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theshapeshifter100 · 2 years

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Wolf and Raven: Old Friends Chapter 18 (Final)

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Masterlist

She returned to the camp before dark, as Cyrus had asked. Raven of Old and Erina had returned from their trip to the Fortress and were still deep in conversation. Catching up for lost time. Haryad floated above the two, adding his thoughts every now and again.

Raven was speaking with Cyrus, and Satyarani was sitting peacefully by the campfire.

“Did you visit pleasant places?” Satyarani asked Wolf as she entered the camp.

“Aye. I thank you for pushing me to do so.”

“You have spent enough of this quest dwelling on negative memories, you should allow yourself some happiness.”

“I will try,” Wolf glanced at Raven.

Satyarani inclined her head before looking over at Raven of Old and Erina. “I would suggest you speak with Erina sooner rather than later.”

“I was raised better than to interrupt a conversation.”

“You may have to. At best you have three days, and they may continue to catch up for the rest of that time.”

“…They will have to stop to sleep at some point.”

“We may but hope,” Satyarani smirked.

Wolf sat down by the fire, poked a few of the logs with a stick before gently falling backwards to lie on her back. The stars were just beginning to appear in the sky above.

She was not quite as at peace as she had been in the Enchanted Oak’s grove, but there was some peace.

She heard someone approach and set something by her head.

“I know you are not asleep,” Erina commented.

“I never pretended otherwise,” Wolf tilted her head to see what Erina had dropped by her head. Sitting in the grass was a tankard with a metal wolf’s head in the middle.

“…Did you retrieve this?” Wolf sat up and picked up the tankard.

“Aye. We took our time around the Fortress, and we found this in the old dining hall. Consider it an apology for my behaviour yesterday.”

Wolf froze before returning to turning over tankard. “It was a stressful time yesterday.”

“It did not excuse my behaviour. I am not blind Wolf, I saw the look on your face.”

“Ah, so that is the reason,” Wolf half smirked. “Still, I thank you for retrieving this.”

“My pleasure,” Erina looked like she was going to walk away, and Wolf realised she needed to grab her while she still had her.

“Erina.”

“Yes?” she turned back.

“Does the previous arrangement still stand? That I will leave in 3 days from now?”

Erina’s face creased in confusion, before widening when she remembered.

“Oh, oh, my apologies, that had slipped my mind. Of course that requirement is lifted. You are no longer exiled from Alaunus. No hidden clauses, stipulations, or time limits.”

There was no true magic in those words, no light, no sparks, yet they felt like magic. Wolf nodded slowly, unable to stop the smile that was pushing onto her face. She was welcome on Alaunus. She was welcome on Alaunus.

She was still grinning when Raven came to sit next to her.

“You appear very pleased by something,” she commented.

“I’m welcome on Alaunus,” Wolf half whispered, as though if she said it too loud it would all disappear. “I am no longer exiled.”

Raven also smiled. “I am pleased to hear it. Will you be staying?”

The good mood faded for a moment. “I think not. I do need to return north, but I will be able to return to the land of birth whenever I wish, and that is enough. And perhaps I will seek out people I used to know on the mainland.”

“I would be happy to aid you in that.”

“And I thank you my friend.”

---

Wolf did not sleep much that night. Not out of fear of nightmares, but instead she was filled with a bubbling energy that made her want to dance and laugh. Just sitting by the fire she felt her legs bounce, even when she turned to whittling to curb the energy.

This was the first time in a long time that whittling had not focused errant energy, yet Wolf found that she didn’t mind.

She got at least some sleep that night, yet found herself awake at dawn. Looking at Raven, Wolf found herself having an idea, and waited impatiently for her to wake up.

“Raven,” Wolf hovered close as Raven stood up, stretching.

“Yes Wolf?”

“There is somewhere I would like to show you, if you wish.”

Raven tilted her head slightly. “Of course.”

“Shall we depart now, or do you need to wake up more?”

“You have been bouncing with energy since last night Wolf, I fear if I wait much longer you might explode,” Raven smiled and stood up. “Let us go.”

Wolf beamed right back before creating a portal. The two stepped through onto the shore of a loch.

“This Lochan Caer,” Wolf introduced. “And this is not quite our final stop. Come come!”

Raven followed Wolf as she darted along the shore, looking for something specific.

“It should still be here…” Wolf cast around, “here!”

She darted across the grass towards a small rock half buried in the ground. She had to dig around it before she could lift it up.

Underneath was fishing supplies, or what was left of them. Time had not been kind to them, the line was frayed and the net had broken or been nibbled on. What was left of the bait had long since rotted or been eaten.

“Ah. I suppose I had let my hopes get a little high,” she gently lowered the rock back down.

“What is down there?” Raven leaned over her shoulder.

“Some old fishing supplies,” Wolf turned back to her. “They are no longer functional, which is a shame.”

“…Were you intending that we go fishing?”

“That was a possibility. I wanted to show you this place.”

Raven slowly turned to look at the scenery. “It is a lovely place. I assume this place has some significance to you?”

“Lowf and I used to come here. We would fish or swim and make a campfire. It was not always the two of us, but it often was.”

“You must have many memories on this island, I have not had a chance to ask.”

“I do, most of them are bittersweet now. My old home has not been touched in some time, the watchtowers I oversaw are in ruin. I have not even looked at the Fortress, and I am not certain that I wish to.”

“Then where did you go yesterday? Cyrus told them that you left upset, but when you came back, you were almost content,” Raven sat on the rock hiding the fishing supplies, and after a moment Wolf joined her, the wind tugging at their hair.

“I went to see where I was captured. I would most likely have moved onto where I was held without Satyarani’s intervention. She has been very patient with me this entire quest, but then admonished me, asking me what was the point of dwelling on these memories. And I will admit, I finally no longer feel the need to do so. I will most likely fall into old habits, but I can work on that.”

“I am glad that she was able to help you. Was it last night that helped? You seemed more full of energy and cheer than I had ever seen you.”

“Aye, it was. I feel more at peace, and I was not aware of how much that was needed.”

“I am glad for you my friend,” Raven rested a hand on Wolf’s shoulder.

“I thank you,” Wolf gave a lopsided smile before turning to her staff. Her brow creased with an idea, and closing her eyes she placed her staff into the ground.

Raven startled as ghostly blue images sprung into life. A tall man with broad shoulders walked towards the shore, a squirming child half sitting on those shoulders, half trying to climb down his back.

He walked into the water up to about his calves before unceremoniously grabbing the child and dropping them in the water.

The ghost emitted no noise, but Raven could almost hear the indignant shriek and the following laughter.

Another ghost, the same broad-shouldered man with thick curly hair sat by a campfire with who Raven now recognised as a young Wolf. She wore her hair loose here and was easily in the youngest age bracket of some her Warriors. Here she was talking and whittling at the same time, and Raven winced as she nicked a finger, but the younger Wolf did not seem to notice.

There were a few more ghosts, some swimming, some fishing. A handful were on the island in the loch. They slowly faded until one was left. The same man as before, perhaps a little older, and Wolf, with a cloak and Staff. The two of them hugged, and the last pair of ghosts faded.

Wolf opened her eyes and Raven looked over at her. Wolf’s face was blank, but oddly peaceful.

“Was that the last time you saw him, Lowf?” it did not take much for Raven to guess who that had been.

“Aye. The Battle of Bryn Brahan was two days later. And a few days after that I was a prisoner,” Wolf huffed and leaned back a bit. “I am already returning to old habits! It was good to see him then.”

Wolf shifted and sat up a little straighter. “Listen to me, I have only ever spoken of myself. How are you feeling Raven? We did not get the chance to talk much yesterday.”

“I am well, the Warriors have safely returned to the mainland and I have been catching up on some much needed sleep,” Raven looked out towards the loch, and let the wind out of her sails. “May I confess something to you?”

“Of course.”

“I have not had much of a chance to speak with Raven of Old, and now that he is returned…” Raven struggled with the words. “I feel as though I am no longer needed, and yet,” she lifted her staff to make the point. “Am I to be forever within his shadow?”

“I would think not,” Wolf considered for a moment. “While the world is certainly richer to have Raven of Old in it, it would be far poorer if you were not. You have done great things. You came to the aid of a stranger, you organised this quest, you made it so that Raven of Old could return. You ran into that portal without even thinking in order to aid him. And that is what I know you have done, doubtless you have many other great deeds to your name!”

Wolf paused for breath. “Without you many of us would not be here. Even the act of reaching out to Satyarani is impressive; to know that Raven of Old had such an ally and where to look is a feat in of itself.”

Raven had gone rather pink. “Wolf… I fear you are exaggerating, my friend.”

“Am I? Or am I embarrassing you, my friend?” Wolf gently nudged Raven in the shoulder, who after a moment, nudged back.

“Both.”

“Raven, I assure you that I am not exaggerating, and many more great deeds lie in your future.”

“…Thank you,” Raven allowed herself a smile. “That does not quite alleviate all of the concerns I admit, but it is an excellent start,” she looked at the staff again. “I am Raven now, but of course, I was not always Raven. It is almost a title if I am honest.”

“I had assumed as such.”

“…Would you like to know my name from before I was called Raven?”

“Only if you are comfortable sharing.”

Raven did not speak for a full minute, before quietly muttering the name. Wolf could only just hear it over the breeze coming off the loch, but hear it she did.

“I am honoured that you shared that with me.”

“I have not heard the name is some time,” Raven shifted her shoulders, much like a bird. “Was there anything else you wished to do?”

“My only other thought was to explore Alaunus in our other forms, and if you find somewhere interesting I could tell you about it.”

“Cyrus informed me of a great deal of the Island’s history, but I have not seen the eastern side yet.”

Wolf’s eyes gleamed. “Then let us be off.”

---

Well, here we are! This has been a ride to do and I enjoyed going into it. As always, I have some thoughts on the project

Part of me did consider continuing from here, this was not the intended end point, but Wolf is just so happy here, so it felt good to end on this point.

Next, Raven's name. The name itself is not important, the act of sharing it is the important thing here. I see Raven as more of a title in this case, but it's one that gets used a lot for her. That said I'm quite fond of Arven for Raven's name. Headcanon more than anything else. Now, the elephant in the room, at least I think. Wolf and Raven's relationship. While not explored greatly in this story I still have thoughts. The relationship between Wolf and Raven was always intended to be platonic, even the original version back when I was a teenager. Yet I can see the relationship becoming romantic, and I know I'm not the only one, and this is frustrating. Part of me does want to keep going down that track, see where it goes, the other part is fully aware that if I was a reader and a close platonic relationship turned romantic, I would be livid.So, I'm opening this one up to you guys. What do you think? I make no guarantees on successfully writing (especially as my brain's been jumping around to writing other ideas in other fandoms) but I do honestly want to know what you think. And I'm afraid 'it's your story, do what you want' is not going to be helpful, even though I understand the intent.

With that, next on my agenda is stories going forward. I do not think I will be doing a full story with Wolf again, but I do have shorts from Wolf's past and future, and an idea that was cut but still written out that I would like to share, as well as bits of the universe I want to explore but not write a full length story for. So a One Shot series may come about. My posting schedule for that is not as strict, a one shot will come out whenever it's ready, multishots will stick to the Monday/Thursday schedule. It will mostly depend on my motivation, so those kinds of updates would be sporadic to say the least.

I have started writing Old Friends but from Raven's perspective, admittedly haven't gotten far. I have also had thoughts about writing the OG version of Wolf and Raven, with Raven of Old, with some ideas that would have been cool to include in the one I originally posted, if only I had thought of them in time.

There are no promises on my finishing those by the way, I just thought you guys might be interested. Finally, some music

Curses by the Crane Wives is one I have a full mental AMV for

My R by KurageP (annapatsu cover) is another one I kinda have an AMV for. Listen to that song at your own discretion, it's a heavy song with themes of suicide. I have it so that all the different people are just Wolf at different ages. (Trust me Not) Hero and Villain duet by TheCrazyPanda on Youtube. The mental AMV is an entirely non canon sequence where Raven of Old goes to see Wolf earlier in her exile

Ordinary cover by annapatsu. I partially blame me listening to this on loop for influencing Wolf's and Raven's relationship to lean romantic

St Bernard by Lincoln. No real thoughts on that one, just a few lines of not. “I’m in Ohio, satanic and chained up. And until the end, that’s how it’ll be”

Just, the image of Wolf, bleeding in the tent in Nevar’s camp, and fading from a side image of Wolf’s new injury to a much older Wolf with the scar.

I would like to thank my beta reader @fairyofsomething for always being enthusiastic and being willing to listen to me ramble.

And I believe that's it. Hopefully it won't take another two years for me to be heard from again!

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realitajayasaktigroup · 2 years

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Cegah Kejahatan Jalanan di Bulan Suci Ramadhan, Ditreskrimum Polda Banten Laksanakan Patroli Malam

RELASIPUBLIK.OR.ID,SERANG – Guna mengantisipasi kejahatan jalanan di bulan suci Ramadhan Ditreskrimum Polda Banten melaksanakan patroli malam di sepanjang jalan Polda Banten menuju Palima Kota Serang dan Alun-alun Kota Serang pada Jumat (08/04). Patroli gabungan dipimpin oleh Kanit I Subdit I Keamanan Negara Kompol Lono Haryad dengan diikuti personel Ditreskrimum Polda Banten. Dirreskrimum Polda…

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theshapeshifter100 · 3 years

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Wolf and Raven: Old Friends Chapter 13

First

Masterlist

---

A raven landed in front of Wolf and Raven stood up, breathing heavily.

“You arrived!”

“That I have. Is there anything I need to know?”

“We have not found the portal yet. Myself and Satyarani are searching from the sky. My Warriors are fighting the demons, as is Erina last I saw. Cyrus has proven adept at avoiding demons so far.”

“Haryad is now searching from above as well. I will search from the ground,” Wolf assured. “And a large pack of wolves should be in the north, destroying demons.”

“Ah yes, I heard about that,” Raven managed a small smile, despite looking exhausted. “I wish you good hunting my friend, may the luck of the Ravens Eye be with you.”

“I wish the same to you.”

Raven changed to a raven and flew off, leaving Wolf to continue searching.

Yet, she didn’t know exactly what she was looking for. A portal looked like a portal, certainly. A shimmering wave of light that either appears solid or you can see to the other side off. However, that’s only if you were looking at it straight on. From the side a portal may as well be heat distortion.

From the trees a demon loomed. Its cowled head turned towards her and began to march in her direction. Despite the shiver of fear, Wolf raised her staff and shot out a blast of ice, obliterating it.

One of Raven’s Warrior’s popped their head of the tree line. They couldn’t have more than 16 years on them, yet in their hands was a golden staff of power.

“How goes the search Warrior?!” Wolf called over.

“Not seen anything, mostly fighting demons!” the Warrior responded.

“Aye, keep up the good work,” Wolf nodded to them and moved on again, while the Warrior ducked back into the trees.

Frustrated with her speed Wolf shifted and began to run, darting from tussock to tussock. She crossed the distance between Stoorworm Marsh and the Bog O’Balor and still nothing!

She made her way south along the west line of demons, keeping just of reach while the Warriors moved northwards through them. Not all of them bore staffs, or appeared to. Some opted for non-magical weapons, it all seemed to be personal preference.

“Wolf!” a cloud of dust hovered above her head. “At least, I assume you are, this time.”

Wolf shifted. “Satyarani?”

“The portal is due south of you. Hurry!” with that Satyarani flew off.

Wolf aligned herself due south and shifted as she began to run.

Minutes passed before she spotted it. A small portal, Raven of Old would have to duck to pass through. She moved to stand in front of the portal, where it’s edges flickered faintly gold.

On the other side the world had little colour to it. It was the sort of colour scape Cyrus believed Wolf saw the world in in her wolf form before she had corrected him. Black and white and grey. A truly desolate place, if the green of the grass, or the yellow of the sun could not be seen.

Wolf sniffed the air. While it was thick with the scent of demons, she could not pick out the distinctive stink of Nevar. He had not come through yet. However, neither had Raven of Old, for she could not smell him either.

She shifted to human and planted her staff into the earth, holding it with both hands. Then she was to guard the portal. She could do that.

She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, opening her ears and nose to the world without changing form. Both senses were heightened beyond a human’s normally, but now the world revealed itself.

The rich smell of earth that was not quite mud wormed in it’s way in, mixing with the trees and waters of the nearby Loch of Dana. The reek of demons nearly drowned it all out, making her wrinkle her nose in disgust.

She could hear the Warrior’s battle cries, the fleeing of small creatures as they tried to avoid the battle, the faint hum of the portal.

The hum from the portal shifted pitch and Wolf opened her eyes. On other side of the portal a raven shifted to stand at full human height.

Raven of Old looked exhausted. His shoulders were slumped and the some of the feathers in his hair hung loose. Once he saw Wolf he straightened his shoulders and began to march on the portal.

Wolf stepped back, looking between Raven of Old and her surroundings. No demons had appeared yet, but that did not mean that they wouldn’t.

Looking back at the portal, Wolf’s stomach dropped as a shadow appeared behind Raven of Old.

“FLY!” she shouted at him, as Nevar appeared behind him.

Raven of Old instead paused, squinting and leaning with his head towards her. His mouth moved, but she could not hear him.

Words that would have made Lowf wash her mouth out many years ago ran through Wolf’s head and she began to energetically point behind Raven of Old.

He frowned in confusion for a moment before his eyes widened and he whirled around. In time to see Nevar raising his staff against him.

Raven of Old had no staff to defend himself. He drew his cloak around himself to shift and dark lightning burst into him. It arced through him and for moment he was frozen.

Raven of Old then fell to the ground. He did not get up.

Wolf’s eyes widened, and a humming formed in the back of her head as Nevar stepped over Raven of Old and approached the portal.

She drew her staff up and fired a blast at him, which bounced harmlessly off the portal. Even though she couldn’t hear it, she could see him laughing.

Gritting her teeth she held it up again. He would not pass the threshold; she would make sure of that. Even as the humming increased in volume, turning the world into a dull drone.

A blast hit her from behind and she roared, staggering before turning to face her attacker. All her anger drained as she faced the line of demons that had appeared.

Black smoke and electric energy formed down the line, all held in the hands hidden by black robes. They fired one by one, and Wolf deflected most of them with her staff. One struck her leg and it buckled, sending her to one knee.

She sent out several blasts, but more demons filled in the gaps of the ones who fell. All the while she was far too aware of Nevar’s advance on the portal.

She ducked under one stream of energy and thrust her staff up, sending an icy sigil in the sky. She could not think of any rune at the moment, so all that appeared was an arrow pointing to her location. Simple, but hopefully effective as a call for help.

She felt a prickle on back of her neck and she spun to face Nevar, stepping through the portal.

---

Bit of a short one today, but come on, that cliffhanger!

Only recently did I realise that my description of the portal is more old school Raven, while new Raven's portals seem to be more like wormholes in visuals Something I wanted to talk about with this one is my take on the Warriors. There are more than four* True Warriors here (the irl series winners and my two from the last story) for several reasons. One, there's been a time jump between the end of the first story and the beginning of this one, but a couple of years. Two, I reckon Raven would have more than one set of trials per year. It takes what, a month? To find 1 True Warrior? I don't think she'd do trials every month, but certainly there's enough time in the year to do this more than once in universe.

You would have probably noticed that I mention the Warrior carrying a Staff of Power. Now, I know in the new series they are not presented with one. They jump into a portal and that's it. However, receiving the Staff of Power could still happen, just, of screen. All previous Ultimate Warriors had them and as far as I know the Enchanted Oak on the mainland is still alive and kicking, so I don't see a reason why, in universe, they would not have their own Staffs of Power. Of course whether they use them as a weapon is entirely up to them, maybe some of them just don't get along with it, hence the addition of mundane weapons.

Finally, a question I had already answered, but I'll to elaborate on; are the Warriors from our universe or the Raven universe? Which is one hell of a question, and the more I've thought about it, the less I have a solid answer.For starters, how I write their dialogue. Thanks to Ervan, we know that the standard person will probably speak in that formal way that the immortal characters do, so if the Warriors are from this universe then it doesn't make sense for them to talk more casually. Yet them being from our world I find opens a can of worms I don't want to deal with. These stories are not about the Warriors, and so there's some questions that don't necessarily need answering.That said, really easy to cop out and say that they are from the Raven universe and they pick up that style of speaking while training. Long story short, I want to have come from Raven's universe to keep the story cohesive and save myself a headache.

* so I was wrong! There are 3 canon True Warriors, because Raven did a Gaelic version (I think it’s a special rather than a full series, not sure) I can’t find much on it, there’s the trailer and an hour long vid on YouTube. I don’t think there’s one with English subtitles, and I don’t know if it’s Scottish Gaelic or Irish. Scottish makes the most sense to me, but I’ve seen comments saying it’s Irish. I don’t speak either language, so I don’t know! It goes by ‘Fitheach’ if that’s helpful to anyone

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theshapeshifter100 · 3 years

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Wolf and Raven: Old Friends Chapter 12

First

Masterlist

---

Wolf did not sleep well that night, waking up frequently from nightmares.

Nevar’s mask loomed in her dreams and her head throbbed. By the time the sun rose, her head felt like one large bruise.

She gingerly sat up at dawn, taking a careful drink from her water skin.

Satyarani looked at both Erina and Wolf as they packed up camp.

“The pair of you appear exhausted.”

“I did not sleep well, and Wolf did not appear to either,” Erina sighed, rubbing her eyes.

“Aye,” Wolf groaned, pressing the heel of her palm above her eye. “I hope I will fully awaken soon; this is unpleasant.”

“Indeed,” Satyarani turned to Erina. “Do you remember what I told you about the wolves last night?”

“Aye.”

“Then we can hope to confer with Raven soon. The wolves are unlikely to listen to us.”

“Aye,” Erina stretched her arms up and moved her head from side to side. “Let us be off. Best of luck to you Wolf.”

“You may need the luck more than I,” Wolf spoke lowly, so not to disturb the pain in her head.

“We shall see,” Satyarani passed her cloak back to her one final time, before turning into a dust cloud and flying away. Erina opened a portal, and with one final nod to Wolf, stepped through.

Wolf took another swig of her water before shifting.

She loped carefully, trying to move smoothly, and not as though every step jolted her headache.

The Whispering Forest was the same, and yet so different. The trails were not where she expected them to be, and she had to force her way through a set of bushes that were not there years ago.

She paused in a clearing however. Rotten wood beams lay scattered on the forest floor, and looking up, the wooden structures there fared no better. The sorry remains of the Whispering Forest Watchtowers.

She had been sent here, many a moon ago, by the King to oversee their construction. That had been the first time in years that she had gone home, and it had showed her how much she had changed.

The people she considered her childhood friends spoke to her with the respect of a lord. It even took Lowf several days to break the formal tone. It had hurt, to be treated as stranger in the place she had called home.

Wolf whined in the back of her throat and moved on, trying not to think. Yet, she did.

Lowf, with his nut-brown hair and weather beaten face, with broad shoulders she had been able to clamber up to when she was small. Where was he now? Was he well? Did he live?

That thought was quickly replaced with the image of Lowf with grey hair, which was startling enough to make Wolf stop for a second.

Lowf, alive, and old? If he was, then he must be.

Wolf moved on, shaken. It was almost a silly thing to be shaken by, of course people age. Lowf was born a mortal man and had no Staff of Power, so naturally he would age. Why did that rattle her so much? It was almost childish.

Wolf chuffed harshly to herself. It did not matter now. She could seek him out once this was over, and this quest was not over.

Her lope turned into a run, her headache subsiding.

She passed overgrown pieces of her youth. A pile of mossy sparring staffs, an archery target covered in ivy, rust bitten swords inside a hole ridden barrel. A woodsman’s hut, still standing?

She shouldn’t go in. She was on a mission…

She could make a portal if she needed to.

Despite her better judgement, she shifted to human and approached the hut. It was as she remembered, mostly. The undergrowth now just brushed under the windows, and she had to fight to get to the door. Yet, the building remained standing.

She slowly reached her hand to touch the door, as though it might crumble upon contact.

The wood was cool from being hidden from the sun, and with a gentle push, it opened. The hinges squealed in protest as the door creaked open, thudding gently against the wall. The inside was dark, but Wolf’s eyes adjusted as she stepped in.

It was exactly as she remembered.

A cooking pot hung over a firepit to the right, carving tools, plates, and other miscellaneous objects were mostly scattered, seemingly without order. Along the left wall was a pile of furs, and the further corner from the door was curtained off.

It took Wolf merely a few strides to reach it, and pulling back the curtain revealed a fur lined space with a window that looked out into the trees. The walls were lined with odd little trinkets, small carvings, interestingly shaped stones, the first arrow she’d ever fletched.

Wolf swallowed hard and stepped away, pulling the curtain back harder than she intended. Not now. She had a mission. Enough dwelling on the past.

Haryad flew in minutes after Wolf left the building behind.

“Wolf! Everyone is in their desired position. Wolves and Warriors are fighting the demons as we speak.”

Wolf shifted to human to respond.

“That is good to hear,” she brought up her mental map. “I could reach the point in an hour if I ran, but I fancy a portal is a better option,” she thrust her staff out and a shimmering portal appeared before them. “Will you join me?”

“I will.”

Haryad went through first and Wolf followed, closing the portal behind her.

The sudden smell of salt assaulted her nose and the crashing of waves rushed through her ears. She stood on a cliff facing out to sea, the wind yanking at her hair and making her cloak snap.

To her left the waters of the River of the Diving Bird rushed into the Great Loch, and the hairs on the back of her neck stood on end. She was close.

She held her staff in one hand and let it swing like pendulum, following it until it felt right. She plunged it into the ground and crouched, holding her hand out like she’d seen Satyarani do. She didn’t know how she did it, as she wasn’t feeling anything with her hand.

Growling under her breath Wolf took out the final talisman from her pouch. This one bore a single fluffy cloud. She held it in both hands and hovered it over the ground, trying to see if the talisman itself would give any indication of where it should be placed.

It began to warm in her hands, and once the warmth was at its peak, Wolf placed it onto the windswept grass.

A bright light flared from the talisman, mixed with the blue light from Wolf’s staff. She gasped, feeling as though she’d been punched in the gut as the same blue light seemed to be drawn from her and into the ground.

Just as with before, almost as soon as the light appeared, it was gone.

Wolf gasped and coughed, feeling a little winded. That was new, but she was also the only one here this time.

“Wolf?! Are you well?” Haryad bounced in the air by her head.

“I am fine,” Wolf’s voice was raspier than she liked. She used her staff to pull herself back to her full height, then pulled it from the ground and held in both hands. A burst of ice fired from the top and burst in the sky, revealing an icy firework of a cloud.

Wolf turned to Haryad, half melted ice flakes starting to fall around them. “That should alert them. To Fergus Holt?”

“Aye Wolf.”

She thrust her staff out and stepped through the portal that formed.

Once she and Haryad were on the other side Wolf shifted and ran. She burst from Fergus Holt and tore past the Time Well in Rowan’s Wood. Just past the Time Well, the scent of demon punched her across the nose.

Wolf skidded to a halt, tail tucked and ears flat. Haryad flew in front of her face, bouncing on her nose.

“Wolf! Now is not the time! Gather your courage!”

Wolf’s eyes narrowed on the tiny sprite in front of her. Her paws were rooted to the ground, she could not, she couldn’t…

“You are Wolf! You wield a Staff of Power! You have chased away Nevar’s forces many times!”

Wolf growled. This wasn’t helping. Past glories were not helpful, she wasn’t that person any longer.

Although, she had seen off demons without her staff.

She had destroyed demons with runestones many a time, and demons did not move quickly. She had even faced Nevar without her staff, and now she had it…

Shaking her head and sending Haryad flying, Wolf shifted to her human form, grasping her staff tight.

“My apologies,” she said when Haryad flew back. “There is little point in dwelling in the victories you remember; I am not that person any longer. Still, I have beaten demons without my staff, so they will be simple with it. Thank you for reminding me of that.”

“You are welcome,” if Haryad was confused about Wolf’s train of thought, he did not show it.

Wolf marched towards the line of the demons, shooting ice from her staff as they came into view. They barely had a chance to react before Wolf had frozen or obliterated them.

She burst through the line, Mount Gruagach to her right as she scanned the area. She could hear wolves snarling to the north, the packs streaming from the mountain to the north.

“Haryad, we need you looking for the portal,” she instructed.

“I go!” Haryad disappeared, and Wolf began to jog in the rough direction of the fortress, keeping her ears and eyes open.

---

Final talisman is placed and the portal is open, not before a quick trip down memory lane.

This is also the chapter where my beta reader found out that Nevar is Raven backwards, so we can officially welcome them to the fandom! XD

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theshapeshifter100 · 3 years

Text

Wolf and Raven: Old Friends Chapter 5

First

Masterlist

Wolf returned to camp later that night, while the fire was still burning. Erina had fallen asleep by now, but Satyarani was still awake.

As a wolf, she lay down next to the fire and rested her head on her paws, not looking at anyone.

“I am sorry, Wolf,” Satyarani said, making Wolf perk her head up. “I should not have brought it up.”

Wolf let out a soft whine and shook her head.

“I do not wish to listen to the pair of you argue and snip at each other for this entire quest, but the two of you need to calm down before we can try and talk again.”

Wolf huffed.

“I do hope that was a huff of agreement.”

Wolf briefly swished her tail before laying her head back on her paws and trying to sleep.

---

She was back in the tent.

Torchlight could be vaguely seen from outside, but otherwise it was dark. No, it was the cell now. Still dark, only a single torch to light the room

She was alone. Alone hurt, but alone was safe. It hurt more when she wasn’t alone.

As soon as the thought manifested, she wasn’t alone.

A shadowy figure stepped towards her. First it looked like Raven, then after another step it was Raven of Old, then Erina. Finally Nevar towered over her.

Heart thumping in her chest, Wolf tried to back away. Her back was already to the wall. There was nowhere to run.

Her hand reached to grab for her staff, but instead closed on empty air. Nowhere to run and defenceless.

The metal mask loomed, moving from plain to horned and back. There was a tugging in her mind and the feeling of a tree trunk slamming into her forehead. She screamed as like a fish on a line, thoughts were dragged out. A map, the talismans, Haryad-

---

She was awake.

Wolf immediately cast around her staff, finding it next to her and grabbing it, hugging it to her chest. She rolled onto her back, staring up grey sky, breathing rapidly as she hugged her staff. As far as nightmares went, that hadn’t been too bad. Rough, but not the worst.

There was a rustle of grass and Wolf shot up upright, searching for the source. A rabbit stared right back at her before darting into the undergrowth.

Wolf slowly lowered her head into her hands, barely registering that she must have shifted in her sleep. More sleep seemed unlikely now.

She looked back up at the sky. It had to be before dawn, with thick clouds coming over. She really hoped that it wouldn’t rain.

She looked over at the fire, which had mostly died. Only a few embers were glowing in the ash.

On the other side was Erina, curled up on a sleeping mat with her cloak around her like a blanket. As if she knew Wolf was looking at her, Erina inhaled sharply and her eyes snapped open.

She also sat up, scanning the area and taking in the sleeping Satyarani, and the awake Wolf.

Erina narrowed her eyes at Wolf before laying back down and facing away.

Wolf remained sitting, staff held between her knees and hugging them, staring at the embers. She was aware of the weight on her hip, of the bottle of Dreamless Sleep that she had forgotten to drink from.

---

Satyarani woke up with the sun, once again being the only one with a decent night’s sleep. The three of them packed up camp and began to trek towards Flint Drop. Both Erina and Wolf were yawning as they walked, but slowly managed to wake up as they approached the mountain.

Flint Drop was well named. The mountain face was sheer, with safe passage few and far between.

Satyarani handed Wolf back her cloak before changing into a dust cloud, in order to fly to the top and wait. Erina and Wolf, as they had done in their youth, strapped their staffs to their backs and climbed the old-fashioned way.

It was almost nostalgic. Wolf would mostly scale mountains with four paws, but she had scaled them like this, to prove that she could. Even Raven of Old back in the day had scaled Flint Drop by hand, rather than soaring over it.

Wolf found herself out of practice however, so had a few close calls as climbed behind Erina. Meanwhile Erina appeared to have no such problems and quickly pulled ahead.

Wolf felt some degree of embarrassment when she reached the top of the rockface and the two princesses were waiting for her.

“Not a word,” Wolf growled as she handed the cloak back to Satyarani.

“I was not going to say anything,” Satyarani assured, wrapping the fur cloak around her shoulders.

“I was. Perhaps you’d like to find a wolf friendly path on the way down?” Erina asked in a mocking tone.

“Do not tempt me.”

The trek across the main part of the mountain was easier, but if you go up, you must go down.

Erina tied a rope to a sturdy outcrop and began to abseil down the sheer rock face. Wolf waited at the top with her cloak on and with Satyarani, who was going to untie the rope and turn into dust to get down.

Something was making Wolf’s hackles rise, but she could not put her finger on it.

Still, Erina reached the bottom, and it was Wolf’s turn to go.

She grabbed the rope and instantly let go like it burned.

A growl built at the back of her throat as something unpleasant churned in her stomach. It was just rope, what was the matter?!

She grabbed for it again, but when she touched it her feet were scrambling back and away. She could feel its bristles, tough fibres digging in and tightening-

“Wolf?” Satyarani asked with concern.

Wolf looked down at her hand. It was fine, she had abseiled many times. Just, not within the last couple of decades.

She tried for a third time, but now her hand trembled, and she could not bring herself to touch it.

“WHAT IS TAKING SO LONG?!” Erina bellowed from the base of cliff.

“…I WILL HAVE TO FIND ANOTHER WAY DOWN!” Wolf responded.

“WE DO NOT HAVE TIME FOR THIS!”

“I WILL CATCH UP!”

“I WILL GO WITH HER!” Satyarani called down the rockface.

Erina dramatically threw up her arms in response. Satyarani untied the rope and let it fall, and once Erina had gathered it up she turned and continued her way down the mountain.

“Are you well, Wolf?” Satyarani asked.

“…I do not think I have been well for a very long time,” Wolf admitted. “And in this moment? I do not know.”

“I see. Let us find another way down then. You are familiar with this mountain?”

“Mostly. There should be a wolf trail somewhere. There usually is.”

The wolf trail was still dangerous. In truth it was more of a goat trail, with Wolf having to leap from safe point to safe point. Still, it was easier with four paws.

It was afternoon by the time Wolf made it down, followed by a patient Satyarani as a dust cloud, who gave her helpful tips on where to jump next.

Once back on the ground Wolf gave herself a shake before casting the air for Erina’s scent. She trotted north, making for the River of the Rising Moon.

Satyarani changed to human to follow, but kept up remarkably well.

They found Erina talking with Haryad a few miles south of the river as the sky turned orange.

“…moving onto the northern most edge of Green Lady Wood for their second talisman,” he said.

“Aye. Any news from Raven of Old?”

“He has been moving quickly, for he is making his way to place his fourth talisman.”

“That is excellent news to hear,” Satayrani said as she stepped towards Erina. Wolf shifted mid step.

“There you are, I was starting to worry,” Erina frowned. “I am concerned, about how easy this has been. There has not been a single demon spotted so far.”

“Nevar is likely hoping that we will not be able to fight him off, or possibly impede us in reaching the portal,” Wolf suggested, face twisting as Erina turned to face her. “Do not Erina, please.”

Surprisingly, Erina did not jump on the potential bait. “I fear you may be right,” she sighed.

Wolf was surprised. “What did you say?”

“Do not make me say it again.”

“I am not entirely certain I heard you the first time.”

“You heard me loud and clear Wolf.”

Wolf was grinning despite, or perhaps because of, Erina’s annoyed expression.

“Some things do not change,” Erina sighed before turning to Haryad. “Please inform Cyrus and Raven that we will be camping along the River of the Rising Moon, with plans on crossing tomorrow.”

“I shall!” Haryad disappeared into the horizon.

Erina looked back at Wolf, opened her mouth to say something, then decided against it.

“What is it?” Wolf asked.

“I…” Erina shook her head. “I am too tired to start a fight with you. That was the first genuine smile I have seen from you.”

“…Oh.”

Erina cleared her throat and without another word began striding north.

Wolf glanced at Satyarani before following Erina.

They camped where Erina suggested, watching the waters of the River of the Rising Moon rush past.

Erina watched it warily, eyes flicking up and down the bank.

“Erina?” Satyarani asked.

“It is an old habit. Demons used to patrol this river, and I could not cross to avoid them.”

“Why? It is fast to be certain, but it does not appear deep.”

“While Nevar held dominion here, the waters became cursed. To touch it was certain death. And now, logically I know the curse is likely broken, yet still…”

“I am certain you will not be concerned if I fell in to test this,” Wolf commented lightly, whittling a new lump of wood.

“Wolf I do not think that is helpful,” Satyarani said.

“Wolf… no.”

“Very well, it was merely a suggestion.”

“That does remind me,” Erina turned to Wolf. “Why did you not abseil down Flint Drop?”

Wolf paused. She had been trying not to think about it.

“I am, uncertain. Something made me feel uneasy.”

“Did you not trust my rope?”

“That was not the problem,” Wolf tapped the side of her head. “Here is the problem.”

Erina furrowed her brow and looked away. “…I see…”

She was saved from having to continue her train of thought as a raven flew in. It landed just outside the campsite and shifted, revealing that Raven had flown to them.

Wolf immediately got to her feet. “Raven? Is everything alright?”

“Yes, yes. Everything is proceeding smoothly. Wolf, I was hoping to speak with you for a moment.”

Wolf glanced at Erina and Satyarani before leaving her whittling tools by the fire and walking to Raven. The two of them stepped away from the firelight.

“Are you certain you are well?” Wolf asked, now having a closer look. Raven looked pale, and bags were beginning to form under her eyes.

“I have not been sleeping well,” Raven admitted quietly. “I had hoped that you still have some of the Dreamless Sleep potion you used in the Lands to the North?”

“Aye, I do! One moment,” Wolf felt around her belt for the correct bottle, then after a second found an empty bottle. She poured some of the potion into the new bottle and handed it to Raven.

“That should tide you over for several days,” Wolf informed. “I will try and brew some soon. Return if you need more.”

“You are too good to me my friend,” Raven stowed the bottle away carefully.

“I could say the same of you.”

Raven gave a small smile. “I thank you Wolf.”

“How is Cyrus?” Wolf changed the subject. “Has he lost his voice yet?”

“Not as of yet, although he is making an admirable effort,” Raven looked over at the campfire. “How are things here?”

“Tense,” Wolf decided to be honest. “But slowly improving, I think. Time will tell.”

“Cyrus has been telling stories,” Raven looked over at Erina. “I do hope your relationship repairs somewhat.”

“What stories has he been telling?”

“Old glory day stories. The battles with Nevar, how he met you, some of his accomplishments. I did not think listening to the finer details of how Time Wells function would be boring.”

“He does enjoy the sound of his own voice,” Wolf commiserated.

Raven nodded. “Aye,” she raised the bottle. “Thank you again my friend. I will leave you now.”

“Give Cyrus my best.”

“That I will,” with that Raven started shifting, but paused as Erina called over.

“A moment Raven, if you please!”

Raven returned to her human form and looked at Wolf quizzically as Erina came over.

“There is something I wish ask you, privately,” Erina shot Wolf a look.

“Very well,” Wolf conceded irritably. “I will not be far if you need me. Safe travels,” Wolf walked back to the fire.

Erina and Raven spoke for a few minutes, Wolf doing her best not to eavesdrop. Still her name and ‘staff’ and ‘Nevar’ pierced through her ears. Erina didn’t seem to get the answers she was looking for, as Raven shifted into a raven and flew west. Erina walked back, face equally as stormy as the sky.

Wolf watched Raven fly away until she could no longer see her, before turning her attention to Erina.

“What did Raven wish to speak to you about?” Erina asked before Wolf could.

“She asked for some of my potion of Dreamless Sleep,” Wolf gestured to the bottle on her belt. “I will be looking for ingredients to make a new batch tomorrow.”

“I see,” Erina didn’t appear too convinced. “Do you still remember how to make it?”

“I believe so. Why, are you offering aid?”

A muscle worked in Erina’s jaw. “Perhaps. I will think on it.”

“…I see,” of all the responses, Wolf had not been expecting that. “And what did you ask of her?”

“I merely asked her to confirm something for me,” Erina sighed and looked long and hard at Wolf. “You did always insist on being difficult.”

“Excuse me?”

“Raven confirmed your story, and while I am not ruling out making portals in the night, I…” Erina shook her head. “Never you mind.”

“…No matter,” it did matter, but Wolf wasn’t sure if she had the energy for this. “I will sleep now,” she took a swig of the potion and curled up to sleep.

---

Yeah, Erina being alone on the Island for four years dodging demons, that's going to leave some marks. I haven't really got much to comment on the chapter itself, but I will say this about the River of the Rising Moon. When I was preparing this fic I rewatched Raven: The Island, as you might expect, and then I went back, cross referencing with the wiki to find specific challenges, and a I noticed that the three teams mostly stuck to a certain area. The Lions were usually in the southeast of the island, the Eagles in the northeast and the Wolves in the West. There is at least one challenge at the River of the Rising Moon, by the Lions, which should have been in this area, but when the map did it's travel thing, it scanned over to the west! Where the Wolves where and nowhere near where the Lions were usually!

Okay, I could have ignored that I'll admit, but I didn't, so there's no challenge remnants here. In hindsight, it should not bother me this much. Instead it bothers me greatly.

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theshapeshifter100 · 2 years

Text

Wolf and Raven: Old Friends Chapter 15

First

Masterlist

It felt like the entire Island of Alaunus let out a sigh of relief.

The wolves relaxed first, casually sniffing each other before disappearing into the trees. The Warriors relaxed next, looking at each other and carefully muttering to each other.

It took Raven, Erina and Wolf a few more seconds to relax. They looked over at Raven of Old, who was still there. In this realm.

Cyrus had appeared from nowhere, holding onto Raven of Old’s shoulder tightly, as if he alone was the reason Raven of Old was still here.

Erina looked over at Raven of Old, and took one step towards him, then another. Then she was beside him, and to the surprise of everyone, especially him, pulled him into a fierce hug.

Wolf took a step back, more than happy to leave them to it. Raven also took a step away, glancing between Raven of Old, and the staff she currently held.

Wolf moved to stand next to her.

“How do you feel?” they both asked each other in unison, before breaking into small smiles.

“You first,” Raven insisted.

“…I am uncertain. I feel lighter than before, but I think it is too soon to tell.”

Raven nodded, glancing at Raven of Old. “I am, apprehensive,” she looked down at the staff. “I will admit, I had become accustomed to being Raven. I do not know if I wish to relinquish it.”

“That is a conversation to be had between the two of you, but if you wish for my thoughts, then he seems to be in need of some rest. Perhaps you will hold onto the name for a little while longer.”

“Perhaps,” Raven looked at the staff again. “You should go to him. You were old friends.”

“He was your mentor, and I… I have no immediate desire to speak with him,” the image of Erina’s fury flashed in her mind.

“I see…” Raven took a deep breath.

“I will be nearby if you need me.”

“Thank you my friend,” Raven squared her shoulders and walked over to Raven of Old and Erina, who had parted from their hug and were talking intently.

Satyarani appeared by Wolf’s shoulder as the two Ravens began to speak to each other.

“This will become confusing, with two Ravens in the conversation,” she commented.

“Perhaps we should number them? Raven one and Raven two?” Wolf suggested lightly.

“I fear Raven two may take offence to that.”

“That they might,” Wolf smirked, watching as Raven held out the Staff of Power to Raven of Old.

He did slowly reach his hand out towards the staff, but stopped himself, withdrawing his hand. He shook his head, smiling fondly at Raven. She carefully drew the staff back, as though worried that he might change his mind.

She held it awkwardly as she was pulled into the conversation between Raven of Old, Erina and Cyrus, with Haryad whizzing over their heads, and Wolf finally realised why she still felt uneasy.

“I will have to leave in four days,” she murmured.

“Erina did not relieve you of that?” Satyarani asked.

“No, she did not.”

“Perhaps she forgot?”

“Perhaps,” in a strange way Wolf almost didn’t want that to change, although for what reason she didn’t know. “I almost wish to slip away, to leave them all to it.”

“I understand the feeling, and I share the sentiment,” Satyarani looked at Wolf. “I fear that we have travelled too much together now to get away with such an action, and I doubt you would be content to leave Raven without saying goodbye.”

“…You are correct. What of you? Have we endeared you to Alaunus?”

“Somewhat. It has its charm, but I will be glad to be back in warmer lands.”

“Ah yes, I never did make you a cloak, did I?” Wolf joked.

“I fear that you would never find the dye to match me,” Satyarani joked back. “You need not worry, your cloak has served me well,” Satyarani gestured to said cloak, which was currently on Wolf’s back. “If you do not mind, I would like to continue to borrow it until we return to the mainland.”

“You may, I do not mind,” Wolf took it off and handed it to Satyarani, who threw it over her shoulders.

“What is it the two of you are discussing over there?” Cyrus called over.

“I could ask the same of you!” Wolf responded, before glancing at Satyarani and walking over. “I assume you are speaking of how you might push me through the portal?” she tilted her head at Erina, trying to hide a joking smile.

“No,” Erina let out a deep sigh. “I apologise for my words in the heat of the moment.”

“I see,” Wolf honestly had not been expecting that. “Still, I fear that might stay in my mind longer than I wish.”

Erina’s mouth turned, but she nodded. “I am sorry.”

“So you have said.”

“We were suggesting that we make camp,” Cyrus interjected, causing Raven of Old to give him an amused expression. “Perhaps by the Loch of Dana?”

“That is agreeable, I will inform the Warriors,” Raven took this moment to extract herself from the conversation.

“I will make sure Satyarani reaches the Loch,” Wolf tried to use the same tactic.

“Wolf,” Raven of Old said, causing her to freeze in her tracks. “I thank you, for attempting to warn me, and for holding Nevar. Even for being here. It cannot be easy for you to be here.”

“…Aye,” Wolf’s throat was oddly choked up. “If you will excuse me,” she didn’t wait for a response before walking back to Satyarani. Now with the fight over, people dispersing, and the battle high fading, Wolf felt as though she could sleep for a decade.

“Is everything alright?” Satyarani asked.

“…Aye, we are making camp by the Loch of Dana.”

“I see, and I will need someone to make sure I get there.”

“Aye. If you would follow me, your highness.”

“Do not start now,” Satayrani warned.

“I am gently poking fun, for you are my friend now. Shall we?”

---

A large campfire was set up by the Loch of Dana, just south of the source of the River of the Leaping Salmon, and after an hour of everyone pitching together to build it, it was crackling merrily and everyone had split into smaller groups.

Raven of Old and Erina had barely moved away from each other, taking this time to catch up. Satyarani and Cyrus were deep in conversation, and from the bits that Wolf caught, the conversation seemed to be about differing magical traditions.

This left Wolf and Raven sitting together. The Warriors were scattered in their groups, and the wolves had long since slunk away. The two sat in quiet for some time until Raven yawned.

“I could almost fall asleep here,” she muttered.

“As could I,” Wolf looked across the fire at Erina. “You, myself and Erina have the worst of it I fear.”

“Have you spoken with Raven of Old at all?” Raven asked.

“Not as of yet. He appears pre-occupied.”

Raven huffed gently. “You are nervous.”

“I do not know what to say to him,” Wolf fiddled with the hem of her shirt. “I am not here for him.”

“You are not?”

“Of course not. Do not misunderstand, he was once a dear friend, and this realm is better off having him in it, but he is not the primary reason that I am here.”

“That what is?”

Wolf glanced at Raven out of the corner of her eye. “I am here because you asked me to be.”

Raven’s eyes went wide. “I see. I am sorry if you feel as though I forced you here. I assure you that it was not my intention.”

“That is not…” Wolf groaned and lowered her head into her hand. “You did not force me here. You made it very clear that I could leave if I wished. I am, I am not entirely sure that I can explain myself. My sense of loyalty and what remains of my honour demanded that I stay, but even though it hurt, I never considered that I should leave. I never wanted to.”

“So, you stayed out of some notion of duty to me?”

“…Aye, although that is a rather cold description.”

Raven tilted her head up to look at the sky, which was slowly turning orange. “I do not know what to say to that. I thank you my friend, certainly. I had assumed this was because I had helped you, so you felt as though you should help me.”

“There was a little bit of that, however the main reason was that you are my friend, and I will help my friends.”

“I hope that you have regained some during this time, or did you and Erina argue this entire time?”

“The relationship has been mostly mended,” Wolf glanced over at Erina. “But it may never be what it was.”

“Still, I apologise for letting the two of you be in the same group.”

“It worked out for the better, although I apologise in turn for leaving you with Cyrus. Did he lose his voice at all?”

“He did in the last day or so.”

“What stories did he tell, I wonder?”

“He told me of the time a mundane raven pulled your tail and you spent the next ten minutes chasing Raven of Old around the fortress.”

Wolf let out a surprised snort of laughter. “I had forgotten about that! Erina was chasing the pair of us, trying to get us to stop!”

“The finest in Alaunus, running around the Royal Fortress over a misunderstanding!”

Wolf clapped a hand over her mouth, shoulders quaking with laughter. “Those were the days!”

It took a few minutes for the giggles to fade, and Wolf wiped her eyes. “I am clearly tired to find this as amusing as I do.”

“You do not need to make excuses, it is an amusing story.”

“Still, sleep should be had,” Wolf made to shift, then paused before returning to her human shape. “Do you have such stories of Raven of Old?”

To her surprise, Raven’s face split into an amused grin. “Aye, that I do.”

Wolf leaned in. “Oh? Do tell.”

“There was one time, when I was still a Warrior, when we were trekking through the mainland. We were approaching a challenge, when he tripped. Which, I will grant, does not sound funny, but he completely lost his balance, cloak flying everywhere and even with his staff, landed flat on his face!”

Wolf glanced between Raven and the composed Raven of Old before slowly breaking into a fresh set of giggles.

“It is the sort of thing he would adamantly deny ever happened,” Wolf chuckled. “He is always so sure to appear dignified, in control.”

“Aye, gravity caught up with him that day! He scrambled up so quickly and tried so very hard to act as though it had never happened,” Raven’s grin widened. “But we remembered.”

The two laughed quietly until Wolf yawned again, with Raven quickly following suit.

“My apologies,” Wolf shook her head slightly. “I fear I must sleep,”

“Aye,” Raven agreed.

Within moments Wolf changed shape and stretched, yawning widely before curling up on the ground.

“I envy you for that my friend,” Raven settled as well, rolling out a sleeping mat.

Wolf chuffed and gently wagged her tail, lightly swatting Raven on the leg before tucking her nose back into her belly.

Part of her should have been uneasy, she had not taken any potion and last night had been marred with nightmares. Yet, surrounded by allies, with a warm crackling fire, Wolf felt safe.

--- As always, those stories are funny when I first write them, then I never find funny again, and I can't tell if it's because they aren't actually funny, or because I've read them too many times

We have three chapters left to go! Which are quite chill chapters honestly, if you wanted to end the story here, you could, I just kept it going a bit longer

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theshapeshifter100 · 3 years

Text

Wolf and Raven: Old Friends Chapter 11

First

Masterlist

---

As they walked, picking up the pace as much as they could, Wolf collected stones and pebbles. Soon all of her empty pouches were clinking and rattling with stones.

As they got closer to Bryn Brahan Wolf stopped, straining her ears. On the wind it seemed like faint whispering could be heard.

“Wolf, do not,” Erina said. “It is not safe.”

“Why?”

“The battlefields are cursed. I would not go much closer to them.”

“…very well.”

The faint whispering didn’t subside, and upon cresting a hill, Wolf could see it.

Piles of rusting swords, halberds and shields, littered with bleached skulls and bones. Tattered banners still hung, the colours and sigils lost to time. Even from here the air felt colder.

“There was an eclipse,” Wolf remembered. She didn’t know why she remembered that now.

“Aye, not that the darkness caused much of a problem for you and Raven,” Erina also remembered.

“Indeed,” the sounds of clashing metal began to echo in Wolf’s mind. “It was a terrible battle.”

“Aye.”

The two stood in quiet contemplation, before moving away in unison.

They made camp within eyesight of the Whispering Forest. It took a Wolf a good minute to recognise the nostalgia washing over her. Despite everything, it was good to be back.

“Do you remember any shortcuts through the Whispering Forest?” Erina asked as she worked on the fire.

“I would use deer trails, which may have changed. It is not something we can be certain on.”

“Ah, we must be at the Whispering Forest you mentioned,” Satyarani realised. “Is this a happy return?”

“I would prefer it to be in different circumstances, but otherwise, yes.”

Erina lit the fire with a swish of her staff and the three of the sat around it.

“I would like to take first watch,” Wolf volunteered.

“If you take first, then I would like to take last watch,” Erina added.

“I have no complaint with taking second watch,” Satyarani turned to Wolf. “Now, what was it you wished to show me?”

“This,” Wolf detached a pouch from her belt and handed it over to Satyarani. “Runestones from the North.”

“Runestones? How will runestones help?” Erina was the one who was incredulous, as Satyarani opened the pouch and plucked out a stone to examine.

“Runestones on Alaunus have some magic to them as it is, but in the North such magic is more potent. The runes themselves are a different language then here, and there is an entire magical discipline dedicated to the study of them. The Giants told me that the most skilled in the magic of the runes can use them for divining the future.”

Erina scoffed and Wolf turned to look at her, eyebrows raised.

“I am only telling you what I have been told, and who I am to doubt the word of ancient Giants, who know far more about rune magic than I?”

“How do I use them?” Satyarani asked, carefully examining a runestone with a fire rune on it.

“You merely need to throw them, holding your intent in your mind, the stones themselves already have magic within them.”

“And I would assume that each rune would have a different effect.”

“Aye, the one you are holding bears the rune for fire. So if you were to throw that at a demon with the intent of destroying it, then the demon struck with it will disappear in flames.”

“I see,” Satyarani carefully placed the stone back into the pouch, “and does this use up the stone?”

“Aye.”

“I do hope then that you have not given me your entire supply.”

“I intend to make more,” Wolf rattled the pouches full of stones at her waist.

“Very well,” Satyarani nodded and tied the pouch to her waist. “If we are lucky, then Raven of Old will have placed his last talisman, Raven and Cyrus will place their final talisman tonight, and we will place ours tomorrow, correct?”

“Aye,” Erina adjusted her cloak. “I would suggest that we are not all at the talisman site when it is placed. For once it is in place the portal will open, and we will need to aid Raven of Old against the demons.”

“I am in two minds,” Satyarani thought. “I can travel quickly, so if I were to place the talisman then I could move quickly to aid you. On the other hand, I am the only one of the three of us who can search from above for the portal.”

“Aye, I believe that you will be most useful watching for the portal,” Erina agreed. “Wolf will be able to move faster than I, so it would make sense for her to place the talisman.”

“Yet the line of demons even from here is over a day’s walk for you,” Wolf pointed out. “You could create a portal, that is true, but you could walk straight into demons.”

“I did not see any demons outside of the triangle,” Satyarani informed.

“I see,” Erina thought for a moment and pulled out the map. “If I were to create a portal southwest of Fergus Holt,” she pointed at it, “I would be within walking distance.”

“Aye,” Wolf looked over the map as well, “then perhaps I should create a portal to the final talisman point.”

“You could, but we may need time to get into a good position and confer with Raven and Cyrus. You would be best starting your journey on foot.”

Wolf nodded slowly. “I can do that.”

“And you would be fine with travelling alone?”

“…Aye. The Whispering Forest was my home. I will feel safe within its trees.”

“That is good. Once it is placed I would suggest that you create a portal to Fergus Holt, or somewhere similar.”

“If you send Haryad then he can tell me where you are, and I can adjust accordingly.”

“Aye, that would work,” Erina nodded.

“Then we are decided,” Satyarani clarified. “Erina and I will travel to the centre of the island while Wolf moves to place the final talisman, who will then join us once she has done so.”

“Aye,” Wolf and Erina spoke in unison, glancing at each other.

“Excellent.”

The trio slipped into companiable quiet, Wolf scratching out new runestones. They were mostly simple stones with only one rune to speed up the process of making them.

A blue streak whizzed across the sky and halted above them.

“Princess!”

“Haryad, what news?” Erina shot her head up.

“Demons! Demons forming a triangle around the centre of the island!”

“I am aware, Satyarani already informed us.”

“But their numbers grow Princess! They have increased two-fold since this morning!”

“That is worrisome, but we have a plan.”

“As does Raven. She and Cyrus placed their last talisman mere minutes ago,” Haryad informed. “She has informed Raven of Old and will summon her True Warriors.”

“She will?” that got Wolf’s attention.

“Aye, it is what they were trained for, and she is concerned that there may be too many demons for us alone to handle.”

“If they come to provide aid, then her Warriors are welcome,” Erina responded serenely. “Haryad, I will need you to fly over the centre of the island many times tomorrow, and once everyone has a place, you are to fly to the Whispering Forest to inform Wolf of our positions. Do you understand?”

“That I do Princess!”

“Thank you Haryad.”

The small sprite disappeared and Erina turned to Wolf.

“The presence of Warriors concerns you?”

“Not quite,” Wolf looked back at her stones. “I, I do not agree with their age. The Warriors Raven trains are young.”

“Aye, but there is a reason.”

“Oh?”

“They do not have many life years, so cannot be detected by Nevar so easily. While many of them carry Staffs of Power now, these staffs are taken from the Enchanted Oak that now grows on the mainland, and is not as old as the oak that grew here.”

“This does not ease my mind, for several of the Warriors now will be older than when they were first selected surely?”

“Aye, but I do not doubt that the magic will work. Nevar most likely knows where we are, and will know where we will arrive in the morrow, but the introduction of the Warriors will add an element that will be harder for him to see. Truly an excellent move on Raven’s part.”

Wolf was still uneasy. “It is not my decision to make,” she sighed. “I will do my part tomorrow, and my best.”

“Aye,” Erina looked at her. “As it stands, Nevar cannot appear in this realm for more than a few moments at a time. You are safe from him at least.”

“Until the portal opens,” Wolf added before shaking her head. “Do not concern yourself Erina. I will be fine.”

Wolf spent her time on watch making more runestones, amassing a decent collection by the time it was Satyarani’s turn. It helped, otherwise Wolf would have been jumping at every minor noise from the woods.

A lonely wolf howl echoed from Cannoch’s Crag, and Wolf answered. A small chorus sounded from the south and went quiet.

A few hours later, like ghosts, the wolves of Alaunus surrounded the camp.

It was a group of ten to twelve wolves, from old, scarred wolves, to long limbed wolves in their first moult.

Satyarani was preparing for her watch, and froze as the wolves appeared. She glanced to Wolf, who was putting her stones away.

Without a word Wolf shifted and greeted the wolves. They were of different packs, so Wolf made sure to greet each one. There was snuffling and cautious tail movement as the wolves greeted the One Who Walks on Two and Four, and enquired about the One With the Earth and the Lonely Pack Leader.

The One Who Walks on Two and Four vouched for them, and informed the wolves of what would happen when the sun would next rise. The wolves were unhappy with the return of the Dark Things, and were angry at the idea of The One Who Caused Much Destruction returning. The youngsters did not truly remember, but the elders did.

Old scents still clung to this land; scents that had to be explained. That was how the youngsters knew.

The One Who Walks on Two and Four explained how the pack of the One Who Walks and Flies would be arriving to defend against the Dark Things. One of the young wolves snapped that they should defend too.

The elder wolves were not against it.

After many more minutes of huffs, quick movements, snaps and unsure growls, the wolves dispersed. Wolf shifted back to human mid step as she walked back into camp.

“If I may ask, what just happened?” Satyarani stared at her.

“The wolves will aid us tomorrow. They have no desire to see Nevar and his demons here,” Wolf said calmly, settling to sleep. “Under the assumption that the Warriors will approach from the south, I have told them to go north.”

“Did you plan this?”

“I brought it up with a pack several nights ago, but I did not organise them. I did not organise this meeting, this is all their idea I assure you,” Wolf curled up to sleep. “They have a right to defend their home.”

“…Indeed they do.”

---

Hey, so guess who called the 'Whispering Forest', the 'Whispering Woods' while writing this, and didn't realise until everything had already been split into chapters in separate word docs meaning I had to go through them all one by one to correct it? Thank goodness for find and replace

I still think 'Whispering Woods' sounds better

The return of the runestones! I hadn't wanted to drop them entirely, since Wolf used them for so long and they were such a big part of the first story

The timeline of the war against Nevar is, loose. We know the major battles went in this order, Bryn Brahan, Tallow Vale, Glen Morrigan, yet there isn't much of idea of how much time there was between each major battle. That said my internal timeline goes thus-Wolf was present and participated in Bryn Brahan, was captive for Tallow Vale, was exiled by the time Glen Morrigan occurred.

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theshapeshifter100 · 3 years

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Wolf and Raven: Old Friends Chapter 9

First

Masterlist

---

The three of them made their way to the River of the Diving Bird, where they planned to cross at the point where they would end up between Loch Corra and the mountain closest to the river. No one remembered the true name of it, but most assumed was part of the range with Cannoch’s Crag.

Despite the clearing of the air, Wolf and Erina had fallen into an awkward silence. Years of hurt didn’t vanish with one conversation.

When they got to the river, the extra water left from the rain allowed Wolf to make a more functional bridge, not at risk of being washed away.

Erina took her time getting over it, and Wolf was not far behind her. Satyarani once again flew across, as that was easier for her.

When they set up camp Wolf cleared as much moisture as possible from the ground, but it was still muddy. It was tickling at her nose all over again.

“Do you plan on constructing a tent tonight?” she asked Erina.

“I do not. The sky seems clear enough.”

Wolf’s shoulder’s slumped in relief. “That is good to know.”

Camp was a quiet affair, with Wolf returning to whittling. This new wood was taking shape, slowly. Exactly what it would end up being she still didn’t know, but she could almost see the pattern of feathers in the wood.

In the mostly comfortable silence, a blue streak of light burst forth.

“Princess!”

“Ah, Haryad, it is good to see you,” Erina smiled. “How fare Cyrus and Raven?”

“They are faring well. They crossed the River of the Leaping Salmon and are now camped near Triple Thorn Wood. All going well, they will place their final talisman tomorrow evening.”

“That is wonderful news,” Erina smiled softly before pulling out the map. “We will be travelling in the shadow of Cannoch’s Crag towards the Whispering Forest. We should reach the northern mouth of the River of the Diving Bird in two days’ time.”

“I will tell them,” Haryad assured. “Raven wished to pass on a message to Wolf,” the sprite flew to hover by Wolf’s head. “Raven wonders how you are feeling.”

“Please inform Raven that I am feeling much better than this time yesterday,” Wolf smiled up at him. “Erina and I also had a conversation without fighting, which is an improvement.”

“It is an exaggeration; we have managed to converse without fighting before that point.”

“Aye, only just.”

Haryad giggled to himself. “I will tell her.”

“Is there any other news Haryad?” Erina asked. “We are so close to completion, and yet there has been nothing from Nevar.”

“I have not seen anything, but I will look around the fortress.”

“That would be wonderful.”

“I go!” Haryad disappeared into the night.

Satyarani looked between Wolf and Erina for a moment.

“May I ask how the two of you met? If you will indulge my curiosity for a moment.”

Erina and Wolf looked at each other before Erina began to speak.

“We officially met at the Enchanted Oak as adults, just about to receive our Staffs of Power.”

“But you met earlier?”

“I had been at the fortress for a fortnight or so,” Wolf picked up the story. “I was undergoing trials, similar to what I believe Raven puts the Warriors through. I believe the purpose was a test of my character, as I was an unknown entity. I could tell that Erina and Raven of Old were watching, although I could not see them.”

“You were not impressed by our behaviour,” Erina recalled. “I was indignant that you had the gall to speak to me that way, but Raven then admitted that you did have a point.”

“The two of you were sneaking around the fortress spying on me!” Wolf smiled at the memory.

“Aye. Cyrus told us not to meet you just yet, the reason of which you have already stated. I was under the impression that you were some wildling from the Whispering Forest.”

Wolf chuckled. “Ah, but I was not raised within the Royal Fortress, nor did I have royalty for childhood friends.”

“Do not tell me, you were raised by wolves,” Satyarani joked.

“You are not incorrect,” Wolf claimed, much to her surprise. “In fact my earliest memories are that of the wolf pack that moves between the Forest of Dawn Time and the Whispering Forest,” as if waiting for her cue, wolves began to howl from various parts of the island.

Erina leaned forward, “this is not another joke of yours is it?”

“Of course not!” Wolf tilted her head. “Did I never tell you this?”

Erina shook her head.

“Did Cyrus not tell you?”

Erina shook her head again.

“Well then,” Wolf sat up a bit straighter and put the whittling down. “I was found at a young age near the western edge of the Whispering Forest by a woodsman named Lowf. Not even I am certain of my exact age as I was not in the position to tell him. I was older than a toddler certainly, but not by much. I was understandably a feral child, I did not speak, I did not sit still. I would hide frequently and wander off into the forest. It took time to adjust into a human mindset. However even once I reached that point, I would disappear at least once per cycle of the moon to find the wolf packs of Alaunus.”

“You still did that at the Royal Fortress,” Erina remembered. “You drove the staff mad with worry the first few times.”

“Ah, yes I remember,” Wolf’s smile broadened. “It was highly amusing.”

Erina looked like she might disagree, then tilted her head in thought. “…Aye, it was. Eventually.”

“I needed the break. Cyrus made me try to catch up academically to Erina and Raven of Old, which meant many a day trapped in a room reading and writing, and as I said, I was a feral child. Even then sitting still for that long was difficult.”

“You needed to learn discipline,” Erina added.

“I had discipline. It did not make it any more bearable.”

“You learned though.”

“Aye that I did. Eventually. It helped to have some outlets, which transferred once my mind…” Wolf trailed off and waggled the whittling to make her point. “That is how I managed in the Whispering Forest. Cyrus was not fond of knives in his library.”

Erina snorted with sudden laughter. “No, no he would not be!”

Wolf smirked, but her mind was already off, running down a different, less happy trail. “This route we are taking, it will take us past the Vale of Bryn Brahan, will it not?”

“Aye. All being well we will make camp between the battlefield, Cannoch’s Crag, and the southernmost point of the Whispering Forest.”

“I see,” Wolf turned the whittled wood over in her hands. “I have not thought much about that battle.”

“In hindsight it was a terrible battle, I am not certain I remember who won.”

“No, I am not certain either. I remember riding into battle alongside you and Raven of Old, the power we wielded, the devastation we caused,” Wolf swallowed. “I am not certain I would have the stomach to participate in such a battle now.”

Erina leaned forward slightly. “The last I heard from Raven of Old, which was several years ago, he and his Ultimate Champions were to battle Nevar.”

“Raven mentioned such a battle on the mainland.”

“Aye, and if she was one of his Warriors, then it is likely that she was part of that battle.”

Wolf frowned. “I… I am perhaps biased, but I am not happy about this knowledge.”

“You are fond of her,” Erina smiled. “I am a little jealous. You held that fondness for myself and Raven of Old once.”

“Aye. That I did.”

Erina’s face grew solemn, and she took a swig of water. “I must confess something.”

“Oh?”

“I did not want to believe you innocent,” she managed to look directly at Wolf. “For if you were innocent, it meant that I had failed a dear friend.”

Wolf’s face became stony. “You did anyway.”

“Aye.”

Wolf leaned back for a moment. “…I know you could not have stormed Nevar’s camp for me. It is likely you would have been captured or destroyed in turn.”

“Yet you hoped.”

“And yet I hoped.”

“That hope may have been what pulled you through,” Satyarani finally spoke, having been listening quietly this whole time.

“That hope turned against me.”

“That was not the fault of hope.”

“I suppose,” Wolf rubbed her temple. “But it, it did something to my mind. You will have noticed Erina that I am not the same as I was, and it is not just time.”

“You would not touch rope, and your mind seemed to flee when you entered a tent,” Erina remembered.

“I believe I have worked out why,” Wolf flexed her hands. “I was held in a tent, tied to the main pole with rope, and it was often muddy. I believe there was fresh mud the night I was exiled as well.”

“And those things bring you back to those moments?”

“Aye, but not on their own. Lack of sleep, nightmares, being back on Alaunus and in your presence. All of these things combined brought it crashing upon me.”

“I see, I can only apologise-”

“You do not need to,” Wolf assured. “You were not to know. I did not know until it was happening.”

“I see…”

“This conversation keeps drifting to dark places,” Wolf declared. “Satyarani, do you have any lighter topics of conversation?”

Satyarani looked alarmed. “Not that spring immediately to mind! I know stories and legends, but surely you also have those.”

“That we do. One story from each of us, does that sound fair?” Erina suggested.

“Very well, I will need time to decide which one to pick,” Satyarani looked at Wolf. “What are your thoughts Wolf?”

“…I think I have a story. One Lowf told me.”

“Then by all means,” Satyarani made a show of sitting back to get comfortable, and Erina also relaxed.

The three told stories later than they intended, and before Wolf and Erina went to sleep they took larger doses than usual of Dreamless Sleep.

---

Of course the mountain without a name is the one I take the cast past, I didn't even know it didn't have one until I was writing this chapter! Also, some backstory that isn't trauma! As you may have guessed 'Lowf' is 'Wolf' re-arranged. Such a practice is usually for antagonists (Nevar and Ervan), but that's a Raven of Old thing, doesn't have to be a Wolf thing. I tend to pronounce Lowf as 'La-ow-f'

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#Wolf and Raven #Wolf and Raven: Old Friends #Wolf #Raven #New Raven #Raven of Old #Cyrus the Astromoner #Princess Erina #Satyarani #Haryad #Raven CBBC #Raven 2002 #Raven: The Island #Raven: The Secret Temple #Raven: The Dragon's Eye #Raven OC #OC #Raven fanfic #TheShapeshifter100 writes

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theshapeshifter100 · 3 years

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Wolf and Raven: Old Friends Chapter 3

First

Masterlist

At dawn the next morning a portal opened on the Sands of Taren. Raven, Erina, Satyarani, Wolf, and Cyrus stepped through one after the other on the beach. Before them lay a deep forest, moss and branches creeping out to meet the rocks on shore.

Wolf paused on the beach, listening to the wind whistling overhead as her boots sunk into the sand. She was back on Alaunus. It had been so long.

“It has been some time since I last stepped on these shores,” Cyrus took the words from her mouth. “It is good to be back.”

“Aye,” Wolf all but whispered.

Satyarani still had Wolf’s cloak and pulled it around herself on the windy shore. “May I suggest we move inland before the two of you are lost within the throes of nostalgia?” she asked.

The group disappeared into the fringes of the Forest of Dawn Time, the wind dropping instantly. Cyrus paused, looking out across the Great Loch before turning inland and pulling out two maps.

“The first of the positions are in the western and eastern edges of the Forest of Dawn Time, so we shall split into our groups from here.”

Wolf took a step towards Satyarani as Erina took one of the maps. Cyrus rolled up the remaining one and slipped it into a satchel that he had brought.

“I will call for Haryad as we travel,” Erina assured, “and we can keep a strong line of communication.”

“Excellent,” Cyrus moved to stand next to Raven. “I wish you all the best of luck.”

“And the best of luck to the pair of you as well.”

“May the luck of the Raven’s Eye travel with us all,” Raven added, and with a solemn nod, the group split.

Erina, Wolf and Satyarani moved east, while Cyrus and Raven went west.

Erina strode ahead through the forest, barely even glancing at the map, which was rolled up and hidden away in her own pack. They moved through the trees in the rough direction of Loch Ula, where they would move onto the foothills of Flint Drop. The point where they would drop off the first talisman was just before the foothills, in a position between Flint Drop, Loch Ula and Devlin’s Water.

It would take a couple days to walk there. It was tempting to create a portal, but walking was also a great way to assess the island, and whether Nevar had any idea of what they were doing. Not to mention it would give Raven of Old time to get his talismans into place.

Wolf trailed behind Satyarani and Erina. She could hear everything. Every squirrel and mouse and bird caught her attention. If she wasn’t on a quest right now she would run and investigate… most of them. Not all of them. She had some restraint.

The iciness of Erina’s demeanour had thawed somewhat as they walked. Almost as though she had forgotten that Wolf was there.

Wolf shifted and stepped off the path, investigating the smells and sounds while keeping one ear on Satyarani and Erina.

“Wolf! Do not wander far!” Erina called.

Wolf chuffed in response. It felt nostalgic, how many times had the two of them done this within the Forest of Dawn Time?

“I mean it! Remain within line-of-sight Wolf!”

Oh. That was new.

With a huff Wolf trotted up towards Erina, just within the trees but obvious that she was there.

Erina let out her own huff and continued walking. Wolf was glad she had shifted to this form; she was not tempted into an argument.

She cast her head back to look at Satyarani, who was walking serenely through the woods, as though none of this was bothering her. Watching her, she seemed to have no trouble stepping on sticks or brushing past thorns. Even though she was not of Alaunus, she seemed to be at ease with the land.

They reached a point where the faint path split, and on the trees small hooks were hammered in. There were two hooks per tree, and each one had a sign with a rune and a random object. Some of the signs were covered in moss and lichens, or the elements had partially destroyed.

“I had not expected these to still be here,” Erina commented, approaching one of the sign boards and flipping it over. This revealed that one the other side a picture of the object that hung above it.

“What is this place?” Satyarani asked, stepping into the clearing.

Wolf stood on her back legs and placed her front paws on the tree trunk, sniffing one of the signs. There was a very faint smell of demon on them, so faint she was wondering if she had imagined it.

“I had left these for the Warriors many years ago, to guide them. It would lead them to a stone circle I had left for them in the west,” Erina explained.

“We are heading east, are we not? So we do not need such signs?”

“No, we do not. It is merely nostalgic.”

“Yes. The three of you do appear to be filled with nostalgia.”

“The three of us were born and raised in Alaunus and have not been here for some time. Is it truly that surprising?”

“That is true,” Satyarani aligned herself east, where Wolf was waiting. “You do appear fond of that form,” she commented.

Wolf shrugged in a human like manner.

“She is most likely attempting to avoid an argument,” Erina sighed before glaring at her. “Do not think I trust you because you refuse to speak.”

Wolf chuffed and nonchalantly scratched behind her ear. It was easier to not be as bothered by her now. Possibly because she was not allowing herself to respond verbally.

“Princess!”

All three heads jerked up as a glowing blue ball of light flew into the clearing. Satyarani frowned in confusion as Erina smiled.

“Haryad,” Erina greeted. “It is good to see you my friend!”

“It is good to see you as well, Princess,” the small sprite whizzed around. “It has been so long!”

“Aye, that it has. How have you fared?”

“Much, much better since the Isle thawed!”

“That is good to hear.”

Haryad flew around the clearing before appearing directly in front of Wolf’s nose. The blue light was almost blinding, but just past it she could see a tiny humanoid figure.

“And Wolf! Wolf has returned to Alaunus! Oh happy days!”

Wolf chuffed and sneezed. Haryad tumbled back for a moment before flying around and settling between Wolf’s ears, and her tail began to sweep across the ground.

“Who is this?” Saytarani asked.

“This is Haryad, he is a tree sprite, specifically of the Enchanted Oak that is within the Fortress of this island,” Erina explained.

Wolf jerked her head to the side, dislodging Haryad. That was new information, when had it been moved?

“I see,” Satyarani looked at Haryad, who was hovering from being dislodged. “It is a pleasure to meet you, I am Satyarani.”

“Welcome Satyarani,” Haryad greeted. “It is good to see new faces here.”

“Haryad,” Erina got his attention. “Cyrus and a new Raven are travelling along the west side of the island. I would like you to be able to fly between us and pass on warnings and messages.”

“That I can do,” Haryad assured. “But what do you mean by a ‘new Raven’?”

“The Raven we knew is trapped in another realm, but someone else has taken the mantle. She travels with Cyrus, you will know her when you see her.”

“Aye, I will fly to them then!” with that Haryad disappeared in a steak of blue.

“He is an interesting little creature, is he not?” Satyarani watched him go.

“Aye, he was of great help to me many years ago,” Erina smiled fondly at the sky. “We are starting to lose light. We should make camp soon.”

“Indeed.”

Wolf huffed impatiently began trotting east.

“Wolf!”

Wolf’s tail shot straight up and she looked over her shoulder at Erina.

“…We will make camp nearby. A few more minutes walking. At our pace,” Erina insisted.

Wolf nodded, not expecting to have to go faster than the slowest member of the group.

They set up camp not long after, Wolf in human form to help tend the fire and prepare food. Once everything was set up Wolf sat against the trunk of a tree, idly whittling.

“…I did not know you whittled, Wolf,” Erina, for once, seemed to be attempting civil conversation with her.

“I used to when I was young,” Wolf did not look up. “I had reason to pick it up again.”

“Of course, little else to do in the frozen north but whittle and think on your glory days.”

Wolf glanced up. “You are attempting to provoke me.”

“I would hardly think you need much provoking.”

“I must say, I have many questions of the history of this island,” Satyarani interrupted before a fight could break out. “What quest was there that required Warriors?”

“This was many years ago, and is a long story,” Erina glanced at Wolf. “Years ago, Nevar attempted his first takeover of the Island of Alaunus. He succeeded and held dominion over this land for four long years. Raven, Cyrus, and our people were exiled to the mainland, waiting. I remained on this island, avoiding demons and laying markers and seeking Timepieces for when Warriors would arrive.

“Eventually Cyrus sent word of an eclipse. Such an eclipse would open a portal to the old Royal Fortress, where Nevar resided at the time and had sealed off from the rest of the island, and was also where he had moved the Enchanted Oak, which is what our Staffs of Power are hewn from. Since Raven could not step foot on the shores, he sent Warriors. I did my best to aid them without interacting with them, so that I would not lead demons directly to them. Out of twelve that arrived, three made it to where the Enchanted Oak was and took an acorn to plant on the mainland, so that we could fight back.”

“And as I understand,” Satyarani picked the tale up, “not long after, Nevar froze this island over, leading Raven to my lands to retrieve the Elixir of Life. I assume that chased away you from here?”

“Aye, that it did. In truth we have not been able to truly return here. Our people are settled on the mainland and there is the constant fear of Nevar’s return, even if he is trapped in another realm.”

“I see,” Satyarani turned to look at Wolf, who had been listening intently enough to stop whittling. “And where were you during all of this Wolf?”

“I was exiled before Nevar took over. I had not known we had lost, or any of the events that transpired afterwards,” Wolf returned to her whittling, the strokes of the knife a little harsher than necessary.

“And why were you exiled?”

“She was allied with Nevar,” Erina interjected before could say anything.

Wolf’s snarl echoed through the camp.

“I was not allied with him! I would never!”

“It did not appear that way when we found you.”

“If you must know,” Wolf turned her gaze to Satyarani, so not to lose her temper. “I was captured by Nevar’s forces early on, and spent much time imprisoned in his camp. I was released without explanation and I ran for what I hoped would have been safety. Instead the camp was set alight and when the people I had deemed my friends arrived, instead of coming to my aid, they came to accuse and exile me.”

“You had been feeding him information!” Erina snapped.

“That information was taken! Once he had his own Staff of Power he could reach into my mind and drag it out!”

“Yes, that is an incredibly convenient explanation as to why, when you were missing, our bands were being ambushed and our camps attacked!”

“It is the truth!” Wolf shot to her feet and glared at Erina. “Why do you insist on painting me as the villain?! Why do you not listen?!”

“You may have this Raven convinced, but she was not there. She did not have the months of uncertainty of your allegiance while brave warriors lost their lives for nothing!”

“Do not preach to me of the lives that were lost! I was there as a camp, filled with warriors allied to me, burned! At the hands of Nevar’s followers!”

“You expect me to believe that someone with your hearing did not hear that you were being followed?!”

“They may very well have followed out of earshot! Nevertheless, I fell unconscious upon reaching the camp! The next thing I remember is being outside of it as it burned! Then, you!” Wolf gestured wildly. “You and Raven appeared, and the relief I had was overwhelming! Until you both accused me of betraying you, of forsaking you, of setting my own camp ablaze! And since I had no memory of the intervening time, I began to doubt myself! I still doubt myself!”

“And yet, you are the only one still here to corroborate that! You have no proof other than your word!”

“At one point in time that would have been enough!” Wolf felt the back of her throat burn. “I waited for you! I hoped beyond hope that you or Raven would appear in Nevar’s camp and destroy him! I waited for months! And when I finally saw you, you turned on me! Do you have any idea how that felt?!”

“Aye, I do!” Erina stood up now, the two of them shouting at each other over the fire pit. “That was how I felt as I received field report after field report of warriors falling. That was how I felt when after months of no word from you, we finally hear word of your return, only to find the camp that received you on fire and you the only survivor! That is how I felt when I thought you had betrayed us all!”

“After all that time, how could you?! You knew where my allegiance lay!”

“I thought I did. Then, and now, I am no longer certain.”

“You want proof, your Highness?!” Wolf mocked before gesturing to her staff, which was planted in the ground next to her. “I did not have my staff when you found me. Did you honestly think I would relinquish it willingly?!”

“And yet it is returned to you! For all I know Nevar may have returned it to you during your exile!”

Wolf snarled in frustration and turned away. “I cannot believe this. I cannot believe you!”

“The feeling is mutual.”

The camp descended into uneasy silence, with only the sound of crackling embers.

Erina sat down heavily and stared into the flames. Wolf remained standing, shoulders shaking ever so slightly. If either were waiting for an apology, neither was going to receive one.

---

Well that was inevitable

It is oddly confusing if the later series of Raven are actually set on Alaunus or not. The show seems deliberately vague about it, since Alaunus is the one of the few locations with an actual name. Especially in series 11 and 12, when Raven is called 'The Lands Protector', which was a title Raven of Old held as well, yet surely Raven of Old was Alaunus's protector? Yet none of the locations in the main show line up with what we know of Alaunus (as far as I know), and yeah retconning is always an option, but still.

So, I opted for the series to still be on the mainland, it just makes my life easier, even if I have to justify why no one has moved back to Alaunus

Now the yellow dots come into play. Each dot is a campsite, showing where each party made camp during the quest. The yellow dots left of the Sands of Tarren are Raven and Cyrus's camps, the dots to the right are Wolf, Erina and Satayrani's camps.The camps in white circles are the Chapter 3 camps

https://ravencbbc.fandom.com/wiki/Island_of_Alaunus

https://static.wikia.nocookie.net/ravencbbc/images/0/0d/Alaunus3.png/revision/latest?cb=20201024181319

#Wolf and Raven #Wolf and Raven: Old Friends #Wolf #Raven #New Raven #Raven of Old #Cyrus the Astromoner #Princess Erina #Satyarani #Haryad #The Island of Alaunus #Raven CBBC #Raven 2002 #Raven: The Island #Raven: The Secret Temple #Raven: The Dragon's Eye #Raven OC #Raven fanfiction #TheShapeshifter100 writes

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theshapeshifter100 · 3 years

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Wolf and Raven: Old Friends Chapter 7

First

Masterlist

tw dissociation not from character POV

---

Several minutes later a black dot appeared among the rainclouds, and Raven landed nearby. She shifted and started walking over briskly.

“Is everything alright? That was quite the message.”

“My apologies, I could not wait for Haryad,” Erina gestured to Wolf. “Do you have any idea of how to help?”

Raven looked at Wolf and her brow furrowed. “I have not seen this before.”

Erina and Satyarani looked at each other, concerned.

“What happened to cause this?” Raven walked over to Wolf, cautiously waving a hand in front of Wolf’s face, which got little reaction.

“She walked into the tent, and froze like that,” Satyarani shook her head. “Even if you do not know what happened, you might still be the best person to help her.”

“Aye,” Erina agreed. “I will brew some more potion of Dreamless Sleep.”

“I thank you,” Raven said before turning her attention to Wolf. “Can you hear me my friend?”

No response.

“That is fine. I will… I will wait with you,” Raven stood next to Wolf under the tree, staff planted into the ground and occasionally being dripped on. The rain continued to hammer down and the light faded, and still she waited.

A small campfire was crackling away fiercely by the time Wolf moved.

She turned her head slightly, confused.

“…What…?” dread and unease still curdled in her belly, and she sat down heavily. Out of the corner of her eye she spotted her staff in the ground, and stared at it like she couldn’t believe that it was there. She slowly reached her hand out, afraid that it would disappear.

Her hand touched warm wood, and she wrapped her hand around it, gripping it tight and pulling it closer.

“Wolf?”

Wolf startled and looked to her other side, seeing Raven.

“Raven! What, what are you doing here?”

“Erina called for me,” Raven slowly sat down. “She was worried about you. You, you were not here.”

The huff of disbelief faded as Wolf’s face furrowed.

“Aye. I was… I was not quite here. I… I do not know. I am sorry,” she pressed the heel of her palm against her forehead.

“I do not think you need to apologise, although Erina and Satyarani are both confused as to what caused it.”

“I do not think that I know,” Wolf rested her forehead on her free hand. “There was a smell, mud. The smell of mud, and I… I walked into the tent…”

Raven waited for Wolf to gather her thoughts.

“… I know why,” she sighed. “It was often muddy in Nevar’s camp, and I did not leave that tent for months,” Wolf growled under her breath. “First nightmares, then rope, then the potion not working and now this. I thought I was better than this!” she slammed her fist into the ground. “Why?! Why is this happening now?!”

“That I cannot answer.”

“I do not expect you to, my apologies,” Wolf looked out towards the Shadow Wood. “I am so tired Raven. I am tired of my mind turning against me, I am tired of not being the person I used to be. You never met that Wolf. She was confident, and bright. It felt as though nothing could touch her.”

“She is still you, merely changed, as we all do.”

“Aye, I suppose. Still I will ask, did the potion work for you last night?”

“…It did not,” Raven admitted.

“It did not work for me either. I may take a stronger dose tonight.”

“I believe Erina is brewing a fresh batch,” Raven nodded over to the small campfire, where Erina was indeed brewing in a small cauldron. “Perhaps I should ask her for some?”

“It will do no harm,” Wolf agreed. “I apologise for dragging you from your task to tend to me.”

“You need not apologise. I do not feel I did much, I merely waited to see if you would come back.”

“And I am grateful for that, truly,” Wolf’s eyes trailed north to a mountain just beyond the River of the Diving Bird. “My apologies, I do not think I can be around too many people tonight,” the idea of sharing a camp with Erina and Satyarani turned her stomach into knots.

“I heard wolf howls last night. Is there a pack nearby?”

“I know of a pack within the Forest of Dawn Time and another in Triple Thorn Wood. They travel though, they may be in their seasonal grounds.”

“But you know where they are?”

“Aye, but they do not remember me.”

“But they heard you last night?”

“…Aye.”

“Then go if you need. I will tell Erina and Satyarani.”

Wolf looked over at the other two, before looking back at Raven. She nodded briefly before shifting into a wolf, and with one more glance over her shoulder, she disappeared into Shadow Wood.

---

Satyarani watched Raven fly back to the west side of the island from underneath the tent. The rain was coming down harder than ever now, and Erina was holding her cloak over the pot she was brewing from.

After a while Erina took the pot off the fire and brought it inside the tent, where gentle steam wafted off it.

“All finished?” Saytarani asked.

“Almost. It needs to sit for three hours,” Erina found a small hourglass in her pack and turned it over. “I cannot give Raven any tonight, but I told her that she is free to collect some before we break camp tomorrow.”

“I see,” Satyarani sat properly in the tent, hanging the damp fur cloak from one of the tent poles. “It was interesting to see Wolf with Raven, even after all of that. It was the first time I have seen her relaxed.”

“Aye…” Erina sat down properly. “It, it does not require much thought to work out why.”

“You have been somewhat antagonistic,” Satyarani pointed out. “However you have calmed down this last day.”

“That is some relief,” Erina rubbed her eyes. “Lack of sleep has been affecting me as well, I do not have energy to start an argument… and… I am reminded of why Wolf and I were friends,” Erina lay her staff across her lap. “And I no longer think she is lying. That display earlier… I do not think that could be faked, not for as long as that.”

“Then you would be wise to tell her that.”

“That I will, that I will,” Erina looked out at the rain. “She should be back before morning.”

“I will trust your judgement on that matter, you know her better than I do.”

“I am not so certain of that. I know the old Wolf would be back before dawn. I cannot be quite so certain nowadays.”

“You are all different people, and people change.”

“Aye,” Erina looked over at Satyarani. “I must ask, you do not know anyone here. Why do you still aid us?”

“I knew Raven, Raven of Old,” Satyarani corrected. “He is a good man, and I am here to aid him. I will admit that this island has taken some getting used to, and the magic here is very different to that of my country. However, it does have its charm.”

“If this is successful then all of Alaunus would be in debt to you twice over.”

“Then I will know who to call should my homeland ever be in danger.”

“That is a deal I would be happy to make.”

“I do not find it likely anytime soon, but as I understand, you are not mortal.”

“I was not mortal since I carved my staff,” Erina lifted it slightly to make the point. “The magic of the Enchanted Oak can change you.”

“I see, so you were once mortal?”

“Aye.”

“Raven of Old I recall being born immortal, for he could not enter the Chamber of the Three-Headed Serpent, what of Wolf?”

“I am uncertain, though it is likely that she is the same. They are both unusual individuals. Their ability to change form is not confined to their Staffs of Power, it is an ability they possessed since birth, as far as we know,” Erina paused to think, “as for this new Raven, I cannot say for certain. I do not know of anyone who has passed on their staff and mantle in such a way before.”

“We will have to wait and see I suppose,” Satyarani drew a knee up and rested an arm on it. “I myself am fashioned from the earth of my homeland. I was never mortal.”

“I see. I do not think I have heard of such a thing before.”

“The world has many magics, many secrets. Your Cyrus seems like the kind of man who would wish to learn all of them.”

“Aye. I fancy if he could spend his life travelling and learning new magics, he would.”

“What is stopping him?”

“…I do not entirely know. I should ask him when we meet up again.”

“As long as he obeys the laws of my land, he will be welcome in my country.”

“Did Raven obey the laws of your land?”

“For the most part. He did strain against them at times, and lose his temper several times. His anger was understandable, but there are laws in my homeland that cannot be broken in order to retrieve the Elixir of Life.”

“I can imagine,” a fond smile crossed Erina’s face. “He was always somewhat impatient. And could have quite the temper when he felt that not enough was being done.”

“Indeed, that sounds about right. The Raven of now does seem much more patient.”

“Aye, that she is. I wonder if she feels as though she has to prove herself? I do hope that is not the case.”

“Raven of Old casts a long shadow. It will be difficult for her to step from it.”

“If she can free Raven of Old and keep Nevar in the desolate realm, she will certainly step from his shadow.”

“Indeed,” Satyarani looked outside the tent, watching the rain fall. Erina followed her gaze, and the two fell into companionable silence.

---

Hoo boy, still not certain about the dissociation, but there you go I guess. Some time away from people and with wolves will be good for her I think

Erina and Satyarani talk of immortality. I had to change this real quick since I rewatched a Secret Temple story compilation yesterday, which had some info I had forgotten. Including the fact that Raven of Old was born immortal. This is important because I have a whole thought dump on immortality in the Raven series and that did answer one of the questions I had. I just had to separate Erina's thoughts from my own.It's mostly that Secret Temple often uses the term 'born mortal', implying that Raven of Old is not, but Nevar is, and I would assume Erina is too, which leads to the idea that possession of a Staff of Power can make you immortal, but then there's the whole of using it for evil taking time off your life and if that's the case how is Nevar still alive, what decides what is an evil deed? Is that why Raven of Old will not attack dishonourably, because it might be deemed evil by, something? And where in bloody hell do the Warriors with Staffs fit into this?! I was talking about this with my beta writer @fairyofsomething and honestly, I had thought that having a Staff of Power made you a sorcerer (to use DnD terms), but now it seems more like a warlock thing! Still, I have thoughts, that will be organised, somewhat, and put separately somewhere. Since you know, I'm overthinking a children's game show that might not have had as much thought put in.

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theshapeshifter100 · 3 years

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Wolf and Raven: Old Friends Chapter 4

First

Masterlist

The next day dawned with Satyarani being the only one to have had decent rest. Erina and Wolf had barely slept, both angry and hurt.

The trio continued in silence through the Forest of Dawn Time, Wolf in her wolf form to avoid any conversation. Erina seemed less concerned about Wolf staying in line of sight today, which was fine by her.

Satyarani seemed to be following her with her eyes instead, letting Erina lead the way as she had yesterday.

“Princess!”

The group stopped as Haryad flew in in a burst of blue.

��Haryad, what news?” Erina manged to get her voice into a neutral tone.

“Cyrus and Raven are passing the Battlefield of Tallow Vale, and estimate that they will reach their first point north of Sun Spear Hill tomorrow.”

“That is excellent news. Please inform them that we are on our way to Flint Drop and should place our first talisman sometime this evening.”

“I shall!” Haryad flew off again, leaving a streak of blue light behind him.

“We are that close?” Satyarani asked.

“Aye. We shall spend tonight in the foothills of Flint Drop before scaling it, then we make for Shadow Wood.”

“Please do not be offended, but these names mean nothing to me,” Satyarani admitted.

“I take no offense, it is partially to remind myself. Put simply, we will cross the mountain and the river beyond it. The forest should then be to our left, and the Loch to our right,” Erina pulled out the map and pointed them out to Satyarani, who nodded.

“Now that means something to me.”

Wolf had continued to be in wolf form for this as they walked, but curiosity finally got the better of her.

“I was unaware that there was a battle in Tallow Vale,” she shifted to ask.

Erina glanced at her before staring resolutely ahead as she walked. For a good minute it looked like she wasn’t going to say anything.

“It was the second greatest battle against Nevar,” she said quietly. “And when he revealed his Staff of Power. He tore into the valley with the power of 1,000 lightning bolts. With that sort of power, and you still unaccounted for, there was little hope left for the people of Alaunus.”

“I see. The battle was lost that day?”

“Aye.”

Wolf nodded to herself as they continued walking. Erina’s face moved like she wanted to add something, but held herself back.

Wolf dropped back behind to where Satyarani was walking.

“I have been meaning to ask,” Satyarani said. “Could you tell me about how you met this new Raven? You seemed rather close.”

Wolf stared into the distance for a moment, trying to work out where to start.

“The land where I was exiled to, the heart of its life and magic is an ancient rowan tree. Not long ago, Nevar came to this land and began to drain the magic from it so that he could become stable in this realm for longer. Doing this caused the land to rot and die.

“The Giants attempted to halt it, but they are connected to the land in such a way that this was causing them to lose strength,” Wolf glanced at her staff for a moment before looking ahead again. “It took me longer than it should have to suggest asking for help. To suggest asking Raven of Old for help. I did not think he would come. I did not know that he could not. You can understand my surprise when a raven landed on the shore, and the figure it changed into was our new Raven.”

“Indeed. It was a surprise to us all.”

“…It was also a relief,” Wolf quietly admitted, certain that Erina was listening. “Here was someone who could help, but had no history with me. Had no inkling of what I had been accused of. If she had not been able to speak with Raven of Old, then it is possible she may never have known.”

“Were you truly the only person who could have stopped this rot?” Erina asked over her shoulder. “Are there no other people in the Land to the North?”

“There are people yes. I have not met them, so I do not know.”

“It has been nearly two decades, how is it you have avoided them for so long?”

“To that, I have no answer. That is simply how it has been.”

Erina gave a small huff of acknowledgement, before remembering that she was angry at Wolf. “And this was when you would claim you recovered your staff I assume?”

Wolf’s hackles rose. “Aye. Raven and I fought Nevar, I am certain that if you ask her then she would confirm that story.”

“Oh, so for once you have someone else’s word?”

Wolf growled in answer. “I refuse to play such games with you,” she shifted and kept just within line of sight. She could just hear Erina’s small sigh.

There was little conversation after that, especially as Wolf stayed as a wolf for the rest of that walk. Erina showed no sign of wanting to rekindle the argument, and Wolf did not wish that either.

Satyarani would make a small comment about the wildlife, and either Wolf would shift to explain or Erina would respond briefly. That was the extent of the conversation.

Still, they made a brisk pace, and passed between Loch Ula and Devlin’s Water before it got dark. Another half an hour of walking later, and they were at their first point.

It looked like any other point on the island; a patch of slightly muddy windswept grass. Still, something made the hairs on the back of Wolf’s neck stand on end.

She changed back to human and traced the tip of her staff across the ground, and then planted it where it simply felt, right. Erina followed suit, following her staff.

Satyarani crouched, hovering a hand over the grass with her eyes closed.

“This is indeed a place of power,” she said. “It is interesting that it is so plain.”

“It is possible a Time Well used to be here,” Erina thought out loud. “I cannot remember exactly.”

“It matters not, we appear to be in the right place.”

Erina reached into the pouch on her belt and drew out a gold talisman, bearing the symbol of the mountain. She placed it carefully between the two staffs, watching Satyarani for her thoughts on placement.

Once the talisman was placed there was a flare of bright light, causing all of them to shield their eyes. Golden light from Erina’s staff and blue light from Wolf’s staff flared in response, and a glittering orange light surrounded Satyarani.

Then as quickly as it started, it stopped. The light faded, and the talisman was gone.

Erina plucked her staff from the ground. “One down, two to go.”

They made camp in the foothills of Flint Drop, Wolf being able to hear the faint lapping of water on the shores of Loch Ula and Devlin’s Water.

As with the night before, the trio made a fire and food, and Wolf sat whittling. An uneasy silence hung until Satyarani broke it.

“What are you making over there Wolf?”

Wolf paused and held the lump of wood up to the firelight. “I have not decided. Do you have any suggestions?”

“I suppose a wolf would not be an original suggestion?”

“You are correct in that assumption,” Wolf half smiled. “However, one more will not hurt.”

A streak of blue came flying in, and Erina lifted her head as Haryad came to a stop above the campfire.

“What news?” she asked.

“Raven has spoken with Raven of Old, who has managed to place two talismans so far.”

“That is excellent news. We have placed our first talisman, and will make our way to the east of Shadow Wood tomorrow.”

Haryad bounced in glee before whizzing off somewhere. Erina relaxed and leaned back a bit, looking up at the stars.

“It is interesting to have company, trekking across the island now,” she commented.

“A pleasant change?” Satyarani asked.

“Mostly.”

Wolf huffed and focused on her whittling.

Satyarani make an irritated noise. “Perhaps it would help you both to speak plainly, rather than argue and then refuse to speak. You have both have hurt, that is plain to see! But refusing to speak of it civilly and with understanding will not make it go away.”

“Speaking plainly will do little if the other does not listen,” Wolf added pointedly.

“Then Wolf, perhaps describe your capture in more detail?”

“It will not help, I was alone.”

“She is stalling to invent something,” Erina spat.

Wolf’s knuckles went white on her tools and she took a sharp breath in through her nose.

“Very well,” she spoke through gritted teeth. “I was scouting as a wolf, when a group of Nevar’s followers appeared from downwind. I fell into a pit trap, which had a net,” despite trying to keep a neutral tone, Wolf was having trouble. “I was dragged to Nevar in a sack.”

Her grip had grown so tight on the wood that it cracked. Wolf cursed under her breath and plunged her knife into the ground. She began to fidget with her hands and roll the cracked wood between them, her eyes flicking from the flames to the stars to the mountain and back again.

“This memory distresses you?” Satyarani gently prodded.

“What do you think!?” Wolf snarled, before pausing and taking a deep breath. “My apologies Satyarani.”

Erina peered at Wolf from the other side of the fire, and Wolf shot her a glare.

“Are you attempting to see if I am faking Erina?!”

“Aye,” she responded bluntly. “On one hand acting was never your strong suit. On the other it has been some time.”

“Who would I have been acting to? The trees?! And if I am such a terrible actor, then why do you not believe my version of events?!”

“As I said, it has been a long time. People change.”

Wolf growled and stood up, pacing for a moment before beginning to storm from camp.

“Where do you think you are going?!”

“Away from here!”

“Wolf! Return to camp this instant!” Erina stood up and shouted at Wolf’s retreating back.

In response Wolf shifted, staring back at her with a snarl and upright tail before bounding off into the night.

“…That… did not go as I had hoped,” Satyarani admitted.

Erina sighed deeply, and waited until she was certain that Wolf was out of earshot before sitting down.

“Why do you not believe her Erina?”

Erina did not answer for several minutes.

“It is easier, at this moment, to believe that she was allied with Nevar. The Wolf I had known would not have allowed herself to be captured.”

“Would the Wolf you had known willingly allied with Nevar either?”

Erina jabbed a stick into the fire. “…I did not know her as well as I know Raven. We met as adults. It is possible she had sympathies that we did not know of.”

“Is that what you truly think? Or what are you using to justify your line of thinking?”

Erina flung the stick into the fire and did not continue the conversation.

---

...Progress? They had one conversation without yelling at each other

So, people in the Lands to the North. That my friends, is a retcon. Originally the Lands to the North were empty of people, then I realised that didn't make much sense. Humans are pretty tenacious. If it's survivable, there'll be people. Sadly I realised that after the first story went up.

#Wolf and Raven #Wolf and Raven: Old Friends #Wolf #Raven #New Raven #Raven of Old #Raven CBBC #Raven 2002 #Cyrus the Astromoner #Princess Erina #Satyarani #Raven: The Island #Raven: The Secret Temple #Raven: The Dragon's Eye #Raven OC #Raven fanfiction #TheShapeshifter100 writes

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