cause we're young and we're reckless

day before the ball-ish [503]

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She’d been lucky. The entire trip, it had only snowed once, and lightly at that. The going had been chilly, but the wind was no match for Lyris’s thick fur and the cloak around her shoulders. She’d managed to hunt well, even if the pickings were slim; and her stallion had even managed to scrounge up a decent amount of living grass. Riding on horseback for the past few days had caused the huntress to become sore and achy, so for long stretches she would walk astride Kenyon. It was not a comfortable or easy way to travel, but there was no other way to travel, and in Lyris’s terms, it had been a fairly quick and easy trip. She did have the vague frustration of having to remain in Optime the entire way, as she wished to run for long stretches on all fours, but she knew that until she returned home that would not be an option, so she managed to mostly ignore the urges. Still, she knew that any other soul from New Dawn would not be able to spend such a long time in Optime without losing their mind. Just another thing that makes me strange to them. She muttered inwardly.

She was taking a break from home to visit another pack. It was something very un-Lyris-like, but it was something she had decided she should try. Besides, she could stock up with anything she could kill or scavenge on the way, and maybe return with a good load of things she could use to pay Vinátta for boarding her horse, or find more alcohol or tools for her friend Asgeir. The main reason she chose to visit Casa di Cavalieri, of all places, was because she knew perhaps the most about them, due to a former member being part of New Dawn, and being a sort-of-friend (she had no friends, except maybe Asgeir) of the king’s grandson, Luca. The first time she had met Luca he had beat her at a hand-to-hand spar (just barely), and ever since she’d been practicing hard, because failure was not an option. But there was only so far she could advance without using a dummy to practice on or actually sparring with someone. Besides, she was curious about the military pack. If she could convince Luca to let her in the borders, maybe she could get a better look around.

It was midday when Kenyon and Lyris reached the borders. The Warden dismounted, adjusted her skewered cloak around her throat and loosely gripped her stallion’s reins. Then she stared across the border for a good ten seconds, unsure, exactly, of what she would say. Then she just sighed. To hell with it. Tipping back her head, she let out a short, clear howl, aiming it towards Luca, but since she was unsure if this was the custom for such a place, she mostly just prayed he would be the one that answered, and not some stranger that would gape at her.

At last they would be entering into an Alliance with the Court. Why they hadn’t done so already was beyond Luca’s mind. They were a clear choice, obvious even. They shared the knight way – or at least they shared it with the warriors of the court. It was an understatement to say that Luca was excited about the soon alliance.

Tomorrow night there would be a grand ball hosted by the Cavaliers. There would be music, dancing, food and laughter. He had been out of the packlands during their last alliance; he hadn’t even been a member of Casa. Now he felt guilt that he had not been around to attend his own brother’s mateship, to celebrate the coming together of the feral wolves and the Cavalers.

This time would be different. This time he was a Familglia – a Cavalier with a purpose. To try and busy himself until tomorrow came the young Knight decided to take his new horse out for a ride. What a surprise it had been when his grandfather had gifted him Ulric. It was true that there were many unowned horses in Casa in need of riders – but Luca was honored none the less.

He had never had his own horse but Ulric was the perfect specimen. A large and strong stallion comprised of primarily a deep red, white hair and a white stripe along his nose. As a young Cavalier Luca had learned to ride from Wayne and the help of his father and mother. It had been many moons since then but he had gone on a few pony rides while in Freetown with his axe trainer, so it couldn’t be that hard….could it?

With just reins on the horse Luca climbed onto his bare back. It took a couple of moments for the rider and horse get settled into a slow walk. Since it was their first time out Luca would not be galloping around, and it wasn’t like he had somewhere to be anyway, so slow and steady was fine. It took time to get to the boarders and even longer to start a stead patrol. The pair had just gotten into a groove when a females howl called for him by name. “Crap.” The Famiglia grumbled under his breath as he turned Ulric around, back towards the source of the sound.

It took them longer to reach Lyris than it would have by foot but Luca was not going to give up on his exercises with his new horse just yet and he was not willing to gallop and look like a fool. He arrived on horseback, his new deer cloak lazing against Ulrics lower back. “What are you doing here? We’re only expecting members of the court.” He grumbled down at her with a wrinkled nose.

Now was not the time to be entertaining Lyris’ teasing remarks and feral ways. There was business to be done. “And why for Fenris’ do you have a horse?” The question was asked as an aside. In Luca’s mind the New Dawners were too feral to have horses so why did Lyris have one now?

OOC: Luca is being a dick for the moment - excuse him :3 522 words

a-ha the level of sass is astronomical [480]

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She’d questioned herself several times on the wisdom of such a journey. She was taking time away from New Dawn and her duties, and spending it all on two feet- a very non-feral thing to do, even if her animalistic posture spoke otherwise. Many of New Dawn and any other soul she talked to already thought she was out of place in such a pack, and she was only adding fuel to that fire. But then she weighed her options; she was getting simply bored in New Dawn, and this little adventure would inject some excitement into her life. Besides, something good could come of it; she could finally trump Luca in a spar and get some practice. That topped with the very plain fact that she didn’t all that much care of what New Dawn or others thought of her, it was easy to make her decision. If they thought she should leave the feral pack, it didn’t matter. Unless Zalen or Raeka decided to kick her out or she left on her own accord, there was nothing they could do to change her or her ways.

Lyris stood and settled her back on Kenyon’s sturdy flank as he nosed at the snow for grass, knowing that the wait may be a while. All here stood on two legs, and such forms of transportation took longer than four feet. And, if she knew Luca at all, his personality wasn’t one to be particularly punctual about things.

It was quite a long wait, but maybe not for the reasons she’d thought of. When Lyris heard the sound of crunching snow, she straightened and moved away from her stallion, only to see another one heading her way. But very, very slowly. She tipped her head curiously and watched as rider and animal approached. Her detail-oriented mind was quick to pick out the infirmities in the Luca’s technique; the way in which he sat on the horse (was he riding bareback?), how he directed it, and overall, the very minimal speed. Lyris stood next to Kenyon impatiently watching them canter closer. And what did she get once in earshot? A mouth full of blunt and snarky comments. As was the usual.

Lyris prepared to respond with a retort, but was caught off guard by his first words. “The Court?” Was the first thing out of her mouth. But she wasn’t here to ask questions, she was here for answers. She shook her head as if to wave it off and then continued. “You do owe me a dummy, remember? And a rematch, as well.” The Warden provided, not caring to expand on the details. His last comment was rather unnecessary, but all Lyris did was take a glance at his mount, raise her brow, and say “I have a horse because I know how to ride one, unlike you.”

Luca had hoped to uphold an image of the brave Cavalier riding on top of a horse in a regal matter but that was not what others would see. Although he tried very hard to retain balance and good posture both he and Ulric were struggling to maintain a synchronized balancing act. Still, as they stood in front of Lyris Luca tried his best to retain his pride.

Naturally the New Dawnner’s response was one of sarcasm and defensiveness, just what Luca had expected. He opened his mouth the answer he question about the Court but found that he was left mouth agape with no silence to fill. Slowing he jaw slowly he began to grind his teeth and his brow frowned. Would she ever shut up?

Once she was done he quickly replied with his own snide comment, “If you want a damn dummy just come here and use one for Fenris’ sake! Aint no use dragging one all the way back to New Dawn only for you to break it again and have no one there to repair it!” Golden eyes glared into her blues in frustration. “And for your information I just got Ulric this morning. He’s a gift from my grandfather to celebrate my promotion.” He boated with his brows still frowned.

Sure, his rank was still not very impressive but at least he was in the middle now. It was always better to be mid-ranked than the scum at the bottom of the pile that those at the top stepped on – though displays of dominance were surprisingly rare in the warrior based pack. “Anyway.” He sighed, giving a verbal sign of momentary truce. “Casa is hosting a Ball tomorrow to celebrate our new alliance with the Court. We’re expecting members to be arriving steadily until then.” Giving a look over Lyris he added. “If you insist on visiting you’ll have to visit Clara so she can make you look…vaguely decent.”

OOC: Still being a dick. 325 words

Lyris, b nice [484]

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Snide remarks and vague insults just fountained from Luca’s mouth, and she had a very similar thought to his own- could he shut up and answer her questions in a civilized manner? Clearly not, because one word after the other was blow upon blow, and she began to grow a faint curiosity of imagining how his head would look on a stake.

Kenyon began to feel Lyris’s irritation, even if she didn’t show it in her stony calm demeanor. The horse paused in his grazing and lifted his head slowly, eyeing Luca and Ulric with a scrutinizing gaze. As the heated words continued, the stallion lifted his nose completely and took a trot forward so that he stood shoulder to shoulder with his companion, now fully interested in the exchange, even if it was mostly gibberish to him. The one ton of animal standing by her side helped put Lyris’s murderous mood to something more mild, and she silently rubbed his neck with a hand as Luca spoke. The repeating motion helped the fur that had began to stand on the back of her neck to settle, if only a centimeter, and she waited until his ranting was done to reply. Her voice was not as angry as before, though it still held a note of very obvious annoyance. “Do you really think I’m dumb enough to try and drag a bag full of sand back to New Dawn? Not all feral wolves are idiots, contrary to what you believe.” The Warden ceased in her stroking of Kenyon and instead turned to face the heir again, crossing her arms over her chest and giving him a level look. At least she didn’t look in danger of falling off of a steed, as he did. “You were the one who called me a waste in New Dawn. I expected you to be at least a bit pleased that I was taking some interest in your precious pack. But forgive me, as soon as I’m done here, I’ll return to New Dawn with all of the uncivilized heathens and live out the rest of my life peacefully, hopefully without your face to interrupt.” She spat, flicking her tail angrily against her tattoed thigh as she waited for him to continue. Now an unclear expression of confusion and curiosity crossed her face.

“What’s a Ball?” Came the question. To play it off as casual, Lyris tugged her horse’s head towards her and began to loosen the straps around his head. She paused, again, at his last comment. Shooting him a glare deadly enough to stop a charging bear in its tracks, she asked another question, this time all humor gone for her voice. The words fell like dead weights to the snow, so obviously full of frustration and exasperation with the boy in front of her. “Vaguely decent? What’s that supposed to mean?”

As the conversation became heated it was hard to ignore Lyris’ horse attentively move forward, and Ulric’s muscles tighten underneath his legs. Instantly his hand reached out to touch the horse’s neck, stroking him softly. Taking in a deep breath he tried to relax for the sake of the horses, if they started fighting it was likely the two male horses would pick up on it and take it personally. Although Ulric was new to his care the red stallion knew the Cavalier scent to be friendly, and the source of his care and food.

Lyris seemed to pick up on the horse’s tension as well; a good thing since it was clearly obvious and only an idiot would miss it. Despite his strange relationship with Lyris he knew she was not an idiot, and she seemed to agree. “Not all of New Dawn is the dumb sort of feral. Remember, my brother lives there. And I guess you too.” He admitted half-heartedly. “And I would gladly show you around the pack and train but now is not the damn time.” He grumbled in as nice of a tone he could muster, his hand still running through Ulric’s white hair.

He wasn’t prepared for her next question; maybe she was an idiot after all. A large grin spread across his muzzle as he looked at her in disbelief. “What’s a ball?” He parroted back, laughing mostly at her, and not to himself. Holding out her hand he motioned for her to wait for him to regain himself. “A Ball.” He started with a smile. “A Ball is like a fancy party. Everyone dresses up, there’s food and music and you relax and dance.” Pausing and thinking for a moment he added, “If you’re gonna rest here you should come to the Ball. I mean you’re here anyway, not like you’re gonna walk all the way home now.” He didn’t want to pupsit her but it would be rude to send her away now. She was also an ally anyway.

OOC: Slowly being less of a dick. 339 words

she gon need some convincing [401]

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Kenyon was very in-tune to his companion’s emotions, as he knew her better than anyone. He also knew the difference between annoyance and a true threat- and could easily understand that her angry tone and taut posture wasn’t borne from danger, only some sort of irritation he couldn’t understand. Yet it was enough of distress for him to come to her aid, and he pushed his nose towards her, seeking an answer for the disturbance. Her throat closed with the kind gesture, and she stroked the stallion’s cheek and neck before shaking her head and giving him a gentle push backwards. He understood, if only somewhat, and after giving Ulric a curious glance, returned to his nosing of the ground, though he kept much closer to Lyris, now that he understood their destination was not as friendly as he had expected.

She let his comment about New Dawn and its feral-ness to go without reply, since it had a rather sour expression to go along with it and she didn’t want to carry on the unpleasant exchange. His stupid pride and acting like he knew everything set her on-edge, and she was attempting to lower the frustration level of the conversation before she really did begin to have bloody urges. Lyris was quick and easy to push into physical fighting, and she knew as much, so she was quickly trying to calm her boiling blood. Yet, she did find it odd how easily he was able to bring her anger forward- never had she become so defensive so quickly.

She continued to glare as he laughed, not a single trace of amusement on her face as she stood with her arms crossed, posture rigid, and tail flicking angrily. He thought everything she did wrong was hilarious, didn’t he. When Luca finally managed to provide her with an answer, she crinkled her nose. “Sorry, I don’t do parties. Especially if it’s full of wolves that find me just as amusing as you do. I prefer not to be laughing stock.” Lyris snapped, before turning towards her horse and gently tugging his head from the ground. Taking hold of his reins, she moved so that they were standing on top of the border. “We’ll just need some place to stay for a couple days, and I don’t care if it’s in the damn woods. Then we’ll remove our bothersome presence.”

Lyris’ words just grew the frustration that bubbled up in Luca’s chest. Of course she would think every single wolf was out to make fun of her. Stupid feral wolves always seemed to think the world was against them. “You’re not stayin’ in the damn woods Lyris.” He huffed, his brows frowned. There had to be a way to convince her that a party was a better idea than sleeping in the woods. Although Luca would not admit it he thought it would be disgraceful to Casa to allow an ally, and somewhat of a friend, to sleep in the woods when there was a comfortable bed and warm furs up for the use.

Still, Lyris was being particularly stupid and Luca was not finished being stupid right back. “Well I’m sorry Lyris but either you sleep in the courthouse or you pack your crap up and head back home.” He sneered. “There’s food, stables and a private room unless you’re scared of a big bad party.” Golden eyes dared her to walk away. What sort of moron would give up food and a quiet room to stay in for a long trek back home. “Besides, no one is going to make fun of you.” He reassured with a roll of his eyes. “Everyone will be too drunk to even notice ya.”

OOC: 200+ words

Can archive here or with your next post <: [281]

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She could feel the frustration rolling in waves from the grand-prince, and Lyris was practically certain she was the only one that could match such an emotion and perhaps succeed it. His next words didn't let the topic drop, as she had been hoping- instead, he only encouraged the fur on the back of her neck to raise, and the urge to stomp her foot like an upset pup appeared, though she held back the action, knowing such a movement would only allow him more ammunition to point a finger at her with. This was ridiculous- he was forcing her to stay and go to the dumb dance or otherwise leave. Did he have the authority to do that? She was unsure, but would rather avoid denying the options and sparking more bickering. Lyris hadn't the slightest idea what was going through his head, but whatever it was, she was one hundred percent certain his reasoning was stupid and dumb.

"I'm not scared of your stupid party." She huffed, glaring at him with eyes of fiery green. "It's just a bunch of playing dress-up and drinking for amusement. If you want me to participate in your little gathering so badly, fine. I didn't ride for three days to get turned away." And with that, she crossed the border, Kenyon in tow, his dark eyes flickering with distrust towards the boy on the blood bay horse. "Just show me where the stables and rooms are. " Lyris grumbled, continuing to walk forward even when she had no idea where she was going. The Warden didn't want to set eyes on Luca for the remainder of the meeting.

Holding his ground he dare not change his face from the permanent confident sneer on face. Under his confident exterior Luca was praying to Fenris that Lyris would not walk away. What would Jazper or Alistair do if they found out that the Famiglia turned away an ally just because she didn’t want to join in with the celebrations? Luca knew he was acting beyond his power but he had gone past just trying to make a point and into the all or nothing zone. So he kept his cool, his golden eyes watching her without hesitation or fear.

To his amazement she gave in, storming past him in a fit of frustration and anger. Luca could hardly believe that he had won the argument, his jaw hanging lose as he turned his body to see her walking past him and into the territory. The Knight could feel her anger at him, and was frankly surprised that she hadn’t thrown a punch at his face as she walked past. Deciding not to test his luck the Famiglia broke out into a large grin and scurried after her, holding staying behind her as to not let her see his gloating face. “As you wish, m’lady.”

OOC: 200+ words