Welcome to Gaia! ::

The wind was blustery, cold and was pulling at the leaves on thetrees, wrenching them loose as if to make the trees give up their last hopes of summer. Those leaves which had been scattered on the ground were now thrown up, doing a ghoulish dance as they were thrown this way and that by the buffeting gusts.

Calliope stood just within the den entrance and sighed. She did not want to leave the comfort of her den, her newborn girls, to feed and yet she knew she would have to soon. Ouranos had been gone a full day and had not yet returned with food and Zagreus could only do so much by himself. She had no idea where the pale twins were right now though they had begun to hunt for themselves at least.

The caramel female padded back and forward, trying to decide wether to go out tonight or leave it until this morning. With the wind as uncertain as it was she would not be able to be assured of staying upwind of her prey... and then there was the fact that most animals would be sensible enough to find shelter in this kind of weather. The start of the rain made up her mind for her as she padded back into the den to her pups. Smiling, she nuzzled at thelittle brown and black bundles of fur.

Ouranos walked beside Anya, dragging part of their catch in his mouth. It had been a large buck, perhaps only in it's second year and not yet wise enough to watch for wolves slinking around in tall grass and dense brush. The pair had brought it down with relative ease, working together in the intuitive way that most wolves do. The fawn wolf was showing the pale she-wolf the way into their packlands. It was a long walk from the den at the bottom to the one at the top but not a hard one if you followed the river course.
They came to the place. It had a rocky entrance, much like the other den, but surrounded by a wider clearing - the better to be able to see others approach from - and with the stream running right by it. The current ran fast and cold here as there was a waterfall just upstream where the valley ended in a steep cliff. It was a well protected area as the only way to it was to walk all the way up through the valley as far as the pack knew.

Ouranos, struggling under the weight of the catch, finally dropped it a little from the entrance. He looked back to Anya reassuringly "We're here."

Zagreus padded along the faintly worn trail, the chill wind ruffling his thick, dark fur. Today had not shaped up well, and the fact that he had nothing to show for hours of hunting was the worst of it. Winter was coming, and with it would arrive the ice and the snow. Then food would be a problem, especially with the new pups. Normally optimistic, Zagreus was beginning to become a little concerned about how the winter would shape up. Not that he'd mention it to Calliope. She worried enough as it was despite his assurances normally.

The dark wolf shook his head as he moved. It was just the disappointment of a bad hunt getting to him. They'd be fine over the winter, really. He was just being pessimistic. Zagreus picked up his pace a little. He was getting near to the den entrance now, and he wanted to retreat to the shelter of the den before the wind got worse. As he approached though, he could detect the unfamiliar scent of a wolf he didn't recognise. He speeded up again. Why would there be a strange wolf at the den?

As he reached the clearing of the den, Zagreus paused. He could make out the unfamilar wolf now. She was with Ouranos, and they had some sort of kill between them. At least his family didn't seem to be in any immediate danger. Relaxing somewhat, the charcoal grey wolf made his way out into the clearing and towards his friend.

"...Ouranos?" he asked, a further question hidden in his tone.

Anya’s body remained calm, her breathing quiet as she watched the alpha male and female approach quickly in concern for what ever lay in the den guarded by the amber she wolf. Anya’s glance avoided contact with the superiors as she dipped her head, took a delicate step forward and gingerly placed the part of their kill on the ground. Her movements were slow and graceful; to hide any trace of nervousness or uncertainty she might be concealing. Her ears laid back in a non threatening manner, and her tail hung limply between her ankles. She took a step back, returning from presenting her gift to the alpha female, and spoke with ease, “Hello,” she said after her introduction from Ouranos, nodding her head, and waiting for a response from the two leaders of the small pack.

((sorry about the delay, it has been the end of the quarter and I've been up to my eyeballs in AP art homework x.x))

The female wolf's manner in offering the kill to her, her movements and her posture all were heartily approved of in Calliope's eyes. She liked good manners and behavior and the pale she wolf seemed to have both. It was one little tick of approval on her mental checklist towards Anya. The large offering of food was another.
As her mate spoke to the female showing that he, too, found her not completely threatening Calliope's muscles untensed a little and she looked more closely at Anya. She was small, smaller than Calliope who was not that large. Pale, too. In fact when she looked closer she saw that the female could easily be taken for Ouranos' sibling. A little more greyish, perhaps, none of the pale fawny tone the large male wolf had but similar nonetheless. Their blue-green eyes, too, seemed a match. Calliope was somewhat amused at this resemblance but kept her thoughts locked in, only outwardly portraying the wary but ready mother and female alpha of her small pack.

That Zag wanted to speak to her gave Ouranos' heart a little hope. He turned to Anya, his eyes trying to give her unspoken encouragement as he moved a little closer as if to support what she would say.
He was all confidence again, sure that Zagreus must have seen that she was no threat - that she'd be a good addition to their small clan. It was true, as the alpha's thought, that he'd befriend anyone that would let him and was none too canny but he would not have brought this female back had he not felt that she was 'right'.
He never could explain that feeling but it had given him the confidence to bring her back. She had seemed, to him, a friendly, confidant wolf and a good hunter. He hadn't really realised that he also had another reason he'd have liked her to stay around - it was something he just wasn't used to thinking about.

Zagreus nodded slightly as he listened to Anya. As she spoke, he noted that while she was looking in his direction, she was not actually meeting his gaze. You could tell a lot from a wolf by its body language, and he had been watching her since her arrival.

She was being deliberately deferential and trying to appear non-confrontational. He suspected her actions would appease Calliope, who had a liking for things to be 'proper'. From what he had seen so far, there was nothing to give him extra cause for concern either. She seemed to be genuine. Zagreus was glad for that; he would have hated to see Ouranos being deceived by somebody that he felt was a friend.

When Anya asked about Phib, the dark alpha shook his head. "I have not travelled through the southern lands much, and I don't think I know this wolf you speak of." To be honest, there wasn't much of a chance that he would have known the alpha of whatever pack she came from. He knew from his travels before he came here that there were a number of packs in the area, but he had tried to avoid moving through their lands wherever possible. He and Ouranos had not been looking for a confrontation on their travels.

He glanced at Ouranos for a moment, before looking back to Anya again. "I take it that Ouranos has told you about us already." He smiled faintly, before looking over at Calliope. He was happy to give Anya a chance, but he would not do so without Calliope's acceptance as well. He caught his mate's eyes, the unspoken question clear in his expression.

“That is unfortunate,” she began to speak, “Phib is a truly outstanding wolf.” And he was, having her saved her life from freezing in the harsh northern climate, promoting her to beta, giving her a land to live and thrive off of. Her respect and loyalty to the bear-like wolf was never yielding and someday she would return to report back to him of her new beginnings. She missed his mate, Amélie, as well. The two small female had become friends, and she found great strength in the ashen seer, even if her body was weak. Anya gave a shy look, “He has told much about you two to me on the journey to this place.” The amber alpha then asked about the different territories within the land. The milky she wolf provided a brief summary “Most packs are friendly. Phib’s pack is to the south-east, while Hige’s pack is to the east of Phib’s. They are friendly allies. There is an enemy pack: Phantom’s. I don’t know much about them, where their pack is, or even if their leader is still alive. Also, there are a few scattered hidden packs that remain quiet.” She stopped her summary as the alpha female spoke again.

Her slight grin turned into a genuine smile, her fragile chin lifting only slightly as she watched Calliope return to her tiny pups. Sounds of cooing and hushing came from the den as the alpha female hushed and fed them. Motherhood was always such a joy to observe and had always brought great happiness and pride to any pack. She quickly brought her attention back to the large, charcoal male, however her ears twisted to acknowledge Ouranos. She felt the nuzzle on the back of her neck and her exotic eyes closed in a cat-like fashion, her voice almost purring.

Ouranos's tail shuffed back and forward even faster than before, his large frame almost being pulled each way with it. He turned back to Anya and grinned "I told you they would like you". His attitude was a little simplistic, puppyish perhaps, but noone could doubt that he genuinely believed in the truth of what he said. They'd already seen most of the south of the territory in getting here but Ouranos was happy to show her around this strange den site a little further if she'd like and he said so to his small, pale companion.

First, though, Ouranos offered to take in the meat. Calliope was feeding her pups but would need her own sustenance afterwards and he was sure the little black female and the albino twins would happily partake in any food presented to them.

"Anya... I'm glad you're going to be here.." he said softly as he moved to pick up the piece he had been carrying once more.