Virtuous hearts; Tirisfal Valley

Nodding at the information, Doctor said, "Thank you for letting me know, Robin." His head tilted at the mention of Robin's mate and replied softly, "I'm sorry, but I haven't seen her. I won't hold you here, then. Go find a proper place for burial. I'll see if the pack can find Alaina when they gather, and to pay our respects when you are both ready." His attempt of reassurance of Robin's mate being found was subtle, for he wouldn't be able to convey it any other way, not having a mate himself to understand what the other was thinking or feeling. He had little else to offer his packmate without bordering towards sympathy- something he felt wasn't the time or place. "If it helps, I'll not burden you with any tasks that might keep you any distance from your family." Although he never started a family, he could relate to the ties that bound offspring to parents.

Doctor looked up at the approaching wolf, figuring Robin would be the first to arrive, as he had been closest. He heard the question, but was silent for a bit- the type of silence of someone figuring out how he should phrase what he wanted to say. "Silent's condition is stable at the moment. I have her primarily in another wolf's care- one of the recent arrivals- for the time while I check in on them. She had... some complications while giving birth, so I was primarily focused on stopping bleeding and dehydration rather than the effects from blood loss she might have gotten. She has two children, as does Bright. The pack could visit, but not in a large group and not for too long."

He looked at Robin with some guilt, but also determined as he asked, "If you're alright with telling me, what happened here?" He wanted to verify his conclusions and get enough details. "We need to settle on what to do next. Soon. Packs fall apart when the alphas can't lead. In times of chaos, even temporary betas need to have a very good lead the pack can follow." His eyes now held an intense gleam, focused on a distant tree, half lost in a memory. "That's why I'm here... Left when the pack was led astray into a war in a way we'd never win. I'm probably the only one who survived because of it." He shook his head suddenly, jerking himself out of his memories. "I'm sorry. I never ramble like that... well... maybe once, but that was long ago." He was thinking clearly again, and he knew the memories wouldn't haunt him again that strongly.

Silent kept her head down, resting on her paws with tail covering nose, but her ears shifted to the voices outside as Nuri and Doctor discussed how to deal with the pack. She was satisfied with the decisions made, and perked up as Nuri came in briefly to comfort her. She smiled warmly and revelled in the moment with him, feeling tingly where his tongue and caressed her. Silent envyed him as he left the den, wishing she could follow. Sighing, she once more rested herself and allowed herself to drift off...



Bright barely realized she had been dozing when suddenly a voice filled her ears and she looked up to see Nuri at the entrance of the den. She tilted her head, wondering what he needed to discuss with her, but realized it may have something to do with his children. "Yes, Nuri, what is is?" dreary as she was, she forced herself to sit up and leave the pups in a pile as they protested her departure. She looked to Silent's mate, awaiting to hear what he had to say.

If Doctor was surprised at Nuri's fairly quick decision, and who was chosen for temporary beta, it didn't show. He had to keep his emotions in check if he didn't want to lose control over his actions- more so with the position he currently held. Nodding at the suggestion of grouping the pack, he automatically turned and headed for the area he and Bright, and Cardinal and Nuri had split ways, then continued a bit further, closer to where Robin, Jewel, and some of the others were. He noted much of the pack were scattered, and sent up a howl, summoning the pack, apart from those at Silent or Bright's dens. The howl offered no explanation why, but held a bit of importance, which allowed the others some time to finish up what they were currently doing.

The British Columbian had no idea if some of the pack were doing anything important, and hated to disrupt them, but the pack needed to be on the same page and soon. If another assailant showed up and they weren't... He didn't want to think about it. His gaze turned to Robin, who seemed to be comforting Jewel. Was her brother the one attacked? Another quick sweep and realized what happened. Sadness glittered in his eyes for a moment before he blinked, waiting for the majority of the pack he'd called to arrive.

Silent felt the weight lifted off of her paws when Nuri slipped under her and lifted her body onto his back. She let out a sigh of relief and relaxed, shifting her weight only so she would not fall off. She closed her eyes and nuzzled into his fur as he carried her. As he lowered himself near the entrance to her den, she whispered into his ear, "Thank you, love." She smiled weakly and licked his ear, before sliding off of Nuri's back. Her legs shook as she stumbled toward her den and crawled inside. Once in the dark confines of her den, she flopped to the floor and curled her body, tail over her nose. She felt exhausted, but she also felt guilty. She was failing her pack, and she didn't even know what was going on with her wolves. And now she was weaker than ever, and not only that, but her eyesight was useless. How could she continue to run a pack in this condition?

Huffing uncertainly, she closed her bleary eyes. She couldn't keep doing this, but she couldn't put everything onto Nuri's shoulders could she? He was getting on in age, and it would be enough for the two of them to be raising whelps together without all the stresses of the pack being on his shoulders alone. But who could she turn to next? There were many pack members that she did not see as often as she used to, and she wasn't sure who would be able to do the job. But she knew that she herself could no longer do it, so somebody else must be capable. Suddenly her ears perked as Doctor arrived and set down a ball of wet moss in front of her. She lapped at it as he instructed her, and she lifted her head with a grateful expression upon her face. Then she heard him go outside, speaking with Nuri of the things she'd recently been thinking of herself. A pack leader. Not herself. Too much to put on Nuri all at once. But who? She had not the strength nor the energy to go outside and include herself in the conversation, but she trusted her mate and pack to figure out who could best lead in place of her.



Bright plodded along quietly with the group, grateful for the assistance they gave in his moment of need. When at last they had reached the dens and all of the pups were placed down, Bright looked to those who had helped. "Thank you for your help," she said shyly. Then she rounded them up, and one by one she quickly took them into the den that she would be staying in. The pups lay in a heap now inside of the den, and she licked them each affectionately before laying down to curl around them to add her warmth to their tiny bodies. The squeaked and squirmed as newborns would, but soon they settled down, content once more. Laying her head down, Bright merely perked her ears to what was going on outside, allowing everyone else to take care of the pack issues.

He was running back towards the dens, ignoring everything around him, so if he happened to pass by any wolves, Doctor just continued to speed past. He couldn't grip onto his current possession tightly, or else he'd lose everything that was contained within.

He came to a stop near where Nuri had put Silent down and placed the water-filled moss right in front of Silent's mouth, making sure she could feel it. "Silent? Can you drink some of the water that's in the moss?" He wasn't too worried about the alphess drinking too much at a time, since the natural sponginess of the moss would help to regulate the water intake. Doctor glanced at Nuri and said, "She'll need to drink more, but we don't want to force her, either, or she'll get sick." He paused, then added his other input, "I think you should assign us temporary roles. I assigned Negro Diablo to take over as Silent's healer for the time being with me supervising while I do other things. I can continue getting water unless you have other plans regarding to that. Between Silent and the pack, it's understandable for you to be more concerned over Silent, so maybe someone to temporarily guiding the pack would be a good idea." He still had no clue which pup was attacked, so he wasn't sure if the betas were fine to take the lead at the moment. "I can get an update from Cardinal if that would help."

It wasn’t a heavy stress, but it still lingered, and was beginning to bother him. He held his stance as a simple wolf, a bruja among a pack. Yet with Silent resting, which he hoped was all it was, and Nuri tending to her, what was he to do with all the new wolves? Crucifix would be the forth he had welcomed, though with the siblings Nuri had been there, he had merely parted with a few words before going to see Silent. Telling this new woman that she was joining a pack in turmoil wasn’t something Cardinal wanted to do, and he doubted he would, at least, not right away. Things would take time, from telling the new wolves about the situation, to finding out himself what the situation was. After all, he wasn’t sure what was going on with the mother’s and their whelps, nor with Doctor or Nuri. Cardinal’s decision was a simple one, he’d continue to do what he had to, and whatever he thought seemed appropriate and helpful. Everything else would be sorted out eventually, and he hoped the stress would lift sooner rather then later as well.

His attention split from his thoughts at her reaction, a sudden panic from his change of mood. He watched her briefly, reflecting over her reaction. The granite male realized he was going to have to be delicate with his emotion and thoughts, for it seemed they portrayed physically as well. “Nothing, forgive me. I didn’t mean to alarm you, simply thinking over a hunt, and of who is free to hunt with.” Cardinal assured her, his body relaxing a bit. “Perhaps you’d join me? Then you’ll see some of the land that you’ll be calling home.” Cardinal offered, a change in his mind. Though at first, he doubted her willingness, and it was foolish and ignorant of him. It seemed like a better idea to have her on the hunt, perhaps get her more used to being around him and the others.

As if on cue on the thought, the granite male glanced to his side, his amber orbs catching Storm Call’s frame. Automatically, his lanterns lifted back to Crucifix, not sure how she’d react to the sudden appearance. “Crucifix, this is Storm Call, he and his siblings arrived not long before you.” Cardinal introduced the two, nodding acknowledgement to the bruja. “Perhaps, you’d join us for a hunt as well Storm Call?” Cardinal returned his gaze to the male, looking him over briefly. It’d help the granite hessian learn a bit of both of them, considering he had only exchanged a greeting with Storm Call as well.

He knew he’d have to tread carefully; it wasn’t hard to tell that the woman had seen some horrible things. She met him like he was next to the devil, but his thoughts shifted when she unfurled and relaxed slightly. Progress, it was good, but he knew there was a lot to be done. She was walking into a pack with its own problems, and she was walking in scared. It had been the same situation with the last three new arrivals, what was he meant to say to the fem? One of our pups was murdered, before that we were attacked by a bear, oh and our queen is ill. It certainly wasn’t a pleasant way to come into a pack, but he figured they’d have to make the choice, stay and help a bruised pack, or flee from the drama. Cardinal’s stance was loose, and calm, his attempt to appear more as a friend oppose to a alpha. It had been different with the siblings, they had helped, but his stance had been more judging. Of course, that was simply because of the attack. Yet, the three had proven a small form of acceptance, simply by helping out within a second, and not even yet being accepted into the pack. Lanterns swept over her briefly, as she uncurled and attempted to meet his hues.

Crucifix, auds picked up her calling, and Cardinal smiled lightly. It was definitely a unique name for a pure wolf, but somehow he figured it made sense. He knew nothing of her, but the way she carried herself, it appeared as a namesake. His gazes shifted away from her, and to the packland, briefly catching Robin enter a den, and the other pups following. Teagan hadn’t returned from chasing Robbie, but then again he wasn’t surprised. The young male had seen horrible things to soon. “It’s a pleasure meeting you, Crucifix.” Cardinal’s hues averted back to the timid woman, and gave her a light smile. “Make yourself at home, rest if you need to.” Cardinal nodded to her, and his gaze lifted from her. A hunt was in order; a good large meal would do good. Though he was sure everyone had little in the ways of an appetite after the ordeal, it would still be good to have something. Amber lanterns glanced at Crucifix, considering her to follow for a hunt, but he wasn’t sure if she’d be prepared to start off like that. Where were the siblings? He knew he could likely get one of them to follow.