The Kingblade
male | 6 years | 40 inches | 165 pounds | no one’s heart | no one’s soul | alpha of spirane
When the golden wolf arrives, Roman is quick to stand in spite of his wounds and he regards Pan with the even tempered stare that he often offered those who seemed intent to be heard when he first laid eyes on him. He is a larger wolf than some, certainly larger than Daenerys, but he has no mind to try to intimidate anyone in that moment - for all that the person in front of him seemed in a whirlwind of opinion. His ears perk, his eyes steel themselves at the advancing individual. A stranger, but one that smelled strongly enough of the mountains that he was torn between welcoming and preparing for an attack on his person.
He is given a nod, though he’d not really desired to ask anything more of the Spiranians, and then the floodgates opened and it seemed to him that someone had, at some point, made him very concerned with having the first, middle, and last words. He wonders if the older fellow was quite mad for a moment until he heard what he said about keeping his place in the mountains -- so as not to become a part of the rabble. He holds himself still, bids his lips not to curl, but it has colored his opinion already that this so-called advisor thought so little of those who would otherwise be seen as the majority of the pack. He had been on the outskirts of packs who thought much the same way and had despised them, if only because of the bigoted cruelty that came from too much pride.
He does hear, however, what else the male had to say. He ponders as he listens if this might not have been the encouraging voice that drove the former Alpha into believing she was the only capable wolf to sit as leader of the mountains. He thinks this as he is bid to remain silent, though he had made no move to speak in any case, and then is given unbidden advice further, as for truth, he was taking each bit worth a grain of salt. He would at least hear the rest of this rather crass tirade at the very least. It might, after all, just be that the fellow had been corked for too long, too.
He sits mid speech, his angle of seating allowing him a view of the open gathering he had allowed for the sake of transparency at the beginning of his reign as well as a view of his oppressively wordy companion. He finds, once the onslaught of accusations and opinions has ebbed - he rather preferred this forthright approach to the venom that otherwise was whispered and rumored on the winds to his deficit.
He was not, however, prone to not being heard, himself.
“Well, do you have anything to say? Or do you just stare? Are you in possession of an eye condition because I can look at that. I adore ophthalmology. The best Alpha’s are always ready with words, come now Roman.” He sighs, looking over the merry gathering, and does not look up at the wolf who sits beside him. “And yet not all who have something to say feel the need to voice it in deluge when short showers might do just fine and prevent the flowers from drowning in the earth.” Flowery speech, pardoning the pun, but the imagery was enough of what he meant to say without sounding as if he intended to scold his elders about their behavior.
“I will address your concerns in my own time, as you have done so with yours.” He says evenly, and with a patience born from the merriment he witnesses in Taika as she plays her dancing games below. “Firstly, I appreciate one with such a vast knowledge of the mountains remaining among them despite the change of hands. I can hope eventually I can prove that I am worth remaining here for.” It was not easy, sounding so much like a salesman, but honesty is what this Pan seemed to appreciate and sincerity is what Roman intends to offer. “As far as forfeiting, and your comment on the ‘pack rabble’, I would suggest you remember that that is precisely from where I was born, raised, and have felt my only kindnesses. There were certainly no “ranked” wolves who gave a damn about my wellbeing when I needed them. I took what I needed from them because they could not be bothered to give aid or if they gave aid, it was always at a price I could not pay and live. In saying as much, I am certain someone of your intelligence can also understand where I cannot agree that they waste away, just as I can also agree with you that your ability to speak in plain words is worthy of consideration closer to where your words will mean more than hot air.”
“The advice you offered, then. You say that I have disrespected your home and acted foolish. That was not advice, it was your opinion. Just as it was your opinion that my actions were somehow because I do not understand politics or have no respect for them. Also, another non-advice, was the dislike others have felt about this decision I have made.” He begins, but he does tilt his head. “But you are at least correct in advising I have made us vulnerable in some ways - most especially made myself vulnerable. It is something that has become a habit and I can admit that it is not one that will serve me as an Alpha.” He shakes a little, lifting his injured foreleg so that his right leaning sitting position didn’t cause agitation. He looks to Pan, then. “I am unused to dealing with enemies that I cannot know the faces of. I have made a great deal of them, by most accounts, and it did inspire some of this plan. Invite those who might come so as to take their measure and hear the rumors that have spread in ways I have not been able to hear until now. I invited them all because I can take their measure by their presence, by their response to the invitation, and by the excuses the non-comers provide.”
“Amoxtli speaks of sons, but also that his people will be more than welcome to attend. It tells me family means much to him and he may not think me kind for having deposed one to which he was allied. The Alpha Female of Asteraia, as another example, claims old age infirmities prevent her from attending -- but follows that with a prompt mockery of the gathering’s purpose. She has no taste for frivolity or lightness in the heart and bears no kindness after her own last invitation was snubbed by your last Queen - whatever the reasons had been.” He rolls his good shoulder and returns his gaze to where Morrigan seems to be off on his test of her skills, seeking out Coquette and Quixote. “As for making the pack vulnerable, I doubt that the pack itself would be - I am the persona non grata in this situation, after all. It is my own person who would suffer for that lapse - and I admit my life as a loner has leant me to taking risks in order to understand my opponents. That you and these others feel vulnerable as well, I acknowledge the flaw in not considering that you all might also find my method of evaluating others taxing to your already raw nerves.”
“I thank you, by the way, for allowing me the knowledge of Diveen’s specialty, and of her loyalty to that extend with the former Protector of the Realm. I will be sure to keep it in mind,” he adds with a pointed glance and nod of his head in respect to Pan. “As for all packs allying with me, I never would have expected such an easy time of making alliances… only I know that if I do not offer transparency for what and who I am -- I have no where to build from. This allowed those who felt booted from their home a chance to see friends, family, in their homeland, as well as to see that I bear no ill will and would open my doors to them regardless of their prior loyalties if they sought to return home. The folly of allowing them to freely explore, I did not give them the rights to the land, Pan. I only invited them to a gypsy gathering which my friend Taika thought to provide in tandem with my plans as I listed before.”
His tail shifts across the earth and he finds himself rather a bit wearied from even speaking this much, imagining how it might have been if he had spoken as fast as Pan. “You said you offer assistance in regards to other packs, and I say again, thank you. You already have proven to have a great wealth of thoughts and when provided with the full bracket of details needed to make the correct deductions on my reasonings, I think it will be of great benefit to have you close if it does not become too burdensome or if you think I am teachable. For Asteraia, I have heard, as you know, of her reservations to bother with the travel when she was rejected in negligence before. I do not know them or what use they could be to us, nor what I might have gleaned if I was better aware of those down below. This Tobias fellow, hmm. I believe what I have heard of him is sparse, but I trust your judgement for now, at least until I can make my own assessment to pair with yours.”
A deep breath, a sigh, and a tilt of his head as he looks to Pan for anything he might further wish to comment on. “And now that you have heard my reasonings and shortcomings and apologies, what do you think? Did I have enough to say?”.
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