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 Posted: Tue Jan 04, 2011 7:00 pm
 Time had really flown by. The last few months had been a whirlwind of ups and downs, changes and sacrifices. It was all part of being an Alpha, and now Penthesilea was looking forward to sharing that duty with her first born daughter. She had been spending more and more one on one time with her heir ensuring that her training was as complete as it could be before taking on this next step. There would still be challenges and bumps in the road that even a fully trained wolf would stumble over, but Penthesilea was confident that Orithia was ready.
And so it was today that she would visit with various pack members and have them accept or deny Orithia as their second Alpha. She hoped they would accept, for the consequences of denying the rightful heir of her position were lethal. First she would seek out one of the new blood sisters, Taiyou, to speak with. And so Penthesilea set off from the dens in search of the white and yellow female with her daughter in tow. Orithia's nerves were on fire. Mother had declared that she was ready to co-lead the pack, that her training in that respect was nearly complete. Some things could not be taught ahead of time and merely had to be learned on the spot. She hadn't eaten since last night as she was afraid that a full stomach mixed with nerves would prove to be an embarrassment that she could not afford at this time. If there was one thing Orithia wasn't prepared for it was the uncertainty over the next few days as the pack members individually accepted her as their second leader.
So deep in thought over this that Orithia had missed her mothers signal to get moving and was left scrambling to catch up. Her shorter legs still slowed her down a bit, but what she lacked in size Orithia made up for with diplomacy and knowledge. Carrying herself high like her mother Orithia followed the tan Queen as they searched out the first of the sisters that they would speak to today.
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Posted: Tue Jan 04, 2011 7:10 pm
 Taiyou had just come back from one of her...romps. She had brought a large amount of rabbits to cover up for her absence though, and this was what she was doing at the moment. She deposited it in the small pile she'd made in the clearing and was padding back to her den for some much needed rest. She felt good and drowsy, if a bit guilty about her early activities. But she was sure she wouldn't be found out and she was confident she could keep her new male without detection.
But when the Alpha and her eldest daughter came walking towards her, her heart dropped. She quickly covered up any reaction she might have had by bobbing her head respectfully and standing so as not to be rude. She lowered her head slightly as well, hoping she was as non offensive as possible. She lowered her tail as well and slumped her shoulders. If anything, the light colored female knew how to be submissive. But she did not speak first when they approached her, for that would be rude and out of rank. So she waited until she would be addressed.
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Posted: Tue Jan 04, 2011 7:22 pm
The Queen had noticed that Taiyou had recently been wandering out of the pack lands more and more lately. And while Taiyou may worry about getting in trouble for such an activity, Penthesilea turned a blind eye for the most part. There were reasons a female of her pack would wander off from time to time, there were not a lot of males in the pack and some of those had recently become a father. So is Taiyou was seeking out a male for that specific task then the Queen did not care so much, they needed more strong daughters.
"Sister Taiyou." The Queen greeted the light colored wolf bringing her paws to a stop. "I was hoping to have a word with you. Are you busy?" There was no training coming up today for some time so there should be no reason that she would not be able to stick around.
Orithia came to a stop beside her mother, standing tall and proud, but not so much that she overshadowed her mother. That would be nearly impossible given their size difference, plus her mother had that commanding presence that she herself had not yet developed. It would come with time, she told herself silently as her mother addressed Taiyou. For the moment Orithia stood silently beside her mother, waiting for the time when it would be her turn to speak.
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Posted: Tue Jan 04, 2011 7:30 pm
Taiyou's ears twitched when she was spoken to. She looked up respectfully after she'd given the customary submissiveness that was expected of her. She straightened up some, but not enough to be rude. "Queen, I always have time for you." She says humbly. While she hadn't had much contact with her after her initially joining in the pack, the she wolf respected her Queen very much. She was strong, but not cruel, and she was wise and knew how to rule. She relaxed when there was no immediate accusation of her romps with Tie, so she felt a little more comfortable. "What is it you would like to talk to me about?" She asks, her tone mildly curious. Usually she wasn't sought out for anything important.
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Posted: Tue Jan 04, 2011 7:54 pm
The Queen settled down onto her haunches, taking on a more relaxed position but still held herself at her full height. While there was something important to attend to it was also good to keep relations with her sisters open and relaxed. It wouldn't do her any good if Taiyou or any of the other warriors felt too uncomfortable to ever approach the Queen should they have a problem or concern. "How have you been finding it here?" She simply asked to begin with. A little idle chatter would do them good. "Has the training been going well?" What Varia told her about the new blood wasn't always one hundred percent accurate, just because Varia did not respect the new blood as much. But Penthesilea had watched many training sessions and had seen Taiyou to be a good fighter, even if she was a bit distracted by the males in the pack from time to time. Every wolf had a weakness she reminded herself silently.
Orithia stood silently beside her mother and after a few moments lowered herself to the ground as well. She watched and listened carefully, for even this seemingly idle conversation had it's purposes behind it and she could learn a lot. Keeping the members of the pack happy and well informed was just as important as keeping up relations with any ally packs one had. She had gained a great deal of knowledge while visiting the YMCA pack with her mother a while back and now she would have first hand experience at watching diplomatic movements in her own pack. Oh this wasn't the first time she had trailed behind her mother watching the interactions, but today these talks would lead up to her acceptance as a co-Alpha and that was certainly something to pay attention to.
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Posted: Tue Jan 04, 2011 8:01 pm
Taiyou relaxed a smidge more. She waited until they had both sat down before she did, her shoulders still slumped and her head slightly lowered. She wrapped her tail neatly around her eyes and breathed a little easier. She was fine, the Queen didn't know about her secret. The question made her flick her ears and she thought about it for a moment. "Ah, it has been...hard adjusting, but I think I have the hang of it." She says slowly. No matter what she said the death of her other male would always sit badly with her, though she would never, ever mention it again. She had been wrong, and she had been punished for it. "I think training is going well, I grow stronger and more capable every day." she says with a satisfied sounding murr. And it was true, she'd been a good fighter before, but now she was learning things she'd never dreamed of before. Sparring pleased her; it gave her a way to vent herself without hurting anyone too much.
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Posted: Tue Jan 04, 2011 8:26 pm
The Queen nodded slightly. "It can be hard to adjust, our ways are not that easy to fall into but I think you have been making good progress. I have seen you train, you are quick on your feet, that is good, but you loose concentration at times." She was not reprimanding the pale wolf at all, merely offering some constructive criticism to help her along. "In the training ring that is one thing, but should you ever be called onto the battlefield a moment of distraction can mean your life." With her review of Taiyou's training complete for the time being the Queen moved on to the next part of their meeting.
"Now then, there is something else Orithia and I would like to talk about. As you know males have little standing in this pack, and as such Achilles will never lead by my side. That is a role that Orithia will take on. She has trained hard and I believe that she is ready for such a task." Penthesilea paused for a moment to allow Taiyou to take that in before continuing. "Traditions run strong in this pack and even a rightful heir must seek acceptance from her pack mates to ascend to Alpha status." This was where Orithia came in and so the Queen fell into silence, letting her daughter take over now.
Orithia had to agree with her mother on the analysis of Taiyou's training, she was a good fighter but did get distracted at times. That was a flaw that many of the sisters had at one point, but Varia generally beat or trained in out of them in time. Taiyou would learn to keep her concentration on the fight with just a little more practice. Of course when her mother switched the subject to Orithia needing acceptance of the sisters she felt her stomach do a nervous flip. Really there was no reason to be nervous, but it was her flaw she supposed, and she would just need to learn to overcome it.
"Sister Taiyou," Orithia began her little speech. "My mother has taught me well the ways of our pack, how to lead as well as follow. The sisters are the backbone of this pack, and I have seen the respect that you give my mother as leader. I hope now that my time quickly approaches to join her in ruling the lands that you too will cast that same respect and loyalty to me. That you will listen to my orders much like you listen to hers." She paused for a moment to both let Taiyou digest that information as well as to recollect her thoughts. "Do I have your pledge of loyalty Sister? Will you follow me as you follow your Queen now?"
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Posted: Tue Jan 04, 2011 8:39 pm
The female listened carefully, her ears giving their nervous twitch they usually did. They pricked forward as she was spoken to, and would angle different ways whenever she wasn't. It looked odd, but it was a quirk of hers. "Yes, I understand my Queen. I will try harder." She says, and means this. She didn't want to displease her Alpha or endanger her standing in the pack. At the mention of her daughter she turned slightly to look at her, as if noticing her for the first time. Her eyes trailed over her, taking in her appearance. She was small, but she seemed to have her mother's presence. Taiyou respected that. She bobbed her head a little as she listened, making sure to pay careful attention. She was surprised they were asking for her loyalty, since she was usually one of those members that blended into the scenery and tried to be as inconspicuous as possible. "I understand..." She says, wondering for a moment what to call her. "Princess." She says after some thought. Then she bows her head respectfully lower than Orithia's. "I accept you as my Queen as well, and will follow you whatever your commands. I am at your service." She says and stays like that for a moment before she sits back up to a more comfortable position.
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Posted: Tue Jan 04, 2011 9:01 pm
At Taiyou's acknowledgment of advice the Queen gave a slight nod of her head. She provided such feedback to all of her warriors but Taiyou sometimes got overlooked, not because she wasn't important enough, but she was just one of those wolves that blended in and was easily overlooked. Of course that wouldn't do the Queen any good to be so ignorant of her own sisters, so she made a mental note to not so easily ignore the pale wolfess. But for the time being all that mattered was Orithia's part and Taiyou's hopeful acceptance.
It only took but a moment for Taiyou to pledge her loyalty and support to Orithia and the Queen was overjoyed at this. It showed that the pack too believed her to be ready to rule. She gave her daughter a small nod of approval as well.
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Posted: Tue Jan 04, 2011 9:06 pm
Though not much time had passed between when she finished talking and when Taiyou replied Orithia felt like the world had come to a grinding halt. The seconds ticked by more like minutes than anything else and she fought to keep from looking around nervously. If she failed to gain acceptance from the first wolf they spoke with then her confidence would be crushed beyond repair. Breath, she reminded herself, just breath and it will be okay.
Eyes lite up a bit as Taiyou spoke and declared her loyalty to Orithia. The teen bowed her head respectfully at this. "Thank you Sister, I am glad to have you in my service and will strive to be as good of a ruler as my mother is." She paused for a moment trying to remember what she was supposed to say next, she had Taiyou's support but it wouldn't do just to get up and walk away after such an important decision was made. Not wanted to look like a fool just sitting there staring blankly Orithia did what her mother had done when they first arrived and resorted to small talk. "Perhaps you would do the honor of allowing me to accompany you on one of your hunting trips. I have noticed you are quite skilled in the matter and I myself could use some more work in that regard."
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Posted: Wed Jan 05, 2011 1:45 pm
Taiyou was pleased at this reaction. To see her Queen, well both her Queens now, faces light up in such a way made her feel good. She wagged the tip of her tail and smiled softly, actually much happier than she looked like. She was starting to settle down again when Orithia surprised her with another question. She blinked a little and twitched her ears, then focused fully on the young teen. "Well of course, Princess. I would be happy to have you with me." She says and gives a satisfied sounding murr. While she liked to blend in, some recognition was nice every once in awhile. But she wouldn't go so far as to try and make Orithia her friend, since that wasn't very proper of a lower ranking wolf. Or so she thought.
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Posted: Wed Jan 05, 2011 2:04 pm
Penthesilea was proud of her daughter for continuing to speak with Taiyou and even seek out her help with hunting when she could have just left it at that. It was tiny things like this that made the bond between the Sisters as strong as they were, and Orithia was certainly doing her part in that. This was just another sign that her daughter was indeed ready for the extra workload of her new rank and that she would succeed quite easily. Still, there was an unsettling feeling within the Queen's stomach. Yakut had warned them of a conflict that would occur in the near future but they were still unaware of just when that would happen and who else it would involve. They would both need to remain on their guard for the time being, Yakut's warning was not something to ignore or take lightly.
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Posted: Wed Jan 05, 2011 2:05 pm
"I look forward to it." Orithia stated simply, but there was an appreciative undertone in her voice. It would be good to take the time to spend with each of the members individually over the next few weeks, make sure that any concerns were dealt with and that the bonds of Sisterhood remained strong. "Perhaps sometime next week then?" She ventured knowing that her own schedule would be horribly hectic and meeting filled for the next few days. And it would not be good to skip over an important meeting just so that her hunting skill could be honed a bit more, hunting was important yes, but attending to her duties for the pack too precedent.
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Posted: Wed Jan 05, 2011 2:24 pm
Taiyou twitched the tip of her tail some more, still obviously pleased with being asked for something like this. This meant two things to her. One, that her Queen trusted her with her daughter, and two, that Orithia wished to get to know her better. This had positives and negatives to it. A positive would be that she might get a little more respect in the pack, or Varia might lay off her some. But a negative would mean her absences would be noticed more, and this she did not like. "That's perfectly fine with me Princess, whenever is good with you." She says and bobs her head in a small bow.
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Posted: Wed Jan 05, 2011 2:30 pm
As much as it was nice to stick around and chat with Taiyou they did have other wolves to speak with today. So standing the Queen addressed the pale wolf. "Thank you for your time Taiyou. I'm sure that when you two do go hunting it will be successful. Now we will let you get back to what you were doing before we came." Giving the wolfess a small nod in parting Penthesilea turned and began to pad off. Perhaps another day she would spend more time talking with the pale wolf, as she did seem to have some good sense about her, but first there were other matters to attend to.
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