New Responsibilities [Aspen and Ketchup]

[Juice]

The basin was completely covered in snow and Ilana trudged through it, not even aware of how cold and damp she was getting. It had been awhile now since the fighting in the amphitheater had broken out and Ilana knew it was high time she went over responsibilities and duties with her new betas. The alphess would have done so sooner but she had a lot on her mind lately, in particular her children. She had no idea where Anneliese was and wasn't exactly worried but suspicious as to what she was up to. The oldest pup of her brood, Ilana knew Anneliese to be conniving and dangerous. She also had no idea where Cress had gone off to but she supposed he was still sulking from the beat down and loss of his eye he'd suffered at the jaws of Portia last spring. Speaking of Portia, she had healed completely from her fight from Storm the only thing that hinted she'd been in a fight was her right ear which was torn directly down the middle. Ilana believed her daughter had gotten off easy with only the gauges and ear splitting and told her so but Portia still seemed to harbor some ill feelings towards Storm. As for Jaavan...she had been avoiding the rest of the pack like a plague. Ilana was curious but also assumed it was just the behavior of a wolf her age. Still she made note to investigate further after finishing up with the Betas.

Finally Ilana made it to the den she shared with Rhett which was right in the middle of the Basin which meant she could see everything from its entrance. She shook out her fur and took a seat on the inside allowing some of the snow to melt into her fur. Her black and white coat had thickened for the winter as did her tail which was now so bushy it almost looked like a second wolf. She scanned the basin with her purple eyes to see if there was any sign of Storm or Bane but she saw none, in fact she didn't really see any wolves out and about probably because it was so cold. The alphess lifted her head to the skies and howled for her new betas.

@aspen
CursedErin

[Deleted]

Bane

I had been eating a leg of ram that I had dug up from one of many of the pack's food stores when my black ears caught the sound of a howl. It wasn't far off and I recognized the tone of Alphess Ilana. I assumed she was alerting me to some new Beta business but I didn't bother thinking about it as I'd soon find out. I quickly swallowed the last of the ram meat and loped off towards the Basin at the edge of the meadow where all the dens were. Finally I trotted towards the den in which Ilana was situated. Bowing low out of respect, I sat down in front of her and said "Greetings Alphess, you are looking well today." and waited for a response.

A Streak Of Silver

[CursedErin]

Storm had finally managed to heal up, for the most part, with the strange juice that White Magic had given her. She stretched the leg out and cracked it a few times in the process, smirking back at it. It wasn't long before she heard Ilana's howl. "Feh. Now's a good a time as ever to see what I can do on the damn leg." she said to herself as she took another swig of the liquid. Storm lowered herself a bit and then took off, running towards Ilana's howl. The snow slowed her down a bit, but she didn't plan on going full speed any ways with her leg only recently healed. However, it held up well as she made her way towards Ilana's den.

"Hmph. Not too bad." she said back to her leg before letting herself in. Upon entering, she looked at Bane and laughed a bit, "So that little whelp lost, eh?" she smirked before sitting herself down back on her haunches."Or is he dead?" she asked with an ominous smirk. "Also before I forget, should probably say, Good day Ilana." she said, not taking her eyes of Bane.

[Juice]

Ilana nodded to Bane in recognition once he arrived, noting his respectful behavior. He would do well in his newly earned position. It wasn't long before Storm showed up, loping through the snow and Ilana was glad to see her leg hadn't been completely decimated. She couldn't have her betas walking around limp legged. Ilana only watched Storm as she arrived and spoke to she and Bane. Once the black, scarred wolf sat down, Ilana swiftly and efficiently nipped her scruff and pushed her down slightly, only enough to make her crouch. Ilana then sat back down, totally composed as if nothing had happened. "You will bow and look at me when I speak to you." she said sternly to Storm, allowing this infraction just this once as she assumed Storm had never been in a position of power within a pack before.

The alphess stood up and held her tail high. "As I'm sure you could have guessed, I've called you here because we need to go over your new duties as Betas. You are now under the direction of myself and Rhett..." Ilana briefly wondered where her useless mate had gone off to but didn't dwell on it long. She rarely thought of him these days. "As betas it is now your job to keep the subordinates in check if they are misbehaving and I'm not around to correct their behavior. You will also be assigned border patrol on a regular basis as we don't currently have any sentinel wolves. While doing border patrol you need to keep a look out for any strange wolves and alert me to their presence should they appear. If a wolf shows up wishing to join with us, I trust you both enough to make that judgement. However, if you do accept a new pack member I need to be informed as soon as possible." Ilana paused for a moment to look at the two wolves, telling them with her eyes to hold questions for the time being.

"Raid is currently my only scout so you will need to work closely with him. I know he may seem foolish or cowardly at times because, quite frankly, he is, but he is also excellent at gathering intel and very fleet footed. He has actually alerted me to a new pack that has moved into our old territory at Longrass. From what he has gathered, they are neutral wolves led by a pair of snow white wolves. They are small and just starting their pack but I believe they can be an asset if we ally with them. Frigid Plague and Honovi are long standing allies and should they ever attack us for our land, we need to be ready. For this reason, I will be heading out soon to meet with the alphas and request an alliance. Bane, I will have you come with me should anything go wrong. Storm I will need you to lead the pack during my absence. No wolf will question your authority and if they do you have permission to punish them accordingly." Ilana trotted over closer to Storm. "If you can avoid it, don't kill my subordinates." Ilana said with a cruel smile.

"The last thing I want to discuss with you two are my pups. As you are aware, Rhett and I are the parents of Anneliese, Cress, Portia and Jaavan. My pups are arrogant and selfish due to their poor upbringing by their father." Ilana failed to mention it was just as much her own fault as Rhett's that her pups were spoiled. "For this reason they are mouthy and act entitled. Do not misunderstand me - my pups are the future of this pack and must therefore be treated with respect but should they ever deeply disrespect either of you, you may defend yourselves. However, know that I do not take kindly to wolves who harm my children. That being said, you must also be respectful and helpful to my pups if they request it. This is to remain between the two of you, but once I expire it is Portia who will secede me in taking the position of Alpha. She is capable, intelligent, quick and an excellent fighter and leader but she is still learning." Finally Ilana finished her speech and glanced at her betas before asking "Do you have any questions?"

[Deleted]

Bane

I was about to say something in response to Storm's comment when she was swiftly reprimanded by Ilana. I made a note to watch my behavior around our alphess lest I wanted to be harmed. Its not like I didn't know Ilana was temperamental, I had been with her since the pack's conception. I sat silently and listened to her speak and took in her information. Everything she said was what I had expected and there were no surprises. I was glad I was going to be able to go out to this new pack with her to ally with new wolves but I wondered how Tye would fare on his own. The pup was old enough now to be alone but...well it didn't matter he'd have to be on his own at some point. "I have no questions Ilana." I said, bowing my head respectfully.

A Streak Of Silver

[CursedErin]

Storm didn't seem to react too much when Ilana forced her to bow down before her, in fact, the beta sort of smirked as she watched Ilana move back and take her own seated position. The battle scarred wolf sighed and slowly sat herself down as well on her haunches, listening to what the alhpess had to say. As Ilana mentioned a new pack, Storm became peculiar, but knew she would probably be left to watch the pack, never much of a wolf to take out and socialize or make friends and allies. The larger female nodded her head to Ilana, "I'll try my hardest, but no promises that there won't be a few injuries." she replied to Ilana.

The beta female wanted to laugh a bit as Ilana spoke of her mate in such a bad way, but that was none of her business, Storm wasn't planning on coming between the pair anyways. As Portia's name was spoken, Storm's heart started to race and wicked smirk crossed her muzzle. "I look forward to meeting Portia again, before, or after, she becomes the alphess, but of course she has a long while to go before you're gone." the beta said, "And no, I have no questions Ilana." she added.

[Juice]

Ilana seemed to be lost in her own thoughts for a moment but quickly snapped back to attention when her betas began speaking to her. The black and white she wolf nodded in response to Bane's comment and then turned to look at Storm. "Use your best judgement." Ilana said with a smile but she was confident Storm would take good care of the pack during her absence. Besides, if anything went too horribly wrong there was always Rhett to fall back on if he was even around. "We should be back soon Storm, if we don't return in a timely manner send Raid for us." Ilana then stood up, stretched and shook out her fur. She was ready for the trek to the new territory. "Alright Bane, lets get going." and with that the she wolf sprinted out of her territory and off to her old home.

-Exit Ilana-

[CursedErin]

-Exit Storm, not going to bother to do a post, sorry for laziness-