Liam Squared, oh my what have we unleashed upon 'Souls? =p ↔ 623 words

The brown-pelted Catori shivered once as a cold breeze suddenly made its presence known through the end-of-autumn lands.

All around him the naked trees and brown vegetation mimicked his tremble and the colorful leaves that were scattered against the ground danced momentarily before going still again. Nearby a bird chirped its song, soon echoed by another bird. Liam glanced up at the sky and spotted a large hawk as it looped and swirled. He blinked before glancing down in front of him. He had been running for the better part of the last fifteen minutes, heading north-west of the Court. He had heard of the trading pack named Cercatori d'Arte in the past but had never actually gone there before, quite unlike his other neighboring pack Crimson Dreams. He had visited the Dreamers just a couple weeks ago and had met a woman he had learned to like quite a lot – his best friend's great-grandmother. His fondness of the Dreamers was why he decided to make the trip to this nearby territory, a serious yet happy expression on his face. He wasn't exactly the Ambassador of his pack, but by all of the traveling he'd been doing since the war, he might as well be. The Duke's smile widened at the thought. Maybe if he worked hard enough on making giving others a good impression of the Court it would help solve future wars before they even begin.

Unlike the last time he had traveled to another pack, this time he was in a healthy condition. He had no bandages covering his body, his injuries from the war almost all healed up. He still had a few wounds that were only 99% healed up but for the most part he had forgotten all about them. Even the mental wounds that had been inflicted on the Catori were fading. He was sleeping well nowadays and the terrible nightmares were but a distant and vague memory. Some of the pictures were still present at the back of his mind, but like the memories of the war, Liam was learning to deal with them. He was also quite content with the fact that he wasn't as tense anymore. Although he was still a tad overprotective of the people he cared for, at least he wasn't a paranoid lunatic afraid of his own shadow.

He was moving on and he was glad that the entire pack was doing the same. They were all moving on and just in time for winter too – at the thought of the up and coming season, yet another gust of wind made the fur on the back of the Lupus' neck prickle as a slight shiver made his body quiver.

Thankfully the northern wind brought with it the distinct smell of the pack he was walking towards. He slowed his pace and was about to stop and warn the pack that he was here – like he had done for Crimson Dream – when he heard it. The sound of leaves in a nearby bush rustling. He glanced around him, not necessarily in worry, but in curiosity. He hoped his presence would be welcomed and that no one would mistake him for an intruder. For safe measures, Liam took a few steps back so that he was right on the line that separated neutral territory from Cercatori d'Arte. “Hello?” he questioned, hoping to make his own presence known as well as whoever else that was in the bush. He would feel so foolish if it was a rabbit or something – but it smelt like a wolf. It smelt like the rest of Cercatori did. Kind of like how Liam knew he probably smelt like the Court to strangers.

So short, sorry! Also, Liam is in Lupus form! ↔ 307 words

Liam heard the voice before he could make out a figure within the abundance of foliage that hadn't and didn't seem to be ready to fall for the winter months. It wasn't the only bush of that kind though – pine trees didn't lose their needles either. In fact, they were as pretty as ever when all of the other trees were naked, the brown leaves all over the earthy ground. Of course, the brown-pelted Catori wasn't surprised when a furry face and amber eyes popped out from their hiding place – the bush he'd been eying for the last minute or so. He was here. Not that the statement helped Liam a lot. All he knew was that it was a brown-pelted male with russet marks. He looked young, although not as young as Liam himself. He had this air about him that screamed trouble. Liam wasn't really preoccupied by that though.

He gave the golden-eyed boy a small friendly smile to show that he meant no harm. Instinctively he took a step forward, his prominent paws sinking slightly into the earth. In a respectful fashion, knowing that it was the honorable thing to do while visiting another pack, Liam bowed his head in greeting. He cleared his throat before speaking. “I'm from Cour des Miracles – the King's son. I'm not here to cause any trouble. Just to visit and see how things are going... Since the war.” he informed the male with a hopeful look on his face. “Although I do realize you guys weren't affected by it...” he added thoughtfully. He stayed silent for a little while before coming to a sudden realization. “I presume you're from this pack?” he asked/ Who knows – there was a very small chance that this character did not belong here at Cercatori d'Arte.

It's okay, I forgot to mention it earlier. Haha! ↔ 372 words

Liam had no idea who this stranger was or what his rank in the pack could be – according to the Catori boy, everyone in unfamiliar packs needed and deserved respect. They were strangers and Liam was a guest on their territory. He needed to be nice and obey by their rules. Unless of course they did anything to deserve otherwise. When Liam Rhiannon replied with his name, Liam Catori stopped breathing for an entire second, his heart probably skipping a beat in his chest. His bi-colored eyes eyed the fellow brown male with the identical name. “I'm Liam Catori.” he introduced, a curious expression seeming to etch itself on his face. It couldn't be that strange that they shared a name – Liam assumed it happened once in a while. But to think that someone shared his name was just plain strange.

His thoughts turned to the war when Liam spoke of Cercatori d'Arte's involvement during those couple months of pure grief. The brown-pelted boy didn't recognize the names Liam mentioned but maybe he would have been able to identify them by their appearance. He had seen a lot of nameless faces during the raid on AniWaya in October. “I'm glad to hear that your step-mother is safe.” he said, deciding that it was the best thing he could say right now. “My brother-in-law's daughter was held hostage for some time. I didn't know about it until my father and other members of the pack went to rescue her.” he informed, deciding to leave out the male he himself had lost – his uncle. Since Liam had so keenly given the Courtier information it was only right that he did the same.

Glancing around quickly, Liam's four paws dug into the earth slightly. “This is a very nice pack. From what I know, you guys focus on trading?” he inquired. He remembered Niro's sister coming to Cour des Miracles not too long ago. His own mother had been the one to greet her, along with Zafier. It was still painful to think about the brute of a male but Zafier was resting in peace, watching over his sister and her offspring like he had done in life.