It had been a while since she'd gone and seen her friends. The odd mood that had been driving her crazy in the court hadn't dissipated, lasting as long as her heat cycle. In fact, Terra was fairly sure it was lasting longer than her heat cycle. Her sense of time wasn't the most stable, marking the seasons and whether it was day or night, but exact dates were missed on her. Tail held behind her she traveled north, pausing to eat where she could. The coyote was completely ravenous, even though she wasn't sure why.
Her thin frame wasn't as thin anymore as well. The look of starvation had completely dissipated from her, instead looking like the sleek well fed pack animal she truly was. Pausing Terra managed to catch a single rabbit, after a few attempts at chasing something down as a peace offering. Approaching New Dawn's borders made her edgy, even with assurances. Dropping the rabbit Terra lifted her head, the unique mixed voice dancing through the air. Finished she backed up, making sure there was enough room for her to turn and run if Augustus showed up.
Code by the Mentors; photo courtesy of gettyimages.com; manip and table by Nat
burning the ground, I break from the crowd I'm on the hunt I'm after you
strut on a line, it's discord and rhyme
AND I'M HUNGRY LIKE THE WOLF
Word Count :: 300+ Titania is a sucker for food stuffs right now!
Dagger Caverns, a place less traveled by New Dawn yet still a notable landmark within their claimed territory. Her pack so loved the free, open lands, the plains and the forest that the mountains and caverns within were hardly trodden, but a sudden strong curiosity for what lie within had drawn Titania to this place earlier in the day, and so there she was when the unfamiliar call sounded from the border.
Sounds were strange here, resonating off of the caves in a different fashion than they did in the pack’s community den. Luckily she had been near the mouth of one of the caves or she might not have heard the cry at all. Well, duty called, so Titania trotted out of the cave and headed for the point that the howl had come from.
She, too, was much plumper these days. Where her wolfish body was normally lean and sleek she now bulged out, her tummy hanging lower and heavier than ever before. Yet the alphess had not lost her grace, not even with the litter of pups that grew rapidly inside of her womb… and “rapidly” sure felt like an understatement. The alphess’s had been ravenous ever since her heat ended, and with such a bounty in New Dawn and such a strong pack to help hunt, she had no problem gobbling up all of the game she could get.
And it seemed another meal might have come her way once more. As she neared her destination at the borders she could see the sandy colors of the coyote that stood there. Titania stopped for a moment, cocking her head. She had never met Terra before and she was wary of a coyote wanting to come onto New Dawn lands, but not long after the scent of the rabbit that Terra had brought along caught in her nostrils and demanded her attention. She began to walk forward again, slowly, but kept her head and tail held high and the coyote out of leaping distance.
“Well met, stranger. You are at the borders of New Dawn, as I’m sure you know. I am Titania Moonsong. Who might you be, Coyote?” Her voice was cordial and pleasant, though her eyes soon trailed to the tantalizing rabbit treat.
image from dawnthieves; code template by kitty; table by raze
ooc titania might not remember terra, but terra remembers her. sorry for grumpiness. pregnancy making her more moody than usual
Word Count → 000
Terra stiffened as the female alpha of the pack appeared. She didn't trust her. Terra had only met her once before, but it was enough. It had given Terra her first taste of New Dawn's hate for her species. Hackles raised she growled, remembering the lies that had been spun. She didn't trust her, didn't like her. Terra retreated even farther from the border, eyes noting the plumpness that filled the silvery female. Looked like she wasn't the only one filled with pups.
A harsh barking yip escaped her at the words. Well met? I doubt that. I came looking for friends. Not you. The focus on the rabbit didn't slip Terra's attention. There was a reason why she'd brought it along. Precautions when treating the dangerous pack. She didn't trust them, no matter how many of her friends resided within the border. Especially ones that had left such a sour taste in her mouth from the first time. The rabbit's yours. She didn't want it, not after the female provided such intense interest in it. Besides, it would give her more time to run if the female was so distracted by the blood.
Code by the Mentors; photo courtesy of gettyimages.com; manip and table by Nat
Word Count → xxx :: Shandom doesn't take rudeness to Alphas particularly well XD Respect-obsessed and all that.
Familiar songs would always pull Shandom away from whatever he was doing, and this instance was no exception. The Gamma had been trotting calmly along New Dawn borders, patrolling for the mere sake of doing something that would relax his chaotic mind. He could not shake the thoughts of Naniko from his mind; he missed her, even after the chaos that was their last visit. Soon enough he would have to return to Anathema borders and talk with the pretty Angela again. He could not help but be concerned that she would no longer want to count him among her friends, and Shandom wasn't quite sure what he'd do if something like that happened. The D'Angelo woman meant.... quite a bit to him, he'd discovered on his last visit. She made him smile.
But when he heard Terra's yipping coyote song he pulled himself from his mindless stroll and began a leisurely walk towards where she was. He anticipated someone would arrive earlier than him - coyotes, after all, were treated with great caution and respect by the Dawn wolves - though it caused the Gamma worry that the scent he met was Titania's. The Alphess was pregnant, newly made a woman by her first heat cycle (perhaps it was for the best that he frequented the other lands; such an aroma would have driven him utterly mad), and Shandom did not want to see her stressed by the Court woman.
He arrived just soon enough to hear Titania's polite greeting met with Terra's harsher one, and a snarl lifted on his lips. Shandom carefully assumed a position that would not offend Titania, but he would not look weak before the coygirl. Certainly, he cared for Terra, but her stupidity was not something that he would welcome as reason for disrespecting his Alphess in such a manner. Apologize for your disrespect to my Alphess, Terra, Shandom growled when he assumed his place slightly behind Titania. You call at her borders, and she greets you with kindness - that is no way to treat a host.
burning the ground, I break from the crowd I'm on the hunt I'm after you
strut on a line, it's discord and rhyme
AND I'M HUNGRY LIKE THE WOLF
Word Count :: 400+ Eeep! And just FYI, Terra can think/assume whatever she wants but Titania never did anything to show Terra that she or New Dawn hates her species. That mention made me go *headtilt* and I reviewed our previous tread, so unless there was another one that I missed... I wasn't sure if that was a mistake or just added in there because that's how Terra thinks.
Oh, now she remembered the insolent coyote. The moment the sandy one spoke the voice and the insolence in her voice took her back to that day she had met the Court woman with Soran. Yes, the moment had been tense and a little stand-offish with some curt insults spoken from the coyote, but Titania had approached her today without any of those prejudices. Well, Terra had just undone all of that.
She saw the ire in her eyes right away, and it was the first thing that sent Titania’s mind roiling. Then a low growl emanated from the coyote as her hackles raised, making Terra appear larger than she was. This was an obvious offense, and suddenly Titania was not one bit interested in the rabbit any longer. Terra had come to her borders, brought a fresh kill, but now was growling at her and puffing up her stance to appear larger. What kind of fight was she looking for today?
Titania lowered her head, “I wouldn’t stoop to eat a rabbit that touched your filthy jaws if I were starving in a desert.” She growled back, and in return the ridge of fur down her spine ruffled up, the larger Alphess becoming even more bulky (visually, anyway) as her anger surmounted. “You are truly daft if you think you can come to my lands and not find me.” An ear twitched and she saw the angelic-white form of her Gamma emerge. He had come in response to the call, too, though more concerned with Terra, Titania just turned back to the nasty woman. She was well aware and comfortable with Shandom and his place in the pack, and there was little he could and would do to make her feel threatened, so she was not on the look out for posturing games even though he remained respectful at her side.
Terra retreated and Titania trotted over to the carcass and batted it away, kicking it at Terra. “Clearly this one can not conduct herself respectfully and does not deserve to visit our lands.” She kept her eyes on Terra, but was addressing Shandom.
“I offer you grace and friendliness. Most would appreciate the chance to bury old bones but you spit on it.” She shook her head, then burning yellow eyes glared into Terra’s grassy green orbs. A few beats passed in silence, then she growled and barked, “Get out of here, you ungrateful brat!”
image from dawnthieves; code template by kitty; table by raze
ooc I know. It's actually a combination of things that makes her dislike New Dawn. The pregnancy has just made her extremely paranoid and she lashed out. It's nothing against Titania. Everything that's being thought about New Dawn needs to be put through an INTENSE filter to figure out fact.
Word Count → 000
Her ears flattened as Titania spoke. If she didn't want the rabbit, Terra would have to run even quicker in the event of an attack. How was she going to escape? Images of the wolves pouring out and tearing her body to shreds danced through her mind. She couldn't trust them. Any of them. Shandom arrived, just bringing a ring of hollow laughter from the coyote as he spoke. The irony fit perfectly. The first time she met this stupid alpha she'd lied about Shandom, saying that Shandom possibly even hated her. Now here he was, backing her up. Betraying her like the other friends she'd had before New Dawn.
I'm not the one that needs to apologize. Terra met the gaze steadily, holding herself as powerfully as an alpha. The moment broke, and she turned, breaking into a run. She wouldn't stay around and let herself be killed. Never again would she visit this pack. It had taken her long enough to get up the courage to visit, but no matter what Zalen said Terra knew the truth. They hated coyotes, they hated her, and they would kill her.
Exit Terra
Code by the Mentors; photo courtesy of gettyimages.com; manip and table by Nat
Anger, familiar and hot, bubbled through his veins as the pale Gamma glared at the little girl he'd once considered friend. She had, apparently, lost her mind when it came to his pack. It didn't make sense to him, at all. While New Dawn and Inferni might not agree on some things, there was no particular animosity between the packs. Rather, it was a live and let live mentality; Dawners would not intrude upon Inferni's business, and they expected the same from the Coyote clan. Really, New Dawn kept to itself for the most part, but there were none who could call them unfriendly. In fact - and this agitated Shandom further - they'd taken Terra in when they found her, bleeding and broken, on their borders. The girl was apparently retarded. Shandom considered pitying her.
The blatant disrespect to his Alphess, however, negated the whole thing. Titania might be young, but Shandom loved her like a sister and appreciated her unique outlook on life. She was a good Alphess, and he didn't understand how the coygirl could have the audacity to be so disrespectful to a pregnant leader. It is remarkable, the Gamma snarled, his chocolate eyes locked on Terra's pregnant form. One would think that, after the kindness our pack showed her this past winter, she would not be so stupid as to treat you in such a fashion. How utterly disrespectful of her.
The more he spoke, the angrier he became, and Terra's posturing didn't help. She held herself arrogantly and stupidly - Shandom would have found her desperate attempts to look intimidating comical if he were not so furious. Instead, he found her disrespectful and needlessly challenging to his Alphess; the Gamma would not stand for this. Snarling, he considered forcing the girl to submit, and his fur bristled as he held his larger body in a rather threatening pose. Run, then, he barked after her departing form. It was the first time he'd ever considered actually attacking a pregnant girl.
Turning to Titania, the Gamma shook his large, scarred head and tried to calm himself down. His hackles remained bristled, but the anger was subsiding into something more manageable; the world had lost its distinctly red tinge. The girl is a fool, Shandom hissed. It is my hope that she does not return here.
And just FYI, Terra can think/assume whatever she wants but Titania never did anything to show Terra that she or New Dawn hates her species. That mention made me go *headtilt* and I reviewed our previous tread, so unless there was another one that I missed... I wasn't sure if that was a mistake or just added in there because that's how Terra thinks.
