Talk Shop

Artorias was glad to see that, in spite of the grim topic, Manea was able to share a bit of humor in their situations and shared grievances with him. He didn't know the extent to which the Mendacium matriarch's hatred of the pirates ran; he hadn't been at the pack challenge to witness the events unfold. But it didn't really make a difference. They'd both experienced the opposite end of Sparrow's violent disposition, and it did his heart a little good to know that he'd trounced her and her ilk in some form of pseudo-revenge for Manea without even realizing it. There was a brief beat of silence while the wolves meandered around the edge of the lake, their paws softly shuffling the pebbly shore beneath them. Artorias was finding that he did quite like the northern territories of Boreas quite a bit. They were a far cry from what he was used to, but they had their own kind of charm and wonder. They also had the added benefit of housing some of his favorite wolves here too, present company very included.

Manea's voice pulled Artorias out of his musing to look back to his peer with a curious tilt of his head. Was Manea propositioning an alliance between their packs? As she went on, Artorias realized that yes, that was indeed what she was suggesting. Her sly grin raised a curious brow above one amber eye, but his curiosity was quickly dispelled when Manea commented on how other than Venom, he was the wolf she knew best, courtesy of their extended night of extremely enjoyable passion. Art blinked, still finding himself occasionally surprised and delighted by Manea's forwardness and casualness of her approach to all things sexual. If she was going to make an alliance with anyone, she trusted him. The Elysium alpha's words brought a genuinely pleased smile to Artorias' face, fiery eyes lighting up as he considered the offer before him. He did like Manea a lot—her and Alastor were a breath of fresh air he didn't get from anyone else, they offered a new perspective, and their lifestyle had opened him up to a new side of himself, and opened Briar up to discover herself more as well.

"Well, the feeling's mutual, Manea. About the knowing and trusting you. And because of the sleeping with you part. Not just because of sleeping with you, that is! There's lots of reasons why I trust you, the sleeping together one being one of the major ones. I mean, er-" Gods, he was stumbling over himself again! Heat flushed under Artorias' cheeks as he desperately tried to make his meaning coherent, eventually resigning himself to a sheepish grin to the violet fae, obsidian ears folding flat to his head with a bashful chuckle. "Um, let me do that over. I'm glad I can be someone you trust, Manea. I also trust you and feel I know you intimately well." Eh, still not the greatest, but it was a damn sight better than blushing and getting stuck in a loop of talking about how they'd fucked each other.

"The Hallows does hold alliances with other packs. We are currently aligned with the Armada and Fenmyre, with talks in the works with Ashen as well." The fact that Manea and Venom got along so well was just another bullet point in the growing list of reasons why he found Manea someone he could put stock in. "Although we do ally ourselves to our closest friends, the Hallows' creed comes before allegiances," the Aegis explained to the Genetrix. "What I mean by that is that our allies will always be our priority and the most important wolves we recognize. If we form an alliance, I promise you that both my wolves and myself will take it with the honor that deserves. We would gladly thrive alongside you, stand against any enemies that threaten you and defend your home with you. But my wolves will not be pulled into wars unnecessarily, nor will we discriminate our sanctuary from any who haven't wronged us. The Hallows will always be open to those who come with peace in their hearts and they will be protected accordingly." He gave Manea as much time as she needed to process and digest his words. Artorias would be ecstatic to have another ally on his roster—especially one he and Briar had such a strong and intimate connection with—but there were some conditions that could not be compromised on. Though he doubted the Mendaciums would ever be the warmongering types, he would not send his wolves to fight in someone else's wars.

"Artorias Carpathius" | "Carpathian" | "Corbin" | "Eira" | "Argent"