The tiniest, hint of a smile graced Eira's maw when Enigma had been punished by Leviathan. Good, that's what you get for laughing at Kyomi. That's what you deserve. A moment of pride seeped through her when her eyes upon the leader himself. He must have read her very mind. Surely that was why he punished Enigma. Well, it could also have been simply because she disobeyed his orders, but she chose to believe the latter. Regardless, Eira wanted to scream out a large thank you! Then again, that would seem odd, wouldn't it?

As if things couldn't get any better, her ears turned, having picked up the sound of Takara, yes, Takara, turning down Akousa! At that very moment, she adored, no, loved Casek for having asked Takara to dine with him earlier. Her eyes landed upon the male himself as they practically shone with gratitude. Oh, how everything was turning out! She could see it now! Kyomi and Kallik, followed by Takara and Casek! It would be wonderful! And Akousa? Well, he'd be all alone until he figured out how to act properly. In the meantime, he could hang around the pup that had arrived. Eira figured that they'd be similar in terms of mental age.

Speaking of him, Eira saw this as a chance.. an opportunity. A smug, conniving smile grew on her face as her amber eyes flickered onto him. "Perhaps next time, Akousa," she said, her tone laced with fakeness before she turned, her smile remaining until Leviathan began to call out orders. One point for Eira. Oh, she had won! Even Akousa had to agree, and the thought made her tail flick an inch, holding back a wag.

Then, she stiffened.

Leviathan had begun to call out orders.

"Takara, Cyre, and Kyomi, take the pup to one of the dens, keep him safe."

Good. At least her sister and best friend would be safe, as would Cyre, who was practically her mother figure. That was all that mattered to her.

"Eira, Kallik, Enigma, and Akousa, you all come with me."

Wonderful! Eira was thrilled to have been chosen. Granted, she never did enjoy a physical fight, but the fact that Koa was in trouble only meant that there were enemies, and Eira had no sympathy for those that harmed her pack. A determined look crossed her face, her head raising as she prepared to move, nudging Akousa in the process as he made his way forwards. If whatever was attacking Koa showed no mercy, than why should she? He wouldn't have howled, not if he weren't truly in trouble, as in a life and death situation.

Eira paused, fixated on the pup for a brief moment. He would be in good hands. He had the three most wonderful wolves caring for him. Takara, Kyomi, and Cyre would know what to do, and so Eira turned away, eyeing the already departed group. Glancing behind her for a brief moment to nod a silent goodbye, Eira turned, propelling herself forwards.

Legs moving in a blur, she had strained to catch up to her group, positioning herself near the front. Perhaps an inch or two ahead of Akousa, simply to spite him. How could she resist?

Head lowered, Eira ran, dodging shrubbery and weaving through trees. It was as if she were in her natural element the way she moved. She was so familiar with the territory, she could probably close her eyes and navigate it. However, what she wasn't familiar with was having seen wolves in the distance. Not singular, but plural. To be exact, there were four. Four wolves against Koa and Ronin. How unfair was that? And.. And.. No! There weren't four wolves, but seven! Had Koa and Ronin been fighting them off all along? No, it couldn't be. Some didn't even have scrapes upon them, which made her conclude that reinforcements were called.

The least they could have done was fight fairly.

And the disrespect! How dare wolves trespass, only to attack her packmates. Was there no common decency nowadays? No kindness? The audacity! Eira was truly surprised, and look at the state that Koa and Ronin were in! The mere thought alone caused a deep, spiraling anger to spark within her.

"Look, they're trying to kill him!" She suddenly gasped, watching a wolf bite into Koa's shoulders and chest. Well, at least she knew her first target. Eyes locked, shoulders tensed, and lips peeling back, Eira surged forwards.

"Fight fairly, you treacherous imbeciles!"

Without waiting for a command, she sprinted past the others, her body crashing against the wolf standing upon Koa.

Enigma did not get very far when approaching the pup that had made it's dramatic entrance into the camp. Leviathan snarled at her attempting to remind her that he was in charge. Yeah, don't worry, I didn't forget. She rolled her eyes, but stayed back a ways from the pup. Enigma loved taking risks. It would get her adrenaline rushing through her veins giving her a feeling of invigoration and excitement. However, her weakness was putting others in danger when situations like this very one came up.

Enigma watched Lev evaluated whether or not the pup was a danger. He called for some pack members to take care of the little fluff ball and to keep him safe. "Oh joy. Another mouth to feed." She let out a sign and sat down to observe the sudden rush to take action. Enigma hadn't considered that the pup was actually alone. If it's alone, that must mean more wolves are nearby. Strangers. Its mother? Her thoughts where rudely interrupted by Lev's call to go with him to the Eastern border. "Really? Right now?" She groaned as she got up and reluctantly followed Lev into the forest. "We might be walking to our deaths." She mumbled in a depressed tone as she padded softly with the group of wolves that had been called.

Enigma stayed towards the back of the pack, as usual. Lev called all her least favorite pack members to go fight off whatever they were headed into. Akousa looked ridiculously anxious to lead this mission of death (as Enigma saw it). Eira seemed to desperately want to impress Akousa that she was barely a step ahead of him. And Kallik…was just Kallik. Enigma forgot why she didn't like him. I'll think of a reason.

When they came upon the commotion, Enigma stopped in her tracks. She was confused. Baffled. Puzzled. All the words to describe how dumbfounded she was at the scene before her. "What a mess." She said as she awaited instructions from Lev. Before she could make another sarcastic or snarky comment, Enigma was shocked to see Eira leap to defend Koa.

"Eira what are you doing? You're gonna yourself killed." She yelled after her as she started circling the wolf pile before her. "Ya gotta approach it a certain way." She said to herself. Not sure how, but I mean this can be resolved, right?

Cyre || Female || 16 || Elder || M: *Inhales deeply*

Takara, Eira, Kyomi, Akousa, Leviathan, Orion, Kallik, Casek, Enigma, Athena

Cyre beamed as Eira compared her to the party itself. Ah, what a lovely creature. She ruffed a thanks and stretched out a little more, eyes narrowing happily as a patch of shade moved enough for the sun to touch her face. Eira's response to Akousa brought a short chuckle and a "Go easy on him, dearest" before she smiled encouragingly at the brute. His save and relative level-headedness when returning the female's question earned a nod of approval from the old sentry.

"Casek!" she greeted, returning the nudge, also given to his paw. She was in no mood to move from her nice, sunny spot to poke his shoulder. Cyre couldn't stand that high, anyway; at least, not any more. Back in her day -- well, her day didn't matter anymore. Now she was focused on the current. Keeping her adopted children together.

The ancient wolf poofed up a little at Casek's compliment and returned it with, "Oh, my, well you are looking quite fetching today yourself!" - and, in a lower voice, "I am still alive and kicking, so I would say I am doing just swell."

The graying animal dipped her head to Kyomi in silent acknowledgement as she snuck away, knowing full well the pressure of being in a crowd. When she had retired from her sentry duties, the first few months had been spent in solitude. Going from having a partner to being alone in a pack full of wolves she had rarely spoken to was a hard transition and, while it was not the case for the light brown and golden female, Cyre guessed the feeling was very similar.

A very small pup chose a few moments later to make an utterly dramatic entrance. Immediately, the elder knew something was wrong, and the tiny creature's words confirmed it.

Ronin and Koa.

They need help.

With the strength from her younger years, the wolf was on all four paws, standing straighter than she had in nearly a decade and eyes on fire. Concern was intermingled with fury and the frustration that came with being too weak to help the sentries she had watched grow. She watched her fellow elder, Athena, approach the puppy along with Leviathan. Orders were sent out and wolves scrambled as the tension over rightful heirs was replaced for fear of the lives of their packmates. Finally.

At Leviathan's call, Cyre moved forward with a swiftness and ease that surprised even herself. She did, however, decide to let one of the younger dames pick up the poor creature. As wolves evacuated to go to the aid of the Eastern sentries, Cyre moved to the den where the pup lay and stationed herself outside it. The area around her became desolate. So silent, so eerie.

She heard slight movement in the cave and entered, eyes softening as they fixed upon Orion. Cyre released a low yip to let him know she was there, then said, "Alright. Listen to me, little one. You are safe here, understood? No wolf here will harm you or I will tan their hides."

She slowly moved forward and eased herself down next to him, resting her chin on her paws to get closer to his level and placed her tail behind the pup. "We will protect you, no matter what."

Larkspur || Female || 5 || Pack Member || M: Chocktaw, Cadmus, Hades, Lev, Others (Ind)

Her thoughts were interrupted by a pup crashing recklessly through the bracken. His pleas for help followed by a fainting episode sent a cold wave of foreboding through the female's body, and she was on her paws just a little slower than Cyre. Her eyes found Leviathan and she moved forward, waiting for the orders that were sure to come.

As she had predicted, the alpha parted his jaws and took authority. The moment her name was mentioned, the light female tensed and prepared to execute whatever order she received. Hers happened to be alerting her brother and Cadmus.

"On it," she said quickly, darting off without a second glance back. Koa's howl had found her, increasing the ice in her spine as she moved through the trees and underbrush as fast as she was able to without causing too much of a ruckus. Of course, right now, a commotion in the woods and scared off prey were the least of her worries.

Her paws moved against the earth with a rhythmic thrumming and a few birds sounded alarm calls around her, taking off from the forest floor and the lower bushes. Larkspur ignored them. She whipped through the territory as fast as she could, resisting the urge to take a moment to breathe. Breathing was for wimps. Right now, Koa and Ronin were in trouble -- maybe dead -- and half the pack was left relatively exposed at camp. The sooner the skirmish was over, the sooner everyone would be able to return home. Safely.

In the distance, she could see two wolves. Three? Larkspur inhaled sharply through the nose and nodded to herself as she caught Hades's scent. Well, three was better than two. She spurred herself into a faster pace and ignored the lower hanging twigs that smacked at her legs, chest, and face.

Caution was thrown to the wind. They were under attack. There was no time to dilly dally.

Chocktaw || Male || 5 || Sentry || M: Kyomi (ind), Cadmus, Hades, Larkspur, Others (ind)

"I... Well, yes, I fancy Kyomi. It's not so simple, though, being a sentry. I'm forbidden a mate. The pack comes before the individual and I swore to defend that oath," he told Hades slowly, his low voice coming out more calm than he felt. He wasn't angry, no, just taken by surprise. Chocktaw hated being taken by surprise.

His eyes shifted to Cadmus, then back to the newcomer. "I don't want to throw my duties aside just for one wolf who might not even share feelings. I barely see her, after all."

Chocktaw gave a half shrug and tilted his head to listen to the second question. "Nothing besides two magpies fighting over a scrap of bone out yonder. The wind is blowing into us, but I haven't even scented another wolf -- or any potential threat -- in-"

He broke off and quickly turned around, hackles raising. Distant crashing through the bracken on the pack's side of the border reached his ears and he warned, "Cadmus."

The dark wolf narrowed his eyes and, while still in the shadows, stood and poked his head out from behind the tree only to find the distant form of -"Larkspur? She's never this loud; she's a hunter."

Annoyance at his sister turned to concern, then to an emotion he couldn't quite comprehend. Fear? No, he wasn't scared, but his heart was pounding and his adrenaline had spiked.

Dread.

Perhaps a minute later, his sister skidded to a halt beside them, eyes a frenzy and burning with bloodlust. Dear ancestors, Choctaw thought. We're gonna die.

"Koa and Ronin are tied up at the border. Leviathan says to be wary. Keep watch; you may be needed to cover both. I'm going back to camp now," his sister panted before turning tail and running off once again.

Now thoroughly unsettled, and with all thoughts of puppy love abandoned, Choctaw stared off into the opening beyond the border and set his jaw. "Do you think they'll end up needing us over there?"