Post by Therdde on Jan 25, 2010 7:08:55 GMT -5
Characters:
Hahtalekin - Male Wolf
Skelaghe - Female Wolf
Rowtag - Juvenile Male Wolf
Kezu - Male Wolf
Wyanet - Female Wolf
- Hilltop Vista -
His bones are itching. It's not a sure-fire thing, but, Hahtalekin's had some years to figure that twitch tends to mean rain. Rain, of course, makes the day wet and miserable, and makes hunting even moreso. So, while out wandering the terrain, he decided to catch a little bit of food to bring back to the den - just in case of a rainy day, of course. He can be seen making his way for the hilltop, two fat rabbits squashed between his jaws, nose wrinkled up to try and keep the fluff from clogging up his nostrils, lending him a rather offended expression to be planted on his face.
Skelaghe isn't sleeping, but her eyes are closed, and they remain so as she hears someone approaching. Her thoughts are important to her, in this moment. Her breathing is slow. If not for the fact that her head is raised, even as she lies down, it would be easy to assume she's sleeping.
Sitting relatively near his mother, though wide awake, Rowtag lays in the grass of the hilltop and keeps his yellowed eyes focused on a bug of some sorts in the lush carpet. His muscles are tense, his head tilted downward and his large ears perked all the way forward. Staring whatever it was down, as all the sudden, one of his oversized paws slapps against the ground, the after-goop of the bug smeared along his paw pads. A grin appears, and he sniffs at the remains of the bug on his paw, having never smelt something like it before. It didn't smell good.. but how did it taste? A lick of his dirtied paw, and his face wrinkles, scraping his tongue with his teeth and making various 'blegh' sounds, quite loudly.
With a mouthful of rabbit, Haht isn't in a position to utter any sort of greeting, and the fact that no one is looking in his direction makes any attempt pointless anyway. He waits until he's close enough to be within plain view to swing his tail in a lazy sort of greeting as he plods his way up to the den entrance where he drops the two rabbits. "Hey. Here's a bit of a snack, if anyone's hungry. Got lucky enough to all but trip over a warren." He glances down to Rowtag, ears pricking with amusement. "...they'll likely taste a bit better than that, I'd imagine."
The sounds from her son first lead her to open her eyes, and she looks at him sympathetically. Then, she notices Hahtalekin, and she greets him with a small smile and by sitting up. "Thank you, Haht. I'm sure it will be appreciated." She says that with a pointed look at her son. Without a thank you, the boy may well be keeping the taste of bug in his mouth.
Still scraping his tongue against his incisors, the juvenile rubs his paw on the ground that was clear of the smashed bug, and eyes Hahtalekin suspiciously. He'd never gotten around to meeting this one in particular, and is a bit wary to take any food from him, even if it would get this nasty taste out of his mouth. Was he even hungry? Kind of. He wasn't starved, obviously, so he looked at the rabbits that were dropped with a look that was unimpressed. Looking to his mother, he let out a breath and looked away from the both of them. "..Thanks." He muttered, not in any bratty way, but just quietly. Almost shyly.
"No problem." Hahtalekin remarks down to Rowtag with a dip of his muzzle. "As my father always took pains to beat into my skull, The Pack Eats First." He says, gruff tone purposely lowered to a harsh, deep rasp of purposeful mocking. It's ended with an amused snort as the ruddy-black wolf sinks down onto his rump, jaws opening in a wide yawn. "Things seem rather quiet today. Are you the only two around?"
"Rawiya is here, but sleeping." And Ciqala? Probably out with Teketa. If there is one pups Skelaghe will never have to worry about wandering off by himself... "How have you been, Hahtalekin?" When was the last time Skelaghe saw him? Well, in passing Siwa's first night here. It has been much longer than that since she spoke to him, though.
"The pack eats first?" He repeated, looking to Skelaghe with an odd sort of look, wondering if that meant that he could eat. He was part of the pack, sure. But, wasn't Hahtalekin part of it, too? Didn't that mean that he should eat first? Wasn't he the one that hunted the prey? The poor little guy was confused. Scooting himself closer to one of the rabbits by pushing himself forward with his back paws until they were sprawled out behind him, Rowtag's head stretched forward as he sniffed at the food, still unsure of if he could, or even if he wanted to eat yet.
"Oh, things haven't been too bad overall, now that I feel like I'm finally settling in." Hahtalekin remarks to Skelaghe as he sinks down onto his stomach, letting out a soft huff as though glad to be off his paws. "I'm enjoying the sun. It got warm enough back home, but never this warm. For once, I'll be sad to see the snows come, though there's no stopping that."
Skelaghe lowers her head to nuzzle her son when he looks at her. At least she has stopped calling him puppy. Most of the time. "Go ahead." She then turns her attention back to Hahtalekin. "It has been a long time since I have spent a peaceful winter with my family. I think I will be glad when the snows come, this year. They always leave, and for as long as they are here, I plan on using the increased isolation to my advantage." Nothing prevents threats coming from outside the pack like the need to hunt, keep warm, and stay alive during the scarce winters.
Continuing to sniff at one of the rabbits, he eyes the fur for a moment, before his jaws open and he quickly snatches it up between his teeth, pulling the entire rabbit close to him. Holding it steady with his paws, the young wolf tears at the fuzzy exterior with his inscisors, stripping away the fur and then spitting it out, rather savagely and quickly getting down to the red flesh beneath. With a few tail wags, Rowtag sinks his fangs into the small, dead mammal, and wastes little time as he begins to devour it.
Hahtalekin doesn't seem to mind the youngster's messy eating - who's a wolf to judge table manners? There's merely the gleam of amusement in his blue eyes and the subtle pull of his paws closer to his chest. No need to get any accidental nips in Rowtag's enthusiastic eating. "Mm.. winter is good for some reflection, despite the lean times. How do the herds run here during the snows?"
"I confess myself a horrible huntress, Hahtalekin. It is the sort of thing I should know, but this will only be my second winter in these lands, and last winter..." Well, through much of last winter, she was carrying Rowtag and his siblings. It was not a good time for her.
"Ah, I see." Hahtalekin murmurs, not missing the trailing off of her voice, though he doesn't remark on it. "Don't worry about it, Kezu and I can handle the hunting with the others. We're both used to hunting in the snows and blizzards. If the food's there, we'll find it." He says confidently, "And if not, well, my brother can stand to lose a few pounds."
Skelaghe told Wyanet, just a short time ago, that winter is the only diet a wolf could ever need. Hearing Hahtalekin echo it in his own way causes her a smile. "We always manage. I am not worried." Skelaghe stretches her back once she finishes speaking. She has been stationary most of the day. Perhaps it would do her some good to do a little hunting of her own.
Still tearing the rabbit apart, the young wolf has already reached down to some of the gragile bones of the rabbit, and his teeth snap right into them. With the cracking and crunching sounds, he finishes up the bite, and then looks over at Hahtalekin and his mother, and blinks, before he takes another rip of flesh from the rabbit, pretty set on eating it all by himself. They were talking about hunting, which was something that he was interested in.. but hadn't been able to do yet. After finishing the next bite, he licked at his lips, and just stared over at the both of them.
"No, I don't see a reason to worry." Hahtalekin affirms just before he yawns again, remaining comfortably settled against the ground. "It'll be nice to hunt again with a pack in the snow, and it'll be the first I've ever had a mate to hunt beside." He murmurs with a thoughtful sigh, briefly glancing aside in his lapse of silence down towards Rowtag, catching the look in their direction.
A... mate? Skelaghe looks at Hahtalekin with a questioning expression. Who could it be, except for... "And she says she doesn't want pups." Soon. Soon, Ute will be full of pups that are not primarily her responsibility, even if she does not live long enough to see her own grandchildren, and the idea pleases her greatly. Winter will come, and sometime after that, she can go back to being the one who supports those with pups, instead of the one who must worry and discipline and teach all the time. If that isn't a pleasant idea, she's not sure what is.
Hahtalekin squints a glance aside to Skelaghe, blue eyes brightening with amusement. "Hah, she's a sucker for pups. She just doesn't let anyone know. Actually, so am I... but, that's just between us, of course." He says with a joking note of secrecy. "How can I ever expect to raise them if they think I'm a big pushover? But, that's still a little ways away."
And the shadow of the large wolf Kezu moves forward, creeping up along the hill from the creekside, step, after step, after step... tail drooping slightly, eyes looking weary, as ears remain pinned to the male's head, in his maw a simple pair of fish. His gaze is somewhat subdued this day, his posture less imposing than usual, as he climbs the hillside, crawling for the top. Step. After step. After step, each coming slower than the one previous.
Skelaghe looks at Hahtalekin closely. Smiling yet, she says, "Why should it be? She is my beta. You are her mate. The way I see it, you two owe me pups this coming spring." She probably wouldn't say that, but Hahtalekin has admitted that he likes pups. Why should they wait?
Gathering up the rest of the rabbit between his jaws, he sees no harm in dismissing himself from his mother and Hahtalekin's discussion. And even if there was harm, he would've done it anyway. With snack in jaw, the dark juvenile pushes himself to all four paws, and trots off to the site of the den, focused on finishing this meal. For a wolf his size, it'd fill him up for quite a while.
Hahtalekin splays his ears as he utters a sheepish chuckle, though the sound is rather grated with his battered throat. "I wouldn't object... though, I can't help but sense you'd just be glad for some furballs you can give back at the end of the day?" He says with a teasing note, though no lack of affection. "Good practice for when you're Grandmother Skelaghe, I imagine."
Ears rising at the sound of voices, Kezu peers forward as he crosses the crest of the hilltop, moving torwards the source of the conversation, rolling his shoulders in what seems annoyance perhaps, and trudging onwards, his bad eye narrowing as he moves closer. And closer.
What would she give to be able to be Grandmother Skelaghe while she still lives? Since she doubts it will happen, she will gladly settle for Aunt Skelaghe. "I would enjoy all the practice I could get, in that regard." Finally, Skelaghe stands, and looking still to Haht, having not yet noticed Kezu, she says, "I trust you will be as devoted a beta to these lands as I believe your mate will be, Hahtalekin."
Ears jerking forward, sharp and stiff as frozen leaves, as Hahtalekin focuses his full attentions on Skelaghe. The idea had crossed his mind once he'd heard of Wyanet's new title, but, to hear it from the mouth of the alpha female is still a bit disarming. When he speaks, though, it's all seriousness opposed to his earlier joking. "I'd defend these lands and pack with my life, Beta or no, as any good wolf would." While his ears and nose are aware of the approach of his brother, for once, he's too focused to offer him greeting.
Step... After step... after step. Finally coming upon the pair, he watches with bad eye closed as Skelaghe makes mention of title, and the bestowal that is then inferred through such speech. Fish drop to the grass, Kezu's one open eye lidding as he gazes from Alpha, to new Beta. "It seems you fit right in here in this Pack." There is a chill to Kezu's voice as he speaks, one shoulder rolling forward, and he dips his head. "... Alpha. Beta."
Skelaghe gives a nod of her head, smiling yet. "Then I am proud to have you as my beta, Hahtalekin." Skelaghe says this after having deliberately ignored Kezu. Then, however, she looks to the large male, all of the humor in her expression now gone. "Kezu. It is nice to see you." She doesn't lie, per se... But it certainly has been nicer to see other wolves, in the past. "Perhaps you might excuse me. I'm no longer as young as I once was, and the day has worn on me." And she is not prepared for another argument, this time with Kezu, so soon after her last, with Aquene.
Hahtalekin dips his muzzle to Skelaghe, tone slightly subdued as he remarks, "The honor is mine." And then further, as she excuses herself. "Be well." Only then does he swing his head to regard his brother, and the smokey black wolf rises up onto his paws at last. He gives himself a shake, ruffling and settling his fur into a more comfortable lay. "Well, between rabbits and fish, at least we'll all have something to chew on tonight. Though, good luck getting the one rabbit off Rowtag. I think he claimed it all."
Kezu watches Skelaghe with a rather intense gaze... one that seems to almost echo, as his bad eye once more opens, as if it too were watching her. And he raises his chin. "..." A subtle nod comes from him then to her, as his gaze slides over to his brother. "Something to chew on, yes... How has your day gone, Hahtalekin?" ... It's rare that he calls his brother by his name, yet it happened, all the same.
"Better than yours, I wager." Mutters Haht as he regards his brother with a close, narrowed gaze. "You look like someone just died. What's going on?" He asks with the bluntness only a sibling can muster. "You've been miserable these past few weeks and I'm tired of seeing you mope around."
Kezu rolls his shoulders gently, looking with focus upon Haht, his tail thumping against the ground. "It's simply taking all my energy to keep my anger in check." He says, with a sigh, leaning his head from side, to side. "My season is approaching, I feel unappreciated, the Alpha and I have differences that make me quail, I am simply... tired, my brother. Yeah..." He looks to the side then, narrowing his eyes. "I just don't like complaining."
"This isn't home anymore." Hahtalekin murmurs, letting out a long exhale. "We weren't born to a place here, we have to earn it. We can't approach problems here with force, like we did at home. I know frustrations too, but, this is home now, and that means adapting. Changing." He gives his head a shake, "...I don't know what to tell you, Kezu. Still, winter is coming, and a pack divided when the world dies perished too."
A single ear raises at those words... Kezu peering torwards his brother, sniffing gently at the air. "... A pack divided... Heh." And he raises his chin. "... Where did my brother go, I wonder?" What has gotten into this wolf...?
Hahtalekin regards the grey wolf, ears slicking back against his head at the seeming thoughtful, skyward-looking gesture. There's a stiffening of his posture, tail curling as his hackles bristle. When the black wolf speaks, his voice is terse and rough. "He had to be left behind. A new home is no place for old memories."
A chuckle... the dusky grey wolf standing, his pupiless eye starting to open, just slightly, as he looks down upon his brother, giving a gruff, and a grin. "What is a wolf that can't even call to the Sky-Light, the Moon in all it's beauty? What call... can he possibly offer to the world?" And Kezu slowly begins to circle around the male... as if hunting. "So what are you going to do with the one that came, the Kezu you know, so full of old memories... so stubborn, unchanging. What? Think you can make him change?" A narrowing of eyes... tail raised, as his fur begins to bristle as well...
Hahtalekin stands his ground as his eyes follow the stalking wolf, meeting him gaze for gaze, hard and unblinking. "There is no room here for old ways." He says with a low, rasping growl. "I am here to force no one. Any are free to make their choice, you just need to live with your decision." There's the subtle show of teeth, words weighted with a silent warning for the big wolf to choose his next move very carefully.
The laugh that comes is incredibly uncharacteristic of the one from which it originates, a cold, chilling laughter, like the northern winds that freeze the moisture of the fur. "To force no one... All are free... How noble of you." And Kezu positions himself, between Hahtalekin, and the Den, his grin fading to a deadly serious frown. "What kind of brother are you... The one who will let their sibling fly down a path of self destruction? One that will stay his hand, as innocents are slain? Or do you fight? Do you defend? Do you help?" A powerful glare, as that pupiless eye... now has a pupil. His eyes nearly quaking in their sockets, as his muscles tense...
Striding out from the den, comes Wyanet, who has been tucked away for most of the night, playing with the little kitten, Toyo, now that he has had some food in him, and starting to gain some life to his frail frame. She may not be mother of the year anytime soon, but it's obvious that she -is- a sucker for young ones. Having passed Skelaghe along the trail, she heard that Haht' and Kezu were up ahead, and so, eager to join the pair, she loped forward. That is, until she saw the tension that was building between them. Eyes narrowing, she lets out a loud clear of her throat, picking up the pace, and edging herself into their proximity.
"I'm a brother who recognizes the sound of madness." Hahtalekin retorts, teeth clicking in the air as he snarls. He begins to advance on Kezu, stiff legged, tail sticking up like a flag behind him. "If you cry for help, than say so. If you challenge me, than do it. If you threaten the pack, then I will defend it. Now back away from the den." His ears twitch towards Wyanet as she arrives, but he does not remove his gaze from Kezu.
"Back away from the Den? Why? Do I not have your -trust-? Do I make you nervous?" A glare shoots from Kezu, both slits of his eyes dialated, wide, as he backs slowly torwards the Den, and thus, Wyanet, as she approaches. "A challenge, a cry for help, can you not decide what I am asking? Do you demand I make a decision, here, and now? Oh, such sweet confusion of mine. Bloodletter... I shall always be a bloodletter I suppose." His eyes close, for just a moment...
"What the hell is going on here?" Wyanet asks in a point blank manner, her voice rising high, tension trickling into her voice. As she slides up along Haht's side, she levels her gaze at the large, black wolf, her body tensing. "Who is talking about challenges? Kezu, you're not making a damn lick of sense." She says, her voice snapping. "Now, I want an explanation. What is going on between you two?" She asks, her ears folding back against her skull.
"Ask him." Hahtalekin remarks to Wyanet before he stalks forward, the broken gaze between himself and his brother apparent invitation for the black wolf to confront the grey face to face, rows of teeth bared in the muzzle of Kezu. "There has been enough madness around here, and I have had more than enough of standing by listening to all of these twisting words. Act, or do not. Though, clearly, I think you need to excuse yourself and decide what path you want to take."
Ears raise in surprise, Kezu opening his eyes to see Hahtalekin there, in his face, speaking of twisting words. "Madness...? I shall give to you madness..." Kezu's eyes narrow at that, snorting. "One demanding me to call them Alpha, when that title has been nothing but pain for me, one who destroys the land through politics, murder, seduction, and torture. Cubs who want to run off, and meet parents who raped their mothers, and be their best friends. A brother, who's changed to such a degree that I can't recognize him. And that means I have not changed at all. Shadows of my past, swarming around me, tearing at my fur, my flesh... And naught to help me, but rather pressure, and pressure. The fact that I have seen wolves that have no scent, and that I can't protect the borders as well as I should. I have become fatter, slower... And then my brother, trusted with title of Beta, that to me just means the co-conspirator of hoarding and selective breeding. And yet, I know that this is not the same here. But... I can't shake the feeling!" He growls at that... tearing up at last... And quaking in full form. "I don't know what to think anymore." He whispers, before rolling his shoulders again, as if they pained him, and turns, to begin stalking away.
"Oh cry me a damn river, Kezu." Wyanet's voice rings out in a sharp snap. "He's the Beta because he's my mate, and he has shown that he understands the ways of the Ute. He's a strong, dedicated wolf. Not to say that you aren't, but you just need to relax a little, and just enjoy what you have here. You have a pack, good friends, family, what else do you need? She's the Alpha because she's earned it, and this was well before the three of us arrived here. For you, Alpha may have meant pain, but here, Alpha means something else. She's our leader, she guides us. All she wants from you, is just to be polite to her. She doesn't order you around, she isn't forcing you to kiss her ass, all she wants is for you to trust her. Just.. be normal." Tail lashing back and forth, she looks visibly upset. "I don't think your brother has changed at all, I think you're just panicking for no reason." She pauses, then snorts. "So, go for a run, run out your frustration, and come talk to me in the morning, alright? You and I will work this out, together."
"If I've changed, than I'm glad of it." Is Hahtalekin's reply as he watchs his brother turn to leave. "Because then the past is behind me, where it belongs." But then, he always has been the steady one, and in this moment never was the real difference between the the apparent. "The past is dead, and we are dead to them. Bury it, and leave it, and let the scars heal. Otherwise, you will never be happy, and you'll never find a place here." And with this said, the black wolf turns and begins to head for the lone tree in the distance, a place away to collect his thoughts.
Hahtalekin - Male Wolf
Skelaghe - Female Wolf
Rowtag - Juvenile Male Wolf
Kezu - Male Wolf
Wyanet - Female Wolf
- Hilltop Vista -
His bones are itching. It's not a sure-fire thing, but, Hahtalekin's had some years to figure that twitch tends to mean rain. Rain, of course, makes the day wet and miserable, and makes hunting even moreso. So, while out wandering the terrain, he decided to catch a little bit of food to bring back to the den - just in case of a rainy day, of course. He can be seen making his way for the hilltop, two fat rabbits squashed between his jaws, nose wrinkled up to try and keep the fluff from clogging up his nostrils, lending him a rather offended expression to be planted on his face.
Skelaghe isn't sleeping, but her eyes are closed, and they remain so as she hears someone approaching. Her thoughts are important to her, in this moment. Her breathing is slow. If not for the fact that her head is raised, even as she lies down, it would be easy to assume she's sleeping.
Sitting relatively near his mother, though wide awake, Rowtag lays in the grass of the hilltop and keeps his yellowed eyes focused on a bug of some sorts in the lush carpet. His muscles are tense, his head tilted downward and his large ears perked all the way forward. Staring whatever it was down, as all the sudden, one of his oversized paws slapps against the ground, the after-goop of the bug smeared along his paw pads. A grin appears, and he sniffs at the remains of the bug on his paw, having never smelt something like it before. It didn't smell good.. but how did it taste? A lick of his dirtied paw, and his face wrinkles, scraping his tongue with his teeth and making various 'blegh' sounds, quite loudly.
With a mouthful of rabbit, Haht isn't in a position to utter any sort of greeting, and the fact that no one is looking in his direction makes any attempt pointless anyway. He waits until he's close enough to be within plain view to swing his tail in a lazy sort of greeting as he plods his way up to the den entrance where he drops the two rabbits. "Hey. Here's a bit of a snack, if anyone's hungry. Got lucky enough to all but trip over a warren." He glances down to Rowtag, ears pricking with amusement. "...they'll likely taste a bit better than that, I'd imagine."
The sounds from her son first lead her to open her eyes, and she looks at him sympathetically. Then, she notices Hahtalekin, and she greets him with a small smile and by sitting up. "Thank you, Haht. I'm sure it will be appreciated." She says that with a pointed look at her son. Without a thank you, the boy may well be keeping the taste of bug in his mouth.
Still scraping his tongue against his incisors, the juvenile rubs his paw on the ground that was clear of the smashed bug, and eyes Hahtalekin suspiciously. He'd never gotten around to meeting this one in particular, and is a bit wary to take any food from him, even if it would get this nasty taste out of his mouth. Was he even hungry? Kind of. He wasn't starved, obviously, so he looked at the rabbits that were dropped with a look that was unimpressed. Looking to his mother, he let out a breath and looked away from the both of them. "..Thanks." He muttered, not in any bratty way, but just quietly. Almost shyly.
"No problem." Hahtalekin remarks down to Rowtag with a dip of his muzzle. "As my father always took pains to beat into my skull, The Pack Eats First." He says, gruff tone purposely lowered to a harsh, deep rasp of purposeful mocking. It's ended with an amused snort as the ruddy-black wolf sinks down onto his rump, jaws opening in a wide yawn. "Things seem rather quiet today. Are you the only two around?"
"Rawiya is here, but sleeping." And Ciqala? Probably out with Teketa. If there is one pups Skelaghe will never have to worry about wandering off by himself... "How have you been, Hahtalekin?" When was the last time Skelaghe saw him? Well, in passing Siwa's first night here. It has been much longer than that since she spoke to him, though.
"The pack eats first?" He repeated, looking to Skelaghe with an odd sort of look, wondering if that meant that he could eat. He was part of the pack, sure. But, wasn't Hahtalekin part of it, too? Didn't that mean that he should eat first? Wasn't he the one that hunted the prey? The poor little guy was confused. Scooting himself closer to one of the rabbits by pushing himself forward with his back paws until they were sprawled out behind him, Rowtag's head stretched forward as he sniffed at the food, still unsure of if he could, or even if he wanted to eat yet.
"Oh, things haven't been too bad overall, now that I feel like I'm finally settling in." Hahtalekin remarks to Skelaghe as he sinks down onto his stomach, letting out a soft huff as though glad to be off his paws. "I'm enjoying the sun. It got warm enough back home, but never this warm. For once, I'll be sad to see the snows come, though there's no stopping that."
Skelaghe lowers her head to nuzzle her son when he looks at her. At least she has stopped calling him puppy. Most of the time. "Go ahead." She then turns her attention back to Hahtalekin. "It has been a long time since I have spent a peaceful winter with my family. I think I will be glad when the snows come, this year. They always leave, and for as long as they are here, I plan on using the increased isolation to my advantage." Nothing prevents threats coming from outside the pack like the need to hunt, keep warm, and stay alive during the scarce winters.
Continuing to sniff at one of the rabbits, he eyes the fur for a moment, before his jaws open and he quickly snatches it up between his teeth, pulling the entire rabbit close to him. Holding it steady with his paws, the young wolf tears at the fuzzy exterior with his inscisors, stripping away the fur and then spitting it out, rather savagely and quickly getting down to the red flesh beneath. With a few tail wags, Rowtag sinks his fangs into the small, dead mammal, and wastes little time as he begins to devour it.
Hahtalekin doesn't seem to mind the youngster's messy eating - who's a wolf to judge table manners? There's merely the gleam of amusement in his blue eyes and the subtle pull of his paws closer to his chest. No need to get any accidental nips in Rowtag's enthusiastic eating. "Mm.. winter is good for some reflection, despite the lean times. How do the herds run here during the snows?"
"I confess myself a horrible huntress, Hahtalekin. It is the sort of thing I should know, but this will only be my second winter in these lands, and last winter..." Well, through much of last winter, she was carrying Rowtag and his siblings. It was not a good time for her.
"Ah, I see." Hahtalekin murmurs, not missing the trailing off of her voice, though he doesn't remark on it. "Don't worry about it, Kezu and I can handle the hunting with the others. We're both used to hunting in the snows and blizzards. If the food's there, we'll find it." He says confidently, "And if not, well, my brother can stand to lose a few pounds."
Skelaghe told Wyanet, just a short time ago, that winter is the only diet a wolf could ever need. Hearing Hahtalekin echo it in his own way causes her a smile. "We always manage. I am not worried." Skelaghe stretches her back once she finishes speaking. She has been stationary most of the day. Perhaps it would do her some good to do a little hunting of her own.
Still tearing the rabbit apart, the young wolf has already reached down to some of the gragile bones of the rabbit, and his teeth snap right into them. With the cracking and crunching sounds, he finishes up the bite, and then looks over at Hahtalekin and his mother, and blinks, before he takes another rip of flesh from the rabbit, pretty set on eating it all by himself. They were talking about hunting, which was something that he was interested in.. but hadn't been able to do yet. After finishing the next bite, he licked at his lips, and just stared over at the both of them.
"No, I don't see a reason to worry." Hahtalekin affirms just before he yawns again, remaining comfortably settled against the ground. "It'll be nice to hunt again with a pack in the snow, and it'll be the first I've ever had a mate to hunt beside." He murmurs with a thoughtful sigh, briefly glancing aside in his lapse of silence down towards Rowtag, catching the look in their direction.
A... mate? Skelaghe looks at Hahtalekin with a questioning expression. Who could it be, except for... "And she says she doesn't want pups." Soon. Soon, Ute will be full of pups that are not primarily her responsibility, even if she does not live long enough to see her own grandchildren, and the idea pleases her greatly. Winter will come, and sometime after that, she can go back to being the one who supports those with pups, instead of the one who must worry and discipline and teach all the time. If that isn't a pleasant idea, she's not sure what is.
Hahtalekin squints a glance aside to Skelaghe, blue eyes brightening with amusement. "Hah, she's a sucker for pups. She just doesn't let anyone know. Actually, so am I... but, that's just between us, of course." He says with a joking note of secrecy. "How can I ever expect to raise them if they think I'm a big pushover? But, that's still a little ways away."
And the shadow of the large wolf Kezu moves forward, creeping up along the hill from the creekside, step, after step, after step... tail drooping slightly, eyes looking weary, as ears remain pinned to the male's head, in his maw a simple pair of fish. His gaze is somewhat subdued this day, his posture less imposing than usual, as he climbs the hillside, crawling for the top. Step. After step. After step, each coming slower than the one previous.
Skelaghe looks at Hahtalekin closely. Smiling yet, she says, "Why should it be? She is my beta. You are her mate. The way I see it, you two owe me pups this coming spring." She probably wouldn't say that, but Hahtalekin has admitted that he likes pups. Why should they wait?
Gathering up the rest of the rabbit between his jaws, he sees no harm in dismissing himself from his mother and Hahtalekin's discussion. And even if there was harm, he would've done it anyway. With snack in jaw, the dark juvenile pushes himself to all four paws, and trots off to the site of the den, focused on finishing this meal. For a wolf his size, it'd fill him up for quite a while.
Hahtalekin splays his ears as he utters a sheepish chuckle, though the sound is rather grated with his battered throat. "I wouldn't object... though, I can't help but sense you'd just be glad for some furballs you can give back at the end of the day?" He says with a teasing note, though no lack of affection. "Good practice for when you're Grandmother Skelaghe, I imagine."
Ears rising at the sound of voices, Kezu peers forward as he crosses the crest of the hilltop, moving torwards the source of the conversation, rolling his shoulders in what seems annoyance perhaps, and trudging onwards, his bad eye narrowing as he moves closer. And closer.
What would she give to be able to be Grandmother Skelaghe while she still lives? Since she doubts it will happen, she will gladly settle for Aunt Skelaghe. "I would enjoy all the practice I could get, in that regard." Finally, Skelaghe stands, and looking still to Haht, having not yet noticed Kezu, she says, "I trust you will be as devoted a beta to these lands as I believe your mate will be, Hahtalekin."
Ears jerking forward, sharp and stiff as frozen leaves, as Hahtalekin focuses his full attentions on Skelaghe. The idea had crossed his mind once he'd heard of Wyanet's new title, but, to hear it from the mouth of the alpha female is still a bit disarming. When he speaks, though, it's all seriousness opposed to his earlier joking. "I'd defend these lands and pack with my life, Beta or no, as any good wolf would." While his ears and nose are aware of the approach of his brother, for once, he's too focused to offer him greeting.
Step... After step... after step. Finally coming upon the pair, he watches with bad eye closed as Skelaghe makes mention of title, and the bestowal that is then inferred through such speech. Fish drop to the grass, Kezu's one open eye lidding as he gazes from Alpha, to new Beta. "It seems you fit right in here in this Pack." There is a chill to Kezu's voice as he speaks, one shoulder rolling forward, and he dips his head. "... Alpha. Beta."
Skelaghe gives a nod of her head, smiling yet. "Then I am proud to have you as my beta, Hahtalekin." Skelaghe says this after having deliberately ignored Kezu. Then, however, she looks to the large male, all of the humor in her expression now gone. "Kezu. It is nice to see you." She doesn't lie, per se... But it certainly has been nicer to see other wolves, in the past. "Perhaps you might excuse me. I'm no longer as young as I once was, and the day has worn on me." And she is not prepared for another argument, this time with Kezu, so soon after her last, with Aquene.
Hahtalekin dips his muzzle to Skelaghe, tone slightly subdued as he remarks, "The honor is mine." And then further, as she excuses herself. "Be well." Only then does he swing his head to regard his brother, and the smokey black wolf rises up onto his paws at last. He gives himself a shake, ruffling and settling his fur into a more comfortable lay. "Well, between rabbits and fish, at least we'll all have something to chew on tonight. Though, good luck getting the one rabbit off Rowtag. I think he claimed it all."
Kezu watches Skelaghe with a rather intense gaze... one that seems to almost echo, as his bad eye once more opens, as if it too were watching her. And he raises his chin. "..." A subtle nod comes from him then to her, as his gaze slides over to his brother. "Something to chew on, yes... How has your day gone, Hahtalekin?" ... It's rare that he calls his brother by his name, yet it happened, all the same.
"Better than yours, I wager." Mutters Haht as he regards his brother with a close, narrowed gaze. "You look like someone just died. What's going on?" He asks with the bluntness only a sibling can muster. "You've been miserable these past few weeks and I'm tired of seeing you mope around."
Kezu rolls his shoulders gently, looking with focus upon Haht, his tail thumping against the ground. "It's simply taking all my energy to keep my anger in check." He says, with a sigh, leaning his head from side, to side. "My season is approaching, I feel unappreciated, the Alpha and I have differences that make me quail, I am simply... tired, my brother. Yeah..." He looks to the side then, narrowing his eyes. "I just don't like complaining."
"This isn't home anymore." Hahtalekin murmurs, letting out a long exhale. "We weren't born to a place here, we have to earn it. We can't approach problems here with force, like we did at home. I know frustrations too, but, this is home now, and that means adapting. Changing." He gives his head a shake, "...I don't know what to tell you, Kezu. Still, winter is coming, and a pack divided when the world dies perished too."
A single ear raises at those words... Kezu peering torwards his brother, sniffing gently at the air. "... A pack divided... Heh." And he raises his chin. "... Where did my brother go, I wonder?" What has gotten into this wolf...?
Hahtalekin regards the grey wolf, ears slicking back against his head at the seeming thoughtful, skyward-looking gesture. There's a stiffening of his posture, tail curling as his hackles bristle. When the black wolf speaks, his voice is terse and rough. "He had to be left behind. A new home is no place for old memories."
A chuckle... the dusky grey wolf standing, his pupiless eye starting to open, just slightly, as he looks down upon his brother, giving a gruff, and a grin. "What is a wolf that can't even call to the Sky-Light, the Moon in all it's beauty? What call... can he possibly offer to the world?" And Kezu slowly begins to circle around the male... as if hunting. "So what are you going to do with the one that came, the Kezu you know, so full of old memories... so stubborn, unchanging. What? Think you can make him change?" A narrowing of eyes... tail raised, as his fur begins to bristle as well...
Hahtalekin stands his ground as his eyes follow the stalking wolf, meeting him gaze for gaze, hard and unblinking. "There is no room here for old ways." He says with a low, rasping growl. "I am here to force no one. Any are free to make their choice, you just need to live with your decision." There's the subtle show of teeth, words weighted with a silent warning for the big wolf to choose his next move very carefully.
The laugh that comes is incredibly uncharacteristic of the one from which it originates, a cold, chilling laughter, like the northern winds that freeze the moisture of the fur. "To force no one... All are free... How noble of you." And Kezu positions himself, between Hahtalekin, and the Den, his grin fading to a deadly serious frown. "What kind of brother are you... The one who will let their sibling fly down a path of self destruction? One that will stay his hand, as innocents are slain? Or do you fight? Do you defend? Do you help?" A powerful glare, as that pupiless eye... now has a pupil. His eyes nearly quaking in their sockets, as his muscles tense...
Striding out from the den, comes Wyanet, who has been tucked away for most of the night, playing with the little kitten, Toyo, now that he has had some food in him, and starting to gain some life to his frail frame. She may not be mother of the year anytime soon, but it's obvious that she -is- a sucker for young ones. Having passed Skelaghe along the trail, she heard that Haht' and Kezu were up ahead, and so, eager to join the pair, she loped forward. That is, until she saw the tension that was building between them. Eyes narrowing, she lets out a loud clear of her throat, picking up the pace, and edging herself into their proximity.
"I'm a brother who recognizes the sound of madness." Hahtalekin retorts, teeth clicking in the air as he snarls. He begins to advance on Kezu, stiff legged, tail sticking up like a flag behind him. "If you cry for help, than say so. If you challenge me, than do it. If you threaten the pack, then I will defend it. Now back away from the den." His ears twitch towards Wyanet as she arrives, but he does not remove his gaze from Kezu.
"Back away from the Den? Why? Do I not have your -trust-? Do I make you nervous?" A glare shoots from Kezu, both slits of his eyes dialated, wide, as he backs slowly torwards the Den, and thus, Wyanet, as she approaches. "A challenge, a cry for help, can you not decide what I am asking? Do you demand I make a decision, here, and now? Oh, such sweet confusion of mine. Bloodletter... I shall always be a bloodletter I suppose." His eyes close, for just a moment...
"What the hell is going on here?" Wyanet asks in a point blank manner, her voice rising high, tension trickling into her voice. As she slides up along Haht's side, she levels her gaze at the large, black wolf, her body tensing. "Who is talking about challenges? Kezu, you're not making a damn lick of sense." She says, her voice snapping. "Now, I want an explanation. What is going on between you two?" She asks, her ears folding back against her skull.
"Ask him." Hahtalekin remarks to Wyanet before he stalks forward, the broken gaze between himself and his brother apparent invitation for the black wolf to confront the grey face to face, rows of teeth bared in the muzzle of Kezu. "There has been enough madness around here, and I have had more than enough of standing by listening to all of these twisting words. Act, or do not. Though, clearly, I think you need to excuse yourself and decide what path you want to take."
Ears raise in surprise, Kezu opening his eyes to see Hahtalekin there, in his face, speaking of twisting words. "Madness...? I shall give to you madness..." Kezu's eyes narrow at that, snorting. "One demanding me to call them Alpha, when that title has been nothing but pain for me, one who destroys the land through politics, murder, seduction, and torture. Cubs who want to run off, and meet parents who raped their mothers, and be their best friends. A brother, who's changed to such a degree that I can't recognize him. And that means I have not changed at all. Shadows of my past, swarming around me, tearing at my fur, my flesh... And naught to help me, but rather pressure, and pressure. The fact that I have seen wolves that have no scent, and that I can't protect the borders as well as I should. I have become fatter, slower... And then my brother, trusted with title of Beta, that to me just means the co-conspirator of hoarding and selective breeding. And yet, I know that this is not the same here. But... I can't shake the feeling!" He growls at that... tearing up at last... And quaking in full form. "I don't know what to think anymore." He whispers, before rolling his shoulders again, as if they pained him, and turns, to begin stalking away.
"Oh cry me a damn river, Kezu." Wyanet's voice rings out in a sharp snap. "He's the Beta because he's my mate, and he has shown that he understands the ways of the Ute. He's a strong, dedicated wolf. Not to say that you aren't, but you just need to relax a little, and just enjoy what you have here. You have a pack, good friends, family, what else do you need? She's the Alpha because she's earned it, and this was well before the three of us arrived here. For you, Alpha may have meant pain, but here, Alpha means something else. She's our leader, she guides us. All she wants from you, is just to be polite to her. She doesn't order you around, she isn't forcing you to kiss her ass, all she wants is for you to trust her. Just.. be normal." Tail lashing back and forth, she looks visibly upset. "I don't think your brother has changed at all, I think you're just panicking for no reason." She pauses, then snorts. "So, go for a run, run out your frustration, and come talk to me in the morning, alright? You and I will work this out, together."
"If I've changed, than I'm glad of it." Is Hahtalekin's reply as he watchs his brother turn to leave. "Because then the past is behind me, where it belongs." But then, he always has been the steady one, and in this moment never was the real difference between the the apparent. "The past is dead, and we are dead to them. Bury it, and leave it, and let the scars heal. Otherwise, you will never be happy, and you'll never find a place here." And with this said, the black wolf turns and begins to head for the lone tree in the distance, a place away to collect his thoughts.