two tortured souls. [open]

[[Midnight]]

Justyn, as usual, was a bottled up mixture of dangerous desires and frustrations. He could not pinpoint exactly how he felt, but he knew one thing was certain; he was massively confused. And when he felt so overwhelmed, he quickly grew savage in temper, walking with his head low and tossing his muzzle with an occaisional snort. He'd taken she-who-shall-not-be-named's advice and had started making more rounds along the edges of the territory, as well as trying to take more interest in the pack affairs. Just things he thought a Beta should be doing. The pups of last season were entirely close to being fully grown now; he no longer felt comfortable around them. He'd like to maybe see Kohar again, though. But wait... She was her sister. Seeing her might just ruffled his fur the wrong way.

Today he was taking charge of Caden, the emaciated Alpha who'd grown far less glamorous with the passage of time and the lack of proper nutrition. He was fed only enough to keep him living, but not enough to make his fur shine. He was only allowed to stretch his legs in short walks. Justyn couldn't stand looking at the fool. Just the sight of him, gasping for breath with each step, that dullness in his eyes that made him look dead in some moments, made Justyn want to vomit with disgust.

"Move it," he growled, giving the skinny male a sharp nip on his hindquarters. Caden did not yelp, or even acknowledge Justyn's harsh treatment, but the Beta did notice that the ex-leader had picked up his pace a bit. He must sense where he was and where Justyn had chosen to take him today. A cruel smile crept along his jaws.

Caden did know where they were headed. Instinct guided his paws and before long his head was lifted a bit higher and his brows were furrowed with great thought. They were headed for the direction of No Mans Land, and just beyond that...was home. He hadn't seen it for weeks now. Oh, if he could just see everyone's faces, just once...just so he knew that they were doing just fine without him. As if thte Falling Moon behind him could read his mind, Caden felt Justyn's paw batting at his bony shoulder, knocking him off balance. He blinked with confusion; he'd gotten lost in space. Both wolves were standing at the bank of the stream, ankle-deep in water. Caden hadn't even noticed they'd actually arrived.

"It's cute that you actually thought I'd let you cross the border," Justyn sneered, raising a brow and inching his body along so he stood in front of Caden, to block his path.

Perhaps it was risky to bring him to the borders. Dancing Stars could be waiting for an opportunity like this one, to ambush them and rescue their sorry leader. Justyn couldn't care less, to be honest. He was in emotional numbness right now. He could feel himself changing. It felt almost like he was falling back into that old way of life he had; the heartless Justyn who hid his despair behind brutal anger.

Caden glowered at his bodyguard before taking a longing glance across the stream. It wasn't as if he could see anything. Still, he could almost imagine that he tasted his old territory as he lifted his nose into the air and sampled the scents it offered. Within moments, he felt a huge paw snapping at the bridge of his nose, making him flinch away and, instinctively, to snarl loudly at his abuser.

"Don't lift your lip at me," Justyn snarled back, almost surprised to see a sudden reaction from Caden. His hackles raised and he stared at the smaller male, silently challenging him to try getting physical.

[Paint]

Kohar was a little bored when she caught the scent of the fallen Alpha trailing through the woods. Although he seemed now to stink of the Moons scent, after battles with so many of their members, Kohar knew his scent personally. She was sure others did too. She sniffed a little more to check the scent wasn't alone and soon found herself following her nose to her Beta wolf and their leverage. She caught the last of their conversation and assessed the situation a little.

Something immediately set her on edge. She felt wary of Justyn. Having met him previously she knew him well enough to sense that he was feeling troubled, but she did not know him well enough to guess as to why. She also gathered that any other wolf with a speck of intuition would be set on edge by his tone of voice and body language.

Still, she was here now, and confused by the situation. As Caden snarled Kohar ran forward, catching Justyn's last words and stopping a little way from the two older males. Although technically still an adolescent, Kohar's thick winter fur was in and had no hint of puppy in it anymore. She would be fully grown soon, and she looked forward to proving herself in adulthood. She dipped her head at Justyn ever so slightly, glancing at Caden and hoping that her calm presence might ease the situation slightly.

"Hello," she greeted. Kohar was still a little unsure of the Caden situation. She had thought it was grossly unfair that everyone called him weak and pathetic. Of course he was going to lose a fight against an entire pack. Anyone would, she mused, but tried not to let this show on her face. Kohar did not realise she was feeling compassionate towards the old Alpha, for compassion was not something you often encountered in this pack. She kept it to herself, as she did with most things. "What's going on here?"