The lights are so beautiful.

[Eastern]

The lights are so beautiful.

Time: The sun has set, and thousands of stars light up the sky.
Weather: It's freezing, made worse by the wind that stirs up the snow and sends it in all directions.
Location: The summit of the mountain. The snow has not melted up here yet. The constant melting and refreeze of the snow made it hard and icy. the conditions are dangerous.


Reverend smiled up at the millions of twinkling lights over head. He had left his new pack some time back, all of their emotions broke into his defenses and he got a huge migraine. He was not yet used to being around some many people yet, nor was he used to blocking out emotions for any length of time. He took deep breaths of the cool air, clearing his senses. The ice below him burned his paws, his legs were numb with the cold and he was shivering but he didn't move, enjoying the stars. He wondered what they were, and why they couldn't be seen when the sun was out.
There was no living creature with him up here in the freezing air. He was finally able to relax. He knew now that it was the right choice to stay in the mountains were not many creatures roamed. But was it such a great idea to become a beta in a pack?

[Lanie]

Aksha remembered the way that she'd first come, to the mountaintop. It may have been foolish to risk the trip alone, but her memory was one thing that hadn't failed her.
She simply walked, as she had when she first entered the lands. She walked without caring where she was going, and knowing that when she 'woke up' so to speak she would not be in some strange land.
She shivered from a mixture of the cold and the wind, before looking about. She was completely calm, at ease, almost as if the cold could not touch her and the danger meant nothing. For the first time in - Weeks? Months? Years? - she was not hungry or tired. She felt safe.
She saw the carpet that was night, and each snowflake that was a star. But looking up at the summit, only yards away, she saw a wolf-shaped blob of darkness silhouetted against the sky.
Drawing closer on the smooth, rock-hard ice, she saw that she was not alone. She was surprised that someone else would be up here, at this hour, alone, but it wasn't necessarily a good thing or a bad thing. Simply...unexpected.

Aksha halted, knowing that she could probably withdraw without him noticing her. And knowing that it probably would've been safest. But her paws had brought her there for a reason, whether she realized it or not.
"It's a beautiful night," she called out quietly, the night seeming to swallow up her voice. She wasn't sure if her presence would be welcomed or scorned, but she supposed she had as much a right to be up there as he. Not that she didn't respect the beta, but she felt like she'd been reborn. Risks were part of life, she supposed.

[Eastern]

Reverend turned his head slowly, almost reluctantly, wanting to keep his eyes on the stars. Or was it that he suddenly felt a heavy weight on his heart at the appearance of a pack mate?
He didn't say anything, only watched Aksha. He wondered if he could be himself, or if he should try to act all refined as a beta should be. But honestly he was too tired, and too cold to try to act like a beta. In fact, he didn't even know how a beta would act. He supposed that he wouldn't be able to be a friend to them, to her. He would have to have an objective view about them all, wouldn't he? So friendship was out of the question. That idea made him sad, lonely, and very tired. Suddenly he looked much older, seeming to have aged years within the moments that it took him to think that.
He had paused way to long, and he was still looking intently at Aksha. He knew his eyes were sad, and she shouldn't be seeing him like this but he was just to tired to care. His muscles to tensed and sore, his paws to numb. Too many excuses. He wondered if maybe he wanted her to sit down beside him and ask him whats wrong.

He was still staring. How much time had passed? Was it only seconds, or had the minutes ticked by with him just staring at her with eyes that said that he was suffering.
What had she said? He couldn't remember. The wind picked up suddenly, and beat against his pelt, whipping it every which way, He laid his ears back to protect them from the wind, drew his head into his chest.
"What are you doing all the way up here? It's dangerous, not to mention...." He trailed off, the wind filling his silence with low moaning. He didn't need to warn her, she was a grown lady she could handle herself. So he sat in silence not talking, he finally remembered what she had said, before he had started acting like a total freak. 'She told me that night was beautiful.' He thought sourly. 'Was it so hard to agree? I didn't have to just stare at her like that.' He didn't reply to her, it was to late anyway.
He had been sitting for a while, and it seemed his muscles had frozen in that position. The wind stopped as suddenly as it started, leaving the world more then a little ruffled.
Reverend took a deep breath, the cold air burned his throat, and made his eyes water, his head cleared. He buried his insecurities deep inside, and by the time he looked back at Aksha, his eyes were dull, his kind smile was just alittle to wide. The suffering locked somewhere away out of sight, but not out of mind. His duty was to his pack. They came first, and himself second. For now he had to put on a brave face, and pretend.
"Sorry Aksha, caught me at a bad time." He smile softened a touch, and looked less forced, but more tired. "Would you like to sit and watch the stars with me?"
He was embarrassed at the weakness he had shown her, but there was nothing he could do about it now. Just hope that she wouldn't bring it up. He wondered why he had allowed himself to show her that, he could have turned away, he could have sent her away. He could have done anything, anything would have been better then just staring at he with tortured eyes. He had reached out to her, and pulled away before she had even had the time to react.

[Lanie]

She watched him for a moment, but her eyes flicked up to the stars after a moment as if she wasn't expecting an answer. The time that was spent was lost to her, as well, and after another moment her eyes closed. The stars were beautiful, too much to see with simple eyes, nor to express with mere words.

When she opened her eyes again, Reverend was still there. Still watching. But he looked different, as if he'd suddenly become someone else. She certainly understood that.
The wind rose and he spoke, trailing off to something that she couldn't reply to. She didn't know why, she simply couldn't. It wasn't in her heart.
She heard him speak again, and she thought for a fair moment. For awhile she wasn't sure if she'd respond, but she stepped forwards again. She nodded, moving slowly. Cautiously. Cautious because of the ice, but slowly because of...something else.

She stepped up beside him, her ears swivelling as if she'd heard something in the silence. Silly, though; how could she? Nothing was there, nothing past her and Reverend.
She wanted to stand there forever, in the limbo of the contented state she was in. But she broke it with an almost silent speech.
"Most wolves look to the earth, when they can see all of it," she said, looking down herself. She could see all of it, she supposed; the darkness did little to hinder the wonders of Kouhai. The trees, far away, hushed in a blanket of wind and rain. The plains, closer but just as distant, crinkling like a wildfire without the light or the danger. Beyond them all, in the other direction, the empty loner lands stretched on and on. "But you look at the sky."
She tilted her head to look at the stars, stretching into oblivion. Farther then the plains, the forest, and the wastelands put together. "'Tis the mark of a wise wolf," she said, smiling. "You see more then others. What is it that you see, that makes you continue to look?"
She turned to look at him, for but a moment. Then her head turned again and she sighed, the sound lost in the howls of the wind.

[Eastern]

Reverend turned his storm cloud eyes to the dark heavens above. The stars reflected in his eyes, he looked beyond them, into the dark void that was space. He closed his eyes slowly, letting Aksha's words wash over him, and uncoil the tight knot that had formed in his stomach since she had first appeared. How had she said the one thing that could have made him feel better? He didn’t know what to say to her, she seemed to have the effect on him.
He opened his eyes again, and turned them on her. He wanted to say something witty, something that would impress her, and prove that he was wise like she had said. He smiled at his want to impress her, why would he need to do that?
“I see the sea of dark that the stars are submerged in, and I can’t help but to wonder how they survive to shine...” Oh yeah, very witty. He shrugged, self-conscious of his answer, knowing that it probably wasn’t as nearly as cool as she had hoped it would be. “It’s just that, I get strength from that. The billions of stars still aren’t enough to block the darkness, but they still shine, not fazed by the overpowering dark. I look up there and I want to be like a star…and stay strong when surrounded by nothing but the cold and shadows.” He smiled sheepishly. “A silly thing to say I know, but I’m always filled with anger, or rage or jealousy, y’know? Not mine, mind you, but I feel it all the same. It tires me, and I lose the will to get up in the mornings because I know what I have to face, and that it won’t be pretty. The world is a cruel place, maybe more then you know, maybe not, but I have to feel what the world wants to keep hidden. And trust me, it wants to keep it hidden for a reason. So every night I look up and seek guidance in the stars since they are always there and unwavering.”
He stared up at the sky, not looking at Aksha, afraid of what she thought of him. It didn’t cross his mind to taste her emotions; he is that kind of a guy. He thought about his rank over her, and wondered if it was okay to talk so frankly with her, to let her see inside his head. “Or maybe I look up at the stars simply because its so beautiful, and I'm tired of the ugliness I see down here.” His eyes widden, realizing that his words could be taken another way. He looked over at Aksha, back-peddling wildly. "I mean--I don't think that you are--You're also really--" He just stopped, and sighed. Smooth.

[Lanie]

Aksha listened, before closing her eyes. "Aksaha Spiritus means Unbroken Spirit," she said, her head tilting towards the sky. As if she could see the stars from behind her eyelids. "It was not always my name, but it might as well have been. When I was two, I was given that name and then run out of my pack. And it really did break me."
She smiled. Why'd she kept the name? She supposed that it really had been her home, and they had been her family. It was...out of respect. "But with a break comes a healing, before it can be broken again. Every night when I was on my own, in unfamiliar territory, I thought of all the desperation in the situation. And I would look up at the stars and wonder, how could anyone despair when they see the night sky?"
Her smile faded to a look of remembrance, and she blinked once. "So when I see the stars, I think of every night I was alone, and I think of how things always turn out."
She actually laughed, a low chuckle from somewhere within her throat. "I mean, here we both are on the top of a mountain, looking up at the sky and down on one of the most beautiful places I've ever seen. Is that chance?"

She sighed, shifting her eyes to him. She paused for a minute, opening her mouth several times to speak but disregarding the opportunity. "I can't imagine what it's like, feeling what everyone around you is feeling. I suppose it's strange, I always thought that being alone was the worst fate to be brought upon a wolf. But for you..."
She leaned back on her hind legs, her eyes troubled. "I suppose being alone is a blessing."

[Eastern]

Reverend barked out a humorless laugh. "In theory." He said softly, his eyes downcast. "It would be a blessing if I was the loner type. The type to forget family, and companions,, one who loves to be alone." He paused. "But that's not me. I love the pack life; having friends that will be with you through thick and thin. To know when you wake up, you won't be alone." He smiled over at Aksha, remembering that she is one of those people that will be there. But his smile faded, and he continued speaking. "So when I'm alone I don’t feel relief like I should, I feel…well lonely. I know that as soon as I’m not alone, I’ll be wishing I was, and when I am alone I’ll be wishing I wasn’t. It’s a vicious and unending cycle.” He gritted his teeth, suddenly very frustrated. He laid his ears back, and shuddered. “I really do hate what I am, y’know? What gives me the right to look into the hearts of those around me, and see what they want to keep hidden? It’s not right, nor fair to them. So along with not being able to stay around others, I know it isn’t right. I should stay away from them, to protect their secrets.”
He sighed, looking back to the sky. “So, it really isn’t fair to you, or anybody for that matter, to be part of a pack, but I really didn’t want to let Tamyran down…” He thought about asking Aksha what she thought he should do, but that would be fair to her. It wasn’t her problem; he shouldn’t be bothering her about it. He had already said too much. “I’m sorry to bump all my problems on you.”

[Lanie]

Aksha actually laughed, a sound that simply leapt out of her mouth. It was of surprise, but with a pleasant ring to it. "I was just about to say that I felt guilty, for being here. I suppose we always feel guilty for things that aren't our fault, and yet we never know what we really have an affect on others."
She smiled. "It's funny, because when I thought of your powers I didn't feel concerned with being...invaded, privacy-wise. I suppose I thought that it would be more of a burden to you, and that you would want to be alone."
Aksha shrugged. "I suppose that could be just me, though," she said. "I really don't feel like I have...much to hide, y'know? Wolves are social creatures. We aren't meant to be alone. We may think we want to be, but...when we are...I guess all we want is a family."
She laid down, looking straight ahead at the horizon - in this case, the distant side of the other mountains. Her eyes twinkled with the reflections of the stars, and another sigh escaped her. "Where's this place been, all my life?" she asked, rather rhetorically. She laughed again, a soft chuckle.

[Eastern]

Reverend bit back the corny reply that popped into his head. After some heitation he went and laid down beside Aksha. He left room in between them, but he felt warmer by her side. "Probably waiting for you." He said softly, putting his head on his paws. He felt stupid for his remark and decided to adress what she had said earlier. "Dont feel guilty for being here. Actually it has helped me alot." He faced her and flashed one of his kind smiles, but this one was different. A smile just for her. "Thank you."

[Lanie]

She smiled, looking over at him. "Thank you, too," she said, "and you're welcome." She sighed, the deep sound seeming to resonate everywhere at once. Kouhai really was its own world, she thought. New things came in and out, but it could simply endure without any interference. It spelled out its own society, with or without wolves.
She stretched out, blinking heavily. Suddenly, she was so...tired. Not sleepy, just weary. As if she'd walked a mile through a tar pit. "Do you suppose there are other places like this?" she asked, closing her eyes for a moment. She mimicked his position, head between her paws. "Tucked away in the remote corners of the world, simply undiscovered?"

[Eastern]

She was so close, Reverend wanted so badly to close the sliver of space between their bodies. He thought up excuses to do so, the most obvious being that it was cold, and they needed to keep warm. But he dismissed this idea quickly, thinking it was inappropriate, and that she probably felt nothing toward other then friendship.

"If there are other places out there, it would make this place less special don't you think? I like to think of this place as a pocket of sanity in a crazy world." He smiled. "Or maybe I'm just being selfish."
He sneezed suddenly, curling in upon himself, knocking into Aksha.
"Ugh. Sorry." He said, his voice nasally. "I don't know where that came from." He offered a sweet smile. He looked over at her.
"So uh. How'd you end up here? It isn't the easiest of places to find."

[Lanie]

Aksha stretched out for a moment before returning to her normal position, half-opening her eyes. "You're right," she said, nodding slightly. "It is...special. I mean, maybe it's a pocket of insanity instead. Who knows?"
She looked at him, srugging one shoulder up and the other down. "I walked," she said, smiling slightly. "I don't really remember, I guess. I mean, I guess I didn't really care where I was going. I couldn't tell you what path I took if I tried."
She narrowed her eyes slightly, wrinkling her nose. "I can't really remember a lot of my life, anymore. Not that there's much to remember. For the last few days, before you and Tamyran found me, I guess I was just walking."
She tucked her paws beneath her, turning her head to rest it and look at him. "What about you?"

[Eastern]

Reverend cocked his head, thinking. "Hmm, I think that I came in with Tamyran." He shrugged. "Well the life before this place doesnt matter, it feels like everyone gets a clean slate when you pass into the mountain." He chuckled at the thought. "Perhaps thats why I dont feel guilty anymore." The days ran together in a blur of meaningless imagines of frosty rocks, and blistering cold. He doesn't even know how long he has been in kouhai.
"Hmm. Unbroken Spirit." He said suddenly, chaning the subject. He shifted his gaze to her. "It suits you." He said smiling. Although he hadn't known her long, he felt that it was right.
"So this spirit of your's....Tell me about it." He flushed, not meaning to sound demanding. "I mean, that is, if you want."

[Lanie]

She smiled, shifting her weight to her hind quarters. For an instant, it looked like she might spring up and simply jump over the mountainside. "I suppose it's been nothing but trouble," she said dryly, chuckling. "It's always stopped me from, shall we say, socializing. Strange, how everyone here has powers, and yet I've never met another wolf who did." She looked at him, eyes glimmering with meaning for a split-second, but continued quickly enough. "It's basically just like a shadow, but you can see it the same way from every angle. When it comes out, it can move in any direction - forward, back, up, down - in the blink of an eye. Whenever I use it, my physical form is just...still. Not moving, at all. Looks like I'm dead, honestly."
She shivered slightly, solely from the cold. "I used it a lot more often on the road, by myself. It was always just easier to figure out where to go if I was up in the air." She shrugged, not wanting to admit - and not completely knowing - that it sometimes seemed to want to come out, by itself.

[Eastern]

Reverend nodded, in thought. "Yeah, I was surprised when I found out that Tamyran was a kindred spirit, and had unique abilities, like me. I finally didn't feel alone anymore...And now, there are others here, with power. It's just so relieving, don't you think?" He sighed, his breath clearly seen in the cold weather rose up before him. He saw her shivering, and wanted to go warm her but didn't. He smirk. "But then there is the whole lifting-objects-with-my-mind thing. I can't control it, it's very worrisome." He said with an amused tone. "What if I hand accidently..." He trailed of and flicked Aksha's tail up, with up moving. His eyes dancing with merriment. He then lifted her front paws up off the ground a few inches, and let them go. He laughed dancing back a few steps.