Cannival Like that of a happy canine's, the tail of the rather ecstatic lioness whipped vehemently back and forth as curved, capable claws worked swiftly to shred the dirt from the cool bosom of the Earth. Soft eyes were narrowed in concentration while she worked, widening abruptly as she came upon the object of her labor. A pleased grin danced across Cannival's muzzle and she wrapped her fangs around the root of choice to pull sharply upwards, ripping it from the sanctuary of the ground. With her elegant face free of the pit she had dug, the mud-covered lioness gleamed in joyous victory. Her technique was anything but practiced, and as she lowered her head to place the bitter herb down beside her, it's flowers fluttered uselessly off the stem into a pathetic pile. Destroyed, again. The lioness roared her displeasure, stamping her paw upon the mangled root and pressing her weight into it. Wide maw parted in a small sigh, and she removed her paw to survey her destruction. Defeated, she leaned down to carefully grasp the shredded remains, trotting with it for a few feet to place it down among the dozen other flower-corpses she made previous in her attempt at herbalism. Cannival flopped down haphazardly amongst the carnage and buried her face into the leafy greens, huffing an exhale so large that the petals and leaves were lifted briefly into the air before settling back down upon her muzzle and nose. The wolves made it look so easy. "Speech"

Shaye Destruction She caught the scent of predator just before she reached the point it had crossed the border, and she hissed in shocked surprise. Another one? She remembered the last big cat that had crossed into their territory, making it all the way to one of her young before she had found it. A few moments later, and Noir would have been a crunchy snack. She shuddered at the thought, her hackles raising. She already had her armor in place, she wore it now on most of her patrols, to get accustomed to the feel of it wrapped about her calves. She whistled softly and Winter glided down from the sky above, landing on the grass not far from her. "Get Rhyme, danger just crossed the border" she told the bird, wasting no more time on waiting for him. She needed to ensure the beast hadn't gotten close enough to any under her protection. She couldn't afford to take the safe course. She stalked the lioness through Abaven, the familiar territory passing beneath her paws, and she would hear the creature roar before she found it. She managed to choke down the howl that threatened to slip past her fangs. How dare this trespasser issue threats on Shaye’s land. She wouldn't live to regret what she had done, stepping foot here where young and infirm called home and safety. She found the creature amongst the foliage of Epitaph’s slowly growing garden. She had already wreaked some havoc among the carefully tended herbs. She wants certain what this creature was doing, but Shaye had no time to spare. Her young daughter and Epitaph could appear any moment to tend to these herbs, and tread upon the dangers they did not know lay here. She couldn't wait for Rhyme. She stepped into view of the lioness, and her fangs slipped free of her gums in a snarl. Her hackles raised, and her paws already moved into a battle stance. She spread out her balance between them digging her paws into the earth. Rhyme better not be far behind... "Speech"

Rhyme didn’t expect to hear Winter’s call of danger as he lay quietly at Darlinor’s grave. The lavender had already sprung up and was thriving here near the water. The scent calmed him, but he was on high alert as soon as the raven’s voice reached him. Rhyme was on his feet and headed her direction by the time she was close enough to relay Shaye’s message. He didn’t know what the danger was, but he was ready.

He took great strides as he ran under Winter’s direction, within a few minutes of the call he could see Shaye. Her hackles were raised and she was focused on something in his half brother’s garden. He slowed before he saw her, and came to a halt as he realised she was a dark coated lioness.

Rhyme had been up against a few cats at this point, but he hadn’t seen any quite like her. She had an intelligence to her eyes he didn’t usually notice when they were at his throat. He followed Shaye’s lead, and stood behind her supportively. Maybe the lioness would leave with only the show of force. He did find it odd though, that she was here pulling plants instead of taking Abaven’s prey animals like was the usual.

Cannival Cannival's sheer frustration was abated slowly as she breathed in the soft scents around her. The herbs were lovely, and although the feline was still upset that she had failed in her attempts to harvest them, the feelings had changed from anger to sadness. She wasn't proud of the destruction she'd wrecked upon the earth, but Cannival wanted nothing more then to learn the customs of this strange land and from what she had been told of the wolves, herbalism was the only one that made any sense. You pick flowers, you feed them to the sick, and they get better. It sounded magical and good, and Cannival wanted that. The lioness rose from her bed of destruction, shaking out her pelt to displace the greenery that had settled there. She'd find another place, maybe. Containing her pathetic attempts to this small area couldn't be good for the land. As the turned to leave, she saw the wolves that had been watching her. "Oh, uh, hello!" Her greeting was cheerful, but also reserved. She recognized the foremost wolf's posture and felt her blood cool. Cannival pedaled back slowly, yellow gaze fixed upon the blue she-wolf's snarling maw. She hadn't learned much of the wolves, but the one thing that was emphasized to her was how truly these creatures valued respect and body language. Cannival was cautioned to submit if she wanted to find allies here, and thought the advice seemed sound enough when she received it many moons ago, she struggled hard against her instincts to do so now. The feline allowed her body to relax, shrugging off the tension in her shoulders and deepening her stance into a bow, paws asymmetrical in spread for balance. She lowered her head between her paws, her upper chest and neck just inches off of the ground. It'd be stupid to just lay down, she figured, so she kept her back end raised. Her tail whipped behind her to betray her nerves. This felt nothing like submission, the lioness realized with panic; this felt like hunting. "I'm submitting, I'm submitting!" Cannival announced, feeling stupid. She abandoned her sad attempt at posturing and flopped onto the ground, pressing her chin into the cool dirt. Hadn't someone said that to look a wolf in the eye could be mistaken as dominance? Panicked, she threw her paws over her muzzle to cover her eyes. "Still submitting!" She repeated for clarity once more, "I don't want to hurt anyone, please, I've come to meet you!" Well, she hadn't come to meet this wolf in particular, but she was still being truthful in a way. "Speech"

Shaye Destruction Wait, it spoke? just like their Raven companions, it deemed it appropriate to speak to the wolves that stood threatening before it. Shaye flatternerd her ears to her skull at this second indication of strange behaviour. First the roots it had attempted to harvest, and now this. What exactly had crossed their border? The Lioness went into a battle stance herse, only it was.. Odd. she let her front paws fall to the ground, keeping her rump in the air. Her tail swung behind her, and it gave Shaye the impression of a pup, mimic a pounce stance. Shaye blinked in surprise, but held her own ground, keeping herself prepared for what this strange creature might throw their way. When the lioness spoke again, she was yelling out what she was doing, she was.. Submitting? Shaye blinked again confusion growing. She could see it now however, how the lioness was putting herself awkwardly to the ground, and it explained the strangeness in her posture, even if Shaye didn’t yet understand why. When the lioness plopped her paws over her eyes and continued to yell her white flag. Shaye couldn’t help it, she laughed. It wasn’t exactly an amused sound, just sheer… surprise, and a touch of relief. This silly goof didn’t look like she was about to eat any pups. “Alright, alright, I believe you. You can get to your paws.” she told the Lioness. She remembered in her youth, a member of the pack had not been a wolf. She couldn’t remember what the creature had been, she had been young and hadn’t associated with it, but it proved that friendships could exist between other species. Of course, she didn’t have to cast her thoughts back as far as that - their Ravens where proof enough. “Why have you come to meet us? Why are you here?” she asked the Lioness. Still not completely relaxed, but her neutral stance no longer looked threatening. She was hardly about to attack a creature such as this, who clearly wanted to prove she was no a threat. "Speech"

”Oh, uh, hello!" Rhyme blinked in surprise as the lioness greeted them, though it seemed their show of force was enough to incite some off behavior. The slate alpha already had his suspicions of her, and as she shifted herself awkwardly he tilted his head curiously. "I'm submitting, I'm submitting!" Oh, was that what she was doing? Shaye chuckled as she took in the cat’s antics. She had come in search of them? He had so many questions.

Shaye was first to question her though and he offered silent back up in case she was not as truthful about her intentions as she let on. However, he was amused and let a smile play on his lips as he watched her try to adapt to wolf behavior. At least she was trying? He shook his head, perplexed, as he eagerly awaited her answer. ”Do you have a name?” He added after Shaye’s question, he really wanted to know how similar she was to them, did she even have a real name or would it be some odd combination of purr and meow? ”I’m Rhyme, this is Shaye. We’re the alphas here.” Did she know what an alpha was?

Cannival Cannival remained with her eyes firmly shut behind oversized paws, doing her best not to quiver nervously. She was putting a lot of trust in these wolves to not simply kill and devour her where she lay vulnerable, but the lioness had come here with the sole hope that wolves had more honor then lions. If I die today, I'll finally be with my cubs. As she waited, soft laughter reached her ears and she heard the she-wolf beckon her to rise. Cannival did so happily, bounding to four paws to stand before the pair. Now that they had come closer, the lioness could see that these wolves were larger then average of their species. They must be the protectors of this land. Her mind wandered to the pile of destruction not a few feet away, and she sidestepped to put herself between the herbs and the pair in a sad attempt to shield them from what she had done. "Do you have a name?" The male had asked her. Well, of course she had a name, what kind of question was that? Were there wolves without names? He continued. "I’m Rhyme, this is Shaye. We’re the alphas here.” "My name is Cannival." The lioness offered, dipping her head respectfully as she addressed them. "Your scent is all over this land. What is an alpha? Are you protectors?" She wanted to ask more, but the she-wolf spoke again. "Why have you come to meet us? Why are you here?" Cannival considered how to best reply. She wasn't sure the wolves would accept a runaway feline. "I've come looking for a better world. For a family." She simplified. "My last family were lions like me, and they stood by as our leader slaughtered my cubs. I left and now I'm here, looking for somewhere to live where innocents aren't slaughtered for having the wrong blood." Cannival tried her best to keep the pain from her voice and stay professional, failing as her words were punctuated by a deep growl. "Speech."

Shaye Destruction Shaye’s questions had been more cautious, confused. Rhyme, sweet Rhyme began to ask her more personal ones. Perhaps he saw, faster than Shaye, that this lioness was more Wolf than Lion. her Alpha partner did the introductions for the both of them, and Shaye fell silent for the moment. The lioness rose as the Alpha bid her to, stepping forward and to the side, almost as though she wished to hide the broken herbs from them. Shaye as still struggling to adjust her thinking to this creature as being more than a beast and a threat. Her sweet, clumsy gestures had really shown it, but still… This lioness towered over them, her intense gold eyes on the wolves. She was a predator, and she had seen a lioness take down its prey with ferocity and skill. A lone wolf could easily be the prey of a lion. “Cannival,” Shaye said politely, a greeting in return as she answered the huntress’s question. “An Alpha is a ruler over a certain section of lands and wolves. Here in Abaven, that is three territories and twenty nine wolves.” The largest pack in the land, and proud of it. she thought to herself. “I’m sorry to hear that. Children are treasured and loved here in Abaven.” Shaye explained, letting her sympathy entered her voice. “However, I have seen no prides in the area and I don’t think you’ll find any group of lions for miles around.” she apologised to the lioness. Was she looking for other lions, or was she looking for something else? She studied the dark toned creature with curiosity. "Speech"

Rhyme listened with perked dark ears, blue and lavender gaze watching her sleek form as she recited her name. Shaye answered her quick question before the lioness continued, answering his alpha partner’s question. She came here after her offspring had been killed. It was no wonder lions were so feared, they were ruthless. Rhyme didnt have the whole story, but the death of innocents was enough to be on the same side as Cannival.

Shaye explained further, telling her there were no real lion prides to speak of here in the east. They’d seen many predators in the last year, but no lions. The slate alpha remained quiet, but his features had softened. She looked impressive, but she had told them she didn’t mean any harm. If she remained in the area they might need to look into an alliance with her.

Cannival Shaye and Rhyme seemed so very kind, and Cannival was so pleased to have met them. She felt that the Alphas were still uncertain of her, but the lioness could not fault them for the assumption. Truly she wanted to cause no harm here, but she knew that if she was different- if she'd wanted a fight -that the wolves would be in danger. "Twenty-nine??" The lioness was awe-struck. Prides were rumored to get that large as well, but her last had only had fifteen others. How could these two wolves control such an expansive territory and so many subjects? "It must be exhausting." She said softly with a tilt of her head. Abaven. That must be the name of their pack, Cannival decided. She was very glad to hear that they cherished their young. Another reason why wolves were the better species. The female continued on, informing Cannival of what she already ascertained- there were no lions here. She was alone. She set her eyes upon the male, judging his reaction to all of this before addressing Shaye once more. "I don't want to ever live in a pride again." She murmured, chest deflating slightly as she sighed. "I know that I cannot be a member of your pack, I wouldn't want to break your customs. I also know that many wolves would not feel comfortable with a lion on their land." Cannival turned her head away from the pair and off down the fields, contemplating how best to say how she felt. She thought hard on the motivation of the species of wolves and how she could fit in. "I can be dangerous when I need to be." The lioness offered carefully, turning back to face the Alphas "If I were allowed to live here... even just along your borders edge, I could fight for you." She swallowed. "I want to protect the innocent, too. I want to defend those who cannot defend themselves. I want to learn to heal wounds." Cannival's head lowered sadly, and she closed her golden eyes as she spoke. "I want to make up for the things I've done, but I can't do that without a home." "Speech."

Shaye smiled at the young Lioness, a lot of her reservations had fallen away the more she saw this woman speak. It would be hard to get past her monsterous size, or to ignore the fact that her long paws looked like they held a massive amount of power behind them. Still, she spoke gently, with passion, and Shaye couldn’t deny that she understood where this Lioness as coming from.

“It can be at times” she admitted, though she did have high ranking wolves that pitched in with the workload. “But I wouldn’t trade it for the world.” The Alphess said. She loved her pack, and what she was building it to represent too much. Shaye had mentioned the lack of prides, but the lioness would explain that she had no desire to live in a pride again. After all, a pride had murdered her babies without a second thought.

“You want to live here, in a pack?” Shaye asked, still somehow caught off guard despite the conversation leading up to this. She tossed the idea around her head a few times, considering it, thinking it through. She looked to the powerful lioness, to her sharp eyes, and thought of her love for her children. She glanced as Rhyme, but she could see no argument in her alpha partners eyes. “Cannival.” she said, carefully, thoughtfully. “Its unusual, most certainly, to bring a non-wolf into a pack lands... but Abaven is built on family, not tradition. For the sake of the peace of mind for everyone in my pack, I will bring you into Abaven on a trial period. You can stay in the Rustling Thicket, for two months. If you decide that packlife is for you, and you give us no reason to throw you out, well welcome you into the whole of Abaven with open arms.” she wouldn’t normally give a wolf a probation period, but Cannival was no wolf. If the pack was smaller, and built on wolves Shaye could judge the reactions of exactly, she wouldn’t do this. However, she wanted to give people a chance to get accustomed to the idea of a lioness in their midst. This just gave everyone a peaceful chance to comfortable with it. “If you don’t chose to taken me up on this offer, no hard feelings, and I’ll happily make suggestions for where you can stay outside of Abaven.” she would continue, giving Cannival the chance to choose what she wanted.

Rhyme’s eyes sparkled amusedly as the lioness exclaimed her surprise at the amount of wolves that lived within Abavens borders. Not that he expected that the population would remain that high for very long. Acere was taking himself, Ignis, and Actaea when he had his pack. He also wondered how long Lucine’s family might linger here. His eyes continued to warm to her as the dark pelted lioness continued with her speech. She seemed to know all the right words to say, and were she a wolf Rhyme wouldn’t hesitate to invite her in with open arms. She was a lioness though.

Shaye only took a few moments to think about the lionesses words before she had come up with a brilliant plan. She had a way to make everyone happy. Cannival just needed to behave during her probationary period and she was welcome to roam throughout Abaven’s lands. He wouldn't have been able to come up with a different answer. If the lioness had been telling the truth Rhyme had high hopes for her future here. He gave her an encouraging smile, his silent support for Shaye’s offer and hopeful for the lion’s answer.

Cannival The lioness centered herself, lifting her head and doing her best to look respectable as the blue-black female looked to her alpha companion. They were considering her request silently and Cannival said nothing as she waited, she only thought of the home she'd hoped to build here. Full of happiness and goodness and family. Finally, the she-wolf spoke once more, and Cannival barely could focus beyond the fact that they were letting her stay. Albeit temporarily, she was thrilled with the response. She hoped so badly that she'd prove herself able to stay and live amongst them. "Thank you!" The lioness's words tore forth with exuberant excitement, and a part of her wanted to run up and nuzzle her saviors- though she was of sane enough mind to know how well that might go over with the alphas. "I promise I'll cause no trouble, you won't even know I'm here.." Cannival's voice trailed off as she looked around, seeing nothing but bushes and long grass. Not exactly an area where a lioness could go unnoticed. ".. Or you will, but I won't be a bother, I swear." The amendment was punctuated with promise and determination. She rolled the muscles in her shoulders, shifting her weight between her large paws with unbridled eagerness. Hopefully she got to meet lots and lots of wolves who would teach her everything there was to being a member of Abaven. "Speech."