A shiv for me a shiv for you
With his tail held high as well as his prizes Rhyme made his way to the rapids in search of a big flat rock. The day was a bit nippy, but he was comfortable under the mid day sun. A slight breeze tousled his fur, and Imperia watched him from a distance. She seemed quite dubious of his eventual success.
There was always one sure-fire way to know where Rhyme was, one just needed to look to the sky and see the dark, sleek shades of black. Wherever Imperia was, Rhyme was likely to be below. Curious at what the man was up to, she would depart from her border patrol and head further into their pack.
It had been a quiet day, with no change at the borders and the Alpha could do with a little friendly banter between herself and her cousin. Heading in the direction of the Raven, she would so come across the rapids, and would see Rhyme there, hunting through the stones along the shore. She squinted at him, noting something in his mouth. What was he doing. Glancing up at the bird, she mimicked silence and gave her a wink. Would she let Shaye sneaked past her? She hadn’t interacted with the bird enough to know.
Trying it anyway, she would slick down into the grass and creep closer. He was hunting for something, she could tell that, but it clearly wasn’t crabs. He was picking up the rock types of rocks, and once she even saw a crab scurry away from him. It made no other sense. If he was hunting for salamanders, there was a trick to it that he wasn’t implementing right.
She crept closer as he worked, deeply involved in his task. She got as close at her grass cover allowed, coiled her muscles, and pounced she just needed to get him good on his side, and it would knock him directly into the stream. She aimed to get her upper body onto his back like a push and then land on all fours without falling in herself.
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The slate marked alpha discarded another rock, turning to look around him instinctively. His timing was perfect, if he had really wanted to go swimming. His eyes widened as he watched Shaye collide with the side of his body. She replaced where he had been standing herself and Rhyme was displaced into the river bank beside said airspace. He felt the cold water saturate his fur and he devolved into two thoughts. It’s really cold and he hoped he splashed with accuracy.
Thankfully he was lingering by a shallow bank and was able to stand up in water that was only mid-leg. He shook himself, hoping to aid in wetting his cousin. "Watch yourself!" He exclaimed as he rid himself of most of the cold water. "I’m doing important things here." He puffed his chest, and sought her gaze. Hopefully his bones hadn’t been thrown into the river. "I’m playing with an idea."
It was perfect she collided appropriately into Rhyme’s coat, the man's own training of her had helped hone her body into a weapon, and increase the accuracy of her attack. Funny, how his own help was being used against him now. He flew into the water with a splash and the Alpha, acting more like a child, gave a pleased chuff and grinned at the bird. “I’m going to collect the juicy bits and put them aside for you.” she promised, in thanks for the birds help. No doubt, Rhyme had entrusted in the birds watch, and her allowing Shaye through unchallenged aided greatly.
He shook out his coat, and even though she took a step back, she got a small shower herself. She narrowed her eyes to protect them from the droplets, and flicked her ear playfully at Rhyme. He puffed his chest up and tried to look important, claiming that he was playing with an important idea. “Alright, i’ll bite. Why are you hunting around the stones here?” she wanted to know, no doubt this would play into the supposed idea he had. “-and I was watching myself, very carefully.” she grinned at him as she shuffled to the side, making room for him on the bank. “Besides, if you get cold, you’ve a wolf to warm yourself against these days, don’t you?” she asked him, partly teasing, partly seeking information.
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He was caught a little off guard at Shaye’s final question. Was she talking about Tana? Rhyme wasn’t sure how to feel about the statement. To be completely honest with himself the last thing he’d thought about Tana was to “warm himself against” her. She was fragile for one, mentally and physically. The last time she’d tried to touch him he was pretty sure he’d scared her out of her wits. He hadn’t noticed but even as he thought about that night his mood would darken.
Rhyme tried to keep himself upbeat for Shaye, after sleeping on it he hadn’t been sure he was ready to tell Shaye. He didn’t want to lose control of his emotions in front of the other alpha. Though it seemed more like the longer he waited the more passionately he felt. None of those feelings were able to be shared with Tana though. The rage ate at all of him and he hadn’t even considered the tiny she wolf in that way. He tried not to show she had effected him with her teasing.
"I want to sharpen these bones and antlers." He told her as he flipped some of the ribs around and over as he contemplated their angles. "There could be multiple uses in healing, cutting herbs or dead skin away. Also fighting, like these antlers might be useful against coyotes or other small predators."
He looked back towards her, clearing his head of the tumult Shaye had placed here. "And you’re not talking about Tana, are you?" Shaye didn’t know about his other chance encounters did she? "Shaye, she’s half my age." Not that he would have really given that excuse much weight in his more intimate interactions, but it was easier than trying to explain everything else at that moment.
She followed Rhyme as he walked towards a rock, and inspected what was there. She moved closer, seeing the antlers and ribs. She raised an eyebrow as she sniffed them curiously. “leftovers from lunch?” she teased, already understanding that he was using these for something. What was the man getting creative with here? He was going to make something, she was certain of it, and now she wanted to know what.
As she mentioned Tana, she would notice something about him darken, and she would pause, inspecting him carefully. He really had it bad for her, didn't he? He was feeling an anger about the way she was treated, one he didn’t show even for Spider, though she knew the feeling was there. This was personal to him, in a way that didn’t entirely link back to his own time as a slave.
She felt a touch of something in her breast, and she needed to pause and examine it carefully. Was she… jealous. that couldn’t be it. She was proud of the way Rhyme had stepped up - becoming an Alpha, looking out for others, taking Tana under his wing. So what if he fell for her, it didn’t make him any less hers. He was still her Alpha partner, and what they shared together, the burden of responsibility was unique. She scuffed a paw in the dirt, trying to push down the emotion. It was illogical, and wrong to ever wish they weren’t related. She slammed a lid on her emotions and looked up at Rhyme impassively.
He didn’t say anything about her question, or the emotion she had seen in his eyes, and she fell quiet as he explained what he had been planning. She knew she had taken her teasing a step to far, and mutely nodded as flipped over the ribs. “No, it was just a jumble of words.” she told him, her voice soft as she nudged an antler herself, changing the subject. “You were looking for a stone to sharpen them against?’ she clarified
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He nodded seriously, "Yes." He continued to explain before he demonstrated what he’d thought up. "Sharpening the antlers might be easier because we can get a better grip with our jaws. The rib bones will be more challenging. It’s a shame we don’t have paws like a primate." He felt the excitement return to him each word they got farther away from Tana. He took one of the antlers about half way down the shaft and touched as many tines as he was able to the stone. With swift sure movements he began to rub down the points.
As he spoke, she let her eyes follow his movements, and he explained what he was doing. “Perhaps it would be faster if I held it in my mouth, turning it as you worked with a stone, to sharpen it to a point?” she would offer to him, allowing herself a smile as she saw the excitement in his grow again. It was clear he enjoyed the work, and it reminded her that they would have a crafter turning up fro Branch’s pack at some point. She had been thinking of sending Rhyme as the warrior, but perhaps he would benefit from remaining her, and she could send perhaps Acere to train Branch’s warriors.
Most people dont want to be nagged about threads - I do! If I owe you a post, tell me. I've taken on a lot of threads and gotten lost. If you want a post, tell me where, and i'll reply.
He found his gaze return to Shaye, "We should try, your idea sounds more efficient." Rhyme stood to get better leverage on their new weapon. He had a piece of sandstone that was more easily manipulated, it had a natural groove down the center that he placed over one of the face down tines. He placed a paw over the stone and started seesawing the rock over the tine. Shaye would slowly turn the antler he assumed, and hoped each tine would be easy to sharpen.
She followed Rhyme as he walked towards a rock, and inspected what was there. She moved closer, seeing the antlers Rhyme was quick to agree, their earlier thoughts pushed aside to face this newest challenge. Besides, it was hard to say something with your mouth full. She held the antlers gently yet firmly within her grasp, waiting until Rhyme had run the sandstone over the surface a few times before she carefully rotated it to a small degree, waited a few moments more, then repeated the process. As they worked steadily over the horns, it was clear that a firm, distinct shape was forming at the tip.
She rotated the full length of the antlers multiple times until a cleanly shaped tip had formed, and then released her hold, giving a yawn as she stretched out gums and smacked her lips together a few times, getting the feel of the bone out from around her teeth. “Not bad, just.. How many to go?” she said getting back into teasings. “so your not into girls half your age, you say. So where do you draw the line? Is half your age plus one day, acceptable?” she wanted to know, feeling she wasn’t exactly speaking about Tana, just finding a new means to tease him for his words. She was already picking up the next antler and holding it into place.
Most people dont want to be nagged about threads - I do! If I owe you a post, tell me. I've taken on a lot of threads and gotten lost. If you want a post, tell me where, and i'll reply.