Lyin' on the pavement with the misery on his brain
#1
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November 30.

She couldn't go back to AniWaya; not yet. That thirst for knowledge persisted still and drove her to return to where she had found Theodore. When she saw he had departed -- which made sense since she had walked for ten minutes before deciding to return -- she continued to ascend up the mountain in search of Naniko. She was not sure if it would be rude to venture too far, especially when there was no real scent claiming the lands yet, or if she should howl for the newfound leader. She shook her head and decided to continue trudging along up the lands, tracing the familiar paths she had once followed as leader of Shadowed Sun.

As she walked farther up the mountain, she felt the air change and the temperature drop. She smiled happily, glad to feel the chill of the cold air. Winter had always been her favourite time of year despite the difficult hunting and scarcity of prey. Even now, years later, it reminded her of the fond memories she had of her home in Quebec. She smiled and looked around, letting her eyes rest on the snow-topped trees. Everything about the mountain brought back memories of peace even in a time when all she felt was anger. Perhaps this could become her home -- perhaps.

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#2
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She had been searching the lands for other wolves for the last few days. Naniko was worried that she might come across other loners that had claimed parts of the territory before she had come to it; she didn't want any fights if she could help it. She did have a few prospective pack members hanging around, primarily her family members and best friend Azalea, but they also had two pups and as far as she knew, none of them were trained in sparring. Her poison-tipped dagger would help, at least.


She walked tall in optime, her bulky form moving slowly across a snow-covered field. In the mountains it was almost always snowing, and her large back feet created deep holes in it as she walked. She hit one of the scattered forest areas and set to exploring that as well, jade eyes creeping over the whitewashed trees and bushes. A cracking of twigs announced the presence of another wolf and she froze, eyes widening. Who else was wandering these woods?

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#3
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It would be kind of funny if someone got Tayui and Naniko mixed up for something. XD

Tayui whipped her head around at the sound of another approaching. The rest of her body quickly followed as she trotted closer to the source of the sound. At first, she could not see anything until she realized there was in fact a luperci in Optime form standing a few metres away. She craned her neck to see that it was a pure white female with startlingly green eyes. Tayui blinked in surprise and then frowned, wondering if this might be the same Naniko Theodore had told her about. She trotted closer and offered the woman a small smile, hoping it was alright that she was this far up the mountain.


"Excuse me miss," she called out as she trotted closer. Still in her Lupus form, she had to crane her neck even more as she approached to see the luperci properly. "Are you Naniko? A wolf named Theodore told me about a woman named Naniko and a pack named Anathema," she clarified. She did not want to scare off the other woman or creep her out. She hoped that offering this tidbit of information she would put the wolf at ease and hopefully learn more about the Anathema pack that was being founded.

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#4
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Out of character text.


Her breath came out as a fine mist from her nostrils as she exhaled. The stranger had spotted her. It was rare that Naniko see a wolf with the same color of pelt as she (at least not anyone outside of the family), as many of the wolves in the cult had been more darkly colored...and it reminded her of one of the prospective pack members that had met with her a few days prior. His coat had been similar to her and Selene's.


Two different colored eyes stared into her own, and she swallowed. This wolf had a slight air of authority about her, at least, that was the impression that Naniko got. Just an odd feeling. She appeared to be older, at least Naniko's age or more, a few battle scars riddling her body in places. She definitely looked mature.


"Dunno if you'd call me 'Miss'...I ain't so young any more. But Naniko would do. Teddy must have given you some good information; you've found both." She said. She hadn't realized that Teddy would invite others; he was proving to be much more useful to her than she had previously thought. "Who are you?"


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#5
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Tayui immediately chuckled in response to wolf's comment, amused to hear this young one refer to herself as old. If she was older, then Tayui had to be nearing 'ancient', for she was now over seven years old. That certainly had to count for something in terms of oldness of age!

She nodded when the wolf confirmed her name was Naniko and her chuckle turned into a relieved smile. She nodded when Naniko referred to Theodore, apparently preferring to call him by his less-respectable name. Tayui hoped Claudius would not try to soften his name with something ridiculous like "Claudy" or, well, whatever you could shorten Claudius to.


"Then I must be ancient," she replied with a small shrug. She tilted her head slightly and added: "I'm Tayui Aston. Of AniWaya and formerly a pack on this mountain, Shadowed Sun." She wasn't sure why she added the last bit, but if Naniko had been around before, she might recognize the shortly-lived pack.

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#6
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Big Grin


Tayui was "ancient"? She didn't look that old to her, but who knew. Naniko didn't know of very many wolves who had lived through the fires and resettled in the new lands, but if this wolf was older than her then perhaps she had done just that. "Naniko D'Angelo, though you already knew that. I was born in Chimera--have you heard of that place?" Her earliest memories were of that pack and place, though many of them had become slightly warped and faded over time. She could remember the creaky trees best of all.


"I haven't heard of Shadowed Sun before, but AniWaya sounds more familiar. I used to lead the pack Crimson Dreams, but took off. I just came back with my son Scorpius after reuniting with my sister and niece outside of the lands." That would hopefully explain to the older female why Naniko wasn't as familiar with these newer territories.


She had been scouting before and wanted to continue doing so, but wondered if the other wolf was too tired from her travels to want to walk. "Mind walking with me?" She pointed through the trees to the north of them. "It'll help us keep warm, too. We could head toward the caves and you could explain what your purpose is for visiting me today."

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#7
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Big Grin


Tayui nodded in response to Naniko’s question. She had indeed heard of Chimera – and the D’Angelo family, too – from when she had visited the pack. She had not ventured in that direction too many times, but she had met a Tacila D’Angelo. Tayui wondered if they had any relation. Given the size of the peninsula of ‘Souls, Tayui suspected that most wolves bearing the same surname were indeed related.

She nodded more slowly this time as Naniko spoke, mentioning AniWaya and Shadowed Sun. Tayui was surprised to hear that Naniko had managed to reunite with more D’Angelo’s – somehow this struck her as odd since she had thought most of that family had died off or disappeared. Tayui complied when the other wolf requested to walk; she trotted closer and followed her deeper into her old home.

“Certainly,” she replied, agreeing with most of Naniko’s statements. “I’m curious to know more about the pack. Theodore said you were about ten strong, but he didn’t know much else. What can you tell me about Anathema?” She wasn't sure if this was her thirst for knowledge reappearing or just a genuine interest in the other packs in the area, but she wanted to gather as much information as possible.

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#8
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Her family had abandoned her as a pup, leaving her as the only D'Angelo in the lands for a short time. Her sister Pontiac had come back off and on throughout the years, but had never stuck around for longer than a few months before leaving again. She was relieved to have found more of her family and happy that she was able to be a part of their lives. She honestly cared about Selene, Juju, and Demi, and was ready to find any other wayward D'Angelos and invite them to stay, as well.


"Well...I left the lands for a while to try and escape a few old ghosts from my past, here. I once led Crimson Dreams, but was exiled. I was caught in a bear trap, my front paw getting stuck in it pretty tightly, and was almost starving to death when Azalea found me. She got me out of the trap and we found a pack together. There I was reunited with my sister and her two children." She said. "The members of the leadership in that pack was poisoned not too long after...and the pack fell to chaos. I have much knowledge of poisons and was suspected of it, but I wasn't the one who did it. Because of the accusations, I chose to leave and start a new life. Keep the same traditions, but start over."



It was interesting to her to know that Tayui had once lived on the mountain. On top of it, though, rather than below it. They approached the opening to the underground system fairly quickly and she walked into one of the two main entrances without pause. There was a main fire, prospective pack members milling about, talking, laughing, and interacting. "This is the main hall...other smaller caves are claimed on a first come first serve basis."


There was an opening at the very top of the cavern, and the smoke from the fire twisted up to exit through the hole. She sat down next to the blaze, putting her hands up to warm them, and felt the heat almost immediately. It felt so nice. "You said that you were from AniWaya...is life so bad there that you want to leave it for a new pack?" She asked, jade eyes moving from the fire to refocus back on the form of the other.

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#9
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Sorry, this got long! (558)

Tayui frowned when Naniko admitted the reason for her departure from Crimson Dreams. She was surprised to hear it had been through exile. She didn’t know much about the former leader, but she also did not know much about the pack, either. She knew Savina and Anu were in charge, but had never met Savina. She wondered what it might have been over. She refocused her attention as Naniko continued to speak, elaborating on her story. The female mentioned another name: Azalea. It was wholly unfamiliar to Tayui and as she wondered about this new fact, Naniko explained it, too. Tayui flicked her ears forward and then back when Naniko revealed her exile from a second pack. She wondered if it had not been so much a misunderstanding as it might have been correct suspicions. Tayui wasn’t sure how she felt knowing that the leader of this pack had been in two, but could not stick around. AniWaya was the first pack she had left truly by choice after her birthpack. She had fled for her life from La Haine, but Jaded Shadows and Shadowed Sun had disbanded, all due to forces she could not control. But here, Naniko was telling her story and expecting something – what, sympathy? Empathy, even? Tayui didn’t know what to say, so she simply nodded, taking the information in. She was growing more shrewd as she aged, and now she recognized that it would be in her best interest if she did not reveal her thoughts, especially since she wasn’t sure what they were.

Naniko brought them to the entrance of the caves; the arrival was speedy, since Tayui had already been quite close to them when she’d wandered here. Since it was not yet officially claimed, Tayui suspected she had wandered a fair bit more than she would have been allowed under normal circumstances. Tayui followed Naniko in to the caves and peered through the other cave entrances as they passed them. She had known about the existence of these caves, but had never explored them to their full potential. She had been happy with the spacious den under the old tree, which had quickly been converted into a library. She wondered if any books were still there, if they had even survived.

She shook her head and looked back to Naniko, eyes bright as they neared the fire. Naniko moved to hold her hands by the fire and Tayui followed to take a seat. Since she was still in her Lupus form, she could not warm her paws the way Naniko was. But she could still sit close to the fire and warm herself. She paused for a moment to appreciate the heat before turning to Naniko to answer her question.

“AniWaya is lovely. It’s quite peaceful and very beautiful. But it is no longer my home. It doesn’t feel right anymore. I helped found it, but I’ve decided it is time to move on and find something else. A new home to start over,” she replied. She added: “sort of like you.” She hoped this concession would satisfy Naniko’s curiosity. She didn’t very much feel like sharing her woes with this wolf. They were still just crossing the threshold from strangers to vague acquaintances. Perhaps one day she would share her story; until then, it was her secret to keep.


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#10
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End with your post? :]


Well, if starting over was what Tayui wanted then it was what she would get. She wasn't particular about who wanted to join up with them as long as they were now willing to pledge their loyalty to Anathema and leave their other packs and groups in the past. Of course, the canines would always be welcomed back anyway if they went astray...so perhaps it didn't matter so much whether they left everything in their past completely buried. She would consider her packmates her family, her blood, and anyone who joined would be welcomed back if they ever left.



She nodded in response to the other wolf. "If you're looking for a place to shack up for good, our door's always open. I'd like to keep talking to you and, if you'd be willing, hear some stories about your life over the mountain. I don't meet many who know of my place of birth..and if you have any other information about those places that you would share.." That was a part of her past that she was interested in revisiting, most definitely. Naniko had lost her memory as a pup and could only vaguely recall details of her old packlands before the fires. She'd grown up in Clouded Tears for the most part.

Table by Jenny!
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#11
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And done! Big Grin (300)

Tayui nodded as Naniko began to speak and leaned in closer to hear the other wolf’s words. She didn’t want to shuffle over – too undignified – but she did snake her head a bit lower and turn toward the white luperci to better hear her as she spoke. Tayui quitely ‘hmm’d’ in response, but otherwise kept quiet while Naniko was speaking. She didn’t like interrupting others since she had done it so often when she had been younger. She was trying to force herself to break that bad habit.

When Naniko requested to hear more about Tayui’s life in Jaded Shadows, she knew she would not mind continuing the conversation. It wasn’t that Tayui enjoyed talking about herself: she just loved telling stories, whether they were true or false. Today, it seemed as though this tale would be more autobiographical than some. She hadn’t spoken about her past in some time and she certainly had not told any stories in months. She missed being a Baird: it was been one of her true passions aside from reading and writing in Jaded Shadows and Shadowed Sun.

“Certainly,” she replied. “Well, I visited Clouded Tears a few times. I’m originally from Jaded Shadows, but I knew a few Tears wolves. There was Colibri Soul and a few of her brood: Akeni Soul, Acid, and Colibri Haki. I met Laruku once. I also knew Amun Ortega – we were good friends for a while. And I think Astrophel was in Clouded Tears, too? Ah, who else…” she began. She trailed off as she concentrated, trying to pick out names and faces from her memory. She hadn’t seen many of them in years, but maybe Naniko would recognize them. She recollected her time in Jaded Shadows and her visits to the other packs and neutral territories.


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