A Shaky Start (Joining/Open)

[LightTogekiss]

       Justice looked around him. Why did I come here? The darkness in tunnels seemed unending, and Justice didn't like darkness, especially if it seemed unending. Oh my, it is dark in here isn't it... Maybe... Maybe I should turn back... Justice turned around; when he did, a droplet of water dropped from the roof of the tunnel, creating a noise that didn't even evoke an echo. Nonetheless, Justice jumped. As his feet hit the ground, a splashing sound gave evidence that Justice had stepped in a puddle.

       "Eewww!" Justice shouted, now licking grime out of his white fur. I never...why did I.. Justice stopped thinking when he saw something in the distance. "An exit?!" Justice bolted over to the seemingly ever-distant beam of light. That's when Justice realized, that it was a beam of light. The beam was actually several cut beams originating from a grate in the ceiling. Oh..And now..My coat's all dirty again.. 

       Justice sat down in the light for a moment, trying to gather his thoughts. All that was gathered, however, was grime. Justice rose after a minute or so of sitting. Justice looked into the expansive tunnel on both sides. Justice clutched his eyes shut and dreamed of the world he wished he lived in. He saw cherry blossom drifting through the air, and clouds floating overhead. Justice wanted to keep his eyes shut and think of this forever. Justice also knew however, that he must keep moving. It's been weeks since he had seen anywolf at all and he was beginning to lose hope. Justice resorted to searching these disgusting cave things only becasue he had no other choice.

       Justice thought about those tall things with two legs. He never quite understood why his pack, if that's what he could call it, told his to stay away from them. Justice thought they seemed nice, and he would have approached one if they weren't so scary.. Why? Why didn't I just chose one of them instead of coming down here? Justice's eyes were still open; he wanted to open them, but he was scared that the result of doing so would be what he dreaded the most. Nothing.

       Justice always hated the dark, and now was no better, as it appeared he had nowhere to go. Justice forced himself to open his eyes. "Eeep" Justice closed his eyes again. I knew it! I knew it was still dark... Okay..I can do this.. Justice strained again to open his eyes to the oblivion once again, this time he opened them long enough to see another light beam cluster thingy. He closed his eyes again and pictured where that beam would be if there was sunlight everywhere. Okay..Here I go.

       Justice must have looked quite strange, running the way he does, with his eyes closed no less. The way Justice ran always made other wolves snicker; he didn't really run, he sort of fluttered from place to place. This never affected the fact that Justice could outrun every wolf he ever met. Justice was unsure if this was because of his apptitude for running away, or because of his love of chasing after bunnies in the forest. None of this mattered to Justice now; he stopped running when he thought he had reached the site of the glorious rays.

       Okay, three, two....three, two... Justice wanted to make it easier by verbalizing it. Three, two...Three two. one." Justice opened his eyes and he was inches away from the light. "Eep!" Justice yelped as he hopped into safety. Justice body and mind were both completely worn after such dangerous and scary work that Justice just plopped down with his eyes closed once again. I really hope I don't..have to do that...forever? Justice thought, although his thoughts were verbalized as well, asking no one in particular.  

       As Justice sat, every single drip, every single buzz, every single echo made Justice's body react. Either a jolt, or a shutter, or a twitch--it didn't matter to Justice; he just wanted to leave. Justice wished more than ever that he had gone above ground.

[Deleted]

She took guard duty seriously, like the kind of straight faced no dozing off seriousness that the job demanded. When the Rainier pack adopted Fenra into their ranks with open arms and no judgments, she was alone and saddled with the death of her friends, her family, her everything. Since then, Fenra has dedicated herself to the pack, working the tunnels every shift and never bulking at the sanitation or rats. Nothing out of the norm escaped her diligent mocha orbs, not wolf, not dog, not man. So, as she was making her way through the damp tunnels, her paws padding as silently as she could through the grime, Fenra was alerted to a noise. No, a voice.

Ears swiveling at the sound, Fenra’s head snapped towards the origin of the voice, the hackles on her back rising at the intruder. She knew who belonged to the Rainier pack and who didn’t and this stranger lost in the tunnels belonged to the latter of those two categories. While the Rainier openly accepted additions to their pack, Fenra was still a guard and it was up to her to make sure any newcomers were friendly instead of hostile. Deciding not to take a sneaky approach, Fenra bolted down the tunnels, her feet hitting the occasional puddle, sending water splashing up. She didn’t care about the grime or putrid muck that tarnished the underside of her cream colored coat- that could always be washed off, the death of one of her pack because she wasn’t defending it, not so easily remedied.

Streams of light flickered past Fenra as she ran, casting shadows across her face and body before quickly disappearing as the female increased her pace. The stranger was still talking, their words muffled, but now Fenra could smell a foreign scent in the air that undoubtedly belonged to them. The closer she got, the more precise she could identify the smell, picking it apart with accuracy only known to beasts. It was another wolf: male and she could taste no blood in the air so it was likely that the wolf was uninjured.

Taking a last twist, Fenra found what she was looking for. Adopting a defensive stance, the female wolf eyed her adversary. He was pure white in color, fidgety, and clearly uncomfortable in his current location. It was apparent that the stranger wasn’t an attacking wolf from another pack or even a stray trying to steal supplies, he merely looked lost.

“Who are you?” she questioned, her voice not hostile but still firm. She could never be too careful.

[LightTogekiss]

       When Justice hears the arrival of another wolf, Justice response is to run. Justice thought he had heard the creature say something, however, Justice didn't even know what made the uttering.

       Justice continued to run for a minute or so before stopping; he simply couldn't run anymore, especially with his eyes closed like they were. Justice began thinking about what the sound was; What did it say? Justice strained to remember what he had heard, but he couldn't, the fear had blotted out the sound in his mind. 

       Justice turned around, and tried to open his eyes. Should I...Should I keep running? Justice then realized. What if.. What if I'm in someone else's territory? I hope I didn't bother anyone...Or maybe, it's from father, maybe..he decided to tie up loose ends.... Justice just stood still for a moment and tried to collect his thoughts, as well as his resolve to keep his eyes open. Justice was close enough to one of the fragmented beam clusters that his visibility reached several feet outside of the beams anyway. 

       Justice let out a sound that was supposed to be a bark, maybe Justice was trying to say something like "I'm here" or "I'm scared", maybe "I'm sorry" but instead, all that came out was a wimpy gutteral sound that had no emotion or connotations at all. Justice didn't want to frighten the other wolf, so he remained quiet; Justice remained tense however, ready to sprint away at a moment's notice. Justice didn't know where to go, but running didn't really require a destination to Justice, just a reason for running.

       

[Deleted]

The outsider ran and he ran quickly, faster than Fenra and while the female hated to admit it, there was nothing she could do but push herself even more. Luckily, the white wolf eventually stopped, confusing Fenra as she tried to determine what his motives were. It took him another moment, another excruciating long moment, to turn around and then finally open his eyes. It puzzled Fenra why he had them closed in the first place; unless he was blind, it truly served no practical purpose, especially if he was running away from her.

For Fenra’s part, she stayed solid, gaze unflinching as she determined what the male was trying to do and if he was toying around with her, buying time for some buddies of his to attack. Well, he would certainly regret doing that if that was the truth. Then came that…Dread Wolf, could you even call that a bark? It didn’t serve for anything, it didn’t sound like anything, at least anything intelligible. Which, in Fenra’s books, was more annoying than the running.

“You’re in Rainier Pack territory,” she started, watching as the male tensed himself to run again. She clenched her own muscles, ready to sprint and tackle if the wolf fled. “And you’re in no danger unless you prove to be a threat. So I’ll ask once more: Who are you and what do you want?”

Again, the sandy colored female didn’t hold any hostility in her voice, just solemnity.

[Willow••]

She had grown accustomed to the dirt caking the floor of their underground base and was familiar with the scuttling paws and squeaks of rats. Her ears could now take in every drip of water and distant echo of a car driving by a grate half a mile down the tunnel, when before, these sounds were foreign. Ava knew her home well, and even if many detested it, the underground was indeed their home. For weeks she had patrolled it to gain favorable knowledge of which ways the tunnels went, which stations were in need of protection, and which nooks and crannies were to be noted. These days, nothing escaped Ava, and if it did, it was a cockroach scaling the walls in the pitch dark beyond her senses.

The she-wolf padded along the tracks with her eyes greedily swallowing every source of light they could, and although her pupils were desperate, her heart and mind were calm. In some fashions, the darkness soothed her and allowed her mind to go blank from the responsibilities and tasks that overloaded its depths, but then again it still unsettled her. At the end of her thoughts was the idea that anything could be lurking in the extensive black of the cavernous subway, but Ava took comfort in the knowledge that her pack was on point for their defense and safety. Which, at this time, was a matter that she needed to address, for she heard the echoing of running paws ahead in the tunnel. She came to a halt and her ears perked as she strained to hear if they were coming or going, and determine whose steps they were.

Sounds that could pass as voices reached her, and caused Ava to become curious; she needed to scope this out, and see who was addressing their guest--if it was a guest. The Alpha took up a loping gait, her paws deftly falling to the bottom of the tunnel and propelling her forward. She no longer felt blinded in the dark, and so her steps carried her confidently forward as she ran through the tunnel. She blended with the walls and melded with the dark, moving like the shadow of a Canid rather than one of flesh and blood, and so when the figures of wolves formed ahead of her and she approached, she did so as if she were materializing from the pitch around her. Ava walked toward them, her amber eyes focusing first on the stranger, then upon Fenra. "Good day," she spoke. "Fenra," Ava added in acknowledgement with a nod to the Guard. Her words followed Fenra's statements, which were made to the restlessly twitching wolf ahead of her. Ava's eyes focused on him, but instead of repeating Fenra's order, which she felt would downgrade her authority as a pack member by replacing it with some strange Alpha dominance, the she-wolf was silent and awaited the response.

[LightTogekiss]

As Justice sat in waiting he wondered why he was sitting here. Justice could have kept running; so why stop? Justice pondered this for a moment as something deep within him tugged at his heart. Justice didn't know what this feeling was, this nudge on his conscience.


All of Justice ponderings ceased, however, when a cream colored wolf appeared. Ranier territory? Oh no...I knew I was causing someone trouble...Justice mind wandered from care to worry as he wondered about the reprucussions for trespassing.. Oh, I'm not a threat am I? Justice wondered to himself.. My name...My name... Justice hadn't said his name in so long, he felt as if he couldn't even say it anymore. Just as Justice was about to open his mouth, another wolf appeared.

"Eeep!!!! Eeeep!" Justice screamed as he ran about three wolf lengths back, hiding his head in his fluffy paws. Please don't be real. Please don't be real. Justice thought as he slowly peeked upward. Justice quickly burried his head again before realizing that this wolf could not possibly be a ghost, which was Justice's first thought. 

When Justice processed the wolf's actions, he felt less inclined to run, besides, would a murderous wolf say "Good day"? "Fenra", was that the name of this creamy colored wolf...Justice paused for a moment to collect his thoughts, yet again. Right..my name...Justice thought. 

"Umm...Ummm....My..My--name--is............Just-ice" Justice said with a horribly puppish tone. When Justice said his name, it was unfamiliar even to himself. It was like waking up on a cold winter morning and stretching, the feeling, the yearning to remain dormant seems overcoming.

Justice stood still, frozen really, as he waited for a reply. Justice body was tensed to run so much that his entire body was shaking. Or was that just Justice? None of that mattered now. The only part of Justice that was not tensed was his tail, which was rapidly wagging and dancing as if it couldn't care less about Justice`s situation; his tail always did have a personality of its own.

Justice mind wandered back and forth, like a pendulum in a bottle which, with enough force, could break the glass walls surrounding it. Justice then realized; he was looking at real life wolves. Justice wanted to celebrate, but his fear still outweighed his exitement, so the only thing moving was his tail.

Justice sees a bug of some sort on the wall. Its brown body looks so dirty to Justice, that his berry/herb lunch begins to make its presence known to Justice. Although, at the moment, Justice wishes he could be that bug; he wishes he could just crawl out of this tunnel, and this confrontation altogether.






WalkTalk, Think

[Deleted]

Ever diligent, Fenra heard the footsteps approaching behind her from the direction of the pack’s home base. She was torn between keeping an eye on the flighty wolf and turning around to see if the bounding creature in her blind spot was friend or foe. Duty won out as Fenra’s eyes stayed locked on the wallowing stranger while her ears swiveled back to listen to the footfall of the other being. Due to the direction of the air blowning in through the grates, Fenra could only smell the male’s scent combined with the rankness that permeated the tunnel system at all times and nothing from the one behind her.

“Fenra.”

She recognized voice, Fenra thought to herself, using her peripheral vision to confirm a fact she knew already to be true. Never could a wolf forget the sound of their leader and never could Fenra forget the voice that brought the beige colored into her new home. “Ava,” Fenra responded, inclining her head down just a fraction as a slight nod of acknowledgement. The guard knew that Rainier wolves regarded each other as equal, yet, respect was due and given to the Alpha pair and Betas. Fenra’s sleek tail fell lower to the ground, relaxed and no longer showing her dominance of the territory in front of the white stranger.

Her old pack, the Nova, employed hierarchy with a frightening strictness that Fenra grew up with and became accustomed to. Though, as she watched her pack disintegrate once the passing of both Alpha and Beta couples, she saw how ‘useful’ that system really was. No one else knew how to lead and those that could left and those that couldn’t stayed with Fenra. When she first arrived to North Bay, using the cover of night to shield her as she slipped into the tunnels, she learned of the two packs: one much akin to Nova practices and the other something else entirely. Her choice came as easily as death and as sure as the seasons and not once as she regretted it. Lifelong habits, however, were not easy to kill and still to this day Fenra ultimately lowered herself to her Alphess whenever Ava arrived.

Watching the erratic wolf’s antics, the guard relaxed her positioning, the fur on her body lowering soon after. There must have been something wrong with him, Fenra deliberated, as the stranger struggled to form his words. A pang of pity passed through the female’s heart as she watched Justice fight to compose himself. There was something off about him and, knowing that all loners’ fate belonged to Ava, Fenra turned her attention to her Alphess, waiting for the dark wolf to speak. Ava always had a way with words that Fenra lacked.

Speech // Quote

[Willow••]

Upon her entrance into the situation, the white wolf that Fenra had confronted made a bizarre shriek-like sound and retreated backward, before hiding his face with his paws. It startled Ava, and she took a few steps forward in surprise and cast a glance at Fenra. Ava herself didn't feel like she looked all that scary, but she deduced that she had practically come out of nowhere and it had scared the stranger. She felt Fenra's eyes on her briefly, as if she too, was trying to figure out why the other wolf was so skittish. It wasn't a normal skittish; he had been startled and that was understandable, but his fear seemed to be rooted more deeply than just being surprised that the Guard and Alpha had appeared inside the tunnel with him. He cowered and hid from the sight of them, and it made Ava uneasy. But she would figure it out momentarily. The wolf stuttered his name, and the she-wolfs ears twitched at the staccato syllables.

"Justice," she echoed, repeating his name not only for the sake of memorizing it, but to hopefully get his attention. Unknowingly, Ava was sharing Fenra's internalized pity for the obsequious male before them, and she felt the need to calm him and help him. Her tone was tentative and she kept her voice low. "I get the feeling you are lost. My name is Ava, I am the Alpha of the pack that resides here. We won't hurt you." She paused, taking another step forward and lowering her head to gaze forward at the wolf. "If you need our help to exit, we will gladly escort you out." She had seen a couple creatures become lost in the tunnels before; but they had been dogs, and a guttural sound of menace was enough to scare them out. But Ava had no intentions of scaring the wolf out of his wits, especially if he meant no harm. She couldn't imagine he did; he would have to uncover his eyes to see them first.

[LightTogekiss]

Justice flinched when "Ava" spoke. She..She doesn't want to hurt me? Lost...Am I lost? Leave? They want me to leave? Justice's thought process was very jumbled; even the way he processed what Ava said was backwards. Justice truly wanted to respond with a dignified answer, but his mouth was frozen. Justice strained to speak, but what came out sounded as if Justice was choking; in a way he was, Justice was choking on his own emotion, and he couldn't control it.

Justice stepped back several steps again, remaining close enough so that he could still see the two wolves, yet far enough away so that Justice didn't feel as nervous. Well that the the point anyway. Justice nervousness didn't waver at all, even after his movement. Why can't I....Okay...I need to say something....Justice thought before trying, again, to utter something.

"Well..I'm...sort of...lost..I was...exiled...from my old..pack..thing..." Justice began, his tail wagging exceedingly fast as he spoke. "Umm I'm really sorry...I didn't mean to...cause any...trouble..." Justice said, with a regret like no other.

I've been..searching...for weeks...looking for other wolves...I couldn't find any...I tried getting the attention of...those..twoleggy things..they didn't- well..they didn't listen.. That was when...When...I was all icky..." Justice said, remembering the days when he was so distraught after discovering his brother was dead that he didn't even clean himself; leaving his coat a dark, grimy color.

"So..I came down..here.. I really just..wanted to-to see someone else. but...I didn't know how scary it was here.." Justice said, glancing to and from at his surroundings.

"I..I would have left..but..there was a.. monster..." Justice said, referring to the "monster" that was a water droplet hitting the ground, making an echoless sound. "And, then..You came..You...Ava..And-and..Fenra...I'm sorry if I caused you trouble...If-If you want me to leave...I will..." Justice said, thinking about which he dreaded more: the dark, or lonliness.

Justice looks to Ava and Fenra for a response before his stomach growled, Justice wished he had spent more time collecting those berries. I wonder if berries can grow here..they sure would make thinkgs look better...

Justice smelled something in the distance. Whatever it was, it was approaching quickly. Justice glanced to his left to see a small rat pass by him. "Eeepp! Ewwy Ewwy Ewwy Ewwey!" Justice said before letting out a pitiful whine. Oh, my..Oh, my..Oh, my...Justice once again clamped his eyes shut, this time thinking of budding, flowering trees, and sunshine, rather that the rodent scurrying past him. 

Walk, Talk, Think

[Deleted]

Justice could have been exiled from his pack for a multitude of reasons, Fenra thought to herself, his fitful behavior for example or if he’d been a danger or burden to his pack. After mulling over the notion in her head, Fenra settled on the latter of the reasons, betting that his last pack found him to be too much of a hassle to bet their safety on. Justice’s tone clearly carried the remorse he was trying to portray through his words, providing the wolf with an almost puppy-like quality to him as if he were caught in the wrong place at the wrong time by an adult. And maybe he had.

When Justice spoke of humans, Fera’s head jolted up, a worried look clear on her face. Did he know how lucky he was not to be harmed by the humans who had probably mistaken him for a stray mutt instead of the glorious beast that his blood belonged to? “You could’ve been injured like that,” Fenra nagged, her voice a combination of anger and worry- the typical motherly reaction. Before she could comment any more on the matter, Justice continued his ellipsis filled speech.

A monster? No, there wasn’t any intruders here, at least none other than Justice himself. Fenra made sure of that, after all, it was her duty to secure the underground territory of Rainier and she wouldn’t let one rat slip by her unnoticed. Though, just to be certain, Fenra was close to asking Ava if she could go run and check the perimeter when the white wolf panicked once again. This time it was over a rat, a common sight down in the sewers.

Pouncing to the side, Fenra landed on top of the rat, snapping her jaws around the rodent as she crushed its neck. Food was hard enough to scavenge here if a wolf didn’t know what they were doing and after hearing Justice’s stomach gurgle for sustenance, Fenra figured he hadn’t eaten in a while. Flashing a glance over to Ava, hoping that her Alphess wouldn’t mind Fenra sharing food that belonged to Rainier, the guard shoved the dead rodent a few inches closer over to Justice. “Here, are you hungry?” Fenra inquired.

Maybe if Justice ate and settled down he would be able to talk to them without tripping over himself or fearing an attack. Then, if he didn’t like the sewers as much as he seemed not to, they could lead him out. Guilt twisted at Fenra’s chest as she thought of that outcome. Justice was not fit to be on his own, that was clear enough and she highly doubted that either the humans above or the other wolf pack down in the tunnels would take the problematic wolf in.

Speech // Quote

[Willow••]

For long moments she and Fenra were waiting for the wolf's response, but Ava could tell he was extremely nervous. He was trembling all over, and flinching just at the sound of their voices. She cast another glance at Fenra, wondering what she thought of the situation. While Ava wasn't suspicious of the timid wolf, she didn't quite know what to do with him. Obviously he was scared to be in the tunnels, but then again being above ground didn't seem like a feasible place to leave him, either. He'd draw attention to himself for sure.

He moved backward again and Ava lifted her head from its previously lowered position, and watched him curiously. His tail began to wave fervently, and finally he began to speak stuttered syllables. To learn he was an exile surprised the Alpha; she didn't take him as the type to need exile, but she supposed his nervousness could have had something to do with it. Yet upon that thought, she decided that was wrong of them, and that this poor male had been left wandering for weeks because of them. It made her heart ache and she frowned.

Justice continued to explain his situation, and as he spoke of the twoleggy things, Ava's ears flew back and she unintentionally glanced at the ceiling as if humans were standing above their heads with sharp weapons and guns at the ready to kill them all. Her golden eyes darted back down as Fenra warned that he could have been hurt by approaching the humans. This was true; it was surprising enough that they had let him go by them. Even more so that he elected to try to get their attention. It sent a chill up her spine.

The male was giving a nervous and remorseful apology, stating that he would leave if they wanted him to, before a rat scurried by that startled him and caused Fenra to leap and catch the rodent. Ava was still a bit dumbfounded at the entire situation, but she blinked a few times to reassess it and clear her mind. "Fenra is right - you're lucky you weren't hurt by the humans. For us wolves it's dangerous to approach them." She watched Fenra offer the rat's now lifeless body to Justice, but got the feeling he would refuse it, based on the way he scurried back from it when it scuttled by. She continued, "You do not have to leave. In fact it's more dangerous above ground than it is in here, especially if you have no place to go. We protect this place, there are no monsters." The black wolf sighed and shifted her paws in the dirt and grime coating the tracks. It would be immoral of her to turn him away; there wasn't any fathomable reason she could escort him out and tell him to go back to fending for himself. She gazed at him levelly. "I'm willing to allow you to come with us, Justice. The world out there isn't safe. But with us, you will be."

[LightTogekiss]

When Fenra jumped at the rat, so did Justice, just not at the rat; Justice just jumped. Justice didn't say anything because he realized that other wolves had to eat too. When Fenra pushed the now dead rat over toward Justice, he began to cringe, again. Oh my...is that...it is...it's...dead... "What? No...I mean...please...just...stop!!" Justice spoke with such a soft tone at first, when his voice raised, it scared Justice himself. When he shouted, he turned around and kicked the body of the rat into the air; it flew past Ava, almost hitting her. "Oh..I'm..so sorry. I didn't mean to....shout..." Justice said as he washed his paw in a puddle of water. "It's just that...I don't...eat..meat..........I can't stand..death... I'm sorry..I'm so sorry" Justice said looking towards both Ava and Fenra, sorry to Ava for almost hitting her, and to Fenra for avoiding her gift.

Justice began to process what Fenra had said before she offered the rat to him, as well as what Ava said afterward. Why do they care? Justice thought, almost defensively. Why..do they care..? This time the thought was a sincere question to himself. Justice thought that all older wolves didn't care about anything; could it be that his predesposition wasn't true? 

But..Why..how? could I get hurt by them..They didn't seem that bad.. Somehow, Justice sees the good in everything while he still sees the sometimes nonexistent scariness in everything as well. Justice didn't see much of a difference between the twoleggies and the canines; the younger ones, Justice had always thought were innocent and the older ones, Justice had always thought were evil. Justice didn't think there was any difference. "They're...Dangerous? Justice said, almost under his breath.

Justice's thoughts about the twoleggies dissipated when he realized what Ava had said; "You do not have to leave". Justice's response to this was slightly late, as Justice tried pondering what the monster he heard was. I..could have sworn.. 

When the gravity of Ava's statement finally hit Justice, his entire body was filled with joy. With tears in his eyes and emotion in his voice, Justice began to speak. "Thank...You...Thank you..Thank you! Oh Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!!" Justice ran up to Ava and embraced the high-ranking wolf; afterward, he did the same to Fenra. "I finally...I finally found a place..where.." Justice didn't finish his sentence, but the joy in his heart was ever evident on his face. It was as if the light emanating from Justice heart was causing the darkness to fade away, along with his fear.

Justice stands quietly, with a smile on his face, bathing in the beams of light radiating from the ceiling. Legacy...I did it...I finally did it.. If only you were here..

Justice thinks about the times before, the times when he was still a part of his father's pack. The times when he and his brother would talk for hours about their dreams. The times when Justice begged for the scouting duty rather than the hunting round. The times when Justice would spend days chasing after the same bunny. The times when Justice saved the lives of his sick packmates by blending his own herbs mixes. The times when Justice actually enjoyed being his father's son. Justice wished those days weren't gone, but they were, so Justice had to make the most of what he had now, which was much more that he had expected from the Spectre and Twilight wolves.

I wonder where bun-buns is... Justice's mind flutters from one place to the other with joy, but he doesn't care; now, something about Justice finally fit.

Walk Talk,Think

[n/div]

[Willow••]

Justice was a bit stranger than Ava initially assumed. When offered the rat, he seemed to shrink back in disgust, and then stuttered a few syllables before shouting for the two pack wolves to stop. Ava's ears flew back and she flinched away from the flying body of the rat. Once it landed somewhere behind them, Ava turned and stared at him in surprise, frozen and quiet. While she wasn't scared by the sudden outburst, she was a bit puzzled. A moment later the white wolf apologized and explained he didn't eat meat and couldn't stand death. Ava's golden eyes showed her confusion, but she couldn't say anything against the male; there was no reason for her to judge him even if his eating habits were very odd.

"That's alright," Ava responded to his apology, her tone quiet and level. She watched as Justice seemed to be overwhelmed by his own confusion for what she had said. He didn't seem to understand how humans were dangerous, and Ava supposed that if none of them had harmed him personally and he hadn't heard the stories, he would indeed be oblivious to the threat they posed. She would have to explain it to him later. His expression changed again, after she offered for him to stay. He burst into a flurry of thank-yous and giddy emotion, and Ava couldn't help but smile. The male rushed forward to embrace her and the Alpha chuckled softly while nuzzling him in return. She didn't know what situation he had previously come from, but it seemed that Justice was very, very grateful to be welcomed into something new. "You are very welcome, Justice. If you'd like, I'll take you back to our station. It will be much more comfortable than here in the dark tunnel." She gestured with her head to the dark expanse behind her, indicating where they would be going.