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Language:
English
Series:
Part 1 of Weaving the Threads
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Published:
2020-11-30
Updated:
2025-05-26
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5,953
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47/?
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125
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113
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Weaving the Threads

Chapter 18: A Doubting Beta

Notes:

(See the end of the chapter for notes.)

Chapter Text

Doubting the pack's frenzied mind,
The polished wolf with a single voice shines like glass.
His new pack retreats; no time to spare or unwind.
The old clan status cannot break the ties that bind.
He'll follow the alpha anywhere from sand to grass.

A civil fight has been declared and defined,
Much to his dread made amass.
The enemy's hatred has made her blind,
His old allies all too eager to harass;
One of the worst days in his eyes, alas.

Outsiders ask, 'why, when your bones were in a grind?
Why follow him, why does he get a pass?'
'Simple; he jumps and howls his courage and proves his worth'.
Who is this loyal beta? There is one more fact to unearth:
He is Thomas - a doubter of lies, a follower of truths, and a Toppat of class.


Notes:

A/N: Thomas is cool! He's one of the few Toppats during the events of Toppat Civil Warfare - and I think in general - who uses reason and individual intellect as opposed to following the crowd just because Reginald says to do this or that. And he makes wearing two monocles look very impressive too.

So what we have here is the poetry form known as the 'cinquain' form. It's also known as a quintain or quintet, which is a poem or stanza made of five lines. According to sources, the origin for this poetry form dates back to medieval French times.
The common rhyme schemes used for cinquains are the following: ababb, abaab, and abccb. I used all three rhyme schemes, and thus made three cinquains, for Thomas because I didn't feel like writing one quintet was enough for him. I felt like he needed at least three poems to help tell what happened through his point of view and explain why he would follow Henry even when he got the short end of the stick on more than one occasion because of Henry's actions. He seems like someone who would follow a leader who isn't afraid to jump into the fray and lead the clan to a successful hunt like the alpha in a wolf pack.

I went with the wolf motif because I figured it was the best way to describe the mob mentality the clan adopted at the time of Henry's dethronement as well as the formation of Henry's own small band of rebels - two packs fighting over one source of power.

References:
-The reference to the phrase 'doubting Thomas'? Very intentional. Enough said.

Enjoy!