Blood and Water // open

[azrael]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellSpacing,0,true][atrb=cellPadding,0,true][atrb=width,400,true]

[atrb=background,http://i41.tinypic.com/24ffzg5.jpg] Beneath a hoisted sun, framed by a summery sky that bore a mirthless grin down over the lagoon, there trotted the scarlet dame. Thick, ruby fur seemed to burn with animation, alive with hostility while under the unhindered rays of a midmorning sun. The thin light reflected in his sharp, lucid blue eyes. Eyes so pale, the azure pigmentation was just a slight influence in the crystal irises. Pupils constricted into severe pin points with the abundancy of light- but even in the shadows shawl, they always seemed to be lost in the pale blue of her stare. A thin veil to loosely concealed malignancy, corrupt thoughts of genocide and worse things. The long, jagged line of her black lips seemed to cut in too far into her cheeks to stretch her face in a glistening ebony smile that held nothing short of devilry and a desire to harm. Her nails clicked over the smooth surface of the stones that guided along the mountain, hushed by the rush of water threading down to the valley below. The place was sterile, uncaring and void. Something colder than neutrality. It didn't speak of good nor evil, but of a chilling and cruel indifference that inspired a chill to run up the course of ones spine. Hostel found it intoxicating this foreign state of peace that existed on their island of eternal summer. Watching the stillness and plotting its destruction at her earliest convenience. Heavy muscles flickered beneath her burning hide of glowering scarlet fur as she moved liked a smug jungle cat in her new, and favorable, surroundings. Trapped between the grooves of that sinister and crooked grin wedged a small pheasant hen. It had been a surprisingly clean kill, and aside from the sparse and superficial loss of a few feathers, it was entirely intact. It hadn't even bled, but seemed to die more from bludgeoning. Limp head of the fowl swung lifelessly with the sway and tempo of her jaw. Beady, black eyes since erased of its vivacity and seemed unnatural the way its fogged stare remained unblinking while pinned beneath the teeth of a predator. For such a large wolf, capable of so much more, the game seemed as if it had been a trivial kill- spoiled energy for something as small and unsubstantial. But Hostel had not murdered the hen for the sake of dining. She was looking for something far more nostalgic. Something to occupy her mind and to host her amusement. While petty as it may be, it would tide her until the time came when she could indulge in all the carnage her wicked soul desired. Hostel was not finicky with the why and the who but more tickled by the thoughts of the when and the where. And since the when wasn't now and the where wasn't here, she would sate her need for destruction in another way. One that would not result in an untimely eviction for the needless slaughter of her peers. Hostel's pale turqoise stare flitted over the slate colored boulders and the glass surface of the water. Even though there was the sensation of complete exposure was eminent, it didn't bother her. She commended voyeurism. Why, after all, she was one herself. Swarthy, overly smug trot glided to an abrupt halt by one of the nooks carved into the stones of the cove. With ginger, almost maternal, ease she set down the pheasant on one of the stones. Its wings spread open, as if to become crucified, long neck strewn to the side at a most unnatural and sick angle. It was still warm, the taste of its feathers lingered on her tongue. Fangs eager to sever its tender flesh. So thin, begging to be ripped. With one last farewell glance over the expanse of the horizon, as if ensuring she was alone for the time being, she was satisfied enough with her situation to lay down next to her toy and fulfill her entertainment. She'd been chomping at the bit like an unruly stallion, but his meticulous ways would never allow her to rush. Waiting for perfection. She'd began to remove the more supple and softer plummage from the breast of the fowl, letting the wind carry it away, tongue flickering and pushing the feathers out of her mouth. Soon, the skin became bare and vulnerable. Bright pink still. It caused a fresh bought of excitement to lurch in her gut. She was enamored with it. Using her upper and lower canines as precisely as a a surgeon used its scalpel, she tore a fairly clean lasceration down the center of the abdoman. Beads of blood toiled at the cut and spilled over in well defined crimson rivulets, staining the remaining feathers that she'd neglected to pluck from the remainder of its diminutive anatomy. She tenderly let her tongue indulge over the fresh liquid, tainting her palette with the taste of heat and iron. It was odd, and never failed to please. Hostel was very meticulous, more so then she had ever been, through the duration of her casual dissection of the unfortunate fowl. She picked away the thin, near transparent flesh, to reveal the bones and inner musculature. Organs lay just beneath the barrier of bone and sinew, and she would carefully extract each in turn until she had created a line of shimmering internal sacks to the right of her and continued to nurse the carcass between her massive paws. The created cavity in the birds breast became immediately interesting, the rawness of the scent eliciting a muffled sound of near euphoric joy from her lips as she dipped her muzzle into the hole and lapped at the wellspring of dark fluids that pooled in the basin left with the organs removed. The tang was a worthy cause for the energy expended to capture the pheasant the way she had, orphaning her newly fertilized eggs and forcing those of her flock to scatter in the wake of her onslaught. Securing her prize had been the only focus of her thoughts. The same applied now, with Hostel laving at the naked insides greedily, the obscene slurping made as her tongue ducked in and out of her mouth resounding in her saucer-like ears. No sooner had she begun did the female raise her weighted crown to lick at her bloodied lips, clearly lost in the throes of so many thoughts and memories the simple act her feast had conjured. The world was right once more - at least in her eyes.

[/justify][/color][/blockquote][/td][/tr][tr][td]

[/td][/tr][/table][/center]

[grizzly]

Grizzly walked into the extensive marshlands with measured steps, he had caught the scent of a new wolf while patrolling the territory. His curiousity seemed to drive him more than anything since the odor smelled similar to that of the Galaxy Pack. He knew that a few other indiviudals had settled into the area, but hadn't gotten the chance to meet them face-to-face yet.

When he drew nearer to the source of the scent, he saw a wolf that nearly matched him in both height and strength laying over some prey. He almost mistook the newcomer for a male until he saw the lighter features of her face. Grizzly debated whether or not to introduce him since the female appeared rather focused on her catch. He found the way she handled it to be quite strange, so he moved forward just enough to make his presence known.

He was struck by the way she removed the the bird's feathers and lined its organs up around herself. The pratice seemed unnecessary to him since he was use to digging in right after the kill, but stayed quiet so as not to insult his new packmate. "That's an interesting way of going about it... It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Miss. My name is Grizzly. Would you be so kind as to give me yours?" Though he kept his tone polite, Grizzly stayed standing in order to show his position of leader.

[azrael]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellSpacing,0,true][atrb=cellPadding,0,true][atrb=width,400,true]

[atrb=background,http://i41.tinypic.com/24ffzg5.jpg] There was no shortness of pleasure to be had in tasting the life’s blood of another animal spilling into her mouth. Knowing that every precious ounce of scarlet that was lost made its source weaker and weaker and the sense of its slowing struggles was a legalized ecstasy. The only disappointment she could attest to would have been the fact that the pheasant was already dead, long having stopped struggling. Thankfully, the red titan wasn’t at all deterred from her self-imposed chore and was contentedly drinking from her dubious beaker, an event that was soon disturbed by the gruff vocals of another invading her consciousness. Golden marked brows had pinched together in a knot of indignation and surprise; it beveled the transcended marks along her muzzle to obscure the cryptic sprawls with a frown not terribly ill-suited to the scarlet visage. It took all of her willpower not to completely dismiss the unfamiliar face and resume further dissection of her prey, doubting that she’d be given the leniency or privacy to do so but there was also a niggling connotation to the wolf’s posture that kept her attention. The nonverbal language of the brute’s body implied things that Hostel was fiercely ready to deny had it not been for the fact that the ringing clout in his pleasant, but authoritative tone. And it wasn’t as though she’d actually seen the alpha of the Galaxy pack for that matter. So despite her initial thoughts of disregard the female conceded inch by inch as logic and reason outweighed rumor and stubbornness. By the end of the warriors moment of deliberation Hostel had donned a smile – or rather smirk since there was nothing remotely welcoming about the twist of lip and muscle – and had adjusted herself on her boulder to watch him in comfort. He called her dining method interesting so he couldn’t be all that bad. “I think that’s the nicest way anyone’s ever described it.” This more to herself then to Grizzly as he went on with his introductions and expectantly waited for her to follow suit. “Don’t waste formalities on me Griz,” christening the wolf with a moniker she was certain to use as oppose to his full name, a habit that would either be infuriating or amusing in the days to come. “I’m better with the simple stuff so just speak plain wolf and we’ll avoid misunderstandings. The name’s Hostel, not to be confused with Hostile.” Not that it was really a stretch or that much of a difference according to some eye witness accounts. But that was another story entirely. “So Griz, you’re the Alpha I’ve heard so much about right? Not to offend but I was expecting something…” she looked him up and down, grin still spilling over her lips. “More? Yeah, definitely more. All the hype kinda gave me the impression that you’d be a giant or something. Again, no offense.”

[/justify][/color][/blockquote][/td][/tr][tr][td]

[/td][/tr][/table][/center]

[grizzly]

Grizzly watched as she laid to rest atop one of the boulders and addressed him with the nickname 'Griz.' It wasn't like he'd never been called that before, but it caused him to do a double take since it had been so long. Nevertheless, he let the remark slide and reared bak a little to sit back on his hind legs while his back remained stiff.

As she finished introducing herself, he couldn't tell whether the part about her name being confused was meant as a joke or not. But, he decided to through in a little sarcasm of his own after she insisted that formalities were necessary. "Very well, Miss Hostel. Feel free to be as causal as you'd like." He wondered if she's noticed his little gag, but decided it wasn't important and kept listening.

The female's last statement caught him a little off guard since he wasn't aware of his reputation. Grizzly figured it wasn't something to worry about since he's never heard of it, so he gave a half hearted shrug in response. "My apologies, if you're disappointed. Though, I think a gaint might be a little too much to expect of anyone. Perhaps I can make it up to you later." He looked back up at her with his usual passive eyes and waited for her reply.

[azrael]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellSpacing,0,true][atrb=cellPadding,0,true][atrb=width,400,true]

[atrb=background,http://i41.tinypic.com/24ffzg5.jpg] 'Well he certainly doesn’t seem like a prude', were her thoughts on her leader’s demeanor though that didn’t stave off other converse notions from interjecting in her somewhat optimistic deliberation. From just this short exchange she was ready to conclude that he wasn’t going to tear her ears off or have someone drive a pair of antlers into her side for keeping to her snarky and boisterous ways but…’You’ve been wrong before.’ The thought hedged, ever critical and uncooperative. There wasn’t going to be a verdict today but she could at least build up her perspective in the meantime and disprove her more cynical ideas. It was counterproductive to the whole ‘bonding’ thing, wasn’t it? Her ears twitched attentively in accordance to the rough intone she was beginning to associate with the wolf, her grin broadening at the adjoined gender depicted term to which a soft guffaw rolled out of her. Did he think he was clever by deliberately discount her earlier statement? Or maybe it was in retaliation for having diced up his name and fitted him with the remainder? The latter seemed most likely as did the fact that she could probably live with being called Miss if he so insisted. Just so long as she could keep calling him Grizz and any other ursine based nicknames she could think of to attach to him. This was proving to be more fun than she could have hoped for. Who knew her Alpha might just have a sense of humor buried somewhere under that shroud of passivity? Similarly, Grizzly’s reaction – or lack thereof – to the concept of rumors, with him as the focal point, didn’t seem to bother him. Either he was already aware of the information or was indifferent and didn’t care one way or the other. She supposed it didn’t seeing as it hadn’t really deterred the rate of membership to the Galaxy pack. Deigning that avenue of conversation unappealing in the long term of things, Hostel continued to listen to the placid drone and apology that was offered. It made her painted yellow brows liven, hiking a few inches on her face, mystified. Though the confusion didn’t last long as the remainder of his sentence hit her and returning her wry expression. “Nah, you’re probably right, a giant’s too much to ask for. Not that it wouldn’t be cool anyway, not very functional but cool.” With no effort at all Hostel relaxed, or gave the impression of a state of tranquility from her languorous position. Her weighted crown fell to her paws, pheasant and assorted organs remiss in the wake of idle chitchat. “So Griz, what’s up? Anything you want to particularly let me in on about your way of running the pack or is it fair to assume you work just like everyone else and the ‘do by your neighbor as you would have done onto you’ is how you run things?”

[/justify][/color][/blockquote][/td][/tr][tr][td]

[/td][/tr][/table][/center]

[grizzly]

Grizzly continued in his proper manner while watching the female across from him settle into a more relaxed position. He was grateful that their meeting appeared to be going well since he had only been leader for a short time. For a split second, he allowed a brief memory of his time as Beta of the Galaxy Pack under Aisu to past through his mind. But, he silently reeled from the weight that swelled in his chest and allowed the memory to fade away as he returned his attention to his present company.

After the question was asked on how he intended to run the pack, he took a moment to himself and visably thought over the answer. "That sounds about right... Typically, we all stay within our own territories unless needing to visit the Loner Territories. Then there are Peace Gatherings, which occur even full moon or so, where the packs meet to discuss business." Thinking over his last comment about the Peace Gatherings, he decided to correct himself so that she wouldn't expect anything fancy. "Though, to be honest, the Peace Gatherings have been more for confronting enemies and reuniting these past couple of years."

Once more, Grizzly was taken back through time as memories of past Peace Gatherings found their way to his mind. He was caught up in a mix of emotions while imaging his past family and friends. "You'll have to excuse me..." He wasn't sure why he had become so nostalgic while talking to the warrior, but he was determined to control it. He changed his position to standing on all four legs and looked her straight in the face to try concentrating.

[azrael]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellSpacing,0,true][atrb=cellPadding,0,true][atrb=width,400,true]

[atrb=background,http://i41.tinypic.com/24ffzg5.jpg] Hostel wasn’t sure when she took notice of the transitional pace from verbose to laconic but when her subconscious finally decided to let her active mind in on its little secret regarding the downtrodden ambiance, she quickly shut her mouth. That action in and of itself should have been a sign of the apocalypse. Hostel loved to talk, give her an ear and if her first impulse wasn’t to rip it from the owner and use it for a chew toy she would feed it until it bled with all the trivial information she flooded it with. Silence should have been warning enough that the snidely boisterous was looking into something that either was or wasn’t there to read. On the upside her raging suspicions held any validity and the Alpha’s running laps down memory lane – particularly the shady and depressing avenues – then she was obligated to bring him some cheer. On the downside, if she was exaggerating the symptoms she assumed she saw in the retreating wolf then this could end really, really bad. Believing she had stepped on some repressed, emotional landmine had the cogs and gears in her mind running double time and swiftly conjuring a method of treatment: distraction. The fact that he was staring straight at her didn’t discourage the red-furred monolith from her quiet scheming, convinced that her new pal Grizzly was in need of a diversion. If she was wrong there’d be hell to pay but what was life without a little edge to it, right? Right. The only things she’d have to worry about was nicking her boss with her horns and having her unknowing patient think she was trying to take advantage of his vulnerability and attack her. “Alright, I got the gist of it then. Don’t purposely annoy the neighbors, don’t terrify the kids and don’t eat anybody who would be missed and or incite others to riot.” She cawed with obvious cheer, careful not to give herself away by being overtly friendly. Hostel’s innocuous expression was forthcoming yet sardonic, like if he asked a question she’d respond with her famous bite and world class snark. Nothing seemed off about her as she jumped from her rocky perch and sauntered over to the larger canine and strolled right on past him, not even a brush of contact made as she moved out of his direct line of sight. No sooner had her tail vanished from his peripheral had she doubled back and was suddenly balanced on her hide legs, front paws giving grizzly’s flank a hard shove and pushing her weight into a lunge. It was spontaneous and sudden, no thought about the action or what would follow but instinct covered for her lapse in mental processing. Blue eyes were crisp with vitality as she snickered at him, watching him for reactions. Her tail had climbed a notch but the tip had curled down and swayed like it was trapped in a turbulent summer breeze, beckoning and accepting but not threatening his title or authority. It was...playful, if the way she dropped her torso and splayed her forepaws was any further indication to her ploy. Yeah this was something more suited to an omega, a wolf tailored to alleviating the stress of pack life and help ground them but seeing as there wasn’t one around to give Grizzly the giggles he seemed to need he’d have to put up with her. “Formalities over, bonding time!” she announced quickly, grinning as she dived for him, being sure to raise her head as not to gore her leader as well as to swipe her chin over his flank and scruff, stealing his scent for herself and applying her own at the same time. An undeniable sign of her acceptance of him as Alpha and wanting to share his scent – assuming her opinion mattered.

[/justify][/color][/blockquote][/td][/tr][tr][td]

[/td][/tr][/table][/center]

[grizzly]

Grizzly was taken back a little by the warrior's comment, but dismissed it as sarcastic humor since she appeared to be good natured about it. "Indeed. It is important to avoid comsuming anything that might bring about a riot." He looked on as she dismounted the boulder and slowly made her way past him. At first, he believed she was leaving the area, but was proven wrong when given a shove from the side.

The female's strength was impressive as it managed to knock him onto his side. However, Grizzly was quick to recover and marched back towards her with his fur fully hardened into spikes. He didn't understand her motives for turning on him, but noticed that she didn't take a defencive stand even as he approached her with his deepest growl. The warrior's manner seemed almost playful as she announced her want for bonding time.

Grizzly's anger was soon replaced by nervousness as she moved closer to his side again. He couldn't tell if he was anxious over her launching a second attack or embarrassed that a female was getting this close. Either way, he kept a sharp eye on the her as she rubbed aganist his fur which had softened back into its matted form. It was only after he caught the scent that had been left behind that he realized what she meant by bonding time. He couldn't help feeling that he had overreacted and proceeded to do the same thing as a means of strenthening the bond. "I must apologize. I did not mean to give you the wrong impression, but perhaps a warning would be helpful next time."

[azrael]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellSpacing,0,true][atrb=cellPadding,0,true][atrb=width,400,true]

[atrb=background,http://i41.tinypic.com/24ffzg5.jpg] “Telling you that I’m about to surprise jump you sort of defeats the surprise part now don’t you think? Cause the point was to, ya know, surprise?” It was like a bird telling the grubs it was going to swoop down and eat them beforehand. The redundancy of Grizzly’s remark did incite more than Hostel’s cheeky retort. Though only meant to be a quick observation, his reaction to the unexpected turn of events belied more than her leader was probably willing to divulge on a first meeting with his subordinate. Again, she could be over exaggerating his response and reading between lines that didn’t exist, but it seemed to her that he wasn’t used to this at all. She was hardly one to go to for deep insight on maintaining a healthy pack but if memory were good for nothing else it was instilling familiar practices and habits that she would carry with her always. Typically alphas were in the practice of short bouts of ritualistic grand standing followed by scent marking, a show of ownership. She’d been happy enough to overlook the show of force, having never been keen on being dominated by any wolf of any rank, but his reaction to the marking inclined her to believe that he didn’t do it himself. Not doing it left a big hole in the theoretical world of camaraderie among fellow pack members. “Lemme guess, the rumor about you being the former leader’s toady wasn’t a total stretch from the truth, huh?”

[/justify][/color][/blockquote][/td][/tr][tr][td]

[/td][/tr][/table][/center]

[grizzly]

He allowed a light chuckle to escape his throat as she stated the obvious. "I suppose you do have a point. Where would we be if we always gave ourselves away to prey?" Though the suddenness of her scent marking had caught him off guard, Grizzly recognized its importance. He was beginning to appreciate having run into this female, who seemed to know all these common traditions.

Scent marking was a foriegn practice to him since none of the other packs had ever used it to distinguish their members. In the past, it had always seemed easier just to recognize one's packmates and try to make due with whomever showed up. However, this new method appeared to be useful concerning how often wolves just disappeared.

It was while he was concentrating on the topic of scent marking that her next comment struck him. Grizzly found it both surprising and unpleasent that these rumors told about not only his reputation, but also his past. He backed away from the warrior once more, only this time out of irritation, and returned his gaze to a noncaring manner. "You know, you shouldn't believe everything you hear. All I care to say is that that was a different time and very different set of circumstances."

[azrael]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellSpacing,0,true][atrb=cellPadding,0,true][atrb=width,400,true]

[atrb=background,http://i41.tinypic.com/24ffzg5.jpg] The red sentinel, for all her brashness and general lack of conversation etiquette, had the grace to look abashed by her own thoughtless words. Belatedly, she could see the consequences of having lived so long without obeying commonsensical virtues and the stigmas of social editing. An upshot made obvious by Grizzly’s abundant annoyance for the statement. It was a kernel of information that rang far too true for his liking apparently. Hostel had only herself to blame for having spoken without discerning what she should and should not say. It would be choice advice for the future. In the meantime: what did she say to make amends? Having the broad-shouldered Alpha leave feeling sour over their meeting wasn’t the most ideal of circumstances and wouldn’t make the transition from lone wolf to valued comrade easy. Shooting furtive glances at her discontented leader in the hopes of gauging his level of irritation, Hostel tried to spot a window to apologize, something that proved difficult considering the almost patient look on his visage. How deep was this hole I made for myself, her thoughts erupting in a whirlwind as the silence drew out from awkward to simply uncomfortable. Every flurry of apologetic expressions fluttered in her throat but died on her tongue, none of them seeming appropriate to the wolf that was unused to being sorry for anything if she didn’t have to be. It would be a lie to say she was not more accustomed to blaming others for her problems but seeing as there wasn’t a convenient scapegoat the available pool of patsy’s was a little limited. “Hey, I didn’t say I believed it now did I?” she defended after the lapse in dialogue, managing to sound slightly indignant that he assumed her question implied her belief in it – again, it would be an inaccuracy to say she hadn’t invested an iota of support in the hearsay of gossipers. Her ears flicked back in visual offense, latching onto the slow boil of her own wellspring of frustration and willing away the vulnerability of her discomfort and replacing it with her shield of sturdier emotions. It would appear that apologies weren’t going to be given this time around. She even went as far as lifting her tail above it's usual downward tilt to bolster her challenge. “I was just pointing out that for an alpha you don’t look like you know what you’re doing. Maybe it’s cause you’re new, maybe you just hadn’t gotten around to it, I don’t know but you just seem like you’re flailing here.” Finishing with a surly huff, much more in her element with being combative then rueful. "Don't get all up in arms, I just call'em as I see'em."

[/justify][/color][/blockquote][/td][/tr][tr][td]

[/td][/tr][/table][/center]

[grizzly]

The hairs on Grizzly's back started to harden again as the warrior went about criticizing him. He turned his gaze towards the scenery past her head as a means to avoid direct eye contact. He knew what the female said was true since he was new to his position, but it was just fustrating to be reminded of it. He felt like a pup bickering with one of his playmates over the most trival matters which only made him feel upset with himself.

Finally, he looked away from the warrior's position and gave a heavy sigh. Grizzly had never been very good at arguing points with others, so he made due with looking up at the sky which had turned dark since their conversation began. The stars always had a calming effect on him which was part of the reason he decided to return to the Galaxy Pack. Once he had relaxed enough to release his spikes, he turned back to the female that appeared equally as annoyed.

Realizing that the conversation had left them both in sour moods, Grizzly gave an earnest half smile back at her. "I guess I don't know as much as I should if I'm letting simple rumors get in the way of my introductions. But, if you honestly don't believe them, perhaps I can give you a better image of myself. If nothing else, I can tell you I'll try my damndest." By this point, Grizzly had moved back towards the warrior with his tail swaying slightly in hopes of a reconciliation.

[azrael]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellSpacing,0,true][atrb=cellPadding,0,true][atrb=width,400,true]

[atrb=background,http://i41.tinypic.com/24ffzg5.jpg] Pacing had somehow become conducive to encouraging orderliness among her rampant suppositions. There was just so much wrong with this hierarchal conduct! It was like somehow, someway, the wolves of the Galaxy pack had forgotten how to be what they were: wolves! As implausible as such an occurrence sounded what other rationalization could she come to? Had their more supernatural abilities somehow sapped them of their behavioral birthright or was there something much more terrible at work here that had morphed wolves into sheep? The concept, as farfetched as it sounded, had yet to be disproved from her interactions thus far and Hostel was beginning to doubt that they would. It made her wonder if their tameness was the doing of past Alphas or present changes. And whether or not it was contagious… The crimson titan looked positively shocked and appalled, any vestige of respect she might have been sheltering for Grizzly had evaporated. This wasn’t a wolf. Not by a long shot. No, this was a fucking lamb and nobody here could tell because they weren’t much better. With bile souring in her mouth Hostel curled her lips back, absolutely repulsed by what she was seeing, what she was hearing and not sure whether or not she would be better off taking her chances as a rogue again or if taking out the Galaxy leader would be a mercy. She was torn between wanting to challenge him and simply wanting to be out of the immediate vicinity before she did something to get herself kicked out, but damn it if she wasn’t tempted to take a chunk out of his flank for this diplomatic bullshit. It wasn’t because he had admitted to her that he had difficulties with his newly acquired position and that he wasn’t quite sure how it differed from his past role. It wasn’t even the fact that he was compliantly pledging to do better. The fact that he fucking looked away, had approached her now with his tail wagging like a subordinate wolf would when looking to appease their superior, rankled and infuriated her. She had just told him he sucked as an Alpha, by rights it was a challenge to his standing in the pack, he didn’t even respond to the fact that she had raised her tail above his in a show of pure audacity. He did nothing. And for that he was weak and unworthy and if someone else didn’t take him out sure might do it herself. “Try your damndest, huh?” the laughter that followed her reiterated question was cutting, she didn’t believe him at all. “I don’t think you even know what you’re trying to be, Grizzly.” At this point she had straightened out completely, ears erect, back straight, tail up and limbs completely parallel. Everything in her posture was defiant and normally she would not have chanced it, she was smarter then that. But most times the Alpha knew how to be an Alpha too so she wasn’t wholly at fault. “When you figure it out you come find me and pray to whatever God you have that you figure it out sooner rather then later.” And with that cryptic threat she began to back away. She didn’t turn her back on him like before, her face forward retreat showed how little she trusted him now, not confident enough to have him behind her.

[/justify][/color][/blockquote][/td][/tr][tr][td]

[/td][/tr][/table][/center]

[grizzly]

Grizzly was appalled by the warrior's behavior as she showed her teeth and once again criticized his position. In his mind, he had done everything that a leader should when dealing with a rowdy packmate. She was not his enemy, so he showed her no ill will, and even agreed that he was still inexperienced as an alpha. But, instead of returning the gesture of kindness, she only seemed to grow more angry with him for being diplomatic.

By this point, Grizzly was starting to become annoyed with the female's constant disrespect. He had let her first comments slide because he thought he had offended the warrior, but this new set of insults was completely uncalled for. "On the contrary, I believe I know exactly what I'm trying to become. However, you're the one that seems confused as to what to expect." He watched her back away in a defensive manner which disgusted him since she had obviously taken away no feeling of kinship from their meeting.

"This pack has never been about simply being the strongest or most clever because that does not help aganist our true enemy. I will tell you this much, Hostel, the sooner you recognize the need for diplomacy the safer you'll be when dealing with the other packs." At this time, he rose to his full height and passed by the warrior without so much as a second glance. As he continued to make his way back to the den, Grizzly thought about both how little she knew about the pack's affairs and if this sour start had ruined any possibilty of a friendship.