what is dead may never die,

Pack meeting! <3 Backdated to approximately a few days after the pack founded! @Dirge @Jarilo @Desdemona @Alya @Altair @Osiris @Keres @Nyx @Bronco @Element @Saviguk @Elke @Ciri  @Rex @The Eagle @Leta @West Tyree (West tagged for reference; on a scouting mission at this time) Only the first round is necessary to reply to, by 4/22/21 (unless absent, then just post when you return <3), and if your character does not show they are subject to IC consequence. Other rounds you may participate as your character would interact, but it is not necessary to post afterward if you are unable to!  

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It was a morning much like any other... 

And yet, it was not. As Hydra marked the borders, took stock of the scents that mingled there, her heart swelled within her. So many of them had found their way back to her... and with them, new faces as well. Old, and new—and one. Hydra caught wind of her mate, and of Jarilo, and was swift to seek them. It was not uncommon for them to be of the same mind when it came to the way of things, but this was like nothing the three of them had either faced. 

But face it they would. They already were. 

And so, arriving to an open meadow accessible to amateur climber and expert alike, with the rock she and Desdemona had found and lounged upon some odd moons ago... Hydra lifted her head to sing in summons for those that now ran with them.

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The summons rose over the trees, and Rex silently turned away from his patrol to heed it. He did not race recklessly toward her, but maintained a quick clip intended to cover a great deal of ground quickly, and tirelessly. And so it took him only minutes to arrive at the glen, eyes rising to greet the Queen, her King, and Second upon her stone dais with a respectful nod. He said nothing and asked nothing of them—this was clearly intended as a debrief, and a meeting all-in-one, given what he had learned from Hydra herself in the recent week. He moved to settle somewhere to the left, leaving the immediate space beneath the raised stone for her blood family.
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Desdemona could hear the familiar summons of the Queen, and followed the path she knew from moons ago. One of the first arrive, she gave Hydra and co. a dip of the head, but saying nothing more. Usually a meeting was of importance, she rarely called for anything less. Taking her spot in an obvious distance in the back - believing that is her rightful claim, she awaited for the rest to arrive.

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Alya was rarely found far from her sister, and today was no different. A short time after the call went out, Alya materialized out of the brush and came to stand below Hydra's rocky perch. Her memories were still strangely distant, and the individuals within them even more so. She was, for example, surprised to know that they had a brother. Or rather, surprised to have captured his scent and been unable to match it with her memories of a faceless youth. And Hydra's mate and children were also strange to her; stranger than Rex and the other that she had yet to meet, because she felt she was meant to know them.

But all she knew was Hydra.

These things did not bother her terribly. They were in a very strange place, in her opinion. She'd told Hydra of the ruins she'd woken up in, and of the odd things that the cat had said to her, and of the male on the coast who'd had even fewer memories than she did. She had not mentioned her lack of knowledge of their past life, but this was something her sister must surely have guessed at; she knew Alya better than Alya knew herself.

Whatever strangeness plagued them, they still had each other. Alya would come to know her family, and that was that.

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In his days, some matters felt more certain. Some of the fog had cleared from the dark Ostrega's heart, too. Now that Saviguk had joined them earthside on this nameless mountain as well, he had even more to ground him to this curious new present--and that one came from a strange place, one that the other absences of troubled him. At least finding his son had let Jarilo pin down that much, let him know that he really had not been alone in dreaming that one up. It did give him more purpose, too.. not that he lacked for any of that underneath the wings of Hydra and Dirge's care, and a whole mountain to inhabit body and soul.

Prompted, now with his nose lifted from duty, he darted through the woods to answer the summons. Already more familiar with the curves of these woods, he liked to think he made good time. Ahead of him, others had come too, so his tail waved gently as he slipped into the scene, aiming for a spot near Hydra's side to await the rest.
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^^

 The call came to him while he'd been wandering below, seeking out small treasures to bring back to his den, like a magpie among wolves. Hearing the sound of Hydra's summons lifting through the air, diffusing across their territory, set a pleasant chill down his spine. It was a different call than the song they had sung together before - this one asked something of them, and Element was eager to provide. He side-eyed a pleasantly shaped stone he'd been considering, reluctant to leave it behind should he forget where exactly it was or have it scattered by wind or other paws. After a moment of deliberating whether he'd have time to drop it off at his den, he decided against the side-errand and scooped the small stone up in his mouth, careful not to clank it too hard against his teeth. It was gritty and cool on his tongue, but he was too pleased to really care.

It didn't take too long to find where they were gathered, and Element sauntered in to the meadow upon the peaks, sterling gaze scanning to see who else had already arrived. Some he recognized, and those he cast a particularly lopsided smile, as his earthen treasure was still clasped in one side of his mouth. To those he didn't recognize - he lingered on them just a moment longer, taking them in so he could make a mental note of them to approach later. They, too, got a smile from the silver-peppered male.

He decided to meander nearest @Rex, coming to a stop a few feet away from him and acknowledging his proximity with a small wag of his tail. Element dipped his white muzzle to the ground and deposited his rock on the ground between his paws - a strange, boomerang shaped stone, dark in color, though only about three inches long. With that done, he cast his attention to Hydra as they waited for the last of them to trickle in.

^^
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They amassed together neatly, the higher elevation meadow a perfect spot to gather even in spite of the off and on again spit of rain. The openness may not have been the best option on the cloudy day, but the shift of seasons and weather alike would hardly shake them. It was a warm day, a signal of good things to come—he hoped, anyway—and Dirge sat aside Hydra as Jarilo flanked the other.

There were new faces among them, though many he recognized or had come to. Some were nothing more than fleeting glimpses he had made in his own meandering, ones he couldn’t really put names to faces; others he was thankful to see among their fold once again, like Saviguk and Alya, even if the latter had looked upon him with lacking recognition.

These were strange times they were living in, but they would endure.

They really had no other option than to do so, come what may.
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Altair had filtered in trailing Desdemona, though truth be told it had been at a distance. He had been hoping to bother her into another training session when the summons had come along and well, it dashed his plans. For now. Still, the venture to the meadow was well worth it; he hadn’t explored much of this part of the mountain yet and soon found himself distracted by it; it seemed almost strange to find a place here, even if he wasn’t a stranger to them by any means.

At the small gathering there thus far, he scanned through them hoping to find Osiris, only to be a little crestfallen when he didn’t see him. Osiris hadn't come back from his ventures yet, and he didn’t see any of his other siblings either, though he had expected that—they hadn’t turned up anywhere, at least not yet. He hadn’t given up hope on them showing up, especially when Alya and Saviguk had come along in recent days. It was the latter that he pushed ahead to settle in by, reaching out to touch his cousin’s shoulder with his nose gently in greeting.
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She was happy. For the first time in as long as Nyx could remember, her heart felt full. In those uncertain weeks when she'd been without her daughters, the had clung desperately to a thread of hope that they'd simply return to her, and by some miracle they had. Elke first had materialised, followed soon after by the appearance of Ciri - lovingly escorted by her aunt.

Each reunion had been emotional, but her confidence in Moonspear's other lost souls finding their way had been bolstered. Soon, she hoped, her nieces and nephews would regroup and their fresh could truly begin.

Hydra's call to rally the pack was acknowledged by the prick of her raven-tipped ears, and the lioness turned toward its direction at once. She picked her way swiftly across the mountain terrain and on her arrival, her gaze immediately sought her cubs among those already gathered. With no sign of them, Nyx chuffed a greeting to @Alya who she moved to settle alongside before turning her attention to the Queen.


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She'd been alone in her wanderings across the spears middle slopes, having spent much of her time learning her way around what was to be her family's new home. Ciri went jubilantly, curious as she followed flying insects and overturned pebbles - keen to unearth whatever mysteries were to be found.

Her snout had been buried among a cluster of pale flowers when Hydra's summons rose, and she abandoned her nosing with pollen clinging to her whiskers. Across rugged terrain she went, swift on nimble paws, and she cheerfully wagged her tail to any other wolf who might acknowledge her arrival.

Ciri sidled alongside her mother with an affectionate croon, raven shoulder pressed lovingly to her flank as she reached to sneak a lick to the pale underside of her chin.


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Not long after would the second daughter of Nyx's most recent litter would arrive, this one pale predominantly in golden and white furs with eyes of her father. She too had been playing within the flowers, happy for the arrival of the new spring season and to further extend her knowledge of herbs and medicines. 

Finding a placement along the trio, the three wolves were of completely different color and yet as Elke moved to rub and press herself against her mother and sister in greeting, it was obvious of their close ties. The lot of them in this meadow were family after all. 

Settling, she would wait quietly for the gathering to come fully and the reasoning for their arrival to be made. Meanwhile, he pale lilac gaze followed over those new to her.
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Leta had determined to stay home while both West and Osiris scouted. Her plan was to get to know the pack better, but she had only just begun to get really settled. She had not anticipated missing Osiris so much, but the absence of him... it was something she felt tangibly. For as long as she could remember now, she had spent her nights with him... and lately, most of their days, too. What did that mean? 

The howl came, and Leta was quick about answering it; she had been on the other side of the territory, though was as swift as she could be in her arrival. By the time she got there, though, several faces were already present. She thought nothing of being (likely) the last to arrive; Empyrean was a vast territory, and she did not feel tardy. Moving to greet the matriarch, patriarch, and their second with excited laps at their chin, Leta lowered her head as she surveyed the crowd for a familiar face to sit alongside. 

She ended up, though, moving to sit near Rex and Element with a wave of her tail as she looked to those she recognized. Leta had been right the day she had heard several voices; there were so many faces here! Again, she reaffirmed to herself that she would be better in getting to know the rest.
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With his wound healing, but still raw and tender, Saviguk was understandably not in peak condition. But with so many of his extended family around him, he was, without question, in capable hands. His days were spent mostly resting, waiting for the swelling in his leg to go down. Waiting until the discomfort was reduced to a dull ache, where he could afford to bear some weight on the limb. Only when he was more mobile, did he begin to explore his new home.

It was so unlike his birthplace. The slope and tilt of the mountains, the formations of their peaks were all wrong. The trails un-familiar. Even the stone beneath his feet felt different. It excited and daunted him all at once, the prospect of such discovery. Just as exciting, were the assortment of scents belonging to wolves he did not know. Knew nothing about. The youth had a lot of catching up to do. 

He was grateful for his family, who were only but a call away. The problem was, the boy had lost the use of his voice. He would have to get creative. Slowed by the ache deep in his flesh and the limp that he still carried, he was one of the last to arrive to the gathering. Still, even with his strained movements and protesting hind leg, carved by scarring, he carried stony determination in his eyes. An Ostrega to the core, he fought his way up to a place beneath the stone mantle, with his blood. Altair, his cousin who moved in, was welcomed with a beating wag of a dark tail and light nudge to a ear. Sea-green eyes darted ahead, peering over those assembled, faces new and old.
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The summons came and Keres adjusted her path, her location distant due to her patrol of the borders. This new mountain was proud and vast, as Moonspear had been, and though there were some differences, the Valkyrie had settled easily enough. Her routine had helped in doing so, rising in the morning to make her rounds.

Distantly, she remembered someone that she would stop and see often within the glen but no one on the mountain had sparked those memories and so, she let them slip away in favor of spending her energy on remembering those that were here and getting to know the new ones. Each face, new and old, was acknowledged upon her arrival, though she went to Dirge and Hydra to greet them first before sitting somewhat near. Ever silent, Keres waited with the rest of them.
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please let Dirge & Jarilo respond first! Next round is voluntary to respond to (i.e. if your character has anything to add!); I will respond once again 5/10.

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Hydra looked among the crowd of faces that had come. 

Absent, she felt, were many more not yet returned to them; faces of more of her children, faces of a Most Important Other, too. A name she knew... Come home to me, whole and well, she willed to wolves she was not sure would hear it, but so vehement and passionate was the thought that she believed it impossible that they could not feel it, somewhere out there. 

But this day was not for the absent, and though her heart ached she knew she must mind the present and tend to the future. Spring was upon them. But before that conversation to come, to speak to now. Her gaze, as she shifted her weight and observed those among her, warmed as each face presented itself. She greeted those who greeted her in kind, and she patiently waited for the last few to arrive to settle as she took into account all that she had. 

She was a rich woman indeed, with her family before her. The matriarch felt eternally grateful to have been able to come across as many of their own as they had. 

“These are confusing times,” she drawled, “ones that, while we have worked to understand, we have no answer to. While that does not mean an answer may never come,” she hummed, “the semantics of it are not where our attention rests. It is the present, and what is to come... as well as who. We have come to find that this place is survivable; we can hunt, and we can kill. A question seems to be,” she hummed, “are we dead? And I do not think that so,” she hummed, “for I have killed here, and the dead do not rise.” The time would surely come in which it would be a wolf, but she spoke to prey and predator; coyotes, foxes, and game they took down. Hydra paused for a moment, giving Jarilo and Dirge both room to speak on this much—the present—before continuing onward. 

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A stretch of time passed as they gathered and like Hydra, Dirge took note of the faces that were not among them. It troubled him, though perhaps not as much as it would have once before—there was little he could do for those that had not turned up. All he could do was hope that they would fair well, wherever it was that they were.

He picked up where she left off, though on another branch entirely.

“Now that we’ve established ourselves a bit here, it would be in our best interest to continue to get a lay of the land. We need to continue to familiarize ourselves with this place and gather what information we can about our resources if we intend to continue to thrive here,” he explained, his gaze wandering out over the group.

“We have learned that we have neighbors,” he went on, “and some who have faced the same fate that we have. We’ve a pack to our south, across the river and then some, and another over and through the mountains to our north and west along the coast. It would be in our best interest not to upset them or encroach upon their claims.”

He didn’t suspect that any of them would do such a thing, but it felt as though it needed to be said. He didn’t want any of them in the dark about the predicament they were in, at least not as it presently stood. It wouldn’t have done them anything more than be put in a world of stress if any of them stumbled into trouble without secondhand knowledge.

And that wasn’t even beginning to graze the tip of the iceberg of the literal walking dead among them. He thought of Vengeance, briefly, but it was pushed away in favor for his own plans. He continued to speak: “I intend to head out and scout in a few days time, and I welcome anyone to join me if it interests them. ”
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Steadily, they gathered, and it was the first time he was able to truly see everyone together like this. Separate, and sprinkled across the blurry weeks since arriving, maybe it had not struck him fully how much they had managed to piece together already, and how others had come along to meld into their fold as well to further bring it all together. Sometimes, it seemed easy to fixate on the gaps when he realized them, but now, seeing who all had come to them, lingering pointedly on his son's arrival especially, it was easy to find some solace in what they did have.

His ears tipped up and new focus came over him when Hydra spoke. Confusing times, indeed, he thought with a confusing hint of a sour taste, but they were doing very well, all things considered. They were good at surviving turbulence, anyway. Was this actually any different? From there, ..are we dead? she went on to pose, and Jarilo's expression remained steadied--though he had wondered this notion well-worn already. It didn't feel like it, not physically, but.. always with the mystery of unknown that got them here, and something in the deepest recesses that still said 'maybe we were..?' How else could this entire newness come to pass, and none of them have a hint of an answer...?

Nevertheless, his focus clicked onto this new rail thanks to Dirge's guidance. The lay of the land, their neighbors. Present, tangible things that they could get underfoot, and he appreciated an outlook that in theory, could keep them steps ahead. If they knew more, it couldn't hurt. It did strike him as bizarre that others had faced a same fate. He fought off a prickle to his skin, circling back, to wondering what this place was at all, as a whole, or whatever it may be--and why he was suspicious. Nevertheless, Jarilo nodded, content to go with the flow of the alphas so far, and hopeful Dirge might rally a volunteer or three from the crowd without him. With Saviguk's injuries, and enough to do close to home for him still, he was not feeling inclined to go too far. “I want to scout the woods not far from here for what else might grow there.. especially if it stays warming up,” he mentioned, considerate of the verdant springtime but some nights still had a bite to them, he knew. “But mostly, I'll help keep it secure and stocked here. We've come so far already,” and he wanted to see them keep it a comfortable home for them, one to justify everything with.

Besides that small piece of his, he was quiet again--more interested in having the head duo have their entire say, and the re-establishing pack receive them fully beneath his keen eye.
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Round 3! This gets into this years breeding! Going to give this a two week response time window given the topic, which will start once the second leader has posted!

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Hydra listened to her mate speak, nodding; it would be wise to gather information on their surroundings and its inhabitants. Neighbors that Hydra knew of, one far and one somewhat near. Both, though, were wolves Hydra did not mind. Crux and Ira, the latter she had known from a place that felt so distant now. Her ear flicked and Hydra heard none yet volunteer for Dirge's own cause, though she suspected they would once the meeting was done. No doubt they sensed more to be said. 

“The weather warms,” she drawled, “and Winter passes. With this new beginning comes Spring,” Hydra looked among the group before her, eyes bright. She felt the bright gaze of Leta upon her in particular, and looked toward her then; the girl was quick to shyly look away, but when Hydra's gaze returned to the crowd she felt her interested gaze light upon her again, and then Dirge too. “Only mated pairs will be permitted to breed. Should you find yourself among that count,” she drawled, “you must speak with your leaders—that is myself, Dirge, and Jarilo—to let us know your wishes. It is important for us to keep account the young that may be had,” she expressed with a wave of her tail. “If you give into the season and into your senses without informing us, know that there will be consequences. Exile, likely,” she hummed, “and with that, none will be permitted to be born or reared here from such trysts. For we take the highest offense to you thinking only of yourself, and not the whole of the pack. For it is the pack that raises the young, and keeps food in their mouths,” she acknowledged, and despite the severity of her words her gaze was warm. 

A distant memory pressed itself against her mind. Reminded her that these words she spoke were not empty. You had done it before... exiled another, for their transgression. Strange that she could not seem to recall the rest, then... she shifted her weight and peered toward her brother and Dirge, as though their features might provide an answer (that segued nicely with their own time to speak).

For years now, their pack had seen to the successful growth of each litter it has hosted. Hydra did not think it would be any different, here. She felt they did not ask for much (she did not think). Again, she left room for Dirge and Jarilo to speak, and opened the forum to questions to boot.

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^^

 
Thus far, Element had been content to watch and listen. It was strange for him still, being a part of this whole. While a good number of the faces around him where scents he was growing to know and faces he was beginning to recognize, there was still so much distance to close. Never once had he been made to feel excluded or less than, but something still twanged painfully on the strings of his heart as he watched some of his packmates greet each other with recognition that spanned... well, multiple lifetimes, possibly. The wolves of Moonspear, the pack he had heard them speak of from the days before their reawakening, having found each other again on the slopes of their nameless mountain. Hydra may not believe them to be dead, and sure, she was right that the flesh of the prey they killed may not rise and live again... but who knew what happened to the souls embedded in that meat. Was his body, the one that felt so real to him now as he shifted his weight from one forepaw to the next, the same body he had always known? The same one that had walked across his falls and had howled summons to his own pack, a world away. It seemed unlikely. But it sure felt like his.

He'd been hesitant to dwell on these thoughts, because they only drove him deeper into melancholy. Squashing those emotions down instead of working his way through them was not ideal in the long term, but he was not a perfect man.

Instead he acknowledged the words with a simple twitch of his ears, scanning from Hydra to Dirge as he continued after the matriarch into matters more concretely in their control. Here, there was at least something he could add. "I'd be happy to join in the scouting," Ele chimed in, acknowledging first Dirge, but then Jarilo as well with a secondary nod in the other male's direction. "For both managing claims, and our stores." Any concrete action to help him carry his weight. Also - he'd enjoyed his previous interactions with the two of them, and was eager to learn more.

Hydra's turn circled around again, and he felt a different ache then. The announcement did not carry any weight for him, mateless and childless as he was. But that was the catch and the cause of his discomfort, that nagging feeling that this wasn't always so. That he was missing something - that he had forgotten something essential - and the deep shame that came with having forgotten. Other than another twitch of a single ear and a small crease that played its way across his maw, this he had nothing to add to. At least, he mused internally, Hydra was looking ahead.

^^
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Desdemona didn't have much to the desire - to the scouting, or the breeding. She was content while others fulfilled a wanderlust to this new unexplored land, she was settled upon guarding for their claim. That was her duty after all, and with Jarilo leading the scouting, the protection wasn't much to be a worry about. A confidence in the beta that while they were only vaguely familiar, it the factor she will always trust on who Hydra herself, trusts. The rank itself, Beta, shows what he is capable of. She thought there was no reason to offer herself unless asked.

Mating as well, she was someone who never saw herself living in a family life, much less a mate. She was satisfied by this celibate life, feeling that itself was an underserving achievement. She did not find herself lovable as some of the other females within the group, and dare would not think of anyone who would think of her in that way. A commoner of sorts, but satisfied in her place. There was no need to speak up.

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The words of her Queen, her Aunt, announce, they speak of the dead, they speak of blood she spilt and the dead not rising. But if they were in the heavens and killed, were it but a figment of reality? Elke needed a reality check she felt and the reasons why they were still alive continued to pile up but for each Elke had a way to question it. For she remembered that horrible dream, how her mother and sister were lost in a snow storm, how a falling star crushed them on Moonspear, how her father...

The dreams, the memories of her father, were those even real?

She shakes her head to herself silently and looks up to hear her uncle. There were many wolves here, many packs. Did they all appear out of no where too? Did they all wake from a dream? Elke wanted to find out. Wanted to know if they were 'true locals' here or not. That would help her decide what her fate had been. But she wasnt ready, not yet, so didnt soesk up about joining the scouting.

The tides change again, Hydra picking up the pace once more. Spring to come, pups to bare. Elke would be the turning of one this year, still far too young to have pups herself. This year she would cultivate a plant nursery and den and would practice the art of den mother as her father before her for the pups and her likely newest family members to come.
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Elke soon arrived to join them, to complete their little family unit, and Ciri shot her sister a bright and toothy grin to accompany the cheerful flop of her dark tail. When she drew close enough, the blackbird reached with her snout in attempt to bump muzzles with her, before the meeting carried on.

Her aunt began, and Ciri's bright eyes lingered on her dark face as she spoke of the unusual circumstances that brought them to this unfamiliar place. Simply happy to have reunited with her mother, sister and vast extended family, she didn't worry much about their new environment. If anything, she was more than eager to see more of what it had to offer.

She lit up at her uncle's mention of scouting and neighbours close by, and fidgeted excitedly as he welcomed others to join him. Turning her head to exchange a hurried glance with her dam, urgently seeking approval in some form for her own volunteering, Ciri gave her most winning smile.

“Can I go?” Ciri prepared to beg if she had to, and tacked on a soft “please?” to sweeten the deal as her gaze returned to seek Dirge's acceptance.


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Each of her girls arrived and she greeted them with warmth, reaching to nip fondly at Ciri's tufted ear and nuzzle affectionately to Elke's brow as they came in close. Soon after they joined the gathering, others flocked in: a young, pretty she-wolf and a cub that she suspected might be of a similar age to her daughters, but it was Keres who earned her attention. Nyx regarded her sterling sister with a smile as she willed her to look her way, but there wasn't any time for pleasantries as the meeting progressed.

Straightening, the earthen Ostrega pricked her ears forward and listened quietly to what Hydra had to say. She'd already made peace with their situation, dead or not, and felt content. Though her memories of what life had been like before were few and far between, splintered, Nyx was aware that it hadn't been kind to her.

Talk of scouting, then, and Ciri's burst of enthusiasm demanded her mother's attention. Yellow eyes lowered to seek the matching hue her daughter shared and, while she felt possessive of her offspring after being separated from them for a time, she did not wish to tether them to her. They were fast on the way to adulthood and would want to spread their wings, so she smiled in reluctant agreement to Ciri's request.

“You can,” she told the yearling, “as long as uncle Dirge is okay with it.” She glanced almost apologetically to her brother, who might not appreciate the tagging along of an inexperienced youngster.

Hydra's brother carried on, followed by the Queen herself as she branched onto another topic: breeding season. Normally, the mating season followed Winter and as far as she was aware, no female among their ranks had experienced this year's season. Nyx hadn't considered before how her cycle should've come long before now, though she did not worry. She was not a young thing anymore, and she'd decided following the birth of Elke and Ciri that such litter would be her last, that they deserved all of the heart she had to offer. No, there would be no more cubs borne of Nyx' womb, for as far as she was concerned her family was already complete.


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one week round here! last round potentially <3

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Words of interest came from the pack, which warmed her; she was sure her mate would appreciate such support, and looking to him the matriarch thought she saw a measure of pride in his own gaze. Sure that he would gather those who were willing to partake in the task at another point, Hydra looked back to her subordinates. “Those who come into their season, come to me... or I will come to you,” she drawled, the latter point not a warning but simply the truth of it. Her nose was sharp enough that she would find them, one way or another. “I can endure your season with you, and if you wish it, help you end your own season prematurely,” she drawled. Hydra had no qualms in either; she would keep her women protected. 

“As for the men, protect the pack and the women from strays that solely wish to provide nothing but for their seed,” here her tail lashed as she shifted her weight, “and should you come across a woman within her season, well, I have been quite clear about the consequences to that.” She felt she did not need to say any more on the matter, but she would rather be perfectly clear than misunderstood in this matter. Seeds of strays were useless when they would not provide for their young, and here said seed would only eventually find the grave should it take to any fertile soil. A waste, and a shame both. 

After a beat, Hydra hummed, “Empyrean has once more found themselves allies with The Nightwalkers. It is an alliance that pleases me, but is also one born of necessity. We know not what we face in this place, here. In the past, Vengeance and I have needed to work together to be rid of common enemies. I know him to be a man who does what must be done,” she drawled—there, they had this in common—and paused to survey the faces of her pack, “and few others share his sensibility, there. The Nightwalkers are a pack for hire,” she hummed, “but those that are hired cannot be hired to work against any of our own. We may also found ourselves aligned with a pack that is working to be built in the forest shadowed by the Stone Mountain, so be wary of the land there as they work to claim it,” she informed, not desiring any to trespass should they somehow be caught unawares. “In the distance an old friend also works to establish their claim, and we may see ourselves aligned there as well. Ira, who is at the helm there, is another old friend,” she informed, that also thanks to an old enemy. 

Times of blooming wars and bloodshed could bring others together in strange ways, she realized. 

“I will soon be holding trainings in the ways of fighting and protecting. All are welcome, and I do expect all arrive to at least one of these at some point so that they come to learn at the very least the basics. And now, I open the floor to questions, should you have any,” she prompted, “and if there are none... you may go about your day,” she allowed, nodding her head. Should there be none, that would serve as a dismissal and she would wait for all to disperse before guiding Jarilo and her mate along to talk about the days events.

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Names were vaguely familiar - like a nostalgia. Nightwalkers itself was more or less the more familiar one, though Desdemona vaguely remembered that during that time of the alliance when they were in the other land.. She was elsewhere, a mission to find an enemy that she couldn't exactly find, and only to come home with a shame. Surprisingly though that same group had appeared in the same land! She wonder what kind of twist took half of the old home and landed in these waters?

Who was brought here? What enemies as well?

Desdemona had no comment to the matter, simply more pleased there wasn't news about enemies returning.

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