Nnlya, first of her name. Newly dubbed Elite under the rule of Alphess Quinn. Nnlya was not one to mince words. She wasn't entirely sure of the new Alphess just yet. They had only met for a few moments on the day of her crowning. Just long enough for the then Delta to reaffirm her allegiances. Indeed Quinn seemed to be doing well caring for the pack. She was keeping everyone busy and amending the ranks as she saw fit. She was making her mark. So far so good. But the charcoal female had yet to truly meet with the Alphess. Go for a walk, maybe run or hunt. Have a true conversation. Granted she had served under Azul for six months without so much as uttering a word to him. Even then it was a simple thanks and promise of continued effort after being made Delta.

She sighed and rose from her den. The thought of her being made Delta reminded her of two people now lost to her. She did not need this. Crawling slowly from her den, her body arched and bowed in a great stretch, forcing the weariness from her limbs. As Elite she needed to be in top form. First up, a light run out to the borders. She took off from a cold start, loping easily from the main clearing out into the forest. She grinned with the feeling of the wind rushing into her face as she made the border in record time. Quick scenting showed that there were no arrivals for her to examine this early morning. Such a shame, she enjoyed meeting new travellers.

She turned about, facing in the direction of the pack clearing. Come on, you can run faster than that! I know you can! She goaded herself. She smirked to herself before launching off in another lengthy bound. Then another. And another. Her strides grew more controlled and closer together until she flew between the trees. The thud of each individual paw was almost indistinguishable from the rush of autumn leaves crunching beneath them. She grinned and laughed as leafy plumes sprung up in her wake, leaving a trail of red and orange fire. To her, no season was as beautiful as autumn. Bright colours. Cool breezes. The beautiful sky, both day and night. And the air just seemed to taste cleaner. It gave boundless energy. She could run forever in the fall.

She drew closer to the main encampment, not slowing at all. Azure orbs caught sight of the fallen tree in her path. In her stride her muscles tensed and bunched, all four paws drawing together before launching the great wolfs body to sail through the air over the old tree. She landed easily, continuing her run into the clearing. So elated from the feeling of flying, she did not keep a proper watch of where she was running. It took only a heartbeat for her to step on the loose rock. Another for her front right ankle to roll. And from there it spiralled out of control. The only solace was the early hour of the morning. No one would be awake. She tumbled and rolled wildly, unable to control her movements. She felt a slight downward motion and suddenly the feeling of fur. She opened her eyes to see the ceiling of another wolfs den. looking to her left she spotted - ah, the dark tail of the wolf whose sleep she had surely disturbed.

Fel opened her eyes to darkness, feeling rain dribble on her nose. It took several moments for her to orient herself in her surroundings, but eventually a gorge came into focus, the walls of rock circling around her. All of her raven fur was soaked in crimson, sticking together in messy clumps. She realized this was a dream as the pain mimicked in her apparent wounds was not real. No, this felt like the actual fangs tearing into her flesh, not the throbbing aftermath. Her eyes blinked up, looking at the ledge where she knew her father was glaring down at her from. But this time it was not her father and instead- all of Helidos, even Alanoth and their own pups. The sudden change in the cast of the story was terrifying. What did it possibly mean? Quinn and Azul, flanked by the Beta pair and her own family, stood tall and proud, watching her in disgust. Fel looked over herself, confused at why her body was starved and the size and form of a yearling. She stood as tall as her injuries allowed, baring her teeth. It came to her as an epiphany that she cared for no one on these cliffs, just like no one cared for her. She had lost everything, her first family, her friends, her mate, and her children. A challenging snarl erupted, daring any wolf to come down and meet her jaws with their throats. Quinn was the only one who was safe. She was her priority and acting alphess, though nothing more.

And yet, no one came down. They all turned away and walked off.  Aghast, she stood there and watched everyone go, leaving her to die in solitude. A howl of outrage marked her burst into a gallop, ignoring the pain of each stride. Fel had forgotten that it was just a dream now. She stormed out of the gorge and into the forest, paws furiously thumping the ground as her body regained its usual size. Once more her shoulders were wide and her form was massive. Through the snow she ran, slowly cooling off. With each tree she flew by, the pain of abandonment ebbed away. Within moments, she had nearly forgotten that the gorge scene took place. A huge, wedge-shaped rock jutted out of the snow where the earth of the path dropped abruptly several feet. Taking the chance, she raced towards it. Claws clicked over frozen rock as she bounded over it and finally leapt into the air. Wind in her face, it was as if she was flying…

But she was not flying. As she sprung, her back paw slipped on the ice, sending her tumbling down. She fell down to the earth and then through it, leaving a hole in the eggshell-like ground as her body was engulfed in darkness. The fae broke the surface of the earth with her back and watched the light of day slowly get farther and farther away from her, condemning her to hell. The wind buffeted her fur upwards as she soared down to the underworld. A final cry echoed from her jaws, and then was heard no more.

Suddenly, a crashing noise and a slam to her side –protected slightly by her tail – pulled her into consciousness. Throughout her torturous sleep, the figure remained silent and still, despite all of the happenings in her mind. For a moment, Fel thought it was a figment of her imagination that woke her, but then she heard a nervous breathing in her cave of a den and felt the sensation of fur against her tail. With the majesty one would expect of a dragon being stirred from their slumber, she opened her almost color-less eyes and rose to her paws, tail swinging up above her authoritative aggression and curling over her back against the roof of her den. Instantly she realized who this fae was and drew her lips back in a snarl. With her form, Fel nearly filled the medium-sized den in height. Icy eyes glared down at the charcoal fae who was softly illuminated from the light outside while the onyx guardian was shrouded in darkness, only eyes and pearly fangs glistening brightly. “Elite Nnlya, explain yourself. You may have gained rank, but if I need to put you in your place as the young wolf and nuisance you are, I will do so. And believe me, I will not hold back like the time I first met you,” the cold voice said. The tone was as hard and scathing as ice, characteristic of the guardian. This younger fae had exactly one shot to apologize and back off, Fel decided, before her den gained a wonderful new throw pillow that would strangely resemble a certain Elite’s tail.

Nnlya realised just how much trouble she was in when she felt the body beneath her move. She rolled onto her stomach and slowly rose, blue eyes searching the darkness for a face. But all she found were the almost perfectly white fangs and near colourless eyes of her first... Well what were they? They certainly weren't close enough to be friends. Acquaintences was too cordial for the malice her snarl held. Frienemies implied that they had a public friendship and private hate... Not entirely false, but not true either. They weren't true enemies, for their dislike for one another was one-sided. Nnlya was rather indebted to the Guardian. On her first day the Elite, then Warrior, had been cocky and rude, having forgotten a thing or two about what it meant to live in a pack. Fel had reminded her of her place and how any previous rank she might have held had no place here. She was grateful for that lesson, for it helped her to mature a great deal very quickly. But her distrust was understandable to those who knew what she had experienced only a few months earlier.

Nnlya stared up at the dark Guardian apologetically. The other female was far larger and certainly heavier. If it came to a fight, the Elite was unsure of her ability to emerge victorious. It was far better to simply apologise, submit and move on. These two faes would never be good friends, it seemed, for they were fated to meet under less-desirable circumstances. Her tail tucked between her back legs and she lowered her eyes carefully. "My apologies Guardian Fel. That was my fault. I was coming back for a run and must've mislaid my footing and hit a rock. I'm sorry for waking you so rudely." She spoke with all the strength and sincerity she could muster. For the moment she was horrified at herself for being so careless. She was slightly intimidated by having woken the dragon that lurked in the shadows before her. Some day they might move past this and tell it as an old, funny story. Her 'haha' moment. But this was not that time.

A mix of outrage from her nightmare and this fae’s intrusion slowly soaked into the guardian. Fel, of course, would never allow sheer anger to influence her actions in any way, and so she hid her previously bared teeth behind the curtain of her lips. Icy eyes glared at the weaker form before her, whose tail was tucked away in fear or submission – or both. The last time anyone else had been in her den was many seasons ago when Alanoth was still around. That was before their pups’ arrival, of course, and even their creation. Fel realized that it was before Nnlya and her met for the first time. The memory brought forward was interrupted by a pathetic apology. At least the younger fae knew something about respect now… Not that Fel was going to let this slide.

Fe’s scathing gaze stared at the elite’s lowered eyes, daring them to meet it. An equally cold and eerily calm voice followed, “Your apologies are meaningless to me. As an Elite of this pack and as what finally seemed to be a grown adult, I expected more of you. Or at least, I expected you to know how to keep your paws steadily. If this is what the young and ambitious wolves of Helidos will be learning from, I am glad my son left with his caretaker of a father.” As she spoke, she slowly circled around the fae, pausing behind her as her massive form blocked most of the entrance while standing in it sideways. Much of the light wolf was plunged into the shadow created by Fel’s body. She was about to patronize the submissive fae further, but paused before another word was uttered. For a moment, she saw both of her children. Jacelyn in the meaningless figure’s frame and submissive stance, and Thorin in her pelt color and underlying muscle. Fel blinked slowly once and forced the image away. This was not either of her children, and most certainly not both. This was a nuisance. With a dangerous, slow grace, she turned her body parallel to the walls of the entrance and stepped aside slightly to allow the elite a narrow escape. Fel had every intention of following her a few steps out of the den, just to make sure she wouldn’t try anything stupid. A low growl resonated from the depths of her throat, “Get… out…”

The animosity between these faes was palpable in the cool morning air. Understandable to the Elite as their initial contact almost exactly a year ago consisted of childish impulsiveness on her part. But she had grown since then. And she would have thought the older Guardian capable of moving past such a trivial event. But apparently not.nit made Nnlya pity the other female that her mind could be so preoccupied by first impressions that she would allow such accidents as this to be seen as deliberate attacks. Fel attacked her verbally, calling her clumsy and childish, circling to close off her escape through the dens single entrance. But the females words dawned realisation on the Elite. This was not about their first meeting, it was about the family she had lost.

Nnlya was frustrated, angered, and quite frankly pissed off with her behaviour. But she had been taught to respect her elders. She stood herself as tall and proud as she could in the cramped space, her tail raising to a more neutral standpoint than it's previously submissive position. She was an Elite now, not a first-day Warrior. She didn't have to take this. Their ranks were effectively equal in standing, the Guardian could only hold over her what power she allowed. And Nnlya would give her none. Her head held high she walked over to the entrance, chest pointed at the small gap that have been so graciously offered her. Her muzzle close to the dark females, she spoke. "Fel, accidents happen to everyone and I have apologised for mine. It is your choice to reject it out of paw. I'm sorry that Alanoth and your pups are missing, but it is not my fault, so stop placing the blame on my shoulders because it is convenient for you." She growled softly, echoing the sound emanating from the Guardian.

"I have grown since our first encounter Fel, and have been rewarded with my rank and duties for those efforts. I wish you could respect that as I have with you. I would have extended a paw and offered my help if I knew there was even a chance of you accepting it. But it seems you are incapable of accepting the help of those who care about you." Her voice may have been a little uncharacteristically harsh for the fae, but it was necessary. She walked easily through the den entrance, her shoulder butting against the ebony wolf to make herself more room. She wasn't surprised that she was being followed to the clearing. The lack of trust for a pack mate coming from Fel was astounding.