entrancelogs | ( open | the past and the chase )

Entry tags:

( open | the past and the chase )

Who: cora hale and her new friend, and you.
Where: the grounds of the mansion, specifically by the fountain.
When: june ten, early afternoon.
Rating: pg.
Summary: it's cora's birthday and the closet decides it's time for her to stop being so alone. ( she's unaffected by the fruit baskets event, but feel free to come touch bodies with her, if you feel ever so inclined. )
The Story:

[ as per usual, wonderland was acting strange, but cora paid it no mind. her morning routine of taking to the woods had been interrupted by the change in pace — today was her birthday, a day she, once, would've screeched through the entire house at the top of her lungs it's my birthday! but as it's a habit she has grown out of over the last six years, having no one of the hale family to bless with a headache, she finds herself nonchalant to even her own day. turning eighteen means very little, especially since she has grown to not even bat her own eyelashes at the day. but she chooses to celebrate it, nonetheless, quietly — as she has been forced. ]

[ out on the grounds, she sits, cross-legged by the fountain. with her hands curled around her knees, she sits with her back straight, eyes shut as she tries to sense where her newfound friend is. with a snout poking between her shoulder blades, a white wolf nuzzles at her arm until she loops it around her neck, bringing her forth and almost into her lap. this morning, she had sat outside her closet, wishing for the impossible — perhaps wonderland would grant her a special wish for her birthday, perhaps in the shape and size of a sister whom she had the opportunity to touch, even if the weight of her arms wrapped around cora's torso is now a ghostly thing. but, instead of a sister, a wolf had leaped out, and hadn't heeded her commands to return to the depths of the closet, lest a hunter or its true owner follow her out. boudica had remained by her side, glued as a second shadow, even when cora had attempted to outrun the wolf, a stupid notion brought on by an even stupider girl. turning eighteen had made her none the wiser, just as it had made her none the happier, too. ]

[ but she attempts to shoo her wolf away by throwing a treat she had asked the closet for into the distance. boudica runs, legs moving powerfully, but she returns just as cora has relocated to the other side of the fountain, following her scent until she nudges her in the arm once again. cora continues to throw treats as far as she can, watching as her wolf takes off, before she moves, relocating once again, to see if boudica will find herself more interested in the sights and scents of the woods than that of the girl she has caused to smile more than she ever has on such a day. at one point, boudica charges into her, knocking her to the ground as she attempts to nuzzle her face. even when she stretches out on her stomach, the wolf either lies on top of her, with her chin against her back, or beside her, rolling in the grass as she sniffs and walks around cora, as though she is looking for the best place to sit and annoy her even more. ]

[ boudica growls at anyone who happens to approach, or anyone whom cora doesn't seem at ease around. with her teeth bared, she looks menacing, despite having attempted to push cora over with a powerful nudge of her nose. with a stern voice, the smile on cora's face disappears. ] Boudica, stop.

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[ Arguros is bounding around, ahead of Mama. Because Mama takes too long, doing whatever it is she's doing. Instead, there's a new smell!

Arguros goes looking for it. He hasn't met this new smell yet. DOG! That's it. He knows it from the people like Mama who smell like it. So, he bounds forward and stops, one paw raised, looking at the white wolf that's growling. So mean! Arguros puffs up and hisses back, from his tiny, tiny kitten self. Another hiss follows the first. The kitten practically jumps in the air when one toe nudges him gently.

Ellen snorts at him in amusement behind her coffee cup. ]

Knock it off. G'morning, sorry about him.

[ Arguros just sits to wash his paw. He meant to do that. ]

[ despite the failure of arguros' attempt to launch himself at the overly sensitive, white wolf, cora pulls herself up and quickly asserts her own dominance, grabbing boudica roughly by the scruff of her neck. cora pulls her back, boudica's teeth still showing until she seems to settle, the rumbling of her throat ceasing. sitting back on her hind legs, cora keeps her head bowed as she watches her wolf, waiting for the moment for her to rebel. fortunately, it doesn't come, even though she sees boudica doesn't snap her attention away from the little furball. ] Sorry. [ she glances toward ellen, before flickering her gaze toward the little cat. ] I guess she's not really cat friendly yet.

[ or properly socialised. cora's willing to bet a wolf is nothing like a dog — if she were to leash boudica, it'd be the worst offense she could commit to an otherwise free wolf. with a glance toward boudica, she keeps her fingers within her fur, her grip softer. ]

[ Ellen scruffs the cat who seems to be gearing up for another hissing session and deposits it in the hood lying against her shoulders. Honestly, she's pretty sure Arguros has an inferiority complex. He's like the Napoleon of cats, always picking on the much bigger canines. ]

Take it she's yours? What's her name?

[ Ellen ignores the purring coming from her hood. The kitten has his favorite spots. ]

[ Derek remembers his sisters' birthdays better than his own, truth be told. He and Laura celebrated hers, he always made sure she had something, and they held memorial on the days of their parents', of Cora's. She always made sure that she got him something for his birthday, but it wasn't important to him. (He hadn't deserved it, anyways. Not after everything that he had caused to come about.)

So of course he sees the date, and decides that he has to do something for his baby sister. As the annoying older brother, he absolutely is obligated to. But he leaves her present for later, in the safety of his and Stiles' room (where, hopefully, Paige won't get into it and Stiles doesn't try to get nosy as he is wont to do). Besides, he has something else for her.

It's just a matter of finding her.

And when he does, she's got a wolf sprawled on her. That's not quite what he expected when he tracked her scent outside. And he raises an eyebrow at the wolf, then directs it at Cora, keeping his box held in one hand at chest level.

That's it, that's all the questioning she gets. ]

[ if cora thought she'd get by today without so much as hearing a peep from derek, embarrassing or otherwise, she knew it'd be the day he'd somehow lost a part of himself. ever since they've had time within wonderland to be, he's slid back into the casting he had been forced to abandon when a fire had allegedly claimed her and burnt her to ash, transforming into the overbearing brother who attempts to embarrass her at almost every chance he gets. cora doesn't mind it, despite it leading to him tickling her, or embarrassing her by simply accepting her own gift for his own birthday, as though they hadn't lost six years of celebrating him growing older and greyer together. ]

[ if it weren't for the arrival of boudica, cora had planned to spend the day with him. even if it meant they never uttered the significance of the day to one another, she'd deem it the best birthday she's had since she was ten, a celebration she had taken for granted, expecting to see many more with a table filled with family members laughing and barking at one another. but she'd been distracted from calling derek and asking he spend the day with her by the white beast who refused to leave her side, even when cora had shooed her back into the closet. ]

[ boudica nudges cora, wishing for her to play, or perhaps give her some attention, but the moment she catches derek's scent — a few minutes before cora does — the wolf doesn't stand on her hind legs and growl at him. she bounds over to him, forgoing her desperate bid for cora's attention, to nudge her nose roughly against his leg. it's as though she knows him, despite neither hale ever seeing this mischievous and stubborn white wolf before. ]

[ pulling herself up, cora looks sheepish at having been caught letting this wolf bully her about. her gaze travels over derek, not missing the box he holds in his hand, but she refuses to allow her protest of him even acknowledging today burden her lips or his ears. brushing her hands against her pants, she frowns at boudica. ] It's unfair she likes you more than me.

Did Wonderland decide to say happy birthday in its own way? [ When the wolf comes over to him, Derek remains still. But it isn't aggressive, and she's immediately nosing at him, so he reaches his hand down and strokes his fingers over her white fur at the crown of her head with some measure of amusement. It's a legitimate wolf, not a wolf dog or some wolfish breed-- hard to tell sometimes, but he can see it in her build, in her movements despite her friendliness-- so he's taking a moment to wrap his head around it.

Though, once he does, he brings his attention back up to his little sister and away from the newfound apparent member of their pack. It's like being greeted by family again, and he isn't sure what to make of that when he certainly hasn't met Boudica before.

Chuffing his amusement in a quiet laugh, he moves over to where Cora has righted herself, hardly bothered by the presence of the wolf. At this point, he's so used to Wonderland springing things on them that he'll accept the good things that come along. And it seems like the wolf is a good thing, with how it interacts with Cora. Could it be the best gift she's gotten from anyone? He doesn't know-- he hasn't been there for any of her birthdays for the past six years. Hopefully this makes up for it, in a little way. ]

She's friendly. [ He angles his head to look down at her, amusement in his voice completely evident. ]

[ reaching into the pocket of her pants, cora digs out a treat and throws it as far and as hard as she can. boudica bounds for it, as though she's one of those dog breeds derek had been internally crossing off his list. wiping her hands together, she finds she can no longer stall any of her responses, the wolf now as far as cora can manage to distance herself from the grey and ashy wolves of the house she now claims. ] I guess so. I was looking for something in my closet and she came bounding out. Knocked me over. [ embarrassingly flat on her ass. cora had found herself pinned beneath a great beast that would, otherwise, have scared her. all she'd seen of boudica, at first, were her teeth, but not presented to her in a snarl — and then a lick upon her face. as though she can feel the sticky saliva on her cheek, her fingers rub against the flesh absently. ]

[ her gaze flickers to her wolf, norse deep within the grass blades as she sniffs for the scent of her treat. ] She won't leave. No matter what I do, she always comes back. [ she looks to derek, shrugging her shoulders. she supposes she's stuck with her — the resigned expression on cora's face shows it's not the worst thing in the world to happen, even if it's one of the more perplexing. didn't the closet give you what you asked for? cora had asked for her sister or mother — or, more specifically, for a reminder of them both, since she knew, despite her brilliant attempt at ignoring the rules of wonderland, she couldn't have them return to her, properly and alive. ]

[ it's on the tip of her tongue to tell derek, but considering her birthday had been a death day for him, and his had been for her, she clamps her lips shut at the press of those niggling thoughts being released from their prison. she's purposefully making this awkward with her refusal to leap happily at what the day is, or even acknowledging it — or taking into account that he has acknowledged it. the admittance of what had brought boudica into her life would only increase the tension she's at fault for throwing into the air like smoke. but the fire she wishes to create dies before it even sparks. ]

_{[For Adam Milligan and his four-legged roommate, June 10th is just another day in a long line of days. The summer weather is nice and with the animal craze sweeping Wonderland, things are a little out of sorts, but it's nothing too special.

Event aside, the only thing different about today is that Adam keeps his and Cooper's daily walk restricted to a circle around the mansion instead of letting the dog wander where he wants. The extra animals have gotten the mastiff worked up before and Adam keeps Cooper close for the dog's safety. What if it ran off with a group of grizzly bears, what then? He'd be shit out of luck getting the dog back. Safer to keep their time outside to a minimum until Adam knows Cooper won't accidentally run into some dangerous wildlife.

... Or so he thinks, before the wolf.]}

Whoa, whoa!

_{[Before Adam knows what's happening, one of Cora's treats hits the grass near where they're walking. Cooper, who already has his mouth stuffed full with his favorite toy frog, growls, and Adam at first thinks the dog is interested in investigating whatever's landed on the ground until he sees the other dog running toward them.

Except that's not a dog, that's a wolf, and Cooper growls again, directed at the she-wolf.]}

Crap, don't... don't, Cooper!

_{[Wolf attack is not on the docket again. He tugs the leash just in case the dog has ideas about jumping at Boudica.]}

[ fortunately for cora, if she were a plain, old human, she'd be none the wiser to boudica running into trouble — or causing it. the moment she hears a voice, and a growl unlike the tone she's quickly becoming accustomed to by her white shadow, she stops fooling around and quickly follows in the direction she had sent boudica in. if there was time for her to scold herself, she would. it hasn't been lost on her that the zoo had been unleashed on wonderland, with peacocks appearing and foxes stumbling about — or whatever animal she's spied while in the woods, attempting to ignore the strange scent in the air, lest it be another pig parade she find herself tripping over — but she hadn't thought about any of the animals being out on the grounds. she's used to being alone, in the woods, in her room, and even out here, to even let herself consider another might be out and about for a morning stroll with their own beast in tow. ]

[ though, she doesn't believe cooper to fit the bill of being a beast. it's not adam she sees when she spies the pure white of her newly acquainted wolf, but cooper, readying to defend himself and his owner. cora bolts toward them, knowing no call will heed the sharp threat to boudica's growl and send it into a whimper of obedience. she's not a dog, trained to obey a specific tone in her voice, or word, if she were to shout for her to heel. she' as wild as cora herself, or as soft and stupid as she may be at times — when one calls for cora to heel, she merely lashes out harder. ]

[ unlike cooper, boudica has no collar or leash, but cora's unafraid when she skids to her side and pulls her roughly by the scruff of her neck before the wolf gets any ideas of jumping on the one dog she actually likes in wonderland. like the wolves of the packs she's been unfortunate and fortunate enough to witness and even be a part of, cora wastes no time in tossing her back, the wolf losing her footing as she stumbles on the grass. she turns to adam, gaze travelling up and down, in case he'd become a snack for her new friend. ] Are you okay?

Edited 2014-06-13 14:18 (UTC)

What the hell.

_{[Another wild animal on the loose? Whether the wolf is some part of the recent outbreak of strange behavior, it's still a dangerous animal, something that could very easily hurt a dog (or a person). Adam's free hand creeps to the small of his back where he has his gun resting under his shirt before Cora, of all people, comes running from the same direction.

With surprise, he watches her head straight for the thing.]}

Hey, Cora, that's no dog! _{[So don't touch it?]} Watch yourself!

_{[Cooper releases another growl from around his toy, muffled. Adam has a hundred and some pounds of muscle between himself and the wolf, but that doesn't exactly make him feel better when it's his dog in the line of the fire. He looks between Cora and the wolf in visible confusion.]}

I'm fine, but--

_{[But that's a wolf. One she just heaved like a sack of potatoes.]}

[ glancing back toward her wolf, she sees she remains where she is. it's second nature to attack, to possibly fight the one who had pulled you from a fight, but cora sees her wolf is almost obedient, more so than the betas within derek's pack. where scott would, and could, easily defy her brother, her wolf chooses to heed her commands, almost pliable to cora's own wants, even if she doesn't voice them aloud nor come to pluck them from the air, fully formed. her gaze returns to adam and cooper. ]

[ she shrugs, hopelessly. she doesn't feel as though she owes anyone a particular explanation, but it's adam and cooper — and cooper's her favourite animal within wonderland, almost akin to the cat she'd tried to adopt when she had been younger and back in beacon hills. with one more glance toward boudica, seeing the wolf lying on her stomach, head almost bent in shame of being reprimanded so roughly, her attention isn't split anymore between wolf and friend. ] She came out of my closet. [ she didn't ask for a wolf. she asked for family. ] I tried to return to sender, but it wasn't having any of it.

_{[Adam's surprised that the wolf doesn't attack, too. He's met a tame dragon three times Boudica's size, but that seems like more of a fluke, a freak accident of nature, not some kind of dependable sign that he should trust wild animals in Wonderland not to maul his face more than normal.

Cora doesn't even move, and that's what really makes him frown at her.]}

And you know it's a wolf, right.

_{[If he keeps repeating the obvious, maybe the obvious will start becoming obvious to everyone else here but him. The wolf herself doesn't even pretend to defend her image; she slumps to the ground in imitation of a trained house dog.

That's messed up.

Twisting the leash around his fist to start reeling the mastiff in, he pulls until Cooper backs his butt up a few steps, still squaring Boudica down like a bulldog.]}

Let it go live in the woods or something. That thing could do some damage around here. It should wander off on its own.

[ A little birdie may have told Isaac that it was a certain someone's birthday. So of course when he manages to find her, he's got an addition of a birthday bag stuffed to the brim with colourful tissue paper. It's contents of course are easily guessed; he does remember that she had wanted his scarves when Stiles had tried to give them away. So he may have gone closet shopping for her and found some spoils of victory. And of course, one of the good ones from his personal collection that he keeps on lockdown surrounded by bearsharks and attack monsters.

His pace slows to an awkward stop though, when his gaze lands on the wolf that looks like it's imprinted on her like a baby duck. A grin takes over his expression, before he lifts the bag up slightly to explain why exactly he's there. ]

Not really sure I can compete with a pet wolf... [ But a 328$ Scarf should at least come close. ] But - uh - I heard it was your birthday. So y'know. [ He needs to spoil his adopted baby sis. Cautiously he comes closer, not exactly worried for his own safety but not exactly wanting to have any weird confrontation with the new addition to the pack, especially not on Cora's birthday. When he's close enough he holds the bag out to her, a ghost of the grin still on his face. ]

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( open | the past and the chase )

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