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ooc: xer is in lupus form.
Things were changing. There was no way to deny that. Xeris' children were growing up, becoming more mature and independent. She was seeing less and less of them, particularly Delwyn. He had always been known to wander off, but now Xeris hadn't seen him in quite a while. And she worried. She felt that he was probably safe somewhere and had was off on some self-proclaimed adventure, determined to show the world his bravery. He had always spoken of being a courageous warrior. But deep in her heart, she worried. Worried that he could be hopelessly lost, starving, or even worse--no, she could not bear to even think of it. She had spent much of her recent days in the cabin, alone or watching over Carwyn and Xion, and always waiting to see if Delwyn would return. Life was much duller than it had been before.
Today she had decided to break the stillness of her daily waiting routine. The children were off somewhere playing and exploring, and the little cabin was becoming lonely. Her destination was the coastline, a place she had not been in a surprising amount of time. It was midmorning, and the sun had risen to a point where the angle of its light cast the lighthouse known as Raven Beacon in a rather eerie silhouette in Xeris' field of vision. She headed toward it steadily but not quickly; she had no reason to hurry. The sand under her paws was soothing, and at the same time evoked a sense of nostalgia in the mother wolfess. It was an odd sensation. Xeris came to a stop within several yards of the lighthouse, looking over it with her golden eyes. It was a magnificent structure, and Xeris continued to be fascinated with human architecture. Perhaps she would venture closer soon, but for now, she was just here to observe; to see something unusual that might take her mind off of her troubles.
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Despite her reunion with her mate, Geneva was far from reconciling herself with the aftermath of her fall. All of that had been mere months ago, but it could have been lifetimes. Everything she had felt, and the person she had been before, seemed to be residual. She felt those times fading into the background with every new beat of her son's small, strong heart. He was gaining independence, slowly and surely every day. He pulled away from her in small degrees, but she felt those tiny gaps as though they were colossal holes in her heart. Despite how acutely she felt this, she allowed him to wander bit by bit, although she was never far from him. He was her miracle, her blessing; he had fought against fate to be born in the first place, and she would not deny him the fullest life possible.
Geneva was thinking that it was perhaps time to move on from Raven Beacon. Although it had served as her sanctuary and stronghold since Pripyat's birth, she felt that it was time to return to a more central location within her packland. Pripyat, although quietly curious and very explorative, had not had much interaction with anyone other than herself, and briefly, his father. Although she coveted the time they shared with no secrecy, she knew it was time for them to emerge. He was old enough and strong enough now to go out into the world, a little bit at a time.
The mother-son duo excited the structure as they normally would. Their light colored gray pelts seemed to meld together at they stood side by side. The slim wolfess' eyes scanned the sandy shoreline, but every few seconds olive colored eyes would return to Pripyat. He had a slight build like his mother, but it was becoming clear that he had some of his father's height. Geneva was a slight wolfess, barely retaining the size of an adult. By the time Pripyat was a half year old, perhaps a little older, he would be about the size of his mother.
"Look, Mother. A lady," the boy with icy blue eyes said as he looked ahead of them. His voice was soft like his mother's but it did not have a whisperlike quality at the edges of his words. It was just the sort of speech he was used to, and he had modeled his speech after Geneva's. She was the only one he had really spoken to. Beneath the softness, his voice was well-rounded, clear. Geneva lifted her imperfect features warily to see who was now on what she considered "their" beach, but was relieved. It was someone she knew, Xeris. Her curious boy threw caution to the wind and began his approach at a calculated pace, trotting but not quite rushing to greet the white wolfess. "Do you know my father?" he asked curiously.
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Xeris inhaled deeply, the gentle breeze bringing the scent of the ocean to her nostrils. She also noticed that the wind carried an additional scent--the scent of another wolf, or even two. There were two scents that seemed similar but different all at once. Casting her gaze across the sand, the white wolfess soon spotted those to whom the smells belonged. The only Phoenix Valley wolf Xeris knew with that gray-hued pelt and those gleaming green eyes was Geneva, but something seemed...off. Xeris took a few paces forward and then noticed what was registering as wrong in her head. The subleader's face was contorted, the skin and fur stretched and clinging to her skull at odd angles. She remembered then what Pendzez had told her about Geneva's fall and injuries. Xeris tried to show as little reaction to Geneva's mangled face as she could out of respect.
She had been so busy thinking about these things that Xeris had not noticed the smaller figure approaching. It was a pup, his fur the same shade of grey as Geneva's and his eyes a brilliant blue. Xeris couldn't help but smile a little at the child's curiosity and eagerness. He asked if she knew his father. The white wolfess glanced again at Geneva for an instant, then looked back to the boy. She hadn't known Geneva to have any children--was this boy her son or was she just watching over him? Unsure as to how to answer his question, she replied rather vaguely. "I know many wolves, perhaps I do know him. What is his name?"
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Geneva was a bit calmer as she got closer to her son, although she still felt her heartbeat at the back of her throat. It still set her on edge to have Pripyat far from her, but it was something that she had been working on recently. Plus, she recognized the white Valley wolfess. She knew that the woman was a generally gentle soul, and a mother herself. Despite the fact that she had not unveiled the fact that she had had a child, she knew that the woman would not harm an errant child.
She was only a few steps away from the two when Pripyat spoke again. His words were careful, and he was talking as well as he could for a pup so young. His mother was well spoken, when she did speak, and he did his best to model his speech after her own. "Jeff'son Soul," he responded, his icy eyes gleaming as he looked into her yellow orbs. She seemed like a nice lady, and she seemed to have some knowledge. He had only seen his father the once, and he was a source of wonder for him. "You don't look like Mother or my father," he said, turning his head back to follow the path of Xeris' gaze. "They both have their faces that way." Pripyat's voice held some confusion - the two adult wolves he had ever seen both had scars and disfigured faces. He was genuinely interested in the differences between his mother and this new wolfess.
"Hello Xeris," Geneva greeted belatedly. She came to stand behind her son and curved her body around his protectively. It was an unconscious movement, something she always did when he was venturing too far and too fast into the unknown. "I see you've met Pripyat."
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ooc: suddenly, silver's longest post ever.
Xeris studied the child before her; it had been months since her own children were as small as this boy. She felt a pang of nostalgia arise for that time when they were still young and she didn't have to worry about them wandering off on their own. Back then, most of her time was spent in or near the cabin watching over them. She hadn't seen the other pack members, besides Pendzez, very often at all for several weeks. Whether or not this was a good choice, she was unsure. But if it was for the safety of her children, it was worth it.
As she gazed into the boy's bright blue eyes, so small but so full of life, he gave a reply to her question. Xeris blinked. She knew that Jefferson had children, but none that were this age. Naïve as she was, Xeris was still able to put two and two together. This child's father was Jefferson, and Geneva was watching over him--she must have been his mother. The white wolfess smiled, lowering her head a little to be closer to the pup's eye level. "Yes, I do know your father," she replied. "He is the one who keeps us all safe and organized here in the Valley." She didn't know whether or not the boy was aware Jefferson was the pack's leader, but figured she'd say this anyway.
And then he brought up the differences in the appearances of Geneva and Jefferson as opposed to Xeris. She had never thought about anything like that before--how a child must feel to be born to such unique-looking parents. But it was true; aside from the two small scars from Kaena's teeth, Xeris' face was clear of any sort of markings at all. She paused for a moment to think of an adequate explanation for him. "There are so many wolves in this world," she began, "And some of them look the same, and some of them don't. It's pretty interesting, don't you think?" It was a very vague explanation, but Xeris wanted to say something that the child would understand while not delving into the personal matters of herself or his parents.
It was then that the larger gray wolfess approached and greeted her packmate. "Geneva," Xeris responded, "It's good to see you." The gray-furred woman introduced the boy as Pripyat. Xeris liked the name, but felt there were more important questions to be asked. "Is he...your son?"
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Geneva's icy-eyed son gazed intensely at Xeris, betraying something of his father's nature. He had inherited his intensity from the scarred one-eyed male whom he had hardly met or even seen, really. It brought Geneva up short to see him looking at Xeris that way. He was so interested and absorbed in this situation. The young boy nodded quietly as he contemplated the white wolfess's words. "Others may be different, but you and me are the same," he said, drawing his own, albeit flawed, conclusions. While they might not be exactly the same, Pripyat and Xeris were similar in that their faces were not totally marred.
"He is my own flesh and blood," Geneva said, nodding to the white female. There was a mixture of caution and pride in her voice. As far as she knew, no one aside from Jefferson knew about Pripyat's existence. While soul searching during her pregnancy, she had confided in her ex-packmate Jazper Knight about her condition. It had been a shock to find out that she was carrying Pripyat, much less that he would live to see his first sunrise, then his first day, and then his first week. Every hour with him was a miracle, as far as she was concerned. She had lost her first child, the only in her litter to survive, and so she guarded Pripyat jealously and carefully. She might have a touch of paranoia regarding her son, but she was trying to give him a healthy development despite her deepest fears.
She had named him Pripyat after a ghost town she had read about once. Prip-jat. The name was peculiar, and his namesake also strange. But in her own eyes, Pripyat could have been a ghost. He was the physical embodiment of the ghosts of everything she had longed for. At night she would sometimes dream that he was not real, and then wake up and find that it had all been her fears and doubts preying upon her. "No one else knows, apart from Jefferson," the soft voiced female continued. The look on her face was delicate. She hadn't trusted anyone else before this instance.
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The young boy was so serious. Curious, but serious. Xeris couldn't help but be reminded of Jefferson's often solemn nature. And Geneva soon confirmed her wondering about the identity of the child's mother. Xeris smiled. "He is beautiful," she said, gazing into the boy's icy eyes again. "I'm sure you will grow up to be a stronghearted and brave wolf," she said to him. His parents had been through so much and yet remained--at least as far as Xeris had seen--composed and strong. It would be interesting to see how young Pripyat would grow and develop his personality.
Xeris felt some sort of pride fill her when Geneva mentioned that only herself and Jefferson knew about Pripyat's existence. She pondered what to say for a moment. Was Geneva intending to keep her son a secret, or would his presence soon be known elsewhere? Xeris wasn't going to go around wildly spreading the news of the pack leader's child, anyway. "If you ever need anything," she said to Geneva, turning her eyes back toward the gray wolfess, "If he ever needs anything, I'm here."
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Xeris had been a faithful member of Phoenix Valley for nearly as long as Geneva could remember being part of this pack. But still, concern for Pripyat's superseded what Geneva knew to be true. It was an irrational fear on many levels, but she had done all she could to protect her ghost child, even from the phantoms of her fears. Geneva seemed to find a near fear everyday, stemming from her own past failings. She wanted to do all she could to hide Pripyat away from the shadows of the things that had hurt her before, for fear that they would hurt him. But she knew that in the grand scheme of things, she could not control his life to that extent. And she didn't want to, she decided. She would do her best to keep him safe, but she would try not to let her fears control his life. It was a horrible thing to let dictate her decisions, and influence his life and development.
The white wolfess' response to the situation helped to put her fears to rest. There were no questions about why she had not made Pripyat's existence public knowledge. Instead her pack mate extended an offer to help if she needed help. Geneva swallowed for a moment, unsure of really what to say. It touched her that Xeris was so readily willing to accept this situation for what it was, and to put herself out there if she needed help.
The gray wolfess found herself stumbling over her next words, fighting with the internal vice of her fears and the tried-and-true trust she had formed in her pack mates, especially with those long-established like Xeris. "I might need someone to help keep an eye on him. We've been living here...for a while..." The gray wolfess' voice faltered. She must have hurt Jefferson so much by staying away from their previous home. "I'd like to go back to the ranch soon."
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ooc: apologies for the lateness. been transitioning into my first year of college. aaand short post is short.
Xeris could tell that the situation was troubling Geneva. She felt bad for her friend, having been through so much. But Geneva still seemed strong, or at least on the outside, and Xeris admired that quality in her. When the former subleader brought up her plans for going back to Jefferson's ranch house, Xeris smiled. "Of course," she replied. "I would be happy to look after him. Whatever you need." Surely Pendzez wouldn't mind, and the children would probably find at least some enjoyment in helping to look after the leader's son.
She cast her golden eyes back at the boy for a moment. In some ways, he reminded her of herself, questioning and curious. Xeris could only hope that Pripyat's curiosity would not get him into the sorts of trouble that she had gotten herself into. It would be horrible, she thought, for him to have to learn why his parents looked so different from first-hand experience. The white wolfess turned back to Geneva now. "It will be good to have you back closer to home," she said. There was something comforting in the idea that Geneva, Jefferson and Pripyat could make a little family.
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Geneva nodded. Yes, it would be good to be home. She was not entirely ready to abandon the haven of the light house quite yet. It provided a little world for the new mother and her young child, as their own. She felt untouchable here, but she knew that to be a fallacy. She was able to protect Pripyat now from the little things, and to teach him about his immediate surroundings. But she knew that he would need more than just her love and this little stretch of shoreline in order to grow up the right way. Her boy was bright and curious. He would outgrow their immediate surroundings soon enough.
"Thank you so much, Xeris," the scarred woman said. She was very relieved to know that there was someone close by that she could turn to. Of course, she could turn to Jefferson. After she worked up the nerve to actually see him again. There was some comfort in the fact that there were others outside of the scope of the seclusion of the light house who knew of her boy and would care for him if anything ever happened to her. She never wanted to leave him alone and unprotected.
"How is your mate, and your children?" Geneva asked, steering the conversation away from her. She was genuinely interested and felt sorry to have cut herself off from friends and allies. Her little family must be growing too. She could not think of the last time she had really talked to Pendzez, and she could not really recall the way that their children looked.
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ooc: short post is short <_<
It made Xeris happy to be able to help others; it always had. She remembered what she had wanted to do upon joining Phoenix Valley, how she wanted to be a part of a community and bring others together. Knowing that she could get involved and help someone else at the same time was a very satisfying feeling. In her birth pack, the wolves were united by their beliefs and way of life, not by friendships. Phoenix Valley's laid-back and friendly atmosphere had been a welcome change for Xeris, and a perfect place in which to raise her own children.
Geneva changed the subject to Xeris' family, and the white wolfess faltered for a moment. "They are doing...well," she replied. "I...have not seen my son Delwyn in quite some time. But he's always been adventurous. I feel sure he will reappear eventually." She tried her best to hide her immense worry--she didn't want to make Geneva feel down--but there was an obvious hesitation in her voice that betrayed the mother's anxiety.
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Table by Draggar ♥.
Geneva imagined the heart stopping anxiety of not knowing her child's whereabouts. It was just a phantasm of a thought, but it was enough to make her mouth dry. Geneva felt for Xeris, but she wanted to think positively. "I am sure that you raised him well, and that he has learned to care for himself while he is away," the gray wolfess said gently. Geneva had confidence in this. Xeris and her mate were both capable creatures; it only made sense that they would produce sensible offspring. "I'm so glad we could talk," Geneva admitted suddenly, trying to steer the conversation away from worrisome topics. Geneva truly was relieved to find someone within the pack to reacquaint herself with. If she had to choose someone, Xeris would be a good selection. The white wolfess had been an established member for some time, and she was dependable. She was glad to have her acceptance. The Whilom smiled at the white female. "I am glad that you are the first that I am talking to. I have felt out of touch for sometime, and I am not really sure how to reintegrate myself into the pack." This was hard for the woman to admit. In many ways, she had let her pack down, and let herself down. But she had needed the time to heal and get to know herself again. Now she felt that she had a better handle on her priorities, and her pack was definitely one of them.
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