A Land All Their Own ~Voyani Gathering~

[Aveilthé]

Unable to suppress her delight, Nascha yipped and leaped high into the air with her wings stretching out, and did a somersault. She landed a little clumsily (not her fault, the ground was a little uneven), jumping forward and wagging her tail a million miles an hour. "Oh this is so awesome, you all have no idea how long I was waiting to join a pack, oh my goodness!" She went to each wolf, touching their noses if they allowed it while she memorized each face and scent. "I'm Nascha, pleasure to meet you," she would say.

When she was finished, she marched over to Akuma. "Gonna sit next to you," she told him matter-of-factly. She certainly got over her shyness pretty quickly. And doing just that, she blinked at Akuma, smiled, and looked ahead, her whole body shaking from pure excitement.

[Moon_Song]

Ea couldn't help but laugh at the females display. She hopped around like a whelp, only to land awkwardly. Nascha's tail was going a mile a minute as she explained her plight. The maternal grin on Ea's face did not fall as Nascha came to her and touched her nose in greeting. She was careful to learn the new females face and scent. Couldn't be too careful about the scent.

The display was certainly a sight to behold, but Darklight merely raise a brow. Such a strange wolf. Would she be able to handle such a consuming task as Toran? She dearly hoped so, for this Nascha was the only one they had at the moment.

When the owl-looking female approached her, she stared back listlessly. As their noses touched they familiarized themselves with each others odor. To Nascha's words of greeting, she simly replied "Welcome."

As the newly accepted one finished her round, she took a place next to Akuma. Ea wondered a moment if it would bother him, seeing as he wasn't exactly used to such a pack, but then again, who knows?

With a quick turn, she grabbed the goat carcass in her mouth being careful not to damage it, and brought it back to the center of the gathering. She looked to each of her pack members, then said aloud. "Lets not let this gift go to waste, dig in everybody!"

At the sound of food, Darklight's ears perked up. She was always ready for some food. She made her way over to the plump goat, said her thanks, and ripped into the hind leg.

[Relairah]

Akuma watched Nascha's actions curiously. He found her intriguing yet a bit startling. He was definitely not used to being around wolves of her nature. Perhaps because he hadn't been in so long. Somehow, it made him glad to see someone else so enthusiastic, and earnest about it. He felt even more happy to have chosen this pack to settle with. It seemed more and more the perfect place for him to start all over.

As she stood before him, introducing herself to him and touching his nose, he took in her scent, memorizing it, as the others did. Yet, somehow, he felt strange. He hadn't been touched or touched anyone in any way, shape, form, or fashion in years. Not that this was anything abnormal. It was a greeting, an introduction. It was just so... foreign to him. But he suppressed that, giving a sheepish grin and a nod. "I'm Akuma," he murmured to her.

What she did next did surprise him. She was certainly an interesting character, wasn't she, he thought as she sat down next to him and announced it so surely. He gave a wolfish shrug and nodded, ears turning in Ea's direction since she spoke next. He glanced toward the goat and let Darklight have her mouthful before he let out a short chuckle and rose, moving toward it himself. He had to admit, it certainly smelled intoxicating. He didn't realize how hungry he was!

He dipped his head, taking a bite from the meat of it's belly and, after swallowing, glanced toward Nascha. "Thank you, Nascha, for this." He let his tail begin to wag, something he also hadn't done in a while. He somehow just felt so ready to loosen up and be someone again. Someone whom he had kept buried within. He hoped that the others would join in the meal.

[satumitsumi]

Aithne arched a brow at the fledgeling, taking in every action with an analytical eye. She was a spark of energy, but she was also a fledgeling. Possibly unreliable if given too much freedom. First impressions normally didn't sway Aithne's thoughts about someone--it was the actions later to come.

Aithne blinked in surprise as Nascha allowed their noses to touch, one ear swiveling like mad for a moment before coming to a halt. She took a quiet, deep breath, memorizing the young one's scent. "Aithne. Pleasure." Her mouth seemed too stiff from the cold to say anything more, let alone eat.

She thanked Nascha for the meal quietly and attempted to stretch out her jaw and rub her lips as best as she could with a paw, hoping to loosen it just enough to get a piece of the goat. When she was done, she made her way to the others and dug in, wing fluffing contentedly as the taste of the meat began to coat her mouth. A wonderful kill.

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[Aveilthé]

Nascha's heart swelled as she watched a few members of the pack proceed with her kill. It made her feel truly a part of this family. Feeling as if she needed a moment, she turned her head away from them all and let her eyes overflood with tears. Blinking a few times, she returned her gaze.

"Thank you all--I ate a hare a while back--so full--you all enjoy yourselves--"

There was so many things she wanted to say and do, but she did not know where to begin. She thought about her duty as scout, and realized that she was born fascinated with the art of scouting. Briefly, her memories took her back to the days she was almost a year old, and her father started teaching her how to properly hide in the shadows, or the light of the snow. She was taught that she harbored a great advantage because of her coat. 'Take full advantage of that,' her father would say proudly.

She lifted her head. Oh yes, she was proud.

[Moon_Song]

It was contrary to normal behavior of an Alpha-type position, but Ea waited until all that were going to eat had a bite before she, too, took her share. The meat was certainly good. With food in her belly, Ea felt a sense of light-heartedness. She couldn't believe her great luck. She had a wonderful start to her pack, and now a new member. She was almost giddy.

With one last chunk of meat finished, she sat back and raised her head to the sky and closed her eyes, just simply breathing. Her thoughts drifted to her parents. Were they watching them now? Were they proud?

Quickly, though, that thought was pushed aside, as she could feel the sting in her eyes and the lump in her throat. Not wanting to draw attention to her internal play of sorrow, she went on to clean her fur back to its pristine whiteness.

With a full belly, Darklight sat back on her haunches and sighed with contentment. She looked around at everyone, and stopped at Nascha. "You seem to know how to pick, 'em little one." Her tone a light-hearted tease.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw her sister put her head back as if to howl, but she remained silent. How odd. Subtle emotions played across Ea's face. Happiness. Reminiscent. Then, strangely, sadness. What could make her sister look that way? Not wanting to draw attention to it, Darklight looked away, just as Ea began to clean herself. Darkligh followed suit.

When she had finished, she turned once more to the members of Voyani, but more specifically, Nascha. "Now, how shall we start off your positions?"

Ea was finishing a spot on her paw when she heard her sister address the others. She put her paw back to the snowy ground and sat up. She answered her sister, hopefully before anyone else. "I believe that, since Nascha is so new to the pack, and since she is under the care of the Tyran, Darklight, you should accompany her on her first scouting mission."

Ea smiled at her sister.

Darklight frowned. She was going to have baby-sitting duty?

The way her sister looked at her, Ea guessed she had misunderstood. "So you can show her what to do and where to go. You don't have to be with her all the time, just keep an eye on her and check on here where ever she is posted. It's not like you'll be doing this forever, just until you're sure she's got the hang of it."

She turned to Nascha before her sister could speak. "Would that be alright with you?"

She had opened her mouth to speak, but clamped it firmly back down. Her sister was right She needed to observe how this rowdy fledgling handled the tedious task of Toran. With a heavy internal sigh, she decided, should the other female agree, she would observe and be sure Nascha was capable of her task.

[Relairah]

Akuma was fully enjoying the taste of the meat, glancing up as Darklight made a comment to Nascha about it and he couldn't help licking his lips as he sat back and giving a nod in agreement. It had been wonderful. That said, it seemed the matter got more down to business, as this was a pack meeting of sorts and his ears perked in Darklight's direction, and then Ea's shortly after as she went more into detail.

Their positions. He felt a bit awkward being as he was the only one in the group who hadn't made a decision. More and more, he could feel that tug in his gut telling him he already knew what he wanted. He just wasn't being hasty about it. Then again, it had been a bit of time and he thought now might be a good time to make it more formal. Still, he felt a bit nervous. The two he had been considering were Tyr and Toran. Yet, it seemed they had what they needed for a Toran now, and certainly she would do an excellent job of it. That left him with Tyr, which he was comfortable with. He felt it might be a good way for him to work toward regaining himself.

So he waited patiently as Darklight and Ea carried out conversation about duties and such to be done and glanced at Nascha, guessing she probably wouldn't have too much problem, though waiting for her response.

After she would give it, he would wait a moment, not wanting to draw all the attention to himself too quickly. When he felt the time was right, he would speak. "Em, well on the topic of positions," he paused, "I think now is a good time for me to say that I feel I have made up my mind. I suppose I sorta knew before but needed time to make sure it was what I really was comfortable with." He paused once again, looking between Ea and Darklight, making sure that they would be alright with his decision. "I want to be a Tyr," he said finally, feeling suddenly excited and relieved, a light coming to his eyes. "If that's alright with you, of course," he added, dipping his head and giving a faint grin.

[satumitsumi]

After finishing the last of her meal, she carefully dipped her face in the snow and cleaned her maw, licking her chops the entire time. Once the talk of positions began, Aithne twitched her tail and wrapped her wing as best as she could around her face to hide a silent chuckle. The look on Darklight's face was a look of distate, as if she'd eaten a raw set of berries just now. But all laughter aside, would one scout be enough to cover such a vast area of land? Perhaps this could become a partial job of hers until they recruited more members.

Her gaze shifted to Akuma as he spoke, her eyebrows raised lightly. How come he hadn't jumped at the position earlier? His physique made it clear that he would be well-suited for the position--she had a sneaking suspicion that he had possibly taken this role before in another pack. No matter. All that mattered was that he was humbly asking for the position. She would have quickly said yesc but knew it not to be her place. It was forbidden for lower ranking members to even...

...Wait, those were the rules of her family pack. Aithne shook her head a tad, snorting quietly at her minor mix-up. Perhaps eating all of that goat was making her sleepy. It took a great deal of effort to remember that the harsh laws and practices that went on in her family's pack no longer had susbtance within Voyani. It would be a while before Aithne made any sort of attempt to call the shots freely to her scout and warrior, and it would be a very long time before she would feel remotely comfortable enough to disagree with Ea.

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[Aveilthé]

A tickle in her ear made Nascha flop onto her hiney, lift up her hind leg, and scratch fruitlessly to make the itch go away. A rumble in her throat announced her irritation that she was still itching like mad.

That was when she was being addressed by first Darklight, then Ea. Nascha regained composure, tilting her head in slight befuddlement. At first she said nothing, taking the time to let things sink in. She turned to Darklight, feeling as if those words flew straight over her head. "Pick... what?"

Then her eyes swept to her leader. "Oh." She did not mean to sound rude. Who could blame her, though? She was caught off guard by Ea's statement. "That'll be cool," she said, putting on a fake smile, but sincerely trying her best not to look or sound rude--she did not want to give off the wrong impression on her first day. "I could use a tour of the lands. Heh."

She did not want to tell them that ever since she had arrived here, she had traversed half of the lands and knew them pretty well. She figured that it was best to play dumb for the pack's sake. Privately, she hoped nothing bad would come out of that.

Nascha failed to see the good out of all this. To have a better understanding of these lands, and knowing the borders, let alone get a good grasp on her packmates' ranks avoided her better judgment. Right now, she was pouting--she did not want to go out and be watched and treated like a whelp. There was time to prove herself; oh yes, but she was impatient. That was too bad.

[Moon_Song]

It seemed everyone was getting into the conversation and giving it do attention. That was good. At Nascha's agreement to the idea, Ea nodded and smile. "Good. Aithne?" She turned to her single-winged friend. "How would you feel about accompanying the two? It would give you three the opportunity to get to know each other better and to know each other's rhythms, seeing as you all are going to have to be able to work together sooner or later anyway."

Her smile never left her face. She sincerely wanted the three to get along. It wasn't like they didn't, but they weren't exactly close either. This was her way of helping everyone to form those close bonds that a pack should have. She just hoped she wasn't being too forceful. Plus she wanted to see how good of a scout Nascha would be.

When her her sister suggested the addition of Aithne, Darklight was both relieved, and a bit wary. She knew Aithne better from their meeting in Yokusei, but she wondered if the other female was still untrusting of her, due to her fire magic. Either way, she would accept whatever was decided.

It was then that Akuma spoke up. Darklight turned her head around to see the larger wolf. As he spoke his decisions, she smirked approvingly. He had finally taken a position. And one that was in need of being filled as well. When the dark male lowered his head, she looked toward her sister who wore that huge smile. It was so...maternal, in a way. It suited her...

Ea welled with joy and her eyes lit up as she looked up at him. "Of course, Akuma. A fine choice." She wanted to hop around like a young pup, but she kept herself demur. She had to keep her composure so that her pack would not think her too unsuited to be Serra. She was just so happy that others were willing to join together and form a family as they had. Granted, they were still getting used to each other, but she felt they would soon grow accustomed to each other and that familial bond would form...oh how she hoped.

[Relairah]

The large mixed-colored wolf glanced between the other wolves as they sorted out Aithne accompanying Nascha and Darklight around the lands. Perhaps Ea simply wanted them to be better acquainted, in which case he hoped it went well.

His ears perked in Ea's direction as she responded to his statement, and he didn't fail to notice the looks on Darklight and Aithne's faces. They seemed as pleased if not moreso than Ea herself. She approved and he felt quite eager and excited himself. He smiled, his tail beginning to wag. "Thank you, Serra."

He wasn't sure if this meeting had held other purpose, than perhaps the pack just getting together. After all, this was the first time they were all meeting each other, for what they had so far. Yet if there had been intention of becoming more acquainted, it seemed that was to happen when Nascha went scouting afterward. Perhaps he would stay behind to get to know Ea? Unless she had other business to attend to. Still, he didn't ask. Akuma was certain she could handle herself and this meeting. She wasn't their leader for nothing.

Perhaps after Darklight and Aithne were finished with Nascha, they might discuss the position of Tyr with him. Moreso so that he would know what they expected than anything else. He was sure he could handle it.

[satumitsumi]

Her eyes continued to analyze Nascha's facial expressions, looking for any signs of discomfort, disappointment, eagerness, anything. It was what Aithne did--she calculated, planned, organized. Even if it was all within her head, no matter what the subject at hand happened to be, she was always looking at it from all angles. It was not only a defense trait she had picked up in her days of traveling, but it was also a form of acquainting herself with another without becoming too close.

Her right ear twitched faintly as Nascha agreed to scope the area. Hm. Perhaps she knows something we don't about the area already? If so, she needs to spit it out once we're scouting. Aithne's wing fluffed on its own at the fledgeling. Her impatience was as real as the fading taste of goat on her tongue--would such a pup be able to handle such an important job?

Aithne's ear swiveled to Ea at the sound of her name, brow arched in slight curiosity. She looked at Ea sidelong, not intending to be rude in the least. Ea had just caught her in the middle of "acquainting" herself with Nascha, that was all. "Accompany...?" She stole a glance at Darklight, missing the wary look in her eyes. The fire was a simple misunderstanding and, even though Aithne had yet to admit it, she was disappointed she jumped so hastily to conclusions. The Fire of Yura was completely different than the fires that Darklight possessed. So, no harm, no foul. As long as Yura's fires didn't present themselves, Aithne was content.

"Why not?" She lifted her wing in the air briefly, as a type of shrug. She then turned to Akuma, letting his facial expressions and body language settle in, calculating each tiny move he made, every breath, all without looking him in the eyes. What would they do with him, she wondered?

[Moon_Song]

((OOC: I spoke to Ave and she said to go on without her for now as she is busy with other matters.))

Ah, this was turning into and interesting morning. Well, it was closer to noon now. The wind had picked up a bit, gently eddying around them. Her thick coat kept the cold from chilling her, but she felt for Aithne. Maybe the movement of walking around with Darklight and Nascha would serve to warm her, if only a bit.

She noted the way Aithne eyed Akuma. She seemed to have Akuma's integration in mind. That, however, would have to be dealt with later. Right now, she wanted to see how Nascha handled her position.

With Aithne's agreement, Darklight stepped forward. "Well then, lets get going." She wasted no time and began walking off toward the east. "If thats all right with you guys." She called back as she walked. If the two decided to follow she would wait until they were a good ways from the others and get close to Aithne, so that Nascha wouldn't hear and say: "We will deal with Akuma upon our return."

She watched her sister go and shook her head. Not one for finesse, that one. She took a deep breath and turned to Akuma. Had the other two gone with Darklight, they would be alone now. "Well, how are you taking to pack life, Akuma?"

[Relairah]

Akuma was silent and watched as the two Tyrans and the new Toran departed, off to see the lands and make sure Nascha could handle everything. He had no doubts and completely faith in her, but he would leave that up to his superiors. His ears swivelled in Ea's direction and his eyes followed, turning his attention upon her when she spoke.

He smiled and dipped his head faintly, "Quite well, Serra. Thank you." He paused. "I must admit that at first I was nervous and uncertain to exactly how it would go. But now I am beginning to see the greatness it can lead to." He glanced off briefly, as if thinking of his distant past, but not for long before he continued. "I am growing a lot more comfortable and I thank you for the chance I've been needing." He was being vague but also indicating there were things within him which he had not faced that no one knew of. At least, the indication of something inside, wanting to get out, but being carefully supressed until the time would be right.

"I assume, Serra, you are enjoying being in your position." He paused, knowing he would have to wait to talk to Darklight and Aithne about his own position and what would be expected of him. But till then, there was nothing wrong with conversation, right? "I suppose I might ask, if you don't mind, you seem to hold a certain pride and eagerness as your new pack grows, do you not?" He was asking about how she felt with everything seemingly going well so far. He thought perhaps she might be excited, but was she also feeling anything else with growing responsibility? Perhaps it was none of his business, and he trusted she would tell him as much if it really wasn't, but he had asked nevertheless.

[satumitsumi]

The chill of wind broke her concentration, allowing her fur and feathers--once again--to stand up on end until the wind had died down. Perhaps the gods and goddesses were telling her to be patient, that they would find a suitable place for Sir Akuma.

Before following after Darklight, she turned to Ea and Akuma to bow her head respectfully before bounding off in the snow, doing the best she can to ignore the biting cold in between her wolfy toes. She merely nodded at Darklight's words and continued her trek forward, taking in all of the scenery as she went along.

What a terrifyingly quiet place, pristine as the teeth of the gods and decorated strategically here and there with trees, wildlife, and ice. Aithne wasn't used to such a place--whenever Yura was around, snow rarely existed for long. She would melt it into water in moments by just throwing a dirty glance outside the safety of their den. For a moment, she wondered if Yura had given up on her search. Her mind stopped churning for just a moment to let her enjoy the serenity of her surroundings before interrupting her with:

Does Yura know of my pack?

Aithne tripped over her own feet for a moment, but made no mention of it. Her honeydew eyes were sharp with worry--not for herself, but for her pack. She had forgotten that Yura was the reason why Aithne had so adamantly refused to join a group of any sort, to start a family. Anything. She remained a loner and became used to her own company to keep those around her out of harm's way.

And now here she was, a Tyran of a small, ragtag group of wolves, bounding about in the snow as if all was well. Yura could have well tracked her here, and was possibly waiting for the most opportune time to strike. Again, she tripped over her small feet, the coyote-like wolf letting out an irritated snarl and snapping quickly at the air.

If anyone were to ask, she was to answer that she was merely attempting to train her body to become at ease in the cold. In the meantime, she would quietly, frantically, think of a way to guard her new troupe from the Fires of Yura.

((GAH. Bad post is bad. DX< Sorry.))