Slowly, so slowly Markus walked over to the bodies sniffing their lifeless forms sadness blooming in his heart at the loss of his pack kin.. HIS Pack kin the ones who looked to him as their leader. He guided them it was his job to make sure they survived, and he had just failed. He took a deep breath and buried that emotion deep inside, he couldn’t wallow in grief of failure, he had to keep strong and find out who had committed this atrocious act in his woods no less. He leans down biting onto the necks of one of the wolves and begins dragging, though he only gets several feet before stopping. A smell hits his nostrils and he turns his head. “Why.. Of all days are we getting so many strays wandering into our lands?” He looks to Sam and shakes some snow out of his fur. “We have a hunter back at the cabin, he’s unarmed. When we get back we will restrain him, and you can question him. For now we need to deal with this stray and these bodies.”

He shakes his head a bit and gives a howl to alert the stray of where they were. Whether the stray was coming in peace or in violence Markus didn’t really care he just wanted this out of the way so he could take care of the important business that revolved around the whole pack. “Sam… Get fuzzy.” he said with a chuckle. He had always enjoyed Sam’s company ever since she had made her way to Geri. He felt like he could trust her which was rare in the pack except for his enforcers and Lupa. He knew that he couldn’t let Paranoia get to bad but he couldn’t get rid of it entirely that would make him to open to attacks from those who could possibly want his position.

North perked up at the sight of food, all previous worries pushed to the side in the presence of a relief to her body's most pressing concern. After gingerly sliding off of the couch, she made her way over to the ottoman and dug in ravenously. The fact that it was raw didn't bother her in the slightest, as the few things she'd been able to catch had still been squirming when she'd eaten them. Being picky was no good for someone on the brink of starvation.

When finished, North looked up at Sasha gratefully as she moved closer to the warm fire. Hoping that she could hear her thoughts as well, she replied, "If it's no trouble, I'd like to turn back as soon as possible." As much as she hated her human body, she felt as though something bad might happen if she did not become like her old self presently.

James was running through the trees at a brisk trot when the howl rose up in the distance. Sliding to a stop his ears flicked this way and that, before he let out a short huff.

Stepping on he made an abrupt and brief howl in response to the first. It hadn't been that much farther ahead, and was filled with more of a warning tone. James didn't know if he should be worried, or relieved that a wolf had called out. Hopefully that meant that the blood he smelled on the air was from a wounded were, and not a dead body.

Coming to what looked to be a small clearing he slowed and gazed cautiously through the trees. Grey fur blending with his surroundings the male approached the tree line, then came into the open.

There, were two wolves.......and two corpses laying in a pool of their own blood.

James' blue eyes went wide and his body went stiff. One of the dead wolves, a female, caught his gaze.
A feeling of sadness and rage filled him, and he turned his stiff gaze to the two living wolves standing at the other side of the clearing. Had they done it?

Sam – Geri

Sam rubbed a hand across her face, briefly hiding her eyes behind the stretch of her long fingers. She felt a subtle weariness in her bones that went beyond the exertions of a single day, but knew there wasn't time to dwell on such things when she was needed. Staring at the limp forms of her pack members, Sam gave a slight nod in Markus' direction. She paused to scent the wind, following the direction from whence it came with somber dark eyes.

“Of course.”

Shoving her hair out of her face, Sam gave herself a brisk shake and began to hunch down to welcome the shift. The wolf, already anxious to be free, sprang forward and burst past the barrier of her homid form, causing a swift and violent shift. Her brown eyes grew amber in hue, appearing luminescent against the background of her dark fur. Giving a shake that was part surprise and discomfort, Sam lowered herself into a stretch before trotted forward to stand near Markus' flank. She settled down on her haunches, only to shift impatiently when a howl rose up in answer to Markus.

The grey wolf was quick to follow up on his howl, appearing just beyond the edge of the clearing. Sam's ears swiveled to attention as she waited for him to suggest friend or foe. As the strange wolf's eyes turned to look at the bodies, Sam moved instinctively. Hackles raising as she moved to hide her fallen pack members from the stranger's sight in a fairly protective gesture, Sam hoped he wouldn't think of attacking in the bloodlust of hunger. A thin growl trickled past her muzzle.

Vashti's expression had lowered into a dark scowl when the Hunter spoke back to her. Holding back the urge to challenge him she stood back, then leaned foreword and nodded, "I greatly appreciate your choice to remain peaceful, although I'm sure the Ulfric wouldn't have let you breath long enough to fire off another round."

Then, smirking in an almost teasing voice she added, "You'd be surprised just how much we would do to protect our kind; but I respect you for trying on your end."

Tilting her head up she turned and stalked further into the kitchen; body holding an air of flaunting confidence. The hunter's audacity to act as such in a pack's homes had amused her, admittedly.

Without another word the female turned her attentions to the many cupboards and fridge. Radiating from the fridge she could smell the scents of raw meat. This had been where one of the pack's females had entered and gathered a boat load of food; taking it to who knows where......probably to eat it herself.

Smirking at the thought Vashti reached up to begin braiding her long hair to one side. Turning she watched Aldo cater to the needs of the others. His sweet willingness to help the pack's Lupa -a silver haired woman who....once she looked at her....seemed to be blind- had intrigued her. He was different compared to the rather violent and demanding males of her old pack.....he was kind and quiet....

Turning back to the fridge she let her hair fall in a neat braid and opened the doors. Cool air flooded out and she chuckled at the smell of raw venison.
Reaching in she called out, "You guy's mind if I make you all some grub? Have any preferences for raw or cooked?"

She didn't mean to intrude, but felt it was one way she could repay the other's kindness.......most of the others....
Vashti glanced to the Hunter at those thoughts.

James growled at the sight of the other wolves; wondering for a moment if they had murdered the others. His body tensed and a snarl threatened to escape his throat.
But then a second female with dark fur gave him a threatening growl and moved to stand between the bodies and him. She almost seemed protective.....

Frowning James went quiet and stared at her, then spoke softly, "How did they die?"
He gestured with his muzzle to the corpses and nodded, "Was it you?" His voice broke with a suppressed growl.

Stepping slowly foreword the male watched the others. They were as tense as he.....and only the one had blood on her body....

His anger for the one female's death slowly diminished and he stood up with a flick of his tail. For a moment his eyes rested on the male in the back.....a rather large wolf.

No sounds came from Markus now, growls, howls nothing. He just stood there ready to leap upon the loner if necessary and toss him about like a ragdoll… He would let Sam handle this, she was the Geri after all. He didn’t need to take charge of every situation that arose. Slowly he moved behind Sam and shoved his muzzle underneath the body of one of the wolves so that it slid onto his back and very slowly and gently stood up so they were balanced and wouldn’t slide off. His next action then brought him to the second would which he clamped his mouth around the scruff of this ones neck and turned towards the cabin giving a jerk of his head and mentally asked Sam to talk and walk with the loner… He’d handle the bodies.

"...I like that old time rock 'n' roll. Don't try to take me to a disco. You'll never even get me out on the floor. In ten minutes I'll be late for the door. I like that old time rock 'n' roll," Ryan sang along to the music playing on the radio. He sat in the driver seat of his old, red pick-up, traveling down the icy roads of Colorado. The sound of his phone ringing brought his enjoyment to an end, he knew who it was. Ryan turned the radio's volume down then picked up the phone. "Hey, Dad. How's it goin'?... What? No, I'd never talk on the phone while driving. That's stupid... I don't know when I'm coming back. I just got this new job and... uh-huh... uh-huh... Well that doesn't change... Well I... Can you let me... You know what? I gotta go. Bye, dad." As Ryan put the phone down on the passenger seat, he looked up to see a tiny spider descending on a web from the roof of the car. "Ah, shit! Spider!" he screamed before quickly slouching away from the arachnid, no bigger than a pinhead. He grabbed the map that also sat on the passenger seat and swatted at it, crushing it against the window. Ryan breathed a sigh of relief before looking back at the road, just in time to realize that he was about to drive off of it. Ryan's car broke through the guardrails and flew into the air. "Oh, F-" he started before the car made a graceless landing.

After the passing of several hours, Ryan finally awoke from the wreck. He lifted his head from the wheel, the airbag hadn't gone off, and immediately felt an immense headache. He reached up and touched his forehead and felt something wet. His head was bleeding. Ryan let out a groan as he reached for the handle of the car door, only for the airbag to finally go off late. "Owww." The young man pushed the airbag back and successfully opened the car door. He tried to roll himself out, but was suddenly stopped by his seatbelt. Ryan reached back, unbuckled himself, and fell into the snow. He sat up and took a look at his surroundings, snow covered trees as far as the eye could see. He gave a sigh of disappointment and moved to his truck to gather his things. Ryan checked his inventory: his two handguns, his rifle, and all the ammo he could carry for the three weapons. His wallet was empty of any money, the map seemed to have disappeared, and his phone had died while he was unconscious. How long had I been out? Ryan then began his trek through the woods, seeing as the road was too high to get back to. It was lucky for him that the snow had been there to break the fall, otherwise who knows what would have happened to him.

After a few hours of hopeless walking, Ryan spotted something in the distance. What is that? Sort of looks like a building. Wish I had some binoculars so I could- "The scope!" he shouted as he unslung his rifle from his back. He looked through the scope of the rifle to get a better look at the Odessa pack's home. "Seems like a mansion. Looks like there's some movement going around it. Can't make it out, but it's probably people," he said aloud. What else could it be? He slung the rifle onto his back again and lifted his hand again to feel his still-bleeding forehead. "Hope they're friendly," he said cheerfully as he began his walk to the mansion.

William remained seated, as the pack took amusement in their Ulfric's threats. "More threats.." William thought to himself. Once the Ulfric left, he grunted and sunk back into his chair getting comfortable again. He heard someone sit down beside him, and to his surprise it was the Lupa. She was rather young looking, like a lot of the pack he saw around him. Looking at her though, he could see the tell tale signs of worry. She was fearing for her lover's safety. He watched as her body shook slightly. As Aldo approached her with the tea she asked for, he looked away and returned his gaze to the table. The sight made him only think of his wife. William never thought about it then, but she must have been so scared that he wouldn't come back from his hunting trips. Aldo returned with a cup of hot cocoa in a chipped mug, but the hunter was too engrossed in his thoughts to notice.

He snapped back to reality however, hearing the familiar voice across the table from him mention how much the pack would do to protect itself. He glanced up at her, bringing the mug to his lips, and taking a sip of cocoa. He nodded slowly to her, setting the mug down. "Thank you son." The hunter said, although not looking at Aldo, it was clearly directed towards him. The hunter took another sip before speaking up again. "It's William." He sighed staring into his mug. "For the record, you should learn a person before you call them a murderer. It's saved me quite a few bullets, and equally, quite a few lives too."

William glanced back over at the Lupa and shook his head. He set the mug done on the table and pushed his seat out. "I'm going to get some fresh air." The hunter stated, making his way towards the door already. As he opened it however, there stood a young woman with the bright hair, pale skin, and rather unique eyes. She was pretty, though perhaps a little young for the hunter, and no doubt a werewolf like the rest. "Miss." The hunter said, in the form of a greeting to the young lady, before proceeding past her and out the sliding glass door. It was still cold outside, but it was manageable for the hunter. He leaned forward against the railing, inhaling the fresh winter air, before releasing a heavy sigh. He didn't notice anything unusual out in the snow, it was just the night and him for this short moment again.

Acacia quietly watched the happenings within the building, the Ulfric now gone and the Enforcer 'Marrec' now in charge, the voices lightly dancing through the room as she allowed herself to lean lightly against the door frame, eyes shifting from form to form before settling on an empty space of air and visibly losing focus as the pale figure remained her distance. One arm was held across her abdomen and the lanky fingers wrapped around the elbow of a lifelessly hanging limb, legs positioned to prop the figure easily as she barely moved a muscle.

After a while she'd begin to drift to thought, what am I even doing around here, I don't fit in with these people I can barely do anything for myself let alone them, she puffed heavily, eyes fluttering now and then in their light glare, though they widened quickly when the door opened and the human emerged, regarding her with a light 'miss', she'd nod partially and then turn quickly pacing off.

Her feet bare as they walked across the flooring below, eyes focused on each step as glanced up now and then for a reminder of direction and soon found herself on the front porch once more, a deep breath in allowed her to clear her head as she listened to the faint howls in the distance, the Ulfric and then an unfamiliar tone were quickly detected.

As Acacia shrugged it off she'd lower herself to sit on the edge of the wooden deck, ghastly alabaster limbs both legs and arms fully free to the nip of the wind, curls of copper hues swayed and flicked about the young woman's face, a delicate hand reaching up to tuck strays behind her ears, she'd sit for a fair while, enjoying the peace as the mumbling from within the building drew through the wooden walls to her auds.

Fiddling with her hair and twirling it between her fingers she'd stare upwards at the sky and it's luminescent lights, her legs crossed in front of her as she suddenly froze, the sound of stifled steps caught her attention as she lowered her vision to the forests edge, slowly she carried her clashing orbs across the lining, the darkness barely illuminated by the lights of the large cabin.

A quick shine of something flashed in the treeline, she'd overlook it at first before her head swung around and stared directly where she'd seen a reflection of light. Eyes visibly wide as she straightened up and watched closely, focused intently as her heart raced at an increased rate unsure whether what she'd seen was from friend or foe or lack of attention.

Pale, slender figure still sitting upon the deck as reflective eyes and an attentive appearance stared longingly at the depths of the forests darkness. She'd offer no words at this point, as not to arouse suspicion from within for what could possibly be an over-imaginative mind.

"Anna!"

Blood. Blood everywhere. Snarling fangs and tearing skin. Bones creaking into place. Eyes diluting to a thick, viscous black. The shine of silver. Then blood; more blood.

Anna leapt to life, her hazel eyes turning wild as she momentarily reached for the blade at her side. Her breath came in rapid gulps and a warm layer of sweat hung over her skin. Realising that she was just on the bus, she settled back down, pulling her hood up over her white locks upon noting the stares of others around her. She had been getting dreams like this for quite a while now and it wasn't a good sign - it meant that there was pain on the horizon for her. Either that, or she would spill a lot of blood.

She had been trailing a Denver pack for the past month and the whole thing was fairly uneventful with no kills. Anna needed her own evidence to point to a few of her theories and she certainly got it. The larger Denver packs were on the move, consuming the smaller packs from outlying areas to form an even larger pack. It was worrisome because eventually, they would gain so many numbers that not even Hunters could drag them back down.

Silently, her head tilted to the window to watch as rolling mountains and trees gave way to the first sign of civilization in nearly two hours. Her breath warmed the frosted windows, causing small beads of water to drip. There was a pack here and she was going to have to weed it out and scatter it to the four winds. Which meant blood. More blood.

Stretching with an elongated yawn, she slid to her feet and meandered out of the bus and down onto the icy streets of Odessa. It was a quaint little place but she knew that under it all, its blood ran thick with the stench of wolves. White teeth nibbled down along the red of her lips before she began to explore the town. Her maps seemed to be mostly correct and she found the local motel within minutes. Instead of booking herself in, she chose to explore a little further.

It was during this exploration that she noticed what appeared to be a little bookshop with a girl leaving it. She was hot but Anna reckoned her to be younger than herself. Approaching the window of the store she just left with wary feet, she noticed the sign in the window. 'Help wanted'. Perfect.

Jogging after the woman at a speed that would rule out slipping, she finally caught up with her just as she entered the diner. Anna didn't like that - the wolves probably had eyes everywhere and some white-haired vagabond suddenly entering town and looking for a job stood out. She would need an alibi. She would make one eventually but for now, she needed that job. Focusing on the task ahead, she trudged up the icy steps before entering the warm embrace of the diner.

Looking around, she found herself staring at the girl again before she pulled her hood down and fixed her smile. With that, she dropped down in the chair facing the brunette and smiled softly. "Hi, I'm really sorry for practically stalking you but I noticed that you had a sign out saying you needed help in your new bookstore and I wondered if I could maybe get an application or something? I'm new around here and I want something to help get my feet on the ground!" Somehow, she managed most of that in one breath. The game had begun.

Aldo nodded tersely at the hunter's thanks. He's weirdly polite. Maybe he's some sort of Hannibal Lecter type of person, was all he could think. He relaxed visibly when William left and now felt perfectly alright about switching his attention to Vashti, now that the primitive part of his brain had stopped screaming danger. He didn't feel right about not calling the man a murderer, because, well, he'd murdered werewolves, possibly many many times, but he reached a reluctant agreement in his head. I guess I won't call him that. To his face. Unless he murders someone in this timeframe, in which case the deal's over.

He shook off the thoughts and spoke to Vashti. "We can both make it," he offered, not feeling right about sitting around while another person made food. "I like it cooked, but not much," he answered her question and started looking through the spice rack, speaking as he did: "Maybe that part should be a vote though." He liked the extra pop that things like Italian herbs gave barely-cooked meat, but he hesitated to bring the small container of tried plant bits onto the counter because he wasn't sure if anyone else liked that. He certainly wasn't a great cook, either, which was why all the cookies had been store-bought, but he didn't feel ready to mention that to Vashti for some reason.

Blanc hiked up the mountains. He had a free day today and he was doing as usual. For a hiker, he had very little gear to speak of; then gain, he wasn't planning on going too deep into the mountains anyway. Locals had warned him not to go too deep or go alone, as the mountain has a history of people disappearing or coming back injured various times. The incidents were mostly blamed on wild animals, the common perpetrators being bears or wolves. Of course, Blanc, although worried, didn't let that information hamper his coming. He went up as usual, and altough he wasn't going too deep, he still came alone.

Blanc paused for a bit, taking sometime to rest. He had a specific spot to go to in mind. It wasn't too deep in the mountains, however it was high enough to overlook the a good part of the city. Plus, it had a clear view of the sky. Blanc looked around, a small precautionary measure in case there were wild animals, and then began sprinting at top speed. Being a track and fielder, he was naturally faster than most people, and cleared over a dozen meters in seconds. Blanc grinned; this was his element!

After a few minutes of running, the young man stopped. He was near enough to his destination that he could walk there. What made him pause, however, were some very large paw marks on the ground. He creased his brows. "Well, this can't be good," he muttered. Judging from the size, it was probably a bear. Then he noticed how many of them there were. If those marks were indeed bear tracks, that was an awful lot of bears.

Blanc considered turning around then and there, but . . . well, he had his reasons for not doing so. Slowly but but cautiously, Blanc resumed his climb through the mountains.

As Nina entered the diner a waitress greeted her, inviting the young lycan to sit anywhere. Nina removed her coat and laid it in a booth, straightened her purple cowl neck sweater, and had a seat.

She had ate in the diner for the past six nights at roughly the same time. Nina did this not because of the menu, though she did enjoy the homemade lasagna and the apple pie was quite delicious. The young werewolf knew she needed to assimilate herself into the town quickly. She needed to be seen as a part of the Odessa community. She needed to be seen as one of them. Within the last twelve days Nina had not only bought a building, she had done her best to endear herself to the local main street shop owners. Nina had bought her furniture from the store across the street and hired a couple of the employees to not only deliver it but to assemble it for her as well. She bought her tools and paint from the local hardware store, and used the electrician suggested by the hardware store. What little food she had in her refrigerator was purchased at the local grocer's.

No sooner than she had picked up the small menu from the table a young woman plopped herself down across from her. Nina quirked a brow. "Hi, I'm really sorry for practically stalking you but I noticed that you had a sign out saying you needed help in your new bookstore and I wondered if I could maybe get an application or something? I'm new around here and I want something to help get my feet on the ground." The woman, who probably wasn't much older than Nina spoke quickly. Nina's initial reaction was one of agitation for being disturbed, but her annoyance soon turned to pleasantry as learn the stranger was asking for a job.

Her satiny pink lips curled into a pleasant smile. "I don't have any applications to give," Nina said politely. "But, I am looking for some help. I probably can't afford to pay you above minimum wage to start, and the job may require some lifting and possibly climbing up and down ladders." The stranger sitting across from her had usually white hair. Nina could make out a blonde strand here and there, but she could not tell if it was natural or a wig. The woman's hair suddenly reminded her of..... Nina hastily blinked the memory away.

Ryan continued walking towards the Odessa pack's home, still unaware of the inhabitants' true nature. He was still a bit of a way's away, but at least he had a goal: make it to the mansion. Ryan, trying to find something to do to pass the time for the walk, pulled out one of his Berettas and took out the clip. He pulled back the slide a few times, making sure there wasn't anything still in the chamber, then slipped his index finger into the the trigger guard. Ryan then began spinning the handgun on his finger, similar to the way people like Clint Eastwood in those old Western films. A couple times he threw the gun into the air, only to clumsily catch it. This was much easier to do with his dad's old Smith and Wesson. Ryan was so enthralled with the Beretta, that he hadn't noticed just how close he had gotten to his intended destination. He looked up from his handgun to see two people, Ace and William, standing on the porch.

He holstered his weapon, no need to appear threatening to these strangers, and approached the two. Before he said anything, Ryan first began analyzing the pair... if you could call it that. Hmm, the guy seems to be older than the girl. Too old to be her boyfriend, too young to be her dad. Then he looked at Ace. Ooh, she's pretty. Wonder if she's single. Remember what dad said: "be suave." Ryan cleared his throat and greeted Ace and William, "Hi there." You were supposed to be suave, idiot! That wasn't suave! That was... that was... dorky? Whatever, just go with it. "Um, I seem to have been a bit of an accident," he said as he wiped blood from his still-bleeding forehead. "You, uh, wouldn't happen to be able to provide some sort of, uh, assistance could you?" he asked. Stop saying "uh" you big dumb idiot, no girl's going to find your stuttering attractive. He gave an awkward smile in Ace's direction.

Vashti nodded with a smile to Aldo, bending down to search in a lower cabinet to find what she needed to cook a meal of venison steaks for the group. She had a small experience with cooking; nothing fancy of course, but learning from her father as a child she knew how to get it done.

She pulled a cast iron skillet from the cupboard and flipped it once, before setting it on the kitchen stove. Pulling a section of steaks from the fridge she also found herself a sharp knife.

Proceeding to prep the meat, Vashti cut the larger amounts of fat away from the meat. Looking up when Aldo mentioned adding a spice to the meat she chuckled, "Well that's funny. I didn't think any other werewolves liked spices with their meat."
She grabbed a shaker of salt and pepper; adding a very light amount to a few of the steaks, "Without it I think the meat just tastes....well like raw meat....I guess you could say my human side appreciates the light zesty flavor."

Stacking the meat up she glanced to the others, "Have any preferences? Well done, rare, medium rare, or bloody? Aldo's also got a spice I think some of you might enjoy; I know I do."
She added the last option with a shake of her head and a cheeky grin.

Voices outside drew her attention away from the meats as she switched on the stove burner. Without thought she shrugged it off,

Must be Ace and William.....

Idly twisting a dreadlock around a long, slender finger, Sasha watched the wolf scarf down the food. The blazing fire warmed her skin, lulling her into a state of drowsiness. As the urge to return to homid form surfaced, Sasha dismissed it with the knowledge that communicating with the werewolf would be more difficult and likely result in a headache that medicine wouldn't fix. As the other's voice touched upon her mind, Sasha offered a slight smile.

If it's no trouble, I'd like to turn back as soon as possible.

Alright. The Ulfric is not in the House presently, but I will inform him of your need when he returns. Sasha tilted her head, listening for the sounds that marked others as individuals, such as the tread of their feet or the lilt of their voices. Markus had a louder voice than most, and stepped both more surely and heavily, unless he was trying to be quiet. She had to adjust for the newcomers, registering them in the meticulously organized system that was her brain.

You can explore the house if you'd like. Or sleep. What is your name? Sasha stopped herself before several more questions came forth, seeking not to cause any further duress. She stared at the wolf with discerning eyes, contemplating the potential reasons the wolf was unable to shift back, from exhaustion to fear. Though she didn't necessarily intend to convey the thought, it still spilled over. Have you tried meditating?



When the hunter moved outside, Marrec did as well, though he kept to the shadows that claimed dominion near the house's wall. Although he sparred Acacia a flicker of attention, Marrec wasn’t overly concerned with the other werewolf’s whereabouts. Acacia had always been a bit beyond his comprehension, seeming to be outside the more earthy tendencies of the average werewolf and not often mingling to the same extent, like a bird amongst squirrels or something. He had never really known how to make friends beyond the easy, superficial levels, so it wasn't really surprising that he knew so very little about some of his pack members.

Turning to the hunter, Marrec concentrated on staring a hole into the man's back, though not with any particular animosity. He still held the gun Marcus had given him, unsure if he wanted three guns tucked into his pants – it surely increased the odds of shooting his gonads off. A soft chuckle escaped Marrec's mouth, only to be arrested by a new scent, followed by the sight of a new person. The young and bloodied man didn't seem to notice Marrec, which was reasonable since Acacia was the primary focus, and Marrec really couldn't compete against a woman.

As incredulity sank in, a dark brow winged upward and a full sigh gusted from the enforcer, who was becoming paranoid that it was actually the full moon and that's why so many weird things had occurred. Or perhaps the winter was simply stirring up restlessness and causing people to wander from their homes. Being a werewolf meant an innate knowledge of the moon, however, which meant it wasn't a full moon that was causing such oddities. Maybe Odessa isn't so small anymore, he wondered.



How did they die? Was it you?

As his voice slid through her mind, acquiring a rather pleasant tone, Sam released a quick and sharp snarl. He couldn't really understand what had transpired, but the accusation burned enough to cause the dark wolf to slide forward into a more aggressive stance. Markus drew her attention when he moved forward, and she initially thought he was going to attack the fellow, but instead the Ulfric approached their fallen and began to take up the burden of their bodies. Not wanting to be in the way, Sam stepped aside and paced forward, placing herself between the dead werewolves and the stranger until Markus had lifted them and began to leave.

Her head dipped in acquiesence to Markus's request to handle the new wolf, at which point she turned completely to face him and forced the issue of her murdered pack members aside. When he began to relax and no longer appeared overtly aggressive, Sam copied him and settled back on her haunches, though a deadly grace was never more than a swift spring away.

No, she finally said, flashing a quick image of her coming upon the bodies towards the male werewolf. We seem to be attracting hunters...and strange wolves. Who are you?

Raising up from her sitting position and trotting forward, Sam made a wide circle around the strange wolf, using her nose and eyes to assess him as she did so. Her second circle was slightly closer, but she opted not to close the distance and instead stopped so that she was facing him from only a few feet away. What do you want?

James had stood quietly while the female seemed to weigh the options of speaking to him, or force him to leave. For a moment the image of her pouncing on him and tearing out his throat came to mind....but he chose to ignored it.

When she seemed to calm and sit back into the snow, he heard her speak; although it wasn't vocal. James had always been intruiged by their kind's ability to speak telepathically....although he wasn't a master of it yet.

The female wolf's voice was stern and full of a reigning confidence that made James wonder if she was a higher ranking wolf.....one of the 'enforcers' of the pack. He thought that was what it was called.

When the image of the female finding the bodies came to his mind he tilted his head in awe. So werewolves could transfer mental images to each other as well? Interesting....

She mentioned hunters and strange werewolves such as himself, as if they were becoming common around here. James remembered hearing about hunters and what they did to their werewolf prey......he realized that moments before he could have been staring at such a being's work.

Answering the female's question he attempted to speak telepathically to her; faltering at first, "I'm James..."

It was then that the other wolf stood and approached him, making James' body stiffen under her judging gaze. He tried to keep his eyes on her as she did a circle around him; remaining still and almost unfazed.

She then asked a second question....one James had to ponder on for a moment. Should he state his reasons for coming up here?

Might as well keep honest with the locals......maybe this female is a member of the Odessa pack.

James nodded, "I was in town when I stumbled across an elderly woman.....a wolf who used to live in these mountains."

Looking the other wolf in the eye he made an effort to appear as honest and peaceful as possible, "She sent me up here in search of the Odessa pack.....because you see.....I'm in need of some help."

There was a pause to let his words sink in, before he sighed, "I was changed a few months back.....but given certain circumstances I never took the moments to learn anything of my wolf side. I was hoping I could find a pack willing to tell me a few things, or point me in another direction for answers."

He half mindedly glanced to the blood pools in the snow, "Never did I think I'd come across....this..."

Barely flinched as she sat where she was, legs crossed in front of her and propping her up on their own while arms sat loosely among her lap, back straightened as she remained staring at the darkness's length. Though she'd almost cease her breathing as someone emerged the forestry, swinging a gun on his finger while not even paying attention, a light whisper of voice emerged as she didn't even need to glance around to know the enforcer was further up the deck with William for sure, "Ma-marrec... Whose he?..." she shifted partially and almost seemed to become unsettled thinking she'd possibly seen nothing, and now watched a human walking blindly towards them.

As soon as he looked up she jumped slightly, almost like a startled animal that had something thrown at it and remained hesitant staring at it's source. The gun was eventually holstered at the brightly haired male faltered his trail and stared analytically at the two standing in more visible sight, Marrec must have been in the shadows or something because heck, even she thought he was a bit scary, but, that didn't stop the human as he spoke towards them, "Hello there," is all he said before after a moment he continued, she couldn't stop staring as if she'd seen a ghost or something, and after a moment she suddenly looked down at her own hands sitting in her crossed legs, damnit Acacia, can't you act natural just for a moment, she thought to herself heavily.

Before long she'd glance towards Marrec who hadn't yet spoken and eventually straightened up once more, glaring towards the obviously lost male as she took in a deep breath, "Hello, uhm..." she froze in thought for a moment, the hell do I do, let him in? Tell him to go away? Or wait for the Ulfric... I don't know, she almost seemed to grumble under her breath as she then thought of something to say, "You managed to walk this far ..." she began in a soft tone, a partial accent of unknown origins dangling from each word as she continued on, "After an accident?... What kind of accident?" she wasn't as bad as some who stuttered with their conversations or words, but she didn't exactly know how to hold a conversation to begin with.

She sat where she was now silently, limbs almost equal to the white of the snow that sat a short distance down from the patios ledge, eyes bright and reflecting the house's light as the two tones, both sapphire and emerald clashed together upon both sights, she almost looked to under dressed to be outside but she hadn't at this point been shivering, chattering or even complaining in any manner, which she guessed was maybe normal for some people ... well at least she figured that much if he didn't seem overly shocked.

Yes, she spoke back. Keep the conversation going, Ryan. "Oh, uh, just a car accident. Nothing too bad," he said, acting like it wasn't a big deal that he had totaled his car and was even still bleeding. Hope she doesn't ask the cause of the accident. That would be embarrassing. It was then that Ryan noticed the girl eyeing his weapons. "Don't worry about the guns, was just going out on a hunting trip." Ryan couldn't help but think just how clever that statement was. It was true, he was hunting, he just didn't say what.

"Name's Ryan by the way," he said. He then noticed his vision was turning red and his eyes began to feel irritated. Dang, bleeding still hasn't stopped. He wiped the blood from his face and eyes again, then looked up at the girl. "Um, you wouldn't happen to know someone who could get this cleaned up do you?" he asked, pointing to the cut on his head.