mother as she spoke. When she finished he repeated in a muttered whisper, "Celebrate," turning his muzzle away from the gathering as he did, evidently speaking only to himself (or to unseen others).

Then Meldresi invited others to tell stories, and Twist was first to step up. Cicero listened in silence as Twist told a story about lone wolves. He heard only half of the story, distracted by various things along the way; his own tail, a bug upon a tree, pack mates doing things, and other such things.

As Burke sat down, the little Killer accommodated himself between the grey beast's muscular paws and sat down, ready to hear the stories. He had heard some from mommy when he wasn't able to sleep, and he thought they were the most amazing and cool thing ever, so he was excited to hear more and expected for his mother to tell a completely new and forbidden story. Those were his favorites.

As Lusa spoke, the shadow tried to stay attentive, but it was hard. His eyes were starting to close and he felt the world go blank as he almost fell asleep, but with big effort, and twisted eyes, he stayed awake until the story finished. He hadn't gotten a word from Lusa, but he still was excited for mommy's tale. Damien knew about Mephala, the goddess of darkness, and Sithis, the dread father, and he felt great curiosity towards those. He wanted to be an assassin one day, and he knew that the daedric prince was the way to get it, not to mention the "how to be cool 101" with professor Burke... Those were important too...

actually Iris that was Lusa. Unless you meant Cicero thinks Lusa is Twist?

She watched as many others showed up, several questioning the gathering. Twist recognized Morgana, Burke, Meldresi, Lusa, and Cicero, but the Dark Lord's wolf form was nowhere to be seen. Perhaps he was watching in the form of another animal or another wolf. When Meldresi began to speak Twist's ears flicked forward. At the part where she called them Mephala's followers, the fur along her spine rose, though she forced it back to normal. At the part where Meldresi asked if anyone wanted to tell a story, Twist's maw split into what a first looked like a pained grimace, though in seconds morphed into a shiny grin. Her tail wagged rapidly through Lusa's story, waiting for her turn. She listened closely to Lusa's story and at the end, stored it away in a filing cabient in her brain. Then she stood, looking at the group that had come. "Twist likes tell storying, if all is right. One upon a times, there young shewolf call... Melody. Melody pretty, helpful, goody good around pack. But mean to tres sibling behind pack backing. Bully, think best, think sibling dumb y weak y lazy. Sibling, Boing, Turn, y Slice, hating Melody. Anger! But never fight back. Too fear of Melody. Melody, one night, decide that they are threat to her rise through ranks to Alpha. Melody she self drown a minor member pack. Pull body out. Sprinkle goat blood, use Slice bedding to put Slice scent on body. Place near camp and tear wound in corpse. Pack find body, blame Slice. Slice exiles. Next Melody take young most sibling Boing on hunt trip. Get near other land border. Convincing Boing go over border, though Melody stay behind. Boing trying to follow Melody orders out fear, come back tatter and panting. Melody tell pack he trespass. Pack think Boing disobey universal pack border rule could starts wars. Boing exile. Finally, shewolf Turn was only left. It had easy with Turn, convinces pack Turn insane unstable retarded. Pack exiling Turn. Turn, Boing, y Slice, meet out of pack border. Come one night, to camp. Kill Melody violently. Splash! Blood! Melody scream unnaturaling blood bubblings at throat. Next morn explain pack truth about Melody y her unreasonable hate toward and frames of sibling. Slice taking throne alpha y Boing y Turn as betas. Eventually sibling split way. Moraling: Unreasonable hate, unreasonable death. Buh-bye! El fin." She concluded her tale with with a grin and crazed eyes to compliment it.

Ones stayed quite while he listened to the wolves stories. He had his own to legend tell and he trying to remember all the details. As the dark wolf, who he did not know finished their story Ohen smiled before speaking. "I will tell a story about a great creature called the Dragon" he said and looked around for the wolves reactions. "A long time ago the world was ending and fire took over the earth. A lizard was absorbed by fire, but instead of dying it morphed into a powerful beast called a Dragon. The beast had a body as big as a mountain, and wings that could carry it above the clouds. It breathed fire, and it eyes would eat your very soul. One day the Dragon died and in its last moments alive it turned into solid stone." he said and took a deep breath.

"It is said that the Dragon's body turned into a mountain, and that one day, when the fire returns to earth - the beast will live again." Ohen wondered what the wolves thought of his story. He smiled and waited to see if anyone else would share a story.

Grim likes the idea of a celebration for striking fear through the heart of the other packs. Meldresi had to ruin it for him though by suggesting sharing stories. The dusted red male bares teeth at the dark Alpha. The others immediately start to take to the story telling. Grim doesn't listen to them. Golden eyes continue to glare at the dark leader of the woods. His anger grows until he's had enough.  He jerks to his feet. With a snarl he spins and walks from the clearing. How ridiculous. This pack that's name is whispered fearfully is sharing stories? They should be out there celebrating with a hunt. A hunt of a wolf. That is the way this pack should be ran. Grim snaps at a small white pup as he leaves. It is one of Meldresi's. He can smell the scent of the Alpha on the pup. It causes him to pause for a moment. Narrowed eyes study the young one. So there was a white one to match Bane.  The missing mate of Meldresi had pissed Grim off during their first meeting.  He takes a step closer to the pup. Light does not belong in the shadows. This one he should kill. Amber eyes shift to the Alpha conveying that he wishes death upon this one. Grim's gaze then glances over the other members of the pack. It would be fool-hardy to attack the white spawn of Bane with so many wolves present.  With one last dark look at the small white female Grim trots off into the woods. 

It will be the end of that pup if he ever catches her alone. You better keep her close, Meldresi. The dark alpha will not always be there to protect her pup though. When that moment comes he will attack.Wait, the voices whisper. Watch, they advice. Grim has been waiting too long to make a kill. The pack has not been his target as of late. He had decided that killing intruders would be better. But now he has discovered a white pup of bane's. It is the only one among them that he wishes to kill. The others hold no interest for him. Grim wonders if the Alpha will heed his unspoken warning. Will she keep a closer eye on her pup now that he knows of it? Will she take action against his warning?

I can't help but post again. Protective!Fosterdad!Burke XD Mel, if it is unwanted let me know then I will remove it.

Burke smiled lightly when Damien sat by him. He listened to the stories and already knew that this was going to bore the hell out of this kid. Burke got distracted by the other two, watching over them. He was their mentor and he felt responsible for all three pups. Burke's head lifted when Grimnir got up and snarled. Burke disliked how the snarl sounded. He always saw the male as a good asset even though it seemed Grimnir liked to kill more than to have morals. What happened next was a perfect example of his low standard. If he would even think that he could snap at one of Meldresi's young then he was definitely thinking wrongly.

Burke instantly sprung to his feet when Grimnir got way to close to Potema. To Burke it felt one needed special permission to even get close to the youngsters. He knew how crazy Grimnir could be and Burke instantly felt the need to protect the young girl. His docked tail rose and a warning growl came from his throat. He was right under Meldresi in rank so the other wolf better think twice for attempting to do anything towards Potema AND a wolf higher in rank than him. Burke stood over Potema like an iron protection field. His teeth bared as the girl was safely under him even though the male had already vanished in the shadows. Guess he didn't feel like going against him. Burke snorted disapprovingly.

Burke would find a way to get Grimnir a one way ticket over the border into exile. Burke disliked the way the wolf had been looking at Potema. Like she was a quick bunny to eat. The tank of a male let out another warning growl and not a kind one at that. He wouldn't let anything happen to Meldresi's young. Way to ruin a fun storytelling Celebration. The male was too ill tempered to even wait for Meldresi's story. 

Potema is a strong independent princess and she don't need no man. She can do bad by herself.

Potema climbed up the log her mother was standing on, and nestled herself in between the dark front legs, snuggled at one of the strong limbs. She smiled and cooed, both at the stories and the strange voices that seemed to accompany the flying wisps. She had never seen a large gathering of wolves like this before. But their stories were nothing like mother's. Meldresi was certain to whip up something dark, chilling, and overall awesome.

But the mood was ruined as a tan wolf, a male, stood up and snarled. At her. Potema's brow furrowed with confusion, but as the large wolf grew closer, she bared thorn-sharp teeth defiantly, and snarled back. She didn't know why he had snarled at her, but she would not just let him threaten her, even though he was older and stronger. She was a princess.

also quick extra post to react to what happened :) and derpderp, i must have mixed lusa and twist up yeah, sorry! :P

More stories were told, and Cicero listened silently and with interest to each of them.

When the adult wolf -- the only one coloured differently than the other wolves here, the wolves he knew, the black, white and grey ones -- snarled at his mother, Cicero watched the wolf with interest. He did not respond, not even when the wolf snarled at his sister. When the wolf left the clearing, Cicero said, "Wolf not with pack?" He turned his question to Meldresi, tilting his head as he looked at her. Conclusively, Cicero added, "Wolf is leaves pack?", because to him, that seemed like the only logical conclusion of the storming off in the midst of a meeting. Cicero lowered his head and whispered secretively to himself,  "leaves Cicero's pack."

Then the child looked up again, a smile ever present on his face, as he seemed untouched by the display of teeth all around; the teeth were, after all, not pointed in his direction. Now that this was over with, it was back to storytelling time; the rude departure of the wolf had long been forgotten by Cicero.

Next round (ends April 5th!) @Ohen @Lusa @Grimnir (if you want to respond) @Burke @Cicero @Damien @Twist

A few of her wolves stepped up and shared brief stories. Lusa's was about the beginning of the loner trend, and Ohen about a dragon. Twist's was....well...morbid and macabre, but wasn't that what her pack was all about? It was a bit disjointed, but she was being critical. Meldresi was enjoying the little storytime until Grimnir got upset. She frowned as he approached; he had recently returned from his brief exile after attacking Slade, who she presumed had died from his wounds soon after. That would make him a murderer, if she had proof (which she didn't). Nonetheless, Meldresi did not trust the tan wolf one bit, and her trust diminished even more when he snarled at her daughter tucked under her paws.

The tension rose then: Potema indignantly growled back, but Burke was already risen, standing protectively in front of her princess until Grimnir left. Meldresi was unphased by the threat, on the outside. She took a deep breath and shut her eyes for a moment, calming herself before she began her story.

"I will tell a creation story, of how, in the beliefs of some sects of the Dark Brotherhood, the moon and stars were made." The priestess raised her voice slightly, letting it ring through the Grotto. "Long ago there was a land (whose name is lost to the dusts of time) where the worshippers of the Daedric Gods, like Mephala, and their opposites, the Aedra, or Nine Divines, lived together in harmony. Despite worshipping conflicting deities, the two different factions managed to live in harmony underneath the rule of a line of noble kings. At this time, in the beginning of the world, there was only one light in the sky: the Sun. This time was when the Aedra worshippers were most active. When the Sun disappeared, the land belonged to the Daedra, the followers of Mephala, the Dark Brotherhood, chief of all. The Dark Brotherhood was one of, if not the most powerful Daedric cults at that time, and all feared them, for no one ever knew if they were going to be a target.

One of the kings, Remalias, was a devoted worshipper of the Aedra, specifically the gods Stendarr and Arkay, two gods that starchily opposed the Daedric beliefs. He started mistreating the Daedric worshippers, denying them food and water rights, restricting them to tiny, desolate lands to live, and outright attacking and killing any Daedric worshipper who dared show their face in the light.

After years of oppression, the head priests of each Daedric god came to the Dark Brotherhood, and paid for the death of Remalias. The Dark Brothers stole into the King's den, and tried to kill him in his sleep, but he was protected by many guards, and the Dark Brothers were forced to flee. Regardless of their first failure, the Dark Brotherhood made the King their main target, and all of their attention was focused on killing him. But time and time again, they failed, either by chance or circumstance. Scores of Dark Brothers and Sisters fell, killed by the King's guards, or from other factors, like an elk, choking on their own poison, and so on.

Eventually he died, but not by a Dark Brother's paw, but of old age. In their arrogance, the Aedra took the King's soul and placed it in the night sky, bringing light to the darkness the Dark Brotherhood lived in for millennia, where Remalias could look down on his adversaries and gloat for eternity. The Aedra decreed, that any soul that escaped the hands of the Dark Brotherhood would be rewarded with the same fate, becoming stars in the sky, forever laughing at their failed assassins. The souls of the Dark Brotherhood's past failures were flung into the sky then, creating the stars we have now.

The Dark Brotherhood was shamed then. Their numbers were reduced to less than one hundred, with many dying over the years trying to kill the King. The other cults, either Aedra or Daedra worshippers, mocked them for years.

Sithis took pity on the Dark Brotherhood then, and with the help of Mephala, put a shroud over the moon, the largest soul that laughed at them in the night. It did not last forever, as Remalias would pull it off so he could see the Dark Brotherhood below, but Mephala sent a group of her Spider Daedra in the sky, where they were tasked with shrouding the moon so the Dark Brotherhood could walk through the shadows without laughter on their backs.

That is why we celebrate the new moon: it is when Remalias is blocked from our view, so we can live without laughter every time we walk. Thank you for listening."

look at that wall of text Anyway, there will be a hunt set directly after this thread is finished and it will be the pups' first hunt as well. :)

Burke walked back to Damien and settled by him. He made sure to watch the youngster and any danger from the pack members. Burke would not have it. He would attack the next wolf that would even make any move towards Meldresi's young. Soon everything settled and Burke listened to Meldresi's story. It was utterly fascinating what she was telling how the brotherhood started to exist. Burke always wanted to know about this so he could fully understand his religion that he followed as a dark brother. It was of vital importance. He had to remember this. As smart as burke was he stored every single detail in his head. Later he would analyze it all.

Burke made sure every pup stayed away. It was a long and stuffy story and it might that one of them would doze of in the meanwhile. If they would burke would be there to give them a nudge. "Excellent explanation, Meldresi. Everything is much more clear now."

Cicero huffed when his questions remained unanswered, for he would have liked to have known if Grimnir was still a part of their pack, or no longer welcome in it for his insubordination. However, as always, Cicero had soon forgotten all about Grimnir, when Meldresi was the one to tell the next story.

While Cicero did not need to be kept awake, he did forget to pay attention lots of times during the story. He would see something -- a shiny light breaking through the trees, a bug, a critter darting through the trees, the lone twitter of a bird... It was hard to pay attention to the full story and he missed patches of it because he kept getting distracted.

indentWhen Grimnir growled at Potema, Damien got up just as quick as Burke had, and he too was comfronting the subversive beast with a snarl. No one growled at his family, not in his prescence. That was going to be a thing that would never fade away of Damien's mind, he would remember it until either him or Grimnir died, and he wouldn't forgive. One day Damien would be a big wolf, maybe even bigger than Grimnir, and that would be the day his family was never going to run any more danger. For the time being, Burke was more than enough.

indentDamien had almost forgotten about the storytelling with the spur of the moment, but he didn't want to miss mommy's tale. He got back into position as Burke did, and with big eyed the pup paid attention to his mommy's words. The brotherhood, as usual, was the topic she chose for this time's story, and Damien couldn't be more delighted. It was epic for the pup every time he heard about the daedra, and this time hadn't been different. He would look up to the starry sky as his mother spoke about it, and the tingling of the stars made the story even more amazing. It was like everyone who the Brotherhood hadn't caught was looking rit¡ght through him. Spooky, but at the same time, epic.