The indignity! She couldn't even control the way her legs instinctively curled up towards her stomach or the way her tail tucked in tight. Cricket could argue that she would get there faster on her own but with the distance they had covered, it was true that she probably would have had to stop for a nap or two, so maybe they did make it here quicker this way, and the gentle rocking back and forth may or may not have rocked her off to sleep at least once... not that she'd ever admit it! (even if she did snore).

She could smell the pack scent stronger now and she curled even further in on herself. Was this even really a good idea? Sure the big pinkish guy was alright but what about the rest of them? Would they even want her if her own family hadn't? A little bubble of uncertainty burst in her chest and she began to try and wriggle in the big guys grasp. "Maybe this isn't the best idea!"

“Speech”

It's time to play the music, It's time to light the lights

Ghoul had picked up the girl in his jaws with as much care as he could muster. While he still felt slow going as his legs were bandaged up pretty well, it was still faster than waiting for her little limbs. She hung in his grasp as she slept (more like sawed logs but he wouldn't comment) until they crossed the border into the plains. Medusa's pack scent was fresh and strong compared to what Habari had smelled like. There was still time to get settled in and grow in numbers since he was sure they weren't actually counting most of his family. As he carried her farther into where he knew he could find Medusa, she began to squirm in his hold. Furrowing his brow, Ghoul let his eyes roll back in his head before spitting her out. Tilting his chin down to look at her with that disgruntled look, he let his ears pin back against his head. "Why did you have me bring you all this way if you weren't positive?" He scolded with a huff of breath from his nostrils. "You will do great here. When I tell you that this pack is made up of weirdos like yourself, I'm being serious. Plus, Mac will feed you all the innards you want. Might have to fight my caimans for them, but they'll be up for grabs," there is a hint of mischief in his tone before he looks up and around the plains. "Medusa should be here shortly," he added before letting out a friendly call for the pack leader. Ghoul Klein

She was busy sharpening a bone she'd collected from the tar pits after doing her rounds there to make sure whoever was there hadn't tried to escape. So far so good, and her little craft was coming along well. She was attempting to make a knife out of it, maybe to use to scrape every bit of meat off their catches or...perhaps for more nefarious uses...but either way, it would be useful! She had managed to sharpen one edge, and when she was gently running a toe across the edge to test its sharpness, Ghoul's call for her briefly startled her and she slipped, nicking the pad of her toe on the edge. She stared at her toe as the blood quickly rose from the thin wound. Well, at least she knew it was sharp! Abandoning her project for the moment, she got up to go see what he wanted, and as she approached, she spotted a little green...what was that? It looked like something Macabre had coughed up a while back! Still, she approached with a grin. "What has Ghoul found!?" Now that he was up and able to walk around, Medusa had granted him some freedom since she trusted him the most. His family? Not so lucky just yet. She glanced down at the little green creature, her grin still present as she dropped into a play-style sort of bow to get on her level. "Are you what Ghoul found!?" "Medusa"

The fall to the ground wasn't far, but it was graceless enough to knock the air from her lungs with an undignified oof. The girl gave a shake to knock the dust from her fur and drew in a deep breath, trying to make herself seem much larger than she was before rounding on Ghoul with cheeks puffed full of air. She was about to give him a piece of her mind until he mentioned free food. She couldn't contain her happy wiggle, paws tip-tapping as her tail seemed to wave from the back of her rib cage, taking her hips along for the ride. Her face even sparked with a little excited light at the thought of wrestling caimans. Sounded like a lot of fun to her!

Before she had a chance to say as much though, another wolf joined them, sooty with distinctive white markings. Cricket wasn't surprised she addressed Ghoul first, after all, he had been the one that called her, but when she bowed down, Cricket matched the action, slapping her paws against the grass in greeting, a ridge of raised fur down her spine belying her anxiety despite the way her back end wiggled. “I'm Cricket.” she introduced herself, not sure what more to say beyond that. She'd never tried to join a pack before.

“Speech”

It's time to play the music, It's time to light the lights

Ghoul watched as Medusa approached. A tinge of copper caused a brow to quirk. Was that her blood or someone else's? His brow lowered as his lips pursed, but still, he remained silent. The next few moments would belong to the two females. Even as Medusa asked what he had found and brought to her pack lands, he had to hold back a smirk. Oh, he had found something indeed. Something that was a lot more interesting to him than he cared to admit.

He knew Medusa was playful and rather harmless when she wanted to be. Such was the moment as he watched the Alphess bend down into a bow. His gaze quickly switched over to Cricket who probably had no idea that Medusa meant no harm. The fur along his own spine bristled as his shortened tail lifted just slightly above his hindquarters. Even if he was still healing and slower than he normally was, he would hopefully be able to grab the girl before Medusa chomped her.

Thankfully that didn't happen. Cricket's introduction and anxious but playful movements allowed him to breathe a sigh of relief. "Cricket is a loner who needs a home, Medusa. Cricket has been raising herself and is not adjusted to being around others much," his ruby gaze finally lingers back over to Medusa as he stands between the two females. One skeletal and the other slime. How was it that he could never avoid the weirdness in this world?

G H O U L

She giggled and cackled with mirth when the little green booger slapped the ground and play-bowed too, announcing herself as Cricket! Anyone and everyone else might have noticed that the tiny thing was feeling anxious, especially if they read her body language, but not Medusa! Nope! She just saw an itty bitty and wanted nothing more than to scoop her up and take her away! At least she had the decency to know this Cricket wasn't a pup, however. But she was still small enough to scoop and go! That's exactly what she would have done too, if it weren't for that meddling Ghoul! He sorta stood between her and Cricket, but it didn't bother Medusa any. Her ears perked straight up and she tilted her head upwards to stare up at Ghoul with wide eyes as he explained that Cricket needed a home and wasn't used to being around others. That she raised herself. Her gaze shot back to Cricket, her own lip quivering just slightly. She knew exactly how that was! "Cricket and Medusa will be good together! Medusa was the same way before Insomnia. Left to die in the tar pits, and had to do everything she could to survive. Now Medusa has friends, and a pack, and takes care of others!" She shot straight up into a sitting position, tail thumping on the ground as she rolled her neck and shoulders, suddenly taking on a whole other face as she put on her serious alpha act. "Where did Ghoul find Cricket? How long have Ghoul and Cricket been friends? Does Ghoul trust Cricket? Medusa asks because...well...Ghoul knows." She had no idea if his mother's other friends would try to infiltrate the pack. But then again, it's not like she had anything to hide. Insomnia wasn't exactly worth spying on unless they wanted to be witness to some...strange things...though still, her gaze wandered briefly down to Cricket again, tail thumping once or twice on the ground before she quickly returned an inquisitive look back to Ghoul. "Medusa"

Cricket already liked Medusa, she gasped when the leader mentioned being left to die in the tar pits, a heart wretched look of horror on her face! She had only known the woman for a few minutes but how could anyone leave her like that? Her back end gave a hopeful wiggle at the mention of friends and a pack. They were things Cricket had wanted as long as she could remember. But she didn't want to lead, she just wanted some company...

As the other woman became serious and addressed a number of questions to Ghoul, Cricket found herself inching closer to lean up against his foreleg. She barely resisted the urge to take shelter under the larger wolf, knowing his answers to these questions might just be the difference between her being welcomed or run off, although this was already further than she had ever gotten in approaching a pack before. Holding her breath didn't stop the quiver that wracked her tiny body, and once again she found herself questioning if she would ever be enough the way she was. Outwardly though, anyone looking at her would only see her slightly nervous grin as she awaited her fate.

“Speech”

It's time to play the music, It's time to light the lights

Medusa’s change in disposition was fairly obvious and Ghoul didn’t blame her. After the events the woman had been put through, he would be suspicious if Medusa hadn’t questioned him. He listened to her barrage of questions silently until she was ready to hear him out. In those moments, as his ruby eyes lingered on Medusa, he felt Cricket press up against him with nervous shivers making his sore legs vibrate. Instinctually, he lifts his paw and pulls her closer until she is tucked under him and out of the way. “I found her in Sweetgrass Basin while I was exercising my legs,” he starts as he carefully chooses his words. “We haven’t been friends long. I took pity on her due to her circumstances and brought her directly here. If she has ties to my mother, they have not been made known to me,” Ghoul glances down at Cricket for a moment with a raised brow. “As feral as she behaves, I doubt she is nothing but a discarded runt on the brink of starvation,” his words are straight forward and to the point, even if slightly rude. “So far, I do trust her. I’m sure she will agree to whatever you want her to do. I just ask that she be allowed to stay with me until she’s ready to be on her own,” Ghoul looks back at Medusa with a still raised brow. Would she believe him? She had no reason not to. Since the challenge’s outcome, he had had no wish to leave Insomnia. Life here had been decent and Medusa was friendly enough that he considered staying permanently. Ghoul Klein

She waited for his answers, though it didn't take long for him to answer her barrage of questions. As he answered, her gaze moved over Cricket again as she mulled quietly where she might place the tiny creature. She didn't know her experience or what she was capable of, but even so, Medusa didn't know jack shit at her age, either. She watched quietly as the pair got close, and she glanced from one to the other wondering if this was just a friendship or something beyond that. Or maybe he was being protective because he was still wary of Medusa...as he should be. While she was cordial and whatnot to Ghoul, the Wraith could still be wildly unpredictable, and she knew that he knew that. Considering his words, she stood up straight and tall, tail curving over her back in her first-ever display of authority. Of course, she had to have a bit of fun with this too. Keep them on their toes and stuff like she tended to do, ya know? Her demeanor changed from playful to serious in the blink of an eye, and she looked down at Cricket, then back to Ghoul. "Medusa understands. But Medusa doesn't think it would be a good idea." She let her words hang in the air for a few heartbeats, and once she felt like they believed she was actually being serious, she switched it up again. "Just kidding! Cricket can stay!" She grinned again, giggling with mirth as she waited to see the look on their faces. "Cricket will have the rank of Memory until she decides what she wants to do. Insomnia is not that bad, Medusa promises!" She exclaimed while making a cross-motion over her chest. "Medusa"

Cricket had been allowing herself to get her hopes up for once, until Medusa said that she didn't think it would be a good idea. She was used to rejection, as small and odd as she was and she visibly flinched at the words and began to back-pedal underneath Ghoul to make a hasty escape. Words like that rarely came without teeth in her experience and there wasn't much to her with two wolves this big towering over her. If she hadn't bumped against one of Ghoul's twisted but solid limbs, she might have entirely missed the upbeat Just kidding!

Her heart was in her throat, anxiety rolling off her in waves. Her brain was trying to process what her ears had heard, and her body gave a shuddering tremble that she couldn't quite control. She was supposed to be running wasn't she? But then why had she stopped? Kidding, kidding... she knew the word but what did it mean when she was supposed to be running? The giggle. The giggle was good wasn't it? Kidding, giggle... joke? It had been a joke?

Shame washed over the tiny wolf in waves, but she crept forward and forced a hopeful smile onto her lips still ready to spin and run if her brain was betraying her and that wasn't what she had heard at all. She still trembled against Ghoul's foreleg but as Medusa continued, she realised that she hadn't misheard and her tail, though tucked between her heels took up a tentative wave and she nodded to the rank she had been given. "I uh, I like plants, and hunting, though I can't catch much too big on m'own. But I'll do my best... and go wherever there's more need." She was doing her best to get her breathing under control as she looked up to Ghoul with a questioning look. Had she done okay? And where to from here?

”Speech”  ’Thought’

Zoo Wee Mama

He felt Cricket suddenly peddle back between his legs. Though he knew Medusa’s humorous side, he too fell for her joke for a moment. His brows knitted together and ears fell back as he prepared to move into action if need be. When Medusa then jumped up and exclaimed that Cricket could stay, Ghoul visibly released the breath he had been holding. Why had he cared if Medusa let her stay or not? Relaxing his expression, he turned his chin down to meet Cricket’s gaze when she looked up at him. “You can help me hunt and I’m sure there’s a need for a healer,” he looks back up to Medusa then. Did she have a healer within her ranks? How many others followed Medusa anyway? Those were questions he could save for another time - a personal conversation between them. “Thank you Medusa. Shall I show her around?” He requests as a way for them to be excused. Ghoul figured that Cricket was ready for a rest by now and maybe even some food. Their journey had been rather long and even his own legs were sore. Ghoul Klein

Okay, so maybe that was incredibly mean of her to joke like that with a wolf that didn't understand it, but honestly, she didn't know better and thought nothing of it. Cricket's body language was not too strange to her, but with her lack of understanding of social cues, it just kind of went over her head at the moment. At least, until Umbra nudged her shoulder and gave her the look. Oops! That meant Medusa had done something she probably shouldn't have. Quickly she stated "Medusa is happy to have Cricket here!" She gave a wag of her tail to show that Cricket had nothing to fear! Ears twitched at what both of them said, and she nodded. "Cricket can help Ghoul hunt, and if she knows things about plants, she can maybe help Rue with plant things? Also, Medusa can help Cricket and Ghoul catch big things, too!" She nodded before waving her paw at them, "Yes! Show Cricket around, Medusa will see you later!" She got up and smiled at the little green she-wolf before turning around to go do other things. "Oh! If you see Rue or Morticia, tell them Medusa is looking for them!" She called. Sure, she could just...summon them. But that was less fun than seeing if they'd listen to someone that wasn't her. -exit- "Medusa"