Crow's Lament

Spoiler2022-12-28
Crow's Lament is an explorer at heart, he has always found it hard to settle in one place.
He was born in a large pack in the northern mountains, his past home was a safe and quiet sanctuary, the wolves there were kind-hearted and strongly united by family bonds, Crow never quite fit in though, he was rowdy, combative and had a knack for finding himself trouble.
When he wasn't picking fights, he would spend countless nights exploring the borders of his pack's territory, sometimes, he dared to cross borders and discover unknown lands. The thrill of unearthing new places was what kept him alive and he loved every second of it.

However, crossing borders was strictly forbidden by his pack, they wanted to remain peaceful and keep themselves from starting fights over land they didn't need.
Crow tried to keep his trespassing a secret, but the scent of unfamiliar forests and grasslands always finds a way to cling itself onto fur, and his secret was found out.
He was already unliked, and this new offense was the final nail in the coffin in the eyes of the leading pair commanding the pack, promptly he was kicked out and was forced to begin a new life as a loner.

The first few weeks as a loner were enjoyable for Crow, afterall, living a life free of pack-responsibility with a whole new world to be discovered was almost a dream, but as months passed and winter arrived the only thing he craved was the safety and comfort of home.
He was young at the time of leaving, he barely knew how to hunt so the only food he was eating was scavenged remains, he was rapidly losing weight and soon found himself infected with various illnesses from the old carcasses he had been eating.
He felt hopeless.

On a dark and snowy night however, he was approached by an new face, Owl Fever, she didn't talk much and only called for Crow to follow her, although he felt uneasy at what might await him if he followed, desperation for some sort of help forced him to go after her. Afterall, this was the only wolf he had seen in his time as a loner that hadn't tried to kill him.
They stopped at a gigantic oak tree, and he soon realized that this was the basecamp for a pack he didn't recognize. Anxiety flooded his mind, was this an ambush? Why did she bring him here?
Another wolf approached him, a large chestnut-colored male, Summer Solstice, the stature of this wolf made it clear to Crow that this was the local Leader and he started backing away slowly.
Having sensed that Crow was intimidated, Solstice introduced himself in a playful, nonchalant way and offered Crow some freshkill.
Although still anxious, he quickly accepted the offer. After his meal, Owl Fever led him to the local Herbalist and revealed her intentions to him.
Crow had been offered a new home.
He never said "Yes" to something this quickly before, much to his own surprise.

The first weeks he spent here were free of responsibility, he was given time for his health to recover and to gain familiarity with this new home and its members, when it came time to take on a role to provide for his new pack he felt anxious again, he was terrible at hunting, hated pupsitting and there was already a Herbalist in this pack.
He felt useless, the only thing that he was good at was exploring- And that got him kicked out of his last pack. In defeat, he explained this to Summer, but instead of being kicked out like he expected, Summer took interest in his skill and love for exploration.
The pack territory was small, and nearby lands were a mystery so what Crow thought was a useless skill ended up being the exact thing the pack needed, and he took on a brand new role.
He became the first scout of his pack.

This was the absolute best possible outcome for him, he could practice his love for exploration while still being able to come home to a fresh meal, a comfortable den and the warm feeling of having provided for his pack.
Eventually a new scout joined the pack, Corvid's Grief, and although Crow initially saw her as a rival, they eventually started bonding over their love for their role and surprisingly similar names, this bond gradually grew into love.

Crow still has a lot of years ahead of him, and although he outwardly likes to present himself as grumpy and bad-tempered he carries a lot of love for his home and pack members.
He thinks about the time he spent as a loner and his previous pack a lot, he wonders what life would be like if things turned out differently, would it be worse, or better perhaps? Still, he wouldn't have changed a thing, his past experiences no matter how terrible still helped shape his life into what it is today.
His life is bound to change again, just like all things do, and the thought of exploring and overcoming life's new challenges is exhilarating.
Patience is needed however, only time can tell what new horizons await.