--! A Change of Heart [Raven/open]

[¿℟ᵿҝɸ]

--! F A N E ::
So where do you draw the line and tell yourself no more?
Is it when your back's against the wall or you're crawlin' on the floor?

He was doing this, but didn't exactly know why. Never before had he desired to return an act of kindness with another. In fact, Fane couldn't remember the last time he was even remotely kind to another living creature, especially not another wolf like himself. But she had saved his life. That's right, he mused to himself. He was on death's doorstep when she found him. He had been beaten by his own hubris; gotten careless and lead a few revenge stoked canines right to him. He could remember his last thoughts as his pain addled mind defiantly slipped into an inky blackness while his body gave out underneath. As he laid there in the desert sun, feeling the life within his veins slowly drain outward with every strained beat that escaped his failing heart, she found him. He could remember her faint calls of encouragement and the sturdiness of her mottled frame as his savior led him to her sanctuary.

He couldn't remember how long he stayed there, probably not more than a day or two, then he left without another word. He didn't thank her, didn't say goodbye, hell, Fane couldn't even remember her name. And yet, he felt a strange sense of ...something. He couldn't quite put a finger on just what it was, and the longer he was away the stronger the feeling became. As he healed on his own over the course of a few months the nagging didn't go away. He wracked his brain for hours at a time, contemplating just what was bugging him so much. Finally he decided to stop trying to deny and out-think the obvious answer. One day he resolved himself to travel back to the desert and face up to the facts. Which brings us back to his current location in the scrublands before what he finally recognized as Einheit.

Dry twigs and grass shattered and bent before his massive frame as he weaved his way through the progressively drying landscape. His reluctance to return was not just out of pride, but also out of a general dislike towards the grabby foliage between the grasslands and desert biomes. The twigs clung to his perpetually long coat in such an annoying manner that made every brush against any kind of shrubbery renew his irritation. He finally lost his patience with the meddlesome twigs and drove both his front paws into a bush like structure along his path. His sudden outburst startled a hiding rabbit which he quickly snapped up. Instead of eating the serendipitous find he carried it with him. He wasn't sure just who the female was, but figured that if he didn't run into her food would be a good bartering chip to prevent conflict. Wait, prevent conflict? Yeah, Fane thought he must have gotten some long lasting brain damage from the fight to ever have that consideration cross his mind. Regardless of his inner confusion and blaming it on the sweltering desert sun he was now walking in, he continued on carrying his fuzzy and tasty gift.

After a good while longer of walking Fane finally reached the river he recognized as the one the female led him to when they first met. Throwing back his dark muzzle he set loose a bass filled howl which echoed across the landscape. He dropped the rabbit on the ground and sat attentively on his haunches. He wasn't sure how long it would take for someone to show up, so he thought he might as well start picking some of the twigs out of his coat as he waited.

[⋆Ravɛn]

Sinead

Winter had cooled Einheit to a level that was almost…pleasant. Sinead lounged atop a particularly large mound of earth, her slender muzzle resting atop her paws. It was her favorite place to lay, not only because the sunlight shone directly onto her back, warming her pelt in the frigid months, but because she could see across a large portion of Einheit. While it was impossible to see the entirety of her territory, she could almost see to the river. It was a speck of pale blue on the horizon, a rare source of color surrounded by dusky browns and dull reds. Despite all of the insanity that had seemed to plague Einheit, from her claiming of the irritating Icarus and Chalandra’s pregnancy, Sinead could always relax upon her own soil, gazing out across her home like the queen that she was.

The howl that shattered the silence moments later had the alphess lifting her head, seagreen eyes narrowing to slits as she gazed in the direction of the river. It was deep and masculine, earning her attention immediately as she stood, stretching before bounding from the hill. She moved quickly, little puffs of dirt rising around her paws as she trotted towards the water. Wherever the rest of her pack was, whether they were lurking in the dens or hunting somewhere, she could only wonder if they would bother coming to the call. Icarus she severely doubted, as he was likely plotting her demise in a dark corner, and Chalandra rarely showed her face in her presence. Sayang, maybe. Merona…perhaps. Sinead had become very fond of the sklavin, and found that Merona was becoming more comfortable in her role. And if Eneko was lurking anywhere nearby…Gods help her.

As she drew nearer, Sinead easily spotted the hulking brute who sat waiting. Familiarity pricked at her and she frowned, attempting to put a name to the face as she slowed to a walk. It was only once she stood before him that she realized who he was, although they’d never formally met. It was the male she’d met near death many moons ago, who’d disappeared without a word upon his recovery. She’d thought little of him until this moment, but now she smiled briefly to herself before clearing her throat.

”Annoying, isn’t it?” She asked, referring to the brambles that he’d carefully picked from his fur. Her eyes raked across him, taking in his well-muscled form. He looked healthy, she decided with a grim sense of satisfaction. At least he’d lived. Wordlessly she glanced towards the rabbit that rested at his paws, wondering if he’d brought it for her. He hadn’t eaten it yet, which was a good sign; at least he wasn’t rude enough to hunt in her territory without bringing his winnings to her feet. ”If you’ve brought that for me, help yourself. It’s the thought that counts anyways, or so I’m told.”

Moving forward, she circled him, eyeing him in a way that was both considerate and mischievous at the same time. When she’d finished her full inspection she stood before him again, muzzle pulling into a smirk.

”Well. You’re not dead, so I suppose my attempt at healing wasn’t too shabby. What brings you back to Einheit, Nameless One?” There was a light jest in her tone, and a hint of curiosity. For whatever reason he’d come, she wanted to know his name. ‘Nameless One’ didn’t roll easily off of the tongue, after all.

NOTE: | WORDS: 575  | TAG: ¿℟ᵿҝɸ

[»Image]

» S A Y A N G

It was on the river's edge that Sayang was resting when the outsider came calling, her paws draped over a large rock and her spotted head laying comfortably over them. She'd spent most of the day so far hunting small voles and mice--whatever she could find honestly--and the pickings had, as usual, been thin. She'd managed to scrap together a single vole and it had been skimpy and thin, without much more than a gulp to finish it off. Einheit's prey count seemed to be lower than normal this season, although the same could be said of the temperature. And, honest to Eperna's grace, neither was a positive. For the wolves, the low temperatures in Einheit's notoriously fuming heat was a godsend. For Sayang, the frost was only trouble and added distance of being a dog in a wolf's world.

She both heard and smelled the male coming from quite a ways off, his scent cast towards her on the midday winds as he bumbled through thickets and brush that lay beyond Einheit's border. Rustling as he went, fronds and small plants crunched loudly under paw, their dryness echoing in the quiet. Sayang blinked her eyes a few times to clear her daydreaming head before moving off her rock and behind it's furthest side. Her brown eyes tracked on the male's form, watching and surveying in silence. He was much too big for her to take on herself, but he'd gotten far enough along that he'd easily see her streaking off to warn Sinead. The alternative was to stalk him as far as she could and break for her alpha when possible. Although, as confidently as he strode, she was inclined to believe his ways to be positive instead of furtive.

As soon as he called for Sinead, Sayang waited a few moments, nervous about what to do. Sinead was not a forgiving alpha, and although their interactions as of recent had been few, she much preferred to keep it that way. Eventually, after the female's arrival and a few exchanged words, Sayang gathered the courage and splashed across the river and into view. She gave a great shake at the other side, her Dalmatian tail forced low as she'd become accustomed. That alone had been one of her hardest lessons in the wolf community. lowering her eyes in Sinead's presence, Sayang waited a few paces away, her posture clearly that of a sklavin.

"I heard the call ma'am and decided to keep watch from the riverbed."

Hopefully Sinead would be accepting of her behavior. If not, it would become a waiting game for the punishment.

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notes !
working on her. she's kinda a wild card.

tags !
⋆Ravɛn
¿℟ᵿҝɸ

word count !
436

[¿℟ᵿҝɸ]

FANE

---

As Fane sat there under the sweltering desert sun he began to wonder if anyone even lived in the lands beyond him after all. There were tumbleweeds, rocks, this river, but not any signs of anything that was actually alive. Areas around water should be the most bustling place in a wasteland such as this, but his only company was the occasional black shelled beetle. The small iridescent creatures amused the charcoal male as they haphazardly scampered across the twigs and burrs he left scattered around him. Each obstacle which seemed insignificant to him appeared to be monumental in comparison to the insects. Just as one beetle crested the top of a nearby rock he lifted his paw and ever-so-slightly nudged its front end. The carapace covered bug, losing its grip, rolled back down the rock with a quiet scrabbling of limbs and landed, confused and flailing, on its shiny back. After a few minutes of struggling it regained its footing and attempted its climb again. Fane, seeing its new quest, effortlessly thwarted the beetle's progress, and sent it tumbling back down. For a while the pattern continued: climb, fall, un-turtle, climb, repeat, and the male watched with a slightly satisfied smile. His favorite part was probably the helpless dance of legs the beetle performed as it attempted to right itself. It was perfectly helpless and pleased the sleeping sadist within him to know he was the cause.

Gradually the shifting winds wafted a fresh set of smells in his direction, and immediately he knew he wasn't alone. His suspicions were confirmed as he saw the silhouette of another wolf in the distance trotting towards him. Gradually as the distance between himself and the mystery figure shortened he began to recognize a few familiar details. As she finally neared close enough to see face to face he recognized her as the wolf he had traveled all this way to meet. ”Annoying, isn’t it?” Her voice removed any doubt that may have remained in his mind. It was calm, but stern and feminine. "I'll say.", he responded flatly with a quizzical arch of his brow.

As he gestured to the rabbit he randomly happened across, the female in front of him politely declined the offer, but thanked him for the effort nonetheless, and proceeded to inspect him. He took this as an opportunity to do the same, especially since his visual memory of her was fairly hazy. She was smaller than him, but seemed to be in good condition, which surprised him considering the sparse lands in which she lived. She was pretty, not that it mattered much to Fane-- he wasn't here because of some instinctive reproductive drive-- but being indebted to someone who was nice on the eyes was still a bonus.

”Well. You’re not dead, so I suppose my attempt at healing wasn’t too shabby. What brings you back to Einheit, Nameless One?” Nameless One. Now that was a name he'd never heard before. It was a lot nicer than the others that came to memory, that's for sure. He cracked a slight smile. "That's actually-", Fane stopped mid-sentence when he spotted a ... well... spotted four-legged wolf looking creature heading towards them. He wasn't quite sure what to make of the thing that now stood, from what he gathered submissively, a few paces behind the female wolf. The creature addressed his savior as "Ma'am" and informed her that she was watching Fane from a distance. At least he knew she, an assumption based on smell and voice alone, could talk. He'd never seen anything quite like her before, and it took him a bit to get his mind back on track.

"Well now, this is a surprise." He said plainly through a toothy smirk. "So you can bring wolves back from the dead, and have a strange spotted companion? What else are you hiding in this desert?" He asked jokingly before continuing. "Anyway. Your healing attempt is actually why I'm here." He paused, mentally processing just how to proceed. Screw the methodical thinking for once. Just say it. "My damn conscience wouldn't shut up until I came back, so I figure I owe you a debt. My life's worth of a debt, to be exact." He stood up, shaking the sand from his darkened frame. "I'm no slave, but I'll protect your life with mine. If you'll let me."

»Image ⋆Ravɛn || UGHH this was rushed. I wanted to get it done before I head out tonigh. Sooory. You can change whatever to fit anything better.

[⋆Ravɛn]

Sinead

It was empowering, in a way, to watch how the brute’s eyes slid across her pelt. Sinead had never denied being a vain creature, and she was pleased by the approving glint in the male’s eye, but she made no comment. She had not come to flirt and flounce, but instead to figure out what exactly he’d sought her company for. It was admittedly satisfying to see him alive and well; in the first few days after he’d disappeared, she’d wondered if he had left to die. She’d hoped that it was not the case, but she’d been grim. It was surprising to see him standing before her as healthy as she herself was.

He moved to speak, but abruptly stopped, eyes focusing on something in the distance with a comically puzzled expression. Sinead turned a questioning eye towards the horizon, only to find that a spotted figure was quickly making its way towards them. ”Sayang,” she said with a faintly satisfied edge to her tone as the she-dog drew closer. It was comforting to know that her sklavins did not take lightly to a stranger roaming their lands, for Sayang confirmed that she’d kept a careful eye on the male.

"I heard the call ma'am and decided to keep watch from the riverbed."

”Thank you,” Sinead responded to the spotted fae, her voice gentle but firm. She had grown more and more proud of her sklavins as the months had passed; Sayang, who showed extraordinary judgment, and Merona, who displayed loyalty and courage. Sinead was certain that sometimes her attitude was daunting, and perhaps she was hard on them at times, but it made her no less proud. But then the male was speaking, dragging her out of her thoughts as she turned back to face him.

"Well now, this is a surprise. So you can bring wolves back from the dead, and have a strange spotted companion? What else are you hiding in this desert?"

Sinead laughed, flashing ivory teeth as she grinned at his retort. ”Now, now. If I told you, I’d have to kill you, and that would be a shame.”

Eventually he continued, finally getting to the point and stating why he had come. Surprise was evident on Sinead’s features as she regarded him silently. He’d returned to her to join Einheit as her…bodyguard? Something along those lines, anyways. Admittedly it was an attractive idea, and she found herself warming to it quickly. She could use more pack members to be sure, especially ones as large and intimidating as the brute before her. Einheit’s numbers were growing, and Sinead surely wasn’t going to turn down the aid of an able-bodied rex who came willingly to her service.

”You present a tempting offer, and one that I would be a fool to reject.” She tilted her head to the side, before gesturing towards Sayang. ”This is Sayang, one of the few sklavins who isn’t a complete pain in the tail,” she said, throwing a wink in the Dalmatian’s direction. The appearance of the male had lifted her spirits considerably. ”And I am Sinead. What is it that I should call my new warrior, then?”

NOTE: | WORDS: 529  | TAG: ¿℟ᵿҝɸ  »Image

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» S A Y A N G

”Thank you,”

At Sinead's praise, the she-dog

_____

notes !
working on her. she's kinda a wild card.

tags !
⋆Ravɛn
¿℟ᵿҝɸ

word count !
436