Could you raise me up?
#1
The male and his son had wandered the pack lands aimlessly. They'd fully explored the town, finding out which houses were claimed and which were not. He was thinking of finding a house for himself, but hadn't seen one he was yearning to call his own. None of the houses were the little cabin he and Kira and the pups had shared. He'd let Liam explore on his own for a little while while he himself explored a small stone house that seemed to sit on the edge of a forgotten garden. He personally liked the idea of building his own somewhere else, but wanted to be a part of the pack too. He'd joined for the sake of Liam, he knew, but also because he was lonely, and a little anxious since he was attacked by his own father. Lucifer had drugged him and done horrific things to him. Things no son should have to endure from his father. And on top of that, he'd pierced his ears. Tal didn't want them getting infected, so he cleaned them. He would have removed them, but Lucifer had threatened to come back for his son if he did. Tal would die to protect Liam, but as drugged as he'd been, there hadn't been anything he could have done if Lucifer had tried to make good. That had been the deciding event that had moved the pair to Cercatori d'Arte.

The white male walked back outside from the stone house to look out over what could be a herb garden. He'd been told there was a healer here already, but he figured it wouldn't hurt anything if he kept his knowledge sharp. The house he stood outside of had a room that would be perfect for a library. And there was a room that might have been a child's room. The walls were dark blue, the ceiling was painted with what probably was meant to represent clouds. Tal walked around the house to the front. A small porch with an aged rocking chair came off of the house. There wasn't a fence around the house, but Tal could probably talk someone into helping him build one once the weather got warmer. He looked up and realized the sun was setting. Running fingers through his short mane, he let out a soft howl, summoning the boy back to him. While Liam wouldn't go far, Tal was still paranoid about Azza finding them.

Within moments, the brown and tan child came tumbling forward. He barreled into his dad's legs, causing Tal to step back to make sure they didn't fall. Liam looked up at his dad, his golden eyes glittering excitedly. "I lost another tooth, dad! The one under it is sharp too." He grinned, showing off where his adult teeth were growing in. Every day that went by he had fewer and fewer milk teeth. Tal ruffled the fur on Liam's head, smiling.

"Good. Soon you can probably hunt all on your own then. But don't get too excited, this is still a dangerous place and time for us. We might have joined a pack, but there can always be trouble."

Liam's eyes darkened. He'd seen what that shadow wolf had done to his dad. While he might not have understood more than the smell of blood and his dad's pained whimpers, he understood enough to know that shadow wolves were bad, they were dangerous. Azza and the dark male that had hurt his dad, and Odadio. They were all shadow wolves. Any wolf with a black pelt was evil. His dad was pure good, but black wolves were nothing but evil.

Tal noticed the expression on his son's face and mistook it for anger that he couldn't go off alone just yet. He knelt, putting his arms around his son. "I just don't want anything to happen to you, Liam. I don't want to loose you." He understood now his mother must have felt when Firefly was practically threatening Willow's life. It was terrifying to let the child run out alone. He smiled at his son, placing a kiss on his head. "So what did you think of this one?"

Liam's tail wagged. "I like it. Can we stay here?"

Tal nodded, and they went inside together. It was dusk, and he lit a candle he'd found under the sink. He lit several more to light the room. He'd brought in his deer jerky, and the rabbit he'd found out by Ethereal Eclipse. He'd make a stew from it later. For now, storing it in the kitchen was a good place. He grinned at his son as they sat together on the porch. The night was cool, but not frigid. They had enough jerky to share.

Liam led the inviting howl. He was excited to see who would come visit them. Tal followed shortly after his son, his voice rich and strong, inviting visitors to their new house. They'd do more to claim it soon, but tonight they both wanted to meet their new neighbors.

((WC: 843))
#2
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300+ → Hope you don't mind!

Though she hadn't been explicitly avoiding Mars, the usually outgoing woman spent more time outside of the house. It wasn't because of the incident in the bedroom. She wasn't afraid of him, or whatever monster personality he formed overnight. She was, instead, angry. It would be just like Mars to do something as stupid as he had, and now she knew she would suffer some sort of irreversible problem because of it. Already, the faint swelling of her abdomen had been noticed by the Horzana. Despite the obvious, she had chosen to ignore it; she wasn't prepared to have the conversation with Mars that she knew would need to happen.

Thornbury was more interesting at night. With her bag of books and sharpened charcoal writing utensil, she made her way in search of something fun to watch. It would clear her mind, and make the next weeks bearable as she further alienated herself from the pack. Art was not something she usually participated in; she could draw, and paint a little, but writing was truly her forte. It was proved by the pages upon pages of fairy tales scribed between covers of handmade books. The passion just needed fuel.

What was strange came shortly after she found her way to the opposing side of the small town. A little howl, followed by a more mature call, caused her flopped ears to twitch. Was someone new around? Whatever it was, she quickly turned toward the sound, and sought the source. It turned out to be a home. Well, of course it would be a home. The two who waited on the porch hadn't been seen by the author's pink eyes before; that could be said for many of her pack members, though, as she was relatively new herself.

Approaching cautiously, she offered a brilliant smile. "Hola! You called for some'ne?" She tilted her head to the side, adjusting the strap of her makeshift bag.

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#3
((WC 300+ ty for joining!))

Tal absently ruffled Liam's fur again as they watched the approaching female. Tal smiled easilly, though he was somewhat tense. While the intent had been to meet pack mates, he would forever be wary around strangers. She spoke, and he found his mild tension dissipating. Liam stood, his tail wagging. He spoke before his father could. "We're new here, and all we've met is Shaw and Bangle. We wanted to meet others. You look pretty." His tail wagged exuberantly as he approached the female.

Tal smiled at his son's enthusiasm. "What he means to say, I think, is hi. We are in fact, new to the pack. We figured the best way to meet new wolves was to have a good old meet and greet. It's something my mother did when she ran her pack. I'm Taliesin, and this is my son, Liam." He patted the porch step. "Feel free to sit with us." He chuckled softly. "Sorry if we come across wrong. We haven't been very well socialized."

They in fact, had not. They'd come from a smaller pack where everyone cowered in fear from the demon infested alpha. Liam's mother had been the alpha's favorite lover, and she'd had a litter from him before Liam. Her oldest son was insanely jealous, and had kept the small family in hiding a lot of the time. Before the Catalyst pack, Tal had spent a lot of time away from his mother's pack, searching for his sister Willow. And before that, he had lived with his mother moving place from place in an effort to protect Willow. Even before Willow's birth, he'd been a wanderer, not much for settling down in one place. But now that he had his own son, he knew instinctively that he needed to stay in one place and make certain Liam was safe, and grew up learning everything he needed to know.
#4
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The younger of the two, presumably the older's son, seemed much more amiable than the white male. His tail wagged, and he spoke excitedly about how they were new and hadn't met many others. He even called her pretty. The doggish female gave a trilling laugh, resting her hands on her widening hips. "Is that so? Well, thank you. You're very handsome yourself." Her own compliment was made with a pale pink wink to assure the boy that he had made a friend. As her gaze settled on the older man, listening to his explanation and introductions, she smiled softer. "'m Krystalle. Horzana. 'm kinda new too, ch'know?" With a faint grunt, she managed to hoist herself unceremoniously onto the porch in order to sit.

"I live...over there," as she spoke, her hand extended to point in the direction of the shops, indicating the home she shared with Mars. "We live there, and our horses kinda do too; y'know, I don' think this place has got a place for horses, which is a shame really, since they're so wonderful." Her babbling wasn't strange, but possibly intimidating. What was left of her tail wiggled beneath the green kilt she wore around her waist, and the leather of her jacket crinkled pleasantly in the air. "Where d'yall come from, huh? I don' think you come off wrong at all! Think you're just fine, promise!" Another vaguely flirtatious wink in the general direction of the two.

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#5
The boy jumped up, placing his paws on her legs. In spite of all his father's warnings not to greet other members that way, he still did it. It was just his way of being friendly. "What are horses? I've never seen a horse. Can I come see yours?" His tail wagged excitedly as he sniffed at her jacket and skirt. "What are these? I've never seen anyone with fur like this. How can I get fur that looks like this? Why are your eyes pink?" He was friendly, all right, and curious too.

Tal laughed softly at his son, then turned his attention back to Krystalle. "We've been in the Souls lands for a few months now I think. I was born here. But we came from a pack in Michigan called Catalyst. How about you, Krystalle? Where did you come from?" He offered out the sack of dried and seasoned deer meat. "Care for some jerky? I'm not much of a cook, but the jerky always comes out good." He gave an easy smile, feeling at ease with his pack-mate.
#6
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She didn't seem bothered by Liam's invasion of her physical space, and gave the softest smile seen on the features of the Latin female in her entire time outside of Nakzhi. His tail waggled behind him in excitement as he asked about the horses, and asked about her coat. His curiosity was the most entertaining thing. Had she been so inquisitive in her youth? Most likely not; she couldn't remember asking Anchjo about anything at all. Eager to explain herself to the pup, she started to form answers to what he wanted to know. Taliesin's voice allowed her a chance to bulk up her information, and learn about the new pack mates as well. Unlike her, he was technically a native, and like everyone, he wondered about her. Taking the offered dried meat, she swung her legs over the edge of the porch.

"Well, I come from place in the desert, ch'know? Real dry, lotsa sand. Left early; ain't really a good place to live. Met Mars and Barty after that; that's who made my coat, he's real good with sewin'. Then Mars left," she explained. At first, she spoke with a vigor that was common in the female, but it faded into vague sadness. It'd been such a long time since she'd been back with her awkward lover, but the hurt of being left behind remained. It didn't matter if he felt bad about it now; he'd still done it. With a sigh, she gave a shake of her head. "Me 'n Senorita, she's my horse, we followed Mars here. Sometimes I wonder why, but I guess I love him...it ain' hard to love him."

Putting on her brave face, she turned her attention to Liam. "It ain' fur, it's leather. Like animal skin? 'n my eyes are pink 'cause my papa's eyes are pink. If you wanna see Senorita, I wouldn't mind. She pro'ly wouldn' mind either." Trying to answer all of his questions at once left her tumbling over sentences without her usual verbal grace.

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#7
((Sorry, been busy with family. D: ))

Liam grinned at his father, his tail wagging excitedly. "Can I go see the horse dad? I wanna see it." Tal smiled at his son. Liam's excitement was so much like his own when he was younger. He had always been a curious pup himself, and it was amusing to see his traits so strongly in his son. His voice was warm as he replied to Liam. "Another time, Liam."

Liam's excitement didn't wane as he continued sniffing at the jacket and skirt. "Can he teach me to make things like this? Or do I have to have hands like daddy?"

Tal watched Krystalle's expressions. "Me 'n Senorita, she's my horse, we followed Mars here. Sometimes I wonder why, but I guess I love him...it ain' hard to love him." His smile faded into something sweet and sad at the same time. "I can understand that. His mother was the same way....I didn't know why, but I loved her, and it was easy to do."

Kira had been one of the insane ones, but with him there had been something almost soft. She'd pretty well abandoned her first litter, but she'd been so protective of their litter that it had surprised him. Sometimes it had been hard to get close to her when she was nursing them, she'd lash out if you weren't careful enough. He fell silent for a moment, then asked another question. "So what is your position in the pack? I'm a writer..."
#8
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She watched as the son interacted with his father, thinking briefly toward the future that would inevitably come to pass. She and Mars were not parents. They weren't meant to be, but it seemed fate had other opinions. A faintly shaking hand came to rest upon her middle. She wasn't ready for it. She had never wanted it, and it left something cold running in her veins. What would she do once it was born? Would she be like her own mother and run? A sigh passed her lips before she entertained an answer to young Liam's questions. "Probably could, ch'know? Or Bartholomew could. Barty's real good at talkin' with people." She offered a reassuring smile.

Taliesian mused understanding about her words, as he had suffered something so similar with Liam's mother. It brought Krystalle's full attention, and the faintest traces of sympathy rose in her gaze; it wasn't true sympathy, for she never really understood empathy, but she tried to feel what he felt. A white-tipped hand rose to rub the back of her neck. The conversation turned to the pack, something she had come to dislike. "'m a writer, I guess. Read, write, teach a little. Ch'know, that stuff." Her shoulders shrugged up, the leather of her jacket crinkling in the air.

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