[html]
She led them in one long string, Bayard at the head. She would never trade her own personal horse, of course, but was using him to help her get the others over. The dark stallion was one of the lesser leaders of her growing herd in Aniwaya, the father of most of the fillies and colts that were born these days, and she could communicate with him better than any other horse. She mumbled a few words in lowspeech and their procession stopped, Bayard turning around to look at the other horses. He spoke to them in their own language and the group set to grazing, picking at the dry vegetation near their hooves.
Ember's adopted sibling lived in this pack, but she'd only been here a handful of times. It was about time that she paid them another visit to hear the news. That was one of the reasons she had come. How were her neices and nephew doing? The darkly colored Aniwayan looked out over the borderlands, wondering. They were all inside there, somewhere. She did not want to enter without permission, though. She lifted her muzzle to the air, letting out a low call. She was not in any hurry. It was only early afternoon, and she had the rest of the day to visit.
The Danua Ihesdi was dressed for the warmer weather, enjoying this break from the usual cold. She wore her red and white dress, the same one that she had worn to the tribal celebrations a few months back. It was very comfortable and provided her easy access to the sword and axe that rested on the belt around her waist, leaning against her left thigh. She didn't think that she would have to use either of those today, unless she met some threat in the neutral lands on her way back to Aniwaya. The tall wolfess patted Bayard on the head as they waited, conversing with him in low tones.
|
[/html]
[html] http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g210/ ... lelala.png); background-position: bottom center; background-repeat: no-repeat;">
He heard the call and recognized her immediately. The Patriarch did not hasten, however; instead, he listened to the echo of the long, reverberating howl and how it so easily rushed over the hills and through the chilled, cool air of Phoenix Valley before reaching his ears. Clearly, Jefferson was just being lazy -- it wasn't often that he was so sentimental, especially with a simple sound. However, he'd been at work settling the farm and getting final preparations done before the snow came, and it was then that he heard the howl.
Jefferson was rather fond of Ember. The two had met by chance when Ember had some looking for her mother -- that was a long time ago now, wasn't it? Iskata had been dead months; surely Ember knew of this. At least, Jefferson hoped so. He hated to be the one to tell her if she didn't and had come seeking Iskata once more. No, the cyclops was fond of Ember; making her upset was just about the last thing he wanted to do for a guest.
"It's been a while," he smiled gently when he found her, mild surprise evident as his eye glanced over the horses. He'd forgotten about that deal with Dawali; the barn certainly had room, especially because the one-armed cyclops had just finished slaving over it and cleaning it up further. He couldn't remember Ember being from AniWaya, however, which resulted in a slightly puzzled stare, but it was sent away quickly. "You're AniWayan?" Jefferson questioned, mostly out of surprise, but dropped it. "You're looking well. I assume you want to leave that bunch here."
[/html]
[html] <333
It was nice to bring gifts to the neighbors, and horses were probably the best thing that she could offer. They were very valuable to the tall wolf; breeding the horses and caring for them did take some time out of her routine. She liked being around horses in general, though, and didn't mind the disruption too much. Her schedule wasn't completely full, or anything. Some days she spent more time in the stables then she needed to, even.
He appeared out of the brush, a wolf that she recognized, and her tail wagged. She took a few steps forward and Bayard stepped forward too, surprising a few of the horses from their grazing. A smile graced the Aniwayan's face and she proudly nodded. "Yep! For a bit now, actually. I guess I haven't come 'round for a while, huh? Dawali made me a leader beside him a few months ago"
He said that she was looking well and to be honest he was too. Maybe it was the fact that he looked happy, content, even, in her eyes. A good mood, perhaps. Even a good mood could make someone look brighter and more healthy! "You too! And you mean this lot here? Hmmmm. I dunnoooo..think I ought to? Hehehe. The big one at the front's mine, but the others...I guess I could part with 'em." Of course she'd brought them for Phoenix Valley. "How's everyone doing here?"
|
[/html]
[html] http://i57.photobucket.com/albums/g210/ ... lelala.png); background-position: bottom center; background-repeat: no-repeat;">
A leader! Well, Jefferson could have easily admitted his surprise, but there was no need. The last time they'd met, Ember had been a common ranker in -- what was it -- Crimson Dreams? Or had she been elsewhere? The brute couldn't even remember for the life of him, but regardless, he'd met up with Dawali for the first time sometime between the time he'd met Ember. Back then, Dawali had mentioned he was not the leader of AniWaya, hadn't he? From what the cyclops had heard, the then-leader had stepped down and Dawali had moved up, but it seemed Ember had frolicked from one pack to another and moved her way up the ranks quickly.
"Well, that was fast," was all he could respond, a look of surprise clear on his face. He had nothing against it, of course; Jefferson was well aware of Ember's demeanor and could see it working well. But how had all that happened so quickly -- and would it have been necessary to inform Phoenix Valley of such changes? If they were allianced, would that be important for him to do as well? "Congratulations are in order, I guess, although if you keep moving at that whirlwind speed, I don't know where you'll end up next."
Jefferson reached a gentle, kindly hand to the lead horse's snout. "The snow's piling up around the barn, but we've been pretty good with getting the horses out and exercising. Let's walk." He turned, briefly admiring the other horses she'd led, before motioning with a hand and beginning a slow stride. "The Valley's been quieter as of late. We had a few loyal faces disappear, so there's a bit of a hole I think my members are suffering over." He shrugged. How loved had Lysander and Asariel been? He'd barely met the male, but Jefferson had been rather fond of the wolfess. "Other than that, Inferni has been out of our hair and the other packs haven't made any contact either. We're usually left alone like this."
[/html]
[html] <3 wc: 310
She felt like she had lived in Aniwaya for almost all of her life, so the change hadn't seemed like it happened so quickly. She had moved from pack to pack until ending up at Dahlia de Mai, but then she'd had issues with Firefly and had left that place behind. It was last winter that she had joined the pack, was it odd that she had moved up so quickly? Many of the original founding members had left, but Tayui, Dawali, and herself were left there. Tayui didn’t do too much, as she had been busy raising her pups…that was understandable. Ember had made friends with the leader and had shown him that she could be trusted. When Ayegali had stepped down, he had stepped up and in turn she had as well. "Thanks. I have my reasons for staying there…I really fit in. I have guidance when I need it, a spirit guide who knows me better than I know myself some days. He really helps me out. "
He began to walk into the territory and she followed, leading the string behind her. She had been here a few times before and gazed about as they went, taking in the pleasant scenery. Jefferson spoke of the pack and of their relations with the others, and she nodded. Members did come and go as they pleased; that was one of the harder parts of being a leader, she thought. Seeing them leave, or watching them disappear slowly. She was getting used to it, as hard as it was. "Once you finally think you might have a friend in someone they up and take off. That’s good news, about the coyotes. They ain’t bothered us much either…none of the packs have, to my knowledge. I’m glad we have this little partnership, to keep in contact when the others don’t."
|
[/html]
[html] http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v606/ ... ls/Lin.jpg);background-position:bottom;background-repeat:no-repeat;width:500px;background-color:#145895;text-align:left;font-family:georgia;font-size:1em;color:#aac5df;">
What used to be a house of cards Has turned into a reservoir
Spirit guides. She spoke of it so faithfully, like it was something she wholesomely believed in. Jefferson himself was a skeptic; the range of his beliefs dealing with ghosts, the afterlife, or generally anything supernatural was pretty much limited. He didn't widen his perspective often enough to give the whole concept much thought, but it was no surprise. Jefferson surely didn't strike many as the religious type, and even if he had been, it would have not been a topic of discussion. Likely, not even Geneva would have found out about it, and when she finally figured it out on her own like she always did when it came to the brute keeping secrets, it would have been just another thing for her to pinpoint him with and create another open forum on the subject. Ah, love.
...they up and take off. That sentence generally summarized Phoenix Valley. He himself had been there over a year and a half or so, right? The cyclops brought countless faces to mind that had all come and gone in no time. Several had disappeared. Allegro, Rendall, Trostan. Kvaesir. Haephestus. They were gone now, of course, and most of them were relatively recent. How many more had he already forgotten completely? Jefferson scoured his mind only briefly before finally managing a response. "A lot have come and gone from the Valley. I assume more than what's typical... every few months it seems our ranks are all occupied by new people." He sighed. Clearly, although he wasn't admitting to it, the cyclops took it personally. What was he doing wrong? Was it his demeanor? The land? The people?
He smiled at her, however, and his shoulders sunk back to their normal placement. "It's good to know there's at least one pack out there we can trust," Jefferson said. "It's a relief to know someone out there is on our side and that their leaders are trustworthy."
[/html]
[html]
The woman didn't really know what religion was, and if she did practice it she wasn't really meaning to. She just knew what was real to her and what felt right, which was to live in Aniwaya and get advice from her wonderful friend Utriu. She was friends with wolves too, of course, but had only felt that sort of kinship bond with someone else a few times in her life.
"Sometimes I think we're too easy in the joining process. Maybe we should be more specific with what we want...and with askin' if they're gonna be stickin' around. But then we prolly wouldn't have any members at all. I guess all we can do is reward the ones who do stay." They walked for a few moments before he spoke again, and she immediately agreed. "Definitely. I suppose there's always Crimson Dreams, where my brother lives...and our family in Dahlia. But those are bonds that haven't been explored. I would like to think that they might help us if we needed it, but it's hard to be sure." This trading relationship was a really good start, in her opinion.
|
[/html]
[html] http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v606/ ... ls/Lin.jpg);background-position:bottom;background-repeat:no-repeat;width:500px;background-color:#145895;text-align:left;font-family:georgia;font-size:1em;color:#aac5df;">
What used to be a house of cards Has turned into a reservoir
The concept of "rewarding" those who stayed was nothing he'd ever considered; those who left had their reasons, and those who stayed typically were happy about being there. From what he could see, those in his pack now were content where they were; the land was a peaceful place, the members generally friendly and supportive, and the leaders attentive and fair. Phoenix Valley was by no means a disaster waiting to happen, it was not in danger of collapse due to a shortage of members, and he and Geneva were running the ship well. As far as he was concerned, those who chose to stray away from the Valley did so by their own choice; his pack was open and inviting, but if they were unable to find what they were looking for for whatever reason, then there place was clearly elsewhere.
She spoke of her family, which came across as a mild surprise to the brute. Her brother in Crimson Dreams must have been Kansas, of whom he was also very fond. As for her family in Dahlia, well, the cyclops didn't know. "My half-brother runs Dahlia nowadays," Jefferson remarked quietly, almost as if he wanted to keep it a secret. "Cercelee is my cousin... but she was ousted so quickly, I don't know what to think of them. My daughter also lives there, for now... I'm hoping she's safe, regardless of whatever Haku has up his sleeve." Jefferson himself didn't have much family while Maluki certainly did. What little Jefferson could lay claim to he certainly held dear.
[/html]
[html]
She wasn't sure what kinds of ties Jefferson had with other packs, if any. And did those ties actually mean anything? She knew where Kansas and his mate were, at the very least...but Firefly was iffy. She didn't know if the woman was even around any more, as she hadn't smelled her anywhere...but maybe she was sticking to neutral territories or sticking around a pack Ember was unfamiliar with.
"That's interesting to know. The other leader of AniWaya, Dawali, has some family...but I guess their tribe was split up. There were more old tribesmembers back when I first joined. I dunno where the rest are. Somewhere far away I think. Are you close to your brother in Dahlia? Both Firefly and I used to live in that pack, once upon a time." She said.
|
[/html]
[html] http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v606/ ... ls/Lin.jpg);background-position:bottom;background-repeat:no-repeat;width:500px;background-color:#145895;text-align:left;font-family:georgia;font-size:1em;color:#aac5df;">
What used to be a house of cards Has turned into a reservoir
He smiled at the mention of Dawali; he and Jefferson were well acquainted. The brute admired the AniWayan leader's calm, cool demeanor and was fond of his company, but the two were understandably busy with their own pack business and did not see each other often. "I've met Dawali; he is a good man," the brute said, smile cracking on his scarred and worn features. She spoke of more AniWayans that had lived in the pack once, but had since left -- he knew that well, considering how much Phoenix Valley had changed in members since he'd joined. He and Pendzez were the pack's eldest in membership, the white wolf having joined just days prior to the cyclops.
She posed questions about Haku, however, and his shoulders sank. "Haku and I have never been close. I have no real desire to be. He's become dangerous, especially since Cercelee left. The pack has a lot of members, including my daughter... I fear for them, especially with this stupid war going on." He didn't admit to it, but the cyclops was relieved that the war with Inferni was raging with Dahlia and not his own pack. They wouldn't have stood a chance. "I have no memories of my childhood, so I don't know what Haku was like when he was young. I can only judge him as he is now. ...I have not heard of this 'Firefly,' though." A questioning look.
[/html]
|
