Whispers of Scarborough

[Private story between #40386 and #3196, please don't post! Need the character sheets?]
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Time & Weather: Noon, sunny with moderate wind.
Location: Border between the Whispers and Scarborough pack.

"Is it safe to be going alone?" the voice of a lively adolescent rang through the air. Vidra was a cheery thing if a bit shy-- but some of that was ultimately just a matter of being young, inexperienced, and living amid adults that were... not quite her family and yet not quite not. They took her in not too long ago, one among many pups to be cast away for some imagined failure or slight. Was there really any reason that would justify it? The Whispers thought not. They took her in without a second thought. None ever really claimed her as theirs but then, what did that matter when the whole pack doted upon her just the same?

"I'll not go far," Javier answered, idly plucking a leaf from where it had tangled in her fur. She was a sleek thing with black and glossy fur, a stark contrast to the bushy russet that made up his coarse coat. Laughably, she already matched him in height and her body was already a bit longer than his own. He was an utonagan, it stood to reason that he would be smaller, yet he could not help but find himself amused by how sheepish the youth was around him when she would be able to overpower him in a matter of months. Javier was a big dog but he was, ultimately, still a hound. A food source. That the Whispers took him in, a hunting dog no less, surprised him more than it could anyone else in this world.

"You, however," he nosed her side gently, "you should go help Whim."

Vidra sheepishly tucked her ears back but nodded her assent. "... Don't be long," she said. Anxiously, the black female padded through the tall grass as she retreated to the safety of her pack. Who could fault her for being so nervous after they were forced to uproot their pack from the mountains? She barely had time to familiarise herself with the lands and already they were chased out.

In truth, Javier shared the sentiment. He knew those mountains like the back of his tail and while he was well-suited for the cold north, the travel there had been rather short of pleasant. Already, he missed the smell of pine and nettle that settled deep into his coat, although he knew staying in the mountains would be foolish. This was a small pack and even if it was not, what sense was there in competing over land and endangering their pups so? The pack leader, Neith, was not stupid. She valued her wolves far more than the land they resided on and in the end, that was why they followed her. Javier too wanted somewhere to belong. To think that could only be a place and not a group was shortsighted indeed.

Muffling a yawn, he stretched out his muscles and then slowly got along his way. Sometimes his duty could be quick. A lap around the area, a quick look at their borders, a note of where the herds moved-- this was not the experience he had today. They were yet to properly claim this land on their own and that made his line of work a little... finicky. To establish borders and mark them appropriately, he bore the risk of stumbling into claimed lands without meaning to.

Usually, this was uneventful. He'd follow his nose, trust in his eyes, and leave visible markings where he could. He'd brush against the foliage to leave his shed fur upon it,  scent what stones he passed on his way, and bite or claw at the bark of various trees. Sometimes even snapping a low branch or digging a hole was enough to keep outsiders at bay, the intent was rarely to frighten and more oft to simply leave signs that the territory was occupied. A simple message was etched wordlessly in dozens of different ways, this area has been claimed, behave.

Alas, the wind was not working in his favour today. Although sunshine felt pleasant at his back, the wind ruffling his fur seemed intent on carrying scents away rather than towards him, a poor situation for any scout. Nevertheless, he had to make rounds if he wanted to ensure the safety of the pups. They were chased here, wasn't it on him more than anyone else to report if there was danger drawing near? He felt responsible for them. Rushing, the small male spent hours travelling through the area. He was as thorough in his search as he could possibly be while scouting alone, there was much land to cover.

Javier came to a halt around noon. Deciding that a break was in order, he slumped onto the dirt unceremoniously to ease the pain on his hips. He wasn't terribly old but poor breeding always had unintended consequences, he was lucky that he did not end up with more of them. This was heaven. In a moment of rest and reprieve, he rolled onto his side and splayed out to catch his breath under the sun's warmth. Wasn't it comforting? Ha, all this walking made him rather hungry; could the others have caught something by now?

Thoughts of food found themselves interrupted when the sound of a distant voice caught his attention. A tall, wide ear rose high upon his head, yet he could not make out the words. He sat up, then slowly rose with a pained grunt for his efforts. Ack. Perhaps he overdid it today? No matter, he could rest with the others.

"... Lurk?" Javier called into the woods.

He made a few slow steps forward, then came to regret the same. That was not the voice of the kindly herbalist, it wasn't even one voice and it sure as death wasn't their hunting party. He crouched low to the ground on instinct, baring his teeth at... something or other, he was not yet sure. Had they been tracked from the mountains? Had he led danger to his pack? He could not yet see who it was that tailed him nor was he confident that the wind would allow him to hide for long, but hide he did. He brought his small body low to the ground and backed up into the brush.

Of course, he'd be found. That was never a matter of question-- the problem at hand was whether he could buy time to find an opening and lead whatever trouble found him further away from his pack.

Time & Weather: Noon, sunny with high-to-moderate wind.

Location: Scarborough pack's territory.



I'll not go far, weren't those the words he offered Vidra? Hah, Javier may well be eating them today. He would, indeed, have to go far if he was to lead these troublemakers away from the rest of his pack. It wasn't as if his family numbered with many, most were probably hunting-- that left pity little behind to look after the pups. What on Earth were they to do if the pack from the mountains followed them here? Already, he felt his heartbeat pulsing in his throat. The hound didn't have to see much more than the silhouettes before him to know they were indeed wolves.

What now?

There were too many to take on at once and the wind was not working in his favour, he couldn't possibly hide here for long. Were those even the same wolves they saw before? He couldn't tell at a distance nor could he smell them from his position to confirm, all that he could do was wait and hope they'd clear a path. The situation was not turning in his favour.

It was now or never, wasn't it? Javier took a slow, deep breath as he felt his leg muscles tense. His shoulders rose ever so slightly in preparation for a run-- and then his luck turned as if by unseen hands. One of them was leaving! He widened his eyes in disbelief and felt his body relax involuntarily. One left! Likely to get back-up or worse but one left, didn't that mean he had a chance? Oh, come on. Hurry, hurry! He urged Goldenrod in his mind as if that may make the wolf obey him, with no such obvious powers manifesting. Perhaps there were souls in this world who could summon up storms or tell the future but Javier did not number among them. He was a mere hound, anxious and desperate in a hiding place full of thorns.

The other one, Rosemary, was drawing closer. He couldn't even see where that one had gone from his position but he could certainly hear her moving closer, he was running out of time. Desperate, Javier drew one last breath and pushed hard against the ground anew. He shot out of the brush as if his tail was on fire. Loud, sharp, quick barks followed in quick succession, taunts meant to draw the she-wolf towards him. He couldn't possibly howl the same way as a wolf, his lungs would never endure it, yet barking? There, he excelled. A hound could be most obnoxiously loud when he so desired, it was why they were such efficient company for human hunters, the sort this one might appear to be trying to attract given the speed with which he ran.

By all accounts, the utonagan looked the part of a hunting hound. He was one once, a fact easily made evident by the worn harness still slung over his shoulders. Could one fault him for being sentimental? For not biting through it and shedding it? Perhaps, in time, he'd wish he had. The mixture of black and green made him a flashy target as he ran, a matter perhaps aided by loud, relentless taunts that followed him along the way to...somewhere. Anywhere. Away.

There was no plan.

Javier hadn't a clue where he was going. For all he knew, he might have been running to the very centre of their pack and he'd not know better but still, he ran with determination as the agile creature that he was. A shame, really. Were he a little younger, were his hips less swollen and aching, he was confident that he could lose a wolf in a sprint. Now? After moving around for hours in health as poor as his own? He'd be lucky if he just led them a fair distance away from his packmates before he was caught. Confident as he may be, Javier was not delusional. There were limits to what he could do... one just had to disregard them at the cost of his health sometimes, wasn't that part of being a pack? A willingness to sacrifice?

"This way, you mangy mutt!" he hollered.

Time & Weather: Noon, sunny with moderate wind.

Location: Scarborough Pack Territory



He was summoning his masters! Inwardly, Rosemary cursed, and then bolted towards the old hound dog. Twigs snapped as she broke cover, ferns shaking in her wake, a wave of snarling fangs and desert fur flashing between the undergrowth! She’d been meaning to give a slow pursuit until the team caught up to her, but situations like these required thinking on her feet. She was no stranger to it - for years she’d served as a chaser for Scarborough Pack, and on her honor, she wouldn’t let this mutt bring men down into the heart of the pack!

She ran parallel to Javier, zigging and zagging between the tall trees, always keeping her eyes on the target as she weaved the terrain. Now jump, now dart right, now steer the prey this way! Every movement a practiced dance, but alone it was harder than with a team, and she wondered again how the scouts did so much on their lonesome.

What she wasn’t, however, was a finisher, and when the time came to deliver a killing blow, she found she slipped. She leapt and snapped at Javier, only to find herself tumbling to the side, the hound regaining his lead. With a snarl she forced herself back to her feet and took pursuit again. “You shouldn’t have come here, manbringer!” She yelled across the way.

And the chase continued.

Team Spring
Location: Scarborough Pack Territory, Outlook

“Well I’ve heard they wear false pelts to fool the spirits, so they may live wherever they please,” Trailblazer said, in a hushed whisper. He spoke of humans the way one might tell a ghost story, and the shiver down the young adult’s spine suggested he believed them to be true. “Creepy, but kinda cool. Like, not gonna lie, if I could go anywhere I wanted, I’d totally do that too.”

Stalwart didn’t respond. The amateur stalker sat upright, ears swiveled outwards, listening for any signs of the humans or their hunting dogs. Though his skills were not the best, his earnestness was sincere. Beside him, the brown-coated Thorn gave a bitter chuckle, shaking his head. The wolf had been a rescue from the mountains himself, and the things he’d witnessed when his pack had been slaughtered had left him with a dark sense of humor. “Wonder if they wear wolf skins,” he said, giving a toothy grin to the other chaser, Golden, who shuddered. “… wonder if it lets them blend in with wolves,” he mused, grin turning a little darker.

“Thorn, cut it out! Rosehip, make him cut it out!” Golden flattened her ears and took a step back. “Besides which, we’re supposed to be keeping an eye out for dogs-“

“Hold it, one second!” Stalwart finally spoke. He bore the same brown-and-white patterning as his father Basil - a white blaze and unders, the scent of spruce and earth about him. His ears swiveled again. “Is that… barking?”

“… it’s getting closer.”

The Chase
Location: Scarborough pack's territory.



No humans were in sight. Perhaps the hound, in his foolishness, got separated from his humans and whatever pack of hounds they kept in tow. There were no boomsticks! Not yet, at least, although one might understandably want to shut him up regardless. Javier was revealing his location to the world at large, with sharp and loud barks that reminisced of coyotes far more than wolves. Perhaps there was a blessing in disguise that would be revealed with time-- that there were none who echoed his taunts and no humans calling from the safety of the treeline. He was alone.

Manbringer? Hah! Perhaps that was something he could use, somewhere in-between calls that were, admittedly, making his throat quite sore. Goodness, how was she this fast? He was twisting and turning every which way and still she was on his tail-- he wasn't decrepit for heaven's sake but his legs were shorter than hers and he was starting to feel exhaustion creep in on him through the adrenaline. He flinched mid-leap as Rosemary's teeth clenched on a mouthful of fur. No wound caused, but a close enough call to make him briefly choke on his own spittle. You try yelling and hopping and let him know how it goes!

"Wha-" he coughed, "what's the matter?" Wheeze. "Afraid of boomsticks?" Pah, blast it, he struggled to clear his throat. The taunts may have fallen somewhat flat with that but it didn't matter, he managed to get some distance from the pack! Of course, it didn't escape him that the area he was being herded towards positively reeked of wolves. Unfamiliar wolves. Drat. He expected to be caught but he hadn't expected it to happen quite so soon, nor that such numbers would be so close to his pack. Had they really all followed them from the mountains? Normally he'd look for markings, for some sign or clue but he couldn't hope to focus on any of it while running for his life. Exhaustion weighed heavy on an aching body, one could only push themselves so much.

Javier was slowing down, he knew.
He wouldn't be able to run for much longer, let alone outrun her.

Team Spring
Location: Scarborough pack's territory, outlook.

"... Do you think that's why they use boomsticks? They leave the fur whole?" Rosehip asked. She looked at Trailblazer with an anxious flick of her tail. Never had she seen a human before, nor a hound for that matter, but the tales all told of them were horrid. They were monsters with sticks that carried the power of thunder, that hunted wolves and deer and all manner of creatures-- but the worst of all, to her, was that they recruited hounds. Traitors to animals of all shapes and sizes, they acted like chasers for humans and helped run down their fellow animals not for food or need, but for pelts! For fur! Sometimes even just antlers!

The entire subject made her uneasy and she felt her fur bristle at the mere thought.  "Thorn!" she chided with a distinct raise in her tail. "They do not blend in with wolves! They... smell. You'd know!" she declared, perhaps for herself more than Golden just now. She had no way to confirm whether or not humans reeked but surely something covered with the blood of so many would have a terrifying stench? Ack. Fear alone made her bristle until she resembled a rather large porcupine-- in her defence, it was one with very neat, well-groomed bristles. 'Bristles' that settled back down as Golden and Stalwart chatted away, permitting her a moment to cautiously observe her surroundings.

No dogs in sight. Not one! Just... "Barking," she confirmed, "that is barking!" Her tail flicked up into a prideful crescent. She was anxious. Dogs could always be followed by humans and boomsticks but this was her chance, wasn't it? A chance to prove herself capable, to contribute to the pack. She could help protect them all! Thoughts of heroics may have gotten to her head just a little, for she leapt forward at the sound before even remembering to address the others.

"Let's catch it!" she exclaimed. It was getting quite close now, she was sure! In fact... wasn't that something brown in the distance? Just a bit larger than a coyote, really!

The Chase
Time & Weather: Noon, sunny with moderate wind.

Location: Scarborough Pack Territory



“You’re weak, puppy hound!” Rosemary called after him. If she heard the taunt about boomsticks, she seemed to have chosen not to answer it. Though also panting by this point, it was apparent that she was holding onto her reserves better than he was. It was apparent to both which direction this was headed if something drastic didn't happen. "Give it up!"

Rosemary gave pursuit. Again, the undergrowth rustled as she moved in on him, twigs snapping, ferns yielding in her wake. This game was hers - she just needed to make sure she didn’t chase him and his masters - wherever they might be - into the heart of the pack. When she finally caught sight of some figures on a rise up ahead, Rosemary smiled inwardly and changed her course, driving him deeper into the territory and snapping at Javier’s heels.

“Pen him in!” She barked to Team Spring up on the hill.

Team Spring
Location: Scarborough Pack Territory, Outlook

Back at the outlook, Thorn gave an amused chuckle, sitting on his haunches and considering the girls coolly. “Maybe they take on a wolf’s smell, too,” he said, cutting a grin. “Maybe they sneak into wild wolf packs and wear our skin. Hell, maybe I’m-”

Thorn’s ghost story was interrupted by the cacophony of barks that had gripped Team Spring’s attention. Even he sat up straight now, looking at the small figure that was approaching. A fox? No, too big…

“That’s barking!” Trailblazer agreed with Rosehip, beginning to knead his paws eagerly on the earth. The itch to go chasing was strong, and the sandy-pelted wolf was chomping at the bit to bolt forth. “And behind him - a wolf? Is that…?”

Rosemary’s voice was like a gunshot over the group, and several of the team sprang into immediate action. Stalwart was the first to react, but Trailblazer quickly bolted after the smaller male and overtook him. As Thorn rocketed past her, Golden Sunset rolled her eyes and set into motion. “Formations!” She reprimanded the half-coordinated group, and bolted down into her position on the left flank.

"He's banking left!" Stalwart's voice called. "Rosehip, can you get the pin?!"

The Chase
Time & Weather: Noon, sunny with moderate wind.

Location: Scarborough Pack Territory



"Yeah?" He grunted, "You're slow!" Snarl, woof, yip, the sounds were getting quieter with time-- and more sharp-pitched, whenever his hind legs made a particularly bad landing. Everything hurt and the reality of what they may do to him once caught was not missed by the bristling male, tired and weary as he might be. His legs felt heavy, his paws were landing awkwardly, and his lungs burned from the exertion. Strength was leaving him fast.

Oh. "Fuh," he panted. There were more! Running uphill may not have been the best choice he'd made but he didn't expect to see more of them right there! Two, three, four-- he didn't have time to count them all, not when teeth came clamping after him. He yelped quite loudly when some fur found itself pulled straight out of his tail, more startled than hurt, yet stumbling nonetheless.

A boomstick... Javier may not have wished for one often in his life but was it a terrible thing to admit he'd have felt safer with the sound of one expelling thunder through the air? That, at least, would have been a quicker fate than whatever this pack of tyrants would bestow upon him.

Team Spring
Location: Scarborough Pack Territory, Outlook

"Thorn!" Rosehip gave a low yelp in protest, pawing at the ground anxiously as a bit of dirt settled on her grey paws. She tilted her ears back with offence, yet found herself distracted by the spectacle ahead of them. A dog! A wolf! A chase! Her fur shot up, for once not in fright but simple excitement that had her clawing at the ground in moments.

Twitching a marble nose upward with a snarl, she ran forth and after the group with all the speed that she could muster. The hound hadn't even seen her, he was much too focused on the wolves surrounding him like a lost doe, intercepting any attempt to twist or turn from their chosen path. They closed him in, and Rosehip only had to act.

"He's mine!" she half-growled the reply. Strong legs propelled her into a powerful leap and she crossed the distance between them with ease. There was a flash of silver and then a pained yelp as her teeth caught onto flesh, leading the pair to tumble into the dirt. Even a large hunting hound was still, in essence, a hound. Although Rosehips teeth clamped on muscle instead of his jugular, there was pity little that he could do to shake off the young huntress at his size. Perhaps a healthier beast could kick and squeal and force her back-- but the protests of this one pittered off with exhaustion, drowned out by the sound of a victorious growl.

She did it!

Rosehip pinned the manbringer under her weight with an upturned tail, desperately trying to wrangle a creature more experienced, yet tired than she. Do forgive her, still, if an unexpected howl made her freeze in place. A call for aid or a call to arms, was there even a difference when it was coming from a stranger within their lands?

It was a summon.

"... There's your boomstick," she heard the mongrel mutter beneath her paws when she spotted a ghostly white wolf in the distance. Perhaps humans could, indeed, take the shape of wolves. The herbalist stood alone, yet his haunting voice was answered with the howls of a handful yet unseen. Lurk could confirm, a hound's bark really did carry far!

The Meeting

Time & Weather: Noon, sunny with moderate wind.


Location: Scarborough Pack Territory

"I got him!" Rosehip announced victoriously. She was glowing. Why wouldn't she be? Manbringers were dangerous! What if this one brought men with boomsticks to the pack? To the pups? She did well helping to protect the pack and the added praise smoothened out what had until now been bristling fur. It was too bad that a moment of her satisfaction was brought to a halt by the beast's struggle to rise, preventing her from showing a more noble display in favour of pinning the hound with her weight. He was a stubborn thing, though russet fur had long turned red where she held him.

Lurk could not hear the full exchange, least of all Javier's half-wheezed cursing. He could, however, see movement. Their scout was alive and had enough energy to struggle, wasn't that excellent news? Less so that the hound was surrounded but Lurk could not part a whole hunting party from him alone. He'd called the others, of course, but it was on him to buy time until they arrived to offer their support. What was a herbalist to do alone against them? He was a slender thing and dignified in his approach, yet visibly the furthest he could be from a warrior. That was the opposite of his work!

"Good day," he greeted them calmly. At least he hoped it sounded calm because tensions were already high and he had no intention of making that worse. These couldn't have been the same wolves to chase them here, could they? No, he thought not. For one, he held high doubts they'd have left Javier alive for long enough to question him! With that in mind, the white entity drew a deep breath and sat gracefully before Rosemary, with a bushy tail coiled neatly around... grey paws? Yes, subtle markings on those- just a slightly darker coat on his undersides that extended around his neck.

"There are no humans here," Lurk said, "I will thank you to release our scout." He looked upon the hunting party with what he felt was all the patience in the world... or perhaps that was just the amount he had stolen from his associate; the grey wolf bounding towards them was snarling his disapproval from a distance. Kuma was, quite visibly, the pack's finisher. He was massive but then, so too was the black and white female at his side and she looked easily half his age. What manner of leader wouldn't run to aid their pack when trouble stirred? Even some manner of brown runt trailed behind the pair.

Lurk, however, cleared his throat in order to draw attention back to himself. "You may want to avoid Kuma," he announced-- perhaps just for the hound's benefit, "I think I can speak for most of us when I say we would rather settle this amicably... but I can't promise they'll be that patient if they find you with teeth still clamped on his neck." A measured gaze met Rosehip's eye, for all that she bristled underneath it.

"He's a manbringer," she announced, "he has the thing."

"I never accused him of being clever," said the pale one.

The Meeting

Time & Weather: Noon, sunny with moderate wind.

Location: Scarborough Pack Territory



Rosemary reeled at the slender wolf’s statement. Their scout? She must have misheard. And yet more wolves were coming in behind Lurk, coming to support him. The large grey one in particular looked fierce; with only the trainee team at her flank she was not looking forward to her odds of taking him and his companions on. Still, she decided not to meet the newcomer’s snarling with her head down and her tail lowered; she stood tall, attempting to look dignified in spite of the oncoming finisher.

“I’m sorry,” she said, putting on her best polite face. She had to suppress an urge to bare fangs; the habits of the old pack died hard, even with the guidance of her new pack leadership. “Did you say that puppy hound was your pack’s scout?” How on Earth was she supposed to know that? It sounded absurd on its face, and yet clearly the wolves were coming for their hound dog, just as true as if it had been a member of their own pack. With neither Amaranth or Basil here, the chain of command fell to her, and again she took a deep breath, suddenly aware of how the wind had turned directions and blew in her face. Doing her best to look authoritative, she turned to Team Spring. “Rosehip! Spring! Release the puppy hound!”

“But-” began Thorn.

“Do it!” Then, remembering something Basil had told her, she added, “You followed orders well, this is on me.”

Her heart hammering in her chest, she turned back to the strange wolves. “There,” she said to the healer. “It is done. Spirits pray you folks know what you are doing. He’s in a harness and everything.”

A good distance away, Trailblazer took a few steps back, creating an opening for Javier, should he be released. “What was that they said?” He asked. “You’re a scout?” The young wolf’s eyes looked down to Javier much more curiously now. He spoke breathlessly.