Red's Return

[Erinland]

Red was pissed. But then again, he was always pissed. He sat against a tree, his big arms folded and his upper lip raised. Upon returning to Saltren territory from his three month 'walk-a-bout' He'd learned from the other members that a new Alpha had come into being. He was angry with himself for not being around for such an important development, and he resented the new leader. Not only was she unknown to him, which made him uneasy, but she was female, taking control without a male. Female Alpha's were not unknown, but Red was skeptical. Could a female run Saltren? Would she be tough enough? He doubted it.

He pulled himself up as his friend Corder walked toward him. Corder had been his friend ever since he'd joined. They'd found common ground, as they were both dark skinned. Corder raised his head up in greeting, only to look back down at Red's bare feet, which were hopelessly filthy. He grinned.

"Where ya been, Man? Good to see ya." He said. They didn't shake hands or pat each other on the back, but only nodded at each other.

"You know," Red said. "Here and there." Corder laughed.
"You've been gone for like three months, man. We wondered if Hiwassee was comin' back."
Redclay just smirked a bit.
"You heard about the new Alpha, right?" Corder asked. Red's smirk vanished.
"Yeah. Look, I gotta go check on my sister, it's been three months since I seen her last. You know if we're meeting or anything?" Corder shrugged.
"I don't know, man, they don't tell me nothin'."
"Alright. Thanks Corder. Later."

Red started running toward the border. When he was in a familiar place, he shed his clothes and left them in a tree. He'd get them later. He let the wolfish heat flare up and melt down his back, shifting his body into a wolf's. His dark brown fur enveloped his human self, and he leaped forward, relishing the change. He ran faster this way. Suddenly he stopped. He'd spent so long wild and wolf, it had completly slipped his mind that he needed clothes to go into town. A horrible snarl tore through his teeth as he turned back. He jumped on his hind legs, snagging the shorts and tank out of the tree. He rolled them in a feeble bundle and clamped his teeth around them. They'd be soaked in saliva, but who cared? He then let his wolf legs take over, pulling and throwing him into long powerful strides as his heart pumped for them. He's be near town in no time. He'd have to remember to be more human than usual.

[Grimwyck]

Vivian trotted slowly through her packlands. She had been at the Smoke-Stream communing with the past alphas when she felt a change in the air. It was rare for the perpetually quiet area have the air of excitement crackle like electricity through her fur, and it set her on edge. When she had left the area, she had heard through the grapevine of pack life that Redclay had returned. Snorting slightly, Vivian sped up, thinking of him. She had only met him once or twice in passing, and had immediately been put-off by his ever-angry attitude. Nonetheless, as alpha it was her duty to re-welcome him into the territory. No matter what kind of a tedious annoyance it was.

Nobu help me, she thought toward the bones of the past alpha. How you did it before, I'll never know.

Vivian slowed as she heard the sound of a wolf's paws hitting the dirt. Judging by the sound, they were larger than her by just enough, but thrown off balance as they carried something in their mouth. Flattening her ears as the scent registered as one she did not recognize, Vivian bared her teeth and tore through the underbrush toward the somewhat distant sound.

The flash of black fur caught her eye and she lunged, swiping the wolf's ruff and snarling as she landed before him. "State your name," she snapped. Teal eyes narrowed, she took in her fellow wolf's appearance. He looked the kind that would probably fight her if she was not careful. While not exactly relishing the idea of a fight today, she'd fight to the death if need be.

And she didn't intend to lose, either.

[Erinland]

Red skidded, stopping short and taken by complete surprise. A female wolf had come out of nowhere, making a quick assault. At first he was dumbfounded, firstly because he had not been paying attention and hadn't scented her, and secondly because she held an air of superiority even though he was considerably larger than she.

"State your name," She snapped.

Red's eyes widened in anger his pupils shrinking. He inhaled deeply, dropping his bundle of clothes and straightening his neck to its full height.

"What the hell?!" He bellowed. He was quite properly ticked by her behavior. The dark brown fur rose on his big shoulders as he growled deeply. Suddenly it dawned on him. Her stance of authority, her demand for his name . . . perhaps this was the new female alpha. After a short examination, he was sure she must be. For some reason his nose did not pick up much of her scent, which was probably how she'd been able to surprise him. His hackles slowly eased but he didn't drop his guard.

"Redclay Hiwassee, at your service," He sneered sarcastically. "You. You must be that new alpha. Harkness." He unintentionally hissed her name. He felt like teaching her a lesson or two, and imagined himself leaping upon her and pinning her down. But he knew better than that. Much better.

He looked at her critically, raising his lip in his familiar way.

"What'dya want? Congradulations?"

[Grimwyck]

Vivian flicked both ears back at the sneering way the imprudent fool said her name. Yet, curt as ever, she dipped her muzzle in a nod to signify that yes, indeed, she was this 'Harknessss' he had addressed. "I am the new alpha, yes, Redclay Hiwasssee." Hissing on his name as well, she flicked her tail slightly. And hoo boy was this wolf begging for a bruising. She hated fighting unless positively necessary, but at the same time, he was hitting all of her buttons. Thank goodness she was good at hiding her true emotions.

"Whatd'ya want? Congratulations?"

That hit a nerve. Hard. Who would want congratulations after killing another wolf, even by their request, for their title? there was no honor. And it had gained her plenty of resentment already.

Nobu had asked her to take his title so no other wolf would. He hadn't wanted any of the young, ambitious males of the pack to take over and drive them into ruin. He feared Xeno, the alpha of the Astran pack, would perhaps try to ally or attack their pack. Nobu had wanted a leader that would not think with their masculine pride or allow their judgment to be clouded in the oncoming troubled times. So he had chosen her, and only because he trusted her.

And, Vivian felt, unwisely. She had never felt fit to be alpha, but couldn't say no to Nobu. Not when looked so afraid.

Back to the matter at hand, Vivian shook her head. "No, congratulations are not what I desire. However-" She circled her companion once, akin to a vulture. "I do wish to ask you a few questions. Please do make yourself comfortable. I'll try not to take up too many days of your no doubt busy schedule."

She had been pleased with Red's appearance. He could obviously hold his own in a fight. She just had to find where his loyalties lied and how much stock he put in the pack. Then she'd get to the important parts. In these times of trial, allies were important.

Even if she didn't relish the idea of allying her leadership of the pack with this guy.

[Erinland]

Redclay raised a brow as Vivian Harkness strode around him, making a complete circle. Despite his insulting manner, she was reasonably cordial, and he respected that. His opinion of the new alpha heightened. She was also no coward, clearly ready to brawl. Red liked that too. He would've loved a fight, but fighting with an alpha was just not done, no matter how new they were.


"I do wish to ask you a few questions. Please do make yourself comfortable. I'll try not to take up too many days of your no doubt busy schedule."

Red wondered if she was serious about the 'days' part. A tremble rippled through him, full of anxiety for his sister. No matter how long he stayed away, he always feared for her safety and well being. He had never been so paranoid about her when he was human, but the change into a shifter had made him aware of the many dangers in the world. He knew what terrible fates could befall a human in Cysro. Even a cop.

Red raised his lips, exposing pearly white fangs, and a growling sigh escaped. He shook, making the upright hairs fall back into place. He sat on his rump, his tail flopping behind him, and splayed his front legs in a relaxed position. He flexed his black claws, digging them into the earth. Making himself 'comfortable' was not an easy task. He was always so riled and seeing red, that it took great effort to pull himself out of that state of mind. He knew, for he had been told by his sister and pack mates, that he was tiresome to be around because his angry nature. This was part of the reason he so often left for a few months of solitary existence. Being on his own sort of helped him harness the anger into something useful, such as survival. This ritual of growling and and shaking was something he'd started doing to calm himself. It usually worked, and it worked now.

"Ask away . . . alpha. I can spare hours, though, not days." He spoke a little more pleasantly this time.
"I have to-" He stopped and decided against telling her about his sister. That wasn't something she needed to know, or would care much about.

"-check on someone." He finished quietly.

He studied her silently and wondered what Harkness wanted to know.