Valinta rubbed the scars on her shoulder as she rested against a shaded tree briefly, the hard journey north wearing at her heavily. She had gone from the beach house so far south to an area so far north. The trip had taken a few days, especially with Gunnar to keep with her. The young boy, while not yet shifted, was a rather speedy runner and had taken to the journey with ease. Something the darkly-furred woman was grateful for.
Letting her mind drift, she thought of the dress and gloves she had found, tucked back away in the trunk in the house. She had folded them lovingly, with the utmost care, as though the fragile garments would wither away to dust in her light grip if she didn't fold them just so. Valinta wandered on, lost in her thoughts, so deeply entwined in her memories she didn't notice or care if her son followed.
She had heard of a pack. One situated in the mountains, where the members lived in caves. At first she had smirked at the thought -- living in caves? A barbaric way to live -- but the more she had realized the ideals of those cave-dwelling wolves, dogs, and coyotes, the more she fell in love with the pack. It had taken her a while to realize that it would be the best home for her and Gunnar, but once she did, she set off immediately.
Having had it drilled into her from a young age that homes were integral to life, Valinta knew that she needed to get to the pack quickly, and join it. To have a home for her little boy (who wasn't so little anymore) and herself. From there she could go about figuring out who she was, as she had done little of that at all in her life.
The Russian-born woman learned how to fish and speak, how to track and infiltrate other packs, how to fight and how to live, but she hadn't learned herself. It disgusted her, this lack of knowledge. And in some part of her, deep down, past the dancer and the fighter and the mother, there was a seething mass of Valinta that knew a pack was important to learning that. Most specifically, this pack.
Anathema. The place where Valinta would live and reside and hopefully integrate herself into. If she wouldn't.... She could leave. She would leave. The female knew that if all else failed, she could survive as a loner, despite it going against instinct deeply ingrained in her psyche.
Standing at a border smelling strongly of wolves, Valinta smiled with more warmth and happiness than she had in a long while. Letting out a loud howl, she let it be known that she sought audience with the leadership. A home was awaiting her, and hopefully a home is what she would get. Not being on the border or on the lands was crucial, she knew. She stayed carefully on neutral lands and stood respectfully, her hands behind her back.
Now all she could do was wait for someone to respond, and wait she would.
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Stifling air left behind, he returned to the surface to gather something pliable and green for use in some unknown nick-knack or another. He wasn't really a craftsman, not like Ouija D'Angelo, but he could weave simple things for his own use. Red eyes scanned the world in search for a quantity of something. Something. Something he couldn't find as strong legs carried him closer to the border. If he couldn't find it within Anathema, he would find it outside of Anathema.
A call distracted him from his task, causing him to lose track of his steps so he could stare in the direction of the fading sound. So many were coming to the borders lately; he was both surprised and unsurprised, for faces had filled the caves before and he was sure they would fill them still. Unwilling to let Naniko come this far to see a simple initiate, he followed the earth to find the caller himself — in her condition, it was better on the white Queen to remain underground. His mind never turned to the dark Rakeeb, for Theodore Stone was an unimposing, invisible figure in the life of Ravesque Acidic.
He didn't try to hide the disgust that crossed his features at the sight of the stranger. What had come to his borders? Chocolate coated, it appeared to be a wolf, but it was far smaller than any creature he had ever seen. Smaller even than a child. His grimace maintained itself as he approached, unable to truly look at her for very long as the urge to simply turn her away rose and fell. It wasn't his place to reject the deformed — he would wait for Naniko's judgement and simply avoid the creature if she made it into the caves. There was no need to taint himself with whatever sickness caused her appalling size.
"Do you need something." There was no warmth in his voice as he waited for an answer, red eyes staring past her without remorse for possible disrespect. "I apologize that our Angela can't come to...greet you. She's in poor condition to be moving around too much."
She was slow, but steady. Naniko took one step after another through the forest toward the sound that had jarred her from her rest. She was determined to make it out to the borderline to greet this newcomer whether anyone else got there first or not. If Teddy happened to show up there...well, the more the merrier. But she would at least be there to make certain either way. Travel was wearing on the pregnant luperci, but the idea that she was incapable of doing her pack duties had yet to cross her mind. They were certainly more difficult, yes, and she'd had to find a new way to do a few things, but so far she had been doing her best to adapt.
The leader grumbled to herself a bit as she walked, large feet plodding through the underbrush of the forest that acted as a buffer around entrances to their cave system. One thing that was especially difficult to control was the amount of noise that she made these days. She was much heavier and her movements were more awkward; it seemed every day that her belly grow larger and that she she found herself off balance once more.
Her physical developments had not changed her personality, however. As she approached the pair, she caught the tail end of Ravesque's words. He was apologizing to the stranger because she couldn't come to greet them...because of her condition? She came forward. A frown split on her muzzle, eyebrows coming together as she gave a low growl. "I'm pregnant, you dunce, not useless." Her gravelly voice announced. She would have cracked him over the head had she anything good to use. "Keep worrying about my 'condition', and I'll give you a condition to worry about. Your own."
Gunnar apparently doesn't like Ravesque at all. xD
Gunnar had followed his mother to whereever it was she'd planned on going, not bothering to ask questions in favor of keeping his mother from... doing that... thing... again. Like she had last time they'd spoken about joining a pack. Deep down, he knew that these lands, the ones they were headed for, were owned by a pack and that his mother wanted nothing more than to join it. He hated the idea of sharing his only family with strangers. It just wasn't something he'd do willingly. He and his mother had survived just fine all this time... so why opt to join a pack now? He'd be shifting soon. He'd be hunting bigger game. Why now?
Still, as they came up to the borders and his mother howled, the young boy sat down to wait in silence, brooding over the older woman's decision. She'd guilted him into agreeing in the first place, so of course he wasn't for the idea. He'd never been in a true pack. He didn't see the ideals behind it.
A dark figure approached. Gunnar stood, tail flicking behind him and ears perking up, those stoney eyes alert and focused. When the stranger scowled and addressed his mother with a cruel tone, the boy managed to restrain a growl. However, there was no need for it. A white female, a blinding contrast to the rude shadow before them, came onto the scene. She was obviously pregnant and from the moment she scolded the ugly brute, Gunnar liked her. Heh. She must be the Angela he was talking about. He smirked, a bold and daring expression, rebellious even.
He saw that the three adults had all given their... greetings, in a sense. It was his turn. I'm Gunnar. This is my mum, Valinta. It's nice to meet you. He smiled a cute smile, charming, and offered Naniko a dip of his head in respect. The boy's tone was polite and reserved, as he'd learned was proper when greeting strangers.
Valinta, though dipping her head respectfully to the pack member before her, noticed immediately with keen eyes his disgusted expression. He did not like her, did not want to be around her, and if he could, would probably turn her away from the border. Her eyes narrowed even as they darted away in respect for the higher-ranking member -- as he had a rank and was a member, of course he was higher than she.
However, he obviously resigned himself to waiting for a leader's opinion and flatly asked if she needed anything. Before she could respond, though, he apologised for the Angela's inability to greet her, for her condition. While the loner wondered what the condition in question was, it was answered quickly by the arrival of a very pregnant white-furred female, who growled and took offense to the man's statement.
The look on the woman's -- the Angela's face made Val idly wonder if she should give the taller woman a rock or something to clock him upside the head with. It looked as though she would do it. She certainly could do it, as well. Again, before the woman was given a chance to speak, Gunnar started up with introductions, himself and then her. Shooting him a venomous look, the female turned to address the alphess and the man with her.
"I am Valinta LeStrange. This is my son Gunnar." she said, giving information already given. "We were wondering about the possibility of joining this pack." Valinta gave the nature of their visit along with a respectful bending of her head, never looking directly into the eyes of the alphess, a sign of submissions towards the woman. Respect would earn her and her child a home; rudeness, the technique Gunnar used towards the large man, would not.
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That's okay; Ravesque strongly dislikes children. And woooo, Nani~ You tell him. XD
He didn't notice her travelling partner as he focused on the world behind the freakish woman; it wasn't until Naniko appeared that he turned his features somewhere else. Her reprimand only brought a grunt from him, arms tight before his chest while she addressed the newcomers. Yes, she was pregnant — heavily pregnant, and he wasn't so stupid as to think she could just walk around willy nilly. He'd lived long enough to know better. Still, silence remained instead of corrective voice; it wasn't his place to tell her what she should already know, and he wasn't about to make it seem like it was. She wouldn't have appreciated such a thing.
While he watched Naniko, he didn't notice the strange woman's son as he gave some sort of prideful or bold look in the general direction of the hulking brute. It wasn't until he spoke that the Acidic took any notice at all of the young man's appearance, but he didn't linger long on what he had seen many times before. His own children were of a similar age, and their shapes were always similar, though he was faintly surprised to notice that this boy did not stand on two legs.
Valtina and Gunnar LeStrange, more possible initiates into the world he knew to be home, one possibly diseased and the other...well, Ravesque wasn't sure what to make of him other than he being a child and children — or other people's children — were not a subject that Ravesque handled with consideration.
He gave a grunt after her statement, which was enough for Naniko. She knew him well enough to know that a grunt was better than no response at all. Behind her gruff words and cross expression was the acknowledgement that he was trying to watch out for her. Had things been this way back in the pack that they had used to live in? She couldn't be certain. Ravesque was a dark shadow that trailed behind the Angela, one that would disappear as soon as she turned to make contact with it. Despite his size, he seemed to be a very stealthy canine indeed.
She stood beside her fellow giant as they observed the two smaller canines and conversed with them. The boy spoke up first, as children sometimes did, and she gave him a quick glance before turning her gaze back to his mother. It appeared that Valinta did hold a few of the same feelings as Naniko did about children, that they should be seen and not heard among other things...Nani noticed the scathing look that she gave her son. The smaller female then introduced herself, and Naniko nodded. "Naniko D'Angelo."
She listened to the other canine's plea, then spoke once more. "I see. You're small...but the fact that you're still alive says something. You must be a resourceful creature. What other traits do you have that would make you suited to live among the canines of Anathema, Valinta? And you, boy...have you shown promise in any areas?" She inquired.
The scolding look is mother gave him was enough to shut him up, mostly out of pure confusion and scorn. He'd been polite and proper, as taught. What was so wrong with that? The boy was still too young to understand that it wasn't his place to speak. Yet.
The white woman, apparently call Naniko, spoke up after his mother confirmed his suspicions. When she called his mother small, he sat back in confusion. Yes, she was shorter than the two of them. And thinner than the pregnant woman... but where was the sense behind it? Again, the boy didn't understand. His thoughts washed away, however, when the Angela addressed him. He smiled.
I can hunt well for my age. Right mum? He sounded proud, though his voice was softer than before. He looked up to his mother for approval and agreement to his statement, hoping she'd agree and confirm it. I'm a fast runner. I can hunt down rabbits easy. He continued after a short pause... then he realized he was boasting a bit and sat back again, ears folding back in self scolding. Shush.
Valitna nodded at Naniko's questions while she quietly formulated an answer that didn't sound like she was a braggart. This, of course, was made easier by Gunnar again jumping in and listing his skills. "Indeed you are, love." she said quietly to him, and rested her hand on his head, briefly and affectionately. Handsreturning to their position clasped behind her back, the female opend her mouth to speak.
"In my homepack, in Russia, I was raised to infiltrate and gather information on other packs, then pass that information to my pack's leaders." she started, deciding to use the biggest one right away. "I am a fair hunter by myself, and I know how to spearfish very well." Gathering and hunting food were instinctive and natural skills, but the woman hoped that they'd realize that given her size, hunting was a bit more difficult, and spearfishing was a bitch to anyone and everyone.
"I am also fluent in Russian and English, fairly moderate in German and French." she left out her inability to read and write in the language she spoke -- she hadn't yet learned. But she would get to it, sometime. She had to learn eventually. Bending her head respectfully, the chocolate-furred woman fell silent to allow the woman to decide whether or not she and her child would be good aditions to the pack.
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Ravesque remained silent as he listened to all that was around him, for there was no reason for speech. Naniko asked both what they were capable of — first the possibly diseased woman and then her four-legged child, who spoke first in response. A gruff snort was released from him, red eyes focused on the softer sound of his voice as he looked for approval from his mother who promptly gave it to him. And then it was the woman's turn. She spoke of her home pack and what they had taught her and what she had learned on her own. Her linguist skills seemed useless to the man, who had only ever known the language he spoke now with the exception of words that were used in ceremony. Though it wasn't his place, the dark man did not wait for Naniko to give her judgement and instead opened his own mouth to speak, red eyes still affixed to the features of her child. "Her approval of your skills doesn't matter, boy; Naniko is God in Anathema, and she's who you have to impress." His words were true enough — at least to him, Naniko held all of the cards, the power to banish and baptise, and that equated her to a physical God within the caverns of Anathema.
With his criticism over, he turned away from the dwarfed group, allowing his eyes to settle upon Naniko for a moment only. "I don't think she'd make a useful hunter, the deer would smoosh her, and languages are useless unless she plans to teach others." His opinion in the open, spoken so all were capable of hearing it without shame from the dark man, he lumbered back towards the caves in his inelegant way. There was no more need for him with Naniko present.
PP in her performing the rite, unless that's not alright I can edit it back out.
The woman and child were quick to give her an answer to her question. Ravesque made his own comments before apparently giving up on the situation entirely and lumbering away. Naniko respected the male for his position as traditions-keeper and as one of her older friends that was left any more, but he had a gruffer nature about him than she did. The Angela had a quick tongue and even quicker mind, but she was not entirely cold-hearted. She just made it seem that way a majority of the time. "Well, then. Even basic skills can be of use...and I'd like to see how you would fare in our diplomat rank tier, if that's what you end up choosing for yourself. It's a farce, though, really...the rank's main purpose is to gather information and deceive other groups. You'll both be Zepars to start with, our basic rank." The brightly colored female stated.
"But I don't believe that either of you have any family in this pack...So you, Valinta, will need to go through the rite of Agares in order to join. In this ceremony, I will make a small cut on my hand, and press it against your own to combine our blood. It will make you and your son a part of the pack. Because he is related to you, he does not need to go through this rite." She pulled her dagger from the sheath, reaching for the female's hand and making a small cut on one of her small fingers. She then did the same to herself, pressing the two wounds together. "Ravesque's left, but I can show you to the dens. I need to head back there to do a few things anyway." She said, pulling her hand back and re-sheathing her dagger. "Welcome."
Word Count :: 000 Yey! xD That makes two of my characters now in Anathema.
Gunnar scowled when the male spoke to him, then insulted his mother. Jerk. He made up hid mind then that he wouldn't like the older male, but when Naniko spoke up and agreed to let them join, granting his mother's latest wish, he smiled again. Despite how mean she looked, Gunnar decided to like their new leader. She seemed to have her head on straight, at least.
He watched with peeked interest as the Angela explained, then preformed, the right of passage. A small ceremony to induct them both into the pack. He was glad that he didn't need to be cut with the knife, but a tingling jealousy sprouted inside him; why wasn't he being inducted like that? Sure, it looked painful, but it seemed almost unfair that his mother got all the attention.
Nevermind. He scolded himself, staying silent as he watched the two women touch cuts. I'm still a part of it, anyway. I don't really mind. His jealousy slowly ebbed away and he stood at the welcome, tail flicking behind him in mild excitement. They had a new home. That meant he had plenty of interesting things to explore from now on. Who knew what Anathema held in store for them. He'd have plenty of fun finding out.
Valinta smiled at the Angela, Naniko, as she said the words accepting her and her child into the pack. The tall woman suggested a rank tier that the female comitted to memory -- so she would become that rank, hopefully. Then, her hand was picked up and cut, the blood of the queen mixed with the blood of her newest subject. Once released, the hand fell back to its original position, tucked in the small of her back.
Glancing down at Gunnar, the female saw in his eyes an almost envious glance, but it was highly overshadowed by curiosity and excitement. The home that they so desperately needed was going to be theirs. The lady in front of them offered to show them to the dens, and the chocolate-furred woman smiled.
Resting her hand on Gunnar's head, the small woman nodded to herself. She was no longer a loner, she was an Anatheman. It would be perfect. Looking to her new leader, Valinta nodded and smiled brightly. "I'd love to see them. Thank you." she said, knowing that to thank her would be an understatement. It was a debt she'd owe to the woman for life.
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I can edit it back out. 
