Sirus nodded, "Not sure it's quite the same, but I'm glad someone can relate." he said softly, the ghost of a smile crossing his face. "Never settle for anything when it comes to freedom Gwen, it's infinitely more precious than any commodity this world could ever offer either of us."
"Probaby not quite the same." she agreed with a light chuckle. "But I don't plan to give it up. Not ever." Gwen assured him with a determined spark in her eyes. She had plans for latter, just no idea when they would be acted on but she truly wasn't going to give up her freedom for anything.
Sirus managed a little bit more than he did before, not quite a real smile, but close enough to one. "Shall we keep going then?" he suggested, gesturing in the general direction of Rhes and her family's tent.
Gwen nodded at the suggestion. “Yes, we should.” she acknowledged, looking back towards the tent. “Thank you though. For listening and answering my question. It did help.” she assured him.
Sirus nodded, "Glad I could help" he said softly, more by way of formality than anything as they continued on.
Gwen smiled softly at him before resuming the short walk to her mentor’s tent. It was amazing to her that such a brief, but encouraging, talk with Sirus had helped ease her mind from the worries she had moments ago. It seemed that she was growing indebted to him for everything he had done for her.
(are you alright? I just noticed your name change…)
(Yeah I'm okay… just really really really tired of existence that and last week was kind of.. uhm… bad. But it's all good now! I'm just a little burnt out thanks to my English class and I have deadlines and shit piling up so it's just.. it's exhausting and I can't make it stop so really I'd just like to cease existing and take a nap. :)
Sirus of course wouldn't let Gwen try to repay him, glad to know that he wasn't entirely useless to her as they prepared to leave the village. In any case tonight would be the last peaceful one they'd have for awhile.
(Also it's really good to know that someone cared enough to ask, people don't always notice things like that, so.. idk it makes me really happy that someone cares)
(Ok. Well, I'm glad you're ok. Sorry to hear that things have been rough. … Yeah, I do notice when people change their names on the site, and sometimes I do worry about it.)
Gwen sighed a little as she entered the family tent. Jeim had been waiting for her and ran to hug her as soon as he saw her.
The former princess wasted no time in returning the embrace, holding him close. “It’s alright, Jeim. I'll be alright.” she said softly, assuring him… and herself.
(yeah.. thanks FanfictionFanatic, and it's good to hear I'm not the only one who worries about user changes sometimes)
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Sirus stood back at a distance, still wary of the small child despite the fact that his parents had been so kind to him.
(You’re welcome.)
“I’m gonna miss you, Gwen.” Jeim whispered, not wanting to let go of her.
Gwen smiled softly and kissed his forehead. “I’ll miss you too, little brother. But we all knew I was going to have to go.” she reminded him. “I just have to go sooner than we thought. It… It's for the best.”
Sirus kept his distance, but it was heartwarming to see the interaction between them, it reminded him of some stories from an elder wolf when he was a pup, the wolf was old and lonely, and he had never liked the Alpha's attitude. So he showed Sirus some amount of kindness that the rest of the pack never did simply to show his defiance to the Alpha who couldn't touch him. In any case the elder had mentioned once or twice that Sirus wasn't an only pup… it was always vague but it had made Sirus wonder what it would be like to have a sibling, perhaps someone who didn't hate him.
“I know.” Jeim whimpered softly, still holding her.
Corbin sat up slightly from his bed, watching the scene. He knew this would happen… Though he supported it could have been a lot worse. Had things happened traditionally with the tribe, he would be going with Gwen and his poor son would have twice the tears. “She has to go, Jeim. Things are not safe for her to stay at the time.” he explained gently. “Besides, she'll be able to protect herself and will be well protected as well.” he reminded the family, glancing up at Sirus.
Gwen chuckled softly at her mentor's words and nodded. “He’s right. The longer I stay right now, the more trouble I’ll bring to the tribe… and this family.” she affirmed, a little teary-eyed.
Sirus nodded when Corbin looked up at him, silently promising the older man that he wouldn't let anything happen to Gwen, not if he could help it.
"Gwen will be just fine" he said softly, "She's already strong in her own right, and I would imagine there would be consequences from quite a few parties if I allowed harm to reach her." he hummed a bit, "So of course, this wolf isn't going to let that happen, not while he's still breathing."
Corbin smiled gratefully at Sirus’s promise. “Just take care of her and bring her back as safely as you can. No one will expect more than that.” he assured the shifter.
“Bringing me back alive is preferable.” Gwen chuckled teasingly, though Jeim held her closer at that with another soft whine. “There are traditions for the tribe if… If someone doesn't make it through the trials.” she explained softly. She figured Sirus should know about that, even if no one wanted to talk about it.
(I swear I haven't forgotten about this and it's not dead, it's just… Really hard to write. Like anything at all. So as of right now I'm not on very much as I deal with some irl stuff and take a break from stressing over English stuff?)
(well, I'm glad to know that this isn't dead but I can understand needing a break. Also sorry to hear about your bad case of writer's block. Whenever you’re ready or able to come back to this, I’ll be here. Take care of yourself.)
(Hey! I'm back!
So sorry this took so long, things came up and I started a new hobby playing WoW and I now have a discord account (And I moved some of my RPs over there too cause it's actually easier to access)
Anyway, I'm trying my best to respond to some of the things that I actually want to keep going, and this is definitely one of them. :D)
(Also I'm pulling a bit of a time skip to the next morning when they're ready to head out if that's okay?)
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Sirus yawned a little, having gotten himself up early, his bag packed and ready for whenever Gwen awoke. Of course, he had also awoken before the sun had, the almost inexplicable sensation of shadows setting in disturbing his sleep the night before. The sunrise was almost over now, he figured Gwen should be awake soon, then he could focus on navigation rather than his thoughts.
(Yay! Welcome back!)
(Even though I've never played WoW I've heard how enjoyable it is, and I don't have a discord either so… Anyway, I'm glad you want to continue this with me. And yes, a time skip is fine.)
Gwen had had a difficult time trying to get enough sleep last night. Excitement and anticipation for this quest warred against each other almost constantly, a well as a little impatience. This would be a big step for her in the tribe but she had been wanting to go through with this for a long time. Just under different circumstances…
She sighed a little standing outside her tent, her bags already packed, as she looked around at all the tents and remembering the people who lived here who helped her prepare for this rite of passage.
Sirus looked up at her with a soft hum, "Ready to get going?" He asked, rising to his feet and hefting his packs up. "I figure we set out east for a few hours then take a closer look at that map of yours to figure out where we are headed."
Gwen jumped a little when she heard Sirus join her but nodded slightly, readjusting her bag. “That sounds like a good plan. I’m as ready for this as I can be.” she admitted with a slow breath. “Are you ready?”
"Ready as I'll ever be for something like this." he said with a hum, hefting his packs on and fastening the straps, "I'll be shifted for most of our journey, just so you know." he said with a hum, before shifting and landing on all fours, his packs secured just behind his shoulderblades and making his fur stick up weirdly in places.
Gwen nodded with a faint smile as he echoed her sentiment. Though it was probably for different reasons than her own. “That’s fine. If you're more comfortable traveling like that…” she shrugged, unbothered by his shift. Though she almost chuckled at the way his bag messed up his fur before she started walking towards the East.