This is Home [Livid/open]

Aoife

February 310

Aoife glanced back to make sure that Livid was following her. She was bringing a new member to the pack. Someone that she had recruited. However, she used what the pack had been before Nicolas became power-mad. Before he made it so that the use of powers was punishable. And she didn't know it, but he was an Esper who was using his powers so completely that he bent the wills of some of the dogs. And that was why he was now sick. Almost dying. Aoife told herself that she didn't worry herself in political matters. All she knew was that she was living in her pack and the times were not as great as they once were and it was the Alpha's fault.

"Hurry up, Livid!" She wove her path through the trees. Pausing periodically to give Livid chance to catch up. Soon, the Tibetan mastiff would know her way through the forest and know how to reach the places that the pack chose to settle in. They moved from time to time, but kept the Timberland as their main base.  The forest opened up into a clearing. There were dens dug into the root systems of the old trees. Iris emerged as soon as she caught her sister's scent.

The other terrier mix had a short, close coat. She was a different shade of red-gold, easily described as copper. And she stood a few inches taller than Aoife. However, it was undeniable that they were sisters. They had the same build. The same dark eyes. The same smile. "There you are Eefs! I've been worried sick!" Iris said. Her relationship to her sister was two parts mother to one part sister. She had raised her from the time she was a dark, formless pup who couldn't see or hear, only cry for food. And Iris had been thrown into it. Her eyes widened when she saw the mastiff.

Aoife grinned. "I made a friend."

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Livid

Livid

You didn't have to look my way. Your eyes still haunt me to this day. But you did. Yes, you did.

Livid marched through the woods following her friend. "So, what are we doing? Where are we going?" She spotted another terrier and looked confused when she started to speak. "Hey Aoife, who is that?" Her voice lowered and her tail went straight out behind her. Her ears laid flat and her head tilted lightly to side in a curious manner. She let her eyes get a little wide with wonder before slowly bringing herself back. She couldn't wait to meet her new pack mates.

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Aoife

Iris was suspicious of the large dog. But Aoife had called her a friend, which meant that they did something together and it also meant that she still needed to be Iris-approved. Not that it was common for her sister to bring back dogs. And the ones that she did typically were the few who managed to survive her zeal and chattiness. No dog would suffer the light of her sister enough to follow her into the heart of Winterwood if they were actually wanting to do some evil. And Aoife wasn't the type to get hurt easily. She had completed the Winter Survival Test after all. She circled Livid, sniffing her. She didn't smell suspicious. Somewhat relaxed, Iris backed off.

"See, Iris, remember when I was telling you about Livid? About how we killed a robot together? Well, this is her! I told you she was big! And she seems perfect for Winterwood. Strong in the way a dog is strong, not in the way humans had made us. Next year, she's probably going to try the Winter Survival Test..." Aoife continued chatting until her sister grinned.

"Well, perhaps it would do well for Livid here to introduce herself." Iris turned to Livid. "But it would be polite for me to begin: My name is Iris. I see you've met my sister."

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Livid

Livid

You didn't have to look my way. Your eyes still haunt me to this day. But you did. Yes, you did.

Livid watched whole exchange with a small smile on her maw. "But it would be polite for me to begin: My name is Iris. I see you've met my sister." She heard that last sentence and smiled wider. "My name is Livid, and I enjoy talking to your sister. I hope we can become friends too Iris." She said and looked her over, She seems to be a little taller then her sister and when it comes down to it her pelt is more copper like. She thought and at least she knew how to distuguse them apart instead of looking stupid for calling the two different names completely. 

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Aoife

Iris smiled sweetly to be polite. She couldn't say she completely trusted Livid yet, but she could say she saw why her sister enjoyed her company. She couldn't relax completely because a dog that large could easily hurt her sister, but she also couldn't reveal how uncomfortable she was. The air seemed to stand still for a moment. Tense. Silent.

Aoife, of course, broke the awkwardness. "Anyways, I'm sure we'll all be friends by the Spring or Summer or whenever that happens. For now, want to go for a hunt? I'm raring to go."

"Eefs, your wound," Iris reminded her soothingly and maternally. She did not want her sister opening it up again.

"Iris, it's healed. I'm fine." The terrier mix seemed a touch impatient. It had been awhile since Iris allowed her sister to hunt. "C'mon, Livid's here. We have to induct her into the pack with some excitement, right?"

"I'm coming." Iris said, still a touch mistrustful.

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Livid

Livid

You didn't have to look my way. Your eyes still haunt me to this day. But you did. Yes, you did.

Livid had a bad time hunting sometimes. She smiled at the two dogs and shook out her pelt and smiled. "I would like to go hunting with my new pack mates." She said and skeptically looked at them with a somewhat glazed glance. She was rearing to go but she also wanted to sleep and just stay asleep. She yawned and her fangs showed and she blinked a couple of times trying to force herself awake.

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Aoife

Aoife was raring to go and was bouncing around. She always had a lot of energy. And it almost exhausted the other members of the pack to the point where probably a big reason why she wasn't going to be a good Lead Huntress was because she would run her hunting party into the ground without a sense of just how tired they were. "I think I saw some rabbits out by Windchill Lake actually. They are actually not too hard to go after, well for me. I can be so fast. Like zoom! Whoosh! Zing!" Aoife showed off her feints and dodges and pounces. Though her heart was in the right place, the young terrier mix tended to be neglectful of the state of her companions.

Thankfully, Iris had the good sense to look at Livid's condition. She sighed and gave the huge dog an exasperated look. A silent  "Do you see what I have to deal with here? which was so easy to read in her expression, though Aoife remained completely oblivious. "Eefs, how about we hold it off, actually."

"But why?" Aoife said as she pouted.

Iris looked to Livid. "She's tired. Not everyone has the energy that you do."

Aoife's eyes were full of apology as Livid yawned. "Oh goodness. I am so sorry. How about I show you a comfy place to nap in? We can hunt later." 

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Livid

Livid

You didn't have to look my way. Your eyes still haunt me to this day. But you did. Yes, you did.

Livid yawned and smiled at Iris. She looked at Aoife and nodded her head. "That would be great!" She said and looked at Iris, "I like your sister she is very energetic and I like it." She said and winked at Aoife. She twisted her ears back and stretched. Her back bent backwards and she she shook out the fluff that she called fur. Her eyes looked around lazily forming a map in her head as she glanced at the sisters.

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Aoife

Aoife led the way while Iris hung back with Livid. She loved her sister that much was apparent. But there were also tons of things she was keeping from her, too. For example, what had actually happened to their father. Aoife believed he was still alive, no matter how much Iris kept it from her and tried to convince her that he was dead. It was because of the stories he had brought home of his adventures. Surviving impossible things. And then, he would leave again.

"Sometimes, it's tiring just to watch her." Iris said, jokingly.

Aoife found the place with the soft grass at the base of a tree. The branches were broken, which mean that in midday, a beam of sunlight warmed the spot, as it was doing now. "This is it, Livid." She smiled. "My dad showed me this spot. It's still my favorite."

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Livid

Livid

You didn't have to look my way. Your eyes still haunt me to this day. But you did. Yes, you did.

Livid looked at it and smiled. "Kind of reminds me of my hole in the wall. I would lay on this slab of concrete and let it warm my fur. Before the incident occurred...." She trailed and then smiled sadly as she settled next to the trunk of the tree. "So, what did your dad tell you while you two hung out here. I mean obviously you had to talk about something. Other wise you wouldn't have that goofy grin on your face." She said and laid her head on her paws the world blurring more then it was.

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Aoife

The terrier mix watched as Livid lay down. She sat near her new friend and packmate. Her sister was a little further away. Close enough to be part of the conversation, but far enough away to show that she wasn't yet familiar with the new dog. She listened idly as Livid mentioned an incident. Iris felt that dogs who kept secrets were not to be trusted despite the fact that she was keeping a big secret from her sister.

Aoife, as usual, seemed to be oblivious to anything that would warrant suspicion. She instead focused on Livid's probing about her father. It was a subject she cared a lot about. "My dad is an expert adventurer! I haven't seen him for a long time, but I know he's out there, somewhere."

Iris snorted.

"Iris here doesn't think he's still out there. She thinks he died." Aoife explained, rolling her eyes as if her sister were stupid for thinking that.

"You know for a fact that that is not all I think, Aoife. He's a deadbeat. He left your brother to die. He left you when you were a puppy. He left me to raise you. I'm glad he's where he is. Fitting that he ends up a m--" Iris stopped talking. She had almost spilled the beans, but it wasn't often that the subject of their father was brought up. And she hated him so much. She wished that Aoife could see him for what he was: A dog who abandoned his own children because he couldn't pull himself together after his mate's death. Instead, he left all of that to Iris who was barely out of being a puppy. She had to be strong enough to raise Aoife, to collect the pieces of her life on her own, and to watch as her sister continued to love a dog who didn't care enough about her to stick around.

He did try to come back.

The thought was gnawing in the back of her sister's head. She instead walked away abruptly, obviously upset.

Aoife glanced to Livid, unsure of what she should do. "Ended up? Does she... know something?"

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Livid

Livid

You didn't have to look my way. Your eyes still haunt me to this day. But you did. Yes, you did.

"I think she does. Maybe you should go and talk to her about it. I will just stay here and nap a while." She said and yawned. She looked at the Iris had retreated to. She thought that she was definitely hiding something. She inhaled and exhaled and eased down into a laying position  and laid her head where the sun would war the fur on the top of her head and not the bottom. 

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Aoife

At Livid's suggestion, Aoife parted to chase after sister. She followed her sister's scent, finding that it wound around trees and she had made an attempt at doubling back and hiding her scent and confusing her because Iris had not want to be found. Not right now. However, Aoife was a master tracker and found hers sister with little effort.

Aoife had been the one who lived while Iris lived on pause. She had to put everything on hold to take care of Aoife. And, in the end, thought that her life was good enough. Perhaps that was why she hated Griff so much. He stole her life from her. She never found a mate, had her own puppies, took the Winter Survival Test, or lived. Iris shut her eyes and stifled a sob. She could not cry. A low whine escaped her throat.

"Iris!"

She tilted her head up and looked at her sister. Aoife's tousled coat and worried expression. It reminded her, so much, in that moment of her mother. And she wondered how Aoife could still smile and laugh and carry on. No, she knew why. It was because of her. It was because she was the strong one and now, she was holding her sister back from something that maybe, she just had to see for herself.

"Iris..." Aoife repeated, seeing her sister's face. She softened her own. She saw that Iris was upset and immediately went up to comfort her.

"No, Eefs," Iris said, stepping away. "I don't deserve... don't deserve this." She sobbed. "I've been keeping it from you... Griff. Dad. Dad is alive. Somewhere South of here." She looked away. She couldn't say the next. That he had started to mutate. That she didn't know if he had gotten help for it. If the mutation had set or even what it was. If he even looked the same. However, she knew the one place he would have gone if he needed help because she had chased him off. "Ash River. He would have gone to Ash River." It was his best bet to rid himself of his mutation.

Aoife nodded.

---

She mulled over it for several hours, wandering the woods before she came to a decision. She went to where Livid had been sleeping and found her friend there. "Hey. Hey Livid. My dad's alive. Do ya want to help me find him?" Aoife smiled. "Y'know. it might be fun."

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Livid

Livid

You didn't have to look my way. Your eyes still haunt me to this day. But you did. Yes, you did.

Livid snorted when she woke. "Yeah, sure. I will help you find your dad." She said and sat up. Her fur was speckled in dirt and a twig had gotten tangled up in it. She shook her fur and yawned. She went to stretch and shook out pelt again. She felt some of it stay still and went to investigate why it wasn't shaking. She found the twin and started to rip it out of fur and she yipped in pain. It was in there nice and tight. She glared at her fur and looked over to her friend. "Can I have some help. There is a twig tangled in my fur." She muttered and glared at the patch of tangled fur. 

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Aoife

The terrier mix wagged her tail as Livid roused from her nap with a snort. The Tibetan mastiff sat up and Aoife still couldn't believe this huge bear of a dog was her friend. They had gotten close quickly because they killed a robot together, shared a quiet moment on the mountain together, and now it seemed like Livid was going on an adventure with her to find her father.

"Sure," Aoife said as Livid asked for help. The nimble little terrier worked the twig out of her friend's thick fur. It took a little while. And she put it on the ground and realized, in that moment that all of these small things they were doing for each other was adding up to a deeper and deeper friendship. Of course Livid was going to go on this adventure with her. They were best friends.

She nodded. "So, Iris said that my dad might be at Ash River." Aoife shuddered. "They aren't normal there. They aren't like us. They embrace the monsters that humans have turned dogs into. I've heard they are dangerous. But if we stick together, I'm sure we can do this."

((OOC: We can end here or after your post! SO excited to have them look for the dad.))

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Livid