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Brave, she was. Venturing out into the night, and not by mistake. The young woman moved through the dark of the Manor, the windows giving only a hushed and muted glow of the moon. She could not sleep, but nightmares were not the cause. The girl had stood in her room, the long windows giving more light then any other in the entire house, before a painting. She had been there hours, and she could not find the muse to continue or the inspiration to even concur the inaccurate composition. In a control anger she had taken it off the easel and placed it against the wall, facing away from the room and from her view.
The stars pierced though the curtain of dark, night’s veil had shadowed the homeland and now the round moon sat upon its throne looking cordially down on her. She stood on the porch, her earthen tones body melting into the shadow. For a few long moments she only stared on into the surrounding lands. Wondering if there was something that was waiting for her. It felt safe, for a reason unknown. A step forward, and still Mati could not feel the tendrils of fear claw across her spine. There was calm, and if she even dare think it, peace.
The grass felt wet and cool under paws, eyes looking up again at the stars. It was as if she hadn’t seen them in ages. She sat against the lawn, legs stretched and relaxed. If need be, she was sure she could retreat into the manor swiftly, but she was sure she wouldn’t have to. The cool summer’s breeze passed over her, and her thoughts drifted to the painting and then back again to the constellations seated above her.
table by Syd
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yaay,  . 424 words.
It was his first day in his new come, and it was still crazy exciting to be here. Ares was a Basic Officer. He didn't really know what that meant, but it was still totally awesome. It was dark out now, but he wasn't tired yet. He had taken a long nap during the hot hours of the afternoon, exhausted from his long days of traveling and finally feeling secure enough to get a good rest. As a result, though, he felt energetic enough that he could stay up all night. And why not, if he wanted to! He had no Tokyo to chase him into the den when night fell, nipping at his heals. No Star to gently inform him they should be sleeping. He felt so alive, so free, so in control of his life. Ares was doing things that he wanted to do. By himself.
A large house appeared in his line of sight, and he meandered towards it. Why not explore? It was exciting, and everything he saw was his, at least in part, at least in the sense that for the most part he was welcome by his spot in the pack. Of course private dens and stuff he probably shouldn't enter, but he didn't really have that much of an interest in confining himself to an enclosed space anyway. The grass was damp, and it felt great against his sore paws. Ares was sort of proud at how worn they were. The initial puppy-pink hadn't lasted long, it had become travel-worn gray almost completely by the time Princess had abandoned him, let alone his long trek down south!
As much as Ares was a replica of his absent father in eyes and pattern of fur, he had in fact inherited his mother's silky and extra-long fur. Unlike his mother and sister, however, he didn't spend nearly as much time caring for it. Yeah, he kept it clean enough, but he didn't spend hours trying to make it lay flat against him, didn't whine or cry if it got a little mussed. Like it had earlier. He looked a tad bit ragged, but again, he didn't really care all that much. A girl - his age, maybe? Maybe older, he decided as he got closer and measured himself to her. She was awfully big. Maybe his initial impression was wrong, she must be a full grown adult. She was staring at the sky, and Ares decided he should say something. "Hi." He called out shyly. "I hope I'm not interrupting anything."
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[html] http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa22 ... itable.jpg); background-position: bottom center; background-repeat: no-repeat;"> sorry for the wait!
The earth felt solid beneath her, something that she had not felt for some time. She remembered when it felt like she walked over a dark fog, clouds filled with unease and with every step the prospect of falling. The grass was soft, a cushion of support that gave the girl confidence and brought relaxation. It wasn’t until she heard another’s approach that Mati let her senses wake and look up to meet the voice that spoke to her. Purple eyes looked at the male, a stranger but not. He wore their scent, though vaguely and only on the surface of his coat.
Mati watched him for a long moment, before realizing that he had indeed asked her a question. Though it was night and the young male was unknown to her, Mati didn’t find fear creeping into her body. A smile wrapped around her face and she found her voice, Oh, hi. she spoke with and eagerness a slight bit of surprise. Looking towards the wolf, whose bright yellow eyes shown against the darkness of the night, Mati spoke up again. No, of course not. Her smile remained on her face, and she found herself inviting the male to sit beside her. A gesture of her hand told him to relax, for something in his stature told her he was tired.
I’m Mati.
table by Syd
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wait is np at allll~ ^^; 240 words.
The stranger looked at him for what felt like a long time, and Ares was uncomfortable and self-conscious under her purple gaze. She smiled, though, reassuring him that he wasn't interrupting. It set him a little more at ease. Mati, her name was Mati. It was a pretty name, and he wondered if it meant something. Tokyo hadn't even bothered with being cryptic in her choices; Princess and Buttface were blunt indicators of her estimation of the worth of her daughter and son. That was just one more strike against her, though. It proved her lack of taste. He had at least done the research - he had put weeks into picking out just the perfect name, after running a few by Star. But at last they had settled on Ares, and he wore it like a badge of pride.
"It's nice to meet you, Mati." Ares said politely, testing out the name on his tongue as he accepted her offer of a seat and settled himself beside her. He hugged his knees towards his chest, resting his chin atop them. He gazed primarily at the stars, stealing glances at the girl when he thought she wasn't looking, trying to figure out the pattern of her fur in the dim light of the evening without being caught staring. "I'm Ares, named for the Greek god of war." His thoughts were dwelling on names; he couldn't help but boast, a little.
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XD
She sat on the ground, her legs out stretched before her and arms held back with palms against the soft grass in support of her angled back. Eyes looked upward at the stars, and she realized that she had missed them while hiding from the darkness of night. Well, welcome to Crimson Dreams. She spoke with a small smile. The girl was glad that he had chosen these lands for him home. Though young, just as she was, Mati was sure that he would fit in and find his job and place among them. Her mind bubbled with questions, why he had come here, and why he was alone. It was still hard for her to imagine being on her own, but when she thought of her once troubled brother she could believe that there could be reason for him to be searching for a new home solitarily.
She looked to his face, eyes bright as he introduced himself. Not meaning to seem facetious, she questioned him with a grin. Your mother must have great expectations, giving you that name. For in her eyes, all names were given by their bearer. The god of war, she didn’t want to tell him that he didn’t look too war like. But then again, she shouldn't judge a book by its cover. She looked more ragged, with scarred arms and stocky build then the male.
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266 words~
Well, that was dumb. He should have known that the natural flow of conversation would lead here. Ares shifted uncomfortably, tearing his yellow gaze off her form and casting it out against the stars. He wanted to change the subject, and supposed that it wouldn't really be that rude to do so, but he felt uncomfortable just leaving it as is. It was a trivial matter, but he hated the idea of his mother getting credit for anything, even something as insignificant as granting him his name. No, she had never done a damned thing for him after giving birth to him.
So Ares shook his head sharply at Mati's comment about his mother. "Nah, I took the name myself. I'm not much of a god of war yet, I know, but just wait. I'm gonna be soon. I'm gonna train and stuff." His words were much fiercer than his soft, gentle countenance. Ares moved a hand to push his bangs out of his face; they had drooped down in front of his eyes at his head-shake. His left arm stayed wrapped around his knees, and he laid his right hand in the grass, playing with the soft blades, keeping his gaze downwards, incredibly uncertain and hesitant about the track of this conversation, but also sort of glad he was saying some of this stuff. It made it more real. He felt more accountable to his dreams, now that they were spoken, now that someone knew what he was trying to do. If he failed, she would know. It was extra pressure to complete these goals.
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It was a clear night, and a pleasant surprise. The girl hadn’t ventured outside the Manor walls during the dark hours for many, many nights. This one was different though, clear and with a bright moon for a night-light. The stars like a million candle flames, glowing softly against the deep unending backdrop. The warmth of the summer’s air was pleasant, fighting against the chill of the darkness. His bright yellow eyes glowed and flickered just as the stars above did, against the dark muted color of their background.
Words brought a small response of surprise to her face, but it was a pleasant surprise. It was something different and Mati gave a Oh. in response. Her voice light and soft. She couldn’t help but smile as he admitted that he wasn’t the god of war his name alluded to, not yet at least. It was a small grin, and she looked down and listened to his explanation. If he wanted to be a warrior he should speak to her brother. Haven was training as well, but of course he was no longer part of Crimson Dreams.
Jaz knows how to fight… She spoke, thinking of a time when he had saved her from an intruder. And my brother Haven, he is a Knight of Cour des Miracles, he might show you a few things too. She watched as he began to unwrap himself, one paw now against the ground. Looking away for a moment Mati continued, Or I can spar with you. Eyes resting on his face again as the last words left her mouth. The earthen toned fey smiled then, teasing as she found she liked to do with the newcomer.
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335 words~
Ares attempted to take careful note of the names she gave him: Jaz and Haven. And Haven was in Cour des Miracles. Why a different pack from his sister? Sure, Ares was separated from his sister, but he intended to rectify that soon. Just as soon as he could work up the nerve to actually go back up to the north-east. A thought slithered its way into his skull, ice cold and frigid against the warmth of this pleasant summer night. "Where is Cour des Miracles from here? Maybe I'll try to find him." He kept his tone neutral, not betraying his intense and sudden worry; like it or not, he had his mother's gift for dissembling, although this was a rather mild employment of the skill. Was this pretty girl's poor brother in the pack of his mother, to the north-east? God, that would be terrible, to have anyone he knew of (even secondhand) under the influence of Tokyo. It was awful enough with his sister there, and he was going to rescue her soon soon soon!
Ares had been idly tugging on the grass, amassing a small pile of soft, loose green blades. It was a nervous habit, to pick at things in the environment around him, unable to stay settled, always needing his hands to be doing something, anything. Another tell-tale sign of his nervousness was the stuttering of his childhood, which had otherwise mostly disappeared from casual conversation. "Oh, I d-don't know. It'd be sorta embarrassing. When I say I'm no god of war, I'm not kidding, I've never even been in a fight, just read about 'em." Well, that wasn't entirely true. "Well, I've never been in a fair fight." That's how it always was in the stories. Even if the armies were outnumbered, the champions always squared off in one-to-one combat. Why did he care so much about fairness, though? It wasn't going to be fair when he went up against Tokyo. She was so much bigger than him.
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It wasn’t easy figuring the young male out. He seemed turned around and tangled up inside. He was far from comfortable in his new home, and even more uncomfortable sitting beside her. Was she asking too many questions, or were they just the wrong ones? Maybe she hadn’t been nice enough. Mati scolded herself for not being more welcoming, believing that her almost snide remarks would loosen him up and make them friends. Other than Brooklyn, she was alone in this pack. The only other youth that was past the shifting age, and she hardly saw her sister. It was nice that he was here, but if she wasn’t careful she would chase him off to Cour des Miracles to live with her brother. Just east of here, along the coast. Mati had done her tracking, even though she hadn’t actually been within the boundaries.
The words he spoke were uneasy. Mati hadn’t meant anything by her teasing, she was quite helpless herself despite her build. Her eyes fell to the ground between them, and the lawn that he was uprooting. A small thought came to her mind, and she found that like she this boy shouldn’t be alone. Mati would always need something or someone to keep her form falling apart. When Haven left her and after she gained her scars her life was in pieces, but she clung to the pack and found solace in others, just enough to pull it all back together. Well, me either. Not a fair one. See, they were in the same boat, she just as inexperienced as he was.
The girl began to also pick at the grass beside her, adding the plucked blades to his small but growing pile. Would it be pushing to ask something else? Would she be looking for secrets that he didn't want her to know? Fear that he would find the silence unbearable and the chance that he would get up and just leave if she let her curiosity get the better of her Mati sat torn. Taking the chance she spoke while looking towards the ground, Have you settled in the Manor yet? Did he have a room? If not she would be happy to help him pick.
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This thread reminds me of a plucked-grass fight I had with Nina-who-played-Ophelia two years ago. XD. 305 words.
A lot of his nervousness came in fact from the fact that he did like Mati, or more specifically, desperately wanted her to like him. She was the first person he had met in the pack, other than Savina, who was pleasant enough but as a leader of the pack just seemed so.. out of reach. On a different level. She had displayed easily her authority, and it felt like a wall between the two of them. But Mati, he could be friends with Mati. If he didn't say anything dumb. If he didn't fuck this up. East. Cour des Miracles was east. He filed that away in some corner of his brain. He'd go looking for Haven, sometime. No real excuse for doing that until he'd found his sister, though. He had to get her away from the influence of Tokyo, but right now it was just so easy to sit here and be happy.
"Maybe fair fights only happen in the stories." Someone always had the advantage. When he was a puppy, Tokyo had been bigger. If he grew big and trained, he would have the training. Someone was always larger or stronger, quicker or more experienced. Life wasn't fair, why would fights be? Ares' ears flickered as he noticed Mati helping him pluck blades from the lawn, and a small smile broke his solemn visage once more. "Nah, I haven't. Is the Manor for everyone?" He had been under the impression that it was for pack leaders only. And their family, maybe. Or just people that were well-liked. Whatever the selection process was, he hadn't thought it was anything that applied for him. He pinched a small bit of the loose grass, tossing it playfully at her stretched out legs, a few stray blades fluttering to the sides and missing the target.
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I like this thread XD!
Despite her problems with strangers, Mati was an accepting person. He wasn’t a stranger though, wearing the scent of her pack and that of her aunt Savina. If he hadn't been, Mati would have still smiled at him and asked him to join her. She felt like she could tell now, know the ones with the darkness inside of them. It wasn’t something that she could see really, but a feeling. He gave her nothing like that, just as nice and pleasant as any of the wolves that she lived with. He made her smile, even with his caution and unease. Something told her that he was just as damaged as she was, even if the scars weren’t on the outside. What he didn’t know was, she thought of him as a friend already.
Between good and evil? She questioned him, thinking about all the stories she had been told as a pup. Her own experience felt like a fairy tale too, a horrific one. Not enough gods of war around, if you ask me. She smiled at him, but then she wondered if he would find her words offensive. She turned to his answer to her question, taking up the new subject and running with it. Yeah. Surprise in her voice. Of course its for everyone, its huge, I haven’t even been in every room. You can have your own room and everything. Theirs a library too, if you like to read. Mati had a feeling he did. Watching the stray blade of grass flutter towards her, she smiled once more and retaliated with a few tossed at his arm.
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Me tooo! I'm sorry for a very slow reply though. D:. 304 words
Good and evil. Fascinating concepts, although he honestly hadn't had as much of a problem with them as some of the people writing books did. The handful of wolves (and the single coyote) that he had known filtered quite simply: Tokyo was bad. Princess, Star, and then now Mati were good. And himself, he was good, he knew it, and he'd prove it soon, he'd get back at his mother. "Yeah.. It seems so easy for the good guys to win in the stories, though." She made some friendly comment about gods of war, and he shook his head. "It'd be nice if there was a real god of war I could appeal to for my problems, though."
He dragged his yellow glance over to the nearby building, appraising its size again with his new knowledge that it could be a home for him. "Yeah, maybe I'll look at it sometime. Library sounds cool. I haven't really lived in a building ever before. It seems like a good way to keep stuff safe from the weather. Don't people steal each other's stuff, though?" Curious. He was used to having to stash away his belongings in unlikely places, used to Tokyo taking anything nice when she wanted and destroying anything not nice just out of pure spite. He felt the tickling on her arm, and moved to brush away a bug or whatever it was, discovering the few blades of retaliatory grass. He grinned and raised his upper right arm towards his face, brushing off the bit of green interwoven with a patch of gray and black. He then picked up a whole handful of the stuff, holding it up to his mouth and blowing the blades out into the air, specs of green and brown dancing and shimmering like confetti, aimed vaguely in her direction.
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<3 !!!
This was true, things always seemed to work out for those in the stories she had been told, and the few books she had read. But why couldn’t things turn out that way? Were they so different then the characters of the written page? Yes of course there were the obvious differences, but were they not souls trapped in a life that was met with hardships, accented with the pleasantries of love and friendship? Mati tried to believe that they could each have their own happy ending.
“Even they have lessons to learn, mistakes to make, and their epic battles to fight.” Violet eyes looked at the male, a soft smile on her face.
“Would there be any other gods you would appease?” She asked, her smile lost as she wondered what troubled him so much to look to a god that could only bring death.
She looked at the manor as he did, her features softening as he spoke. Mati knew he would like the library, and was not surprised that he hadn’t lived in a house like Haven Manor. Though his next words did surprise her.
“No.” The young woman said with a tinge of that surprise in her voice.
“Everyone has what they need, and ask if they need to borrow anything.” Mati had never been the victim of thievery nor had the urge to steal herself. He didn’t steal did he? Mati could imagine the male taking anything that didn’t belong to him, he didn’t have that in him. Right?
Her smile returned as he gave his own, brushing the grass from his coat. His breath cast blades towards her, floating on the night’s breeze and bringing blades to her nose. Mati laughed at the tickle in her nose and sneezed.
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thank you again for this lufferly table! 363 words
It was true. The characters in the stories did have to struggle, to learn, to make mistakes. But on paper it all seemed so certain that despite all that, things would end up right. That every stumble was actually heading towards that goal, even if it was merely in a round-a-bout fashion. Her other question caught him kind of off-guard, though. What other gods would Ares look to? He didn't know, didn't even have the faintest idea. His revenge, his goal, it was so looming that it consumed every hope for the future. If he could do it, then it had to be done as soon as he could train, as soon as he could work up the nerve and ability, and he couldn't let anything else distract him. And if he couldn't, if he was doomed to die to Tokyo's fangs in his valiant effort, if it turned out he wasn't the protagonist of his life story, but just an annoying side character of Tokyo's, a throwaway plot device... Well, then, what was the point in planning for anything beyond that point?
"I- I can't think of any others, right now. Someday, maybe, but not until my other business is taken care of." He felt irritated and prickly. It wasn't a matter of being offended by Mati's words so much as the fact that he hated his every response, hated how it made him feel like he wasn't worth her presence, her company.
So, no one stole. It was pretty surprising, and he couldn't help but wonder if maybe Mati just hadn't noticed it, or hadn't had it directly happen to her. The words she spoke about borrowing, and asking.. It all seemed too idealistic, optimistic, not real. The world couldn't really be that pretty of a place, could it? So much of what he had experienced was dark and grimy. Stained. He couldn't help but feel that that was truly what most people were like - that individuals like Mati (beautiful, but still kind..) were the rare ones. "Well, it doesn't matter that much anyway really - it's not like I have a lot, I only brought one book with me here."
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your welcome :]
The stories. Mati had never heard one that fit who she was. She wasn’t the damsel in distress, who was sent a knight to save her and whose beauty blinded those that looked too long. She wasn’t the warrior goddess that fought in battle and wore a sword. The young woman didn’t know any other stories. She couldn’t create one that might fit who she was and then write out the ending, as wonderful and happy as all the other conclusions. The violet eyed female couldn’t imagine that she even deserved such an ending.
She recovered from her sneeze with a smile, and Ares spoke. His voice held something different, and Mati turned her face away from him slowly. She just hadn’t known if he was one that worshiped the deities or if he only knew of the god of war. Mati could think of a few, and her heart smiled upon the goddess of love. But she kept her face soft and with only a polite grin. She hadn’t meant to annoy him. “Important business it seems.” The words felt almost as sharp as his had been. Why it affected her so, the moment he no longer held a warmth in his tone, she couldn’t know.
Was that all he brought? Mati had never been one to carry much, but she did own quite a bit her room was filled with so much that she was sure she couldn’t name every item. The art supplies made up most of it, the canvases the brushes and the scraps of paper littered the table she used to paint. “Does that mean your moving in?” Her voice had begun to return to its original softness, and threaded through the syllables an unknown hopefulness lay hidden.
“It must be a good book.” The Church girl commented, letting her face return to watch his with the hope that the annoyance she provoked would be gone.
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maybe wrap this up in a few posts, and have a more recent one? <3 350 words
Mati replied with a sharp tone, and he felt guilty for it. Ares was talking all about his important business, about how he wanted to learn how to fight, but he wasn't really providing her with any of the true details of the issues. He just.. well, part of it was that he didn't want to scare her off. And the rest of it was so private. It wasn't like Ares didn't trust her - because he sort of felt like he could - it was just.. dirty, and bad, and he didn't want her to think of him in the context of his past. He didn't want to be the poor kid with the mean mother in her beautiful lavender eyes. He wanted to carve out a place in her esteem first, to be known off his own merit, to be completely and utterly without the taint of his mother to someone at least, for once in his life.
Her voice softened on her next words, though, and he was glad to move away from that sharp instant, that surprising thorn of a moment that pierced the otherwise visibly calm encounter. "I'm thinking about it. I might wanna wait a bit, meet more of the pack first." Ares answered vaguely. He wanted to get to know the land a bit before moving into such a man-made structure. Wanted to get settled into the pack, first, meeting some of the other wolves before forcing his way in as a housemate. "Yeah, it's really pretty - it's got illustrated stories of a bunch of the greek gods, I can show it to you sometime." As pleasant as this meeting had started, it now felt sort of grating. Not the company, but the stress that descended once he realized just how badly he wanted Mati to like him, how much he suddenly felt that her opinion mattered. An excuse, then, to escape: "I might have to go soon though, I left it unattended somewhere near the borders and I should probably find a better place to keep it before anything happens to it."
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sounds good, we can end here i think...? let me know when your ready, bc i am xD
Maybe she just wanted to know. To know what he was thinking, or to know what this big thing that was bothering him she would be able to dive deeper into who he was. Mati was not the type to demand answers to questions, especially the type that she didn't have the courage to ask. But she also wasn’t the type of wolf to be satisfied with the cover. She wanted the pages, the words and the story. It would bring her closer to knowing Ares the upcoming god of war, and Mati found that she wanted to understand the dark mystery that he was.
She did smile at his decline to move into the mansion, though it was almost bitter sweet. She could understand, the pack was not a small one and all being in one place could seem intimidating. Mati have grown up with it, and to her it was just life. Not having that support would be intimidating for the Church girl. “I think you’ll like it.”She hoped he would, hoped that he would choose a room near hers. A thought suddenly ran through her mind, had he met Brooklyn. Her charming sister might talk him into living beside her. It was a new and odd worry that Mati couldn’t understand.
Out from her thoughts, Mati heard him speak again. Her smiled was true, “I’d like that.” her voice rang just as he figured he should go. “Okay,” She said, her voice loosing its life. He seemed worried that someone was out to take everything he had, and it made her wonder if it was that someone had stolen from him that was part of his ‘important business’ Mati hoped not to sound disappointed when she spoke, “I’ll see you around.”
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