Virtuous hearts; Tirisfal Valley

Silent lay still as Bright went for help. The first whelp had arrived and she had been unable to properly clean it and nudge it to her belly, for the pain that ripped through her abdomen impaired her to the point of helplessness. The pup had been lucky that Bright was around, for he now nursed eagerly at her belly. Blood still seeped abnormally from her body, and it was not long before a torrent of agony sent her wailing and straining once more. Thick, crimson liquid gushed forth as she pushed, and she cried out, wondering why this had to happen to her. This should have been the happiest day of her life, yet she felt nothing more than crippling pain and weakness, feeling as though her insides were pulling apart. At last another whelp slid onto the ground, but Silent could only flop down uselessly, panting heavily with the strain, the loss of blood leaving her weak and drained. The pup squirmed in its pouch, its mouth open and pleading for air; Silent glanced with wet, burning eyes at her child, reaching for it with her hind paw, trying to bring it closer to her face.

Her limbs had grown stiff and weak with a lack of oxygen, and her mind felt fuzzy. She could not reach the pup. Her head flopped back in a dizzying manner, but Doctor's voice still managed to cut through the haze. She set an unfocused gaze upon him, parting her jaws to speak, and her tongue lolled to the side. "Pu'... 'uppy.." she mumbled. She glanced behind her, willing her tail to move; she hoped that Doctor would catch on. The pup wriggled ever more weakly near her hinds, begging for life. Silent growled, trying to lift her body, desperate to keep her children alive. But once again, pain gripped her frail body, and she clenched her teeth as her abdomen willed her to push. She groaned in agony while more of the precious life blood drained from her body, and the final pup came into the world. Silent could hardly move a muscle, but her eyes still glowed with amber intensity, looking to Doctor. He had to help her, he had to save her children, and that was all she cared about. They had to survive.



It was some time before Bright was able to make it upon the scene, not until after the third pup had already arrived. Her pains slowed her, but she kept reminding herself that she was far better off than Silent, and she needed to keep going. Even as pain clenched her belly, she moved forward, tail curled underneath her and body hunched, but still moving. Doctor was there assessing things, trying to coax words from the Alphaess. Bright wasn't sure if she could say a thing. She looked to Silent's belly. Only one pup was nursing, but surely more had happened since she'd left the Alphaess to get help. Her silver orbs glanced around frantically, until she noticed the two bundles behind Silent's tail. "Her puppies!" she exclaimed, looking to Doctor. Bright was not new to births, and she knew they needed to tear open the sacs and clean the whelps hastily if they were to live. Despite her cramping abdomen, she knew she needed to move, for it was Silent and her whelps in true danger and need. Her labour, no matter how persistent, just needed to wait, though there was no telling when it would take over.

Bright ambled forward, seeing that one of the pups had stopped moving. Her breath caught in her throat. How long had she been there? She was no longer gaining nutrients and oxygen through Silent, and she needed to be released immediately to draw her first breath, if it wasn't too late. The young wolfess snatched the sac in her teeth and ripped into it, pulling it away and licking its body and face, tongue slipping between its jaws to take away the mucus. It didn't move nor breathe, but Bright sensed that it was still alive, and began licking it vigorously, brushing her tongue against the hairline in and effort to start it breathing. She glanced to Doctor, hoping he was going to take action immediately as well, for time was not on their side. She assumed he knew about birth and medicine, for she had seen him earlier aiding another packmate with his wounds. If not, he would at least be able to mimic her actions.

When Bright couldn't go on and stopped, he paused long enough to say, "Thank you for leading me this far. Don't strain yourself." He had the full intention to briefly check up on her before seeing how the rest were doing. All Doctor could do now was hope that everything was under control back with the pack as he darted forward to Silent. He heard the sounds, and smelled the blood.

Then he saw her. It was lucky that nothing was gathering around yet, minus a few crows, watching... waiting. With an extra burst of speed, he snapped at them, scattering them to the skies, and approached her, whispering, "Silent..." His eyes started to scan, looking at everything. "Talk to me," he said, "what went wrong?" He gently pressed his nose to her shoulder, letting her know he was close by, while looking around to see whether she had already given birth and there were pups.

So many things could occur during birth, which was why most birthing wolves requested for a healer- if there was enough warning. Clearly this wasn't the case, so that was already a possible symptom. He still wasn't sure if he could do anything. Perhaps he could, or he couldn't, although he'd sure try his darned hardest. He looked for other sources of bleeding, although he knew there was just one, but there was the hope that she just had a bad fall somehow. He tried to think back to the bear. She appeared fine then, but was the stress too much? If it was psychological, it posed a problem.

It was one snap after the other. The wolf who had just killed the pup moved from wolf to wolf, only getting caught once and he growled as he felt skin breaking. There was a tactic by the three of them, he could get them on his side if he wanted to...he could try. He was about to speak when he was cut off by one voice. This had to be the alpha, was it not, he presented himself as one. He came closer and Deadly smirked, stepping up towards the female who had became the guard of the deadling and the whelpess. "Motherly...how nice" he smirked and turned towards the wolf coming and parted his maw. "A message from Damean... got it" he smirked and bowed down. "I only come on my missions, and this is it. Now, if you don't mind, I have one more message" He lurched forward and went right at the wolf. He wanted to rip into him, it was the blood lust that called out to him. He didn't want the other three to charge in, this is what's needed, it needed to be done, he wanted to fight the alpha and only the alpha.

Doctor was about to open his maw to tell Nuri to go with Bright, but Cardinal spoke. He sighed, not knowing if Cardinal realized this was a situation of which one would most likely be alive, and because too many things were occuring at once, and that there was two possible death situations, but looked at Nuri and said quickly, "If you go with Cardinal, I'll report back to you as soon as possible... If you go with me," he turned to Cardinal now, "I don't have a high ranking in the pack, but please figure out the 'whos' and 'why's' if you can. It makes good intelligence for us." He stepped towards Bright and said, "Lead me to Silent," before pausing only to wait for her to guide him. This was another dilemma, because he could take the time to track Silent's scent after stopping to grab various herbs without knowing the exact problem, or the source of the bleeding, or go with Bright, analyze the situation, then get the herbs.

He hated this feeling- the feeling that not everyone could be saved. Why? Was he incapable of being in the right place at the right time? He growled in fusteration, following Bright.

Jewel

Anger filled her...hate..this bru just killed her brother right in front of her eyes and he worries about manners? She yelped when he struck her and turned her two toned eyes at him in a hateful glare. "You don't deserve manners..' she spat at him and saw his paw raised and quickly sidestepped away. Then there were more of them...and Jewel was afraid at first. Were they here to hurt them too. Her hackles still up and her teeth bared into a snarl but then she realized they were attacking the male who killed her brother.

One of the fem's stepped in front of her and Jewel let her guard down a moment and backed up while she stared at her brother's lifeless body. "Koda..' fell softly from her lips. She then turned and watched the trio dart in and snap at the male. She hoped they would rip him to shreds.

They all stood there like fools. The whelps were all running around screaming. His eyes looked down at the little female whelp who was crying over what, her brother? He smiled and began to pace around the pup, hearing a call of new wolves heading to aid the lifeless creature. "Don't be sad, life happens to some. I'm only doing this for your benifit little girl. One day you'll thank me, if he is anything like I was as a whelp, you would die one day...maybe today if you're lucky" His eyes, not the color of a deep red looked up towards the wolves at the top of the hill. "Do you see that, do you see your family all just sitting around. You want a family who will protect you, then you can come with me to Muerta. You're too young to be chosen for now but trust me...Muerta and the Midnights, even if you aren't one of us, will take you under our wings" He growled and snapped down at her brother hoping she'd back off. "Taste that blood, revenge tastes good doesn't it...just wait till you try and kill me yearling" He stood and growled at the pack.

"Do you really think Jabbar would sign a treaty towards this pack, the Dark Lord Damean Jager wants to send you all a message, if he ever leaves this world he'd rather send the message now to keep you in the mind frame that dark and light will never mix." He growled again and took a swipe at the pup who coward near her brother. "Do you just want me to kill all your whelps, maybe the darkness does fit you monsters" He growled, teeth bared now and his head dropped to eye the female. "Better run along, we'll see who can be faster, me or you" he snapped at her, mere inchest from her face...

Doctor looked at Bright as she approached, telling the adults nearby of her news. He looekd at Nuri, worried, and he stepped towards her, responding, "lead us to her," knowing his questioning would have to wait.

Then he heard a scream of pain, and he froze in mid step. It was the sound of one of the pups. He turned towards the source, then back to Bright, and then nuri. He was torn, not knowing where to go. To go towards the sound, there had to be an intruder of some kind. There were screams before it was cut off- in his mind there was no other explaination. By what it soudned like, Silent was going to die soon, and he didn't know if th eattacked pup was yet alive. There was a chance of being able to save one, or neither would have a chance. Go to Silent with Nuri while the rest of the pack tend to the pup, or abandon Silent in favor of seeing if he could save the pup- one of the future active pack members. He could count the seconds that went by- each second lost was a second that could cost both.

Jewel

Jewel had been playing with her siblings now that the threat of bear was gone. It had been a relief and they were celebrating life so to speak. All of a sudden a male was there and he was inviting to play. Jewel giggled and had looked to her brothers smiling, aslan as well and crept forward. There was no warning from the adults so it should be okay..right? Then chaos fell upon them in a flury of teeth. Jewel had been snapped at and she fled screaming.

He was running after them all...snapping hurting. "Daddy!' she cried and headed for the den but then stopped cold seeing her brother's bloodied form on the ground. "KODA!!!" she screamed and her two toned eyes grew large. "KODA!!" KODA!!KODA!!!' She saw him enveloped in crimosn and lay lifeless and still. She cried out. Her over exuberant brother lay still...so still. She ran to him tears streaming down her face. "Koda.." she sniffed and moved his head only to find her muzzle covered in his blood. She screamed and couldn't stop screaming.

Shall the games begin. I think so. The brute moved swiftly through the lands. He had a purpose and that was so simple anyone could see it, he was here to injure, injure and maybe kill. He lurked from side to side, taking in every little exit he could find in these lands he'd never been to. It was then the gathering of the wolves made his spine tingle with excitment. "Oh joy..." he said to himself, and the pups were out to play, literally. There were about five of them, only, which one would he choose.

A fat one? One he could dispose of and cause so much mayhem before they realised that it was a blessing the little porker was gone? No...a small one, one that was cherished, one that held some sort of high family member. He looked towards the grown wolves and saw that there were some adults who watched the children. One male held himself higher then the female, so they were not mates, and that female looked like her pup, a single, while the male resembled the dogling whelps. Oh joy...

Deadly Sins pranced forward, as if he belonged with these whelps. He jumped and jumped till they themselves came closer, as if it were okay to play with his brute. Wrong. He snapped at one and she screamed. It was perfect, for a second after that another ran away and he chased after him. It took him two strides before he had the whelp in his jaws and broke the sound of painful screams. He dropped the whelp, without any care and he landed with a thud. "A bear is no problem for a pack, but you let your children play with strangers...tisk tisk my dears" He laughed and sprang after another pup, the single one, and caught her.

"What color blood do you have? Cause you're an alien looking whelps aren't you" It was then he felt the warmth of a body as he bit down on the cowardly thing, he had tasted her blood for only a moment before the whelp was taken from his maw and he was sent flying, no...they had both been sent flying. Had her mother hit him? He growled and flipped himself up, eyes burning red like every other Midnight brute out there. "Wanna play too? I can kill you faster" He lurched forward, trying to attack this female, this stranger. "Or, we can dance, whichever you feel is more interesting" He snapped at her again. The name Koda was being flung from the injured red whelp he had just tried to kill. Red orbs snapped in her direction, to the pool of blood he didn't know if it was hers, or Koda's...Koda...what an interesting name...

Dainty paws carried the silver wolfess through the woods, though her body weighed down on her and each padfall was heavy and noisy. But despite her condition she knew she had to hurry, for things looked dire with the Alphaess Snowfall. Panting by the time she reached the mainlands, silver orbs scouted out the one that Silent had requested; Nuri. Bright knew that they would need a healer present as well, that was, if the pack had one. She picked out the dark-hued hessian and rushed over to him, her expression full of worry and anguish. The Alphaess was in need of help immediately, but her own belly was beginning to cause her agony, and she knew that her time would come within the next sun.

"Nuri!" she called out, coming to a halt in front of him, "Quickly! Silent is whelping, but things do not look well. Is there a healer in Tirisfal?" She needed to know this quickly so they could be on their way; Silent either needed help fast to save her, or at least a chance to say goodbye. Bright hoped it was not too late, but the scene was stuck in her mind; the blood, how it gushed out irregularly, how she groaned and writhed in pain, unable to attend to her newborn. Bright had cleaned the baby off and showed it the place to suckle before rushing off for help. Paws padded at the ground anxiously as she awaited a response.

Ooc - I'm just writing this to give the pack something to do, and to give closure to my leadership here, although it is hard to do... XD

He looked at Nuri as he approached, curious about how everyone was doing, and for good reason. Lowering his head a bit before lifting it, he replied, "Nuri. No injuries that won't heal. I only have a few bruises, Cardinal's scrape might be... annoying while it heals, but... they all are in some way. I haven't looked over the pups thouroughly yet, but from what I saw by their movements, none have injuries apart from the possibility of minor brusing and maybe a small scarpe." His mind thoguht back to when the bear snapped towards one of the pups. He grinned before adding, "They don't know me as well yet, so I didn't want to unnerve them so quickly after the incident. Since Silent is with the newcomer, I'm sure she'd catch any serious injury..." His voice trailled off, thinking about the for-now guest. His experience in healing has honed in certain healer instincts, and he was starting to wonder if he should see if she was willing to recieve an examination later.

After kindly showing the brute the direction he wanted to be taking, Silent looked back at Nuri, glad he had her back at all times. "Thank you, Nuri," she said softly to him, dipping her head. She moved past him, brushing his pelt lightly and landing a soft kiss upon his cheek before darting off. She had to round up the pack and see with her own eyes that everybody was okay. Moving toward the main den area, she was glad to see that Cardinal was getting patched up and the pack members were getting lightly acquainted. It seemed Bright still lingered on the fringes of pack life, and Silent moved over to her. Something seemed strange about her, not in the same way that the male she'd redirected had seemed strange. It seemed to the Alphaess like this femme radiated sorrow, and though her silver pools were full of life, deep within them to where one could see the soul, it seemed dead.

Silent could only imagine one sort of pain that would cause such deep anguish. The loss of a loved one. Or maybe more than one. Silent had once felt the same despair, and though she knew not of this femora's past, she could tell that something was deeply wrong, and she sympathized silently for the femme. But she had introductions to make. "Welcome to Tirisfal Valley," she began, as she had so recently recited, "I am Silent Snowfall, Alphaess of this pack. Have you come in search of a home in this divine lands?" She then perked her ears forward, ready to hear what the other had to tell her.



The moment another's eyes were upon her, she could feel it, and she turned to see the Alphena moving towards her. Something shifted in the normally intense amber gaze, and Bright wondered if her own soul showed through her life-abounding silver eyes. Her heart was a dead wreckage, but she still felt the spirit for life, and she simply could not give up on it. What if she was needed someday? What if it was destiny for her to help somone else, or to give her life in place of anothers? She thought it would be selfish of her to change fate by allowing herself to perish. It would be so easy, but it just wouldn't be right. Lifting her head, she tipped her muzzle to Silent, ears lying flat upon her head. She nodded, and ushered a smile forth as the Alphaess introduced herself and asked if she'd come to find a home here in Tirisfal Valley.

"My name is Bright Moon, and... yes, Silent, I need a home," she said hopefully, but did not stop speaking to allow a response just yet, "A place where I might roost when this season's brood comes..." Her mention received her a surprised look, but she did not find herself rejected. Instead, she found curoius eyes upon herself. Then a thoughtful look came upon Silent's face, and Bright tilted her head. The tri-coloured femme beckoned her away momentarily, as though to speak to her in private. Bright did not object, and she followed Silent into the serenity of the woods, straying from the valley where the pack rested, but keeping their distance from the dangers. She was not sure of Silent's sudden interest, but some sort of intuition came into play here, and she followed.

Ooc They're just getting to know each other, Silent is still available if anything is needed of her for the moment.

Doctor smiled as Teagan came over- he'd have to learn her name in due time, too. He offered at smile at her, since it seemed like she was mostly talking to Cardinal. Teagan left at the call of Aslan, leaving the two males alone again. He watched Cardinal look at the remedy after supplying his name before answering himself, "Doctor is mine. Odd name huh?" It was probably an odd name even in the human world, although he didn't know too much about that.

Ooc:|| This is gunna suck...just so you know.
Bic:||

Teagen and Aslan had been with Robin and the pups. What a rush, what a horrible rush of things to have the bears here. She hadn't paid any attention to what had happened, she kept counting pup after pup after pup. Aslan was with her, sticking close to her side with the other pups. "Everyone's okay" And Robin said to move. Silent said to go to the main den. So they would. Teagen ushered pups with Robin, giving him a smile of relief as the pups began to move. "Koda. Come on" she had spotted the whelp looking back towards where the bear had gone. "Now." she said more firmly and he turned quickly and followed with his father.

They went along and Teagan spotted one wolf down another one mending. Her heart lept, her first 'friend' here was wounded. "Aslan, go with Robin. I'll be there soon" she heard the protested whine from her daughter but she turned away. She came up as Doctor finished and asked his question. "Amazing..." she said as she looked at the work. "Are you okay?" she asked, coming round and looking at Cardinal. She didn't want to answer Docs question for him, that was rude, she was more worried about the bru laying on the ground. "Thank you. Both of you. All of you... I'm sorry you got hurt..." she sighed and stood there, looking over at the whelps before looking back down to Cardinal. "Shall we go to the main den. I'll help you"

Why was she always so offering. She felt safe here, welcome, so it was in her need to help the others in any way possible. Aslan's bark caught her attention, she was dissapearing from sight heading towards the main den. She would deal, she had to learn to be a big girl eventually...