i am the blood of the mountain

Overall, I was pleased with the way our meeting had gone. Viora was different from other members of my pack, and though we had gotten off to a rather rocky start in our first encounter I felt that we had reached a new level of understanding after this. With time I hoped that we could deepen that understanding, so that I could provide for her and she could service the pack in ways that would be mutually beneficial. I valued each and every member of my pack for different reasons, but Viora had set herself apart. As I bestowed upon her the promotion she sought there was a shift in her eyes, a signal of respect earned and given, and I had little doubt in my mind that such a look was not one she offered regularly. But as Viora said what were surely meant to be parting words, I held her here for a moment longer. She had done all I had asked of her, but now I asked her to take it one step further. To divulge any further information she might harbor about the darker wolves of Moladion. This would be her role from now on, to recognize what information she learned as important enough to pass on to me, or to act upon in her own capacity. My question was answered before she ever spoke, for I picked up on her responsive body language - the tightening of her jaw, the stiffness in her very posture.

Raptly I listened as she described an onyx shaded shewolf, marked with ash upon her brow and scars across her mask. A wolf of similar size to Viora, who looked at the world from sapphire eyes. Viora's conviction was translated through more than the descriptive that she used. It was the very way she spoke them, her teeth grating over each syllable. It was the hatred with which she spoke, far more severe than the disdain she had labeled ones such as Kiyomi's rapist with. And when she spoke of her mother's murder it pulled at a long quiet, but familiar thread within my very heart. The all consuming hatred which I had felt for Purge stirred within, a beast that had not reared its head in many years. Isola, Kane and I had rid Moladion of her, but whether she still lived was a mystery. Had she gone on to wreak havoc on other families, in other lands? I should have done the job right. But I was not a killer, and even my hatred for the wolf who had murdered my mother had not pushed me over that ledge. Viora, however, seemed more than ready to dispatch the life of the wolf who had taken her mother from this world. The old wounds that her words pull at cannot be fully denied and my nostrils flare and eyes narrow with disdain for such a creature as she describes. Overall, however, my features remain studious, listening to the words behind the growls that edge at her speech.

As she comes to a conclusion I dipped my head in acknowledgement of all that she has said. "I will keep my eyes and ears open to anything about the wolf you have described. If I encounter her or learn of her, you will be the first to know." It might be her job to keep me informed about the whispers that passed around Moladion, but she should know that I would reciprocate when appropriate. Everything I had learned about Viora thus far indicated that she was not the type to commiserate over similar tragedies, and while I knew that trust and a connection between us could not be rushed, I felt the need to divulge something of myself to her in kind. "My mother was murdered by a wolf named Purge in a challenge for alphaship; the bond of imprinting led my father into death as well." My nostrils flared once more, as they had when Viora described her personal demon. "She was expelled from Moladion many years ago." My snout threatened to wrinkle at the memory, but I shook out my head and neck to relieve the tension building there.

Immediately my bodice relaxed and the end of our meeting was at hand. "Thank you, Viora," I said once more, for my gratitude to her was sincere, "You know where to find me, or Jericho, should you require us." She had seemed prepared to leave before, and I would allow her to depart first now, in case she had any further words or questions for me.

daenerys