Spectral Woods snowballin'

Pip makes a grand entrance into Spectral Woods astride an avalanche!

Pip was dragging her paws through the snow, her eyes mostly closed against the glare of the sun against the stark white. She was maintained her weight now, at least. Still thin, but the little female was no longer dropping it in startling amounts. The mute had caught a few small prey prior to climbing the mountain again and she trudged slowly up to the top of the rise. The temperature change was apparent even a few steps onto the leeward side of the mountain. Where the west had high winds and air thick with moisture, the eastern range tasted warmer and drier. It was an odd combination with snow still under her paws.

Mountain weather was a complete mystery to the sea wolf. While she welcomed the warmer temperature, the drier air didn't sit well with her. It left her nose feeling itchy and she lifted a paw to swipe at it several times. As the mute descended, she watched with amusement as the spray of snow she kicked down rolled into miniature snow-slides. It was easier to feel happy and amused by such small things now that she'd put distance between herself and that rude pack!

Marching on, the female's black-dipped tail began to wag of its own accord for the first time in several days. She was getting the hang of this mountain climbing thing! That alone was worth celebrating. And she'd found a meal to scavenge from that had mostly been picked clean, but provided a few morsels she'd so desperately needed.

A tickling of her nose again left Pip sneezing violently to the point that her muzzle initially dipped down into the snow until she yanked it back out and shook her head. The shift underneath her felt strange, but it didn't alarm her immediately. Certainly not in time to avoid what came next. As one, the shelf of snow and ice she stood on broke free from the mountain side and slid down similarly to the flakes she'd sent down earlier. Readjusting her stance, Pip figured she'd simply have to find another path down. However, the mountain made the decision for her and what had started as a shift became an avalanche.

Terror gripped her immediately and Pip turned to sprint at dangerous speeds down the steep cliffs. The light-framed female was only just able to keep on top of the rolling waves of snow. Below, the forest approached quickly. The little mute was barely able to avoid being skewed by a branch as snow blasted against the trees and came to a stop. Pip stumbled and slammed face-first into the forest floor, a layer of snow covering her snout. Slowly, carefully, she stood.

Not...one of her more graceful landings.

Hope you don't mind me tossing Aponi in here!

 

Aponi spent most of her days chasing after the children and trying to fulfill the duties of a pack alpha. Filling and surveying the caches, clearing the entrance to the pack den, patrolling the borders. The more she tried to fill her days the less she could worry about their numbers and that Ice was still missing. Serach seemed less worried than she, he had explained that his father had been missing most of his life. If their numbers had not been dismal the female probably would have put it out of her mind but she was a selfish creature. She wanted him pack for her family but she also wanted him back so the pack would be stronger.

Pushing her way around the border, following one of their busiest trails Aponi smirked at the trench they had woven. The Bend had less trees than the rest of the woods and as such received almost twice as much snow, the pack weaved through it and packed it down. Especially along the borders where they had trampled it down to only being ankle height.

Lost in thought Aponi was yanked back to reality at the sound of a loud crack and the undeniable sound of rushing snow. Picking up her pace the mother rushed towards the sound, heart thumping in her chest, thoughts of the pups crushed beneath the ice and snow. They had been warned about staying away from the mountain, especially this time of year but they hardly listened even on the best of days. Coming onto the scene the silver wolf skidded on a patch of ice but thankfully kept her footing. The small wolf was unrecognizable which brought relief at first, but concern after.

Again, Aponi was selfish. Her thoughts after realizing that this was a stranger and she didn’t seem to be completely mangled was that this had the potential of being a new member. Raising her head slightly, but considerably less so than she might had this loner come to try and join specifically. Blue eyes cast over the female getting to her paws, ”That’s one way to get the pack’s attention.”

 

@Aponi

Pip shook ice and snow from her pelt and took quick stock of herself for injuries. She lifted each paw, turned her head this way and that, wagged her tail... all good! Her orange gaze flickered behind her towards the mountain and grew wide. That was a long way down! She was lucky not to have broken her neck!

The mute startled violently at the sound of a strange voice, bumping sharply into a nearby tree. Her mouth opened as if to yip in surprise, but no sound came. Her tail tucked quickly and Pip edged behind the tree she'd smacked into for cover. Had she really fallen into pack territory from the mountain side?? It would be just her luck to anger another pack right off the bat. How did this keep happening? Was she just that bad of a loner that she couldn't help but to break pack law? She wasn't trying to be! She hadn't even stolen anything this time, and it's not like she purposely overstepped boundaries. Surely this female would realize that and show mercy?

Wait a minute! Where had her new lot on life gone? Hadn't she already deigned not to keep cowering to every wolf that passed? Despite the thought, Pip found herself unable to rise and look the female in the eye. Ever the omega, it was too much to stare at an Alpha, and it didn't take a packmate to recognize the female as a leader. Her stance alone screamed of it. She was in charge here.

 

The alpha was surprised and rather amused at the reaction she received from the loner. No sound came from her mouth but it dropped open and she back directly into a tree before hiding behind it. Still, Aponi thought it all to be a bit of an overreaction. It wasn’t like she had yelled at her or attacked her, her words had been sarcastic but the Donata had thought her tone had been pleasant enough. Resisting the temptation to roll her eyes, lest she make the situation worse she lowered her silver tail slightly. Not enough to say she was no longer in charge but maybe the stranger would find this less intimidating.

Raising a single silver brow Aponi took a step forward so that she could see the small wolf better. She was perhaps the smallest wolf that the queen had ever encountered but her pelt was littered with scars that at least indicated she could stand up for herself if she needed to. Or, rather she could survive a fight without dying. Something about the stark red of her pelt reminded the female of Nalda and that was enough to lower her tail slightly again.

Rolling her shoulders gracefully to loosen some of the tension Aponi sighed, ”You didn’t fall across the borders. You’re fine.” It certainly wasn’t the warmest response to cowering but it was better than biting her.

 

There is a moose carcass that has been scavenged by coyotes nearby. +15 Health

@Aponi

While the female's body language did much to assure Pip she meant no harm, hearing that she had not stumbled across pack boundaries brought her the most relief. The mute blew out an audible breath and let her head hang down for a moment before she straightened and offered a hesitant wag of her tail. If she hadn't crossed into anyone's territory, then technically no one had the right to be cross with her.

But that begged the question; what was an Alpha doing out of her territory? Unable to voice the question itself, Pip tilted her head in question and took a cautious step closer to get her rump out of the tree. When she wasn't immediately attacked, the agouti female took a moment to calm herself and shook snow from her coat as well as those pesky feelings of inadequacy.

She probably looked like an idiot, she realized. She'd fallen off a mountain, caused an avalanche, and now was staring at a pack's alpha with a question in her eyes and a derpy expression on her face while she wagged her tail. The thought left her frowning and her tail slowed. What a frustrating series of circumstances... No doubt this woman was waiting for her to introduce herself, too. She reminded her of that one wolf she'd met before while hunting. Jessie, she recalled. She'd also thought her stupid. Hopefully, she could improve the impression she was making now with a little time.

 

Aponi was intrigued by this small little woman to say the least. She was like a little nymph from a pup-bedtime story that she had been told once long ago as a child and had repeated to her own children. Small, fell from the sky and completely silent. It was curious, and the alpha was beginning to take an immediate liking to her, something that was a huge compliment coming from Aponi.

The confused expression and wagging tail was enough to break through the cold exterior and raise a laugh from the queen. Sitting her rump upon the snow her blue eyes watched as the nymph shook out her coat and her maw switched from goofy to a frown. Raising her brows again Aponi couldn’t help the grin from her voice even if her expression was controlled, ”Are you always this silent or did you hurt yourself when you fell?” Nothing wrong with a little peace and quiet. But if she was hurt that was a whole other story.

This was not at all what Aponi had been expecting of her day, but she was having a good time nonetheless.

 

When the pretty Alpha laughed, Pip's russet ears perked higher and she lifted her head with hope. It wasn't a mocking sort of laugh. Instead, it was light and breezy and teased a smile from the mute once more in response. Pip took a settling breath when the woman finally asked a question she could answer. Well, sort of. She was already shaking her head in reply to the former rather than the latter part of her question. How one would injure their voice in a fall was beyond the little mute. Was it such a strange concept to wolves to meet one without a voice?

The Alpha's relaxed posture allowed Pip to mirror it as well. She sat politely to wait for more questions that would surely follow. No one was ever capable of leaving it like that. In the tawny female's experience, everyone wanted to know how or why and when. Of course, she couldn't answer any of those things and their curiosities would go unsated. Were she in their position, she imagined she would make up some story in her head about how it came to be and carry on interacting. But that was also armed with the knowledge of what it was like to live as a mute. Others didn't have that advantage, so she knew she couldn't be too disappointed. With experience, everyone learned. Sometimes, she just found herself weary of being the teacher in that particular regard.

Regardless, she liked this woman. She reminded her a bit of Oula, too, which was an immediate plus for her. They both had the same calm demeanor, but this wolf had quite a bit more humor by her judgement. The little mute had the sudden urge to leap into play as she had with her previous pack mate, but managed to bite down on the urge lest she irritate her new acquaintance.

Sorry for the delay and also that this post is so short!

 

The tiny nymph apparently had not hurt herself in a fall and was just always silent, what a strange concept. Aponi was used to wolves without much to say, she was Nalda’s aunt after all but never had she met one who never talked. It was intriguing and honestly, the alpha kind of liked it. Too often she had met wolves without any kind of composure who just let words spill from their muzzle like vomit without any thought. It was unbecoming in her opinion, but this wolf well she could never have that problem.

The small strange wolf was smiling and sitting and the alpha knew that she wanted this tiny woman within the pack. And she wasn’t going to take no as an answer. SIlver tail beat happily against the snow as the blue eyes looked over the woman, ”Well, are you looking for a home then?” Something about her just seemed like she would suit the Bend, the pups at least might have fun with her and since she couldn’t talk she also wouldn’t annoy Nalda that much. That was good enough for the mother who knew how desperately they needed the numbers.

 

Pip blinked in surprise, tail stilling with shock. The woman's question caught her completely off guard. Any thoughts of play fled as her brain screeched to a standstill. For a few breathless moments, there was nothing going on upstairs as if her mind couldn't compute the idea of a home. By the time her mouth fell open, Pip understood the question. A home? She wanted her to join her pack?

Part of her heart leaped at the very idea. A pack, a pack, a family, a home! Pip wasn't like Kjell in that way. A loner's life was hard for her - she wanted to be around others. And now, she didn't even have him or Aegir or Kyrios to be around. She was just...herself. It was a pitiful sort of existence, really.

But the other part of her heart was reminded of how she felt when she'd cuddled up to Solas in that cave. It was a betrayal to her mate. And joining a pack without him, that would be a betrayal, too. The little mute was torn, but she knew which part of her heart would win. Her love and loyalty to her mate would always win, no matter where he was.

Recovering from her surprise, the tawny wolf smiled gratefully, but shook her head no. No, she wasn't looking for a home. She was looking for her family. Not a family. But hers.

And yet, her gaze swam a little as she gave her answer, mourning what could be as if she'd already lost it. She should...she should move on and not trouble the kind leader - or her pack - and further. Still, Pip stood to hesitantly approach the Alpha and lick her chin to prove she truly was grateful for the offer. It was more kindness than a loner like her deserved. If the female knew she'd stolen from other packs to survive, she doubted she would be as welcoming.