Brand New Day [kastiel]

[duchess]

ooc: set after the return of the kings thread

Duchess crept into the caverns of Lerelm, steps cautious and careful as she explored her new home. Just yesterday she had worked up the courage to join a pack, a family. Today she trying her best to hold onto that courage and do a little exploring. She was curious by nature and had never really wandered through Shyia before. It would be good for her to familiarize herself with the lands.

So one tense night of restless sleep later, here she was. She was still a little jittery, not quite sure what to expect. It was early though, the sun barely risen though she could not see it in this underground wonderland. With time she would calm, would settle in. It just took a bit of getting used to.

Duchess could barely remember the last time she had belonged to a pack. And, back then, everything had been so different. She had been with her family in the safe lands. Now, however, she was with two strangers in the unprotected wilds. She did not know much about either male beyond the fact that they had evoked empathy from her heart. Like her, they had seemed hopeless and forlorn and she'd offered them her company because it would be better for all of them.

Of course, she'd slipped away the first moment she'd gotten. The red wolf female didn't wander too far, of course. She was not foolish enough to tread someplace inappropriate without permission. But she had been thirsty and the scent of fresh water was calling to her. So she'd sunk deeper into the caverns in search of a much needed drink.

What she found took her breath away.

Light danced on the surface of the large, mountain kept river, bouncing off mineral laced walls and setting the whole place aglow with a soft, blue light. It was very pretty and unlike anything she had ever seen before. For several long minutes she simply sat herself down by the water's edge and stared, having forgotten what she'd come here for. She wanted to take in as many details as she could all at once.

Then her thirst dared to flare back up and she managed pull her eyes away from the scenery. Shifting, she bowed her head towards the swift running and inhaled deeply, enjoying the wonderful scent of pure, drinkable water. Then she darted her tongue out, as pleased by the taste as she was the smell. If all of Shyia was like this, something told her she was going to like it here. She would like it very much in these chilling lands of Airila.

[seadragoness]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellSpacing,0,true][atrb=cellPadding,0,true][atrb=width,430,true]

[bg=000000][atrb=background,http://i241.photobucket.com/albums/ff153/Lumarinam/kastiel-background.png] Kastiel's return to this gentle land was far to long awaited within his heart. The breath of air that twirled around his coat was different to that of the one that had touched him in stranger lands. Here it was filled with the scents of home and everything that belonged to where his heart lay. It had hurt him however to learn that those that had been here previously had departed. Only Spirit, lovely Spirit had had the strength to stay on even after everyone else had departed the quite, leaderless pack. It really showed the strength of the Fae - not that he had ever doubted her determination. He moved effortlessly through that that was becoming once again a familiar pattern. Strengthening scent markers that had long since faded under lack of care, and tracking deer that had come and gone in the Alpha and Beta's absence. He found himself heading to one of the serenest places in the pack territory. Slipping into the cavern that lead into near-silent isolation. The soft drip of water, an echo against the endless rocky walls, the feel of the cave like a living creature, the sensation of breathing by the pull of the wind. The scent of another gave him the realization that he was not as alone as he had taken granted for. It was the scent of a new wolf - one full of compassion, yet shy and a little unsure of herself. She seemed like a wolf ready to be judged and afraid of what the answer might be. He was sick of finding damaged wolves, those afraid of the world - was there really so little compassion left! If only he could change things, really make a difference for the likes Of Duchess, there newest member, and Haze... one that had slipped away in the silence of there absence. Kastiel quickly realized that the Fae had found herself in the most stunning part of the cave itself. As Kastiel pulled into the 'back room' of the tunnel system he saw her. She sat peacefully by the waters edge, taking in the sight and lapping her tongue against the cool, refreshing water. He found himself hesitant to disturb her peace and instant simply watched her, seeing how she seemed to relax a little better in no ones company but her own. He felt he shouldn't disturb her, but he couldn't simply sit here and watch unannounced either. Finally, he pulled himself to his sensors and made a gentle, nonthreatening sound at the back of his throat to warn her of his presence.

image {c} [e-mail]
Manip {c} Haptic to Sea <3

[duchess]

The problem with sound was that it had a habit of triggering the startle reflex, especially when it was unexpected. Duchess would have been oblivious to the beta male for a rather long stretch of time had he not announced his presence. Unfortunately, whether he'd let his voice rumble or not the timid female would have been caught off guard. She wasn't used to the company of others; whenever someone dared approach her it always caused her spine to crawl.

It had been better that Kastiel announced himself though. If he hadn't, her fright would have doubled and she would have spluttered and spurted until managing to scrape together a weak alibi, much like a child who'd been caught with its hand in the cookie jar. Instead that nervous shiver ran from tip to tale down her spine and she hesitated, slightly tense until she could get her mind to settle and adjust to the presence of another. Slowly she rose her head, tongue flicking out to lick away stray drops as she turned to view the male with curious eyes. She seemed much like a baby deer that was still learning to distinguish friend from threat and hadn't quite made up her mind.

Duchess let a small, soft smile turn up the edges of her mouth. Her head dipped again though this time not towards the water. It was a sign of respect, a well-mannered greeting. This male was her superior, after all, and she was not the type to actively disobey orders or act out of line. She kept her eyes down too, almost as if she was afraid to look at him. In fact, it was easier to accept his presence if she closed them all together. For some odd reason she found more comfort in sound than she did visual stimulation. Maybe it was because after having spent so much time on her own she had learned to read and react to silence. The silence of the cavern was certainly a comforting one, just as beautiful as the sights it held, if not more so. And sound, she had long ago decided, was much safer to trust than her eyes alone.

Her own voice was soft and fluid as she dared speak two words. It was strong enough to be heard but had a breathy quality to it. To the right set of ears it was actually a rather pretty sound, high and melodic and betraying most of the thoughts running through her mind. Like Duchess herself her voice was shy, tapering off rather than having the sort of confidence that marked firmer sounds. She had yet to learn how to behave around her new pack mates. "Beta, sir..."

[seadragoness]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellSpacing,0,true][atrb=cellPadding,0,true][atrb=width,430,true]

[bg=000000][atrb=background,http://i241.photobucket.com/albums/ff153/Lumarinam/kastiel-background.png] Kastiel had already gathered that this new wolf was unsure of those around her. It was asthrough she was unucustomed to having others around her. She was at peace in a place like this, with the beutiful cavern walls alive with gentle dancing light, reflection of the cool waters before her. he felt almost bad for desturbing her, breaking through the calm she had wrapped around herself, he had not meant to inturupt... Kastiel wished there was someway he could assure the other that he meant no harm to her, that she did not need to wrap up inside herself when others where near. She was clearly a stunning, gentle wolf and it was a shame she hid in insecurity. After announcing himself with a soft noise he watched as realisation washed over her in the form of a shiver close to fear, realisation that she was no longer alone. Her peaceful feathures became unsure, her soft voice barely a whisper as she acknowledged Kastiel, giving him his title as her superier. "Sir, that makes me feel old" Kastiel said gently, taking a seat against the cold stone beneath him, watching her with gentle, unjudging eyes. She really had a soft voice, sweet with a hint of melody. Very much like how Dust use to sound. Dust... that name had not entered his mind in a long time and imediatly he felt bad. It was almost like he had begun to move on with his life - he had no right, his sister was probably dead by now because he had given up the hunt for her. That was something that would have to hang above his head for the rest of his life, the failure he could never forgive himself for. She was a petite little wolf, soft voice full of strange words that he himself barely understood. A few aspects of Dust could be seen in this wolf, something that sadened him; would he never be able to look at a fae again without seeing something not there, without reminding himself of his loss? It wasn't fair on the other, almost like some part of him had already passed judgment when he had no right to do so. "Kastiel will do fine, Duchess. I see you've found out underground source of water. It's amazing here, isn't it? He asked her, stuggling to keep the sadness from his tones.

image {c} [e-mail]
Manip {c} Haptic to Sea <3

[duchess]

She shifted her weight, readjusting herself so that she could face the beta and sit comfortably too. Her eyes still chose to look any place but his face as she curled her tail around her paws, using it to fight off some of the chill of the rock. There was a regal elegance to her posture despite the underlying tones of insecurity. Her back was straight and proper, her head held at the sort of angle that was attractive without being uncomfortable. Every so often the soft yellow of her eyes would dare to peek out from behind her eyelids, slow, drawn out blinks allowing brief glimpses of her surroundings before once again returning to the comforting darkness.

Mentally she was running through a number of relaxation techniques, trying to convince herself that to panic was to be irrational. This was her home now, her new family. She had no reason to be tense around Kastiel, especially when thus far he had proven himself to be nothing but kind. She took a calming breath, letting it still her mind. Then she managed to naturally let her smile grow. It was still a delicate expression, but it was less shy now as she practiced his name and then nodded her head in agreement.

"Kastiel..." She paused, evaluating the way the word felt on her tongue. It was a foreign sounding name, much more complex than the ones the humans had assigned to herself and her kin. Pronouncing it would take some getting used to. But it was a strong name, like himself, and one she would not be opposed to repeating. Just as she would enjoy returning to Lerelm from time to time, content to enjoy the presence. Her voice was still soft as she spoke, honest in her awe. "It's beautiful here. I've never seen anything quite like it before."

[seadragoness]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellSpacing,0,true][atrb=cellPadding,0,true][atrb=width,430,true]

[bg=000000][atrb=background,http://i241.photobucket.com/albums/ff153/Lumarinam/kastiel-background.png] Of course it didn't pass Kastiel's attention that the other wolf chose to avoid a eye-to-eye with her superior. No other wolf in the pack had treated him diffrently for his status as Beta, secound in command. He couldn't really tell however if it was his status, his gender, or simply because he was another wolf that put her on edge. He was almost sorry for confronting her - he hadn't meant to put her on edge or make her feel uncomfortable and yet it seemed that this was the inevitable conclusion. Kastiel would not deny that she was a beutiful wolf, and despite her shy nature she seemed to know instintvly how to hold herself to show her lovely nature.It wasn't something that made him feel uncomfortable around her, for she had no vanity that she used against him. Of course she had no vanity, her shy nature and her auro of uncertainty well and truly saw to that. She seemed determined also to not let this part of her nature hold her back. She was kind enough to offer him a smile as she tried his name upon her lips. She spoke like it was an entirly alien name to her, and maybe it was after all it wasn't exactly a common name. The brutes eyes moved momentarily to the cave itself, the sparkling water, and simply took in the serene view. Yet, for something so relaxing he didn't entirly look content. Struggling not to think of Dust, to let the reminder of his sister bring him down once more like it did every time he thought of her now. He was, in his own way mourning. He needed to learn to cope, to accept that she was lost to him now and that he would never again see his kin. Well she had been gone for some time now, it was only recently that he had given up his belief that she was still out there. Some part of him felt that he would have known, if she still lived, but all he felt at the thought of her was sadness. "I dont believe I caught your name? The voice of the beta broke his own thoughts, returning his attention back to the newcommer.

image {c} [e-mail]
Manip {c} Haptic to Sea <3

[duchess]

The female had positioned herself in such a way that she could watch this male without seeing to be openly staring. Her head was tilted downwards just enough to be respect and yet allow her to still take in his every move. She watched the way his jaws curved when he spoke, followed where his eyes gazed, and tried in general to read as much emotion and protected thought as she could simply from the way he nonverbally acted. There was a lot that a creature said unintentionally and it was these cues that allowed Duchess to slowly find her confidence. She read no threat, no aggression, no ill will within this male. For that she was grateful. For that she could return the favor.

"They called me Duchess." Her voice was soft and wistful, speaking of time a time long since passed. It had been more than a year since she'd last seen, last trusted, a human. And yet recounting the memories it felt as if they had only happened yesterday. Living a life as lonely as her's had been, the memories were all she'd had for company. She could recall names and faces, personalities and actions of those she had not seen since childhood as if time had not elapsed at all. And she was relatively comfortable speaking about it all, secretly watching Kastiel to see what he would think. The idea of having an audience was not the most welcomed one, but she had never really had a chance to compare her story to a true wolf's before.

She continued after a moment, clarifying, "The humans, I mean. They said it was a regal name, noble. And they gave us all names like that... human titles that I have come to learn have no place in a world like this one." It was a deep comment, one she'd thought on many times during her days as a loner. Why had the humans named her Duchess? Did they not consider that, upon her release, it would be strange once encountering other wolves? Traditionally names were given by the parents. And yet, her parents had never bothered to correct to the humans, had never tried to change her name. She had been given a name by a foreign species and it had become who she was.

But was she really what the humans called a duchess?

[seadragoness]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellSpacing,0,true][atrb=cellPadding,0,true][atrb=width,430,true]

[bg=000000][atrb=background,http://i241.photobucket.com/albums/ff153/Lumarinam/kastiel-background.png] As Kastiel spoke to the stranger, her eyes stayed upon him, but not in an unfriendly manner and nor did she seem to be openly staring. She was happy enough to give him her name, Duchess which was a very nice name actually. He wondered what she meant exactly when she said ‘they’ was she referring to her parents? But the way she said was almost like she was referring to another name, one given to her a little later then birth. They call me Duchess Unless it was a shorter version of her name, and that was what other wolves called her, but even that seemed strange. He found himself mulling of her words trying to fathom the meaning of each one. Maybe he was thinking into it to hard... It took only a moment’s time for the wolf to continue, and her words explained herself to him. Humans had once looked after her, owned her maybe even. She spoke of the title of the word, how it belonged to a human world and had no place here. Kastiel was curious, wondering if she had another name, once given to her by her birth parents. He was reluctant to ask however in case she did not even know her parents, as was the way for animals owned in the human world. He wondered what it would be like, to grow up in a human world in the isolation of there prison walls, to eat dry, dead meat long cold and kept in containers that smell of stone and minerals. Had she been able to live with her parents? Had she known other wolves in all her time living under-foot? Did she even know how to hunt out here in the world run by the laws of the wild... Of course she must, how else had she lived even to this point? Humans did not live anywhere near Anikira and surely for her to get to where she was now she would have had to travel at least days, even if she was only new to this open world. He had so much he wanted to ask her, like why was she here now then? If humans and decided to call her there own... “Duchess is a lovely name, that of someone noble. I do not doubt that you live up to your name, at least in your gentle nature, if not also in your beauty” He complimented her softly, sensing that she needed something to lift her spirits, and wanting only to ease her into the life of wolves. Not only that, but he truly meant it, she was clearly beautiful and her mannerism kind.

image {c} [e-mail]
Manip {c} Haptic to Sea <3

[duchess]

His kind words caused her to flush. Instantly she dropped her eyes to her paws, no long able to look at him. Compliments were not something she was used to receiving. A modest creature, she was always bashful when it came to praise. She liked to think she knew well her own strengths and weaknesses. But, when others dared to point them out...

It suddenly felt too hot within the underground caverns. She was embarrassed and nervous and here was the beta being so sweet and kind to her and yet she herself had no idea what to do. She was at a loss for words. She couldn't bring herself to look at him for fear of hearing something else that was so sweet. Kindness had not been paid to her since she had been left here by the humans; to be reminded that there were still others out there whose intentions were as gentle as her own was both comforting and unexpected.

"Th-thank you." It was difficult to keep the small stammer out of her voice. While she was not often a stutterer, embarrassment tended to short circuit the route between her mouth and her brain. It was hard to form words when she was afraid they might come out wrong, or worse, not at all. She had many problems with the latter, especially over the last year. Soft spoken by nature, loneliness had kept her even more quiet for much time. Her voice was as breathy from insecurity as it was from under use.

That being said, she had no idea where to go from here. The compliments had clammed her up. She would have preferred it if Kastiel had simply pretended not to notice some of her finer traits and thus not commented at all. That way they could have continued their mildly comfortable conversation. Instead, she was now dwelling on what he'd said and trying to figure out if it was true. Beauty had never been something she associated with herself. She was a dainty creature, yes, but the woes of physical appearance had rarely ever crossed her mind. Rising, she turned her back on the beta for a moment, padding over to the water's edge. Then she stared down at her own reflection, wondering how others viewed her.

[seadragoness]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=cellSpacing,0,true][atrb=cellPadding,0,true][atrb=width,430,true]

[bg=000000][atrb=background,http://i241.photobucket.com/albums/ff153/Lumarinam/kastiel-background.png] Kastiel’s words, it seemed, where to much for the newest member of Anikira. Her eyes dropped from him and he found himself swallowing in worry, why did she fear so much? He wanted to help her; he really did, only he didn’t know how. She seemed too unsure of herself, her cheeks flushed with nervous energy and her un-surety hung about her like a well-worn cloak. Kastiel found himself lost for words now, knowing that her words of kindness drove her further into a path of unfamiliarity where she seemed unsure how to respond. Yet, he was weary that if he fell to silence she would feel only more put out. It was a hard to read situation, for Kastiel at least. She stammered out her thanks, words tripping over in her reluctance to speak at all or her embarrassment at acknowledging what the beta had said. She didn’t something unexpected then, she turned her back on him. It was a strange turns of events considering how nervous she had been before. To turn one’s back on another required a certain amount of trust, something that Kastiel felt he had not yet established with this wolf but would certainly like to. He titled his head, and watched her with silent curiosity as she approached the water and took in her own reflection. She seemed lost in thought, another quality that he admired of this fae was her thoughtfulness. He moved quietly, non-threateningly forward until he was beside her, but not so close as to startle her or for his fur to brush against her own. His eyes also fell upon the water that had taken her attention, eyes catching the ripples of the water as they swirled her shape in unrealistic ways. “Duchess, I don’t know what happened to you after you left the care of the humans, or why it is your steps have taken you here. I just think it’s important that I tell you a little about this pack that you have found your way to. The wolves here, a lot of them have gone through hard times of there own and we all know how hard it can be to re-find a trust once it’s been taken from us. But anyone who comes here, afraid of the world and looking for there place will never be turned away. I give you my word that so long as I am near by, no harm will ever befall you. I swear this to you Duchess, I will not let anything happen to you” He swallowed after his little speech, turning slightly away, he truly was unsure how she would take his words and could only hope she understood the sincerity in his words.

image {c} [e-mail]
Manip {c} Haptic to Sea <3