.I Am Stronger Than You Know. (Finished)

[Hayasaka Erika]

Black paws belonging to a Maned wolf touched the forest floor as her eyes peered along the rows of trees. For the time being, she saw no one around, but she noticed that she was standing upwind. If anyone was downwind, she'd be making a fool of herself out here. Peering where the night's breeze decided to flow, she couldn't see any other wolves in the area unless they were hiding. And why would they do that? One thing about Hayasaka was that she let things get to her head—like the fact she believed she was beautiful.

Moving to stand in a circle of trees, she gazed up into the heavens, the moon shining bright above her. She knew these lands. They were the lands of the former Moon Pack. There had been rumors that it had been dismantled like many of the other packs, and from the looks of it, those were right. She did not see the former leader anywhere, unless he had not yet noticed she had arrived. But that was no matter to her. If he wasn't there, then he wasn't there. She would still claim these lands as her own.

“Ah,” she sighed, taking in the silver light that filtered down from the moon. “At last. I, Hayasaka, declare these lands under my control. The Moon Pack will rise again with me as Alpha.”

Even if she did look like a giant fox, this would become her dream. She would make sure it went over. There was no wolf that could stand in her way of bringing the Moon Pack back to its former glory. And besides, why would anyone but the light wolves want to stop her? Chuckling darkly to herself, she raised her head to howl, but paused. Something seemed amiss in this, and a strange feeling filled her, like one you get when you're being watched.

[Renesmee]

The familiar dark body of Jealcik padded into the circle of pine trees that laced this area in his territory. His nose told him that there was another wolf on his territory, a wolf of the variety that he liked- that's right, a female. He was downwind of her, so his scent was masked perfectly, his presence completely unknown. But why would the great legend of the once glorious Moon Pack keep himself unknown? With a very noticable smirk placed upon his handsome face, he opened his mouth to speak;

"Well then, Hayasaka, I'll make you a deal. Since you happen to be one of the more beautiful wolves to walk cross my path, you may stay as the alpha female if you agree to be my mate."

If it was at all possible, he gave his equivelent of a wolfish wink as he stood in front of her, only slightly larger than herself. She couldn't deny his offer, he was Jealcik! Nobody ignored what he said and got away with their pelt intact. And why would she decline his offer anyway? Who wouldn't love the chance to live with a dashing young fellow such as himself?

It was true, he didn't know this wolf at all, she could be a light for all he knew, but old habits could be changed and in actuality, everything about her screamed dark. That 'everything' included the evil sparkle glittering in her eyes.

[Hayasaka Erika]

Hayasaka couldn't help the smile that curled deviously over her muzzle. He was quite handsome. Maybe not her usual type, but he must have been the leader of Moon Pack that she had heard about. A liar, a cheater, that's what she had been told. But she was a cheater herself, so it wouldn't matter. They could go their separate ways, just as long as he didn't get in her way of ruling this pack. She wanted her dark ways to rein supreme.

She moved her legs in a slow, graceful motion so that she would circle this male. He was rather interesting. “You must be the alpha male they talk about. Jealcik, isn't it?” she asked in a sweet voice, lifting her head so the moon would leave a glimmer in her eyes. She did so enjoy how this was going already. If it was that easy to get to him then this shouldn't be hard. Though, she had already known she was beautiful, so he would have had to be crazy not to want her.

“I think I'll take you up on that offer. I mean, look at you... you're a big strong alpha of a dark pack, and a handsome one, too,” she murmured with a roll of her shoulder blade, moving even closer so that her nose nearly touched his. Her eyes were partially covered by her eyelids, gazing into his green eyes. She could feel the fur down her spine ruffling in anticipation. Flattery had always gotten her everywhere she wanted to be with a male. She was hoping that Jealcik would be no different. Otherwise, she'd have to change her tactics, and that just wouldn't do.

Now she just had to see how well he dealt with females that looked, basically, the exact opposite of him. If he was a good little wolf, then he wouldn't comment about the fact she had skinny legs and a foxy grin. However, if he wasn't and ever decided to tease her about it, she'd have to think of a little punishment for him to endure...

[Renesmee]

"Yes, yes, that'd be me that 'they' talk about. And as alpha, I believe that it should be I circling you, not vice versa." he responded, her sugar-sweet voice itching in his ears like a flea that just couldn't be scratched away. He had to admit, what Jealcik saw, Jealcik liked. This could be his female counterpart- the one person who was as much of a whore as he was- but female!

"Flattery will get you everywhere, Hayasaka. It'll be a pleasure to have you around" The dark alpha male's voice was thick with implications, surveying the she-wolf. Her nose was nearly touching his, but he didn't reach forward to complete the gesture, instead, he retreated a few steps and obviously looked her over.

"Well, I can't say I don't approve of what I see. But if you plan to be the alpha female of this pack, you need to learn the territory."

[Hayasaka Erika]

Hayasaka merely smirked at his comment. Normally she was the one doing the circling, whether it was around an alpha or some unsuspecting male that she hoped to put under her spell later on. “Is that a law, sexy? I didn't see any engraved in any stones around here...,” she commented, watching him as he moved away a bit. She waited for him to see her full body before beginning to walk again, letting her long legs take slow, deliberate strides to show off the way her body moved.

She quite liked him. He wasn't one of those lovely dovey types who wanted to be all sweet and compassionate. There had been a few that had completed the action and bumped noses with her—and that was completely revolting. Wolves like that were just love sick chumps who she would pick off one by one. After toying with them a while, she always dropped them into heartbreak.

Slipping up next to him, she whispered in his ear, “It'll be my pleasure to stick around, handsome. Now why don't you show me around the territory? I'd love to get a taste of what you really are, and it's always better when one of the two has seen the area for the first time...”

She moved around him then, letting her tail ever so slightly touch his black coat. Hayasaka liked how he blended in to the darkness of the night, all except those green eyes that would certainly scare anyone who hadn't been watching where they were going. He seemed like a bad boy; and she liked wolves like that. Moving back around to stand in front of him, she gave him one of her sweetest smiles. And by sweet, it is meant to be littered with a mischievous quality, especially the dark glimmer in her eyes.

[Renesmee]

"No no, not a law, but I can certainly make it one if that was what pleased me, but at the moment, you could please me much more than making a silly rule." Jealcik did infact like this girl. She certainly was a tease, and reminded him of a new and improved version of his former mate, Ice. Ice had been nice to keep around for a little while, but her cons were too much to bear.

The stupid fae wanted romance and passion out of him! What the hell? Jealcik didn't 'do' romance. He didn't want to cuddle, he didn't want to know how the pups were doing unless they were dark and could be future leaders of his pack. Even then, he didn't want details! What had Ice thought he was, a pansy light wolf? That had been why she ended up exiled.

This wolf on the otherhand, definitely did not seem like the affectionate type. She seemed like the type who would bear his offspring without a complaint and not get hung up on him.

"The pleasure would be all mine." smirked the alpha, feeling her tail hovering above his pelt. He tapped her shoulder with his own tail as a sign to say 'Let's go' and began to walk away. It wouldn't be long before the sun would rise in the Moon Pack lands. The sky was already a dark shade of indigo as opposed to the ebony that graced it at night. Jealcik wasn't happy about daylight coming- his vision was better at night.

[Hayasaka Erika]

As she felt his tail against her shoulder, she knew it was going the way she wanted it. No cuddling, no sick murmuring of love for each other, and definitely no love licks. All those things were for lights and neutrals, which were the types of wolves she just loved to torment. It was even better when she could pretend to be affectionate and ended up startling them when they realized she was dark. Oh, she wanted to do that again. But for now, she had another case on her hands.

“Such lovely lands. They must be very dangerous when the night reaches its peak,” she said, hinting at how wonderful it would be to catch a light and cause them pain under the stars of the brilliant sky. She could imagine it already. When they captured one, maybe they could even force a female to have pups. That would be wonderful, to break the dignity of a light by violating them, and then turning their own pups against them. Truly genius.

Though she kept pace with him, she made sure she did not walk completely beside him. She knew from other packs that the alpha male liked to feel like he was the dominant one, no matter if he was stronger or weaker than his female companion. Hayasaka doubted it was any different for dark wolves, though she enjoyed the thought that darks were more sinister and cunning. They could strike in the dead of night. And what was best, they knew not the limits that the light wolves did. There was nothing too evil for a dark.

Her eyes only dared to look as far as she could still see Jealcik out of the corner of her eye. Dark or not, she couldn't relax. She had to be ready all the time, able to jump into action whenever Jealcik spoke, no matter what that was. Even if she didn't like it, she had to. Her ears twitched as the breeze touched them, and she looked at the alpha once more. He would cheat on her, and she knew that. But she would make sure the tables were turned on him this time.

[Renesmee]

Jealcik was aware of everything. He was aware of her standing location in regard to his, the way the grass felt soft below his paws, and even the sound of an owl hooting in this distance. Though he was alert, everything about his posture was relaxed. His ears were not pricked forward like they would be if he were listening for something specific and his walk was nonchalant. He knew these lands better than he knew himself. After all, he had lived here for at least three winters.

"Oh yes, I'm quite sure that the lights would tend to agree on that one. It's always nice to find one of those airheads wandering too close to our border. So far we've had 2 force bred, one blinded, and quite a few maimed permanently. It's one thing you can count on, them not having enough intelligence to stay on their side of the border."

Chuckling lightly, he headed to the edge of the pine tree forest. They wouldn't walk too deeply in there, but the trees were most of the cover along the border. This would be where they would spend most of their time stalking those who where all too innocent. He would take her once around the border before leading her to where he made his camp so they could rest for the morning. He didn't care if she agreed with that plan, it was his plan and what he planned was going to happen! Yeah, he had control issues but shhh.

[Hayasaka Erika]

She watched how he acted. He seemed fine and at home here, but then again, he had been here much longer than she had. Every sound and movement was natural to him. The grass licking at his feet, it would never bother him as much as it would her until she got used to call this her home. Dark and hidden away in the woods. That was how she viewed this pack, and it was wonderful to know that it could be the death trap for many a wolf.

“Sounds like this pack has been busy with tormenting. How exciting,” she said, giving her last word a certain flare. She would love to watch one squirm while they lost their sight or were forced to have the pack's new pups. It gave her chills of joy to think about it, and a longing in her heart that one would show up soon so that she could have a little fun. Maybe she would try to tear them up a little before the true anguish could begin. Hayasaka liked the way this pack thought. Torture, and gain from it.

Her tail swayed lightly as she tried to force herself to relax. She wouldn't take her guard down, but she needed to seem like she felt comfortable here. Acting was always the best way to go, just like flirting could get you pretty much everywhere if you knew how to fix it up to the personality of each wolf. Jealcik was probably the easiest she had ever dealt with—she didn't really need to impersonate someone else's qualities. He was a lot like she was, only he was a male and would probably have enough pups to populate two packs.

“At least when a dark leaves its lands, it knows better than to let itself get caught by the enemy. There's no land safer than your own.[/b]”

[Renesmee]

Fond memories passed through Jealcik's thoughts as Hayasaka spoke for the second time. He was brought back to one of the times when none of the lights were biting on his bait to come onto the dark lands, so he went and payed them a visit and tormented them on their own territory. And how easily it could have worked out too- he remembered having his paws on Vesna's throat ready to end her breathing, when the alpha, Somomo had showed up. He could have taken her down too but the lights were more interested in talking their way out of things and he wasn't actually in the mood to get his paws dirty that day.

"With the lights there is no getting caught by the enemy. They are cowards who won't even fight you if you invade their territory. Not even on their own lands where they have the upper hand to the surroundings do they fight back, but on rare occasion."

Jealcik on the other hand feared nothing, which he believed he proved by going to the point of hunting them down like rabbits on their own territory. They had actually been walking for a decent amount of time. In fact, they were nearing the edge of the forest. Pine needles brushes against the pads of his paws. It wasn't the most comfortable texture beneath his feet, but they would be nearing the grass again soon. He angled his path so that when they reached the edge of the forest they could head to a resting location.

[Hayasaka Erika]

Hayasaka remained quiet a moment, thinking back. There had been stories of a dark wolf who did that, though she had never seen him. He knew of the light lands, so he had obviously been there. She wondered if he knew of her mother, or the mysterious Vingal that was said to be her father. That was the last thing he needed to know, though. Her having been in a light pack until now? What would that do to her ego?

She sent a glance over at him. “I take it you've dealt with lights on their own lands, then. What do they do? Talk until you get so bored you either go crazy and run out or kill them?[/b]” she asked, seeing as she had never seen a fight break out in her former lands. She couldn't even remember any arguments. If anything happened, it had been behind her back, and that made the fur on the back of her neck bristle ever so slightly. How dare they keep information from her?

That was all the lights were. Pansies that couldn't even take on their own enemies. Why would someone let the enemy just prance onto their lands? Had they no dignity? Hayasaka didn't know a lot about the history of the Sun Pack, except that they didn't like the Moon Pack at all, and that they weren't fond of Cliff Pack, either. But it was plain why they didn't like those packs. They were dark, the exact opposite of what Sun Pack was. But she felt sick to know the truth of that pack. “If they had any pride, then they'd fight for what was theirs instead of trying to reason. Reasoning just takes up time and breath, which is just pointless. Fighting is just quicker and no more arguments can arise once one of them is dead.”

[Renesmee]

"I agree entirely. Plus, what's the point in being hesitant if you're going to die anyway? By prolong the inevitable? Lights just aren't cut out for extended existance. The world isn't peaceful, mostly because we darks make it that way, but they need to stop living in their fantasies. Since when is the world kind? It isn't.

Shaking his head in disgust at the thought of light wolves prancing around, speaking to each other in their sing song voices, and just... existing! It was horrible! They stood for everything that he hated in the world. Some may think that the reason Jealcik was so cruel was because the world had treated him badly.

It has not. Jealcik simply was never one to believe in fantasies. The world had been good to him, look! He ran his own pack, he could get any wolf he wanted to be his mate, he even struck fear into the hearts of pups across the lands with mere stories.

Now with the grass beneath them and out in the open, Jealcik could see the sky for the first time since entering the forest. The sky was lightening to a shade of medium-blue, almost time for the shades of pink and purple to emerge. Maybe about 5 minutes and they would arrive in his sleeping quarters.

[Hayasaka Erika]

“And if they aren't killed by a dark, they probably end up doing something stupid like falling off a cliff to get themselves killed,” she added in, rolling her eyes at the thought. Only an idiot wouldn't notice that they were standing on a cliff. Though, she could imagine a light pup chasing a butterfly and falling off one. That was such a glorious thought. One less airhead to deal with.

When her paws touched the grass again, she was relieved, though she tried to hide it. Pine needles bothered her feet, and they might leave little cuts on them. And if that happened, then they would get rougher and not have the same appeal, and she just couldn't have that. Later she would check to make sure none were sticking to her paws or anything. Hayasaka believed she had to look her best, no matter what.

Casting her gaze to the heavens, she squinted slightly against the brighter sky. She didn't like daylight anymore, not since she had decided she would be a dark. Instead, she had started sleeping during the day and only waking in the evenings when it was beginning to grow dark. It suited her better, anyway. The moon gave her pelt a nice shine that the sun just couldn't match in her opinion. Besides, who needed the sun when the moon was much easier on the eyes? Now she wanted to convert a light into a dark. That would be fun.

“Perhaps we'll be able to convert a light sometime. It's so fun to watch them fall from their ranks in the light packs and come over the the intelligent side.” The wings of darkness were held tightly around Hayasaka's heart, and she wanted others to feel the pain she did when she learned of the lies of reality. Darkness was all there was for her. How she even got into a light pack, she didn't know. But now, she was her own person and could run a pack along side another of her kind.

[Renesmee]

Jealcik did not reply to her remark with words, but merely nodded, growing more and more tired as his paws itched towards his den. It had been very convenient for there to be a small cave near the river, the water source in the Moon Pack. If the river were to flood his den would be safe because it was elevated a good amount. From inside his den he could see straight across the river, the River Pack lands just barely out of sight.

The grass grew softer around the river, more moist too. Staying a few paces from the edge of the river which had only just become visible, Jealcik began explaining their location. "We're almost at my den." His step quickened, wanting to get into the darkness of his sleeping quarters before the sun tarnished his vision forever. Pausing, Jealcik hopped up a ledge a few feet up, then another, and stood proudly at the top of the rocks, watching Hayasaka and waiting for her to join him up here. Only pausing for a moment to watch, he then stepped into the darkness and called over his shoulder "Feel free to join me."

As dark wolves, they didn't do the whole 'cuddling' thing, but it was autumn. The days were getting colder and he wouldn't object to some sleeping close together to keep warm. With a sigh, he layed down in the corner.

[Hayasaka Erika]

The lands that unfolded before her were like nothing she had ever seen in Sun or River Pack. Gentle grass against her paws, the smell of darkness coiling around ever tree, and the gurgle of the river as it washed through. That wasn't something you could have anywhere else. It was unique, and she knew she had made the right choice in coming here. Even if she did have to be the bearer of his pups, it was worth it to have such control. The power to command an entire pack, with only one wolf that wouldn't listen to her every word. But what did she expect from an alpha male? They were all stubborn and didn't want to admit when they were wrong.

“Don't expect any lovin', I don't roll that way,” she warned him from the bottom before leaping up after him. She would use the den, but only because she wanted to and to keep herself from being disturbed by dawn. Hayasaka did not want to be near him as she slept, and she did not want to be bothered as she tried to fall asleep. Either of these things would quickly cause her to become agitated, and a mad Hayasaka wasn't something anyone liked to see. Her temper could be as bad as any male's, and she would rip out the throat of anyone who wanted to get in her way.

Stepping into the den, she stretched out her long legs, her spine popping a few times as she loosened her muscles. Then she curled up just far enough in the cave that no light would hit her eyes. Her tail proceeded to cover her eyes and muzzle to protect them from the chilly winds and the coming sun. She looked over at Jealcik one last time before her eyelids stayed down.

It was going to be a very long week.