Late night hunt for company [joining]

[blue602]

As the shadows of dusk ever so slightly increases, a dark shape seems to slip in and out of the edge of the trees. The sky was turning into an orange and pink and violet whirlpool as the sun reached it's point with the water, and seemed to be slowly drowning. The darkness increasing, as the first silvery outline of a star shinning brightly far above the world. The moon as well, started to peak it's way up in the sky. It was as thin as a claw, and would only be getting thinner. As the crisp night air blew threw the trees, ever so gently making them sway. Their leaves swooshing in harmony. A dark blob walked ever so carefully on the pebble shore line, out of the shadows. It's dark fur becoming more distinguish as light made it silver. The black hair on it's back glowed cobalt, while it's brown underside got washed with bright light. Ace looked around, wondering why he was here. He smelled the markers, but the longing to be by the water drove him into charter territory. It's for the best he told himself, I might get a chance to join the pack. He started thinking of how lonely the past few months have been. Although he didn't like being around a lot of wolves at once, he always felt more secure and warm inside when he could hear the soft snores of others as he slept. He looked out at the wide expanse of water in front of him, maybe a fish or two would be good. He thought for a moment, wondering if the pack would be angry if he took food, but his rumbling belly told him to fish. He promised to catch enough for anyone who saw him. He slowly made his way to the water's edge. He looked up to see the moon had moved higher in the sky, and the sun was completely gone. Ace always felt better at night. He didn't know why, maybe because he blends in better, or he just like the soft chirp of crickets nearby. He dabbed a careful paw into the icy water and wadded out a little further. He kept his gaze locked on a small, flat rock not far from shore. Though he had to swim a few lengths, his powerful hind paws carried him swiftly threw the murky water. The rock was small, but was wide enough to accumulate himself. He pulled himself up, and shook out most of the water dripping from his fur. Ace looked down into the water, and once the muddy bottom settled down were he had swam, he could just barely see a few feet down. He thought that was fine, as long a the fish swam closer to the top. He leaned down, being as still as he could and waited, his eyes never flickering from the water. Soon enough, a gleam of silver ran beneath him. As quick as he could be, he plunged his head into the water, shattering the reflection of the sky. When Ace felt the slimy feel in his mouth he jerked his head back up. Making a shower of water droplets sail into the air. Once the fish stopped flopping he set it gently, but firmly, beside him. After a few more tries, he had four fish at his feet. He remembered all the times it took him to teach himself how to fish, and could feel the warm sensation of satisfaction wash over him. Words :: 588 Notes :: blah, blah, blah

[zivve]

The moon had risen for the night, and Kylon was ready for a final round of checking the borders. She was tired, more so now than usual, but she knew she had to check. For quite some time, the borders were the same as they always were - empty and uncrossed. However, as she moved around, she did find something unsettling. She rechecked her observation and it came out the same - scent suggested that someone had crossed the borders. And it wasn't the scent of a wolf she recognized. A low growl emitted from her throat before she could stop herself. She began following the scent. With any luck, the wolf didn't have any malicious intentions. There was no way to know without checking up on it, though.

The path that Kylon followed was headed in a direction she knew well - to the water. AS she got closer to the water, she scanned the shore. No one was there, or at least it appeared that way at first glance. It took some work to sort it out in the darkness of the night, but there was a wolf in the area. He was in the water, snapping up fish without a second thought. There wasn't a shortened food supply, but she didn't like having prey taken from her pack lands without at least asking first. Kylon moved closer and called out to the wolf.

"Would you mind explaining just what you're doing?" she asked, trying to remember her manners. It wouldn't do well to upset the large wolf. The trouble would be communicating with him from the distance. He was out on a rock and she stood on the shore. Swimming out to the rock he was on without knowing if he was going to attack her or not would be a foolish move, she decided. He had darkly colored fur, making him blend in better than she did. Her pelt was a mix of greys and browns, but it wasn't the same as the black and dark brown that he wore in most spots. From afar, he seemed to blend in to the shadows of the night, for the most part.

The sun was out of the sky, leaving just the moon to brighten the night. At this phase, it wasn't doing much because it was not there as much as it could be. Kylon watched the male, wondering what he would do next. She didn't want to upset him, nor chase him off. It seemed he could catch fish - there was a small pile of silver next to him, which reflected the moon's light back at her - which was a skill that could be useful to the pack. Still, he had crossed the border and begun catching fish without permission, so she couldn't go easy on him.

--- Kylon Talhera --- Timber Wolf --- 2 Years ---

"Speech." Thoughts. Actions.
Word Count: 473
A/N: Sorry it's so late! >.< I'll be sure to reply sooner next time!

[blue602]

Ace looked at his small pile of fish and thought that should be enough. He reminded himself to leave a few behind for the wolves that lived there. He started to gently gather the fish when a voice hit his ears. Shocked he dropped the fish, and just saved it from sliding back into the murky waters. He looked up to see a wolf, by the looks of it, she was female. He felt stupide for coming here. He was lost for words. "I....um"

[/b] he said then realized he spoke to softly for the wolf to even hear him. He pinned back his ears in submission and spoke louder. "Please let me come to you,"[/b] with that he gathered the fish and quickly let the icy, cold water rush over his back as he swam.

As he neared the slivery shore line, his feet could touch the slippery bottom of the river. He lowered his head and tucked his tail between his legs. He didn't want to upset the female, but he felt foolish and helpless in the position. Either way he approached her slowly.

He finally made it out of the water and shook his wet fur gently so none of the water would splash on the wolf. As he got closer he noticed that she had black fur with grey and some brown highlighting her fur. She was average for a she-wolf, and rather pretty to look at.

He took the fish he was caring and dropped them as near as he dared to go by the other wolf and backed away a little. "I'm am sorry miss if I trespassed, it seemed the water was begging me to come to it," he paused and glanced up at the wolf's dark brown eyes. "Please keep the fish so it may feed the bellies of your companions." Ace tried keeping his voice as friendly and plight as possible, hoping the wolf wouldn't attack him. Not that he couldn't defend himself, but he couldn't fight a she-wolf. His pride wouldn't allow him to do so.

He watched the wolf with caution and kept his ears as flat to his head as they would go. He hated to have his head bowed like a slave, but if it got him out of trouble he would bear it. And who knows, maybe he has finally found a place he could call home. [/size]

Words :: 401
Notes :: sorry if it sounds off, my muse isn't that good today
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[zivve]

There was little silence. As the wolf took notice of her, he seemed to fumbled, then tried to speak. Kylon strained to hear him, but heard nothing until he called out to tell her that he was coming to the shore. Kylon waited, listening to the waves and wondering what he would do once he got close enough to interact with her.As he made it to the shore, he tucked his tail between his legs and laid his ears back against his head. He apologized, telling her to take his food for her companions after laying it in front of her.

"There are few here and no shortened food supply for now - thankfully. You have caught the fish, you are entitled to some of the meal, should you want it," it would've made more sense for her to take the fish and chase him off the land for trespassing. The male didn't appear as though he wanted a fight, based on his submissive behavior. Kylon stayed on her guard, not wanting to appear as a pushover, even though she didn't want to upset him. He may be submissive for the moment, but it was likely intimidation and fear could change his attitude quickly if she took that route.

"I'm Kylon Talhera, the Alpha that owns this land. Who are you?" she asked, keeping her tone friendly. Her plan was to size the male up before deciding what to do about his sudden appearance here. She had told him there were only a few here, though she hadn't said she was basically the only wolf in the pack. He appeared to be strong and had the ability to fish. Now that she didn't have to strain to see him, she realized he wasn't bad looking - although his fur coloration was slightly unusual in comparison to what she had seen before. His reaction to her statements would be the next thing to gauge. Kylon put one black-furred paw on a fish and pulled it closer. It was good sized with silvery gray scales. She waited to see if he took a fish as she had said he could before bending down to take a bite. She kept her ears up, listening for any sound, as she went about her actions.

--- Kylon Talhera --- Timber Wolf --- 2 Years ---

"Speech." Thoughts. Actions.
Word Count: 380

[blue602]

Ace waited patiently for the she-wolf to react. He kept analyzing her, watching her movements for any sign of hostility. He perked his ears up in shock when she told him he could eat a fish if he wished. Of all his travel, Ace didn't think of one wolf who allowed another to eat food off their land. He thought maybe she was trying to trick him, get him off guard. He listened to her introduce herself as Kylon, the Alpha. Then he watched as she pulled one of the larger fish toward herself. He spoke with caution "Thank you Kylon, I go by Ace if you will". He bent his head as far as he could reach and took the smallest fish of the pile and drug it to his feet. He hastily took a small plight bite of the fish and then raised his head to address Kylon. "If you don't mind me asking"

[/color] he said in a well mannered voice "but, is anyone allowed to join you pack?'[/color] He felt like the words came out wrong, like he should ask a different way. Although he wasn't sure about this wolf, he had to admit he liked the way she was friendly but firm and strong. "Not to push anything on you,[/color] he said in a hurry It's just...... the past few months have been pretty lonely.[/color]

He looked at Kylon not knowing what to do. Should he give her examples of how strong and cunning he is, or did he totally just ruined his chance? He pawed the ground uncomfortably confused. He hated when he felt confused, he liked knowing what to do, how to do, and when to do things. He waited for her reply with dread, thinking she was going to start growling and threatening him if he didn't get off her land.[/size]

Words :: 309
Notes :: blah, blah, blah
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[zivve]

The male introduced himself as Ace, and asked about whether her pack was open to strangers. Kylon took a couple more bites of the fish and swallowed them before deciding how to respond. True, she was accepting strangers that seemed fit to join her pack. But, was it right to accept someone who had crossed the border and come into her pack's land without gaining permission first? Her questions were pushed back by her mindset - no wolf needed to be told no at this point.

She understood his explanation of why, though he had spoken in a hurried manner. She hadn't had many wolves around, and had, not long ago, gone in search of others to cure her need for companionship. It was on that trip that she had met Doherty - a second wolf that hadn't seen another for quite some time. Loneliness, it seemed, was going around through everyone. Having known that feeling quite well in the past, with the possibility of it returning in the future, Kylon didn't feel that turning him away was the right thing to do. Sure he had crossed the border. Sure he had taken food without asking. So far, though, no one had gotten hurt. 'No harm, no foul', right? Well... technically the fish had been hurt when they were captured, but that didn't count in Kylon's mind.

"As of late, I have been looking to find wolves interested in joining my pack, should they seem capable." she replied. Aftertaking another bite or fish, she added, "If you're interested in joining Silver Stone pack, I'll need to know I can trust you. This may take a bit of effort, as these current events have shied me away from that impression. With some time, it could be worked out. As far as tasks or abilities go, I can see you're a good fisher, for a start. If there's anything you would like to add or ask, please, just do so. It won't be of any help to me to have you standing there uncertain and submissive for the rest of your life." Though in most cases merely letting someone know that rule-breaking would come with consequences was enough, Ace's case was slightly different. He had already broken an unspoken 'rule' when he crossed the border. She realized he may not be comfortable with this meager attempt at explanation of the process of joining, but unless he had a question to speak aloud, she wouldn't know how to explain.

Her last statement had been spoken more out of annoyance in the back of her mind. She meant it, though. Seeing others with their tail tucked between their legs and their ears back so flat they looked like leaves that had been dropped there by the wind was beginning to be a nuisance. She didn't want wolves defiant of her - she was the Alpha, after all. Yet, she didn't want to see them looking like they had something to say, yet too afraid to say it. Perhaps it was simply because she liked having the ability to speak her mind and ask questions when she needed to that she wanted her pack to have that ability? The reasoning seemed right in her head, so the back of her mind decided that was it and stored it for further contemplation at a later date.

--- Kylon Talhera --- Timber Wolf --- 2 Years ---

"Speech." Thoughts. Actions.
Word Count: 559

[blue602]

The wind blew gently against Ace's fur as the two wolves sat and talked. Normally, he wouldn't even give this a second though, but his fur was still a bit damp from his earlier swim. He tried to puff out his fur a bit, then wondered if it seemed hostile to Kylon. So he tried to keep his eyes light and generous. Ace watched as she took a few more bites of fish, and looked down at his own. There wasn't much there so he decided to finish it off. Ace thought that Kylon was thinking of her response carefully, which made him respect her. Her whole appearance and attitude made him respect her, the way she was nice but firm, and could hold up her ground if needed. Ace grew even more anxious, he really wanted a pack, even if it was just a few wolves that he could try to surround himself with. His ears twitched when he heard her voice. He was thinking of what to say to her, when she said to stop being submissive, he got kind of embarrassed. He curled his tail at the tips of his paws and let his pinned ears up. He felt very relaxed after that, and felt himself loosen up a bit. He smiled and Kylon and gave her a small nod of apparition. He was glad she wasn't one of those wolves who wanted others to bow at their feet, so he was happy about that. When Kylon had finished speaking, Ace was readily prepared to say something next. "I know that I had crossed the boarders and hunted, and I'm very sorry for my rude behavior. He paused and breathed in deeply, trying to calm his nerves. This might be the place, he told himself, somewhere I can call home, and it is a wonderful place to be. "But if you would give me the chance, I will prove my loyalty to you and your pack.

[/color] He declared to himself that that is exactly what he'll do.

Feeling proud of himself he also decided to tell Kylon about some of his skills "I'm swift, and a good hunter, I can hunt well in a group as well.[/color] With that all Ace could do was dream of fishing and no longer have that nagging feeling of loneness. The days of cold would once again be warm for him. With a kind smile he awaited for Kylon's answering remark.[/size]

Words :: 412
Notes :: blah, blah, blah
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[zivve]

Once she had said it, Ace relaxed. His ears lifted up to what appeared to be a more comfortable position and smiled. Kylon smiled in response, glad that he was no longer forcing himself to act so passive. When he spoke, he apologized, which Kylon was glad to hear. At least he knew he had done something wrong in crossing the borders. After a deep breath, he continued, saying that he would be loyal. Ace seemed hopeful as far as getting into the pack and Kylon didn't feel the need to crush this emotion. Also, he could hunt, which was a skill that could be very helpful to the pack.

The pack, as it was, was very small. This wasn't safe, and Kylon knew it. It was part of the reason she kept such a close eye on the border - she was looking for new recruits just as much as she was making sure that no one was going to try and attack her, whether they be from another pack or a band of loners. She didn't want to see any blood or terror and when it came to fighting, she was quick to wish it away. She was strong, yes. She could lead, yes. But, she did not handle death well and never liked the thought of seeing those she knew and respected bloody or broken.

"Alright Ace, I'm willing to accept you. This pack currently has no hunters, and it is a task that need some taking care of. As far as trust goes, I'm going to give you the benefit of doubt, but I will be watching to make sure you do as you're told - at least for a while. Just know that if you ever cross me or my pack, you will be run off this land without hesitation." she said, ending it with the minor threat. Her gaze softened once she finished speaking, having grown harsh for only a moment. If he was going to be intimidated, it would be best that it show now and she know what intimidates him. She finished the last few bites of her fish, only now realizing that she had unintentionally eaten it quickly. She wasn't in a rush, nor did she have some important meeting to get to. It had just happened.

"You ought to know that once you are accepted into this pack, you will be treated with the same respect as everyone else. I don't want my pack members getting hurt, and if this means a slight threat to let wolves know that betrayal will not be tolerated, I'm afraid I'll have to speak some unkind words," she added, hoping this explanation would let him understand that she didn't mean it personally when she warned him against betraying the pack. As far as morals went, she was more concerned with the well-being of her pack than if someone was a little rude to her upon first meeting - not to say she wouldn't put them in their place if they got her too mad, just that she wouldn't punish them as strongly as if they had attacked another member. Before she got distracted by her beliefs, she listened for anything else Ace may have to say - an objection to be a hunter, or really anything that may be on his mind at that moment.

--- Kylon Talhera --- Timber Wolf --- 2 Years ---

"Speech." Thoughts. Actions.
Word Count: 561

[blue602]

Ace sat there politely as Kylon was speaking. He nodded his head in understanding when she gave him a threat. He didn't mind though, he knew he would work hard, and soon enough earn a spot in the ranks of her pack. He also saw that her eyes had soften slightly after speaking, giving him the thought that Kylon was only protecting herself and her pack. He was rather happy to be positioned as a hunter right away. He was afraid that Kylon was going to assign a wolf to 'babysit' him until he could prove his worth. He listened as she explained the threat, and he completely understood. "That is very fine, he said in a friendly voice, "I would do the same if I had to be an Alpha.

[/color] He looked down and just noticed that she had finished off her fish, and looked down at the remains of his. His didn't last long because of the size, but the look at the small amounts of meet and chewed bits of bone looked rather vulgar to him. He smiled up at her as he dug a quick shallow hole and brushed the fish aside in it, all the while he was talking. "I'm also completely fine with being a hunter, and I look forward to proving myself to you that I can be a loyal member"[/color]

Ace glanced around and saw the true beauty of this place. The sliver stones, which they stood up, shone in the faint light of the moon. The trees, now cast in shadows, would look full and green in the spring. The land had so much potential, Ace almost got lost in the sound of leaves shushing in the breeze. He had to quickly correct his attention back to Kylon with a smile.[/size]

Words :: 300
Notes :: I'm really sorry about the length, but do you want to end the thread here? Of coarse you can post something else as a conclusion.
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[zivve]

Ace seemed to accept her terms, finishing his fish and burying it as he finished speaking. Kylon followed suit and buried the remains of her fish as well. He said he would prove himself and Kylon accepted that. His attention seemed distracted for a moment, but Kylon was too busy thinking to be worried by it.

"I will watch your actions, as far as proving yourself goes. I believe you can handle it, so you don't really need to worry about that." Kylon didn't have much else to say, so she stood up. It seemed like the conversation was over - he was accepted and happy with it, as far as she knew. It was about time for her to get back to border patrol so she could finish and get some sleep sooner or later. It had actually been a good help that he had come along - otherwise, she would have had to go hunting by herself and find food, which would have taken more time.

"It's getting late and I have work I must finish before sleeping. You're welcome to do as you wish - whether that be sleep or explore," she smiled and nodded at him, stretching as she paused. "Goodbye, for now, Ace." She stood up and turned, nodding a short goodbye. She had paused long enough to hear if he had anything to say, then began her trek back to the borders so she could finish her patrol, as she had said she would. The silver stones she walked on made little noises as she walked over them with care. When she reached the tree line, she looked back to see Ace. She could barely see him in the dark, though there was a light outline of him against the silver stones that shone in the moonlight. She nodded, lost in her thoughts, then continued in the direction she had been headed.
-- exit Kylon --

--- Kylon Talhera --- Timber Wolf --- 2 Years ---

"Speech." Thoughts. Actions.
Word Count: 318
+ I'm adding him to the pack ranks now. :)