Bryna's lip curled briefly at the old scent of wolves passing through. Not old enough for her liking, and she'd had her fair share of encounters with wolves since she'd begun her quest. Although, of late, she'd been mostly on her own but for the occassional meal or a border patrol that she'd spoken with only long enough to get her bearings from. Bryna did not like the reception she got when people thought she was a lone wolf. Not at all. Informing them that she was a Beta and watching most of them straighten up automatically made her feel a bit better and furthered her resolve. She had to find her packmates and bring them home, even if it meant giving up a life of peace for herself. She couldn't sit back the way her sister and her sister's mate had done, find a new home and be content with it. As Beta-- and in her mind, she still very much was one and always would be-- Bryna had an obligation to her pack, even if it had been scattered to the winds.
And I could very much use a nice place to sleep right now, Bryna thought, seeing dawn on the horizon. She'd walked through the last day and night in its entirety and she was exhausted now. If she had found a nice, safe place to fall asleep she would have done it, but she'd seen nothing but open ground under the trees and even more exposed banks of rivers and streams.
For a brief time she had thought that the young male, Warrick, had something to offer with his fine manners-- the like of which she hadn't seen again-- but as her mind had so well provided, he was young. Too young to truly know what he wanted or have much to offer her in the way of ranking in a pack. And when Bryna settled down after she had found as many members of her pack as she could, she would want a pack she could be a Beta in-- even if she wasn't the only Beta-- and one large enough to surround her with warmth to boot. It had been too long since she'd been a Gamma; Bryna wasn't sure that when-- when-- she settled down she would be able to be anything other than a Beta. And she would settle down. Someday. When her duty to her packmates was done.
But is it fair to forfeit your life for those left, when they've doubtless found their own way to get by? She wondered, then lowered her head slightly, eyes to the ground for a split second. That was not a pleasant thought, and she refused to think of it. It was only right to seek them out, whether she found them or not. If it was her destiny to wander lonely for the rest of her days, she would take it with pride until she'd found someone, anyone, from her pack. Her head lifted high as it could again, eyes fixed forward. She was tired, and would rest for a time, then she would continue when she woke or when night fell again. Eventually she would find someone. They all couldn't have gotten so far away that they were lost to her. They couldn't have.
