First encounter of the furry kind [attn. John]

[silhouette]

 

 

It had taken her some time, but Sohvi Darwin was finally climbing out of her shell. Mind you, it was a very deep and dark shell where the shy wolfkin had hidden herself away in, but after a few months at the stedding, carefully introducing herself to some of the people there, she felt she could finally go for a walk without feeling the urge to run away from the first stranger she met. Eyes High seemed to smirking with amusement in her mind. That was ok though. She’d gotten used to that as well. The wolf had been with her since the first few days of her wolfkin existence, and she wouldn’t know what she would do without him.

 

“Of course that doesn’t mean you can make fun of me in front of other people.” She said, giving the wolf a glare. The dark wolf seemed to grin again. He did have a tendency to make her look silly whenever he could. She suspected that it was his way to force her to get over her shyness. Anton seemed to be his favourite audience so far. That too made sense in a way. Though Sohvi had many unpleasant adoptive sisters, she didn’t feel as shy around the women she met here as she did around the men. Even around Anton, who had done such a nice job picking her up.

 

With a sigh she walked on. “Well, I am getting better, even though you seem to think I’m not.” Again the amusement, but something else as well. She got the feeling he was trying to point something out to her, but it was terribly vague. She felt as if she was missing the point completely. That wasn’t the only thing she was missing though. From out of nowhere a rather tall young man appeared. Right on her path. Sohvi could do nothing to prevent smacking right into him with a loud “Oof!”.

 

Being the graceful person that she was, she instantly stumbled backwards, tripped over a branch, and landed on her backside. Another “Oof” left her mouth. Somewhere in the back of her mind Eyes High was laughing his tail off. Closing her eyes for a moment, Sohvi tried to regain some of her newfound lack of shyness before looking up at the man she would have bowled over if she’d been a bigger girl. “Ehm… hi. I’m Sohvi.”

 

~Sohvi Darwin

Shimmer

 

[Andular]

Nightsfire’s mind wandered as he walked through the stedding.  The morning had been spent checking the watch lines and making sure there had been no disturbances during the night.  Well that was the excuse he used anyway when he wanted to get out of  the village and walk the woods in silence.

 

As he emerged from the trees into the village proper a presence in the back of his mind announced Quickening’s arrival.  The big grey wolf loped out of the trees with a rabbit between her jaws.

 

~Nightsfire share rabbit~  She sent to him.

 

Smiling at her he kneeled down and ruffled the hair on her head.

 

~Another time my friend I have work to do~

 

Quickening darted back into the trees off to enjoy her meal.   Passing the inn he made his way toward the Ranger training ground as he did every day.  The sun beat down on his shoulders warming them and he let out a sigh thinking to himself of the days work to be done.

 

Nightsfire had found himself increasingly restless of late and he did not know why.  His work with the Rangers was what he lived for and he threw himself into it with abandon.  Deciding that he wanted to try and run Riverwind’s folly that afternoon he thought about what strategy he would take.  He was determined to beat Owen’s record one day but so far it had eluded him.

 

So engrossed in going over the course he did not notice the young woman in front of him until the two collided and she fell to the ground with a thud. 

 

Startled Nightsfire started down at the young woman on the ground.  Dark hair framed the pale skin around her face her eyes were closed for a moment.  When she opened them something about her mesmerized him.

 

“Hello?  I said my name is Sohvi!”

 

“I-I’m sorry I did not hear you the first time.”

 

Holding out his hand which she took he pulled her to her feet.

 

“I am John Dunbar”  He greeted, a broad smile spreading across his face.  “You must be new to the stedding I can’t say I recognize you.

 

Sohvi was brushing herself off and shrugged. 

 

“I was headed for the Ranger training ground and did not see you please accept my apology.

 

On impulse he asked her if she would like to come with him to the training grounds so that they could talk.

 

[silhouette]

For a very long moment the young man Sohvi had just bumped into gave her a somewhat wide eyed stare. Oh lord… he must think I’m hideous…   But these were thoughts that she had to repress. She had once been caught comparing herself to the Candarr sisters in a negative way, and they’d tried to convince her that she was completely and utterly wrong about her own appearance. Of course that didn’t just take away a good fifteen years of having elder sisters tell you that your hips were too narrow and your skin too pale and your hair too straight and… all that stuff. She shook her head slightly, trying to get rid of the train of thought.

 

When she looked up again, the man was still staring. It was rather awkward. Somewhere in the back of her mind Eyes High was amused again, but this time it felt as if it wasn’t directed at her. Well, not just at her. She offered him her hand. “Pleased to meet you, John Dunbar.” While resisting the urge to ask him if he came to this part of the woods often, she looked down at her clothing and dusted it off a bit. No one liked a dusty girl, after all.

 

His apologies made her blush again. “Well, I’m the one who ran into you, so it’s fine, really. I should apologise to you. It was the wolf, you see?” as she glanced around she saw that there really was no way for him to see, because Eyes High was nowhere in sight. She sighed again. My companion. He thinks it’s funny to distract me. You won’t believe how often I’ve tripped over myself just because he’s thinking of odd things again.” She was babbling. Babbling had to be bad. She really didn’t want to make a fool out of herself, but why… that was still a little vague.

 

Just about as vague as her accepting his invitation to the training ground. She’d never gone there before, so why now? John Dunbar was kind of nice though, so she supposed it was fine. And he was nothing like those boys back in Amadicia. At least he wouldn’t think she was a demon because she had golden eyes. “So, what do you rangers do out here?” she asked, looking at the training ground before her.

 

~Sohvi Darwin

Shimmer

 

[Andular]

Nightsfire had to chuckle when she mentioned her wolf distracting her, he knew the feeling all too well.  He had only just ran into Sohvi, literally, but there was something about the girl that he immediately liked.

 

 

As they reached the broad expanse of the Ranger training grounds the two stopped and looked around.

 

“Train mostly.”  He answered Sohvi’s question.

 

She turned at him and gave him a, no kidding, look that made him laugh.

 

“Well I suppose that was a bit obvious.  We practice all types of combat, hand to hand, ranged and melee.  There is a very difficult obstacle course that beings there” He pointed to a large wood platform in the distance.  “And ends at the lake.”

 

Several Rangers were on the archery range as he showed Sohvi around the grounds and they stopped to watch them practice. 

 

Nightsfire’s stomach grumbled and he looked up at the sun not realizing how close to mid day it was.

 

“Will you excuse me for a moment Sohvi?”  She nodded and he hurried off to the nearby building that served as the Rangers base.

 

He returned a short time later with a basket in hand and found Sohvi seated on the ground watching the Rangers. 

 

“I don’t know about you but I am starved.”  He announced as he approached her.  “Lets go down by the lake and have a bite to eat.”

 

Sohvi smiled and nodded rising to her feet.  As they walked Nightsfire studied his new friend out of the corner of his eye.  It was not like him to take much interest in others, preferring his own company to that of others more often than not.

 

Walking down the path toward the lake he stopped and bent picking a daisy from the ground and handed it to her.

 

“A beautiful flower for a beautiful girl.”  Giving a slight bow and handing it to her.  Sohvi’s cheeks reddened slightly making her pale cheeks shine. 

 

Reaching the lake side Nightsfire spread out a blanket and began unpacking the food.  “Tell me about yourself Sohvi and how you came to find yourself with us.”

[silhouette]

Much to her initial dislike, John took her straight to one of the more populated areas of the stedding. Despite Anton’s urgings that she should learn to defend herself, she’d avoided this particular place like the plague. Too many people. Too many bare-chested people with sticks and swords and bows and arrows and… shaking her head slightly, she decided to focus on her current companion again. John was nice. She was glad that that pesky wolf friend of hers had distracted her long enough for her to bump into him. Even though there were probably better ways to meet people. Then again, if you were Sohvi and you were so shy that you spent the first days at the stedding just running away from people, there probably wasn’t a better way.

 

John did seem to go out of his way to make her blush though. How was a girl supposed to react to getting a flower? She thought back on the times she’d seen her elder sisters moon over some boy. Hmm. With a smile she put the flower in her hair. “There. That’s better.” Even though she couldn’t see Eyes High anywhere, she just knew he was highly amused with her. He seemed to think things like these were funny. “I’ve never been here before.” She said, commenting on their spot by the lake. Of course she hadn’t been there before, it would involve meeting people. She shivered slightly at the thought. Well, John was nice enough, but she was quite sure that there was another old Marty just waiting around the next tree.

 

“Anton brought me here… oh, I don’t know… a couple of months ago. He found me in Amadicia, where I grew up. I wasn’t born there though. One of my cousins found me on the roadside, abandoned by my birth parents. I was adopted by a rich farmer, who already had a lot of kids. I was always the odd one out, but when I started having weird dreams and weird eyes, he decided that I was a little too odd. He chased me out.” She couldn’t help but sulk a little at that. “Not that I’m not glad that I’m here, but… well… I do miss my family sometimes. I live in a hut not far from Anton’s now. I couldn’t stay there, not with all those girls. Besides, he didn’t like to have wolves in his house. Now that’s odd, who ever heard of a wolfkin that doesn’t like wolves?”

 

“But I’m babbling. Tell me a little about yourself. Why did you become a ranger? Where did you get that scar? Am I talking too much?”

 

~Sohvi Darwin

Shimmer

 

[Andular]

They could not have asked for a more perfect day to picnic by the lake.  A light breeze blew off the water and cooling them as they ate.

 

“No you are not talking to much.”  He chuckled stuffing a piece of chicken in his mouth before answering.

 

“The scar I received when I was chased from my village when the change came upon me.  I don’t need to tell you how other people don’t exactly welcome our kind.”  Sohvi nodded as he spoke nibbling on the food laid in front of her.  “Some locals thought I would look better and slashed at me with a knife.  Imagine their surprise when a pack of wolves appeared to protect me.”

 

Nightsfire produced two cups from the basket and filled them with some sweet wine he had then passed a cup to Sohvi who thanked him.

 

“As for becoming a Ranger.”  He shrugged laying back on the blanket and propping his head up with one arm.  “I did not like feeling helpless like that and decided I wanted to be the best trained to defend myself as I could.  I decided as well I wanted to defend my family here in the stedding and vowed not to let them be harmed if I could help it.  The rest is history, Owen trained me and I have been a Ranger for several years now.”

 

Shovi seemed to be truly interested as he spoke she sipped her wine and looked at him with the golden eyes that marked her as one of them.  There was something oddly hypnotic about the young woman and he found himself having feelings he thought long removed from him.

 

“I find it peaceful here by the lake and often come to let my mind wander.  It is one of my favorite places in the stedding.  I am glad you are here with me today Sohvi.”

 

A shape detached itself from the trees and Quickening walked toward them.  The big Grey sniffed Sohvi then licked her hand. 

 

“It seems Quickening likes you as well.”  He laughed as the wolf settled down near the lake shore and lay down.

 

He could tell Sohvi did give much of herself to others easily and he understood why for the most part.  She no doubt had many demons to confront from her past as most of them did upon coming here.  Nightsfire was drawn to her in a way he did not understand and he was curious and a little anxious by it.

 

Sipping his wine he sighed and laid his head on the ground looking at the fluffy clouds drift overhead.  “Have you chosen which division you will go into when the time comes?”

 

All in all it was a good day, Nightsfire was happier than he had been in a long time as he rolled over and drank in her features with his eyes.

[silhouette]

There was something about the way John kept looking at her that made her blush almost the entire time. She was glad for the presence of the wolf to distract her a bit. Quickening  she thought to it, the way Anton had shown her. Shimmer, It thought back to her. The image of sunlight and shadows reflecting on early morning snow was familiar by now, but it still brought a smile to her face. It took her a moment to realise John had asked her a question.

 

“I’m not sure yet. Anton is a tracker, and he made that sound nice. I’d like to be free to go wherever I want. Then again, I’m pretty sure I’d miss this place as well. I’ve met Leila, who is a watcher. That sounds great as well, but I’m not sure if I could deal with people looking at me and seeing a demon the entire time. I’m not too sure about what the Sages do, and I’m fairly sure that I don’t have the build for a Ranger.” She certainly wasn’t built like John, who seemed like he could handle himself. “I suppose I’ll find out what I want to do sooner or later.”

 

“How did you come by your wolf name? Did you just wake up with it in your head one morning, or did the wolves pick it for you?” Sohvi still wasn’t entirely sure how she came by hers. Just that it had felt right from the moment she realised it was hers. While waiting for John to answer she reached for a strawberry. “Mmm. I’ve missed these… my mom used to grow these in our garden.” She said, thoroughly enjoying the red fruit. “Want one?” she asked, holding one out to John. For some odd reason she didn’t feel quite as shy anymore.

 

Sohvi Darwin

Shimmer

 

[Andular]

Nightsfire took the strawberry from her the sudden desire to have her feed it to him making his cheeks burn.  Light but he was thinking like a fool and wondered why this girl he just met affected him like that. 

 

Forcing his mind back to the conversation he thought back to so long ago when Quickening had found him.

 

“My wolf name is not so hard to understand really.  The night I received this.”  He pointed to his scar.  “Well I failed to mention that my attackers had set my house on fire.  It was the middle of the night and I barely managed to get out of the flaming building when they fell upon me.  So Quickening dubbed me Nightsfire.  Not very original if you ask me.”  He laughed throwing a grape at the big wolf who lifter her head in and blinked sleepily.

 

“If you would like Sohvi I would be glad to offer my services and teach you how to fight and defend yourself.  No matter what division you choose it is always a good idea to be able to defend yourself.  Not to boast but I am one of the better fighters among the Rangers.”

 

Before she could answer Nightsfire stood.  “Hold that thought I will be right back I find myself growing warm.”

 

Stripping off his shirt he tossed it aside and removed his boot then ran to the lakes edge and dove in.  The cool water surround him as he dove deep them swam up and broke the surface of the water.  Swimming back to the shore he slicked his hair back with his hands and waled back to the blanket water dripping from his body. 

 

“So what do you say about learning how to use a weapon without hurting yourself?  It would mean you would have to spend more time with me and to be honest I think I would really like that.”

[silhouette]

The look on John’s face was rather odd for a moment. In fact, if Sohvi didn’t know better, she’d say he was blushing. But blushing was a girl thing, at least that was what Anton said, so it couldn’t possibly be that. Her eyes widened in surprise when John got to his feet and stormed off towards the lake, shedding his shirt and boots in the process. She was so shocked in fact that it didn’t even occur to her to look away at first. When it dawned on her that she was looking at a half naked man, the urge to blush returned tenfold. As she reddened to what felt like the roots of her hair and the tips of her toes, she was glad that John was too far away to see it. Blushing like a hussy by the fire. That was no way for a good girl to act.

 

Despite such reprimands to herself, she found herself giggling. Light, she sounded like her sister Rita. Now that had been a brazen hussy. Sohvi was nothing like that. Not at all. It was just the wine and the strawberries. She pondered on his offer to teach her to defend herself a bit. It would mean she could deal with pervy old men like Marty herself. And she wouldn’t have to call upon the help of her elder brothers to deal with their fiendish friend either. Not that her brothers had ever believed her when she said the other boys had tried to put their paws on her. She shuddered at the memory. No, things would be much better when she learned to defend herself.

 

When John returned the blush had gone down a bit. She thought be might be able to keep it down, as long as she avoided looking at his bared upper body. “Well, I can’t say that I’d mind spending more time in your company.” She said, smiling radiantly. He said he’d like spending more time with her. She’d do a little dance because of it, if it wouldn’t have looked absolutely silly. “And it would be good to be able to defend myself. There are so many people who would rather attack you than to wait for you to explain what you are. It’s sad.” Her fathers reaction certainly had been. Deciding to focus on happier thoughts, Sohvi looked at John again. “So, when do we start?”

 

~Sohvi Darwin

Shimmer

 

[Andular]

Laying on the blanket while the sun dried his skin Nightsfire reflected on how life often gave you days you did not expect.  This was turning out to be one of those, when he woke that morning he had no idea he would have met someone so pleasent and who he truly enjoyed being around.  He could not recall anytime in recent memory he had met someone he had instantly connected to like this.

 

Wiping his hands on a napkin and tossing it into a the basked he grabbed his shirt and pulled it over his head.

 

“No time like the present I always say.”  He said grinning at Sohvi as he pulled his boots on.

 

Together they packed up their lunch and began walking back toward the Ranger proving grounds.  They walked back in silence Nightfire enjoying just being in Sohvi’s presence and content to let it be at that.

 

When they had dropped off the basket he led them to a private area of the training grounds that were others would not be training.  A tall stand of fir trees surround the area and Nightsfire grabbed a bow and quiver of arrows from the store shed and led Sohvi to a spot facing a target two yards away.

 

“I am not going to try and overwhelm you with too much right away.  We will start with bow and arrow then move on to basic sword play.”  Sohvi nodded an eager gleam in his eyes that gave her a sensous look.

 

“I am sure you have been taught to use your heightened senses and it is as simple as that in mastering the bow.  Concentrate on the target and lets see how you take to it.”

 

Sohvi notched an arrow and brought the bow up her eyes focused on the target.  Pulling back the bow string she releases the arrow flying only a few feet before angling down and hitting the ground.

 

Nightsfire chuckled and she shot him a sharp glance and he held his hand up.  “It takes time do not become frustrated here let me help.”

 

Handing her another arrow she waited until she had notched it then moved up behind her until and placed a hand on each of hers.  This close the herbal smell of her hair and the feel of her body against his were caused a stirring in his own.  It took Nightfire several deep breaths to regain his concentration as the reaction of being this close to her had awakened something primal inside of him.  The desire to drop his arms around her waist and kiss her neck was overwhelming.  He knew he dare not let himself slip into the spring or his senses would surely betray him.

 

Sohvi glanced over her shoulder wondering what he was waiting for and Nightsfire swallowed hard and then together they pulled back on the bow string.

“Watch the target and imagine yourself one with it.  Slow your breathing and line your sight up.”

 

Letting go with an audible twang the bolt flew sure and hit the target off center.  “Excellent he said stepping away from her before he betrayed the feeling that being so close to her and done to him more than it already had.

[silhouette]

John certainly was a very proactive sort of man. Sohvi liked that. In a way it reminded her of her father. You didn’t become a major land owner without getting up and doing things. That was about where the resemblance with her family stopped though. For one John was nice, while they were not. John liked her eyes, while they were scared of them. John didn’t seem to think she was ugly unlike all her sisters. Her brothers had always been a little vague on that subject, but Sohvi supposed that was just a man-thing.

 

Holding the bow in her hands was rather… awkward. She’d never held a weapon before, unless she wanted to count a kitchen knife. The difference between the bow and said kitchen knife was so big that she’d never think of that as a weapon again. Her brothers had used bows to hunt the foxes that sometimes hounded the chickens, but they’d always laughed when she asked them to teach her. Bows were men-thing, and Sohvi was supposed to do women things. What those were she never really figured out either. According to Rita and Rema she was supposed to show as much bosom as possible and giggle at every given chance. Sohvi had never really understood the charm in that.

 

Her first attempt with a bow was pretty horrendous. How was she ever supposed to hit anything if she couldn’t even get the arrow to go in the right direction? She would have glared at John if he hadn’t been standing behind her. Quite close, at that… The second try was much better, but mostly because of John. She could feel his breath in her neck, and the warmth of his body against her back. When he helped her pull back the string she felt as if she’d stopped breathing for a moment. She could hear him say something, but it seemed completely irrelevant compared to the touch of his hand.

 

A loud twang shook her out of her spell. “Huh… oh.” She muttered, looking at her arrow sticking out of the target. The moment between them forgotten, Sohvi jumped up and down in glee. “I hit something!” she said, grinning broadly. She turned to look at John, who looked a little out of sorts. “Ehm… thanks.” She said, suddenly feeling shy again. Now that the joy of hitting the target faded a bit, the memory of his touch returned again full force. Swiftly she turned her back on him, hiding her blush. “So I just draw back, focus on the target, and let go the way you’ve just shown me?”

 

~Sohvi Darwin

Shimmer

 

[Andular]

Seeing the pleasure dance in her eyes at having hit the target made Nightsfire smile.  Her excitement was infectious and he was glad he was able to share the moment with her.  For just a moment he felt he had missed an opportunity when she turned her back to him.  An opportunity to do what?  Kiss her?  She was clouding his thinking and it was disturbing but oddly he did not seem to mind when he thought it through.

 

“Well it will take a bit of practice until you can hone you skills but yes that is what you need to do.”

 

A light breeze blew a strand of hair over Sohvi’s eyes and she brushed it aside with a delicate hand before notching another arrow.  Nightsfire could not help but noticing almost every slight detail about the girl and he wondered why this girl had brought up feelings he had thought never to have again.  He had trained many women and none had brought desire or longing bubbling to the surface of his emotions.  For the briefest of moments he wondered if she might be drawn to him as he was to her.

 

Sohvi launched another arrow and this one, while missing the target, flew just wide.

 

“Good you have gotten the distance now keep firing.  It does not matter if you find the target right away we will build up your arm strength while we work on your aim.” 

 

She was an eager student and kept sending arrows toward the target.  Now that she had the range she was beginning to hit the target now and again.  Once more Nightsfire moved up against her and took her hands in his.  He knew it was probably not a good idea but he could not help himself.

 

“Peer down the body of the arrow to get your aim.”  He instructed raising the bow a little in her hand until it was level with her right eye.”  The ranging inside him was more controlled ths time as he held her hands but there non the less.  Suddenly his sharpened senses felt eyes on the back of his head and knew someone was watching them.

[Wayfarer]

Shooting upright, Anton didn't hesitate as he grabbed his cloak and stave and ran out the door of the hut.  Fastening the cloak as he began to pick up pace, if he'd tried he wouldn't have been able to remember being quite so angry in awhile.  Of all the audacity!  The stupidity!  Rumble and Eyes High had shown him some fairly disturbing images as far as he was concerned, and even as his knuckles tightened on his stave he was thinking of some of the things he'd like to do when he got his hands on John Dunbar.

 

It was a good thing that there was some distance between him and the said Ranger, if there hadn't been then Anton wouldn't have had the chance to recover some of his right mind.  Enough of it to ask Eyes High and Rumble to see if they could call Sohvi away.  Of course, she then had to prove unreceptive to the messages they were sending, her attention so wholly caught up with what she was doing.  He asked them to do him a favour, even as he approached the Ranger proving grounds.

 

It didn't take long to find them, it did take an enormous amount of effort to subdue his rage though, both on his face and his scent.  Sohvi didn't need to know about it, she was far too innocent and she didn't need to lose that innocence just yet, she had enough to deal with.  John should have known better, and that was what enraged Anton the most.  Slowing down to a walk, he was quietly seething at how closely John had put himself with Sohvi.

 

It was John that first noticed Anton's approach, turning to him in apparent surprise.  Sohvi followed the idiot's gaze and Anton forced a slight smile on his face as he reined in his other emotions even further.  Waving as she called to him, Anton called back.  "Rumble and Eyes High have been trying to call you but they said you were distracted and didn't hear them.  They have something to show you, now."

 

Eyes High and Rumble dived in at that point with their mindspeak, and their images were convincing because she thanked Anton before quickly saying goodbye to John and making her way from the grounds.  Having told them what to show her, he'd made sure that it was a goodly distance away, she wouldn't be coming back this way again today as late as it was.

 

Stopping a few feet from John even as Sohvi merrily made her way from the scene, as soon as she was far enough that she couldn't detect his scent, Anton dropped the act.  He seethed, he raged within, he was so angry with the man before him who was a decade his junior that if he hadn't had the time to cool down he would have broken the man's kneecaps.  As it was, he waited a moment so John could appreciate the full depth of Anton's feelings about what had been happening before he gave those feelings a voice.

 

"What in the Pit of Doom do you think you're doing John Dunbar?"

 

 

Anton Averdal

Farpaw

[Andular]

Nightsfire was surprised to see Anton walking toward them and he stepped away from Sohvi standing in front of her.  He was a little confused when Anton sent Sohvi off with the wolves he had no idea what could be so important that she needed to be shown this instant.  He felt a faint sense of regret on seeing her leave and hoped he would see her again soon. 

 

Nightsfire’s momentary musing was short lived as Anton’s fury became apparent the older man confronting him demanding to know what he was doing.  Anton’s rage filled Nightsfire’s nose and he smirked confused by what he was getting at.

 

“I was teaching her to shoot a bow Anton is there a problem with that?”

 

Anton heatedly told him what Eyes High and Rumble had communicated to him and Nights felt his own anger begin to simmer and immediately embraced the spring.  Some things were meant to be private and he cared not one bit how protective the Tracker leader felt about Sohvi.

 

Anton waited for an answer and Nightsfire gave him one in a curt voice filled that held a hint of warning in it.

 

“So have you taken over Watcher duties of late Anton?”  Anton narrowed his eyes if asking what that was suppose to mean.

 

“I thought it was a Watchers duty to spy.  Who I choose to teach or have lunch with or kiss is my business and that of the person I do so with.”   Nights did not know why he had thrown kiss in there the two had not even come close to doing anything of the sort.

 

Anton seethed but Nights did not give him a chance yet to speak.  “I met Sohvi just this morning and we seem to instantly connect.  I am sorry that infringes on your paternal instincts or jealousy but it is what it is.  If you want me to be honest I think I might have feelings for the girl and you nor anyone else will tell me that I will not or can not do so.  You would do well to check your anger and not directed at me I am not some child to be intimidated by you and if you look closely Sohvi is no child either.”

 

Nightsfire was furious and all his anger was feeding the spring or he very well would have lashed out physically at Anton.  As it was he stepped back a pace to give him room to maneuver in case Anton was foolish enough to try and attack him.

 

 

[Wayfarer]

"I will not do so?"  Anton's hand tightened on his stave as he looked at John.  Who in the worst hell does he think he is?!  The urge to give John a trouncing right there and there was strong, Ranger or not, Anton had no fear of the man and if he needed to beat the sense into him he'd do it.  But that wasn't what he should do as a Tracker Leader, or so a small voice told him in the back of his head which irked him immensely by pointing out a very obvious problem with applying his stave to John's head until he had some wisdom bludgeoned into him.

 

His eyes were smoldering as he spoke.  "She is a Wanderer!  She is still going through her howling and you're out here romancing her while she's still in flux, she's not even a Wolfcub you reeetard!  How dare you even think to take advantage of her while she's still at this point!  As far as I'm concerned she still is a child, while she's in her howling she's not ready to be dealing with this at all."

 

"I'm not finished!"  Cutting over John's attempt to interject, Anton continued.  "I don't care!  I don't need to hear the words of someone who thought that making a pass at one of my students still going through their howling was a perfectly good idea!  And do you know what?  You can have feelings for her all you want but its my prerogative as her mentor to decide what is best for her until she's a full wolfsister in her own right."

 

"And you aren't whats best for her, and if you're so foolish enough to press the matter I swear I'll make you rue that your mother ever kissed your father.  Stay away from her."  Glaring, Anton turned and stalked away.  He needed to leave before he did something precipitous.  He couldn't remember being so angry since he had become a wolfkin, he'd been angry when Janna had found him in his howling but that had been mixed with fear and a dozen other emotions.  This was just pure rage. 

 

How dare he!

 

 

Anton Averdal

Farpaw

[Andular]

Nightsfire’s anger was held in check by his strength of training alone and nothing else. Watching Anton storm away he called out. 

 

“Perhaps it is you who should re think your idea of what is best for Sohvi.  I have no intention of not seeing her just to satisfy your sense of parental duty.  All Sohvi and I were doing was becoming friends if it leads to more I will make sure you are the first to know.”

 

He picked up the bow that Sohvi and left laying there notched an arrow and for the briefest moment thought of sending a shaft by Anton’s ear to let him know just who he was dealing with.  Instead he shifted the bow and sent the arrow into the side of the wooden Ranger building with a loud thud.

 

Anton hesitated for a moment but did not turn back to look and kept walking.

 

“Fool.”  Nightsfire muttered before stalking back to the Rangers building and slamming the door behind him.  He had no intention of doing what Anton asked and forgo seeing Sohvi.  On the contrary he was more apt to seek her out as often as he could manage after that tirade.  In the morning he would send Quickening and ask her to come to him.  If Anton thought he could bully him the man had another thing coming.

 

[silhouette]

There was something about the way Anton looked that made Sohvi decide not to question his request. It wasn’t all that odd that she hadn’t heard the wolves before, after all, and apparently it was important. As she walked off she caught an angry glance from Anton, directed at John. She didn’t quite know what was going on there. Maybe Anton didn’t like John? She’d heard him mutter about a few other rangers before, like Owen, but never about John. Just as she was starting to get a bit worried, she heard Eyes High in her mind. Come fast! he called.  The moment she was out of sight, she broke into a run.

 

After a good ten minutes, she was still running, and according to Eyes High, still no closer to what he wanted her to see. Breaking into a full sprint, she barged through the woods, not really caring about who saw her and who heard her. By the time she passed the tree line her worries about Anton and John were almost forgotten. The excitement she was feeling from Eyes High was a little overwhelming.

 

When she finally reached his side, she could see what he’d been meaning to show her. Under the light of the setting sun there was a pack of deer, grazing in the open fields. It was a lovely sight. “Oh…” she breathed. She settled in the grass next to Eyes High and waited for the sun to set completely. Oddly enough hunting the deer was the last thing on her companions mind. Apparently he liked to look at pretty things as well. When the deer finally moved away, she got up again.

 

“Well, I suppose I might as well go home… I doubt John will still be at the training grounds.” She felt a pang of regret at that thought. She’d liked spending time with John today, and while she would’ve regretted missing the sight of the deer, she also regretted leaving the ranger behind. There was someone waiting for her near the first tree of the forest. Anton. She waved at him in greeting, not quite understanding the smell that came off him. If only Lwena had already taught her to identify the various smells coming from people…

 

~Sohvi Darwin

Shimmer

[Wayfarer]

Waving to Sohvi as she approached, Anton casually leaned on his staff even as he began to master his anger as best he could.  It wasn't her that he was angry with, she couldn't know what John had been up to and it was for that very reason that he had stepped in to begin with.  It wasn't fair on her at all, not with the other things she had to deal with to have him insinuating himself with her.  The very thought of it made his blood boil but he tempered it as best he could.  As he kept reminding himself, it wasn't her he was angry with.

 

"Sohvi."  Inclining his head at her, he began to walk alongside her as she waited for him to talk.  She knew him well enough to know when he wanted to tell her about something and she was always willing to let him speak first.  That was something that made Sohvi a rare wanderer in herself, a willingness to listen and a head on her shoulders that kept her out of trouble.  But then, it wasn't her head that he was worried about.  "I need to talk to you about John Dunbar.  I know that he made a good impression with you but..."

 

"I need to ask you to stay clear of him.  He can be trouble, and I don't want him bringing that trouble to you.  Uhuh, wait."  Anton knew that she would be surprised, but it was for Sohvi's own good as far as he was concerned.  He had an idea of what troubled Sohvi, had glimpsed it in her dreams and had seen the effect it had on her.  She was only beginning to come out of her shell now and he would be damned if that idiot of a Ranger ruined people for Sohvi.  "I know I ask a good deal from you, but I need you to trust me in this.  I wouldn't ask it of you if it wasn't important."

 

 

Anton Averdal

Farpaw

[silhouette]

She didn’t understand. John had been nice to her. Sure, he’d made her blush when he pulled off his shirt and dived into the lake, and he’d made her blush again when he stood so close to her during practise that she could feel his breath in her neck, but… nothing had happened. He wasn’t like Marty, or Ephron, or any of those other boys from the village. He’d been nice to her, respecting her well enough as far as she was concerned. But here she was, looking at Anton who had never led her astray before. Could he be right?

 

Looking away from him at the moment, Sohvi tried to remember if John had done or said anything that was improper. Not to her, at least, but perhaps he had said something to Anton? Or perhaps Anton knew something about his past? What did she know about John, after all? Biting her lower lip for a moment, she gave Anton a shaky nod. “I’ll… I’ll keep my distance for a while. Until you say it’s ok.”

 

When she looked up her eyes seemed to be shining a little more than usual. “Nothing happened though. He was just… teaching me to use a bow. It was harmless. Not like… well… nothing like what… happened before…” Anton had seen the bully appear in the dreamworld before. He had to know that John was nothing like that. Or was he? She just didn’t know. She threw her head back in frustration, much like Eyes High would do if she was acting particularly stubborn. “It’s just hard.” She said when she felt she could look at Anton again. “I want to meet more people… I want to make friends with people like me, but I’m never sure if they’re the right kind of people.”

 

~Sohvi Darwin

Shimmer

[Wayfarer]

"I know."  Throwing an arm around Sohvi as they walked, Anton squeezed her gently as he continued.  "Thats why I'm here to look out for you Sohvi.  Once you're past the howling, you'll be all set and you'll know yourself a lot better.  When you're able to trust the senses that you have latent as a Wolfkin, it will be a rare day indeed that they'll steer you wrong.  All you need is time and you'll come good, don't doubt it because I'll be here making sure you're alright."  Reaching up from her shoulder, Anton ruffled her hair playfully.  She needed to worry less, he'd take care of her and he wasn't going to let anyone mess her about.

 

Though her thoughts were still blurred and jumbled, racing through her mind with the speed of a mad horse, Sohvi felt comforted by Anton’s words. At least he wouldn’t lead her astray. As far as big brothers went, Anton was definitely the best one she’d had so far. She glanced sideways at him for a moment. “Why don’t you like the Rangers, Anton?” she finally asked. It had bothered her a bit before, but now that she’d met John it seemed important to know just what Anton thought was wrong with them.

 

"The Rangers?"  Anton looked at Sohvi with surprise, had someone said something to her?  But, a question was a question, and it was pertinent.  "I don't dislike all the Rangers, there are some I get along with quite well and my own mentor is one.  They might be a group but they are individuals as well.  Having said that..."  How to phrase it.  "Out of the four groups, the Trackers and the Rangers are the two most likely to see combat.  Rangers train for it specifically and Trackers are out in the world so much and exposed to so much risk that they must be able to defend themselves and those with them."

 

"To be a Ranger, you need to be a fighter and willing to defend the pack.  That is their role, the defence of our stedding.  For that you need courage, you need skill at arms, you need loyalty.  A Tracker on the other hand has compassion to call their first virtue.  Not everyone is found as quickly as you were, some are so far gone in their howling that they need much understanding as well as patience to come through.  Especially if they've been hurt by those they've known before coming to the Stedding."

 

"Now do not, whatever you do, think that Rangers are without compassion.  My mentor Burrich, Lorelai, those two I have a great deal of respect and friendship for.  But let us say that me and and the Ranger Leader Owen had a disagreement before I became a Tracker Leader.  I thought to swipe his flute as a prank and then take it back after.  It sounded so bad...  But he found me out and thought I was a thief, and rather than ask what I was doing he had me at his mercy in a moment and I'm fairly certain would have killed me on the spot if there hadn't been others there.  That is where compassion, understanding, a willingness to ask 'why' was lacking."

 

"Which is why I have my doubts about your John Dunbar."  Anton frowned, he had more than doubts but that was a different matter.  "By all accounts he is a good man.  But...  No patience.  Not nearly enough humility and I don't think he has your best interests at heart.  If he did, I would not have had words with him...  Have you met Zierna before?"

 

The name didn’t ring any bells. The story didn’t ring any bells either, but it did explain some things. Like why Anton preferred to live outside of the stedding by himself. Why he didn’t trust rangers. Why he thought John Dunbar would have no care for her needs and wants. She shook her head slightly. She didn’t even know what she needed and wanted herself. It was terribly confusing. Why couldn’t she be more like Leila? Leila didn’t seem to have these kinds of problems at all. “I haven’t heard of her.” She finally said when she realised Anton was waiting for her to answer. He should’ve known she didn’t know Zierna yet. John was the first person she’d met that he hadn’t introduced her to.

 

"Zierna is a year older than you, I found her wandering sometime before we met.  At anyrate, her howling...  It caused her emotions to be excessive, and in some cases false or rather, they weren't hers.  You haven't been in the same state as she, but when people are going through their howling it is a confusing time and its hard to know your feelings for certain.  People in their Howling are the priority, and even if you weren't you're still important to me.  You've got everything to come to grips with, becoming Wolfkin, rediscovering who you are, deciding what you want for yourself."

 

"Eyes High told me you were discovering new aspects of yourself today."  That was one way to put it, but it was the only way he could think of explaining it without getting sidetracked down a whole different line of thought.  "During someone's howling, you try not to engender strong emotions in a person because they can find them difficult to control or sometimes even understand.  Much like the Wolf Dream, you try and make things as calm and peaceful for someone so they can reconcile with themselves and their wolvish nature so they can become one."

 

"When I spoke to John Dunbar, the way he expressed himself led me to believe that he was thinking of himself first and you second.  If he's thinking like that, then I don't want him around you because you're more important and burn me if I'll see you come to harm.  He's not malicious, but he's not thinking either and if he hasn't got the common sense to do so then he can wait."  Looking from the trail to Sohvi as they kept walking, Anton nudged her with an elbow.  "Alright?"

 

Stool pigeon! Sohvi shot the thought at her companion, who had been following them at some distance. The wolf pretended to be deaf to her thoughts, but she could feel that he was feeling rather smug. She shook her head slightly. Anton was probably right. Maybe it was best to stay away from John for a while. She couldn’t imagine him expressing himself in a way that wasn’t perfectly gentleman-like, but Anton wouldn’t lie to her even if he could. “Alright.” She said with a sigh. “I’ll stay away from John Dunbar for a while.”

 

"Thank you Sohvi, you've set my heart at ease knowing that."  And it did, he knew he could count on Sohvi to do the right thing.  Of all the girls he had to worry over and protect, Sohvi was perhaps the best behaved of them all.  Except for one incident when it had come to Eyes High, she'd always listened and with that weight off his mind, he thought he might be able to stave off grey hairs for at least a little while longer.

 

"Lets get you home."