She'd been given a task. Well, she hadn't been given the task, but she'd taken it upon herself after hearing her father talk about it. No doubt he would lose his mind if he knew that she, little, tiny Aslatiel, was about to face off against a large predator. There was a rogue lion roaming about and it was too close for comfort. It had left its scent close to Armada territory and the girl didn't like that one bit. So, she'd decided to choose one among the pack to aid her in scaring it off. That lucky guy just so happened to be Naiche. Asla had told Naiche that her dad, alpha of the pack and ruler of all of them, had given her permission to take one wolf to carry out the task. It was a lie, but she was a really good liar. Manipulation was a very fun game. Besides, she knew that Naiche wanted to up his skill game. Fighting off a lion would be a very good way to do that. The misty forest where she had spent so much of her time was their goal. She'd told Naiche to meet her here when the sun was highest in the sky. Now she waited for him, a bit put out that he wasn't here already. The boy should jump to her commands. What did he think she was? Just some base wolf? No, she was a princess. Daughter to a warlord. He'd better show up soon or she'd make his life hell. "Speech"

What to make of going after a lion with the charming little princess? She didn’t exactly have the personality of one he would enjoy spending time with.  On the other hand the job would be a fun one.  Sending two novices to fend off a lion? That was a pretty big honor and Naiche was somewhat surprised Sirius hadn’t wanted someone more experienced to go with one of them.  Well, the wheat-colored wolf could put up with her if it would improve himself and show well to her dad.

Despite the princess’ irritation Naiche was perfectly on time.  Was it his fault if he didn’t want to show up early and hang out with her?  To be fair there were worst wolves out there.  At least she appreciated a good fight and certainly was no coward.  Naiche also hadn’t spent much time with her so far, but so many female wolves could be a pain, especially young ones.  His sister had been a pain.  He had loved her as a sister but still a pain.  

Naiche had traveled close to the soulless forest in the past, pushing through Travelers Pitfall but had not turned west from there.  So it was a first time in a new place, and that always was a pleasure.  Spotting Asla he walked over towards her, his posture relaxed and a curious gaze about the forest.  His senses reached out searching both for the smells in general and anything else that screamed predator. “Hello Asla.  Nice place.” The words were offered in casual greeting, and with some distraction as he also wanted to look at the new land. He did actually mean it, it seemed the sort of place that could hide many secrets.  No signs in his voice or demeanor to suggest he felt guilty that she got there first.
neighbors.attention."Speech"

Finally he showed himself. Asla turned her galaxy gaze to the wheaten boy, mild irritation in her gaze. She didn't say anything about it though. At least he'd finally arrived. When he complimented the place, she nodded. "It's one of my favorite places." Deep in there, she had a sort of stronghold. It was a pretty little sun dappled clearing with a large, hollow tree at one end. She kept her collection of bones and skulls there including the ones that she'd made for herself and Az before he'd become angry with her. Maybe she'd give it to him again some day. "Now that you're here, we can get to work." She went on to explain that the lion had come close to Armada lands and had actually marked over their border. It was an older male, all alone. All they had to do was scare it off. "Got it?" If he had any questions, now was the time to ask them. With a loud exhale, Aslatiel rose and padded off into the thick, mist covered wood. She'd worn her armor today though she left her helmet at home. It would get tangled in the branches and vines of the forest and she really didn't want to deal with that. As they neared the center of the forest, the acrid scent of feline became more and more powerful. Grey ears perked as, up ahead, she could hear the low rumbling sound of a big cat breathing. Maybe there was something wrong with it. Either way, they would see it out of this place and hope that it never returned. "Speech"

What the heck was her problem? Naiche took the irritated look in stride, it was one of those things where women get upset over the dumbest things.  Apparently, whatever he did to irritate her wasn’t important enough to mention.  At least not now, she might bring it up when she got irritated for something else.  Both his sister and mom liked doing that.

Good, straight to work.  At least Asla wasn’t one for wasting his time with some long winded conversation about pointless topics.  She got an occasional nod as she explained to make sure she knew he was listening.  Some part of his mind was questioning the logic of the two of them against an adult male lion.  Naiche didn’t feel he had done well against the bear and things only went well as the other wolf apparently had more experience.  Asla? As far as Naiche knew not so much.  

Oh well.  They were only going to scare it off after all, it wasn’t some death fight.   “No questions.  Lets go”
Naiche followed alongside Asla.  The place looked fun but the dampness made it harder to pick up scents easily.  Maybe Naiche didn’t like the place as much as he thought.  His ears strained more for the slightest sounds.  As he heard the lion he felt his hackles raise up, his heart started pounding faster.  

Once they were in close Naiche glanced at Asla and started angling away from her, hoping they could start off on either side of the beast to begin with.  The adrenaline flowing through him kept suggesting just rush in but Naiche wasn’t quite that dumb.  He wouldn’t go too far without checking to make sure she agreed with the plan.  He had no plans to talk now, might as well at least surprise it, hopefully.  
"Speech"

A man of little words. Naiche had no questions. As they neared the place where the lion would be, he veered away. The girl couldn't help but make a face at his retreating back. He was soooo annoying, but she'd brought it on herself simply to annoy him back. Double edged sword, so to speak.

There was a slight clearing ahead, she knew. The heavy breathing was getting louder and the stench of cat was thick enough to taste. Why did cats stink so much? Lions in particular. Dunkans jaguar was musky too. She was glad that Ashur always smelled nice.

Creeping up to the clearing, the cream and grey girl looked through the brush. The lion was there, laying on his back, huffing and groaning as he napped. His mane was sparse and he looked a little sickly. She was surprised that the lion didn't look as old as she'd thought it was. Oops. Well, it didn't change anything.

Looking across the clearing, she sought out Naiches form. The girl gave a single nod before leaping into the clearing and instantly sinking her teeth into the closet hind knee of the cat. Her claws bit in as well as she kicked ass and shredded.

Naiche was no longer worrying about Asla or anything else.  His attention was focused on listening to each breath the cat took, making sure there was no quick change. His eyes searched it for any point of weakness and his gaze sought out the pack mate he would be fighting with.  It wasn’t ‘Asla’ now, just the other wolf who would work with him.

He was about a 90-degree angle from her.  Truth be told looking at the cat Naiche had no idea how to fight a lion.  That was a minor detail right?  If she was going for a leg then Naiche imagined it was as good of a strategy as any.  He charged in to bite at the front leg opposite the back one she took.  As soon as he bit and he saw the massive cat getting up with an intent to kill the two of them Naiche was leaping away again.  At least he had drawn blood!  

Asla clearly could do the most damage so the lithe wheat-coated wolf tried to keep the lion’s attention. So instead of trying for another bite Naiche would do his best to keep the Lion facing him.  Lunging in and dancing out and praying he always got out of the way in time.  They had both bit a leg, hopefully the pain and confusion of two wolves would be good enough.
"Speech"

Well, pain and confusion wasn't good enough. It just made the cat angry. With a snarl, it quickly leaped to its paws. Thr bites of the two wolves didn't even seem to register. And why would they? This cat was used to fighting other lions and their teeth and claws were much bigger than Asla and Naiches.

Aslatiel made a face, her brow furrowing as the thought struck that she might be in over her head this time. Ah, but she absolutely refused to admit defeat. This was her first big predator fight without her father. She had to succeed!

As Naiche kept the cat distracted Aslatiel dove forward and sank her teeth into the Achilles tendon of the lion just like she'd seen her grandmother do. The girl not only lacked the saber fangs of her brother's, but she lacked the serrated teeth that allowed Resin to slice through tendons. In the end, she just pissed the thing off.

The lion spun on a dime. She saw the giant splayed paw come at her in slow motion but there was nothing that she could do. It was so fast! Large claws ripped into her left shoulder and sent her flying through the air and out of the clearing. She didn't scream. Let's be clear about that. The airborne girl uttered a grunt of pain like a true warrior and that was that.

Asla lay there , upside down in a bush. That was probably a good thing or the lion may have come to finish her off. Since it didn't rush her, Asla gingerly began to make her way out of the shrubbery. She hissed as the wounds in her shoulder pulled. Her leg was soaked in blood already. Great. Just fucking great. Once out of the bush, she put weight on her leg. "Oww, oww, oww," she hissed again. It hurt, but she would have to power through it. Naiche needed her.

A cold drop of terror hit Naiche when he saw his partner go flying.  Another hunt where a pack mate was taken down?

Even as the thought was triggering Naiche rushed in without reserve and leapt up on two legs to sink teeth into the lion’s ear thrashing his head.  It had taken a step towards Asla but that definitely stopped it.  Naiche let go as the moment the lion stopped its forward motion and was bolting away even as the lion was lunging in sending out a paw after Naiche.

The paw swept by, Naiche found himself on the ground and was snarling and staring at the cat even as he scrambled up.  The lion had paused to roar its anger.  Naiche was too busy to think of what happened.  He could still move after all and the adrenaline had him so pumped he hadn’t felt the claw hit.  What had knocked Naiche down was the pad of the lion’s paw hitting the wolf’s rump, where as the claws had hardly done more than nick his rump and sliced instead towards the top portion of the tail. The tan colored tail had an unnatural tilt to it and blood was seeping through the fur, sticking to it.

Naiche couldn’t feel anything other than a desperate need to either get the lion away or keep it on him, preferably without the young wolf getting himself killed.  Asla wasn’t permitted to die.  No one else would die with him when attacking.  Desperation was lending to speed but it was true, he needed Asla if he had any hope of surviving as well.
"Speech"

A roar sounded and soon the rich scent of blood wafted towards her on the wind. Naiches blood. Man, if she got him killed she was going to get into so much trouble. Limping back into the clearing she saw the state of things. It looked as though Naiche was bleeding from his butt. Gross.

The girl looked about. What could she do? She couldn't make a clean attack with her leg only partially working. She had to do something different. Something sneaky. Something impactful. As the lion moved towards Naiche, it swiped again. Each time it swiped, it's tail lifted reflexively. Asla gasped. It was gross, but she knew what to do.

Limping slowly forward as quietly as she could, Asla waited for her opening. Another swipe was made towards the wheat colored male and Asla acted. Diving forward, the girl sank her sharp teeth into the balls of the lion and shook her head vigorously back and forth. There was blood in her mouth and she was thoroughly disgusted, but she knew it would work. Males were sensitive when it came to their balls. She'd kicked Indy once and thought he was going to puke.

A bellowing wail came from the big cat as he felt the first wave of pain to his jewels. Dropping his rump only pulled against the teeth which hurt even more so he had only one path open. He ran. Never had Asla seen a lion run so fast. His sudden departure had pulled her across the ground a few feet before she was able to let go. Blood coated her muzzle and poured from her shoulder. She spat out bits of lion skin, but there was a grin of triumph on her face.

Turning to Naiche, that grin shifted into a confident smirk. She began to walk towards him, but her leg gave out and she stumbled to the ground. Grey ears tucked back against her skull and she hissed. Man... that hurt! Fixing her galaxy gaze upon the man, she spoke. "I don't think I can walk. You're going to have to carry me back." Her face was completely serious, but inside she was having a fit of laughter.

Naiche was somehow managing to avoid the lion’s attacks after the one strike but tight turns seemed to be harder than before.  This could be bad.  It was for the best Naiche didn’t have time to focus on his thoughts, none of them would be positive.  Leaping away from another swing of a massive claw-filled paw Naiche was starting to feel his confidence failing.

Movement from behind them offered a small spark of hope.  If his ally wasn’t dead and was able to get back in the fight he might survive.  One wolf alone wasn’t enough for this, two might help them survive.  With renewed energy Naiche glared defiantly at the lion, once more working to keep the lion’s full attention.  There was no doubt when Asla bit the lion.  Naiche didn’t need to see her bite by the reaction on the lion’s face or how its rump dropped. Once his rump dropped Naice was able to look over and see what Asla had targeted.

Naiche stepped away in shock as the lion bolted off. Naiche’s adrenaline left about the same speed as the lion and he slumped to the ground as the reality of surviving hit him.  Now he realized he had thought he had been going to die for a moment. The pain struck at the same time, looking behind he saw the sticky mess of blood towards the base of his tell.  That explained why the tighter turns and leaps had been harder, the tail wasn’t moving as much or as easily as it should.

Once Naiche had an awareness of self he looked to the princess.  The wheat-colored wolf had checked on himself before her.  Naiche pulled himself back up, gritting his teeth as the tail reminded him it was attached to the back and it was going to feel all his movements.  As long as it didn’t stop Naiche from moving it didn’t matter right this moment. Time to check on his pack mate who seemed pretty proud of herself for all the blood coating her.  She had been the key in chasing off the lion, so maybe she had earned it.

She was walking to him with that irritating smirk, right up until she dropped.  If not for the blood and seriousness of the matter he would of smirked back as she hit the dirt.  No smirking till he knew how bad her injuries were.  He walked towards her, looking at the wound, then the blood on her mouth.  She wanted him to carry her?  Naiche wished right now he knew enough healing information to know how serious her injury was.  Though the lean wolf had to admit the injury was in a nasty spot for walking.  Considering her injury and his, the dangerousness of the mission and how she was the one who told it to him instead of Sirius or one of the other higher up’s was starting to braid itself through his mind.  Sirius was sure to know his daughter’s abilities, and he had only recently been testing Naiche and knew what his limits were as well.  “I can carry you,” Naiche agreed neutrally, “but you tried to get us both killed didn’t you?  Since we are both torn up I think I should get the truth first, don’t you?”  That said Naiche lay down, a clear sign he was in no rush.

Could he be wrong?  Naiche imagined it wasn’t impossible, but he was starting to label himself a fool.  Sirius wouldn’t send his daughter out with Naiche for something that had been so absurdly dangerous.  Since he had already taken to comparing her to his sister it wasn’t hard to imagine her lying.  His sister would run into a dangerous situation for fun without putting enough thought into consequences.  “We won this because of your last attack, I’ll grant you that.” The words stated flatly and he didn’t add in the last point they both would know.  If she had been lying then she was the reason both of them were injured and nearly killed.

Either way he’d have to carry her back soon.  This was his best chance to get a serious answer from her.
"Speech"

Asla snorted at his words and also the fact that he laid down instead of instantly jumping to help her. "If I wanted you dead, you'd be dead." It was a simple statement and a fairly true one. At least she'd told him about the lion. She could have just made it a surprise. And she had heard tell of the lion from her father. In passing, but it still came from his mouth. It was a concern. She dealt with it so that he didn't have to. Look at her, showing initiative. Now she was getting chastised for it? We'll see if she ever decided to choose him for an important mission again... Giving her purple eyes a roll, the girl lifted her left leg and painstakingly limped, one hopping step at a time, in the direction of home. It was going to take forever, but she would eventually get there. Maybe she could howl for help once she came close enough to be heard. Az would have carried her. She should have brought him instead. Naiche's voice sounded again and the cream and grey girls nose wrinkled, though she was facing away from him now. "You're welcome." Again, she could have let him die. She could have just turned away and let the lion rip the little yellow bastard to shreds. He should be thankful that she hadn't. Besides, if she let the cat kill him, then all of her plans for future bits of fun would go to waste. Asla barely made it out of the clearing before she had to sit down. Blood was streaming from her shoulder and she was feeling more than a bit light headed. How much blood did she have in her? Might be one of those things that she had to figure out. She wondered if she could find (or make) a freshly dead wolf somewhere. Hang them. Drain them. see how much red came out... Little flashes of light sparked in Asla's vision before darkness came. She passed out right there near the very bush that she had landed in earlier. "Speech"

She wasn’t going to admit to the truth.  The princess was guilty until proven innocent.  Naiche stiffened and raised his head higher as she started limping off on her own.  Pride could get a wolf killed which begged the question how was she still alive? Hypocrite.  Hadn’t Naiche also charged out here thrilled at being given such a dangerous mission?  Hadn’t Naiche let himself be tricked as it felt good to imagine they’d give him this assignment?  Worst question: how much should he blame her when he was the idiot who fell for it?

Naiche followed her, reluctantly realizing he was going to lose.  Even as Naiche thought of giving in and telling her he would carry her, Asla fell.  Of course, now she was unconscious, and it would be harder to get her on his back.  Naiche smirked imagined dragging her back but imagined that wouldn’t do her injury any good.  Thank goodness she was so small.  The thought of picking her up by the scruff was quickly thrown out due to her injury.  Moons and stars, even when she passed out, she could be a pain.

Naiche lowered his head, shoving it underneath Asla, it would either wake her so she could help, or he’d eventually get her on his back.  It wasn’t going to be a fast trek back that was for sure.  Naiche could carry her but she was heavy, and he had to make sure she stayed balanced as the last thing he wanted was the snobby princess to fall off.  All that aside her weight on his back was just one more thing that helped the tail hurt.  If not for her it would be tempting to find a spot to hide away for the night and return after he got some rest.  It was all her fault.

He was in pain and angry at himself.  He didn’t like either of those things so he would just be angry at her instead.  Naiche was going to need some new insulting terms, she was going to use up the normal ones fast.
"Speech"

The rumor of a lion nearby had caught Az's notice as well, and the young prince had arrived prepared to kill something in place of the Klein pup Chimera. It was frustrating to have a target so near and available - and tantalizingly deserving of his wrath - yet off-limits at the same time. He could not tear apart the cruel boy for his friend, so instead he'd bring her the tail of a lion and hope it was trophy enough to soothe her pain. The smell of blood grew thicker as he traversed the forest and for a disappointing moment Az had expected to see his father there, the lion in it's death throes beneath his titanic paws. He frowned but continued forward, the expression still upon his face as the bloodied stranger came into view. Fuck, late again. The near-yearling opened his mouth to bitch the man out for stealing his kill when her scent reached him, and his argument died on his lips. The smell of the Armada was thick on them both, though it did not ease his growing fury to know that the man accompanying his sister belonged to them. It did not take him long to approach the pair, each long stride of the young direwolf matching three to the smaller man's. Az brought himself right up into his space, glancing easily over Naiche's shoulder to where Asla lay unconscious and then back to meet the man's eyes. He had no intent on letting the man take even one more step while the precious Fatalis was still upon his back. "Put my sister down." A stern growl rumbled in his command, though he was forced to hold back his urge to do harm yet again. Furious as he may be, Az could not risk her being injured in the scuffle. "Now." "Speech"

The unconscious girl was vaguely aware of being jostled, but being asleep was way too nice to interrupt. She had no idea that Naiche had gotten off of his ass and had picked her up. She didn't even know that she passed out. What she did know was that the gentle swaying motion was soothing. Would that she could stay asleep for longer, but alas... consciousness knocked. For a minute, at least. Purple eyes blinked drearily, trying to clear enough to see where she was and what was happening. The first thing that she saw was the back of Naiche's big, dumb, yellow head. A smirk curled up the corners of her maw. He was actually going to carry her home. She almost laughed, but a wave of dizzy fatigue struck. Before she passed out again, she mumbled from her place atop the yellow wolf. "You probably shouldn't tell my dad that you took me to hunt lions." And then she was out. "Speech"

.

Naiche heard the heavy footsteps and could smell another wolf of the armada approaching them.  Soon enough he saw the giant as well.  Damn it, the monster didn't look happy.  Well, Naiche wasn't happy either.  He was exhausted, had fallen for the princess little lie that she wouldn't admit too, his tail ached horribly and it ran up to his spine and the dumb princess was lying on his spine.

So when the giant got into his space fear wasn't the first notion that came to Naiche.  He wanted to vent his anger, but on the flip side venting would take energy.  Instead he stood his ground despite staring straight at the guys, well chest up until he tilted his head to look up at the wolf's face.  The anger radiating was practically a physical thing.

Naiche felt his hackles raising up on their own accord from the threat.  After a moment he got that under control, but his muscles were still tense.  The pain-in-the-ass princess was on his back though, and as much as Naiche hated the truth he didn't want her falling off.  Not that he would ever admit to her he'd be considerate about it.

The wheat-coated wolf was about to tell Az what he thought of the entire situation when Asla spoke up.  Oh, so half awake she can admit the truth?  Admit the truth in a sort of twisted way.  He took her? Really?  Naiche made a silent promise to himself to beat her up for that later.  Oh yah, the next spar would get vicious.  That out of the way he looked back to Az, "Big brother coming to her rescue?  Great.  You want to injure her shoulder more? I put her down, you pick her up, its all just irritating the wound.  But if you want to hurt your sister in the name of easing your ego?" Yup, he stared up at the brute challengingly and thus far made no move to remove the shield of fur on his back"Speech"

Although he'd received the boy's command loud and clear, Naiche held his ground and made no move to obey. Az's lips curled into a threatening snarl, and he was about to spring and bite at his nose when the soft voice of his sister broke his concentration. So not only had this man stolen his lion from him, he'd drug Az's little sister and forced her to participate too? One oversized bear paw raised and Az jabbed it accusingly in Naiche's direction. "How fucking stupid must you be to bring a wolf the size of it's head to take on a lion?" He snapped. Fuck, he should have been here to help her. Maybe if they hadn't been fighting recently, Asla would have come to him and had him help keep her safe. Still the yellow man refused to release her, and Az's growl intensified. The challenge was clear, and never in his life had Az thought to back down from a fight. Asla still upon his back made that very, very hard, though he was beginning to weigh the benefits verse the risks of exactly how dangerous a position she was in should he initiate one. "You lost the right to care for her when you allowed her to be injured on your watch." The truth in Naiche's words was not something Az would outwardly admit, though he was capable of adjusting his tactic in response. Rather then continue to demand Asla's safe return to the ground, he moved forward boldly overtop the man's head, aiming to grasp little Asla gently by her scruff and forcibly remove her. Back, to mouth, to his back. Ground avoided, and thus her injury wouldn't exacerbate. Right? The maneuver put his throat in a dangerous position, though a part of Az hoped Naiche would take the bait. Once Asla was away from the male Az could force the respect he deserved. "Speech"

Aslatiel had lost quite a bit of blood. Her little shoulder was shredded and some flesh simply hung there. She'd taken a damn good swipe from the cat, but she was alive. For now. Unless the two boys with her continued to screw around. "Louuuuud," she mumbled, opening her eyes just in time to see teeth coming towards her. Big teeth. Her delirious mind felt the need to mention them. "My, what big teeth you have." Then she was scruffed and found herself floating through the air. From up above, she could see all of her blood that had leaked onto Naiche. A little giggle erupted from her and she grinned. "Darling, I think red is your color. Very nice." She would have made a gesture with her paw, some sort of 'a-ok' gesture, but she was plonked down upon a new back. A much wider back. Burying her face into the thick fur at the back of her new sofa's neck, Asla came to the realization that it was Azure that had pilfered her from Naiche. "Hi, Az." She gave her sibling as much of a hug as she could manage. Each movement pulled at the slash marks on her shoulder. "We got attacked by a kitty. Naiche saved me, then I saved him." The girl snickered and buried her face in her brothers ruff once more. Hopefully she could go back to sleep. "Speech"

“You think she can’t take care of herself?” Naiche snapped back at Az. Ok, admittedly she was torn up, so might of not been the best argument. “You see a lion around? Smell it? You might smell its blood. Your sister was pretty damn impressive in that fight and doesn’t need you deciding what she can or can’t take on.”

The right to care for her? Naiche wanted to laugh at what had to be a joke there but quite frankly the idea of laughing sounded painful and probably might make the guy snap anyway. Naiche smirked as the giant went with picking her up instead. Naiche had so carefully managed to shove himself under her to not agitate her injured shoulder. Whatever. Big brother was playing the hero.

The weight off his back was a relief. The girl was probably light for the giant but it was considerable enough for Naiche. The smaller wolf wasn’t crazy enough to attack Azure without good reason and mostly just wanted to get back to his den and rest.
At Asla’s comment Naiche gave her an irritated look, but then she felt like saying something useful, and true if you left out some details. “She did save me. I find your sister to be a complete pain overall but she’s a good fighter. Maybe next time there’s a lion you’d like to join the two of us on the fight?” Yup, rubbing it in. Naiche could think of comments to piss Az off more but was leaving those unsaid. The considerably smaller wolf knew he was pushing his luck already.
Were all the siblings such a pain in the tail? Literally?
back"Speech"

Azure was certainly feeling like a prodded bear, his lip curling further as the stranger continued his wordy assault. Asla had been deposited safely upon his back and his worry for her eased as soon as her weight relaxed into him. She was certainly small enough that maybe he could manage a quick battle before taking her home, after all she had enough room along his spine that a few sharp movements wouldn't necessarily roll her right off, right?

The near-yearling's head returned from over his shoulder where he'd placed her, rounding back upon Naiche with a threatening snarl. "Look, asshole. I don't know who you think you are, but Asla is my sister. She does not need you to be her knight in shining armor nor to vouch for her strength to someone who's known her all his life. I've slaughtered more creatures with her by my side then you could count, I know the power in her heart and paws and I am offended that you dare try to describe her fierceness to me."

He paused to let out another frustrated growl, his tone becoming mocking. "Maybe next time we find something fun to dissect you can join the two of us. You can teach me all about how great she is then." Perhaps a bit touchy, though it had been nearly a season since he and Asla had spent any time together. It was obvious she hadn't discussed Az with this new found friend of hers, nor thought to invite him to assist with the lion. Had it been so long that she was a stranger to him now? Someone who's being a random packmate needed to defend?

He was touchy.  Naiche wasn't thinking through why the giant might be touchy, technically Naiche knew but he didn't give a damn.  Perhaps if he hadn't already been in a foul mood he would have snapped at the guy, perhaps if this hadn't started with the guy getting his face he wouldn't be so snappy.  It didn't matter.  Naiche didn't like Az.  He wanted this over with though so guess he'd back down just to shut him up.  Wait - disect?

Naiche decided to save that for another day, or maybe never.  Instead he sucked in his pride for now, "Sorry, I'm upset at the lion and throwing it on you." Ok, so maybe that was a tiny but true but so so watered down with what all he was pissed off at.  "I'm sure you know your sister's abilities.  If you'll excuse me, I'm going back to my den to calm down and forget this entire day happened.  I hope she's ok." Naiche didn't like backing down, but it would be too much effort to keep up the debate and way too much effort to fight.  They were closing in on that.

Naiche expected to fight the guy at some point.  Of course a pack should be able to work as a team, which meant even if he didn't like the asshole he needed to be able to work with him when needed.  A good fight might help that in a way, but not until the pain in his tail subsided a little.  Avoiding Asla for a while would help with that.  right?""Speech"