He left Talis. Or rather... He never left, but let the pack leave him. It was easy enough to slip off the radar, easy enough to not be noticed anymore. He simply stayed in his (now vacated) den, or ghosted around the old pack lands until all traces of Talis was gone... And then... Then he was free. Yet, despite two seasons of containment, it wasn't as exciting as he thought to be free. He was lost, without a purpose - he didn't know what to do or how to act. That's what led him to his mother's old den, watching the area quietly. It was much different from when they first came here. So, so different.

"Speech" "You" Think

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She was curious. After attacking Avalon nothing had become of it, the pack hadn't come after her at all. It would seem that no one cared that a simple loner maimed their alpha, and she had to investigate further. With that thought in mind she made her way back up to the pines, but was rather surprised to find that the scent of her pack was almost completely gone. Slowly a wicked grin spread across her face, a low laugh bubbling up from her throat. Ah, so she had been right, Avalon didn't have it in her to lead a pack. What was more interesting though was that the scent of Lykos was still fresh, or at least a day or two old. Her black marked brows pulled together as she walked into the now vacated lands, her slightly longer tail swishing behind her as she strut through the territory. It didn't take too long to pick up on a more recent marking of Lykos, her head lifting as her purple eyes squinted. He was around here somewhere, but had yet to bother to seek her out. She was mildly irritated, but maybe he was pissed off at her for taking a chunk out of his mother. She sneered at the thought, she had always been soft on the younger man. Had he learned the harsh realities of the world now, after their time apart? Only one way to find out, she supposed.

Picking up on his paw prints in the snow, Mercy followed them until she saw his black and gray form staring at a... something. She couldn't see it, her head tilting to the side as she made her approach. The scarred woman was downwind from him, but her paws crushed through the frozen layer of snow should be enough warning of her approach. After all, she was never one to care for being subtle. "He lives!" she called at the back of his head, pausing about a foot or so behind him. Her lips were curled upwards in a telltale smirk, waiting for the man to turn around. How long had it been now, a year? Maybe more? She wasn't mad about the distance, she was used to those that she cared about just up and vanishing. However... Lykos was different. She had taken him under her wing a bit, and there was no doubt that he would be able to work his way back into her inner circle.

"SPEAK"

Art by WhiteAntlers

Free was a relative term, of course. But it made no difference to the young man. If Dragon had an issue, then Lykos would face it. As it was, he didn't believe he would ever see his family again, and he was alright with that. After what had happened...

Lykos sighed quietly, head tilting as he eyed the den. The last encounter he had with his mother - ending in her telling him he was nothing but scum, nothing but a man who would betray everything, everyone, who had no concept of loyalty. It stung more than he'd like to admit, and he still didn't want to think about it. Was staying behind betraying everyone? Was confiding in Mercy truly that damning? He hated it, with a burning passion. And yet, the family he chose still burned stronger in his heart than the family he was born to.

It was odd, yet strangely, there was still no remorse. He saw the den, smelled the old scent, remembered everything, and he'd change none of it - except maybe trying to convince his mother that confiding in someone was not betrayal. He felt next to nothing seeing this memory of his past - his future? It was strange.

Those thoughts were interrupted as paws crunched the snow behind him, and he inhaled deeply. Almost immediately, he identified the tell-tale scent of Mercy, which was always a mix of a both sharp and tangy-ish scent. He was frozen until she spoke, and he turned so slowly towards her, his eyes falling on the ghostly white fur, the black markings that were on her face, the dancing purple eyes, the swishing tail that was for some reason absurdly long.

It was familiar, and it was a wolf he had not seen for a long, long time. Perhaps this was what he was waiting for, perhaps this was the sign for him to actually do something instead of just... no interaction. His eyes glittered with restrained joy as he beheld her, though a reciprocating smirk soon graced his lips. "And I'm surprised you still do, given your tendency to piss people off," he murmured, the smirk turning into a wicked grin. He hadn't even realized how much he missed... well, this, until here he was, savoring it again.

"Speech" "You" Think

art by monrroe

Mercy stood, watching him for a moment before she spoke out. She knew that he heard her approach, she hadn't bothered to be quiet about it. It took a second to react to her, it wasn't until she spoke that he fully turned around. Her purple eyes took his smirk, not missing the excitement in his blue eyes. Her chin tipped upwards slightly as she let out a soft snort, it was mostly this boys fault that they had been apart for so long. She had even come to see him and instead got into a fight with his mother. Her smile took on a darker note, an emotionless chuckle leaving her lips when he replied to her. "I can stand up for myself, and it's not my fault that others can't see how... special I am," If Mercy had hair, she would have flipped it after that. She was feeling a bit in an odd mood, and it didn't help that Lykos was playing into her sarcastic mannerisms. Sitting down, she lifted up her right front paw and inspected it, her thoughts turning over in her mind. "Can't say the same for your mother, though." The dame slipped the comment in casually, briefly looking up for a moment to see if he had any kind of reaction to that. Was she stirring the pot? Perhaps. She was curious as to what he thought of the whole matter, and Mercy wasn't one to care about being sly. Or liked, really. Lykos had chosen to befriend her, perhaps without knowing just how bad she could get. But she shrugged it off mentally, there was no use in hiding her true nature. She was a cruel, twisted wolf who had little morals. In fact, if Lykos had been older when they had met she probably would have tried to fuck him. But no, instead she actually grew attached to the little brat, something that she hardly let herself do. It had been quite enjoyable though, and maybe it was her fault that he ended up as much of a black sheep as he had -- not that she knew much about what had gone on here on that day. She did, however, know about what Kharnage had said about him. It looked like the dislike between the boys was quite apparent, although she hadn't met Gryphon yet to really tie the whole litter into it.

Placing her paw back on the ground, Mercy rose a single black marked brow at him, silently questioning him. Where had he gone? Was he still a part of his mothers pack? She guessed not, because nothing was here in the first place. Avalon probably ditched when she realized that she couldn't even stand up to a loner like herself. Her smile twisted back up again at the thought, but none of her questions were actually spoken. It was up to the boy to direct the flow of their conversation, since he was the one who had left. She wasn't here to chase him down, it had been her own curiosity that had even brought her here today.

"SPEAK"

Art by WhiteAntlers

Lykos couldn't even attempt to suppress the snort at her words. "Yes, I suppose special is one way of putting it," he replied wryly. But then again, it was true, wasn't it? Even the bits of Mercy that he saw, even the bits that he realized was different than what she showed others - she was different. From her mannerisms, to her actions, to her interactions with others. It was... different from what he had seen with others. And it didn't make her bad; not in the least, though some of her... tendencies were hardly good. Take blatantly trespassing and then challenging the alpha of the land for example.

He frowned briefly at that thought, and it just so happened that the thought coincided with her words. "Yes," he murmured in acknowledgement, a thoughtful expression also tinged with pain crossing his face. He never bothered being the stone-faced creature around her; he never felt a need to, feeling that he could be wholly himself and that he'd never needed to have a filter around her.

He could feel the curiosity in her gaze, though, and his blue eyes met her purple ones briefly. Yes, she no doubt was acutely aware that this land was now abandoned, partially the reason she likely went through it at all - though he would have half expected her to trespass again even if the pack hadn't moved. And truthfully... he didn't know how he felt about it. It made him feel conflicted, because a part of him was very much the young boy he had been, clinging to laws and rules and depending on him. Perhaps it was the absence of those laws, and the absence of a strong ruler such as Valentine and values in his life that was making him feel so... lost. For the past several seasons. In a way, Avalon had been a strong ruler, but the values she chose directly coincided with her son's, and when they finally clashed... Lykos grimaced slightly. Let's not go there, not yet.

After a few more moments of silence, he flicked his gaze back to the older woman, and huffed quietly at her. "Yeah, yeah, I see the burning questions," he muttered, though sounding rather good-natured. He wasn't truly annoyed, and it was very clear from the relaxed body language and the slight, genuine smile on his face that that was the case. "A lot has changed," he murmured, his voice dropping in both volume and tone. It was rather an understatement, but it couldn't be helped.

"Once the little... spat was over, my mother sought me out," he began, sighing quietly. "It did not... end well." There was more to that story, but that'd have to be coaxed out of the boy; he'd not just volunteer the information. "In the end, I wanted to leave. She banned me, restricted me from leaving; would not let me leave the pack, and would not let me leave the territory without a guard period. I... disappeared in that time, interacting with no one. She ended up stepping down and my brother became the alpha, and he chose to move the pack. I sought him out right before the move, requesting formally to leave..." Why, one might ask? Because of those laws, because of those traditions; it was just... proper to request. "I was once again denied. However, no one attempted to force me to leave so I simply stayed behind." And that was the very short version of what happened; the quick and dirty. He realized his gaze drifted away from Mercy while he spoke, all sorts of emotions pulling at him, and he looked back at her, waiitng for her reaction.

"Speech" "You" Think

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His snort just made her grin, she was special. Just in her own odd little world. She didn’t really think of herself as better than others per say… okay maybe a bit but it was more that she valued strength. Scars were to be worn with pride, and those that pissed her off would feel her wrath. Or maybe it was just all a ruse to spill blood. She mentally shook her head, she wasn’t evil in the true meaning of the word. Dark, yes, but not evil. She didn’t go around killing others, in fact she had never taken anyone’s life. Some body parts and lots of blood, but she wasn’t about to go on a murder spree. Her anger was a ticking time bomb, and there were lucky ones like Lykos that she had more patience with. However, she did not appreciate his silence. Too often had she been left in the dark with the very few wolves that she held dear, and she wanted answers. Now.

Mercy wasn’t blind to the confliction in Lykos’ gaze, and honestly she couldn’t blame him. He was trying to figure out where his loyalty lied, but she didn’t have the best track record with family. Screw them, obviously his mother hadn’t been strong enough to fend off even one trespasser. No one had come after her, not even the boy before her. He wasn’t exactly a boy anymore though. She stared at him as it went silent, waiting for some answers. She wouldn’t push the matter -- not just yet. He was obviously searching his brain or reliving what had happened. The fact that he was here and no one else was had to mean something. It was her turn to snort when he said that a lot had changed, that was fucking obvious. But she bit her tongue, letting him push out what he could. Her head tilted to the side the more he went on, her black marked brows pulling together. Avalon wouldn’t let him leave? Why? She actually forced him to stay in the pack? And his brother the same? An unfiltered growl left her mouth, her lips curling back from her teeth. "Well then, fuck them. They obviously don’t care about you if they just packed up and leave. Why are you showing loyalty to a family who doesn’t even care about you? The fact that your mother made you stay here when you asked to leave is absurd. No one owns you OR your freedom, Lykos. So use your balls and grow the fuck up. This is the real world kid, shit changes and family sucks ass. Don’t let them drag down your potential." Mercy sneered, her elongated tail swishing behind her. He knew that she held no value in family, but she just couldn’t wrap her head around why he hadn’t just let them move on. It was pretty clear that no one cared about him, and Kharnage had said himself that he didn’t like Lykos, that he was the odd one out.

Righting her head, she remembered something. "Your brothers have little faith in you too, by the way. Kharnage told me some interesting things, said that you were parading around with your head high because you were heir. I thought you told me that you didn’t want it?" There was no accusation in her voice, she knew how things could be blown out of proportion a few times. She just wanted the straight story instead of all this ‘he-said-she-said’ bullshit. She have been a bit harsh with him, but she didn’t like to sugar coat anything. So she sat there and observed him, more than prepared if this came to a fight. She didn’t think it would, they had bantered like this before, but she never knew.

"SPEAK"

Art by WhiteAntlers