You Can't Run From Responsibility

Ruhn'al stared out across the water of the lake, admiring the reflection and the slivers of sunlight that lined the water. She felt her paws sink into the leaves and mud, the cool sensation nice on the pads. She sighed contentedly, staring out across the water, out across this small part of Inferni's territory. She sighed in contentment, safe behind the borders. Yet still there was that hint of worry, what would she do now she was here, how would she even begin to proceed to find a job, get some training and equipment. Realising that she had to do something soon, she peeled herself away from the lake and began the walk back to the mansion.

It was a cool, brisk day, the sunlight hard and bright, but beautiful none the less. She walked slowly, taking in the new surroundings and scents, the smell of coyote. She wondered what to do now, who to speak to, but put that out of her mind for a while, just to enjoy the moment. With the sun on her back and a lack of hunger, she made her slow, wandering way back towards the building through the falling leaves.

Ruhn reached the fire pit and sat down amongst the leaves, staring into the ashes as if they would tell her future. The faint smell of smoke lingered in the air, most probably from when the ashes had been disturbed by the wind. She sighed again, resigned now that she had to sort something out for herself, thinking of how she had nothing to trade with, and no idea of what to do. Although there was safety in numbers, it also meant she had to contribute to the pack. Of course, she wouldn't have minded this, it was just that she had no idea how to start! Ruhn gave a small laugh, it looked like she was going to have to find out, but where to start? By this fire pit, it seemed.

Sorry it took me so long to get to this; 312 Words

Cartier was finishing up his rounds of patrols and decided to end his round by heading towards the mansion in order to check on the horses. It was on his way there that he noticed someone else out and about. He didn't recognize the face or the smell and had to wonder if the clan had grown once again. Either way it didn't matter. New member or not it was up to him to go and introduce himself.

"Hello there." He called out and waved to the other, announcing his presence before he got too close. He moved over to go and crouch near the other near to the other by the fire pit. "Cold?" He asked the other and picked up a stick in order to poke at the ashes. "I can start up a fire if you want." He looked up from the ashes to look up at the female that was seated across from him.

"I'm Cartier Inferni." He offered up his name and sat patiently to wait for her own to be given, should she choose to even do so. "Are you living here?" She asked and nodded towards the mansion. "I stay over in the caverns." He said and pointed in the approximate direction of where the caverns were from the mansion. "Are you new here? Do you need help to figure your way around? I've lived here my whole life so I pretty much know where everything is." The young male figured that he ought to offer the help out if she really were new. He was raised here and so that made it easier to learn and know his way around and he figured it wouldn't be the same for someone who just came here and wasn't used to their ways.

No problem!

She liked how the wind tossed around the ashes, and was so absorbed in staring into the grey patterns that the sudden sound of another's voice startled her. She looked to see another coyote coming towards her and she quickly gathered herself up. She stood, slightly awkwardly with a slight smile on her face to greet the other unknown male. He looked relatively young, though as she was thinking this she was reminded just how young she herself was. Eager to not make an enemy, she concluded to be especially polite and attentive; she had been notified by her siblings that she could be unintentionally rude and distractable.

"Hello..." She trailed off, not sure if she should say something, and realising she didn't know what to say. It was a relief when they came closer and began to talk again, seemingly unaware of her uncertainty. She smiled genuinely at his offer, "No, no, it's fine. I'll probably be moving on soon." She considered the other with a small tilt of her head, but quickly turned her head to one side as he looked up at her. She had no idea if he would find direct eye contact rude, but she wasn't taking chances. Instead she looked slightly to the side, at the fire again. When it became apparent that he wasn't just coming to say hello, then leave, she eased back down into a less formal position, sitting at the other end of the fire pit.

"Good to meet you Cartier, I'm Ruhn'al." Her smile widened as she began to feel more at ease, though still alert. She had to stop herself from snorting in laughter as she thought that, alert as if tracking a rabbit. She was talking to another coyote, and yet she was so uncertain. It appeared she would have to work on her social skills. "Ah, no, I've yet to... Uh... Find somewhere to stay." She laughed slightly and nodded as he asked her if she was new. But she was quick to respond to his next question, "Oh no it's fine... I would hate to inconvenience you! You say you live in the caverns? How come you're over here then, are you busy doing something?" She squinted in disbelief at her words, "Not that it's... uh, unusual for someone to be wandering around in their territory..." She laughed again, more nervously this time, and resisted the strong urge to get up and pace up and down, frantically.

Figure I could use this for the Vanguard co-rank (Assist newcomers in acclimating themselves to Inferni's territory, culture, etc. Help new coyotes get settled (i.e., find a residence, know where to go for food, where to find the leaders, etc.). Be friendly and outgoing toward new Infernians.); 300 Words

"It is a pleasure to meet you Ruhn'al." The young male said with a smile. He was trying to appear welcoming, especially after the other said that she was new. He wanted her to think of Inferni as a welcoming place and he didn't want her to get a negative impression of the clan. He figured that if he happened to be one of the first few faces that she saw in her time here then he better do his best to make her feel good about her decision to join the clan.

"Well then I will help you." He said with a grin, glad that he might be able to be of some assistance to the other. He figured that if he could help her out then she would feel even better about having come here. "It is fine, it's not an inconvenience at all." He said and laughed off the comment. "Yeah, I live in the caverns. I was born there actually and my sister still stays there so I can't just leave here. I come over here to work with the horses." It would probably be more convenient for him to live in the mansion but he just couldn't leave Versace behind.

"Come on." He stood up and held his hand out to the female. "I'll show you around. There are rooms in the mansion and open caves in the caverns. The leaders live out in the schoolhouse in the Great Village. We'll find you somewhere that you feel comfortable staying." He made the offer as he had no problem showing the other around. He figured that the female would feel more at home once she had a place to stay and call her own.

That's great. Hah, I'll try and make it easy for Cartier /Ruhn = silly newcomer in need of help!

She considered the other coyote, eyes scanning over his face, wondering why he would stop to help her. But after only a second, hardly noticeable, she grinned and stood up, brown-golden eyes averted to the ground. "Well, if it wouldn't bother you to help a silly coyote, then I'd welcome the help. Turning her head towards the mansion, she marvelled at it's structure. Soon turning her head back towards the male she walked alongside him, "So you work with the horses, that's impressive. So how did you... well, start. Did you have to... train to do it?" She winced slightly at her clumsy phrasing and hoped he understood her unclear question.

In truth she was not only interested in the information, although she was eager to hear about how he started. She was also intent on finding out more about helping out, ignorant as she was about how things worked in Inferni. Wondering wasn't going to go anywhere to getting her a job, yet, curious as she was, she didn't want to directly ask for reasons of the awkwardness that had accompanied her youth. AA question occurred to and was out of her mouth the second she thought of it, "Does it get cold in the caverns?"

Thanks for helping me out; 309 Words

"I don't think you are silly. It is hard to be new, or so I hear." He couldn't speak on that himself since he had been born within Inferni. The clan was all that he had ever known. He couldn't imagine coming in from somewhere else. But then again he couldn't imagine ever leaving the clan either. He wasn't certain what it was that made anyone ever decide to leave home in the first place. But it wasn't like he could judge the situations of others either. It just wasn't his place to do so.

"I pretty much grew up around the horses. Myrika would be out with them and I would follow her. I've been working with them ever since I could shift. I've helped in the training of a couple of mares and now have a couple of my own that I am working with." He glanced over to the female at her question and smiled. "Yeah, it takes a bit because you have to get used to the horses and their different personalities. I can take you out and get you used to them if you want to learn to work with them." He certainly didn't mind because he had a passion for horses.

He nodded his head. "Yeah, it can get cold. Anywhere can get cold. That is why there are furs and fires." He said with a grin. "Do you have a preference on where you want to live? I can show you around either place." He wasn't about to force her to live one place or the other. It was up to here where she wanted to stay and it would let him know just which way he needed to go. He just wanted her to feel comfortable wherever she decided to settle.

Heh, sorry for awful writing today!

Baring sharp teeth in a grin, she nodded. "Yes, harder than I expected it to be." Quietly she added, glancing up at Cartier, "It's goo to have some help. Thank you." She wondered what it would have been like to be born into a pack, whether it gave them a bigger sense of identity in the pack. But she didn't mind, not being born in a pack, she felt it had given her an option to shape the direction her life went in much easier than if she had to leave her home pack. Although she did feel a pang of regret inside her, in a place which she had gotten good at blocking out. If she had been born in a pack, maybe her mother wouldn't be dead now, broken skeleton sinking into the ground.

Shuddering, she brought herself out of that dark thought and pushed it away, hid it in the back of her mind. That thought was too dangerous, it had to be hidden. She listened to the male's words and nodded, slightly envious. In truth, she was terrified of horses, but she would have loved to interact with them. Maybe when she was older she would muster up the strength to investigate them. She shook her head at the kind offer, but had to deny, "Thank you for the offer but I don't think I'd be particularly good around them." Laughing gently, she lifted a hand to the back of her neck, running her fingers through the short fur. This optime form was unusual, almost foreign to her. She was so used to lupus form that she hardly took the time to go through the shift.

She jokingly grimaced and nodded, "I can't wait for summer again, although there's no denying Autumn is beautiful. Giving a smaller smile, Ruhn cast her eyes around their surroundings. As Cartier posed the question she realised she had no idea where she wanted to stay. "Well... I don't mind. I mean I don't want to inconvenience you by making you go back to the caverns, but whichever you recommend." Pausing awkwardly, she hoped she hadn't put the other in a difficult situation.

Thanks for helping me out; 320 Words

"I don't mind helping. It isn't exactly polite to leave any new member lost and wandering around to figure out things on their own." At least that was his own personal belief that he lived by. He would do that exact same for any lost soul. Sadly his intentions weren't strictly benevolent. He also did it in hopes to erase some of the stains from his soul. He wanted to make up for all of the wrong thoughts that he had. He was hoping that every good deed he did would be a point in his favor.

Cartier offered up a smile and a light shrug of his shoulders. "You will never know until you try. You can start with Hiba. She is really easy to get along with. She is great for those that are just starting out with horses. If you want I can take you to meet her sometime." It was clear that Cartier enjoyed his work with the herd. He had learned the personalities and peculiar quirks of those in the herd.

"It doesn't matter what I want it matters what you want. Where will you feel the most comfortable? What was your home like before you came here?" He asked, trying to figure out what would be best for her. "Do you prefer a room or a cave? The caves sometimes flood and the rooms have drafts." Each place had their own unique problems. It was just where she would end up feeling more at home at. "I don't mind showing you around both places if you can't decide. I need to check on my sister in the caves anyways." He glanced up to the mansion. "We can start here if you want and then make a trip to the caves." Either way he would end up at the caves at some point.

Sorry for the really late reply, uh, busy time of year. Heh... :>

"Well it's very kind of you to offer help to someone. You must have quite a lot of other things to do, even without helping me!"
She paused for a moment, silent in her thoughts, before laughing quietly. "Despite the fuss of having to get settled in, it's good to have somewhere safe to be." Once again she was silent for a while, staring at the passing ground as if, if she took her eyes off it she would fall. The last thing she wanted to be doing was making a bigger fool of herself!

With a smile she listened to Cartier talk about the horses, "Well, that's sounds good, sometime. That would be something... different. It would be very amusing to watch I think." She could just imagine herself with horses, just, so jumpy she'd probably disturb them too.... Yes, maybe sometime. Despite her reluctance, she admired Cartier and envied him for his... fearlessness. Still, one day she would muster up the courage!

Nodding reluctantly, she acknowledged that she was being silly. If she was going to be staying here for... for a long time, then she needed to decide what was best herself. "My old home was... Dark, and earthy. Warm. But I'd be surprised if there was anything like that in Inferni..." But it made sense to look at the manor first before the caves, seeing as it was closer. "May as well look at the manor first, while we're here."

OOC - Uh, feel free to fast forwards/move us to the relevant place at any time, speed things up a bit ^.^

338 Words

"I do like to keep myself busy." He admitted. He enjoyed keeping himself busy. He didn't like to just idle about. He personally attempted to fit in as many things as he possibly could into a single day. He had a number of different pursuits because he liked to learn and to keep himself busy. He always seemed to have more things that he felt that he needed to do than he had hours in the day in order to complete them all. It was a fact that often proved annoying for him since he didn't like to leave a task unfinished.

"You don't have to have anything to do with the horses if you don't want to." He said when her answer seemed to be less than enthusiastic. "There is a free roaming herd that stays on the grounds around the mansion." So if she didn't care for horses then that might sway her decision about whether or not she really wanted to stay in the mansion. It wasn't like the horses were the sort to really bother the occupants but the mansion was surrounded by horses, those stabled and those that were free roaming.

"Hm, dark and earthy." He repeated and thought over the options. "You know, you don't have to live in either then Mansion or the Caverns. You can really stay anywhere you want within the lands of Inferni so long as it is not already occupied. It is just that most of the clan lives in either the Mansion or the Caverns." As he thought more on the subject he turned to look at the forest. "Maybe you would like it better in there?" He suggested as he pointed to the trees. "There is another patch of forest that is home to the ravens if you would rather stay with the birds." He was trying to come up with somewhere that would be like what she was used to.