To the stars who listen

@Faust Sorry for the wait! <3 :D

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She had to run...

... keep running.

Her legs felt heavy under her scrawny frame. Rhea's body conditions had not really improved while staying at Gwanwyn. She blamed her unhappiness. Her restlessness. Never allowed to leave the territory. Never allowed to hunt. Never allowed to do anything. She had to go. She had to escape. 

She felt the shame. The shame of what might happen because of her actions. Rhea wanted to shove those thoughts away. Her legs felt too heavy to ignore. She slowed down, a walking pace feeling weird on her limbs as they had been running for a long time. She looked around. Rhea had been running blind getting as much distance as she could. These mountains... she had never seen them. Weird, she couldn't have ran that far to run towards mountains she had never seen before.

The girl pushed on, continuing at a brisk walk. Everything about her posture spoke of her being uneasy. Her ears were held back and she kept glancing around as if she was hunted. Her tail low, her shoulders and back high strung with tension. Gosh, she hated this feeling. Her steps still surprisingly light, making her footwork quick as she move across the plain.
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Faust had been patrolling the borders of their hunting grounds. This evening had been rather dull, but the densite had been even worse. He needed to get up. Tire himself to exhaustion. Maybe even hunt down dinner.

What did surprise him was the running. The smell of a woman. A foreign one, at that. It caught his interest. These were his grounds, bathing in the shadow of the moon. Who was she? Her gait slowed to a trot. He watched her. Through the treeline he'd cast his own shadow.

He stalked her, approaching her. She was slow, dazed. She had been malnourished, ribs peeking out against her hips, her abdomen. What happened here? He'd keep a meager distance, shadowed pelt dark against the sky.

"You lost?"

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The girl's brisk walk was often replaced by a quick and tense trot. She tried to take in as much of her surroundings but it seemed that there we mountains on either side of her. She would try to continue her way, this might get her trapped later on. She wanted to believe that she was truly alert but she hardly could take in all of it. Where she would need to go, she didn't know. A place to stop... not possible. 

After a few trotted steps she went back to a walk. Rhea pushed on. She half stumbled over a low bush but kept going. She only paused briefly to drink from the small stream before crossing it. The female was too focussed on moving forward that she was unaware of the shadow following her. Another brief trot but her muscles instantly protested. She fell back into a walk. Then a voice. The white's of her eyes showed in panic at the sound of a voice. Her head turned. A shadow. A man. A different man, luckily.

He was stunning, and probably dangerous. Her freezer reaction unlocked. Her ears flickered back and she turned to continue her path. "No." Her tone was was a dismissive. She didn't have time to chat with a stranger. As far as she assumed he probably wanted something of her, or maybe even demanded that she would go away. She was actively working on that. She wouldn't need help. Rhea wasn't as stupid to completely turn her back to the male. As she trotted off in one of her flighty trots, she made sure to keep her eye on him.

The male was far larger than her. She did have her hunting skills and knew weak parts. But she also knew that she had no chance if the male would attack. She would need to sprint. Rhea wasn't sure if she could do that. Her energy was low. Her stomach had been protesting all... day? Maybe longer. Her sides were heaving, she wanted to continue along the valley but now she moved to the west, towards the lowest part of the rim. Maybe almost those mountains there was a better hiding place. One moment she was up, and the next she had stumbled to the ground. Her footing was never this unstable. Her sides were still heaving in gulps of air, and the ground, it felt pretty good to just lie down. But shit... That male. She forced herself back to her feet, she felt like a new born deer. Rhea hated it.
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The woman had clearly been dazed. She looked at him, through him rather, and urged him on with a simple 'no.' But Faust wouldn't take that no, just as she had stumbled upon his hunting grounds with peeking ribs and a frazzled look in her eye. Faust was no fool, and he wouldn't let a woman wander off a the risk of being in danger.

"No," He'd move to step in front of her, blocking her from continuing on her path. His words were firm, but they didn't etch with a command. She is free to live if she wishes, but Faust would like to add his few cents first. "You're hungry."

Faust would point out, his eyes obviously creeping over the edges of her sharp, malnourished figure. It striked him as odd— it stuck out. The women in the Vale were all well fed, healthily, as he kept it that way. He demanded it as such. There would be no starving women in his court. Not that this one was his in the first place. "Let me help—"

Faust would start, looking around to see if there were any nearby dens of badgers or possums— anything. He looked back to her, watching as she frantically looked around for opportunity to bolt. "You're safe here."

And he meant that.

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Rhea noticed that her legs were trembling when she had pushed herself back to her feet. She warily watched the male as he came closer. Her ears fell back and looked at him with much of a scowl she could muster. He wanted to help. She didn't believe him. Then again her whole view on men was a little skewed. Rhea wanted to run, she had no energy left. She had been on the run for a while, perhaps... perhaps... this was enough distance. Her sides were still heaving with the breaths she was sucking in. She slowly sank back down, feeling her front legs slide out from under her. It wasn't because he said she was safe. She would make her own decisions, and part of her told her that she couldn't continue. 

Rhea's head rested on the ground between her outstretched paws. Her ears still flattened against her skull. She didn't want to look at the male. A wave of shame coming over her, mixing with that ever present feeling of guilt she had when she ran. There was also a hint of disgust and fear. Because, she didn't know what was going to happen to her now. She had to trust the male's good intentions because she could hardly do much about it if he had bad intentions. Perhaps this was her karma for escaping. "There were some rabbit tracks and poop around the creek," she muttered defeatedly between her gulps of air. She did notice that her heart rate was going down little by little as she was lying down.
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She fell to her feet. Faust was half tempted to cushion her fall with his weight, but he remained stationary against the ground. It even if it gnawed at him to do anything but sit and watch her.

She didn't look at him from then on. Her face buried between her delicate, but intensely muscled cream paws. Faust couldn't help but once again trace a line with his eyes over the sharp curve of her hips where bone stuck out against her thinned fur. No doubt from a lack of nourishment. He can't help but be so surprised by it. To get angry by it. He didn't believe wolves would ever intentionally starve themselves, to deny themselves necessary supplements for their lives. Naturally, he thought, someone did this to her.

With a simple nod, Faust knew where she spoke of. But his eyes glanced backward at her, flashing with something unknown. A keen memory, hm? The creek wasn't a far journey, but it's something that not just any traveler would pick up on.

A grunt left his lips as he departed her side. Something that spoke, understood, and he made his way through the winding grasses and thicket to find the creek. His pace was urgent, a surge of adrenaline beating through his blood. His nose low to the ground, he'd track down a rabbits den. It wasn't hard. Faust knew what he was doing. The hunting grounds here, too, he knew like the back of his hand.

He'd snuff out the rabbits from their den, chasing frantically. Little shits. With two cracks, he had two rabbits lodged in his jaws, their muscles still beating with hot blood. He didn't sit around and wait, however, he took off in a sprint across the territory. Back to the starving woman.

When he made out her figure, he dropped both rabbits at her feet. Blood stained his dark lips— evidence of his bloodshed. For her. "Eat."

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Rhea watched as the male left. She could run, or at least try to. It was temping. But she knew the in this open space she wouldn't be able to hide. Plus, now she was laying down she realized how tired she was. She couldn't remember how long she had been traveling. Her mind seemed foggy about the last few days. It almost seemed like she was suddenly here. Maybe she had been running on automatic pilot that she hadn't taken in the scenery. Her heart rate slowly considerably when she was resting. She felt a little silly that she send the male away for food. But he had offered it. She stayed on her spot, but curling up as tightly as possible now she had calmed down a little. 

She lifted her head when he returned. The male didn't come back with one but two rabbits. Her eyes widened in surprise as she didn't expect the male to put in so much effort for her. She pushed herself into a sitting position. Her stomach growled at the sight of the meat. The smell of fresh blood infiltrating her nose and taking over her brain. The female reached for one rabbit and ripped her teeth into it. Soon she was pulling the warm meat of the bones. She did mind her manner a little before the male. Her eyes often shooting to the male, clearly still a little uncertain about him even though he did keep his promise. The female didn't know what the male's motivations were. Why would he go through such lengths to feed her? She had finished most of the first rabbit, but didn't instantly start on the second one. She licked her paw, probably covered in blood. 

"Thank you," she spoke quietly, casting her blue-ish brown eyes into his. She didn't notice she was making herself as small as possible. She then looked over her shoulder again, worriedly. There was no sign of someone chasing her, but it felt that way. Her ears flopped back against her skull. She felt full from one rabbit, embarrassing. She didn't want to be ungrateful but she needed a little pause. "Why help me?," she couldn't help but ask.
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The female didn't hesitate at his words. She instantly dug into the first hare, swallowing down its contents as if she were a starved animal. If, he almost scoffed. She is a starving animal and she needed to eat. He didn't understand his hurried mannerisms. His desire to get her healthy again. Maybe it was the fact that these were his lands and any traveler wold be a reflection of his ability to provide.

And provide he would.

He sat a few feet from her, watching with raised brows and something akin to a smirk on his face. When an animal gets hungry, an animal gets hungry he supposed. She tore into it like a bear, leaving no morsel left behind. But there was no judgement, just awe, maybe. He didn't miss her quick glances towards him, either, for as he returned them all the same. Except that his eyes didn't leave her once. To make sure that she ate everything of the first hare.

She didn't disappoint. He hummed when she thanked him. But she didn't have to do that— Faust would've still hunted for her regardless of her gratitude. She looked behind herself once again, paranoia feigning her eyes. Faust looked in the direction that she had, worried. "I don't want anyone to starve on my lands."

His answer was simple. Because it was that simple, right? He didn't enthuse her question more. With a gesture of his paw, he shoved the second hare closer to her, but didn't say a word. He hoped that his actions would speak for him. After a beat of silence, he bit the bullet to ask: "Who're you running from?"

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Rhea blinked a few times. His... lands? She looked around and then frowned. But-- She had made sure to stay away from pack's lands? She was certain she had avoided the scent markers. Maybe she had been that tired she wandered into someone's home. No. No that couldn't be. She hadn't been that out of it. She gave the male another look. Leader. Alpha. She shifted her energy a little away from him, having bad experiences with those high lords. Now, it was a little unfair to the man because he had been nothing but accommodating but... recent experience limited her.

Her gaze followed the hare that was pushed closer. She was feeling rather full already by the first hare. Rhea shot the male a little side eye glance when he asked her who she was running from. Her eyes went back to the rabbit, considering if that was the better option now than to tell him. She was running away from everything, her past, her family, that pack, that man. "My past," she decided to tell him. She was still unsure it was a right decision but the longer she had been away from him the more relieved she felt. She did feel incredibly guilty to her family. Her stomach churned. She was feeling sick thinking of them. "Can I save the rabbit for later? I don't feel like eating," she spoke with a whisper.
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Faust would watch as the female would shift away from him when he spoke his words. A flash of curiosity unleashed in his eyes. He wondered what she meant by 'her past,' already wondering a plethora of possibilities. But he didn't push to know what they were. He doubted she would even tell him, and who was he to care about her problems? It was a silly question to ask in the first place.

Faust only hummed at her response. He wasn't going to ask her further, but if she wished to tell him, he would listen. Faust was good at that. Listening. He wasn't as heavily opinionated as his brothers, as the others in Velaris. He preferred to observe. To watch. To protect.

She shoved the rabbit back towards him. Faust made a sound in the back of his throat again, accepting her response.

"What now, then?" He would ask. "Will you keep running?"

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Rhea was a little humbled by his question. Her ears flattened further a her initial reaction. Because, what the fuck was she going to do? She didn't want to keep running forever. But she didn't feel safe yet. She had the feeling he would find her and drag her back to that life. She really didn't want to go back. It outweighed the fact that she left there family too. Would they be punished for her leaving? She had been an offer to Armand. Her family had been struggling and the alliance with another pack would greatly have helped them. She had been the one he deemed a good offer. She shuddered. Her family had already been struggling the moment Armand picked her, she had been the main food provider for her family. 

Rhea looked at the man. "Yes, I don't feel safe yet," she admitted and looked over her shoulder before turning back to the male. Plus, she felt like she would only bring drama along to a pack if she were to join. At least that was her assumption. Armand had never hurt her though, but the way he wanted to protect and shield her... it had been killing. Running helped with feeling free at least. She looked around. "What are these lands called?," she asked, perhaps that would give her some sense of where she was in her world, how much distance she would still need to cover.
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Faust didn't like her answer, but he didn't show any signs of his displeasure. It wasn't his job to keep this woman under his wing, beneath the blanket of his protection. But the offer would stand all the same.

"This is Highvalley Hollow." Faust would answer her. The hollow had been the perfect hunting grounds for the Velarion wolves. Open landscape, rich with nature, but it still didn't nearly compare to the home of the Roost. Nothing could in Faust's eyes. He had gone the extra length, extra mile, to seize the land on his own accord. He forged it. Made it new, made it wonderful.

"I won't keep you," Faust said, taking a step back from her. He didn't miss the way she shuddered earlier, perhaps plagued by a memory or the paranoia of being found by whoever was desperate to chase her. There was a pang in his chest that urged him to make her stay, the gruff, testosterone part of him— but he shut it down. Faust was not a man to keep women against their will. "But you are welcome to stay."

The offer would stand. Faust had to offer it to her. Outstretch a helping hand to someone in need. But if she didn't take it, then so be it. He couldn't do anything more to change her mind of that. "The Vale is secluded," he would add quietly, looking away dismissively. "Hidden, and protected." His words were softer now, slower, as he enunciated each one of them on his tongue.

It was the least he could do. Offer her a safe space. He didn't want Velaris earning a bad reputation for letting starving women go through their territories unnoticed. That was not the kind of man Faust would ever want to be. So he looked back to the woman, really looked toward her, and hoped that maybe, just maybe, that she would go with him.

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Rhea frowned at the name of the surrounding lands. She was not familiar with that name at all. Frankly she had never heard of it. The female frowned, trying to think if she knew them or had heard them before. Nothing came to mind at all. She looked around. Her landmarks also had been way off. She had never seen these mountains specifically, and one could never run that far to find mountains that one hadn't even seen in the distance. Rhea was so confused. She couldn't have ran for that long right. She pursed her lips in thought. Her attention was returned to the male. She was allowed to stay. So he would just decide that she was allowed to stay? She didn't even know him. "I don't even know your name," she reasoned. Like knowing one's name would instantly tell everything about a wolf. Rhea decided to show a little bit of thrust to the male. "How far are these mountains from Gwanwyn?," she asked. If the male wouldn't know it, then it was probably far away enough. She hoped. If he did know it... Then she might really have to run, because then he might do something to send her back. Shit, maybe this was a bad decision.

She had followed his gaze to further up ahead. She assumed the territory was there. She bit the inside of her cheek because it looked secure and she was so damn tired. But first she want to see his reaction, if he had one, to knowing Armand's pack. The female already made her escape plan, she would take the rabbit and move as fast as she can. She would try to escape or run from him. Her success rate would be small. However, she would fight tooth to nail to not go back to Armand. "What is your pack like?"
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A sheepish expression grew on Faust's face in the form of a grin. She was right. She didn't know a damn thing about Faust, even his name. With a curt nod, akin to a bow, he'd introduce himself in the dead of night. "Faust. And you?" He would ask the same of her in return, then, but honestly...he wouldn't be surprised if she refused to answer him. He pondered if he would even tell himself the truth if he were in her position.

And then the woman spoke a name he hadn't heard. Confused, he would think about it for a moment, digging deep into his memories. With a curl of his lip, he shook his head. He feels like he would've heard of these packs. But...his knowledge would be a bit limited. Not many dared to trek the ridgeline of the Vale. That was a good thing. The only knowledge of a pack was to their West.

"I haven't," he would verbalize, looking back towards her and her uneasy disposition. Gwanwyn. He would store that name in his memory in the case that it would come back to haunt him later.

He could tell that this wasn't easy for her. Trusting him unknowingly. Which is why he gave her an option. But she took the bait that he left her, asking about the structure of Velaris. "We're a family unit. We live in the mountains north of here."

Faust realized that there wasn't much to say. Rather, he found it difficult to speak as much as she probably wanted him to. He wasn't much of a social-butterfly, much preferring to show his affection through actions.

"I may lead them but...survival is a group effort." He'd state matter of factly. "Don't do any of that monarchy shit." He'd say it with a tone of resentment, thinking to the royals that they were babysitting behind the jagged mountain peaks.

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Rhea watched how his expression changed, almost as if she saw another side of him. Not a slightly intimidating 'you don't stave on my lands' type of man, but almost boyish charm. She liked seeing the grin. "Faust," she repeated his name on her tongue. "Well, thank you for hunting for me, Faust," she spoke. "I'm Rhea," she returned. Somehow it did feel like she knew him a little more, at least she knew his name and saw a different side of him. "Faust of the... Vale?," she asked. Since he hadn't really said much about his packname. Maybe that wasn't important, and more to know about the actual values they stood for. 

Rhea's ears perked up when he spoke of not knowing the pack. She seemed to relax visibly. If he didn't know it, then she might be further than she thought. Then she might be safe. However, she also didn't want to bring drama to his borders. She sighed and thought about it. Would he be able to find her? Maybe not, especially not if she could mask by their send. Faust told her more about the pack. They were a family, and although that sounded nice, having a family wasn't always nice to her and how she experienced family. She nodded. "Oh... Okay," she nodded, seeming to mull it over, but not overly enthusiastic. That was a feeling she hadn't felt in a long time, but the female did not realize that. 

"I'm-- " Rhea paused. Somehow she didn't want him to think that she was useless. "I am okay hunting, to help with that survival," [/b]she clarified. Not really defending herself, but mostly wanted him to know that.... this state was not her best. That she could be better. Rhea looked over her shoulder again. Seeing that she had come far and that she might not need to run anymore. "Okay. I will join your pack... if you will have me," she spoke then, deciding to take that leap of faith and see where she ended up. It wasn't like she had her plan all thought out. If she didn't like it, then she could always leave like she had done with Gwanwyn. She reached for the rabbit and picked it up. She looked expectantly at him to lead the way. She was curious about the thing he said about the monarchy. It sounded a lot like Gwanwyn with Armand as their High Lord and ruler. Perhaps that was what convinced her to take that leap...
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He couldn't help but like the way that his name rolled off her tongue. Satisfactory. A chill ran up his spine. It allowed his mind to open the possibility of getting to know her. To put in the effort. But he would refrain from now, only giving her that soft smile that had been natural.

Rhea. Rhea was her name. He'd return the same gesture, "Rhea," with a nod of his head. He realized that he did that a lot now...but it was only a habit. One of cordial respect.

She questioned the term he used for their home. This time, instead of nodding his head, he shook it from side to side. "Velaris." He would correct her. The word Vale comes from his old home. A shielded valley with mountains on each of its sides. A safehaven. The Vale. Faust's voice had been gentle when he said it, resisting the urge to let his chest to puff out like a peacock. He wouldn't preen today. His actions alone would be enough to prove his loyalty to his home.

Rhea visibly relaxed when he didn't have any memory of the pack. Had they hurt her? No. No he couldn't go down this route. This desire to protect her. He would only be a leader, a protector at arm's length. She didn't seem too thrilled about the idea of family, either. Faust attempted to sympathize. But he couldn't. Those he surrounded himself with, now, were family. A lifeline of support that kept him afloat. But he didn't see them often, now, as he was constantly, constantly on the borders protecting his home. Who knew it would take out so much from him?

His smile turned brighter once she declared she could hunt. Good. She could survive on her own. Well, under the normal circumstances. With her starving figure, doubt crept into his mind. He didn't know how much he could believe her sentiment. But for now he would.

"Excellent." His tone shifted to something happier, something lighter entirely. She picked up the second rabbit and waited for him to make the first move. With the initiative of his head, he urged her to follow him. "I'll show you around."

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end!

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