Teenage Dream (Justyn; OPEN)

[Malo]

I'ma get your heart reacing

Finally, it was here. The warm weather, the shining sun, cool breezes, and unfrozen lakes and rivers. Green trees and the smell of flowers in the air. Animals like bears were coming out from hibernation and the prey was beginning to migrate back into the valley, now that the snow was gone and no longer a threat. The ground was warm to the touch, and much more comfortable. The dens no longer had to be safe havens from dreadful onslaughts of snow four to six inches high. Spring was finally here. And the brown fae lounging next to the hot spring knew exactly what that meant.

In my skin tight jeans

Pups. Fallon wrinkled her nose in disgust, her green eyes peering out to her surroundings as she lay in the shade of one of the caves. Her thick brown fur had shed its winter coat, and it now shone when she walked in the sunlight, rather than give off a dull dusty look as it had during colder months. She had to admit, she preferred spring time. However, she could do without those little parasites that everyone else seemed to go gaga over. As a delta, she knew she had certain responsibilities, and that might include babysitting. Seeing as how she was her top priority, she had no intentions of taking care of someone else's pups, not even her mothers. Not that she was having pups this year anyway. She considered herself far too young for that sort of responsibility, nor did she want to commit too much time to anyone but herself.

Be a teenage dream tonight.

And yet, she found herself thinking about someone in particular. A young male her age, who was intriguing and mysterious and irritating all at the same time. Justyn, former Dancing Stars heir and current Falling Moon beta. The one who had taken her birth right. She snorted in annoyance. How was it that he, of all wolves, have stolen her position as Falling Moon Beta? An outsider, and of all the places he could have come from, he was a son of the enemy. She didn't understand it. Yet, she didn't despise him for it either. She didn't know what it was about him, but she found that she couldn't hate him. After all, he was her new favorite project. There was an aura about him she hadn't seen in anyone else, and besides Denzin, he was the only one she'd actually really gotten along with in her short life, even if he made her want to strangle him. But thoughts of Justyn also brought up thoughts of pups. He said he had special ones on the way he was going to protect, yet they were not even his own. And that bothered her. Fallon let out a grunt, her mood soured. Oh how she hated those little balls of fluff.

[[Midnight]]

And so the season had come and gone too swiftly. It was a cold winter and a frozen time in Justyn's life. He was two years old this spring. The memories of what had happened to him thus far would stay frozen and mount themselves at the top of his modus operandi.

Destiny, he was ready for it. He was the the wildfire that kept burning.

Heh, wildfire? How tacky that conversation with Rose had been, now that he thought back on it. Had he really told her a few months ago that he was like a fire, blazing through everything in his path and sucking the life from it? Juvenial. He had come to learn that he wasn't nearly that powerful.

And Rose wasn't made of ice, either. Duke wasn't made of mountains, and Caerwyn hadn't been made of monster...perhaps.

Justyn was contemplative as usual, padding along the ridge of the Bakemud Mountain. In the back of his mind he wondered what had brought his paws to this certain place; it was well-known to be a popular hangout for the younger generations. He was fully an adult now, not yearling writhing in his lack of self-confidence. Perhaps he expected to see a litter of pups rolling around in the muck; though of course, it was a tad too early for that yet. Those special females who had found love recently would either be birthing now or in a few weeks, and the pups wouldn't be leaving their dens for a while yet.

The pups.

A strange feeling crept into his paws that made him turn his pace into a trot. He didn't like this new feeling, it wasn't quite right. After all, it wasn't his own pups he was to be expecting. So why all the excitement?

He knew the answer, though he was too afraid to say it just yet. But the happiness wasn't going to escape him, and as his trot turned into a rapid sprint, his pink tongue lolled carefree from his jaws and the wild flight of the wolf had overtaken his instincts.

He was going to be an uncle! And he was going to be there for these pups no matter what came along! Caerwyn was never a father the likes of which Justyn would be for Rose and Raiden's second litter. He'd be like their Duke or their Caden, the one wolf that always had a good story to tell, or the male who's fighting skills encouraged them to be just a strong.

His pace slowed and a familiar scent hit his nostrils. It was the scent of this female who helped snap him back to reality and make him feel puppish for drifting off into fantasy world once again.

...Fallon would laugh, if only she could know that Justyn had just dreamt of being...a father.

He saw her up ahead, lying in the shade. It had been a while since these two had spoken, but the brawny male couldn't help but smirk to himself when he thought of the last encounter he'd had with Fawny. A season ago, and they had done nothing but talk circles around each other. She was witty, that was for sure. He was in the mood to test out his own wit, since quite recently he felt he had grown up in ways he hadn't yet known he could. Perhaps he was just being cocky.

He tiptoed as close as possible to her until he felt that he could surprise her with a sudden ambush. And so, he ran as fast as he could and leapt into the air, divebombing for his rival...

[Malo]

Justyn’s advantage had been the changing direction of the wind. That, and Fallon wasn’t expecting to be attacked as she relaxed on the mountain. Fallon had been so busy swimming in her own thoughts and pouting that the only warning she had was the sound of footsteps, running, a split second before a giant weight landed on her back. It wasn’t enough to crush her, but enough to ignite her fiery temper. She immediately went on the defensive.

Attempting to stand and just launch her adversary off had been her plan, but she didn’t expect the weight to stay there. Her opponent was bigger than she. Her green eyes were menacing, and in a half second she decided to go offensive. She whipped her head around, sharp teeth gleaming in the sun, and that’s when it hit her. The familiar scent, the memorable brown coat with a large black head. The dark eyes. She managed to shut her mouth before her nose bashed into the side of his neck. Justyn.

He had landed perpendicular on her back, and the two made an odd T-shape on the rocks. That explained why she could have ripped his throat out, had he been someone else. But this was Justyn, and killing him would be no fun. Though it would get her birth right back…what a dilemma. She felt her anger dissipate and she turned her head away from him, now more flustered than anything. She plopped her head on her paws, thinking. He had managed to catch her off guard, and her pride was hurt, though of course she wouldn’t show it. That was Justyn one, Fallon zero. She wouldn’t be beta if she wasn’t careful. Then there was the fact that her stomach was churning violently now, and she felt somewhat queasy. Was this what wolves meant when they said they had butterflies in their stomachs? She had always laughed at that saying, but now she wasn’t so sure what to think. After all, she couldn’t lie to herself. She was happy Justyn was here, for whatever reason, and ever since their chance encounter a season ago she had thought a lot about the male.

Snorting as if nothing had happened, she turned her head to look back at him. “Justyn.” Her voice was calm, sultry. She tilted her head, green eyes soft. “What…the HELL were you trying to do, huh? I would have ripped you apart,” she half yelled, deciding to leave out the if it hadn’t been you part at the end. Feigning anger would get her a more emotional response, and she wasn’t going to let him figure out what she thought of him just yet.

[[Midnight]]

The collision with Fallon was perhaps a harder landing than he first intended, but he had just been too hyper to think much of it before the actually leap. Ohh well, at least she wasn't dead, and she had held back her fangs quite mercifully, he realized. When he looked over at her face she was just recovering from the shock, but her eyes were uncharacteristicly soft and he didn't see much anger in her features.

A hearty laugh was his first response to her frustrated question, as he lifted the bulk of his body off of her and began to step away. His tail was curling up like he was in playtime, and really, he was.

Though...he really shouldn't have jumped on a Falling Moon wolf without any second thoughts. After all, they weren't exactly acquaintances, and most Moons wolves ripped open the throats of anyone who dared venture to close. It was letting your guard down and opening yourself for a frontal attack.

"I suppose I'm lucky to be alive," he conceded, turning his head to try and eye the patch of fur that her muzzle had bumped. It was too far up on his neck to see, though. "You could've killed me just now if you really wanted to."

A teasing smirk spread across his maw as he continued, "I guess you were just so startled that you lost all control of your senses, Fawny."

In actuality, it was amazing that Justyn had come far enough to plan a playful surprise attack on another wolf. It hadn't happened since the days he used to romp with his three siblings. Justyn knew he had become a different wolf. A Beta with confidence and goals.

But why hadn't Fallon just clamped her jaws around his neck? Had she grown softer since they had last met?

Well, he certainly hadn't. He'd just become a wolf with a reason to live, that's all. So as if to show off his pride to Fawny, Justyn lifted his head with more attitude than an Alpha, more in a rediculously unbelievable fashion than a serious one.

"This reminds me of the time I flung snow in your face. You never saw it coming!"

[Malo]

As she felt Justyn’s weight lifting away from her, she let a scowl appear on her face. She narrowed her eyes as she watched him hop off, then turned her head with a pout. She could finally stand, and as she did so Fallon shook out her coat, a habit that she found hard to break. She found that doing so not only removed some dirt, but it also managed to capture the attention of any passerby. Fallon was pretty, and unfortunately, she knew it. Her mother had also managed to pass down her flirtatious nature, and seeing that Almira had been mostly absent at the beginning of her life, Fallon figured it must be something genetic. She sat down, facing Justyn to avoid anymore surprises, and eyed him. “Yes, Lady Luck must be smiling on you. But make no mistake Justyn, there ain’ nothing like a women scorned. Count your blessings.”

Her words were cold, but her tone wasn’t. She watched Justyn now, and saw a different wolf than the one she had met a season ago. She wondered if her slight fondness of the male had changed her too. If he had been her sister, she would have grabbed his neck and shook him until he gasped for her to stop. But he wasn’t her sister; all of her family, except her sorry mother, were gone. Probably long dead by now. Sadness crept over her, and thoughts of Denzin and her father Josiah flooded her mind. Denzin, her beloved brother, had been her partner in crime and they’d had many adventures in Empyrean Valley as pups. They’d almost never gotten in trouble for any of their mishaps either. Her face remained stoic, and if Justyn hadn’t been there, her eyes would have glazed over and she would have let the tears flow freely from her eyes.

At the sound of her “nickname” she scoffed, and stood again, trotting up to him and sticking her face so close to his their noses almost touched. “And I guess that extra weight went to your head if that’s what you think happened…Pudgykins.” She replied with her own smirk, her head raised just as high as his. Her emerald eyes stared into his own chocolate ones, a challenging and confident look in them. This was out of bounds, she knew, for a delta to raise their head as a beta and for a beta to raise their head as an alpha. But it was all in good fun, and no one was lurking around who could run and tell good ol’ Duke. At least she hoped so.

She had the urge to bump chests with him, but decided touching might be crossing a line, at least for now. Instead she turned away, and flicked him in the nose with her tail, a trick she had used at their first meeting. She sat down a few feet away. “Yea, you got another cheap shot. Next time, you’ll be the one watching your back!” She let out a laugh as she remembered that faithful day. She had hated the snow, and Justyn knew it. She’d exacted her revenge of course, with a chase and a good chew on his ear. Even though they’d only just met, she had felt comfortable with him, much like she had Denzin, but the feeling was different. She felt it was a shame that she would have to kill him for the spot of beta, if she couldn’t win him over as a mate or convince him to relinquish the position to her. But those were thoughts for a later time. Right now, she would just try to enjoy his company. Maybe he had grown out of being annoying.

[[Midnight]]

Justyn was generally unaffected by Fallon's obviously well-used flaunt of her beauty. He didn't look away, he kept his eyes glued to her, but in his mind he wasn't telling himself that she was beautiful, he was secretly wondering if this female had gotten caught up with another Falling Moon male since they had last spoken. He remembered last time how they had discussed the subject of pups; back then, Justyn hated the idea of siring a litter, and Fallon didn't seem to like the idea of the little runts, either. But this plan called "Nature" always seemed to change its creatures, just as Justyn had changed so, so much since his birth. Inevitable.

Ehh. Pups, pups, pups. He was beginning to feel a familiar flame of resentment at his own weakness. He was mateless and generally friendless, and so he wished he could stop thinking about something he really had no part of. In the end it could only drag him down, right?

By then Fallon had spoken a few words and was standing face-to-face with him, nearly nose-to-nose. It made him slightly uncomfortable, even if he had been the one who had just initiated the first physical contact just a few moments again.

"Hm?" he hummed, having missed most of what she first said. Something about luck and scorn and blessings? When he realized that he had gone totally off track, he tuned into Fallon's words and shut off his disctracting - and pointless- thoughts.

He snorted at her remark about his weight, but there was a grin on his face. He was a wolf of considerable size, almost a contender with Duke, and Justyn gladly let the joke slide. It felt more like a compliment now than an insult. And then that familiar whack of her tail-tip made his nose twitch and his face squinch, and more memories surfaced, of just a few months ago.

"Yeah, yeah, cheap shots, try and defend your sorry case," he said with a sarcastic sigh, sitting back on his rump and perking his ears. "Were you sulking over my cheap shots just a minute ago?"

He raised a brow with a skeptical smile. "You looked quite irritated, though I guess you always do, seeing as you're such a bitter wolf. You should smile more often. No wonder you're mateless - or are you? You do like to show off your feminine attraction, so.... Am I blabbering? I guess I haven't seen you in a while so I started to wonder if you felt humiliated by the snow in your face and your throat in my jaws..."

[Malo]

Her emerald pools narrowed, seeing Justyn’s mind clearly wasn’t on their current conversation. “Justyn, are you listening to me? Pay attention!” She shook her head, letting out an exasperated sigh. Maybe a lot more had changed than she thought since their last meeting. Maybe he really did have pups on the way? Maybe there was another female after all? She supposed she should be happy for him, but the face of jealousy began to rear its ugly head. What female in their pack could possibly be a better candidate for beta than she? Judging on looks alone, she could tell Justyn carried good genes, even if they held madness deep within them.

She raised a brow as she tuned back into their conversation. “Sulking? Me? Keep dreaming, dear Pudgykins. If cheap shots are the only way you can get me down, I should be flattered. You’re either scared of me, or think I could beat you fair and square.” There was a mischievous gleam in her eyes, and her tone was joking yet serious at the same time. She wouldn’t mind going toe to toe with the beta in a real fight, if she could prove she was worth her salt. Maybe he would be impressed if she won; then again, he could also be embarrassed and choose to ignore and avoid her the rest of their days. Some males had egos just that big. But his next words caught her attention sharply, and a low growl rumbled in her throat.

“I am not bitter! Furthermore, if we’d had a fair fight, you wouldn’t have gotten lucky enough to get your jaws around my neck, and I’m sure you just loved that fleeting opportunity.” She scoffed and turned away from him, her cheeks flushing under her brown fur. How dare he! She was infuriated, and the more she thought about it…wait, did he just imply that she was taken? She turned his words over in her mind. No wonder you’re mateless…or are you? You do like to show off your feminine attraction, so… Was he jealous? A smirk crossed her face; she hoped he was. The wheels began to turn in her head, thoughts that maybe their banter meant more to him than she originally assumed. Maybe this could work to her advantage. She turned around slowly, eyes shining. She puffed out her chest, and took a step closer to him. “What if I do have a mate? What does it matter to you?” Her tail wagged slowly, her gaze flirtatious, intent. The wind picked up, and her thick coat flowed freely as the air rushed against her body. She moved towards Justyn, positioning herself so that she stood almost parallel to him. Lifting her head, she whispered in his ear. “Would it change anything, Justyn?”

[[Midnight]]

Her tone was hard to read, at first. It seemed as though Justyn had caught her slightly off-guard, perhaps he had gone a little overboard with his words. Truthfully he had been at a loss for the right things to say to her, since he wasn't exactly the greatest social butterfly out here in Caden Valley. And he had lost a bit of that intense anger that usually directed his conversations, so now he was trying to learn to socialize with the ones he cared about in a more normal way.

Well, he did care about Fallon, didn't he?

Justyn couldn't honestly tell himself one way or the other. Not just yet. Part of him still had walls up; after all, he had no intention of telling her about Rose's pups yet, nor his desire to move up to the ranks of Alpha, nor his desire to...

To just feel normal again.

By this time in his thought process, Fallon had made her move in on Justyn. His belly churned with a bit of confusion as her scent overwhelmed him and her whispering tickled his ear. She was standing almost side-by-side with him. And her eyes; as Justyn looked at her face, he felt his walls closing in on his heart, and coldness crept on his expression.

He had to look away and proceeded to turn his back on her, struggling for words.

"It would definately change everything," he snarled, tail curling up. His muzzle was in the air, pointing towards the horizon as the breeze ruffled his fur the wrong way. "For the best. I'd have one less weak link and I'd be closer to taking Duke down."

{Sorry, I feel as though I should've added more to this but I'm museless ^^}

[Malo]

Her eyes watched him closely, and she caught every detail. There was a coldness in his eyes, but there was something else too. She’d had him; and just like that, she’d lost him too. As he turned away from her, his voice carried to her audits. Change everything for the best…weak link..taking Duke down. The words stung, and it wasn’t because of his menacing tone. She could feel her cheeks flushing with anger again, and his sharp change in posture sent her on the edge.

How dare he insult her, as if she was why he was incapable of defeating their alpha? How dare he call her weak; he barely knew her. How dare he think he could even take Duke, Fallon’s personal idol, on in a fight? A snarl escaped her, and in a flash, she was in front of him again, her joking and flirtatious manner completely dissipated. She struck out at him, her paw extending to his face with a speed she didn’t know she had. At that moment, she didn’t care that he was their beta, she didn’t care that this was Justyn. She would never admit it, but she cared what he thought of her. She wouldn’t let his comment slide, and his new approach to their conversation had definitely changed things. She pulled back, hoping she would see blood.

“You have no idea how strong I am Justyn. You think that because you’re beta, you’re so much better than everyone else? Who the hell are you kidding anyway, going after Duke? He’d rip your throat out in minutes while the rest of us watched, and leave your rotting corpse for us to finish off. ” As she snapped her jaws shut, her words came out slow and dripping with venom, something that didn’t happen often. The green in her eyes changed quickly, and there was no trace of fake hostility this time. This was real. Anger and resentment clouded her vision, and thoughts of being with Justyn melted away, trampled and forgotten by the rush of emotions that flooded her now.

Fallon couldn’t remember a time where she’d ever been so angry and hurt. Even the verbal sparring matches with her mother didn’t compare to this. Well, maybe that wasn’t true, but the two separate events were close in comparison. She remembered wanting to rip into her mother’s flesh, and she felt the same bloodlust for Justyn now. He didn’t care about her. She was just another wolf he thought he could hurdle over on his way to the top. She didn’t know how he’d managed to snag her birth right, but his luck had run out. Her muscles tensed, her fur standing high along her back. She was ready for a fight, ready to defend herself, and possibly kill Justyn. If she couldn’t have him as a prize, there was no other way. She hadn’t had the chance to break down his walls yet, so there was no sneaky advantage for her. If a fight went down, she could only rely on her own skills now.

“If you’re so great, prove it. Show me you actually deserve to be here, because all I see is a pup who doesn’t know where they belong. You betrayed your pack, you want mutiny in ours. You only give a damn about yourself. So prove your worth, because if you can’t beat me, you damn sure won’t beat Duke.”

[Paint]

"How rare."

These were the words that escaped Rose's black lips as she smiled, moving slowly and yet gracefully round down a small descent towards the two other wolves. Her dark eyes were slightly hard to read, but other than that she looked at peace. Strangely, her round belly and her vulnerability suited her. Her white fur glowed as she approached them carefully.

"The subject matter, I mean. I just overheard you saying something about my father. Being strong, I mean," Rose smiled again at Fallon, and glanced at Justyn. She knew he did not like Duke, nor the way the family worked, and she had never resented him for that. Her father could look after himself, physically. She saw no problem with any competition, and Fallon's protection of her father's strength was almost unheard of. There were rumous and mumurings in the Falling Moons, these days.

[[Midnight]]

There was a small trace of shock in Justyn's face when Fallon struck out at him. It was not his real intention to anger her, not at all, it was more or less his way of telling her that he cared about her more than he wished he did. But there was harm done in his words, the words he knew he meant, too. He hated Duke, truly hated him. And now he felt hatred for Fallon, too, as his lips curled up. It was her that Justyn felt was the one doing the using. In all honesty he couldn't bring himself to trust Fallon, not yet, he knew nothing about her. For all he knew...she wanted to use him. Use him to gain power.

Justyn was not about to back down from Fawny's...no, Fallon's challenge. Her claws had struck at his shoulder blade and scratched him, and now he was a pissed. The burning ball of fire in his core raced chaotically out of control and he was aiming a fatal strike to the throat when a familiar voice paralyzed him to the spot.

The flood of his anger was starting to recede when he turned his back on Fallon once more, to face the pregnant wolf who had intervened.

Horror made him sick to his stomach when he realized what had almost just happened. He had almost tried to murder Fallon. If Rose was any moment later she might've seen Justyn ripping out the throat of this female. Perhaps it wouldn't have disturbed Rose in the least, but Justyn never wanted his best friend to see that cold-blooded side of him.

He walked a few steps away from Fallon, starting to feel numb. He hadn't wanted to push Fallon away like this. but he was starting to see that he must've struck a real nerve. He was confused. What had he said that made her this upset, enough to want to fight him? She was the one who had made some moves on him and Justyn was letting her know that he wasn't ready for it yet. Not yet.

"Damn it all," he yelled at the top of his lungs, trying to control his anger. "All that crap about breaking walls, Fallon. And then I told you that you didn't know what I was really like. Well, you've eaten your own words."
He turned his head to look at her briefly, real true pain in his hazel eyes. When he turned back to Rose, there was a strange expression on his face. It was in this moment when he reassured himself that Rose was the only in this world that he could really trust. She had broken down his walls so quickly and earned his loyalty in one day. Maybe he didn't need Fallon after all, if she was willing to give up on their relationship in an instant like this.

"Yeah, we were talking about how Godlike your father is," Justyn spoke, though his voice was back to normal as well as his facial expression. "But we all know that Duke isn't God," he said, with a slight raise of his voice. "Someday he's gonna die. Still, it could never truly atone for the death of my grandfather, though, or all the others who have died because of his hatred, huh?"

He rolled his eyes as if he was done with it all. No more trying to reason. No more weakness.

"What irony that Duke spared my life."

He turned his attention to Rose, his lifeline. She must be expecting any day now.

"Enough about the same-old," he growled, giving the air a nonchalant sniff. "Let's talk about the next generation. The future," he muttered, a crooked grin on his face as his flicked his ears forward and angled them towards Rose's belly.

In the back of his mind he suddenly remembered that Fallon was ready to kill him, was serious about it, and that it wasn't safe for Rose to be around a to-the-death fight. He backed away a ways from both females, eyeing Fallon and Rose with no hints at what he was thinking.

I only care for myself, huh Fallon? he thought with a pang. Shows how much you know about me.

[Malo]

She felt a small amount of satisfaction as her claws raked into his skin, though her aim had been off. A facial wound would have hurt much worse, and left a better scar. She saw shock register on his face, then more anger. And just like that, it was over. A voice carried over the mountain, enough to make Justyn turn away from what was likely to be an all out brawl. Fallon looked up and over Justyn’s shoulder to see Rose descending upon them. Her eyes narrowed in her pack mate’s direction, anger still emanating from her body. She had interrupted their fight, what probably would have been a death match, and Fallon couldn’t decide if she was grateful or pissed.

She turned a quick glance back to Justyn, whose back was still turned to her. She could easily put him down when he wasn’t on guard, but the urge was no longer there. It wasn’t because of Rose; no, she would have went for him no matter who was standing there. But the brief pause in their altercation, the seconds it took to pry their eyes away from each other, had been enough time for Fallon to clear her head. What am I doing? Her gaze slowly became less cold, and soon held a wary look to them. What did I almost do? Justyn…

She shook her head, closing her eyes and trying to focus herself. When she finally opened them again, it was as if seeing Justyn and Rose for the first time. The previous hatred and resentment from moments ago had disappeared, and she studied Justyn with the same wary look, with a slight curiosity. His mood had done another three-sixty. If was as if…no, it couldn’t be. Could it? She pondered the relationship between Rose and Justyn. Clearly, something was there, something that was strong enough to pull Justyn out of his rage. Fallon just didn’t know what it was. A pang of jealousy shot through her body, and on while on the inside she was trying desperately to bury it, her face once again managed to hide her true emotions. She didn’t know how she could keep a straight face, with every messed up thing in her life threatening to destroy her emotionally.

She barely heard Justyn’s words, didn’t recognize that they were directed to her, until he turned back to her. His eyes. Their gazes locked, and there was something in Justyn’s eyes that shocked Fallon, something she rarely saw in the Falling Moons: pain. A look that screamed at her, bore so deep into her soul she felt that Justyn could see everything she’d gone through the past year. She felt all her secrets were exposed, because she herself felt what he felt: pain. She padded cautiously towards him, not wanting to invoke another fight, but somehow she knew he was himself again. Even if it was because of Rose. When she drew up next to him, she did something remarkable. Two words were uttered from her mouth, only loud enough for him to hear. “I’m sorry.” A sincere apology, something Fallon had never given before. For the first time in her short life though, she actually meant those words. She just hoped he’d believe them and forgive her.

She turned her attention back to Rose, a calm, nonchalant look on her face. “It seems Justyn here wants to challenge your father. Yes, Duke is getting up in age, but it doesn’t mean we should underestimate the old man. Besides, we all know beating him does not automatically ensure alpha status. You do have some siblings left, don’t you Rose?” Of course, Fallon knew that Rose wasn’t the only surviving pup that was heir to the Falling Moon thrown. There had been too many of Duke’s offspring for them to only be one wolf strong. Her tone was matter-of-fact, but she managed to keep the hint of snobbishness out. She decided that one fight was enough for today.

[Paint]

Rose remained wholly expressionless, watching Justyn and Fallon nearly rip each other to shreds and stopping instantly. She would've felt complimented that they had stopped for her, if she believed it, but she sensed that their connection ran far deeper. She studied the situation carefully. Justyn was so very dear to her, he'd dragged her out of the darkness on more than one occasion, and she for him. They had always accepted each other's strong and different characters, and for this reason she did feel protective of him. But much like she loved her father, Rose did not feel the need to actively protect Justyn. He was tough enough to look after himself, and from the looks of it, so was Fallon.

I only hope they don't ruin their friendship with their short tempers and violence, Rose pondered. She was strangely unaffected by the idea of her packmates tearing into each other, because she'd grown up around bloodshed. It was the Moons way of life- attack or be attacked. Whether verbally, emotionally or physically, the hostility of troubled wolves ran as hot and thick as the blood inside their bodies. Sometimes, violence was all they had left.

On the other hand, Rose was glad to see that it had not ended badly. In fact, her interruption meant it had barely begun. She watched curiously as Fallon apologised, and dipped her head just slightly to look away as if to give them a moment of privacy. She was unsure as to how Justyn would react, but she hoped that he would not be rude.

She waited patiently, listening to what both Justyn and Fallon had to say about the idea of Duke being challenged. She shrugged slightly, settling down to sit, sighing.
"He's always been far stronger than he, or anyone else, really acknowledges," she reminded them. "But you are correct- he is no God, he has flaws and he is completely mortal. But he knows it, at least, which is why he has such an intense desire to live."

She shrugged. Fallon's question about her siblings sent a small shiver up her spine, but the discomfort of the question was only temporary. It was a reflex reaction, and she liked to think that having such a reaction to her lost family was only natural. She missed them, and that one tremor would always remind her.

"Onisim is very much like my father, in many ways. While it has been suggested that he will take over, he and everyone else knows that he will have to fight for it. Strangely enough, many Moons wolves have developed a certain pride about the way we are. To be considered the leader of the 'big bad wolves' holds a certain respect in it. You have to be strong, ruthless and yet intelligent enough to wrangle what is essentially a group of lost, tortured and violent characters."

She smiled slightly. She herself did not share the pride that she had spoken of, feeling instead that the supposed goings-on inside the Moons pack were mostly trivial anyway. She was here for family and friends, and she was thankful for growing up tough and clever enough to overcome the violence and troubles around her. She had no intention of taking her pups away from the pack when they were born, which definitely said something about what she thought.

"But the future," she smiled again, eyes glistening slightly. She had always known from a young age what she wanted, and her round belly was perfect to her. However many, whatever their genders, and whoever they became- they would always be a part of her. "The future is bright." She said simply.

[[Midnight]]

Justyn was dealing with that unsettling feeling of shame and stupidity he often got after these kinds of moments. Why was he so dramatic and childish when he was trying to control his temper? And not to mention his raging variety of swinging emotions. He had changed in the last few months, but apparently some things about him hadn't and probably never would.

He had spoken thoughtlessly. Both to Fallon, and to Rose. He didn't quite have a way with words, so it was no wonder that he didn't correctly convey what he meant to Fallon. And Justyn wished he hadn't just blabbed on about Duke's mortality and history. He was still Rose's father and he knew she cared about him... Wasn't he the reason Rose had stuck around? And geeze, he didn't mean to sound like he was looking for pity or was trying to destroy Duke. Justyn knew his real hatred for Duke wasn't about the brute's history with Dancing Stars, but more about how everyone in the valley seemed to live in fear of him. Someday that was going to change.

He shifted uncomfortably and tried to look Fallon in the eyes. It felt different now. He didn't feel he could show much of himself anymore. But before he knew it she had opened her mouth and had uttered two words that made his heart burst and his eyes flicker.

Good. So their friendship wasn't over. Justyn hadn't just ruined one of the only good things he had going for him. He truly was glad that Rose had arrived when she did, because he wouldn't have had the strength to stop the fight by his own doing.

"Hmm..." he sighed, clearly one of releasing tension and perhaps relief. He felt embarassed now that Rose was here to witness all of this. Had he lost his masculine looks? Probably. Of course, Rose had seen even worse sides of him. So oh well, here it goes...

"I'm longwinded, so there's no need to apologize. You should probably bite my muzzle shut to keep me from embarrassing myself further," he mumbled, looking at the female to his left with that same small smirk he wore just for her. "When I said 'weak link'.... I wasn't calling you weak, you know."

His shoulder stung and he realized she must've struck a harder blow than he had felt upon impact. A huge smile then spread across his face. How ironic that he was about to eat his own words, too.

"I think I was calling myself weak. I kind of feel like I may be walking down a path that no one else should follow," he admitted, though deep down inside there was still confusion dragging him down. There were still many ideas about what Justyn wanted to do with his time here. Did he want peace for the valley? Or did he just want something selfish, for himself? Did he really want to kill Duke, and did he want to become an Alpha?

....Was joining Falling Moon a mistake, or a blessing in disguise?

So much that Justyn still wanted to learn, he just didn't know how to put it all in words.

"But then again, there would be things I don't want to leave behind just yet," Justyn deduced, looking back at Rose. "I want to see your pups grow up, Rose. How much longer do you think you have 'till they're born?"

There was a small wag of his tail, but his face was frowning a bit. He was suddenly remembering the scar that the fairly recent fight with Raiden had left on the right side of his face. He knew he had to of disappointed Rose greatly by turning fangs against her long-lost mate. But he'd make up for it somehow. He wouldn't ever let a thing touch those pups in Rose's belly. It was what was going to bring light back into Rose's world again.

He tried to make the whole situation casual and less awkward now. He felt warmth over Fallon's genuine apology and felt a twinge of protectiveness for her again. He had once promised her that if she ever needed him to be on her side, he'd be there. The least he could do is continue to prove that he wasn't like Caerwyn or Duke. The were the last two wolves he wanted to be associated with now. He'd prove that being a Dancing Star and a Falling Moon wolf was full of advantages.

"Fallon, these were those pups I tried to tell you about a while back."
He hoped that with these words that he wasn't giving away too much information again. But Fallon had done something he'd never seen a Moons wolf do before; apologized and then forgiven. He knew he could trust her.

[Malo]

She saw him struggling inside to look at her. His reaction wasn’t what she expected; on the contrary, she expected him to shrug her off and ignore her. And then…a sigh...of relief? So it seemed her words had been heard, and accepted. She allowed herself to give a small, genuine smile to her comrade, and a surprisingly gentle gaze considering she had been ready to mortally wound him less than five minutes ago. A quick glance back at Rose, and she felt gratefulness. Her interruption had been enough time for them to recognize their stupidity, and cease their now pointless aggression. Now, they could start over and forget the incident.

The sound of his voice flowed to her ears and she turned her head around to stare at him. She saw his familiar smirk and she fought to keep her smile from growing wider. She couldn’t comprehend why, but at that moment, that smirk sent a feeling of warmth through her body.

“You don’t need to talk to embarrass yourself, Justyn. Your horrible landing skills are embarrassing enough,” she teased, remembering his earlier “sneak attack” greeting. Her face sobered though as he continued to speak, and she felt juvenile for jumping to conclusions. Then again, he had phrased his earlier thoughts rather…poorly. Her face regained its nonchalant expression and she sat back on her haunches, the tension and hostility completely gone.

“Maybe you should change paths and forge a new one. I don’t know what’s going on with you, but if the path you’re running down makes you think you’re weak, I don’t like it.”

That was probably the closet she’d ever given anyone a compliment. She hadn’t said it directly of course, but at least she’d implied she didn’t think he was weak. It was progress. She flicked an ear towards Rose, catching her words. Turning her head, she noticed for the first time Rose’s baby bump. She had forgotten about her pregnancy, and seeing her so far along after their last meeting had been a shock. Fallon registered her words carefully. It was true that Onisim was expected to take over, but Fallon had heard he was also sort of a goof. She wrinkled her nose, finding that particular trait useless and dangerous when leading a pack. Maybe one of Rose’s pups, or some other blood relative of Duke’s would take over. Fallon certainly had an opinion on the matter. She heard Rose say something about the future being bright, and she decided to agree for now. As she was about to respond, Justyn’s voice made her whip her head around.

These were those pups I tried to tell you about awhile back.

She kept her composure calm, but inside her thoughts raced and she struggled to calm herself. So THIS was the female she had been wondering about, the one who held higher favor with Justyn than she. Suddenly, she didn’t want to be so friendly, but she supposed she shouldn’t be rude. After all, Rose had stopped the two of them from ripping each other apart. Her thoughts raced. |These are the pups he’s sworn to protect? I figured something was going on between them, but this? This is unacceptable. It would be so easy to get rid of them when they’re born, but they are part of Duke’s bloodline. Possible heirs. What should I do? If I don’t get rid of them, I might lose Justyn. If I do get rid of them, I might lose him…could I really betray our leader as well?| All these thoughts flew through her mind in less than a minute. This new information presented complications, things she would have to think about later. For now, she would play innocent and be a good delta.

“Congratulations, Rose,” she said, managing a smile that masked her true feelings. “You have a great protector in Justyn, I’m sure no harm will come to your pups while he’s around. With you’re father getting older and most of our pack gone, these pups really are the brightest future we’ve got.”