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She tried to hold the animal still, but it kept squirming anyway. She almost hadn't thought that she would be able to help it, with all of its spines...but it had promised to try not to prick her with them. Naniko was glad for this; she wanted to help the porcupine really badly, but she didn't want to get herself hurt in the process. She frowned and spoke, keeping her tone light and gentle. "You've got to keep still, sweetie. It'll only hurt for a second."
Naniko counted to three in her head, moving her hand quickly, hearing the bone pop back into place. A dislocated shoulder was nothing to laugh about; she knew that it had to be painful."You did fantastic. And.." She winced, a yelp escaping her as the porcupine moved, brushing her. "Ah.." There were two of the spines in her hand now. "No, don't worry--just keep off that leg if you can help it and hurry home. It's going to get chilly tonight." She looked at the hand, her brow creasing once more.
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Savina was laying in bed, strangely in her optime form. Though perhaps not so strange anymore. She was using her two-legged form more and more nowadays. Luckily the battered lupine was beginning to feel more like her old self again. The help she had received from Lubomir had been more than she could have ever asked for. Now she felt confident that she would be able to keep the monster under control. She wouldn't risk letting her pack down again. She and Kansas had talked more too, which had also helped a lot. And thanks to Naniko her wounds were healing nicely, even though she had stupidly reopened one the other day.
Rising to her feet she opened her door, yawning as she did so. But a yelp pierced the air and her ears and eyes immediately shot forward. What was Nani doing holding a procupine? Oh... Rushing down the steps she went to kneel next to her friend. "Nani are you okay? Do you need me to get anything?" She examined the ivory lady's paw. It wasn't serious, but it definitely looked like it hurt.
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"Hey, you." She said as Savina came downstairs. She'd been wondering how the other was doing, if her wounds were all healing right, but she hadn't wanted to pester her about it. She knew that if something was really wrong that she'd tell her. "Mmmm...maybe a pair of plyers" Pliers could be used to take the barbs out, probably.
"How are you feeling today?"She asked, watching the dark wolf as she moved around. She wanted to see how she was moving...to see if it matched up with what she said.
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Yes, Savina knows where those are. DON'T ASK QUESTIONS! XD
Luckily the pliers were close by. She had taken it upon herself to at least know where Naniko's medical supplies were, even if she didn't know how to use them. "I'm feeling a lot better actually," she said as she rummaged through a drawer for the metal tool. She was being completely honest too. Her body may not still be at one hundred percent, but her mental state was much better. "Ah, here they are!" She walked back to kneel next to the Commander again. "Do you want me to, or..."
"I wanted to let you know that I've had some help. With...my problem. I met a wolf named Lubomir who has a similar issue. He showed me how I can control it." Savina searched her best friend's eyes. "I will do everything in my power to make sure something like this never happens again. I won't let you down again." Her words had a steel behind them, she meant them with her whole being.
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It was always very difficult on someone to have a serious injury. Hunting and scouting and running around...that was all part of a wolf's day to day life. If a wolf wasn't able to do that, then Naniko could see where they might become disspirited. She knew that she would, if she wasn't able to get around. When she had been pregnant it had been difficult for her to stay in the den and lie down, even when she had known that it was the best thing for her and her pups.
Talk turned in a different direction and she looked back at Savina. She had only seen the dark girl this intense a handful of times, and she knew to take her words very seriously. "I believe that you can. And the fact that you've gotten help...that's a really good thing, Savina. It shows that you really care about the pack and about all of us, too."
When she asked about the pliers, Naniko spoke again. "Could you do it? Just grasp the ends of the barbs really firmly and pull them out backwards" She wasn't sure if she could do it for herself; her paw was pounding, and she was beginning to feel a little dizy from the constant throbbing.
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Her heart soared and felt so happy that Naniko believed her. Savina had felt so horribly guilty after everything had happened. She hadn't even been able to remember what exactly had happened. After she had smelled Hybrid, everything had gone blank until she was standing alone in the forest, bloodied and bruised. The left-over adrenaline was probably the only reason she had been able to make it back to the packlands. Otherwise she might not have ever made it back.
But now such thoughts would fade from her mind. She had gotten help for her problem, she had made amends with Kansas, and now she had expressed what she needed to Naniko. Now her life could get back on the right track. "Thank you. You all mean the world to me. I never want to put that in jeopardy again." Crimson Dreams did mean so much to her. She and Nani had built it together. They had rebuilt their home and family after the disaster with Conri. The Lt. General wouldn't change that for anything.
The girl nodded at her friend's words, taking Naniko's injured paw into her hand. The quicker she got those barbs out the better. While holding her hand steady, she used to the pliers to gently, but quickly pull out the first quill. Looking up at the Commander's face to make sure she was still okay, she pulled out the second one. "You feel alright? Need me to go get a bandage?"
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She wanted everyone in Crimson Dreams to feel safe, especially Savina. If Hybrid ever did come back, to try and get some kind of revenge or something...then Naniko felt sure that she would be able to stop him. She almost constantly watched the borders now, even months after Conri had left, just in case. So nothing would get by. And she knew what Hybrid had done to her younger sibling Ember, as well...she wouldn't stand for that kind of bullshit in her packlands.
"This is our safe place, Savina. We should never feel like we're in danger...and we should make sure that no one else in the packlands feels like they're in danger either." She nodded when asked about a bandage. "Yes. I don't know what's going to happen, but it's already starting to swell up quite a bit" She thought for a few moments. "You know, pack duties are pretty important. I think that we're doing ours pretty well, going to other packs and gathering information....watching the borders and things like that. But what about the rest of the pack and their duties?"
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Head nodded at the Commander's words. She was absolutely right. She certainly felt safe here, and she would make sure that she never gave any of her packmates reason to feel otherwise again. "You're absolutely right." Aside from being cooped up in the mansion after the fight, she also had been very vigilant at the borders. Had been ever since Conri. Even after he had come back that one time. Naniko still didn't know about that. She had many reasons for not telling her. She didn't want her friend to worry about it more than she most likely already did. Savina also hadn't been certain how she would react to such news.
Getting up she replaced the pliers back into their drawer and grabbed one of the bandages. She took her friend's hand and wrapped the cloth securely, but not too tightly, around it. That much at least she knew how to do. "Is that good? Do you need anything else?" It had swollen up a good deal. Hopefully it would be just fine. The Lt. General hadn't been closely tracking if the other members were fulfilling their duties. She had always been so concerned with doing everything that she could, she hadn't even thought about it. "You know, I'm not sure. I'm sure that Jazper has been. He's always such a great help. I think Geneva and Anu have been doing a good job. Everyone's been helping, but I haven't been keeping track of specific duties." Whups. She probably should have been. Being the subleader and all.
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"No, that's okay! I haven't either. See...that's why I thought it'd be good to talk about. We know what their duties are...and they should, too. We've had this pack up for a while, now. Maybe when we think about their place in the pack, we should consider what they've done around here too." After all...the pack was a very important thing. Without help from each packmember, the pack would suffer. So far the hunting and scouting had been going well, as far as she knew, but she didn't want anything slipping by. Or anyone getting into the lands who shouldn't be there.
"Thanks. No, nothing else" She patted her hand a little bit, trying not to wince. The barbs had been in pretty deep. She hoped that the creature would be on its way home and that it would heal quickly. Then she might not have to treat it again for a while. Naniko did like helping out all of the animals...but some were more difficult to assist than others.
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The Lt. General nodded her head in agreement. They had been established for a few months now and they were the largest pack in 'Souls. They could begin to worry less about simply surviving and start to focus on making the pack run well together. Making sure everyone was pulling their weight and contributing. "That's a really good idea! We should let them know that we're going to be taking more stock in their duties. Now that the pack is well established we can focus more on things like that. I'm sure that everyone will be willing to do all they can." They really had collected a great bunch of wolves. Jazper had been of immeasurable help. Anu was wonderful. There wasn't anyone she could think of that didn't help in at least some way.
Savina couldn't help but grimace at the look of Naniko's hand. It really looked like it hurt. "Are you sure? I could go outside and get some snow or ice that you could put on it. Maybe it would help with the swelling?" Medicine was Naniko's area of expertise, not her's, and she trusted that her friend knew what she was doing. It was just in the girl's nature to try and think of anything that could help. And she understood basic principles of healing, like that ice helped with swelling.
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"That's a good idea. There were a few other things I wanted to talk to you about, too...but I'm having trouble remembering them." Naniko walked toward the parlor, looking down at her paw. It would hurt for a few days...but that wasn't bad. She had known the risk when she had decided to try and treat the animal. Most of the time, she wasn't injured when helping other creatures out.
"Oh! I remember." She said, when she got out to the porch. "But I'll tell you when you get back inside." They hadn't talked about the co-ranks yet, or what they wanted to do with them. Many of the pack's duties were already taken care of with the normal rank duties...so co-ranks would have to be specialized and set apart.
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A smile lit up her face, happy that she had come up with something to help. Briskly she stood back up and walked out into the cold. Her body shuddered at the sudden decrease in temperature, but she ignored it. She walked down the steps into the snow and bent down to scoop some of the cold powder into her hands. Pressing it together, she made a flat lump that Nani would be able to put on her hand. Ears swiveled back to catch the Commander's words. "Okay! Be in in a moment!" she called back. After adding a bit more snow to her improvised ice pack she headed back in to the warmth of the house.
Savina placed the pact snow in her friend's bandaged hand. "There! Hopefully that will help, and not melt too fast." The Italian wolf was still learning the specifics about snow and ice, having minimal experience with them before this. But she had quickly learned that inside the house the snow melted. She had been keeping an eye on the various entrances to keep them relatively free from the water, not wanting anyone to slip in it. "What was it that you wanted to talk about?"
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"Ah! Thank you!!" She held the chunk of snow to her hand, wincing at first. It hurt! But after a few seconds the pain went away, and a nice numb feeling began to spread through the swollen area. It felt a lot better now that the pain was gone, and she fought the urge to pick up the snow to look at it. Naniko was good at helping people out and healing them, but when it came to her own injuries she was horrible. She always picked at the bandages, tried to take casts off prematurely, or tried to do too much too fast.
"More exciting pack stuff. I know that we talked about having co-ranks before...but I wanted to see what you thought about them. About some members becoming specified in certain things. I know that I would go in as a healer; healing is my life, really. And Jazper...he's done so much with teaching the pups--I think that he would make a great Sensei" She walked back into the warmer part of the house, motioning for Savina as best as she could. "And is there anything else that you can think of that needs to get done around here?"
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Ah, co-ranks. She had completely forgotten about those! Which was a little embarrassing, considering how much she had been interested in them back in Twilight Vale. She had been the pupsitter, but they had disbanded before Naniko's children had been born so she had never really gotten to act out her duties much. Oh well, life went on. "I think that's a great idea. I know that it was something I was very excited about back in Twilight Vale. It's good to give everyone a chance to excel at something they're passionate about." Savina knew that it had made her feel very important when she had gained her old co-rank. "Of course, you're a wonderful healer. And that would be the perfect position for Jazper. He's so good with the pups."
She eagerly followed her friend into the warmer part of the house. Even though she was more used to it now, didn't mean that she enjoyed the cold any better. Warm weather was what she had grown up in and that's what she liked. "Well, I suppose I could be a teacher of sorts. I really enjoyed teaching Apollo more Italian when he was little. I don't know how great I am at it, but he's a very fluent speaker now." It was really the only incredibly unique skill that she had, being bilingual. But the Haddon boy had found it interesting so maybe other members would want to learn too. "A storyteller would be good for the children. They could learn and be entertained at the same time. Even us adults could have fun with that. I think Geneva would be really good at that."
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She had tried to block Twilight Vale completely out of her head when they had formed the new pack, but there were some things about it that were alright to try and remember. The co-rank thing had been a really good idea that they'd had back then...and she was excited to implement something like it in Crimson Dreams. They wouldn't be copying the same ranks from Twilight Vale...they would come up with some of their own. But it would be fun for the wolves to have something else to do with their spare time if they felt that they didn't have enough to do already or if they were getting bored.
"Anu always tells the pups stories, too--maybe she'll want to go for that Co-rank. Both of them are great"She grinned. They really did have some wonderful members in their pack--they were lucky to have all of them. "I think that most of the wolves here have become accustomed to working with pups--we seem to have a lot of them running around at any given time. We had Dahlia and Khaden back then...and then Sirius, Tal, Noah and Apollo...and now my four. It's great!"
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Despite what had transpired near the end, Twilight Vale still did and always would, hold a very special place in the female's heart. It was when life had begun again for her. She had stumbled onto the borders by no particular means and that was when she had first met Naniko. The woman who she considered a sister and helped lead a pack with. She had met so many dear friends inside its borders: Jazper, Cercelee, Anu, Ember, and Khaden. It was where she had found her brother again. When the lands were still called Twilight Vale was when she met Kansas on the porch and started to fall in love with him. Too many good things had happened there for her to want to forget it.
Savina smiled broadly. "Yes! Anu would be great too. I'm sure she has plenty of experience with that now." The girl couldn't help but chuckle a little. Their children were such blessings. So kind-hearted and smart. Just like their mothers. "You're right! There's always at least one running around. I like that though. They light up all our lives. I think they really help everyone stay focused and strong." While small paws were around everyone had to be on the look for unfriendly visitors. Had to hunt to keep them fed. They also helped them not forget the light side of life.
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She was really glad to have met Savina that day--she couldn't imagine life without her friend any more. Naniko had once been a fairly solitary creature (especially after Conri had been kidnapped) but now she was a very social wolf. Doing things with Savina made her happy, even if the task itself wasn't really a fun one. Deciding things about the pack was fun, she thought. "We're puppy central." She agreed, shaking her head. "I don't plan on having any more for a while, though--these four tire me out!"
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I don't have any ideas. Shall we wrap this one up?
Savina laughed at Naniko's comment. "Puppy central". Well, there was no arguing with the facts. "Heh, I think you're right!" Smiling she shook her head. It was clear that the four children of her best friend could be quite the handful. Haven was always out and about looking for some kind of adventure. Salem, while the quietest one, seemed to have a knack for getting into bad situations. Brooklyn was very opinionated and bright. Mati seemed to be the one least likely to get into trouble (at least while Haven wasn't influencing her). "Yes, I can see that. They're little bundles of energy, that's for sure." Her old dreams of one day being a mother began to nag at her heart. She didn't say anything about it though. She still didn't have any idea how Kansas felt on the matter.
"Is there anything else you wanted to talk about? Or need me to get you anything? Maybe I can go out and find a rabbit or something for us to eat." The Lt. General tried to avoid taking food out of the stores when it was avoidable.
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She liked being able to talk to Savina again. When they'd been having problems, she had actually felt pretty lonely deep down. She had been able to distract herself by playing with the pups and talking to Anu...by doing her herb work and watching the borders. But now she had more time to herself, and more time to think about things. And she really was much happier.
"I'd help you, but my paw is pretty achy. I'll probably lay down. But that sounds fantastic, if you'd be willing. When I feel better we should hunt together for something bigger" Her tail waved back and forth, already thinking about the future hunt. "I think we'd be able to bring something good down. And maybe the pups could come along and watch, to gain some experience."
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It felt so good that all of that weirdness that had been between them was gone. Savina had hated that. Naniko was so important to her that feeling like she couldn't really talk to her had made her pretty miserable. They'd always been able to talk about pack things, but it was the emotional and relationship stuff that had been awkward. Walking on egg shells was not something that she enjoyed and much preferred talking things over. Now they had and things were back to normal.
The dark fey nodded her head. "Oh, of course! I wouldn't expect you to go running around right now! Yes, you go lay down and when I find something I'll bring it back to you." She could imagine that the mother was aching to get back out and really hunt again. First the pregnancy and then having to watch over the pups, it surely had been many months since she had really gotten to. "That would be great! Nothing like a good hunt. And that would be wonderful if the pups came! It won't be long until they'll be big enough to help us." That was a strange thought, part of her still thought that they had only just been born. They grew so fast.
"Well, I'll go out and track us down some hares. You just take it easy and I'll see you soon." She shot Naniko one last smile before she headed out the door and into the forest.
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