Another day, another blessing to keep living on. He would respond to the call of the Valhallan alpha. He would move with purpose, expression light as he left the exercises he was doing. The male was happy, feeling content. His cerulean eyes were bright as he stepped along, paws pressing lightly upon the earth. He felt as if things were moving as they should... and life only looked ahead. Training with Guinevere had begun, Meili was back... and with a mate. He wasn't sure how he felt about it on a whole. Happy that she was happy and yet... he knew that he was going to have to get to know this male better. Speaking of this male, Gael, he was there at the meeting when he arrived. His sister too... Arwel would frown a little as he looked upon them. He knew he needed to spend more time with his sister... get to know her better. Get to know Gael better. He wanted to be involved with his family again... especially if he would at some point become an uncle. His mind would again start to wander and, before it settled upon that brown and white fae, he would shake his head with a low growl and padded up close to Meili and Gael and sat down. "Good day sis, Gael." He would greet them. Then his orbs would turn to Erani, dipping head respectfully to the alpha primary. "A wonderful day to you, alphess Erani." "Normal. Speech. Thought. You."

The old warrior's mind kept drifting back to the lovely day when he had shared a pleasant conversation with the white queen. With no real home he had been drifting from place to place and his constant drifting had brought him to the westward part of Alacritis. Just as he scented the strong scent of a pack a distant howl reached his ragged ears. They perked with interest and a smirk touched his muzzle. Well, it seemed that either by accident or by fate he had happened upon dear Erani's pack. He knew that kind of howl all too well, it was the call for a meeting. By the tone of it he could tell it wasn't purely just for the pack alone, it was a welcoming call for all that were friendly to the pack. What did she say it was called again? That's right, Valhalla. Conall took Erani's call as an invitation and padded forward, heading toward the sound's source. By the time he arrived there was a large gathering of wolves, but not only that, a wolf and... a mountain lion? He blinked in surprise, both at the fact that the pack that Erani lead was so large and at the fact that there were multiple species in attendance. The feline made him a bit nervous, but it seemed to be of the friendly sort so he didn't say anything. He turned his emerald gaze up toward where Erani sat atop a rock at the head of the meeting, a lop-sided smile curving at his muzzle. If he still had his tail it would have been wagging. It was always good to see a friendly face after all. He bowed his head in greeting before going around toward the back of the group to sit back on his haunches. Speech Thought

Odette was shaping into a fighter much different than she herself. It made trying to train her something she had to really think about - but so far things were going well. She had decided to wander while Odette went for her drink, shaking off the adrenaline with a short border patrol.

On the way, she had found Lyric - and immediately noted that something was off about her sister. She was her fighting instructor as well as Odette's - and she had assumed that her missing her training had either been a mistake or simply because she had no yearning to learn and fight in the first place. Odette was a fighter, Lyric was not. The younger female smiled and greeted her, but was quiet - and didn't hide her sadness well. Not one to let her family wallow if she had the chance to try and help, she would try to get to the root of the problem all while the ivory girl insisted that there was no problem....

As soon as Erani called for the pack, she knew it was hopeless. The girl had a good excuse not to tell her anything. With a sigh the Adravendi would follow after Erani's youngest, showing up at the meeting beside her. She would instantly make her way toward her daughter, her normal place to be when these meetings were called. "Odette, Alpine, Twig." She would greet each of them with a tip of her head. "I hope there's room for two more." And with that she would sit beside Odette with Lyric on her other side.

Her gaze would settle on Erani as she waited for her mother to start the meeting.

Lyric didn't want to be alone, but she didn't know how to talk to anyone anymore. He was everywhere in this pack, it would be more his home than hers if her mother wasn't leading the place. The girl couldn't find it within herself to hunt or take anyone else's well deserved meals from those that did hunt. For others she still managed to smile, but it was nearly impossible to do on her own anymore... she knew it was selfish, to be so unhappy when she was home - her family was here, they'd do anything for her... but without Alpine everything had just lost it's shine.

When Chrysanthe found her on the borders, she had wished that anyone but her sister had found her. She had a knack for reading her despite her smiling visage - and she just didn't have the heart to talk about what was on her mind. Thankfully, Erani would call for a meeting shortly after the russet faced woman started prying too hard and they would make their way to the meeting place in silence. She did her best to look chipper, and it probably would have worked without a hitch if her sister and niece hadn't decided to sit with Alpine and his acquaintance. It was hard to convince herself that she was just his friend - she was gorgeous, small and probably much better to him than she had been during her short time as his mate.

She would meet all eyes but Alpine's as she took her seat on her sister's other side, sighing as she look down at the ground. Being in the same meeting as him shouldn't make her want to cry! The girl was silent while waiting for her mother to address the pack, her mind wandering enough for her expression to fall slack without her noticing.

Uphill struggle, blood sweat and tears

Tyr's head lifted from it's position - he was curled up in a ball, nose buried against his side, trying and failing to get the sleep he'd been denied the last few nights running from strange dreams - as Erani's call pierced the cloud of partial deafness. A pack meeting? He uncurled himself, yawning, and got to his paws to trot toward the sound. It was easy enough... unlike many of the wolves here he had never really slept in a real den so he was most comfortable just curled up out on the ground, so the open grassland here was rather suited to him really.

He was moving along at a pretty good clip despite his limp when he approached the gathering pack. His mismatched eyes swept over them idly as he went... then widened in shock as his gaze caught on a pair of strange moose-like animals without antlers - one smallish though considerably taller than a wolf, and one huge and black. So surprised was he failed to compensate for the shorter foreleg on his next step, and tripped. He was sent tumbling forward by his momentum, careening off one wolf and crashing into another. "What are they?" he gasped aloud, trying to untangle his limbs.

Then he realized that he was now in the midst of the pack and causing a disruption, and his ears fell. "I - I'm sorry," he stuttered to the wolves he'd bounced off, backing away and slumping to his belly in embarrassment.

OOC: I don't care who he fell on, it can just be Random Wolves if no one wants to claim it. XD *flees*



"Speech"

Nothing to gain, everything to fear

Not as fast as he wanted, Deviant would rise from his resting place at the call of the Alphess of Valhalla. Quick on his paws, the male didn't want to arrive late to the first meeting since being accepted, tail swinging behind him. Within a matter of minutes the distance between him and the group would dwindle till they all began to come into view. One thing was certain as he approached, he was both amused and surprised at the number of wolves that the pack housed, and some not entirely of the canines species. It was interesting to see that a horse was in the group, along with a large feline. He couldn't help but chuckle at this. His pace slowed to a casual walk, stopping just a few feet away to find a spot to sit. Unfortunately he would be unable to sit beside his children, the large amount of wolves would make it difficult for his large frame to maneuver around without knocking somebody down. So he would move forward and sit on the outer edge of the crowd, smiling at each of his children before turning his attention to Erani. "normal. speech. thought. you."

Brows furrowed upon arriving at the gathering spot, aqua eyes scanning over the many faces of her pack mates. Only a couple were important to her however, those of her family. From the looks of it however, it seemed Isis was the first of them to arrive. Lips pulled back in a grin when she realized this, a small part of her happy to know she was able to beat them here, she was first! Tail wagged at the thought, head rocking from side to side to a silent tune in her head. With a short attention span though, her mind would move onto something else, and that something else was a strange creature [obsidian] standing amongst the wolves. Eyes narrowed, focusing in on the dark creature. Was it here waiting for the meeting to start also? Why was it here when it wasn't like the others? A guest? Prey they were fattening up till they decided to eat it? Curiosity gnawed at the young girl, and within seconds she managed to find a long stick that she would use to inspect the odd creature. So carefully she moved away from the small hill she stood atop, crouching low to the ground as she made her way around the crowd of wolves. Quickly but silently, hopefully unnoticed she would go and stop a few feet behind the creature, gaze not leaving it for a split second. And then she moved in. Slowly she would tip toe forward, stick held tightly in her jaws, straight up, aiming to poke the horse in a hind leg. "Speech"

Of all his luck, it was Thor who Tyr ran into. The brute had settled down a decent distance from Erani and was just beginning to look over the Valhallans when he was struck from behind. The blow was relatively light, like he'd been hit by a child, so instead of standing, the brute merely glanced over his shoulder. It was only once his eyes settled on the wolf who ran into him that he fixed on an emotion. Anger. It had been months since he'd last seen the little coward, but there he was, cowering before him. Thor stood up and turned to loom over the patchy wolf. With an icy tone, he answered Tyr's question. "Those," The word was hissed out between clenched teeth, "Are horses." To Tyr's next statement, the brute spat out, "You should be." Thor felt many things for his gimpy brother, but compassion wasn't one of them. Perhaps it had been at one point, but no longer. Tyr had long ago used up all his sympathy. Now nothing remained by a mixture of pity and anger. Thor's hackles lifted. The sudden appearance of his brother had startled him, so he had yet to settle on a course of action, but make no mistake, he had a lot to be angry for and the cause of a great deal of his misfortune was well within reach. Hissing, he breathed, "You little bastard." Speech

She was late, very late. She had heard Cael leave, her heart dropping to her gut as he didn't wait for her. She watched his back, leaving through sleep hazed eyes. Her head felt so stuffy, everything seemed cloudy to her. She groaned softly as she slowly moved her limbs under her. Everything felt so stiff and sore like she had been fighting all the day before. Her nose felt stuffy and she sniffled a few times. Amia laying next to her was awake at once. The girl was in a rush gathering certain herbs Imena could not properly focus on. This girl was quick and certain as she laid out herbs her Imena to lap up. They need not speak because both knew she had come down with something. After much arguing they had slowly made they're way to the meeting. They had to have been the last ones. Amia stuck to her shoulder the whole time but Imena found it unnecessary but said not to the caring girl. Silently they entered the gathering, Imena's eyes looking to Erani in apology. On the outskirts she sat down heavily with a sigh that turned into a cough. Licking her lips she would remain in the edge not wanting to give anyone her cold but still able to hearing everything. She nudged Amia away, murmuring for her to go mingle. Speech Thought Others

Amia Tulip

She had awoken to the sniffles of Imena laying next to her. A quick look to the dark female said she had come down with something overnight. It did not seem serious so the basic herbs were all that were needed till she could see how well they took effect. And though Amia thought it best for Imena to stay behind, the older female insisted she had to go. She could do nothing but follow and press against her. For how ill she looked Imena moved steadily and determined to get them to the meeting. As they got there her head would lower. As Imena nudged her onwards she stumbled hesitantly into the crowd. She felt so lost not being by Imena's side. She meandered around lost as to where to go or to even talk to. She realized she didn't really know anyone here. Tail hung down and blue orbs darted about. She felt like she saw drowning in a sea of faces. She heard someone snap out at another and turned to look at a patch work of black and red wolf on the ground. She snorted and marched over, eyes glaring at the disgruntled one."Is that the way someone treats their packmate?! Grow up and next time help your pack mate instead of snapping at them cause you cant get your head out of your rear!" Her snapped at the brown wolf, Thor. Looking down at Tyr she would gently nose him with a smile."Come on, lets go sit somewhere were we are more appreciated." She said softly and waited for him to get up and be there to offer him help.

Eria was late, as usual, but that didn't stop her from appearing near the outskirts of the gathering. Erani had called while she was in the middle of taking care of Erion's leg. The bones were still healing and the skin was definitely showing no signs or symptoms of infection, but she still monitored him daily. She left her son with Friction, for she knew that Erion needed the company and plenty of topics to discuss. Healing held plenty of topics and that was definitely something her son wouldn't mind. After hunting for the two of them and loving nuzzle to her boys, she set out. The meeting hadn't taken place yet, but she knew it was getting close. As she scanned the wide variety of wolves involved, she saw the crouching form of her daughter. Apparently, Isis was going to experiment with a stick on the unnoticing form of Obsidian. Eria shook her head and hid the grin that was trying to display itself on her face. She knew her daughter was curious, but there were other ways to find out answers! Silently, she approached the young girl. She reached Isis right before the girl could attempt anything with the pretty horse. "Isis!" she whispered loudly, tones filled with a slight urgency and incredulity. She raised both eyebrows and lightly nudged her daughter against her neck. "We have a meeting to sit in for. You can meet Obsidian later." Without indicating there was any trouble, she promptly nudged Isis in front of her, making sure that she would be by her side until the meeting was dispersed. Eria took a few steps forward, ushering the six-month-old child with her to a spot that hadn't been claimed. She realized Isis still had the stick in her mouth and playfully tugged it with her own mouth. Eria enjoyed spending time with her daughter, even if the playful moments intervened with the serious ones. Speech

The autumn air was cool, luckily for the trio that were patrolling the moorelands. He, Caerul, & Sephiroth had gone on a scour of the lands, to make sure they were safe from violent rogues or spies that might be a danger to Valhalla. After hearing about the male that was their prisoner, they were taking no chances. Leon would never forgive himself if someone had hurt Ash, and he wasn't around to help her. A shudder rippled down his spine at the thought, and immediately his mind swept to her. Was she alright? Had she eaten yet? Was she awake? Did she notice he was gone? They had gone out early, and he had placed upon her a brow a tender kiss before departing. If she decided to be mad, he would bring her back something to eat as an apology, though they seemed to be nearly done with their task.

He followed at a short distance from the other pair, eyes and ears alert for signs of danger, though there seemed to be none so far. It was then that Erani's familiar call would stop the trio, their heads lifting in unison and as one, would make their way to the meeting. "You think she'll be mad that we're way out here and late?" He would pant, his legs pumping as the three sped across the lands. It was Erani, Caerul had reassured him that she had a great deal of patience. Of course she wouldn't be mad unless it was absolutely of great importance and urgency.

They were nearing the location, and to his relief they weren't too late, although most of the entire pack seemed to already be gathered. He slowed his pace, tongue dripping from the mad dash they had just taken, and immediately cool blue eyes would seek out his beloved. Ashtoreth was with Erani, was she telling her about the news? Without a second thought, he weaved his way through the crowd until he was at Ashtoreth's side, affectionately nuzzling her neck before facing Erani, tail wagging. "Hello Erani, Have you heard the news?" He greeted quietly, eyes returning to the form of his mate, warmth and love clearly evident.

"Pray" The journey to what was once unknown had been fruitful. Erani had secured a peace treaty, as well as two children who were of Valhallan blood. At least, as far as he knew. He remembered the battle that had gone on the day he had arrived in Alacritis, between Valhalla and Glaciem. The challenger had demanded two children, and he could only guess that the reason was they must have been half bloods of the other pack as well. Even so, it was not right to tear children away from their mother without a choice. His attention pulled from wandering thoughts as Erani spoke, and he would nod his confirmation as he followed closely behind her. She seemed to have much on her mind, and wondered what it was that she had up her sleeve. However, he would not dwell upon it for now. They would arrive home, Erani heading straight for the boulder that served as the head of the meeting place. She called for the pack to assemble, and he would would move past her to take a seat near the front, however, leaving room for the more important members of the pack. It was all fine for him; he was used to being of unimportance...even to his own family. He waited patiently for others to arrive, and in short time they would do so. He glanced around briefly as each wolf took a spot, some he recognized, while others he did not. Ashley would arrive with a male, and he would cast a curios gaze as a feeling unnamed rose in his chest. She was...unusually close to this male, close to someone he had never met...he wasn't sure what was going on, although he could take a guess. His fur prickled with unease, and he wanted badly to go to her and move her away, to be the protective brother he had grown to be. But he would remain glued to the spot. Shortly after, his brother Crucifix would show...though not even a look was cast his way as he seemed to only look for their sister. He turned away, a strong feeling of something he didn't know clenching at his chest. Perhaps he was hated. Everyone did seem drawn to her...and yet, he was the one that had taken care of them all. As his gaze continued to the other side, he noticed a figure appearing through the trees, brows knitted together as recognition hit almost immediately. "Dad?" His breath would come out in a whisper, wondering if his mind was playing tricks on him now. Was he really here? Or was it a figment from his tired mind? No, he was real. The scent told him so. He rose, moving through the crowd until he was seated next to his father, breath holding as he stared. The emotions swirling within him were overwhelming, he was happy to see his Father alive and well...oh so very happy. His tail wagged, the boy pressing against his Father's cross marked shoulder as he nuzzled his neck for a brief moment. "I'm glad to see you are safe and well, I've missed you.." "Speech", Thought, "You"

The young man had been out early, stalking a small deer for most of the night. He hadn't really slept well as he had wanted to practice his stealth. Tracking the creature down had been easy however, keeping it from detecting him was much more difficult. He had found himself up wind or stepping on something that gave away his position four or five times, each time reasulting in him having to re-track his 'prey'. Finally he would get it right for more than just a few minutes. Before not he could only remain undetected for a tops of around two minutes, so far ot had been about six minutes. He had no intention of killing the small thing as he wasn't hungry but he had needed the practice. He was almost ready to leap out as if her were actually going to attack when Drank called a meeting. Instantly her voice made him stand strait up, ears perked and swiveling as he attempted to pinpoint her position. Behind him the small deer would take of through the brush. Silently he would curse himself for making yet another rookie mistake, yet the moment he pinpointed his queen's position he loped happily to her. He had been panting lightly as he arrived but the sight of the big black, hooved beast, Racine's mouth snapped shut and his ears went back against his skull. His tail lowered and instantly fear made him want to leave. Many others had arrived before himself and it wasn't hurting them, so why was he so God damned afraid. It was childish of him to fear the allie that Erani clearly welcomed. White ears would pricked back up and one would turn toward the black beast. Forcing himself the man would set his tail at a friendly sway as he approached Drank, a smile would be on his face as he bowed respectfully to the queen but fear would still be evident. No matter how much he feared the dark allie his parents teachings would not allow him to be disrespectful, he would not allow himself to be disrespectful. And it was at the base of her bolder that he felt the safest so that is where he would stay until he could build up enough courage to go face his fear. Speech,

Baldur was finally feeling back to normal. After a sudden illness he'd been out of commission for quite awhile and then the recovery period kept him slow and docile. At last though he was feeling better and when Erani gave the call he moved to answer. After the meeting he'd discuss with her the plans he had to go home and retrieve his twin from the cursed homeland he'd been born in. Of course? as he arrived his pace slowed at the sheer amount of wolves. Valhalla was growing very close to it's ability to main a healthy population with the current territory. Would he even be allowed to return with Hodr? If he were completely honest with himself the size of Valhalla was beginning to make him a bit uncomfortable. While the wolves here were kind and honorable the size was all to reminiscent of the scale of Hroovitnir's empire and the misery that dwelled with in it. Shaking his head he moved to stir the memories back into their corners. Erani was kind and wise and Odette was simply amazing. Plus Thor was here and now Loki was and he was an uncle and?. and it was all a bit overwhelming but in a good way. Speaking of? Baldur's eyes fell on Thor and he started to make his way over to his older brother when a familiar scent struck him into stillness. Mottled rust and black came into his vision as his fur and hackles rose, the air around the snowy brute seeming to go cold. His eyes with their icy color seemed to sharpen and narrow dangerously as he fixed his gaze on Tyr. He loathed the little wretch in ways he neither could understand nor explain. However, Baldur would not doubt his intuition and everything in his core was screaming at him not to trust his crippled brother that the other had done something unspeakable horrible and he was to be avoided at all costs. So what was he doing in Valhalla? A growl slipped from his maw as he moved up next to Thor, watching Amia lead Tyr off. "That little bastard?. what the hell is he doing here?"

ooc: Laz, wasn't sure if you wanted to trigger him before or after. I'm cool with whenever though it might be easier to do it now since Val needs the room.

Sephiroth

He came in behind Leon, the chocolate brown mixed male seeming to have a very quickened pace today. He wondered what could possibly have the male so eager to get back home, and an exchanged glance of raised brows with Caerul told him the Digamma had the same thought as well. A smile curled his lips briefly as he strode alongside the other pair. Erani had called a meeting, and he wondered what could possibly be new this time. Asides from the new members, of course, for Valhalla had grown and to him, personally, was beginning to grow quite cramped. He would think of things to put into place soon, for the pack needed a change of pace in fighting skills among other things. As Beta Secondary, it was his and Surreals place as well as the Digammas to set up schedules, and so perhaps he would announce a major one during this meeting. He would arrive, slowing behind Leon as the other male went straight to his mate. Sephiroth gave a brief nod to Caerul before then going towards the front of the pack, sitting next to Erani. "Erani, apologies for lateness. I was ensuring our borders were safe on the other side." He cleared his throat then, as his gaze cast out towards the rest of the pack for a moment before looking back at her. "I would like to announce some upcoming training sessions, if you'll permit me." He murmured to her. He would do his best to begin training everyone, either as groups or one on one depending on their comfort levels. He would ensure everyone got the necessary training they needed, for one never knew what might happen next.

The call rang out, and Caerul followed swiftly alongside the other two males. He had gone out with Sephiroth on a mission to ensure the borders were safe, few lingering scents had been nearby, though none had crossed the borders. It didn't take long for them to arrive, and green eyes watched as the other two went to their spots; Leon with his mate and Sephiroth at his Aunt's side. Caerul searched out his family, a smile coming upon him as he made to sit with Alsander. He turned to nuzzle his brother, a light hearted chuckle produced from his barreled chest. "How goes it brother?" It had been a while since he spent any quality time with his family, and he missed it. Cael had mentioned that Claire had found a mate, had children, and settled down somewhere. He was happy for her, although he wished she had said goodbye at the very least. He wondered then, how the rest of his family felt about it.. Speech

Rikku

The time she had been spending with the midnight mare was becoming more and more welcome to the young girl. She enjoyed the mares company, the course of time she spent with her, the little girl saw her as her Mother and friend. The mare had taken her in, cared for her and saved her from starvation and certain death. Now, she lived among the sharp toothed creatures that she came to know as Wolves, something that seemed unnatural since their kind hunted her kind, but she didn't know that yet. She was as innocent as innocent could be. She had made friends here with Odette and Erani, and she grew quite fond of them already. She couldn't wait to make more friends, and explore and play with them! Now though, she would be going to her first meeting. Head would lift at the sound of Obsidian's call, and immediately she would saunter over and follow the mare. She remained at her side, her stilt like legs pumping her alongside the larger mare as they made their way to the meeting grounds. Many scents would fill the air as they neared, she would begin to slow in her steps though moved closer to the mares side. She felt wary, slightly unnerved despite her outgoing curiosity and nature, she had never been around so many before. As they came into the throng of wolves, she gave a shy and nervous squeal. Hazel eyes roamed around all the figures, several of them catching her attention, however. Maybe she would meet them later! There were lots of colors, sizes, kids, and so much more! Slowly, her curiosity would rise, nostrils flaring to catch every scent she could but there was so many! It was hard to pick out whose was whose. Returning her attention forward again, she followed Obsidian to a familiar friend, her first friend in fact. "Odette!" She neighed, excited to see her friend. Her tail wagged behind her, the girl prancing to her side and nuzzling against the other girls shoulder.

Erani Adravendi

First to arrive to her call was Valerius, and as the son of Cairo and Alice greeted her, Erani smiled warmly in response. ?Good morning, Valerius. My apologies for waking you so early.? Deep blue pools sparkled with gentle laughter as she spoke, and then her eyes fell upon the next to arrive. Alpine. Something was off. He arrived with Twig at his side, and Lyric was not there at his side. That, and he looked.. Guilty. Ashamed. Her eyes narrowed, and she began to move toward the male, but the appearance of none other than Azalea halted the chilling steps of a suspicious mother. She was glad to see Azalea back, no matter how prideful the young female could be, often acting before thinking. Sarak was a good match for her, if the two were still mated: he was the humbleness to Azalea?s prideful nature. He?d keep her out of the worst trouble, at least. As Azalea met her eyes and spoke, Erani smiled. ?And I am glad to see that you are alive and well. It?s good to see you home again.? She stepped forward, lowering her head to nose Azalea?s brow. ?I?ve some news that should put any worries you have for your sons safety to rest.? The tones were low, only for Azalea?s ears, before she rose to settle upon her haunches on the boulder once more, a glance flicking toward Alpine before she turned her attention to the arrival of Meili, whom she greeted with a warm smile in return of the nod. Cael was shortly after Meili, and Erani smiled at her youngest nephew. Perhaps someday, Claire would be back, and perhaps with a mate and children at her side. Odette arrived next, for once not attached to Chrysanthe?s hip, though Erani had no doubts that Odette would possibly deviate toward her mother upon her arrival to the meeting. Glancing over the small group, Erani noted Twigs slight nervousness, and the way she sat closer to Alpine. She knew the female would come out of her shell someday, and show them all what she was made of, so Erani didn?t mind the nerves. After all, it was the first meeting Twig must have ever been to, and there were a lot of strangers from Twigs point of view. Erani clearly remembered her own first pack meeting in Starlite. So many new faces. Her eyes lighted upon Emer?s small frame, a small smile pulling across her face as the Mother took a seat beside Valerius. Cormalin arrived, pausing to speak with Cael, before he came to her seat and hopped his front end up onto the stone of the boulder. His nose found her shoulder, and Erani bent her head to snug her nose into his neck, tail sweeping the stone gently. ?Oh have you? I can hardly wait, brother dearest.? She smiled at him as he pulled away and settled nearby. Surreal was next to arrive, and Erani noticed at once that her daughter was excited. And as Surreal took her place beside Erani as the Beta Primary,, and leaned in to speak to her, Erani grinned at her words. ?Oh have you, my little one? I look forward to meeting them.? She smiled gently, noting Alsander, who had arrived with Surreal and gone to greet Cael. Alsander had taken the seat of the Digamma Secondary, and was now staring hard at Alpine. So it wasn?t just herself who was noticing something off. Sarak arrived with some rabbits, dropping one in front of Emer, a second at her own paws, for which she smiled thankfully, aware that she hadn?t eaten since late yesterday. Lastly, he confirmed her hopes that he and Azalea were still mates be taking the third rabbit to Azalea, settling quite close to her and obviously entranced by her. A smile pulled at her muzzle, before her turned her attention to the arrival of Obsidian with Rikku. A smile was cast to the two equines, before she saw Vahva going to speak to Obsidian. It was good to see Night?s daughter smiling so much. Vahva went to see Azalea, and then a stranger arrived. By the way Surreal?s body began wriggling, Erani guessed that this young male was the wolf Surreal wanted to introduce. She grinned at the male with a knowing expression, eyes flicking with his to Surreal. ?Be welcome, young male. I?d like to get to know you.? Deep blue gaze followed the male for a moment as he found a spot at the back of the crowd, before they flicked to the movement of Gael?s arrival. Directly after him, came Ashtoreth, and Erani?s attention zeroed in on her Psi Primary, noting the mixture of anxiety, pleasure at seeing Meili back, and then the way she seemed to attempt to act casual as she spoke. The news brought a smile to Erani?s face. She could understand Ashtoreths nerves. Not every female sang their way through pregnancy as Erani had, greeting every new change and development with bated breaths of excitement. While Erani knew Ashtoreth to be a strong wolf, with a steady head on her shoulders when it came to hunting, she also knew the shy side of the Psi Primary. She dipped her head, offering a reassuring nuzzle to Ashtoreth?s forehead. ?Congratulations. Savor every moment while you can. Before you know it, years will have passed, and your children will be grown.? Her head cocked toward Surreal for reference. Her eyes flicked up, noting the arrival of Crucifix, Twig and Jinxx?s younger brother. Speaking of the Black family, where was the father? Her eyes flicked about to see if Deviant had snuck in, but instead caught the furtive movement of the tawny body belonging to Laila, the cougar Erani had given territory to in the gorge. For now, she allowed the big cat to be unacknowledged, as she was sure Laila wanted so far. Arwel?s arrival brought the small smile to a fuller stretch upon her maw as he settled in, greeting his sister and soon to be official Brother in law, Gael. And to you, Arwel. I hear you attended the pack hunt of late. Thank you for your attendance.? A rewarding acknowledgement of his services, and a thinly veiled rebuke to those who had not attended the pack hunt. Some had good reason, like her brother and his sons, out doing other things to assure the packs welfare, but Valhalla needed its attendances at these sorts of things. A wiry, scarred, and tailless black frame caught her eye, and a grin cracked her jaws wide as she recognized Conall, a rogue she?d met in the Orchard, a southern territory that lay near Seracia?s territory. Of course, she was completely unaware of the changed going on for Valhalla?s sister pack. ?Conall. Welcome.? It was then that Chrysanthe and Lyric arrived. Erani smiled faintly, as Chrysanthe went straight to Odette. The smile vanished at once as Erani saw her youngest daughter. Erani was a master at reading body language. It was part of her training both in healing, and the mentoring her first Alpha had given her. Lyric was in pain. And it wasn?t physical. The way she refused to even look at Alpine settled Erani?s mind. Something had gone wrong. And Lyric had suffered because of it. Erani felt the rage slide through her veins, and felt Surreal tense beside her, both Alpha Primary and Beta Primary zeroing in on Alpine?s face. Tyr?s arrival saved Alpine a great deal of pain and public shaming, the young male stumbling into Thor, and Thor?s reaction, catching Erani?s attention. The icy deep blue gaze flicked to the large brown male, a warning of hell to come if he caused trouble. Erani?s mood had soured with the realization of her daughters pain, and she would not brook violence upon someone who would be unable to fight for himself. Deviant arrived and Erani removed the stare from Thor to give Deviant a nod, pulling a smile onto her face. Isis? arrival thawed the ice in Erani?s eyes as the young pup crept up toward Obsidian, holding a stick, her intentions clear. Isis? mother, Eria saved Obsidian from a ?surprise, but Erani had seen the black mare?s ear turn backward, Isis clearly within her range of sight. Imena and Amia?s arrival nearly coincided with Erias, and Amia scolded Thor for his behavior toward Tyr. Erani turned her attention away, calling out to Eria. ?Friction is staying with Erion this meeting?? Leon arrived with Caerul and Sephiroth; they seemed to work well as a patrol group, often working the borders together. Three strong fighters who were loyal to Valhalla. She supposed the three, or at least two of them, could use a promotion of sorts. There wasn?t much to go up from where they were. Not at the moment, of course. This meeting would change that. As Leon approached her, Erani smiled at his words. ?Yes, Ashtoreth just told me. Congratulations, both of you.? Her anger of a few moments before was set aside in preference for greeting her pack warmly. She noticed Jinxxs reaction as he saw his father, a soft smile crossing her maw. It was always good to see happy reunions. Ravine arrived, saw Obsidian, and found a place near the boulder Erani and Surreal sat upon. A soft chuckle left the Alpha Primary?s muzzle. ?She won?t hurt you, Ravine. She helped nanny my pups when they were small. Her name is Obsidian. You should get to know her.? Baldur arrived, and Erani noticed the hostile looks he directed at Tyr. She moved quietly, descending from her perch and approaching the two brothers, reaching them in time to hear Baldur?s remark. ?Tyr is here, because he is a member of my pack. And I suggest you put whatever reasons from the past you have to hate him in the past. He was here first, and I will not allow you to harm him. Valhalla is a place of new beginnings. If you can?t let go of old grudges, Baldur, then you are free to leave. Thor as well. We need warriors, but we don?t need wolves who will attack their own pack mates. That was a condition of your acceptance into my family, and I expect you to uphold that, or get out.? Her words were stated in a chilling undertone to the two males, deep blue meeting blue and green pairs of gazes evenly, her posture showing all Queen. ?If you have any concerns about him being a danger to Valhalla, then you are welcome to discuss it with me in my den.? She turned in a fluid movement, padding toward her boulder, but pausing before Alpine. The fury in her eyes as they pierced the lighter blue gaze of the pale male was far more frigid that he would have ever experienced, and it promised retribution for the broken heart of her daughter. A cold stare so deep that it would have crackled. ?I don?t know what happened between you and my daughter, but I can guess, and you are warned now. As much as she is hurting right now, so you will hurt for every tear she sheds.? It was issued in a malevolent hiss, for his ears only. Then she continued on her way to her seat, leaping in one fluid bound to her place on the boulder and turned to face her pack, leaning her head toward Sephiroth as he spoke to her. Her face was devoid of the fury, the icy rage leashed tightly and well hidden. ?Of course, Sephiroth. I will be interested to see how many actually attend, and who slacks out of it.? Her voice was low, and she smiled slightly at her Beta Secondary. ?I have a great deal to announce for the pack, including a great deal to do with ranks. I?m sure Surreal has let you in on some of the upcoming changes. Unless of course she?s been too distracted by young love to remember?? She spoke just loud enough for Surreal to hear, a gently teasing note in her voice. The sheepish look on her daughters face said that was a possibility, and Erani chuckled. ?Don?t worry, daughter, I have news for you, too.? Her deep blue gaze left her daughter to sweep the crowd, noting the extended absence of Newol, as well as Guinevere not being there. Themisto was gone as well. Shilah she had seen off to continue the tradition of his birth pack, his allegiance remaining with Valhalla. Friction and Erion were excused, as Erion was down with a broken leg, and Friction would be caring for him. There were new faces, and old faces returned. Her head lifted high, addressing her pack with a warm, loving smile, and a voice that carried, with no need to shout. ?Valhallans, friends. Firstly, and as always, I thank those who have come today, so early in the morning, to hear what I have to say. It is always a great boon to my heart to see you standing here so strongly before me. I am proud of you. As you know, there was an earthquake that shook Alacritia. It opened a rift near the center of the continent. During the quake, there were many who were injured, not just in our pack, but likely in many others, and many rogues as well. May they have survived and may they heal swiftly. And within Valhalla, we encountered injuries. And acts of courage. Erion, son of Friction and Eria. Surreal, daughter of myself and my late mate Nova. Alpine.? Her eyes turned to the male, her eyes reserved. ?A Warrior of the pack. Duing the earthquake, young Erion had wandered away, and as the rift opened, he fell into what I hear is now called Decensum. In the fall, he broke one of his legs. ?Alpine, to whom I granted mentorship of the pup, happened to be nearby leapt in after Erion, as so happened, my Daughter and Beta Primary, Surreal, was and did likewise. Yet, from what I hear, it was Erion, a pup, who showed the greatest courage of all. He urged both adults to go and get out of danger, rather than get hurt worse than they already had. Alpine Stayed with Erion, and Surreal left to get help. For these acts, I will commend all three of you. Alpine, I promote you to a new rank; Digamma Tertiary.? How long he would keep that rank would depend on his actions, and how much her daughter hurt from whatever he had done. ?Surreal wishes to train Erion to follow in her place as Beta Primary. I grant this wish. As for Surreal? It is high time I chose an Heir. That wolf will be Surreal.? Surreal?s jerk of surprise was followed by a pressure of her weight into Erani?s side. A silent acceptance. Surreal would do her best to lead Valhalla when Erani died, or stepped down. ?Now, on to the next subject. A few days ago Jinxx Black and I journeyed to the Rift left by the earthquake. There, we encountered many interesting things. Thankfully, thus far, we have found no secret ways into Valhalla. However, I intend to have wolves continue searching for ways in, just in case.? Erani paused, eyes flicking to the wolves before her, before she continued. ?While exploring, we encountered Sendoa Armada, Queen of Glaciem. She had been injured by a splash of lava from what is now known as Hells River. So I took advantage of the situation. Valhallans, I have settled a Peace Treaty between Valhalla and Glaciem. It will last two years, and Luna help any wolf that disobeys the terms. Because I will be the wolf who deals with that antagonist..? Her voice chilled to frigid ice, leaving no doubt that the punishment would be severe. ?I have also arranged the return of Soren and Kismet Adravendi to Valhalla.? As she spoke on, her voice returned to its normal ?temperature?, and she smiled toward Sarak and Azalea. ?I will be sending Sarak to collect them directly after this meeting. Azalea, if you wish to go with him, you most certainly may.? Her eyes lifted and she addressed the pack at large once more. ?Valhallans, just because we are under a peace treaty, does not mean that we will slack in any of our training. We lost the last war because we were not ready, and were caught off guard. We had many injured, and two wolves died for our war, one of them an innocent bystander. I don?t want this happening again. While we will be an outwardly peaceful pack, we will train every day for battle. Whatever Sendoa promises, I do not have the stupidity to trust that Isardis won?t attempt some sort of backstabbing maneuvers. Be on guard. ?Patrols will continue as normal, three to four wolves a group on the borders, and sentries on the caves, though you will have assistance. Valhallans, The Mountain Lion, Laila, is our ally, and I have granted her territory in the Whisperers Gorge. She had promised not to attack us, or harm us, so long as we do her the same. We also have an ally in Obsidian, the horse you see standing here. She fought in the war beside our warriors. Get to know her and befriend her. Her young counterpart is Rikku, her adoptive daughter. Protect that foal with your lives if need be.? It wasn?t a suggestion. It was an order. She caught Obsidian?s eye and the mare gave her a relieved smile of gratitude.. Erani smiled back, then addressed her pack. ?As you might have noticed, There are some new ranks. To each high rank, I have added two more positions. These will be the second pairs, who will be the relief for the Primary pairs. They are Tertiary and Quaternary. I have also added to positions for Advisors. They will be just as the name suggests, and they will also be the heads of messengers, and messengers themselves. They will be the history keepers, so our legacies may continue on to newer generations. There are new ranks, such a Mothers, for our females who are either pregnant, or nursing pups. If you wish for a more in depth explanation for any of the new ranks, by the way, feel free to ask me, and I will explain anything you need to be explained. I have divided our Gamma, Eta, and Sigma ranks into several different categories for each rank. And a Messengers rank. We now have Apprentice ranks for each vocation, and for the lowest ranking, we have four: Omegas being the least severe of punishments, and Death Row being the worst. I hope I may never see any of you needing to be subjected to this punishment. The list is as follows. Omega, The Exiled, Prisoners, and Death Row.? She waited until she felt the pack had absorbed her flood of information, before continuing. ?I have many new faces to introduce you to, and a few old faces returned. I wish to welcome Deviant Black, and Twig Black, father and sister to Jinxx Black. Baldur and Thor, I welcome you to Valhalla. Emer, and her newborn children, Cecily, Taddeo, and Signy. Quintus, my grandson through Epiphron Adravendi. I would like to welcome home Azalea Adravendi, Meili and Gael Adravendi,. There are also a few faces who have departed, or gone missing. Please, keep your eyes open for the wolf, Flamesong. He has been missing for quite some time, and I worry for him. Shilah, one of our healers, has continued on his way to continue his Nomadic traditions.? Her eyes flicked across the allied rogues, a smile cast toward Conall. ?I would also like to introduce a few allied rogues. Conall, Crucifix Black, brother to Twig and Jinxx Black. And the young male you see back there?? Surreal supplied the name, and Erani nodded. ?Falk. Feel free to come and go, and help with anything you wish in the pack. ?There are also wolves living beyond our borders. They are to be protected by Valhalla and shown kindness.? She paused, considering all that she had said, then nodded to Sephiroth. ?Sephiroth has an announcement to make.? She stepped back, giving the Beta Secondary the floor. Walk ---- "Speak" ---- "Hear" ---- Think

Sephiroth

More would find themselves in the meeting. Sephiroth sitting patiently, though watching Erani as she greeted those that arrived. He watched her move towards the male beside the cross marked girl, wincing at what he was about to be told...for he knew Erani was not happy. He could feel the daggers pouring from her pelt, and he would hate to ever be caught in her line of sight. Nothing good ever came from an angry Erani, and to have pissed her off meant you really had to have done something to get her angry attention. He had also noticed her speaking to another pair, brothers who loathed each other perhaps? The white male with the black socks and black mark on his eye seemed to be in trouble by the looks of it, and if Erani was upset then perhaps he too should keep a better eye on the members to report anything to Erani. He would not tolerate any hostility within the pack, and there would be consequences for those who started petty things. Other then the few other introductions he heard from her, his attention would be pulled when she finally started the meeting. There were many faces he had not seen, new members and others that had disappeared and reappeared. Some were close friends of his, Leon & Caerul mainly since they worked closely together. Though others he didn't know too well, and wanted to change that some time soon. He was a Beta after all, and what good was it to not know those you lived with? She would talk about the new ranks, new members, many other things that were new. She would speak to him, and he was excited and somewhat nervous for when it came time to make his announcement. He knew some of the members didn't particularly care, but if they were to remain here then they had best start putting in their efforts. She talked about the treaty, and his face would show mild surprise. He had never expected Glaciem to do such a thing, but he supposed the so called Sendoa felt indebted to the healer for aiding her, that or she felt outnumbered with two Valhallans before her. Either way, hopefully Valhalla would have some peace finally, after the aftermath of the war. She mentioned the earthquake, and that memory in itself was kind of frightful. He had emerged safely from it, though others had been badly injured. Finally, after everything was said and done, Erani would give him the chance to speak. He stepped forward, dipping his head to her in thanks before turning his attention to the pack. "Good day, everyone. I would just like to announce that within the next few days I will be holding a training session. I will teach evasiveness, though we will also work on some fighting maneuvers as well. This is very important. War can happen at anytime, and we cannot expect Glaciem to uphold their word. Their king is a silver tongued snake and cannot be trusted, you must always be on guard. You'll be useless on the field if you end up critically injured because you're rushing into the fray and not properly keeping yourself defended and being tactful. Strength is not everything, you want to be smart about who you're fighting and use their own moves against them. When I make the call in a few days time, I expect to see all able bodied wolves there...and be prepared to spar with one another. Remember, we are all friends. There are no enemies here. If you have an issue with someone, bring it up to me now, in privacy, or at the training meeting. Perhaps then i'll make you work it out." He cast a glance over the crowd, wondering if any of them even cared. Either way, those who didn't show would be sorry. He wouldn't be able to save every hide should a war happen, any many were lacking in experience. He sat back beside Erani, indicating his speech was done.