He was still inflated from the encounter he had with the mountain lion. Shaye had been badly injured, but the boy couldn't have given less interest in her injuries. Noir didn't really do gratitude, not that he understood what Shaye had sacrificed to begin with. He just knew that he had chased it from the territory (and would have done more had shaye allowed it.) The young prince held his tail and head high as he made his way down the bank of the river.

Deep down he was hoping he might encounter the lioness again. Yeah he had a good story, but there wasn't any proof of what he'd done except a few tufts of fur the cat lost during the scuffle. Noir had been careful to gather up all of them.

The scattered tufts were laid out before him. The boy sat with his tail around his huge paws as he stared at his prize. He couldn't help but be annoyed he didn't have the whole carcass.

toRnAdic So far Abaven had been thoroughly unimpressive to the young whirlwind. His father had always told him that hard territory bred hard wolves, which was why they took residence in the clawing dark forest of white trees. Abaven by comparison was sunny and green with lush fields and rolling hills. What kind of wolf was that supposed to breed? Lazy fat ones he concluded, and boring ones at that. He had only been in Abaven for a few days but the lack of anything interesting was beginning to eat at him. He had debated telling Tyto he was heading out that day to explore but had decided spurring him for a good day of sulking was preferable. Tornadic paced through the territory with his head raised, regarding the twittering birds with contempt and turning his nose up to them. Birds in the forest didn’t tweet, they were ravens and crows who croaked ominously and owls who shrieked before rendering prey with their talons. It was only as he reached the end of the thicket that he found himself standing at the edge of a sheer drop overlooking a churning river, swollen with Spring’s thaw and coursing furiously, swallowing boulders as large as the witness stones and obliterating anything that fell into its merciless depths. Rain had been so consumed watching the churning river that he nearly bumped into a black pup that was only slightly larger than him, and most likely only a few weeks older. “Do you mind?!” He snapped, his downy fur rising with anger as he looked over the male who seemed to be looking at clumps of fluff. “You’re in my way!” He spat accusingly, far too used to having his way just on virtue of being the oldest and largest next to Tyto, and of course the highlord’s pup. Speech

Poem decided that she liked the spring time, the plants were all turning green and pushing out flowers. Animals and birds were having babies, it was rain instead of snow. And she never knew the sun could be so warm! She had left that morning, quick to get an early start. Poem knew Noir liked to sleep in, so if she could get her important exploring done in the morning her large half brother wouldn't be there to mess everything up.

Eventually he did wake up, and Poem set to avoiding him. She couldn't really let him out of her sight though, as soon as she did he would sneak up on her. So she hid from him, and as he sat down to admire... whatever he had there on the ground, Poem opted for a nap higher up the rock formations out of sight.

She woke to the sound of an unfamiliar voice. Though her mother had told her about the pups coming to visit the young Destruction hadn't met them yet. She assumed this boy was one of them. Poem peeked her slate gray head over the rock behind Noir. She could see the stranger boy's face and silently cheered him on.

Similar to the young Erovare boy, Noir was much too occupied with himself to realize the proximity of a stranger. He didn't even hear claws against stone until the gray and black pup was forced to halt, a little too close for comfort. Now, Noir was the biggest and heaviest of Abaven's brood and he didn't hesitate to use that advantage on his sisters. This boy was about their size, but held much more spunk. Noir had never been confronted by a Male his age. He wouldn't allow his inexperience to show however.

He lifted his nose into the air and looked down on the boring colored boy. Noir didn't forget to knit his brows to show his disdain either. Though he kept his fur calmed unlike this interloper he stood up to more fully use his superior size. (Even if it was marginal.)

"I do mind." Noir retorted, puffing out his chest. "And you're in my space, so back off. Outsider." Noir did not know about their guests, but he knew this pup did not belong in Abaven. He let his teeth show in a silent snarl as he sized up his opponent. He was smaller than the lioness he had taken down.

toRnAdic “ I am Tornadic Praetor! The howling wind! I go wherever I want!” He snarled. He paced back a few steps, his claws digging into the ground before he kicked off in a fierce charge, intending to throw all of his weight against the larger male’s neck and upper chest to bowl him over. His father was a bear slayer and he had every intention of carrying on that legacy, one oversized jerk at a time. He made sure to keep his back paws rooted as he rose up to knock the male over, his eyes narrowed and ears pinned, his hackles raised and his nose lifted as he bared his fangs. This guy was going down. Distantly Tornadic took in his surroundings, if he fell, he would surely die, which would make the freak male the winner. He resolutely refused to let that happen, the rocks were slippery from the humidity and the rushing waters beneath them, he needed to keep his footing and keep an eye on how close he came to the edge. Speech

Poem watched with continued fascination as the altercation played out below her. Her eyes wide and alert, not completely hidden but completely ignored by the boys below her. Noir seemed oddly calm compared to the Erovare boy who proofed up at the very beginning of their interaction. He was too much like Noir for her to want to try and play with him later, but she hoped he might win their scuffle.

Her attention was drawn back fully to the pointed boy as he called out his name and asserted his freedom. Poem couldn't take her eyes from him. He seemed more like a warrior than Noir, and the young Destruction felt immense jealousy in the freedom he held. She wanted to go wherever she wanted!

Poem almost stumbled off the edge of her perch then, but scrambled back as she realized she had been inching forward. Tornadic lunged as she rearranged herself and for a moment wondered if she should intervene.

Noir felt his excitement rise as the interloper snarled at him, adrenaline started coursing through his young veins as his opponent squared up with him. The striped pup didn't let his blue and lavender gaze leave Tornadic's bright eyes. He fell into an instinctual fighting stance, knees bent and weight distributed evenly between his four paws. Noir lowered his center of gravity as the Praetor boy leapt at him, intent on pushing him over.

Noir didn't have enough time to counter-attack but he wasn't about to be knocked down by some kid! With his teeth showing in his own dark snarl the boy braced for impact, lowering his center of gravity by bending his joints. He was just slightly lower when Tornadic hit him hard, but he didn't go sprawling. He had to take a recovery step, and was forced back. A too eager smile overtook his features as a spark ignited in his eyes.

"My turn." He growled from the bottom of his chest. Which wasn't very deep for a season old pup, but it was as menacing as Noir could get. "I am Noir Destruction, the mighty mountain! And I said Back. Off." He had coiled his haunches and now he was going for his own attack, aiming the broad side of his thick neck at the underside of Tornadic's. He had the clever idea of restricting his windpipe while his shoulder aimed to hit Torn's sternum and knock the wind from him.

Noir felt excitement rush through him, his first real conflict with another wolf. Yeah he picked on his sister's but he had never gotten this rough with them. He felt just like when he had attacked the cat. Fearless. He should have been paying more attention to the slippery ledge.

toRnAdic Tornadics jaws opened wide, his nose lifted in a snarl as the male refused to go down and called himself “The Mighty Mountain.” He scoffed at that internally, that was a dumb name, and he bet his father hadn’t even given it to him, he had probably just made it up himself to sound cool. With his jaws open Tornadic tucked his chin to shield his throat , if the male moved within range of being bitten he would sink his needle-like fangs into his tender pup flesh until he cried or begged him to stop, however, He hadn’t anticipated the blow to his chest. Torn's head snapped forward, mouth still agape as the shoulder collided with his chest with a dull thud. He felt himself be pushed back almost to the point of teetering over until his hind left leg stepped back to correct his balance,r and push him forward his tail flailing out like a rudder, in an attempt to use his weight to knock the other boy onto his back, his head rolled forward with the intent of hitting Noir's throat with the top of his skull as he surged forward and to hopefully prevent any more bodily blows. He kept his eyes narrowed and his ears pinned, his hackles still raised to show his dominance and his nose lifted and tucked between the folds of his snarling muzzle. His neck braced for the impact, his shoulders rolling forward and his front paws bent and crossed over his chest, ready to stick out and catch himself on the ground.   Speech

She and Rhyme where on patrol, the familiar feel of the duty always grounded her. She felt like she could do this in her sleep, with the familiar pitter patter of Rhyme beside her like rain in the roof of her den. There was a quiet about them, one that use to be comfortable, and now felt strained. She knew Rhyme was confused, he had lost much in his life, and some of it more recently. So she would be a quiet companion beside him, there if he tried to reach out. They didn’t get far in this patrol, before her Raven came carening from the sky on folded wings, flaring them not far from the ground to cut her fall. Shaye looked up at her companion, and could see the exasperation in her beady eyes, and knew that something was going on, and well it wasn’t life threatening, it did require their attention. “Come on” She said, and turned her stride to follow the bird. The path took them to the three children, through it seemed Poem was more in the background, and the two boys where.. Being boys, and getting out of control. As they began to rain down blows, Shaye swooped in and grabbed the much younger pup, aiming to grab him by the scruff of the neck and pull some distance between him and Noir, trusting that Rhyme would do the same. “What’s going on here” she said, putting down the tiny child to demand her answer. "Talk" "You" Think

Rhyme padded along quietly behind Shaye, a position he had frequented much more than usual. With everything that had happened, all of the blows he had taken, Rhyme had been even more quiet and reserved lately. He had spoken briefly with Shaye about what had happened, he had been emotional and in a bad place. He was feeling better, but his inner confidence had been broken. There was no quick repair. He sighed internally as their patrol started, he knew getting out and performing his duties helped to steady his heart, but he had to drag himself to do it in the first place. He hadn’t let his duties suffer of course, he just had to put more effort into beginning them.

Their progress was quickly halted by the appearance of Winter’s alabaster form. His own ravens were both back at their nest, the chicks would be fledging soon and he didn’t blame them for staying close. He followed Shaye as the bird led them to the edge of the rapids, the small forms of Noir and one of Tyranis’ brood coming to his eye first. After a moment he noticed Poem watching from a rocky outcropping. The two boys were the main show, they seemed to really be going at it.

He felt a bump of pride for his boy’s tenacity, but that didn’t mean he approved of the chosen opponent. The other boy was a guest, and Noir should have known better than to engage. Shaye managed to take on their guest and Rhyme charged forward to manhandle his son before the boy slipped into the fast moving water. He scruffed him, and though Noir struggled a bit he wasn’t much of a chance for his large father. One day the boy might seriously threaten the alpha, but now he was too small for that. Rhyme was not looking forward to that day.

Shaye said it all as she freed her lips, and Rhyme looked down questioningly at his son.

Poem watched the boys intently, continually debating with herself if she should interfere or not. They were getting really serious, each pushing the other back when their turn to attack came. She heard both of them spout off nonsense nicknames. Where had Noir even gotten that anyway? She’d have to keep it in mind as ammunition for the next time he tried to mess with her. Her eyes widened as the two of them drew more and more near to the edge of the rushing waters.

Just when she was sure that Noir was going in her parents were suddenly there. She drew back in surprise as Noir was grabbed up by Rhyme and the other dealt with by her mother. Poem didn’t debate any longer and slid down the face of the boulder she had been perched upon. The girl danced over to her father, avoiding Noir as best she could. She rubbed against his legs before sprinting to Shaye and sitting beside her mother, as far away from Tornadic as she could get.

Noir felt victorious as his shoulder collided beautifully with gust boy’s chest. He could hear the air rush from him as he was forced back. For a moment Noir was sure that his inferior opponent was about to be dunked. Before he could celebrate his victory though Torn was quick to recover and return the gesture tenfold. Noir was a stubborn one, and didn’t want to give up any of his hard won ground. He braced for the impact instead of taking the smarter choice of evasion. His smirk was coupled with a menacing snarl, his bright blue and black hackles raised with his shoulders rolled forward and his chin tucked. His gaze was narrowed and his tail waved behind in dominantly.

He took the hit, but the weight behind the attack had been a bit more than he expected. He was forced to take a step back as well, but he couldn’t get any grip. Panic almost took him as he felt himself slipping back into the water, but suddenly he was grabbed up by a much bigger adversary.

Noir felt himself struggle instinctively before he realized it was his own father’s teeth in his scruff. He felt anger well up in his chest instead of appreciation. He had been winning! Why did his dad, and Shaye! Have to come and ruin his excitement. He scowled as Rhyme placed him at his paws, however it didn’t last long as his features took on an innocent look. He widened his eyes a bit and lowered his raised hackles. Noir’s eyes didn't leave the other boy as Shaye asked her question.

”We were just sparring, Shaye.” He told her, downplaying how serious he had been about inflicting damage on this interloper.

toRnAdic His face twisted in a snarl as he tried to regain the ground that had been taken from him by the adult. He glared at his would be opponent for a moment longer, then turned his attention up to Shaye with an angry expression. “He was picking on me!” He said, giving a small sniffle for emphasis. “He called me an outsider, and made fun of the name my dad gave me!” He said woefully. Even at that young age Tornadic knew adults had more power than he did, and could achieve better results. He gave a look at the girl who had been silent through the whole exchange, and wondered silently if she would tattle and defend the larger cub. Speech

Poem, who she hadn’t really acknowledged in the first few moments, appeared beside her. She spared a second to nudge her daughter in greeting, but her eyes were on the two puppies who had chosen to cause mischief this day. Noir was quick to say they were simply playing, but that didn't cover the seriousness she had seen in the boy moments before, the anger. She hadn’t been able to see Tornadic’s face from her angle on approach, but she doubted he had held a smile. That guest had a much different story to tell, and she was much more likely to believe him over the known bully that Noir could be. Still, for fairness, she looked to her bird companion who had been her witness. “Where they simply playing, Winter?” she asked, and her companion shook her head in response. Yes, Shaye thought that might be the answer. “Was it all one side or did they both play a part?” the bird looked to Noir, and then to the guest. Hmm, she was hoping it had just been Noir. “Noir, Tornadic is our guest, and you are to treat him with respect. Apologise to him, or you’ll be burying the off scraps in the kill pile for the rest of the day.” she informed him briskly. “Then, your going to be spending the day blowing steam learning stances with your father.” she shot Rhyme an apologetic expression, but knew her Alpha partner would be happy to take on the discipline of his son. “Tornadic, next time call for an adult instead of fighting fire with fire. Apologise to him, because I doubt Noir picked a fight all by himself, but i’ll see if you mother wants you doing chores for the day, since you are still a guest.” She couldn't tell of just one boy, she had to keep it fair. "Talk" "You" Think

Noir sat patiently at his icy paws, something that honestly surprised Rhyme. It shouldn’t have though, he was rather good at behaving when eyes were on him. There was plenty of attention on him to keep from acting out. After the separate the boys Shaye questioned them, and both would give different stories. Rhyme wanted to believe his son, he didn’t know Tyranis very well and the son was not the father. But.. he didn’t trust either of them. He just didn’t know them well enough.

Shaye’s quick thinking to ask Winter what she had seen impressed Rhyme, and the bird seemed to explain both boys had been going at each other. He nodded along as Shaye doled out Noir’s punishment. Rhyme hadn’t had anything huge planned for the rest of the evening, and would enjoy the time with his boy. As Shaye finished her judgement he couldn’t help but wonder if Leera would ask for her son to be punished similarly.

Had Noir not been trying to keep appearances up and be on his best behavior he might have glared daggers at the other boy. How dare he lie like that! Tornadic had been the one to run into him! Noir felt his little puppy heart ride into a flutter as he tried to remain seated at his father's paws while Shaye made her decision. Instead of asking Poem, who he might have given a lot of grief to had she tattled. The alpha asked her ivory raven, who seemed to implicate the both of them. Though Noir still didn’t feel it was fair at least he wasn’t shouldering the blame all on his own.

He did not want to even think about apologizing to the ashen boy, he definitely didn’t deserve it. However, he didn’t want to be digging the rest of the day either. Noir mulled over the decision in his mind for a long moment as Shaye finished up her little speech. He was excited to be off practicing with his dad though.

”I’m sorry you got upset about what I said.” He managed reluctantly when Shaye grew quiet. His blue and lavender gaze lingering anywhere but his foe’s face.

Poem returned her mother’s affection as she let her go back to the important issue at hand. The girl looked from her brother to the boy as they spouted off different stories. If she had been asked, and Poem was glad she hadn’t been. She didn’t want to be a tattle-tale. Poem would have said that Noir’s story was closer to the truth, but that neither of them had been nice when they talked to one another.

She was saved though, and Winter gave her mother all the information she needed. Poem smiled at Winter brightly, she couldn’t wait to have her own raven who would be her partner in making big decisions like this. Not that disciplining two rowdy boys was big news but…

Poem’s jaw fell a little as Shaye gave out punishments, and then Noir gave an apology. It was probably the worst apology Poem had ever heard, but she didn’t doubt it would be the only one she ever heard Noir say. She stifled a giggle as she basked in the moment.