Divided We Stand (A Packs Roleplay, OPEN and ACCEPTING)

[The Royal Mirage]

((Currently the hunting party consists of Maia, Lilith, Sparrow, Sam and Aspen - Sparrow's leading them to the herd. I actually think everyone's done eating in the West now, Ruby and Quinn left for a dip in the river, Gemini is in his den, Saber and Lilu are occupied (I think?). Clarence is the only wolf in the West that I'm not at all sure of his whereabouts.))

[*~WolfSoul~*]

((Currently Amara is free in the Northern Mountains and Lilu just left so Saber is open in the Forest. He's in the camp))

[*~WolfSoul~*]

Lilu glanced up at Saber with a slight arch to one of her brows, a faint smile touching against her lips at his quick exit. Though he wasn't being rude about it, rather, she thought he was just unsure of how to take this. A small laugh slipped past her lips at his words, eyes filled with laughing light as she trailed him out of her room, though she didn't follow him all the way out. She paused by the den exit, picking up another small satchel that wasn't as big as the one she had for her morning collecting. After lacing it to her shoulder around her 'bicep' and donning the larger strap around her neck, she slipped out of the den. Lilu's gaze caught on saber, as he was still a little ways from her den, just like she had first found him. With a little smile on her lips Lilu pranced past him, flicking his flank with her tail as she jogged past and sending a little grin over her shoulder at him. It was more of a thankful touch, thankful that he wasn't going to go spreading the fact that she had mice pets around the pack. Her head swiveled back around as she sped up further, waking a wild little swerve seemingly straight into the foliage, paws easily finding footing along the small game trail as she ran through the quickly thickening forest.

Saber's ears flicked back and forth, still unsure of what to do. He watched the pretty fae slip by and felt the quick touch of her tail on his flank. As she looked back at him all he could think to do was the usual dip of his head. He stood where he was for a moment after Lilu had gone, trying to register what had just passed. Eventually the dark brute merely shrugged his heavy shoulders and padded to the leftover food from the morning kills, his stomach rumbling even though he had already fed. As he reached the last of the meal, he scanned the camp for any wolves who had not yet eaten. He didn't want to take more than his fair share when there could be anybody who hadn't yet had theirs.

[spiff]

((Thanks, guys! I'll see if I can't fit my characters in somewhere.))

"Brutal," Kade said, raising his eyebrows. As was his usual style, he spoke in a half-joking, half-serious manner, appearing for all intents and purposes completely meaning what he said even while the gleam in his eyes that never quite faded told a different story. He accepted the carcass, examining it with a clinical eye before taking a careful bite out of it. "Hmm," he said, chewing slowly and thoughtfully. "Interesting. Very... juicy. Not at all like what I usually eat. Tell me, Delano: do you usually eat meat raw?"

Fey had spent the day in solitude, as was the norm for her, amassing a decent amount of kills in the hours that she'd been hunting. So when she found that all the small animals in the vicinity had suddenly disappeared, thus disrupting her work, it was with a sense of great expectancy and annoyance that she awaited the arrival of the wolves who had chased them off with their careless romping about. Sure enough, five wolves soon burst through the trees, preceded by their laughter and pawsteps.
"Hello," she said, her voice cutting through the ruckus. Though quiet, her tone was icy, not purposefully but because it was simply the way she spoke. She noted that the alpha, Maia, was among them, and lifted her chin just a fraction higher, meeting Maia's gaze with unnerving steadiness. Slim as a wisp, with her soft silver fur and the iron shackle that presented such a strong contrast with the delicate image, Fey might as well have been a specter, a ghost chained to the forest who had come to haunt the hunting party. "I do believe you've scared off all the prey within a five-mile radius," she said calmly. "Care to explain?"

Aella had woken late, and when she emerged from her den most of the wolves in the pack seemed to have left camp already. She'd have to set out to find them if she didn't want to be alone all day, but before she did that she decided to get something from the kill pile to sate her hunger- it was no good travelling on an empty stomach, and she didn't much feel like hunting at the moment.
"Saber," she greeted as she approached the pile, seeing that he was finishing up a meal. The other wolf was the head hunter of the pack, and she figured it was just as well: she didn't have to feel so bad about taking from the dwindling pile since he'd probably catch more food throughout the day. Perhaps it wasn't very responsible of Aella to so easily push off the duty onto someone else, but it was simply her nature to do what she pleased, and if anyone had a problem with that, they could just stuff it.

[*~WolfSoul~*]

"Aella," came Saber's deep, rumbling voice in reply. He stepped back from the last of the kill for her. "I've already eaten today." He explained, enormous paws leaving small craters in the fine dirt, long black laws leaving rake lines. "You should have the rest." The oversized, dark brute dipped his head - a very usual habit of his. The high sun above was shining down on his dark, thick pelt and casting up a faint amber light. The golden fur about his face lit up, accenting his glowing amber eyes. He looked fierce, as always, without really meaning to. Anyone who knew him was aware that really he was clumsy and shy unless hunting.

Amara finished up tidying the dens of her fellow pack members and nudging any stray rocks or pebbles out of the camp. If there was one thing that annoyed her, it was stepping on a sharp pebble in the morning. She carefully swept all the pebbles out of camp with her tail and picked up the few larger stones in her jaws. When finished, she lifted her head, seeing nobody around. Her body and mind immediately relaxed. She was alone. At least for now. Her pale eyes, stony grey with streaks of green and blue, glanced down at her own grey body. She was hunched down, like usual, it was part of being an omega. She wasn't even sure that she could straighten all the way up anymore. She wasn't sure how tall she really was. Cautiously, as if she might hurt herself, she straightened her legs out. The muscles were thin, wiry, weak. But it felt nice to stretch them out. Strange, but nice. She slowly straightened her back, pushed her shoulders out of their hunch, and finally lifted her head.

[spiff]

Some part of Aella knew that this was the point at which she was supposed to express her profuse gratitude and praise his generosity, but as Saber stepped aside and she became aware that all she would have to eat this morning was the sad remains of the last kill from the pile, all she could feel was indignation. And, being Aella and not someone who was capable of disguising her thoughts and feelings well at all, this became plain on her face. "Thanks," she said belatedly after a moment of staring bleakly at the carcass, and even then her voice lacked conviction. "Ahem." Realizing this, she cleared her throat and tried again. "Thank you very much, Saber," she said, nodding to the other wolf. He was her age and by all rights she shouldn't have to show so much respect toward him. Yet he was in charge of the hunters, and as he stood illuminated by the sun, the powerful image he presented was a far cry from the one Aella imagined she projected, standing dejectedly by her meal. She was painfully aware of this difference between them and, if she wasn't so occupied by her disappointment, she might be embarrassed. But she was hungry and she would have to catch something for herself and she hoped he couldn't hear her stomach rumbling from where he stood, so there was no room for even more humiliation. And as if that wasn't enough, the fact that she was not a good hunter of small animals was just the cherry on top. She turned to Saber as an idea struck her. "Considering that I'm about to consume the last piece of prey in the pack, don't you think we ought to go out and catch some more for the others so they won't be in the same predicament?" With the head hunter helping - he had to be some good to have earned his rank so young - Aella should have plenty more to eat when they were done. But it wasn't like that was an ulterior motive or anything. No, of course not.

((I realized when I was almost done that your post didn't actually mention that Saber was eating the last piece of prey, Wolf, hope you don't mind. ;P))

[*~WolfSoul~*]

((Oh, no problem! It's fine ))

Saber watched the fae, his amber eyes narrowing at the tone in her voice as she thanked him. He watched her, steady and silent, until she posed her question. Head lowering, the brute looked her over. He knew this dove was one to want her way. He knew she was probably thinking of some benefit for herself. And Saber knew that he didn't like wolves like her. But, nevertheless, he did need to go hunt. The deer he caught earlier had been a small one and he had been sidetracked by Lilu and her mice before he could catch something else. He had a duty. "I suppose." Was the brute's rumbling reply, and with that his sharp eyes turned to the thick of the forest, thinking. A moment later, his large body turned and began striding for the dark of the trees, his long legs eating up the distance quickly. "Let's go." He called over his shoulder.

[spiff]

Aella wasn't always the best at reading other wolves' thoughts when they did not state them outright — that was the forte of the wolves of the Eastern Shores, who had nothing better to do than to obsess over such trivialities — but even she could see that whatever Saber was thinking through his narrowed eyes, it wasn't anything favorable about her. Most likely he thought she was acting in her own self-interest. Which she technically was, but the way Aella saw it was that since she had always considered the pack as a whole to be more important than her, he had no right to judge her like that. Even the slightest suggestion that she was placing herself first ruffled her feathers.
But he agreed, and was calling over his shoulder for her follow before she could cast a second glance at what should have been her breakfast. As she hurried to catch up with him, she chose not to mention that he hadn't given her time to eat, knowing it wouldn't help her cause. Once she had fallen into step beside him, however, it was easy to keep up; Saber was large for a male but Aella was large for a female. Not in terms of bulk, necessarily, but in terms of height, for her long legs put her at eye-level with the average male.
"Do you have any place in mind? I'm afraid I'm not familiar with the good hunting spots," she said, aiming to fill the silence. She knew that her companion was not a naturally friendly wolf, but Aella herself was filled with energy and a need to spread it, and though Saber wasn't so social, she figured she had to make do with what she got.

[*~WolfSoul~*]

Saber moved swiftly and easily through the underbrush, ears swiveling and flicking. "I have a big meal in mind for tomorrow, so we don't need much more today." He explained, voice softer now because prey might be nearby. "We'll search for a scent and take it down. It doesn't matter much what it is." His eyes were level with the tall fae, but in fact he was taller than her and everyone else in the camp. He had been wont to slouch as of late and now seemed to be average in height, making his large paws look even more clumsy. But as the duo caught the scent of prey, the clumsiness of the brute's gait disappeared, becoming a smooth and silent stalk. He lowered himself closer to the ground, ears pricked, and slowed, listening.

[The Royal Mirage]

((Thanks, guys! I'll see if I can't fit my characters in somewhere.))

"Brutal," Kade said, raising his eyebrows. As was his usual style, he spoke in a half-joking, half-serious manner, appearing for all intents and purposes completely meaning what he said even while the gleam in his eyes that never quite faded told a different story. He accepted the carcass, examining it with a clinical eye before taking a careful bite out of it. "Hmm," he said, chewing slowly and thoughtfully. "Interesting. Very... juicy. Not at all like what I usually eat. Tell me, Delano: do you usually eat meat raw?"

Fey had spent the day in solitude, as was the norm for her, amassing a decent amount of kills in the hours that she'd been hunting. So when she found that all the small animals in the vicinity had suddenly disappeared, thus disrupting her work, it was with a sense of great expectancy and annoyance that she awaited the arrival of the wolves who had chased them off with their careless romping about. Sure enough, five wolves soon burst through the trees, preceded by their laughter and pawsteps.
"Hello," she said, her voice cutting through the ruckus. Though quiet, her tone was icy, not purposefully but because it was simply the way she spoke. She noted that the alpha, Maia, was among them, and lifted her chin just a fraction higher, meeting Maia's gaze with unnerving steadiness. Slim as a wisp, with her soft silver fur and the iron shackle that presented such a strong contrast with the delicate image, Fey might as well have been a specter, a ghost chained to the forest who had come to haunt the hunting party. "I do believe you've scared off all the prey within a five-mile radius," she said calmly. "Care to explain?"

Aella had woken late, and when she emerged from her den most of the wolves in the pack seemed to have left camp already. She'd have to set out to find them if she didn't want to be alone all day, but before she did that she decided to get something from the kill pile to sate her hunger- it was no good travelling on an empty stomach, and she didn't much feel like hunting at the moment.
"Saber," she greeted as she approached the pile, seeing that he was finishing up a meal. The other wolf was the head hunter of the pack, and she figured it was just as well: she didn't have to feel so bad about taking from the dwindling pile since he'd probably catch more food throughout the day. Perhaps it wasn't very responsible of Aella to so easily push off the duty onto someone else, but it was simply her nature to do what she pleased, and if anyone had a problem with that, they could just stuff it.

An uncharacteristic snort escaped from the older brute's maw, his hackles shaking with silent laughter. "Nothing but raw meat, when I can," he explained gruffly, deciding to gnaw the thin bones later. It was obvious even to the pack wolves that he was not one to part take in their dishes whenever he could avoid it, not that most of the members paid the beta any mind. His silvery fur had been growing out long, shaggy around his broad chest, and the little tuft of black fur on his chin seemed to have lengthened substantially.

--

It was not Maia, but Lilith who met Fey's cold gaze with her own steady teals. "I would have thought you'd killed all the prey in a five mile radius," the head huntress murmured with a calm demeanor, noting the odd little fae's dominant posture. She'd met a fae with a shackle before, and didn't have exactly pleasant memories of her. Even without her bias, she didn't trust Fey as easily as her sister did. She'd caught the scent of blood around them, noting traces of blood around her claws and maw. She had been hunting on her own. She turned to Maia, though her sister seemed completely oblivious, sniffing the air. Then glancing at Fey. Okay, so not so oblivious..

Maia shushed her little sister, wide eyes not leaving the little form of Fey. She could smell everything, see it, but she wasn't one to engage in confrontations. "We're not hunting here Fey," she explained in her raspy alto, glancing to Aspen and Sam. The pair had been the ones romping around, but she hadn't minded, so it didn't matter. She wouldn't let them think they were in trouble for having a little fun.