There was only one real solution to the problem he found himself having. His parents were dead, his sister and he had been separated again... where was a lonely male to go? A pack. He could not return to the one where his brother and sister, gods willing, still ruled. His expression was solemn, focused on his past. He would breathe in, walking along a path in the east. His silver and gray coat was ruffled by the summer breeze -- enough to make the weather bearable. Not as bad as it might be in the south, though certainly one could feel that summer was under way. He would breathe in, his tail swishing back and forth in a slow manner -- though mostly because he was in thought.

Wherever Laria had ended up he hoped she was well. But Cypress had decided he was tired of feeling alone. He would remain here in Alacritia, in the land of his birth. He had thought about joining the pack that had claimed his birthland -- Fontamo Bay -- but then decided against it. It would remind him too much of his family... yet he could not completely abandon the east. So when he came along here, along the territory of another pack, he would begin poking along the borders, peering in, trying to see what scents he could catch. Perhaps... something could come of this?

The days would drag on, and her heat was probably the worst feeling in the world. Her unclean body was itching for that sinful act again. Her mind was wandering and the healing girl was keeping herself distracted since she didn't want herself falling into the paws of some loner in her blindness. Arian had been poking around the borders herself, debating going to visit destruction to ask for some advice. Though her mind was quickly changed when she saw the dull male, her heart racing the cripple hid in the nearest bush. Tail flickering a bit as she watched him closely with her crystal blue eyes. The russet female would poke her head out of the bushes, though only her head. Almost forgetting about the ugly scar on her face when she spoke. "You should be careful where you put your paws, I mean, borders are important to a pack. Usually it's respectful to stay beyond the border until one of the higher ups accepts or invites you in." she would let the words litter across her tongue. Pinning her ears against her head she hid her head in the bushes again. Why did she speak to him, it was only adding now to a man who would forever hate her wouldn't it. Useless she was. "Talk" "You" Think

There was suddenly a voice addressing him. The young man would let his gaze shift to a female, russet in color, poking her head out of the bushes. Borders... That was her warning? Cypress would slow to a stop, blinking some. Had she suspected that he was going to trespass? Ah... He was dangerously close, wasn’t he? Cy would shift his body in the direction of the female, his ears lifting some in curiosity. Why had she hidden herself away after giving the warning? Was she shy? Did she think he was an enemy?

“I was not intending to trespass, ma’am. You live here though, right?” His voice was gentle, and he would keep his posture relaxed. “Might you tell me a bit about it? I’m kinda searching for somewhere to settle down. I guess my thoughts had me so distracted I came too close.” He would take a couple steps back, though he hoped she would still answer him.

Her crystal eyes would concentrate on him from inside of her bush; it was like she was drawn to him. Now that her body was almost fully recovered, she was to return back to her duty was she not? Yet she had found herself at the borders, and while here met this man and her chest tightened up at the thought of interacting with someone. She had spoken just fine before, but she regretted everything that came out of her mouth regardless. Her ears pinned back, tail tucking and her head lowered in signs of submission as she slunk out of the bushes on the other side of the border. Like an invisible barrier in which separated her from this stranger in front of her. "Well, it's a collective effort, but my mother runs the pack so it can't be that bad. She's always been someone strong and someone to look up to." she shyly looked off to the side. Her mother was probably the only piece of family that hadn't left her behind. Not that Arian had tried to follow her mother around anyway, her tail flicked as her limp leg sat off to the side. "My name is Arian.....Arian Adravendi." venom to the tip of her tongue. Even her own name, there was no pride in it anymore, Arian hated it even now. "Talk" "You" Think

Epiphron was in search of one of her eldest daughters. Since joining Fiori, she hadn't gotten much of a chance to reconnect with Arian and she needed to ensure she was faring well here, after all she had been through. The woman's gait was slow as she trailed after her scent, not in any rush to find her, for today was a pleasant summer day. The weather was bearable, a refreshing breeze blowing in from the east and offering a cool reprieve from the summer day. From a distance, she saw Arian lingering near the border, and she felt an instinctive rush of worry fill her chest -- she was talking to someone she didn't recognize, and she found herself afraid that Arian might be being bothered. It seemed the wolf may be very well be on the verge of trespassing, too. Her pace would increase, a wary eye cast upon the stranger as she drew quickly alongside her daughter. "Is he bothering you?" she'd ask quickly, turning to nuzzle the side of her daughter's neck tenderly, hoping she wouldn't pull away this time.

Whoever this was, she wanted an explanation, especially after all Arian had been through. "What's your name? And what do you want here?" Epiphron's voice was wary as she eyed him. He looked harmless, but she couldn't be so sure. Her gaze was cold, though she smiled in Arian's direction, happy to see her daughter - and even happy to defend her if she needed to sent this male away.

Cypress would give a small nod. So her mother was the alphess, one who was strong, and made sure that things were done in a collective effort. The girl would give her name too, Arian Adravendi. It was her first name that he truly focused on, finding it a unique and lovely name when rolling in his mind. Still though, he had to wonder about her. He had noticed the limp leg, but had not mentioned anything on the subject. He knew it was hard to be treated differently for something out of your control. Besides, she seemed to hold herself just fine. But what he would notice is that venom, a slight venom to her own name, was hinted.

Before Cypress would comment another would roll up on the scene. By how quickly she asked, and how tenderly she seemed to treat Arian, he could only guess that this was her mother. The young man would take a polite step back, dipping his head to the older woman. “I assure you that if I am that was not my intention, ma’am.” The young man would lift his bi colored gaze to the woman, frowning some. “My name is Cypress. I was lost in thought and wandered too close to your borders, which Arian kindly noted to me. I was thinking I needed a fresh start. A new home.” He would dip his head again.

“If you can find it in your heart to forgive my carelessness in wandering so close and allow me a second chance, ma’am, I swear to you I will do all I can for the pack. I know how to fight and hunt, a bit of herblore as well. I was trained as a knight under my father.”

Arian watched as her mother showed up, a sense of relief showed up in her, shoulders down. Though unfortunately she moved away from her mother when she tried to nuzzle her. No touch, she was still scared of that no matter how horrible she felt every time she dipped and ducked away from any family member who tried to reassure her. She blinked when she asked if the man was bothering her. Arian shook her head, in fact he was being much more polite than most males she knew of. It was rather cute, as she lowered her head, blue eyes looking shyly at him. If she was in a better shape, she would have offered a smile towards the gray. "He's been nice." Arian would say looking off to the side. Maybe it would be nice to have someone like him in the pack. She certainly didn't feel the fear she felt of rejection that she felt with her family. Though, it was still there tugging at her chest. The healer shifted a bit, and watched her mother handle him. She had been an alphess before, but she was an observer at heart. "Talk" "You" Think

Though it was unsurprising when Arian pulled away from her touch, she was grateful too -- it meant something that her daughter could chose for herself when she liked to be touched and when she didn't. Even if she would've preferred to embrace her, she knew she had a long road of emotional healing ahead of her, and she was happy that at the very least Arian could chose for herself how she wanted to be touched, if at all. Regardless, she would smile at her daughter, her eyes sparkling with warmth that she rarely showed except toward her children.

The male seemed polite as he spoke, something else she found herself grateful for, and she would nod slowly at his words. "Good," Epiphron would state conversationally, feeling her spirits lighten a bit at Arian's own reassurance that he was not bothering her. "Well, welcome to Fiori, Cypress. My name is Epiphron Adravendi. I am Arian's mother." Her smile was genuine, though her gaze held a bit of wariness still toward this stranger that had strolled up onto their borders.

He offered his services to the pack, and she would consider it thoughtfully. They certainly had a good force of medics, and though Bjorn and Birna were capable sentries, they lacked anyone to lead. Perhaps he might make a good fighter. She assessed him quietly, thinking. "We'd be happy to have you as a sentry," she offered gently. "Though you'll be an initiate for a few weeks, and Arian will watch over you to make sure you cause no trouble." Typically it would be the responsibility of the council members, but Epiphron knew their pack wasn't fully structured yet, and she figured some task might help distract Arian from her worries for now. "Just know that Fiori is a communal pack. We expect you to participate and pull your weight, and if you do, I promise you will flourish here."

He had been nice. Cypress felt a quiet sent of pride at the indirect compliment. His father Birch would have been proud. The young man had always strove to be like the older man -- a true knight. He wanted to help others, to protect them from all the bad things that lurked in this world. Someday, he prayed, he would be able to help bring some sort of stability to a pack. He would dip his head to the alphess, Epiphron, as she introduced herself. She would also accept him into Fiori as an initiate, though he would eventually move in rank.

“Thank you, Miss Epiphron. Both for accepting me into your pack and also for understanding that I meant no harm here.” He would lift his head, offering a gentle, small smile to them both. “I’ll look forward to it. It’s exactly the sort of pack I was hoping to find. Somewhere I can keep myself busy and be proactive in helping another pack flourish.” He felt some sense of relief in joining Fiori as well. “...If it’s not too much to ask, either, Miss Epiphron, might I request an audience in the near future? I would like to go into what brought me to your borders in the first place in private. Though no offense to your daughter.” He would give Arian a small nod.

“It’ll be a pleasure getting to know you better, and I promise I shall not be any trouble.”

Arian listened to her mother as she spoke to cypress. Obviously looking away, at the ground. Though her ears twitched, did her mother just assign her to cypress. Oh she felt a bit of anger rise in her out of discomfort, yet she didn't argue. The tip of her tail flicked back and forth blue eyes locking on cypress as she slightly frowned at him. She couldn't refuse her mother, but she was scared. She would try, that was the key word wasn't it to try. She removed her frown returning neutral.

"Im not offended....." he was a stranger, he was scary. "Welcome to fiori." She spat it out. Standing up on her three legs, she hadnt been so annoyed before. Why was this emotion stalking up on her. She looked at her mother for a moment and sighed looking back to cypress. Her new challenge.

Cypress seemed polite, eager to please and to show he meant no harm to Fiori. It was for this reason alone that she would give Arian the task of ensuring their new member was watched. Epiphron assumed she wouldn't need to do much more than occasionally talk to him and oversee that he wasn't causing trouble. It might be a difficult task for her, but it was certainly doable, otherwise she would've never thought to given Arian the task.  "You're welcome," she'd answer him with a small smile, nodding her head slowly.  "It sounds like Fiori will be a fine fit for you, Cypress. It wouldn't be at all difficult for him to fit in here, she was sure of it. Her gaze would avert to Arian, wondering her reaction. She swore she saw the discomfort in her daughter's eyes, and her own gaze would soften as she watched her.

He requested to speak with her privately, and she would nod, curious as to what he ight have to speak with her about.  "Certainly," she responded with another curt nod. "Call me whenever you're ready to speak to me." Again, she felt her gaze shifting to Arian. If she couldn't mentally handle spending some time with Cypress, she would gladly relieve her from the task, but she saw potential in her daughter that she might not see herself. "Thank you for coming to talk to him, Arian." Her smile was soft as she watched her, grateful her daughter had approached the stranger at all, for she could have simply ignored him.