Madieke

The sky was dark with heavy grey clouds, a wind rough and chilly whipped about tugging on the white fur of the girl. Pale ice blue orbs narrowed against it as she slowly meandered around, letting the wind push her this way and that way. A puddle from the early morning rain halted her. Eyes stared down at the rippling reflection of herself. She felt so empty, so blank and void of everything. Tail hung down lifeless, ears laid upon her skull tuning out the world around her. She could have stood there forever or just a few moments before stepping on her reflection and walking on. He had left her, disposed of her after all the time they had spent together. He had been the cure to everything she felt pain from. She wasn't allowed to go, too dangerous. But she could heal, would she not have been of some value! Rain began to fall once more, soaking her soft fur down to the skin and bone in a matter of minutes. She made no effort to take coverage but let the tears fall, concealed with the rain that ran down her elegant face. She didn't know where to go, what to do now. Without Skoll, she felt hollow. So had no idea of even where her family was. Would they have even noticed she had been gone? She was pissed with her family. They had been the ones to abandon her. First Pulsus as he seemed to only talk to Twig, then Jinxx, and then Twig. Why did they leave her? Was it because they had been so used to her always being there in the background when they lived back home? She never complained before, maybe she should have. Even from her own litter she seemed so distant from them. She felt like she had no one. Unlike Twig. Their brothers seemed to just flock to her. Wasn't Twig old enough to take care of herself? Angel was just only over a year. And who had her back? No one.

"I Said I'd Never Leave" He was out again. Fur damp from the light rain that had fallen that morning, and it seemed it would continue throughout the day. For no sooner then he thought it was over, it had started again. But it would not deter him, for he would not stop until his family was reunited once more. Jinxx climbed over an upturned part of the earth, mud slipping under his paws though did not stop his path. Oceanic eyes searching the lands for a familiar sign. It had been hard lately, for he felt he was unable to care for his family like he had back home. But back then, they were closer. His family was more united, his mother and father keeping order. Had Angel and half the rest of the family not learned values from them? It would seem not. It was then through the rain and the haze, he would see a form so familiar it nearly made him stop. His sister, not far from his position wandered. Quickly and without breaking stride, he made his way over in a quick run. Wanting to intercept her and find out where the hell she had been. Eyes never left her form as he neared, a bark let loose from his vocals as he ran to stop in front of her. "Angel! Is that you?! Where have you been?"! He would question her, feeling both grateful and upset that she had disappeared after their initial meeting. He was unsure what the hell was going on with her, and doubted that she would take any of the blame for herself, for he tried...and she had left. He remained standing in front of her, eyes questioning as they held a guarded look to them. She had always been distant from the family, but that wasn't their fault. It had been her choice. "Speech", Thought, "You"

Madieke

So trapped in her little void, only able to focus on the simple fact of moving one paw at a time. She would not notice the steady approach of someone. But the sudden bark let loose had her freeze. Legs would spread out in a startle, tail tucking under and head lowered. A fear gripped her when she saw the flash of white. At first she thought of Skoll. Didn't he leave though? She had remained in Traveller's Lake since they came here. Wouldn't he be happy about that? Her body crouched down, hugging the soaking earth. But her pale ice blue would end up staring into ocean blue instead of identical ones like her's. That when her eyes focused on him as a whole. The tears stopped falling, a thing hard to tell she had even been crying at all. She was not one to cry out with any noise unless under one of her panic attacks. She would crouch there staring into his eyes, seeing the emotions play on them. With a huff she dragged her body to a sitting position. "Who else would I be? I could ask you the same thing.." She would answer softly. There was no emotion held in her voice. But non the less soft spoken like a light spring shower. She blinked at him. Naturally her eyes would assess him for wounds or any sort. She had cared for the family as a Healer as best she could. She might not know too much but just enough to get by. She had always been this way, shying from any thing violent in her eyes. "You well yes?" She asked before getting up and nuzzling his shoulder. He would always be her brother. And she would always be there for her family. But the joy she carried and hide a lot had slipped away. When Skoll left he too it with him, her warmth, happiness, security. And most of all her heart. But she couldn't tell Jinxx that. Maybe no one. "Have you seen Twig? I lost her..i think she was following a guy. I smelled his scent once but I never mentioned to her that I knew." Her blue eyes wavered in concern.

OOC: It's been agreed that this is strictly a family thread.

"Searching...Always Searching..." She would look to him, her blue eyes looking sorrowful. Why was she always so sad? He hated seeing his family in such conditions. And yet, it was Lunatik who had made them so. He had broken spirits, slaughtered the ties the family once had. Scattered them throughout the lands, loneliness their only companion. He had found Twig, though after she had been broken. He had found Divinity, though she had been lost to the unknown. Pulsus, probably one of the only miracles thus far, simply because he was a lost brother that had finally be reunited to the ties of the family. He approached her, eyes betraying no sense of hostility, for he was not mad at her, but glad that she was okay. Ears would fall slightly at her response to him. He was not upset, merely glad that she was okay. He had been searching for so long, trying to bring the family together. Even more so now that the impending feelings of their eldest brother drawing closer and closer. Did she not understand that he was dangerous? Did she not remember what he did to their Clan...and their mother? He stood before her then, eyes gazing over her to make sure she was okay. She seemed ruffled, and there was no telling what she had done since their time apart. Though would she lie to him if he asked? She was never one to lie before, it was a trait that the Blacks did not carry unless it was to protect family secrets from the enemy. Their mother and grandparents had taught them that. They were wolves of honor, of family. He would do anything to protect them. It was his duty as an elder brother. He nodded towards her for a brief moment, confirming he was alright. He licked her cheek quickly as she came to nuzzle him, grateful for her touch. For he had been uneasy the past several weeks. Plagued by thoughts of Lunatik and the possibility of losing his family to the monster. He would lift his gaze to her when she asked about their sister, eyes softened as he made to answer. "Ashley is safe. She resides in Valhalla under my care, where it is safe until we can find a place of solace." He wondered if he should tell her what had happened to their sister, and thought better of it. He didn't want to set her into a motion of panic. He cared too much for her to see her that way again. She would learn in time, perhaps when her attacks subsided as she grew older. For now, he would not say a word about it. "Angel, I want to ask you to come with me back to Valhalla. It's not safe to be on your own, not with Lunatik still on the loose." He hoped that she would accept, for it was not a forever thing, but rather until they could figure out what to do. Hopefully she would remember the terror their brother had ravaged on the Clan, remember what he had done. He dreamed of it night after night. The fire, the screams, the blood soaking the ground. Their mother killed mercilessly, along with many of their family and friends. He didn't want to see the same fate befall her, nor anyone else still alive. "Speech", Thought, "You"

Madieke

Angel was keen to every motion he made, the tone of his voice and the look in his eyes. It was natural for her to do such, it was how she found the truth among everything in her family. His lick to her cheek was nice but she couldn't help think of what Skoll had said about her family. That they didn't see her worth, they didn't deserve her. She could never turn her back on her family forever but that wouldn't mean she would be stand-off-ish. She could sense the uptight stress hidden in him, why she couldn't guess. She wished she had her lavender to help him relax just a little. He said Ashley was safe, but under his protection. From what? Her eyes would narrow for the briefest moments. It seemed Jinxx would not be tell her. But her concern for her older sister made her stand up, rigid and alert. Ears perked up slowly. Solace? Like isolation? She didn't want to be isolated not from the world. She still had so much to see and learn! But for now she could keep that comment to herself. He would ask her to stay with him and Ashley. That it wasn't safe. It would be if Skoll hadn't left her. She had always felt safe when he was around. Lunatik? Her brows furrowed together in concentration over the name." Lunatik..? She whispered out the name. It was familiar but that was about it. She looked up at her older brother with a questioning gaze. Why could she not make a connection to that name? "Jinxx..why don't I know who that is?" Slight fear creeped into her voice. She just had a bad feeling about it. She would shake her head roughly, a headache forming from trying to think on that name. She moved on to what else he had said. Join Valhalla? What was Valhalla? Why should she join? So she could sit in the background again, just waiting till she was needed. Before it had never bothered her, not till she met Skoll."Why Jinxx? I don't wanna be disregarded till im needed. Why do you want me? No one knows who I am, what I can do. You all like Ashley so much more.." Bitterness soured her voice as she looked away in light anger. Plus she couldn't see his face when she said that. She didn't want to see the hurt or anger or defense in his eyes.

He was back. The eldest family member of the Black Clan had returned to Alacritis after his prolonged absence. An illness had stricken the giant and rendered him nearly dead. Fear of contamination had driven him to seek refuge outside of the region that his family was currently residing in in the hopes of keeping the illness contained. He would've never been able to forgive himself if he'd passed whatever he'd contracted his family. So isolation it had been. And it had been one hell of an isolation. He hadn't had any contact with anyone in the weeks he was gone and it was pure agony. Not only was the illness one hell of an opponent to face, but being alone during the ordeal hadn't been very fun either. But Pulsus had pulled through. How he wasn't exactly sure, but he had managed to beat it and was now back to his full health and ready to merge himself back into his family. Surely they would not be very happy with his prolonged absence. He would track the most recent scents, Jinxx and Angel, to an unknown place (at least to him) of Alacritis, icy and amethyst gaze easily finding the identifiable figures of his siblings. They seemed to be consumed in a conversation as he approached so he would keep his distance, watching the two intently, sooty and ivory ears standing to attention as he listened, waiting to see if either of them would realize that he had arrived. Would they be upset with him for having been gone for so long without any kind of explanation? Part of him believed so, but he hoped that once he explained why he'd been gone that they wouldn't be too upset with him afterwards. Talk like this

"Pray" She did not remember who their treacherous brother was, and he was not sure if it was a good thing or a bad thing. Either way, she had to know something about it. She couldn't walk further without knowing what he had done. Or what kind of threat he was to the family. "Angel. Lunatik is our older brother, he's dangerous. He killed mother and almost everyone else we cared about. You're too young to remember, but if you ever meet him run. He can't be trusted. That's why it's important for you to stay with us, so he can't hurt you." He would explain briefly, unwilling to tell her about the mass slaughter he had committed to their Clan. He would remain as he was, though slightly relaxing until her next words. Eyes narrowed ever so slightly, though not long enough for her to notice. Was she jealous of Ashley? Yes, it seemed so. How naive was she to think such a thing? They were all family, they were all important. He could see the hesitation within her, could see the reluctance. But why? Had someone corrupted her already and lied to her? Told her things that were untrue? Why would she take someone else's word over family? They had always been close...but she...she seemed to be falling away. Did she no longer want to be associated with the family? Was she ashamed? So many questions ran through his head, he wanted to voice them, wanted to scream sense into her. But held it all in. It would do no good, it would only drive her further away he was sure. They were still young, he was still young. And yet here he was trying to fill the role of their missing father and dead mother. He had always been there, he had never stopped searching since they got separated. And yet here he was, facing obstacle after obstacle within his life. How had he not ended it all yet? So many opportunities...and yet here he was, facing it all over again. There was no telling what would drive him to the brink. "Angel, you're family. You are just as important as anyone else in our family, mother always made that clear! Are you really telling me that you're jealous of our sister? That you feel unwanted? Invisible? It's not true. And whoever told you those things is wrong. I never stopped searching for you since we got separated, I never stopped thinking about whether you were safe or hurt while you were out on your own. I never stopped, Angel. Never." Ears twitched slightly when he heard the footfalls of another approach, the scent telling him it was their older brother, Pulsus. He did not spare a glance, however, for his attention was on Angel. She was his sister, and if she so chose to not associate with the family then so be it. But he would not give up without a fight. "We are strong because we are a family...If mother were here, she would have kept us together and kept us strong. I can't fill the role of bother mom and dad..." His body would begin to shake slightly, the emotions raging within him. Not of anger, but of hurt. I can't do this anymore...I've tried so hard and they're pushing away...why am I still trying? "Speech", Thought, "You"

She would wake from her deep sleep, completely alone. Jinxx had left their den, she must have woken before the herbs were supposed to relinquish their grip. She was thankful for her brother's simple plants, they kept the nightmares away and she could be left alone. Now though, Jinxx was gone and she felt the familiar pressure of aloneness. She want comfortable being on her own anymore, not usually, her thoughts traveled much to easily to her lost heart and the hole she left. Jinxx's scent was still rather fresh, so without much thinking the cross marked girl would rush to find him. Before long his scent would mix with that of Angel and Pulsus. Had he found them? We're they back and okay? Her heart would hammer against her chest as she increased he pace. She wouldn't see them until she took a sharp turn and almost ran into Pulsus.?

A gasp would escape her lips as she realized she really was in his presence again. She hasn't seen him since right after her attack, did he know of her unsuccessful pregnancy? It didn't matter though, he was here with her again. She would fall into his side, so relieved that he was alright. "Pulsus you're here!" her eyes would catch Jinxx and Angel farther off, her sister was back too?! Relief would flood through her at the realization that both fared no visible harm.?

Just gonna stand there and watch me burn

She stood there trying to take in what he said about this Lunatik. She could remember mother, but not so much her death nor much of the aftermath of it. Why was there such a huge blank spot in her memories? Her eyes narrowed trying to figure it out but her head began to pound violently to the point the whined once and shook her head. She wanted to ask why, why could she not remember, why did it hurt so much to think about it? Why did her heart seemed to squeeze and her breath caught in the back of her throat? But she feared the answers, feared to know the dark truth that laid there somewhere. Slowly she had taken a few steps back, as if Jinxx would unleash some darkness on her and she was cringing away. She was too young to remember? But she somehow knew it was bad, that this Lunatik had killed her mother. Her ice blue eyes widened in alarm. And this guy was on the loos?



The presence of someone else being there watching them made her look around till she spotted Pulsus. He was back? She wasn't sure how she felt about him, she never got to know him really. Again the jealously boiled in her blood. Why was Twig so close to everyone and she wasn't? But she didn't greet him before Jinxx continued to talk. She turned back to him, ears laying flat."Yes..i really do feel like that. Every one of you have a special connection to each other, I have no one!"She would snap out on a low whisper. It truly was how she felt. The realization that dawned on her was that maybe this was partly her fault. Her family had always seen the walls she had put up. The pretty, flawless, crack free, fresh painted walls. They saw no issues among her, nothing but joy and a willing helpful paw. They did not know what brew inside those walls. She never let anyone see into it. Now though here her walls had been down. With a blink of her eyes one could see her mentally place those walls back up, her negative emotion vanished, her body straightened up and she stared steadily up at Jinxx.



Another noise had Angel turn to see Twig with Pulsus now and her tail gave a very soft little wag. At least they all seemed well. Turning yet again to Jinxx her voice came out smooth, light and normal."I never asked you to fill in those roles brother. No one did nor do we expect you to do so. Just being our brother is more than enough. I will join you Jinxx, but what, who is Valhalla? And what of the rest of our family?" Her attitude seemed to turn completely around from before.



"Speech"

but that's alright, because I like the way it hurts

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He would stand like a giant silent sentry at a few paces from Jinxx and Angel, simply watching them, listening with growing concern as his brother argued with their younger sister, trying to convince her that she really was important. Why on earth would she think that she wasn't? Was it because he hadn't been spending time with her? The wraith partially felt responsible for how Angel felt. He hadn't been taking much time to spend with his siblings since he had begun to dedicate his time to finding his elder brother Lunatik, but now that he knew it was becoming an issue, he would make a more conscious effort to spend quality time with each of his younger siblings. They needed to stand united on all fronts and this was not how they would accomplish that. The two young acknowledge his presence yet they would not address him, too engrossed in their conversation to include him just yet. That was fine with him. He was fine with standing to the side for the time being. A familiar scent caught his nostrils just before she crashed into him; Twig. He would turn away from Jinxx and Angel, bi-colored gaze settling on his sister. There was something different about her, what it was though he couldn't tell, but he wouldn't dwell on it. [u]Pulsus you're here![u] He would lean back into her, nuzzling her gently as he buried his muzzle into her nape. I am here. How have you been? Everyone else seems to be...flustered... He would glance back to their siblings before looking to Twig again, haunches folding beneath him as he sat beside his sister. Talk like this

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"Pray" She seemed to be in deep thought, the memories seemingly trying to flood backand yet, remaining elusive. He couldn't tell, but for a moment it seemed as if she had a look of hatred within herself for him. It made him cringe inside, to see that look. Was he really that bad of a brother that everyone hated him so much? Is that what being a good and protective brother entailed? If so, maybe he was better off...disappearing. She would turn on him, ears flattened and anger within her voice. She didn't understand. The reason why she wasn't close with anyone wasn't because of them, it was because of her. She always had the habit of closing everyone out, ever since they were younger. He didn't know why, but every time they tried...she would put up a defensive front. "You shouldn't feel that way, I've always tried to be there for you..." He murmured, unsure what else to say. You always pushed us away. The words echoed in his mind, painful to think, but truthful they were. He stared steadily at her, as slowly he would see a change within her. But as quickly as it had come, it was gone. She seemed to be calming again, but for how long? And did she hate him even more for trying to be there for her for the countless time? He was unsure about what to say at this point. He wished his Father was here, to help him out in this predicament. She would face him, telling him that he didn't have to fill both roles. That just being their brother was enough. But, if that were true...why didn't it feel like enough? He would try so hard to push it from his mind, but it would linger...always linger. [color=#000000"Valhalla is a friendly pack, mostly specializing in healing, and led by Erani, the lead healer. Everyone is kind, and everyone works together to keep each other safe. In a way, it reminds of our Clan...we all have each others backs, and...It's our safe haven, for now, until we can rebuild what we lost..."[/color] His gaze flickered briefly towards the pair that had arrived, his siblings Pulsus and Ashley, not too far away. He gave a motion to them to come closer, wondering if they had heard what was said. The hurt and pain in his eyes became masked, the boy replacing it with a facade of something unnamed. "Speech", Thought, "You"