by Hopeflower » Sun Sep 12, 2010 1:15 am
Thorn returned the nod, giving the area another long, careful glance.
Silver led her hatchlings on. Mwuaji was in the lead, and Thistle had taken the spot on Silver's back before Carus could. Steelclaw was padding slightly ahead, his serious side taking over. Carus was trailing at Silver's side, looking moody. "Why are we moving again? We had a nice den!" he growled.
"I know, love," Silver growled. "But it would've flooded if we stayed there...hopefully we're going to a better home." They fell silent, walking on. After a short while, the silence was cracked by Mwuaji letting out a bark in front of a cave. Inside were four other raptors; two males so alike they were probably siblings, a black female with soft violet eyes, a white dash on her chest and one white foot, and a mottled green female with three black stripes stretching across her muzzle, and six white stripes streaking each flank.
"You found them." That was the green female, getting to her feet. The black female approached; the darker of the two males followed, his golden eyes narrowed slightly.
"Welcome," the female growled. "We heard one of us found you living in our territory...Mwuaji volunteered to bring you here."
"Who are you? And what were you doing on our territory in the first place?" the male growled suspiciously.
Silver met his hawklike gaze with her own deep blue. "My name is Silver. These are my hatchlings, Thistle, Carus, and Steelclaw. I was looking for a place to raise my children," she answered honestly.
"Why aren't you with your own pack?" the lighter gray male growled. His eyes were the most unusual color she'd ever seen, a cold, glittering black like a moonless night. On closer inspection, the younger female had the same eyes. Were they related?
"I don't have a pack anymore," the young mother replied. "We went our separate ways."
"Forgive our rudeness," the black female suddenly cut in. "My name is Siri. This is Inculta." She gave the gray, black-striped raptor beside her a nudge. "We lead this pack. That's Astus, Inculta's brother," Siri added, turning to point out the paler male. "And the green female is my daughter, Viridis. You've already met Mwuaji." The golden-brown raptor dipped his head, red quills gleaming.
"Pleasure to meet you all," Silver growled, lowering her head respectfully. The off-white raptor looked around and growled more hesitantly, "Have I been brought here just for trespass? I would have just left..."
"No," Siri growled. There was a pause as she exchanged glances with her mate and pack. "I want to ask you to join our pack. Your little ones would be safer if you joined us, and you can rest assured that they would never go hungry."
Startled, Silver stared for a moment. "Why offer this to me?" she growled softly.
"I couldn't just sit back and watch you try to raise three hatchlings on your own," Siri barked. Her amethyst eyes were warm and sympathetic."Viridis was quite the handful; three of them must be close to overwhelming."
"Of course, you would be expected to hunt, and patrol the borders," Astus growled. "Pull your own weight. If you just laze about we'll have to kick you out."
Silver's eyes glittered. "I've never been one to just laze about," she growled. "I accept your offer," she added to Siri.
"Gotta have a little sadness once in a while so you know when the good times come."
"Talent is a pursued interest. In other words, anything that you're willing to practice, you can do." ~ Bob Ross
"The future is always uncertain and painful but it must be lived." ~ Unknown