01-17-2008, 07:00 PM
[html] http://i76.photobucket.com/albums/j40/k ... efinal.png);background-repeat: no-repeat; padding-bottom:140px; background-position: bottom center;">
[/html]
Phoenix suppressed a self-depreciating chuckle when Pilot spoke. He sometimes wondered if the faith Iskata, his children, and Pilot held in him was blind. After all, it was one thing to be a father to young pups, a dedicated mate to the female he loved more than life itself, and a good friend; it was quite another thing to be a father figure and wise leader to a large group of wolves. Thus far in life he had risen to every challenge life threw at him but he always wondered when he would finally reach a mountain he could not mount, an hurtle he could not overcome. Thus far he had not failed Storm but only because he had he faith and support of his family to back him up. Without that, he didn’t think he would have lasted this long. Nevertheless he tried to remain gracious as he finally looked down and into the eyes of the smaller wolf. “Thank you,” was all he could think of saying before deciding to move on. “But I don’t think I can do this job alone for much longer. We both got a lot t’ learn, an’ I need help. That’s what I wanted t’ talk about. I want you t’ be my right hand wolf, th’ next Gamma of Storm. B’fore you say yes or no, though, I wan’cha t’ really think about it. “Bein’ a leader means a lot of personal sacrifice,” he went on. “Y’hafta be there for everyone else, an’ what you want comes second. It might even mean spendin’ less time with Dierdre, an’ I know how much you two wanna start a family of your own.” Sadly, it would be just one more distraction from that noble goal. Sharing a den with the other wolves probably put a damper on their attempts already. But perhaps it was for the best—with diminished hunting grounds and five puppies already in the pack, he wasn’t sure if Storm would even be able to support another set of hungry mouths. |