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[Slaying the Dreamer]

Slaying the Dreamer

OoC: This is what I came up with - after the pack hunt, I guess? Grumpy!Slay is PMSing. x3 It irked him a little, it did: all these new wolves, all of a sudden. Why did it seem like every time he took a break from pack life, new members flocked to his pack? It wasn't like he normally wandered around the border scaring them off. Although sometimes he considered it; the males, at least. It wouldn't bother the arctic wolf if he lived in a flower-filled valley of females again. Slay heard the names of Lubomir (Mew's friend); Sankor (related to Alexey, whom he'd met, and Adelaida, whom he had not); and Ril'o (...whose scent entwined suspiciously with Cercelee's). Most times Slay avoided real emotions - getting upset was an easy trigger for his narcolepsy to prey on, and he hated waking up in unfamiliar places. Loneliness he was used to and often sought out; anger he bottled up and buried, only to be used in extreme circumstances. But this... He had always felt protective of his small friend, from the day they met and he promised to fend off the inevitable suitors interested in her cute expressions and mischievous attitude. Not that he ever had; most of the time she did her wandering and flirting whilst Slay napped or avoided work. When he missed her cheer, he would seek her out, the same as she would look for him when she needed a release from the stress of her position. They were friends, and they enjoyed acting like idiots around each other. "So, as a friend, shouldn't I be happy that she's finally interested in some guy... that could bring her the happiness she needs?" he muttered, icy blue eyes fixated on his claws as he stalked up and down the shoreline. He wasn't sure what had brought him to the stretch of beach that the pack owned, other than a few half-forgotten memories. It wasn't like he... like he could give her that. He wasn't even sure if he felt that way! He recalled how upset, how enraged he'd felt upon seeing her injuries from the coyote, during the Inferni conflict that everyone was working to put behind them. He refused to join in the pack fighting, but if he found the fool who had attacked his Rosea, he would gladly have drawn first blood. But that was just his possessiveness, wasn't it? And he was too old to actually court her - he was over twice her age, and would surely want something she wasn't ready for. This new youngster, Ril'o or whatever, could match her exuberance. Besides, how could he get serious with anyone, when he couldn't sleep at night and randomly passed out during the day? Even the most patient of partners would get sick of his constant interruptions. "It's just... frustrating to watch," Slay grumbled, in an uncharacteristically grumpy mood. His sullen reflection stared back at him on the rippling waves of the ocean water, black and white on a sea of blue. The mid-afternoon sun was half-way through the sky, letting its warm rays cool off before casting shadows across the big male. "I can't even shift. I don't know what the hell I want." I've got soul but I'm not a soldier

[Cercelee]

      so… I just had the compulsive need to list everyone who has ever been in our pack.
      Dahlia de Mai was growing in size, strength, and unity. The recent pack hunt had been proof of that. Answering Haku’s call had been a myriad of faces, both those that she knew and trusted and those she hoped to get to know better in time. They had lost some members Cercelee was sorry to see go: Colibri, Hanna, Windseeker, Desaevio and Ember, and lost others Cercelee knew but whose relationship wasn’t as strong: Grayson, Fehrris, and Kol. Alexey still hadn’t returned but Cercelee did not count her among the lost yet, though her trip was taking longer than planned. All their names were etched into her memory and now Cercelee had new ones to put there: Flayra, the child she had accepted, Ril’o, who was becoming a fast friend, Lubomir, who was a fast friend of Mew’s, Svara, the snappy little child, Sankor and Adelaida, siblings of Alexey. The names swam in Cer’s head and made her dizzy. Slay and Mew, with her since the pack’s birth, and Haku, Firefly, and Cwmfen, who had proved themselves just as loyal, grounded her, made the names stop spinning.
      Thinking over the recent changes caused the dreamy feeling to come back, and this day Cercelee couldn’t stop thinking. The names floated in space before her, images of the wolves that owned those names, and conversations she had with them in the past. Dreams of possible future conversations played themselves out. The birth of Firefly’s children, Mew teaching Cer to read music, Cer laying down to sleep next to… shaking her head she tried to push the images away only to have them sneak up on her moments later. The images were what drove her to search out Slay, allow him to give her a reality check.
      On the beaches was were she found him, talking to only himself. Smiling Cercelee increased her pace, navy eyes fixed to the male whom would bring her down back to earth with his jeers and taunts. Coming up behind him, for he hadn’t sighted her yet, Cercelee let a devilish grin make it’s way across her face. Slay would have found himself face first in the sand had it not been for the words Cer had overheard. “What do you find frustrating, your Highness?” Cercelee smirked so that the male turned he’d be face to face with her grin.

[Slaying the Dreamer]

Slaying the Dreamer

OoC: It's fun to keep track. C: Slay hadn't been expecting company - he never did, when he went on his solitary wanderings, but when he stayed on pack land he at least wasn't terribly startled to run into pack members. Wolves, after all, like to wander about, and as social animals, shouldn't mind each others' company. This time, though, Slay had been oblivious to Cercelee's approach... and her crowing challenge scared him half to death. He whipped about, the white fur down his spine bristling with shock. "C-cercelee! Y, you, scared me a little there," he gasped, trying to calm his wild heartbeats. How embarrassing! She would tease him for this, he knew it. He deserved it, too, being that out of it! Her amused grin, her bright navy eyes, she seemed almost larger than life, after the struggle he had trying to imagine her with... erm, no one. "'H-highness', heh, very cute, I like that. Oh, you mean what was I talking about? Oh, ahh, n-nothing of importance, really! Just a, er, minor annoyance... very small and insignificant, I assure you..." Pretty pathetic. Normally he could handle himself so much better than this! Quick, make a joke, change the subject, tell her she looks pretty or something so she can laugh at you and forget. Slay's white-tipped ears fell back apprehensively as his stammering words stalled for time. If he didn't know what he wanted, he could hardly voice his concerns, could he? He didn't know anything about Ril'o except for what he'd gathered from word-of-mouth, and all that had told him was that the younger wolf was energetic and good-looking. Dammit. "...Look, just forget you heard anything," he muttered, pale gaze averted. "How... how have you been doing lately? With... all the new members, I mean. Our pack has gotten pretty big. And - pups! Those two that went hunting with us, and, Firefly is expecting too... Wow... Have... you been getting along okay with all of them?" I've got soul but I'm not a soldier

[Cercelee]

      Ril’o asked to have his post deleted from the pack hunt, so you might want to edit your post!
     The startled male jumped at her voice and stammered an excuse when he realized the source of his spook. Cercelee smiled sheepishly, she really hadn’t intended on scaring him (though she had earlier intended on tackling him), and the lady felt bad at her friend’s fright. “I’m sorry Slay, I didn’t mean to sneak up on you.” And yet, why hadn’t he noticed her in the first place? The male seemed preoccupied, and yet he skirted the subject.
      Narrowing her eyes at the male and feigning her best face of disapproval, Cercelee clicked her tongue, the sign she was ready to nag. “Well, it certainly doesn’t seem like nothing. It has you so preoccupied that I nearly made you jump out of your skin with a mere ‘hello’.” And then she shrugged and let it drop. Slay didn’t wish to talk of it, and she wouldn’t push it, merely let him with one suspicious glare and was ready to move on.
      Yes, the pack had puppies now, and more adults. It had been nearly this big once before but for so short a period, Cer could barely remember. This time it seemed the members were here for keeps, and so far they all seemed like a strong collection of folks. Cercelee had little to complain about. “We are fortunate to have so many in numbers, especially in the dead of winter when prey is harder to come by. The child, I don’t know so well. Flayra I accepted but Svara well... she has quite the attitude.” Cercelee remembered the words the child had spoken at the hunt, in front of her elders. It irritated the white lady and put Flayra a notch above the other on principle. “As for the adults, well I couldn’t ask for a better group to have found there way here. I need to speak to Mew of Lubomir, but I suspect that his prescience is welcomed by our friend the Ilex. Those siblings of Alexey seem fine enough but really I’ve only had the chance to get to know Ril’o. He’s quite the charmer though, very friendly. I think you’d get along well with him, I’ve spent a while showing him the ropes of our pack and I think he’ll fit in quite nicely.” Cercelee hadn’t meant to speak so much more of Ril’o than the other wolves, but she had spent more time with them than the others and he had quickly made himself worthy of notice and friendship to the Rosea.

[Slaying the Dreamer]

Slaying the Dreamer

OoC: Edited! C: Rather than tease him mercilessly, Cercelee actually looked a little embarrassed herself, and let the subject drop. Did she feel bad for scaring him? It was hardly her fault. The arctic wolf let his pale eyes stray back to her face, a small smile tugging at the corners of his muzzle. When they first met, wandering the field of flowers under the distant but watchful eyes of Colibri, Slay had never expected the spunky white heroine would in a few months' time become his best friend... As the Rosea shared her knowledge of their new Dahlia family members, Slay took up his slow pacing again, liking the shifting sands beneath his furry pawpads. "So, Flayra's the nice one?" he interjected, watching the sun's lazy descent towards the ocean. "I still can't keep their names straight. Pups are fun to be around, or at least most of 'em are," he added with a grumble. He did like children - as long as they were someone else's, so he knew he wasn't about to lead them astray. He had toyed with the idea of fatherhood before, but always dismissed it because the odds of him ever having a serious relationship were slim enough as it was. Feeling guilty about only making small talk, Slay glanced back to watch Cer as she spoke, studying the mid-day sunlight glinting on her glossy white fur, reflecting the sea in her navy gaze. She was a pretty wolf. "...Having more mouths to feed during winter, especially young ones that can't feed themselves... I suppose I'll have my work cut out for me," he said with a lop-sided smile. It shouldn't be too hard to find prey - after all, the scattered families of deer would be out looking for sustenance as well. "...Cwmfen is an accomplished hunter. She and I work well together; if need be, we could keep the pups fed between the two of us." He hadn't meant to exclude Cercelee from that - it wasn't like any of their wolves were bad at hunting, per se - just that he and Cwmfen had gone into the woods as a pair before, and matched each other's strength and style. Or was there more to it than that, after all...? Cer spoke rather fondly of Ril'o, and Slay couldn't deny that niggling feeling of jealousy worming its way into his chest. At the same time, since the night Cwmfen the huntress had introduced herself and asked for him to show her around, his thoughts had returned to the curiously-marked female more than once. Doubtless, it was a one-sided attraction, but an attraction nonetheless, that left Slay all the more conflicted. It was hypocritical of him to get upset that Cer had a dashing new friend, since he himself had a lovely acquaintance, and yet he did feel jealous, but why? It was all so hopelessly confusing! I've got soul but I'm not a soldier

[Cercelee]

      Poor jealous Cer! Which is funny because Ade is jealous of Cwmfen too, because Sankor likes her XD oh jeeze, at least I love Cwmfen, even if my characters don’t!
      Cercelee nodded about the ideal chit chat about the puppies. Despite her lack of maternal instinct, though she did feel protective of Flayra, she enjoyed having the pups in the pack, to a certain extent at least. “You’ll learn the names of them, at least by the time they grow up.” It was a strange thought, Flayra and Svara as adults in the pack, earning co-ranks, perhaps even surpassing Firefly or Mew in hierarchy one day. They were ever growing, but Cercelee hadn’t really imagined them grown, at least not until now. Perhaps watching them develop and change was one of the draws to having children, Cercelee could understand that. “Say, you don’t have any children you don’t know about running about do you? Or maybe Svara and Flayra came to look for you… long lost daddy!” Cercelee smirked and giggled, it was so easy for a male to father children and never know, all it took was a one night stand on the road. Had Slay had any of those?
      “Mmmm, yes, you do have your work cut out for you… when you’re around to do it.” Again she grinned, meaning no harm to the male but only poking fun, mostly because, though she would not say it directly, she wished that the brute before her was around more often. “Perhaps I should give you a quota to fill, three rabbits or birds a week for each puppy, along with a steady supply of fish. That should keep you busy?” Cercelee smiled, her tail thumping until Slay spoke the female’s name.
     Still grinning, Cercelee shrugged at the male, her voice jesting, nothing to hint at the hot emotion that rushed her suddenly as the image of Cwmfen and Slay hunting together produced. “I’m sorry, but you’ll have to do all the work yourself, Cwmfen took the co-rank of Head Warrior, you’re out one hunter.” Her tail thumped the ground again as she tested him. “But perhaps you could recruit some new ones… Sankor, Lubomir… or Ril’o?”

[Slaying the Dreamer]

Slaying the Dreamer

OoC: Aww... Poor Cer indeed. Haha, and poor Cwmfen, having all the girls mad at her! At least she has a friend in Haku! Slay gave a small smile, thinking about the pups becoming adults. They were already half-way there -- it wasn't too far a stretch to imagine them hunting for real, taking their own dens, gaining rank. Maybe they'd leave Dahlia by then -- most wolves didn't stay too long, except the ones with family ties. That meant Firefly and Haku would be here a long time, didn't it? He heaved a sigh, trying to imagine those bundles of joy. And with Cercelee's next comment, he tried to imagine his own... "Are you kidding?!" Slay snorted derisively. "Those punks look nothing like me! And no, my dear Cer, you're not going to find any yin-yang puppies seeking me out. I know I'm old, and I've been all over the place, but not like that!" That was a pretty ridiculous concept, to be sure. He may have met a lot of pretty ladies, but none of them wanted his body like that... They merely loved to soak up his attentions and flattery. In his experience, the luperci women who thought about one-night-stands would rather do it shifted, to try new things with their flexible two-legged body. Slay had never shifted; therefore he was out of their league. "A hunting quota, well, wouldn't it be easier to just teach the kids to fish themselves, and catch squirrels and whatnot? Then I can go on hiatus whenever I please," he retorted with a roguish grin. He never meant to disappear; it was just so easy to avoid others when he wanted to be alone. Actually, today was one of those days, but Cer caught him anyway... she was getting better at finding him when she wanted him. He couldn't deny her company. Still, his face fell as she mentioned Cwmfen, almost cocky in the way she shut him down. Was she trying to pick a fight? Slay felt his piebald ruff begin to prickle and rise defensively, stung by Cercelee's sharp tone. She didn't beat around the bush, that was for sure. She couldn't be serious, though -- him, train the golden boy that she was crushing on? "Surely you jest," he rumbled, traces of a snarl in his deep voice. "Ril'o seems much more interested in learning from you." Slay had never handled actual teasing well, but even considering that, this was a bad reaction. His usual calm self-control was already on the fritz when she showed up; now she was just adding friction to his already uncomfortable situation. He didn't want to talk about Ril'o, didn't want to think about the name Ril'o, and now Cer wanted to throw that in his face because he mentioned Cwmfen? The arctic wolf shifted his weight, grinding his claws into the sand to release some of the hot jealousy coursing through him. No need to snap, he told himself firmly, ears flattened against his skull. This is a silly thing to get in an argument over... I've got soul but I'm not a soldier

[Cercelee]

      Cer is being so mean!
     Cercelee smiled at the agitation Slay displayed at her accusation. Slay hadn’t been with many in that manner, and (Cercelee let herself muse for a moment) perhaps not with anyone. The idea delighted her, though she knew she had no right to pry for details of Slay’s private life. This however hadn’t stopped her, and even though she knew she should care one way or the other, that didn’t stop her either. Cercelee found that suddenly it was a huge relief Slay hadn’t created a family with anyone.. His voice told the women he was telling the truth, but rather than assenting to the male, Cercelee shrugged and grinned at Slay, as if to say ‘if you say so’ in a taunting manner.
      “And whose job is it to teach the pups to hunt? Since they are without parents I believe it falls to you sir, our hunter. You’re not off the hook yet, with or without children of your own.” If he did have children, how would he react? It wasn’t hard to be kind to Flayra and even Svara, the duties of parenting, protecting, and feeding fell to numerous members of the pack instead of only one, though Haku had seemed to take Svara under his wing. Once the lesson or scolding was done both the pup and adult could move on, yet Cercelee hadn’t really seen Slay interact with the pups yet. If he had his own, they would be consistent, no break. Perhaps the male wouldn’t be able to handle it, perhaps it really was a good thing he had not reproduced.
      Cercelee noted the fur rising along Slay’s neck, the grumblings that were being to form in his chest. The response delighted the Rosea, though she couldn’t say exactly why, and yet at the same time it upset her. He flung the name back at her, and Cer laid her ears flat against her head, who was he to speak so harshly of the male? With her face twisting into either a smile or grimace (on one hand it was thrilling to have the power to evoke such reactions in the patched male, on the other it was bothersome he could grow annoyed at her mention of Ril’o if he was off gallivanting with Cwmfen) she spoke smoothly, almost mockingly. “Well I certainly don’t mind teaching him, if you’re too busy for either him or me, why not spend the time together?” Though Slay had never denied Cercelee time, he wasn’t always available either, and she knew it bothered him to let her down, she hoped she had found another hot button.

[Slaying the Dreamer]

Slaying the Dreamer

OoC: Aww... :C She made him swear. That takes a lot. Now he's being mean back. ;_; That little hypocrite was picking a fight! Incensed, Slay whirled on his heel, stalking down towards the lapping waves of the ocean. Black and white fur rippled up his spine, his hackles erect as his glittering eyes stared venomously at his threatening reflection. He couldn't stand to meet her accusatory gaze; he felt like he would hurt her if he did. Ignoring her nagging about his teaching duties, the broad-chested male let his ebony tail whip an uneven cadence. So, he was unreliable? So maybe she did prefer the company of wolves a little more serious about their lives? So she wanted to rub his nose in the fact that he was still single after all these years, no kids, no nothing? Maybe she didn't realize how much that stung him, but she was about to find out. "Why all the puppy talk? Thinking about having some golden kids of your own?" he hissed, white-tipped ears flat against his skull. He didn't want to hear the answer. Cercelee was the reason he stayed with the pack, the reason he put up with Haku and Firefly and pack meetings and all that shit. If he ever saw her tottering around on two legs with a round belly from some other man's child, he was out. Screw pack life. Was that so unfair? "It's all well and good for you, you know; hang out and socialize with all your little friends, boss us around when you feel like it, and then tell us you want to be treated like an equal when it suits you. Go ahead and play your games, Cercelee! But it gets old pretty quick, and if you want to criticize how I live my life, you'd better get your own shit together first! Maybe act like a real leader every once in a while, and grow up, while you're at it!" He hadn't meant to be so harsh - or had he? Cer had really struck a nerve this time, hitting just about every sore spot he had. All that was left for her to hurt would be his goofy-looking fur or his sleeping sickness, and didn't she know his narcolepsy was part of the reason he disappeared so much...? Stars were bursting before his eyes -- he nearly passed out, so strong was the emotion he felt coursing his shaking body. This sort of passion was exactly what would trigger a sleeping episode, but he struggled to rein it in before he'd collapse and wake up to a slit throat or something. In a distracted manner, he recalled a saying that went along the lines of 'we fight the most with the ones we love the most'. In other words, the ones allowed closest to one's heart were the ones that could break it. In his heightened state, Slay was hardly in the mood to think about how much Cer meant to him, but his mind still filed it away to process later. She just made him so... angry! I've got soul but I'm not a soldier

[Cercelee]

      Poor silly fools. My post is so short compared to yours! I apologize!
      Navy eyes followed the male, taking in his physical signs of unhappiness and matching them with her own. Ears laid flat against her skull and teeth unconsciously became unsheathed as she snorted in disbelief at the male. “Don’t be an idiot Slay.” Of course she didn’t want puppies, least of all with someone she knew for so short a time. And even if she did, who was he to judge? Was it his right to criticize what she did or did not want? They were just friends, weren’t they?
      Cercelee kept at it and Slay was angry. There was no other way to describe the male as he shouted and swore at her. Part of Cercelee was thrilled she could push Slay so far, part of her was scared that she could push Slay so far, and part of her was hurt that Slay would go so far. How had their teasing gotten out of hand so quickly, her jovial friend turned into a raging beast? One moment they were poking and jabbing at each other, as par usual, the next hurtful words were being slung about. Stopping to cool down and think things over was not on the adgenda.
      And he had found it. Slay had discovered the sore point in which to really riled the female up. It wasn’t fun and games anymore, it wasn’t her childishly expressing jealousy or loneliness or anything or the sort, he was attacking her livelihood. The two toned male had crossed a line and Cercelee wasn’t about to let him come over to the other side anytime soon. For the first time in what seemed like forever her voice rose above a standard speaking tone, it was hard not to yell. “Act like a real leader? I am your real leader Slay. Treat me as an equal? You already do, you obviously have no respect for me or yourself! What do you take me for? What kinds of games do I play Slay?” She turned, having enough of this. If she wasn’t a good leader, or a good friend, she was nothing, and she didn’t want to argue that fact. Didn’t care to hear anymore of what the male had to say on the subject. Turning back, her voice flat and cold now, the tone had returned back to her normal pitch. “Don’t bother coming around Slay, I’ll be too busy with games.”

[Slaying the Dreamer]

Slaying the Dreamer

OoC: No worries! My posts have too much fluff. C: Are we wrapping this up, then? He heard her snarl and spit for the first time in his life, and turned around in surprise. He had been trying to avoid her accusing eyes, but now he couldn't turn away from them, boring straight through him. It wasn't a sight he'd soon forget; seeing her face twisted up with fury, her normally sweet voice thick with emotion... Had he hurt her so deeply, that she was willing to turn her back on him and leave him here alone to simmer? Slay was as bad at apologizing as he was with controlling his actions - it might be a long time before he could get over this. His pale gaze was locked onto hers, unwilling to stand down, but losing the heart to keep yelling at his small friend. "...Fine," he growled, digging his blunt claws into the shifting sands beneath them. "You won't have to worry about me bothering you, ever again. I'll keep out of your way like I used to, and you can go pay visits to other packs, and swim in the ocean, and collect flowers, whatever your little heart desires. Maybe we'll both be happier if we don't have to worry about when we'll see each other again." He regretted the words as he uttered them; he didn't want to lose his only friend here! If she really hated him, he would be leaving Dahlia de Mai, he couldn't stand seeing that baleful glare again. A flicker of anger rose up again as he tried to remember what had made him so damn angry in the first place - she had provoked him, purposely, maybe not realizing that she could do some real damage. As he stood on the beach, watching Cercelee turn her back on him for real, he felt another pang of regret amidst the defensiveness. He wouldn't mind if they spent a little more time together... It got lonely, living on the border of the pack lands, sleeping at the feet of the Virgin Mary statue. If... if he hadn't ruined this for good... maybe he could visit the town center a little more often...? But she needed to apologize! If she pulled another mocking sneer, he would probably hit her, and that would be the end of everything they had... I've got soul but I'm not a soldier