sometimes goodbye is a second chance

Skye Collins · 09-16-2012, 06:00 PM

[html]

It had been a long time coming, but she finally had found the time to return the favor, return the gift, that Myrika had give to Cercatori d'Arte a while

ago, before she had had her pups. It was a small basket, but a peace offering; in it were herbs, seeds, and dried meats that Inferni may find use for yet.

She had left her pups with a trusted member of the pack, for the first time since they had been born; it was a relief, since they were growing quite fiesty

and adventurous as the days grew on.

Riding on Jack's back as to aide her speedy return to d'Arte and to her beloved pups, she carried the basket in one arm and guided the stallion with the

other. Soon, the spiked-skull borders of Inferni came into clear view. She wondered why they kept the horrendous displays - why not simply do away with

them, now that they were giving gifts to wolf-leaders such as herself and trying to make peace with their surroundings? Why keep the death displays and

gruesome remains of those once alive? But she was not here for criticism, only for peace, and thanks for what she had been given.

She stopped Jack several feet clear of the actual border, not wishing to disturb Infernians who were more bloodthirsty and battle-hungry than their

leadership. She patted his neck, and he nickered softly; he was a good horse, having calmed down immensely from what he once was, which was a rebellious,

angry young stallion. He was much tamer now, although he would still paw at the ground anxiously if a stranger approached.

Dismounting the steed, she drew slightly closer to the borders, preparing herself to howl her presence affer only a few seconds of being in Inferni's

vicinity. However, she suddenly scented a stronger smell of coyote and stayed her voice, wondering if another was close by.

Nathaniel King · 09-16-2012, 06:01 PM

[html]

It wasn't a rare sight, to see Nathaniel in his Optime form, heading for the borders. His combined love for battle and combat and his wish to protect and

serve Inferni came together at the borders, where wolves and outsiders may stray into the territory of the red-stained grounds and meet a gruesome fate. It

was this that gave him a thrill when searching the borders, almost looking for a fight to fight, a way to defend his territory, a chance for his wolf side to

come out in a way that would still serve Inferni well.

And it seemed that, perhaps, today was his lucky day. He did not venture outside of Inferni much for these days, especially not to go south, so he would

not know who southern leaders were. He barely knew the packs that existed there. And yet he could scent the faint smell of a wolf, or a dog, or

something that was not an Inferni coyote, too close to the borders for comfort. He lifted his lip slightly, widening his nostrils and taking

in deep, dragging breaths to see who had dared approach the Clan.

Keeping to the trees and the bushes, he slunk around the border until he clearly saw the 'intruder'. She was a good few feet away from the border still,

and was holding some sort of basket. He cursed quietly as her horse seemed to sense him and nickered, nervously pawing at the ground and giving little

jumps. He would have to reveal himself to her now. She didn't seem threatening, however, and in fact seemed a bit anxious.

Nathaniel drew closer, and her scent hit him now - it was powerful, as if a brick had been dropped on his head. It wasn't so much that her scent was

strong as it was.. familiar, almost? He was sure, however, that he had never quite seen this wolf in his life. Or had he? She even looked

familiar, now that he looked at her closely enough. The scent was powerful, something that was connected to his memory stronger than any other sense he had.

Her scent was.. warm.. safe, comfort, milk.. motherly? The home-scent of Inferni mixed with hers, confusing him more than he had ever been confused in his

life. Who was she? The word 'motherly' kept coming to mind, and in the scent, as if they had known each other, known each other well..

He came into view so that she could see him clearly, attempting to wipe the questions from his mind and everything he knew was true. "What business d'you have here, in Inferni?" he asked gruffly - perhaps too gruffly, but the woman confused him, and he did not like being confused one bit.

Skye Collins · 09-16-2012, 06:01 PM

[html]

It was true - there was a coyote near her, just around the corner, it had seemed. As he came into view, his scent grew stronger, and she froze in place.

That scent. That scent. It had been months, so many months, since she had smelled it, and it had been such a brief knowing when she had, but

she knew that scent, knew it and loved it and could not deny it. The visage of the man was not ignored either - that face, she knew that face,

she knew it and had loved it so much that it hurt, every day.

Was her mind playing tricks on her? What she thought he was, who she thought he was, was... gone. It was impossible for him to have returned, after all

this time, wasn't it? It was impossible for her to never have noticed, wasn't it? And yet the scent, and the looks.. God, he looked exactly

like Bangle, just like how he looked so long ago, when she thought he was leaving d'Arte and she had yelled at him and he had glowered at her. That glare,

that glare was reflecting into the eyes of the coyote before her, and she knew.. she almost knew..

"N-Nathaniel?" she blurted out, interrupting him in the middle of his question. Looking at her now, she knew that he was not happy, but she did

not know for what reason. If it was him.. didn't he remember her? Wouldn't one remember the soft scent of their mother, who loved and took care of them for

so much of their life? But yet... Nathaniel now, was so much older, so much larger than he had been before.

She internally shook herself. She was already calling him Nathaniel, before she even knew if he really was him. Her mind, the logical part of her, was

telling her that it was almost impossible that she should find him again after all this time apart. And yet her heart and all her senses told her that

yes, this was her long lost pup, the one that she had so horribly fell asleep while taking care of, leaving him to wander along, away from her loving

hands, away from her protection.. her mind told her that if he had wandered, he should have died! Should have been eaten, or taken, or been so cold

and alone.. she shivered thinking of it. Did her months of loneliness finally crack her brain, causing her to be insane and see the lost where there were

none?

Nathaniel King · 09-16-2012, 06:02 PM

[html]

He barely had finished barking out his question before she interjected, saying his name as if she had seen a ghost. She looked like it too, staring at

him in wonder and amazement, as if he were a miracle who should not even be standing in front of her. If the confusion in his mind had been a spark, started

by the strange scent of this wolf, then now it was a blaze, engulfing him and causing him to take the offensive. Who was this woman, why did she know him,

why was she staring at him in such a strange manner, as if he were an apparition rather than the very real coyote before her.

"How d'you know my name?" he barked out, the words coming out as aggressive as if him and the strange wolf had been in a physical fight. "Who

are you?"

Nathaniel did not like being confused. When he was confused, it meant that something was strange, or wrong - when something is wrong, it meant that he

had to be there to make it right and fix it, for his Clan and for himself. When something was confusing, it was something to be solved and fixed, rather

than to be ignored or left alone. These emotions combined with the almost horrified looks she gave him left him with no choice - to him - other than to be

on the offensive. His tail straightened high, his ears were perked forward, and his lip was still pulled out from over his sharp teeth, giving her a

frightening image of a very angry coyote.

The scent had been powerful before, but it assaulted him now, eroding his senses and hardly giving him room to think. The word 'motherly' repeated

over and over in his head, conflicting himself with himself, giving off different and strange signals that he could not interpret. Was she nursing, perhaps?

But he did not see any pups young enough to be nursing with her at the time, nor wouldl a nursing mother leave her small pups alone in another place, even

if it was her own pack.

Skye Collins · 09-16-2012, 06:03 PM

[html]

She didn't expect him to get so angry at her; she could feel the aggressiveness coming off of him in waves. His lip was curled up so that she could see

his fangs poking out from the top of his mouth, and his eyes burned orange with a fire that Skye did not know. What was wrong with him? Did he scent her

and remember her, perhaps confusing him - but then, why would he be so angry if that were the case? Skye almost felt herself wishing that she had never come

to Inferni today at all.

She did not quail under his sharp gaze or his dominant posture. She remembered herself then, straightening herself like the leader she was, matching his

pose and even more, although he was taller than her. "I am Skye Collins," she said, still unsure of who the man was; her heart wanted him to be her

son, wanted him to be alright.. He then asked how she knew his name. Nathaniel was his name. It was sure, then and there, that he was her son -

there was no doubt in her mind then that he was the pup that she had lost so long ago to the unknown of the forest. This wasn't just Nathaniel.. this was

her Nathaniel. Her Nathaniel pup...

"Nathaniel.. do you remember me?" She peered into his orange eyes - how they were so like Bangle's! - searching for the spark of recognition, the

realization that he did know her, that she was his mother. Did he have that? Did he know who she was from her scent? Would he remember.. even after

she had failed him, failed the most important task a parent can have?

"Do you.. do you remember? Your mother?" Her heart was perhaps wrong now, as it hoped that he would remember her and he would smile and they would

go back to her pack, where she would show Robert and Erzulie their long-lost brother, and they would live happily as a family once more. But her brain was

the one who was right, now.. her brain was the one that said that he would not remember, or if he did, he would not care, and would retain his allegiance to

Inferni forever. She did not know what had happened to him.. she wanted to know. Did she? Did she want to know what led her Nathaniel to be this way?

Nathaniel King · 09-16-2012, 08:06 PM

[html]

She didn't respond at first, and Nathaniel prepared himself to ask once more, making his voice even harsher and more angry than before. Who did she think she was, to ignore a member of the Clan that she was at the borders of? She had no right to ignore him or to even turn away without answering his questions. But she did answer... after a while, she did answer, stating her name and pack - both of which were very vaguely familiar to Nathaniel, but not as much as her scent was - and then asked if she remembered him.

Perhaps he was wrong.. and they had met once, after all? He did not really recognize her face, or remember really speaking to her. He must have.. did he? Strange memories floated back to him, showing him scenes of a clearing and a town, and a tree with carvings all over it. Memories that had come to him sometimes in dreams, but he had thought that that was all they were. Dreams. Were those dreams something more? Were they not made up by his imagination, but remembered by his subconscious mind?

Her next words, however, were the words that made him froze, made him stop in his tracks and stare at her. For a tiny moment, all anger and ire in his eyes vanished in the shock of her statement. Mother? How could she, someone that he had never laid eyes on before in his life, be his mother? In his shock, he realized that he had stopped breathing, and hastily took a large gulp of air through his nose, drawing in her scent once again.

As he scented her, drank her motherly scent, he wondered for a split second if, perhaps, it was true. How could this strange woman, this 'leader' of some weird pack he did not know, possibly be his mother? It was so wrong, so unusual, so confusing for him, this meeting!

He realized that he hadn't said anything for some minutes now, and he had to fill the void of silence somehow. "I.. No! I don't know you!" he barked, his aggressive nature returning with a vengeance. He took a step towards her, his eyes angry now, angry at this woman who invaded his home and confused him so. His discussion with Vesper came to mind, but he pushed it down - he did not want to deal with these possibilities yet. Not now. "Leave here! You're not my mother!" Even as he said those words, he knew that somehow, some way, he.. was wrong.

Login




Remember me Lost Password?