The Future is in your paws

((Do not worry, I am still here, only posting for Conatum, though, I have an idea for Naomi later... >:D))

Conatum walked to the trio of wolves again, sitting down on his haunches. He didn't speak, only listened and moved his head from side to side, watching whoever had spoken. Finally, his deep voice broke out somewhat quietly,
"The darkened moon greets you, Lagos." Naomi, as healer of the pack, had been told quite a time ago that the sun was her welcoming, while Conatum's was the darkened moon. Even during the day, Conatum had always used the phrase 'The darkened moon greets you', while Nao used 'Sun'.
 
NightShade blinked and stood up shaking herself of the dirt and looked over at Gowron, deciding whether to follow him or not. She didnt know if the place he was taking her was trapped or deadly in any way. She doubted it though, the gods and Lou said he was chosen, so he would have no reason to kill her, not inless he would kill her to make his unexplained and un-heared of mate the new Alpha Female. And with NightShade out of the way, no fight would be broken out. She shook her head stupidly to herself, the gods and expecially Lou, who poked her nose where she didnt belong always, would know. Unless lou was keeping secrets from her. NightShade shook her head, that was of no importance now, she looked at Gowron again and gently nodded "Okay, I'll follow you" she spoke softly and glanced around for Lou who was nowhere to be found, in her den NightShade hoped. Lou was already bugging her about her mate problems she didnt need Lou sneaking up on Gowron and her.

 
Gowron noted that she was following him, and not telling him to take her to the place. It was an odd feeling, to lead, but was it? Before he had been in this tribe, he had. It had ended disastrously of course, but he had long ago put those ghosts to rest. They would not haunt him any more. Smiling mischievously, Gowron spoke. "Excellent. You will be the first I show this to. I found it a few years back, when I was chasing down another wolf. It was...pure fate that drew me there, for when i need solace, and solitude, somehow, as if blessed by the gods themselves this place calms me."

He walked past her, but not before making a bold, if not obvious move. As he moved past her, he slid his body across hers, his fur mingling with hers for a split second, and his musky scent pouring all over her. It was a show of affection usually reserved for close friends or potential mates, and later, when asked why he did it, Gowron would simply smirk and say it was the right 'timing.'

As soon as he had done it, it was over and he was walking off, expecting her to follow in kind.
 
NightShade stopped suddenly, her fur bristling as he smootly brushed past her. His scent filling her nose and almost choking her, she shook her body and rolled her eyes to the side. He was just being affectionate, but it led her curiosity, he wouldnt touch her for that long if something hadnt been going on in his mind that made him do it. She stared at him walking past and she twitched her ears and her tail wagged a liitle in excitement. She knew the gods have chosen him for a reason, maybe Lou told him what the gods have answered. She started walking as not to loose him, he gaze flickering from him and the mossy dirt. Her fur still radiating his scent, the wind unable to remove it. Or maybe she thought, Gowron had liked her the whole time, it was only right for him to act like it if he did. though she was sure he liked someone else and that gesture was only a mark of friendship.
 
L agos dipped his head lightly to Naomi, as he watched her go off. Her shy actions and voice making his brain ponder why she seemed so nervous. He turned to Conatum whom had just returned. the brown wolf dipped his head in greeting. "May good fortune follow your path." he said in a return greeting. His eyes scanned the clearing. "Were you succesful, on your hunt?" Lagos asked the other brute, nothing but well meaning interest was expressed. As creatures of family and home, the fruitfulness of one was the fruitfulness of another. As well as the failure of one was the failure of another. The reserved brute gently thumped his tail againt the ground, prt of his habit when he began to sit for too long. His muscles rippled, his thoughts wandered to whether he whether or not he would take an afternoon run throug the woods. The fresh smell of the forest had always been a lure to him and to him, a moment spent not enjoying his home domain was a moment waisted.
 
Conatum nodded his head at Lagos's greeting and answered deeply,
"Two rabbits, though I wasn't gone for too long." He scanned the area, looking for his dearest friend. "Where has Naomi gone off to?" He asked no one in particular. Though it happened rarely, Conatum had started feeling a little nervous when Naomi wasn't in his sight. She was always a free-spirited one when around him, but recently he had grown a fear to her encountering a larger predator. She was easily mistakable for a fox because of her odd size and coat color, so she might be attacked by another wolf tribe or worse. He pushed the thoughts away and remembered he was still in front of other wolves. He looked at Lagos's muscles as they showed themselves so easily. Conatum had surprisingly strong muscles, yet they never bothered to show themselves.
 
Acting as if he had done nothing out of the ordinary, Gowron walked with purpose, occasionally sniffing the air as they walked in silence, making sure he was still in course. They padded through a river, over hills and eventually, into a cave. Leading her through winding passage ways and dark spaces, Gowron trodded along at a brisk pace, never stopping. If they were to obtain complete privacy, they would need to get there as soon as possible.

Not too long after, they came to the end of the cave, which opened up into a garden like area. They had passed through a small mountain, and come out not too far from the fringes of the Tribe's territory. Sitting on his haunches and turning to Nightshade, his lips curled back, revealing a grin of razor sharp teeth. "See? What did I say? We aren't far from the borders of our lands, but still close enough to make it back to camp in before the moon rises."

Looking around again, he once again glanced back at Nightshade, noticing the way her fur flowed in the light breeze, and her muscle that barely was contained under her coat. Her eyes now gave off something too....a sense of...vulnerability. It may have just been in his mind, but Gowron saw that look, and his body stirred with desire. He desired her strong willed nature as well, but this side of him set ablaze his primal urge to mate. His nostrils flared and his body tensed, and for a second, he contemplated on whether or not to pounce on her, taking her for his own.

Resisting the urges, he instead tried to distract himself with a question. "So...now I must ask. What is ailing, you, Nightshade? You can tell me, for we are alone, and my mouth will never repeat what you share. Of that, you have my word."
 
NightShade contemptated the question, looking at the scienery. The grass was calm in the area, she felt her energies being renewed with every wind swipe on her fur. She sniffed the gentle air around her, smelling the trees and the grass under her paws. Gowron was right, this place was like heaven, a heaven only her and him know. NightShade sighed and thought of the question again, it was true he gave her stronger feelings than any other member of the tribe, and now he had taken her to a place only he knew, she took a long breath in and sat down, her lungs heaving in the fresh air. NightShade spoke finally "I need to find a mate" at the word of mate she eyed Gowron for a split second, then continued "I have dodged every option of getting one and now the gods arent pleased, I must find a mate before the new blood moon of I shall be banished from the tribe" she looked down, ashamed of herself and ashamed that she told. She wanted to take it back, but she was to late.

Lou slid down on her belly, at least five feet away and covered in moss. Being as nosey as she was, her fangs formed a smile a pleasant one. She eyed NightShade and Gowron, the gods would be pleased with both of them, maybe grant them with pups, her smile widened she liked puppies. She heared NightShades comment and her ears perked, the moss making her cold but giving her a dirt smelling cover. NightShade was getting far.
 
(Heh, told yall I had plans for dear little Naomi. >:3)

Naomi heard the patting of paws coming her way. She knew that she was close to the border of their territory, so it could have been anyone. Quickly, she jumped into an orange-red bush, completely invisible in it's colors. The scent of the flowers around the bush should hide her perfectly. She peeked out in silence, and to her surprise, it was the Alpha Nightshade and Gowron. How did they find this spot? She thought to herself, then against her liking, she eavesdropped on their conversation. Her eyes widened as she heard Nightshade say something about needing a mate, or being banished from the tribe. She watched as the once strong and confident Alpha turned somewhat... Weaker, was it? Nightshade had eyed Gowron only for a split second, then everything snapped into place for Naomi. She couldn't help but silently gasp, then pulled her head farther back into the bush, to where almost everything had become black, except for Gowron's body and Nightshade's head.
 
Gowron listened intently, his pale yellow eyes focused solely on Nightshade. He was the calm sort, never one to react openly to news either good or bad, unless it was an amusing smirk, or a sarcastic response. In a crisis situation, he was calm, and collected. Being no stranger to death, he had been numbed to it's panicking effects, and just dealt with the loss in other ways. All of this, all of his mental preparation and calm, shattered when he heard her speak of needing to find a mate.

His eyes went wide, and his body tensed. This was it. This was the timing that was right. His voice was laced with emotion, Gowron unable to keep it hidden behind his usual veil of calm. "A...a mate you say? Do you have any...prospects? Since this is so important and all, you can't just pick any one wolf..." Trying in vain to stop blabbering, he turned his head down in embarrassment. He was so shocked, so distracted, that he didn't even check for any other presences here. He did notice, however, her discomfort in sharing such a thing with him. On impulse, he padded over to her silently, and pressed his body against hers, leaning against her without weighing her down with his bulk. Pulling back after a few moments of silence, he relished in her scent and spoke. "Nightshade. Why does having a mate disturb you? It is a glorious thing to find that someone you feel strong for. It gives one purpose, a design. Something to strive for....trust me, I know this for a fact."
 
Manx's left ear twitched. She knew when the first of the sun's rays hit the earth. Being somewhat condemned to silence opened one's senses to everything else around them. One of her eyes opened, revealing a gray iris. It closed again, as she raised her body to stretch and yawn. Sitting back on her haunches, eyes still closed, she took in the scents that wafted in through the opening of the oak tree she resided in. It was but the third year of her residing with this tribe. It was...homey, to say the least. The pack was alright. She did her part as a warrior everyday, and intended to continue doing so.

Familiar scents of the healer and her companion were strong, although the former's was beginning to dissipate. The faded scents of the Alpha Female and Gowron were beginning to disappear. They had left to go somewhere, then, or so her sharpened hunter's instinct told her. The Moon Teller was still present within the village, at least. Then, the telltale scent of Lagos wafted over her muzzle. She breathed it in and sighed contentedly before silently cursing herself. It wasn't wise to pander after which would never be hers, and she knew this from experience. Another yawn flew out of her and she stood, emerging into the open area of the Camp. It was time to begin her usual routine.

She first shook her fur of anything that had gathered into the gray hairs and went straight for the Alpha Female's den. The leader may not have been there, but she dipped her head anyway, murmuring a 'good morning.' Next, was the den of the Moon Teller. She stopped at the mouth of the den and dipped her head once more, offering a silent greeting. Moving across the middle of the camp, she found Lagos's lodgings. She dared not approach the entrance, however, only sniffing in the general direction and dipping her snout once more. She smiled at herself ruefully. But she could hold the hope, even if it was nothing but a fool's wish.

Manx turned toward the outer limits of the camp. It was just in time to see Naomi dash into the forests and leave two, unfamiliar muzzles standing there. Were they looking to join? If so, then they would be awaiting to gain audience with NightShade, right? Manx blinked mismatched eyes and stood there for a moment. It was still fairly early, and she had been out much later than Gowron, even thought he had left before her. The night was a tranquil being and the shadows had called to her with such a sweet voice that she could not resist. No one had confronted her about her late-comings, she was sure, because Gowron was much more important and his presence was felt. Hers was insignificant enough to go unnoticed and leave her to the night's clutches.

Not that she was complaining. She was used to being in the shadows, anyway.

Manx, having made up her mind, turned away from the newcomers and made a predetermined path toward the river. Once she had a clean muzzle, she lay there at the riverside, yawning once more. It was time to hunt for breakfast, and the two rabbits she had seen on the way wasn't going to feed the current number. Whoever went hunting had probably gone back to go for more. But it couldn't hurt to go looking on her own, would it?

The gray wolf, amidst her own thoughts, found herself staring at her reflection in the still rippling water. She huffed at the mismatched gaze that connected with hers. For a wolf, her frame was average, if not a tad smaller. But she liked that at least; it enabled her to moved through smaller areas with practiced ease. But it also stopped her from gaining any opportunities to hunt for much larger game like elk and deer.

So more rabbits it was.

With that, Manx got to her feet and went around the back of the camp. She wasn't ready to greet the strangers. If they were rejected, it would weigh far too heavily on her conscience, as if she were the one that sent them off. She loved potential new friends, but once she spoke to those two, and gotten their names committed to memory, she was done for.
 
"The thought terrifies me" she sighed and felt his body on hers, she shifted and leaned against him with equal force and licked his paw "Gowron, I was raised to live alone, my family didnt have mates, we lived alone, provided for eachother" NightShade sighed and licked her paw cleaning it "If you could pick somebody for me, who would you choose?" she glanced up at him and eyed him, her eyes switching from gold to goldish-blue and staying there. She felt a tinge of evilness seep into her bones "Should I choose you?" she asked, her voice going gentle. He didnt need to answer that, Lou had told her the gods accepted Gowron, and her telling him would be crossing over the boundary of her personal shell. NightShade looked away slowly, she wouldnt tell him that. Nightshade watched the dirt, seeing a little ant crawl on the ground. She wished she could be an ant, just run from her problems, she would if she wasnt an Alpha. She was raised to be Alpha, to hold her title with more honor than love itself. She tryed to look busy btu in her mind she thought of lou and her words of the gods. She liked Gowron, she had figured that out herself, it was telling him that she found an impossible task to complete.
 
Naomi suddenly felt guilt in herself. Why was she eavesdropping on these two? Much less, the alpha and Gowron? She shook her head silently, not rustling the bushes. Suddenly, a large flock of birds flew out from three trees behind her. She froze, hoping she would still go unnoticed, even if she was Healer she didn't know what the consequence for eavesdropping on such a private and personal conversation would be, especially one the alpha didn't seem comfortable in. She laid down and flattened herself under the bush, trying her best not to listen anymore, but Nightshade's voice broke through and ran into her mind as she spoke once again to Gowron, this time gently. Naomi's eyes widened when she heard Nightshade ask. It was obvious to her that she loved Gowron.

Conatum saw Manx walk off to hunt, and being the sneaky wolf he was, he decided to follow her. He didn't know what it was, but something about Manx made him feel weaker. No, not weaker, but lighter. He sneaked and hid behind trees, watching as the wolf with matching fur began her hunt.
 
Rabbits....rabbits...

Manx lowered her nose to the ground and sniffed. She wasn't far into the forest and the scent of rabbit blood licked at her nostrils. If any were nearby after that particular hunt, they were long gone by now. And it was proven when the wind guided the faint scents of other rabbits in the wild. A little miffed, she sat on her haunches and thought for a moment. Nose in the air, she sniffed for the scent of birds. Because of her name, she had a cat-like affiliation for climbing trees. It was her only true worth in her old pack when it came to hunting vultures and such for meat. It was a thrill, if she said so herself.

Standing, Manx trotted through the brush and between the trees, stopping every so often to look up and smell the air. Soon enough, in front of a large weeping willow, she smelt the familiar scent of a falcon. Opening her eyes to look, sure enough a large nest sat cradled in a high arm of the tree. She walked toward it and stood on her hind legs, paws on the trunk of the tree to get a feel of it. It had been so long since she went climbing she couldn't contain her excitement, tail thumping lightly on the ground.

Get over yourself, she thought, stopping the involuntary action. Dropping to all-fours, she back tracked a ways and charged the tree at a run. With a few leaps and bounds, she had managed to make it to the branch just below the nest. She balanced herself against the trunk to nuzzle the underside of the nest. There was weight in it, and then a small shuffle before everything stilled. Good, there was something in that nest. Balancing precariously on the limb, she walked away from the nest, in order to hop onto the branch above and stalk toward the adult falcon she saw asleep in the nest.
 
Conatum stood under the very tree Manx had leaped into. Many wolves would think it to be a strange habit to climb trees, but it amazed him. He now sat under the limb she was standing on, looking up at her black, white and grey fur. But seeing her walked closer to the edge started to worry him. What if she lost her balance? What if she fell from the height? A part of him told him it would be okay, Manx was very gifted when it came to cat-like things, but the other part faced reality. She isn't a cat, she's going to fall...
 
This particular branch...No wonder the falcon built the nest so close to the trunk. With careful steps, she crept closer. It took some doing, but she managed to get her muzzle over the nest. The falcon was sizable, and absolutely mouthwatering. She took another, smaller step forward, opened her jowls...

The falcon's eye snapped open and it screeched its disapproval of being disturbed. Manx started, losing her faulty balance on the rather unsteady branch. Instinctively looking for something to grab a hold of, her jaws wrapped around the falcon's left wing just before both tumbled out of the tree. Manx hit the ground first, teeth gritting at the pain that lanced through her shoulder.

Dammit!

The pressure of sharp teeth on the bird's wing caused it to cry out again. Angrily, it bent its neck and mercilessly began pecking at Manx's head. Manx was a trained warrior under her own parents, however, and ignored her injured shoulder to roll over, bringing the bird down like a whip. The bird's screeches were halted for a moment before the scuffle became a battle to the finish. Not that it wasn't in the first place.

A second pair of wings came about, and an enrages call of another falcon ripped through the air. Leaning her weight onto the downed falcon, one eye closed against the insistent pecking, Manx saw another falcon headed in their direction. Crap. It had a mate.
 
Conatum had been in a daze the moment Manx hit the ground, but she managed to hide her pain and fight the large bird back. He wanted to stay undercover, but saw as another falcon came to it's mate's aid. Conatum didn't want to see the ending of this, so he ran and jumped next to Manx, bringing his massive jaw open and down onto the healthier bird's back. It immediately turned it's head round and pecked sharply at him, but he shut his mouth tighter around the bird, hearing a large crack. He dropped the bird from his jaws, it falling lifelessly onto the ground. He then took the wing that wasn't occupied by Manx's mouth into his own.
 
((I'm not stalking this thread...honest! :P))

Manx only saw the blur of fur before she saw fellow pack mate Conatum take down the oncoming falcon. With almost minimal effort, the other wolf chomped through the bird and it crumpled to the ground in a heap. After his business was done, he took up the other wing of her enemy. Grateful for the reprieve, she yanked forcefully on the right wing she held between her jaws. The wing ripped away from the bird's body, and the falcon screeched something terrible. Manx flattened her ears against her head at the offending noise. She had forgotten how loud birds could be. She left the rest of the bird's body to Conatum, preferring to keep the disembodied wing. The falcon had seemed to give up the fight, as it weakly whined into the wind.

Panting around her 'prize', Manx atrempted to get to her feet. The pain in her shoulder made itself renown and she faltered a bit before balancing oddly on three legs, favoring the left shoulder. She dipped her head at the older wolf. "Thank you."

Indeed, she was grateful to the other, but could not help but feel the undercurrent of embarrassment. She hated failing, especially in front of others. It stung her pride as a warrior.
 
((Heh, I know I am! xD))

Conatum finished the bird's pain by simply stepping on it's back, most likely breaking it's spine because it fell silent almost immediately. He circled around to her hurt shoulder, pressing his side against her's for support. For a second he stopped to think to himself, but pushed on some words. "It was no problem, I just saw you fall from the tree-" Damn it! What am I saying? "-I-I mean, it's not like I was following you, I just was just hunting in this area close to where you were hunting, and..." He cut himself off when he started sounding a tad bit nervous, and looked at the ground. "We'd better head back to camp, Naomi will fix your shoulder."
 
((xD Shameless))

Manx leaned a little onto Conatum's side, careful to pull some of her own weight. Whatever the circumstance, she was relieved for the assistance. She would have gotten herself together eventually but would have been messed up a lot worse than she was already.

"What about the falcons?" she inquired, nodding at his suggestion and then turning to look at the two dead winged creatures. "We can't just leave them there as fair game to the other creatures.."
 
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