WC: 357 → Yaaay! Ves is in lupus form also.

Vesper was in high spirits today. She did not have a skip in her step or a smile on her face, but anyone who knew her well could see that she was at peace. There was lightness to her lean, compact body that was not normally there, and the content neutrality of her expression took no heed of the scars across her muzzle and brow. She stepped like a whole canine rather than one burdened with the tension of caution and darker thoughts—as that was how life had been lately, with her nonconsensual transformation and the additions to the coyote clan ranks.

But perhaps that was because life had taken a brighter turn as well, at least as far as the pack in the north was concerned. In a short span of time the hybrid had reunited with both Ichikan friends, X’yrin the Exultare Nomad and her sparring mentor, and the bright-spirited and young non-luperci Kiara. They had not been ashamed of her change, both physically and mentally, and had accepted her with opened arms (or simply an opened heart in the case of the arctic wolf). Though Ves might have looked down upon the peaceful pack for childish ideals, she could appreciate the individual characters it helped craft, and so that was why she was headed toward Ichika no Ho-en today.

The tawny coywolf had never set foot near the pack’s boundaries before, so she had little actual idea as to where it was located. However, in her roaming to the northern area of the mountain range, she soon gained a whiff of heavy wolf scent that meant borders. Tail wagging behind her in more of a nervous motion than anything, the Vigiles loped toward the borders with ears pricked and eyes scanning the area. She was contemplating how she should call attention to herself when she noticed a shape moving along the borders on the Ichikan side—a grey canine, a female hybrid by her scent.

Vesper lowered her ears uncertainly then stepped out from the bushes where she’d been waiting, letting out a soft yip to let the other know she was there.

WC: 254

Vesper stood quietly as she waited for the scouting coywolf to notice her. She wasn’t sure if this creature would be one with rank to greet newcomers or welcome a visitor into pack lands, but she kept her posture polite just in case. She didn’t grovel—never groveled—but stood as respectful as would be expected from a member of a different pack.

Luckily, the hybrid walking toward her seemed friendly, though that probably wasn’t much of a long shot with the peaceful ideals of Ichika no Ho-en. Her fur, a blurred medium grey from a distance, sported timber shades of tawny and soot up close. Blue eyes a shade paler than Vesper’s looked the Vigiles over before the Ichikan made a comment.

Vesper broke a smirk, tilting her head. “Hmm… Did you like your sister?” She was a little uncomfortable reminding someone of someone else, as memories like that placed expectations upon her—either that she was someone warm and familial, or perhaps, if her sister was like Sparrow, someone to look down upon.

Her teasing over, she nodded at the introduction and question. “My name is Vesper. I’m from Inferni, but I traveled her to visit a couple of friends in this pack.” Her purpose trailed easily from her tongue before she paused. “X’yrin Exultare and Kiara Amarok—don’t know if you’ve met either of them?” She supposed now would be as good a time as ever to check if this coywolf, Indira, was very familiar with her pack or someone new.

WC: 323

Vesper smirked and nodded slightly at the other’s final remark on her sister, though she personally had no idea what a normal sibling relationship was like. The moment she began to find her own independence and Sparrow remained timid and constantly nestled close to her mother, any semblance of normal sisterhood was gone. Her sister was more like a parasite than a family member, and it would be a stretch for her to even say she’d loved Sparrow.

But these were heavy thoughts for a simple meeting, and the coywolf was careful not to let any of them surface as she maintained her lighthearted expression. She nodded once more as Indira asked about Inferni, pleased to see that she actually knew about it without making more remarks about how bloodthirsty the fire clan was. It was true that the group attracted coyotes of dark dispositions and good combat skills, but Vesper knew that few were the genocidal killers outsiders claimed them to be. She wouldn’t have tolerated staying with the clan if that were so, what with all the wolf friends she’d had and would have.

“That’s fine,” Vesper said as soon as Indira explained her place within Ichika. “It would be nice to just have a chat. I don’t want you to get in trouble with your superiors.” She wagged her tail lightly then came closer to the borders, wondering if the other hybrid would make the move to step outside of them or if they would have to maintain a balancing act with their stroll.

“Has the winter been hard on your pack? No trouble so far?” she asked, the question driven by sincere concern for how her friends were doing yet also by the nature of her rank. The main task of a Vigiles was to keep watch over Inferni’s borders, though Vesper also knew that her ability to keep an eye on the happenings would help the clan out.

WC: 329

Vesper smirked at the other coywolf’s apparent nonchalance about whether this would be an issue to the leadership. She had to admire someone who wasn’t groveling to their commanders; wolves without backbones bothered her, invoking disgust at worst and pity at best. It was why she tolerated Inferni, not having to constantly conform to the displays of dominance and submission that ran rampant in some wolf-based packs; that, and respecting the leader she had helped too. All she knew about Ichika’s leaders was that one was a hippie.

She flashed a smaller, more encouraging smirk as Indira trotted closer to her, and they began to walk. The mountains all around them provided for beautiful scenery, and Ves was glad for her lupus form in case the ground became treacherous. It was definitely colder here than south of the mountains, though; her breath came in puffs of white smoke.

The grey hybrid didn’t answer her question, but that didn’t bother the Vigiles. If she had suspected it was best kept secret, ignoring it was a way to deter the tawny woman, who only pricked her ears at the question directed to her.

“X’yrin I met before either one of us had joined a pack,” Vesper explained. “Her culture was far different than the one in Nova Scotia; she belonged to a wandering group called the Nomads. Somewhat recently we met up again, and she gave me pointers on combat.” The sparring lessons had benefited Vesper greatly, and she was already gaining more and more confidence in her bipedal form despite her inclination for her birth one.

“Kiara and I met south… We swam out to an island and explored it together. Again, we reunited recently. I believe she’s the babysitter of the pack.” She shrugged, having not asked her friends many personal questions about Ichika. All she knew was that X’yrin was likely a warrior, and Kiara was proving that non-luperci were useful by taking care of her friend’s child.

WC: 411

Vesper nodded as Indira mentioned her own group’s lifestyle. “You should really talk to X’yrin,” she suggested. “She’s keen on trading information. Her own culture is…well, they really worship the nomadic aspect. Wandering is their whole life, walking an endless path without anywhere to settle permanently…” She knew that she was probably misremembering some of the information, but with a shrug she decided that X’y would be able to explain it accurately. “I’m sure X’y and the Nomads saw wonderful things. Hearing her describe her life… It’s so genuine.”

And it put anyone else’s concept of wandering to shame, though she would let Indira learn that lesson herself. She still remembered the pangs of shame she felt when she needed to admit to the Exultare woman that she’d abandoned her own journey, but that had slowly passed. Everyone needed their own beliefs.

“I used to fancy myself a wanderer,” Vesper said after a moment. While she didn’t go revealing her personal life to strangers, she did feel obligated to match pieces of information others shared. “I had no pack for a long time. My mother was a lone coyote, and so it was just her and us, her daughters. I was independent at an early age.” She glanced at Indira, judging her to be a yearling, and smirked faintly. “Maybe your age. A few months earlier.”

She sniffed the air briefly then glanced into the Ichikan territory, wondering if the mountainous charm had been what had drawn so many to the pack and its peaceful ideals—or if the ideals had drawn them to the pack. She supposed this quiet place could be seen as an adytum for troubled souls.

Indira asked a question, and the coywolf was jerked out of her thoughts, turning her head to the other with an almost-verbalized “huh?” She flicked her ears forward then nodded, her lips creasing comfortably into their signature smirk. “As much as I can, when I’m not specifically doing duties for my pack. I used to think I was an amazing fighter before I came to Nova Scotia, but meeting many warrior here taught me that everyone can improve. Sparring is exciting for me, too; all of the rush from fighting without the threats.” While others might fight to cause harm to others, might lust for the blood of a kill, Vesper cared more for the sport than the end result. She’d killed one coyote, and that hadn’t been a good feeling.