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

[The Royal Mirage]

((Thanks for notifying me of the addition, Nellas ^^))

Ruby's longing smile seemed to shift as the clouds drew closer, widening enough for pearl fangs to show fully. Sure, her smile wasn't in response to Clarence's words, but it didn't mean she was any less aware of the subtle praise she had been given. The clouds were dark, but they had been rolling all day now, and didn't carry nearly as much water as they had that morning when they had first begun to let loose their monsoon. "Heavy rain doesn't come to the forest often though," she clarified, lifting a paw to scratch carefully behind one slightly rounded ear,"that's all I meant." The thoughts of Castor were long gone as the sandy fae anticipated the storm, knowing even with her poor shoulder that her cleaned coat would be muddied again by the end of the night.

[-goldleaf-]

Fenrick observed Anna's reaction to his smooth transition into a proper pack pose with a smile fighting to curl his lips. The dark hollows of his eyes made for striking contrast to the glittery liveliness of his eyes as he tilted his head slightly, wondering at her pause. Perhaps Devin was right about rejection being harder to come by when the fae couldn't catch her breath first. A mirroring bit of delight brought his ears flicking forward to center on her even more than before with her smile, unable to quell the bit of unexpected happiness in response to her slight blush; visible to him only because of the light still cast by her windows. At her little bow and words he shook his head slightly, expression going from mockingly serene to one of half restrained mischief as he both leaned forward and took an advancing step. The combined movement brought him close to her, slightly stooped figure made gentle as he allowed his set of purples toes to settle over one of her own slender paws. "Just Fen, please," he half murmured this as he leaned forward, bringing his nose to the sweet curve of her moon-silvered cheek that had been under his attention for the last several seconds. His little touch had been coupled with that first shake of his head, own facade breaking as he lightly poked at her once again to drop hers. He was quite confident in the suddenly strong idea that Anna should never think it prudent to now to someone else. Fen tucked his chin down slightly, severing his whispered touch from her cheek as he have her a little smile before reclaiming his law from atop hers and stepping around her without another brush of contact. With fast steps he felt himself be swallowed by the shadows between another pair of cottages, the slight rush to his breath having more to do with the complete overtake of her scent to his senses than with his speedy exit.

((the thing))

"You should be careful with those runs of yours," Nutmeg advised lightly, teetering a step over a large rock rather than venture around it; stubborn in a pup-like way to stay on his desired path. "You never know what might happen in a storm." he nodded to his own words, letting out a little satisfied cough as he left behind the miniature boulder that he had had to take stretching steps over; the top of it skimming across his stomach at one point. With her bit of given silence after answering, Nutmeg felt his chin tugged up slightly in a glance towards the slender huntress; though soon enough his wizened gaze was flickering away towards his paws again as he had to pay attention to his pathway. The aged brute had noticed her little glance around, and it was obvious to him that she had noted his acute lack of companionship, though he offered no comment on the matter. Instead he diverted to a bit of silence that he was hopeful that he could pull off with his old age, what he hoped was the kind of thoughtful yet open silence of someone with many years to their name. He could remember his own elders taking on these silences, finally marking them off as sly tools for the aged generation of poking the younger ones into asking whatever was on their mind without having to be quite verbally prompted.

[The Royal Mirage]

Lilith took in the elder's words with almost exasperation, having heard countless times to 'be more careful' from someone or another. She rolled her eyes behind her lids, though the slight lift of her chin still indicated the motion if one were paying enough attention. She had mostly stopped caring about carefulness when she had arrived at the mountains, only caring to take caution when Tanga specifically asked. Even so, she gave a bemusing smile at his light advice and silence, as well as a short shrug that rippled along the snowy bones over her back. "I'll start being careful when you stop weaving," she countered simply, a quiet wisdom of her own ringing out in her words. In a way, her stormy runs were comparable to Nutmeg's weaving - both activities made the wolves better in a way, but also worse in a way.

[-goldleaf-]

Nutmeg let out a little snort of amusement to her reply, finding a brief moment to flex a forepaw with the reminded mention of his 'destructive' weaving. Bastian had already asked him several times to at least cut back; but as far as Nutmeg was concerned, their was no point. He was well aware of why they had sent for Bastian to come stay with him, and while it was admittedly sobering, he was unafraid of what was to come. "I could very well take you up on that," he returned, a bit of toughened teasing in his voice. "But then you would soon find yourself answering to Bastian about whether or not you were going to hold up your end of the agreement." His voice was made rumbly towards the end by his inability to hold back his laughter at him saying such a thing. Surprised to find that an affectionate jibe about his own demise could come so easily to his lips. It also might have been the sudden mental image of Bastian all covered in little braids but still fuming as he told Lilith not to splash through puddles possibly filled with sharp shale shards.

((oop there it is))

[The Royal Mirage]

Lilith should have laughed, she tried to, letting out the smallest giggle that didn't fill her as true laughter did, at Nutmeg's words. Despite not being particularly close with the graying brute, he reminded her of her father, and that was more than enough to make her heart ache at the thought of Nutmeg departing this world. She wished to answer him, to say that she would rather answer to the elder himself than the youthful clone of the old brute, but didn't want to speak of it, didn't want to let it pass her lips and become real. "Bastian will have left by the time I need to keep my promise," she countered as best she could, the wittiness fading from her normally sharp tongue as she simply observed his brown blush orbs, though her teal eyes returned to the rocky terrain and her bright toes eventually.

[-goldleaf-]

Nutmeg 'hmmphed' in response, still-dark tipped ears flicking forward at the slight whistle of the wind over the mountain face. He lifted a paw in a vague swirly motion, as if to erase what she had said, or perhaps the conversation in whole. "Not if I can help it." he said, voice holding a kind of too-light optimism for the topic at present let alone his seemingly foreboding words. "I'm hoping that he'll decide to stay, he is part Mountain wolf you know." Nutmeg stopped, lifting his head from it's perpetual little forward dip with his loss of crisp posture that he had always tried for in his youth. His roughened face turned this way and that as he looked around them thoughtfully, as if drinking in the scenery anew. "I don't think anyone that's part mountain wolf could bring them self to stay away for forever. But he certainly loves his trees," he added that last bit with a small falling of his gray brows, turning back into his careful and constant forward plod after another erasing little wave of a paw. As the camp came nearer and nearer he swished his tail, casting a little peek over to Lilith with another coughing hum as a small sound of her paws drew his attention to her with refreshed awareness of her presence. He had almost forgotten that she was there even after only speaking to her moments before, a tiny occurrence that had him spooked of his own state of mind enough to speak again. "My goodness honey, don't you ever tire of ghosting about?" it was an affectionately voiced question, rhetorical really, since he had only been commenting on her youthful grace compared to his limping ventures as of late.

[x_Gemini_x]

(( Sorry I haven't posted in the past 4 days, I have my 2 year old nephew over and I can't really get on my computer with out him pressing buttons. ))

[The Royal Mirage]

((No worries Shayde, it happens))

Lilith gave a true laugh at this, albeit a small one; even after just one day, she could tell Bastian wasn't too fond of the windy mountain range. There were times when she missed her own forest home, the tree-crowded camp having been much more spread out than the mountain pack's. Of course, she didn't miss it for long; after all, she had her sisters here and her best friend, there wasn't much else she could miss apart from the subtle feel of foliage surrounding you. Nutmeg's mention of mountain wolves had her mind on a completely different mountain however, one that was quite far away from their current peak. A mountain so filled with wolves of such different lifestyle, a place that would take months to travel to, not that she had any urge to go there, or anywhere in that direction. If anything they were like the wolves from the shores, only several more generations along than the more recently established pack by the sea. The midnight fae had been so distracted by her memories that Nutmeg's surprised words caught her off guard in their own right. Confusion clouded her gaze, before realizing they had both forgotten they were in each others' company, and she gave a light hearted smile beneath her mask. As the sun began to sink below the horizon, the golden light it brought touched the tips of her lashes, bringing a slight warmth to the usually cool and wispy dove in a way that only the setting or rising sun could, giving a delicate shrug. "Nope," she answered childishly, even going so far as to stick out her tongue, as she took a simple joy in answering the rhetorical question.

[The Royal Mirage]

((Quick question - are Fen and Anna all done for the night? can we skip forward with the shores?))

[Nellas]

Anna’s paws dipped in snow caught suddenly in a shaft of moonlight at Fenrick’s sudden nearness, not registering the fact that his scent was in her nose and the texture of his fur looked extremely soft and that his eyes looked like jewels held up to the sunlight until the movement was completed, lips parting in a little o of not delight, but absolute astonishment as she felt the warm weight of his paw envelope hers and the mothwing’s touch of his dark nose to her cheek. His voice was like velvet in her ear, or wine, completely intoxicating, and hardly realizing it the dove was holding herself as still as the sea, as if by making any sudden movement she might scare the moment away; and then whatever remnants of some sort of wall she had been keeping broke and Anna was as light as air, breath stuttering in her chest and subconsciously tilting towards Fenrick even as he broke contact and began to slip away, as if she had been depending on the two points of contact; her paws and her cheek, both of which now felt acutely the brisk chill of the autumn air. Just Fen, please. Hmm. She could do that. Anna’s smile was a secret, a remembrance of the evening even as she slipped into the warmth of the house she shared with her brother.

((We can skip forwards now, I believe))

~

Clarence’s blue gaze swept over the younger wolf thoughtfully, a faint smile curving one corner of his mouth in a breath of amusement not at Ruby herself but simply at the situation, and perhaps Clarence, actually, that so young a fae could know so much and feel comfortable enough to talk about it with him. In other cultures he had witnessed it was commonplace that those of higher rank were far too intimidating to ‘lesser’ ranks (though he hated to think of it as that) and the thought brought a small flush of pride to the beta’s dark chest. He, too, anticipated the rain; though it would be chilly, the canopy of the forest would protect the pack from a lot of the rain and especially the wind, hemmed in as they were by the towering hard and softwood trunks. The sweet, nostalgic scent of the coming rain permeated the air and he was able to make out the form of the rumbling cloud banks, but instead of being anxious as others might Clarence was at peace with the weather; he had always taken what nature had given, there had been times when he had not been so fortunate as to have the shelter of a pack around him.