And it all came tumbling down - Printable Version

Silence followed his invitation, but it was evident that the mismatched eyed she-wolf was contemplating something. The way her facial features would shift from one to another to the faint dent that occurred to her cheek from biting at it from the inside in the course of only a few fleeting moments were proof of such. He was curious as to what she could be possibly thinking over. There was safety offered to her and normally a lone wolf in winter especially an injured one would jump at the opportunity to receive such, but not this woman. It appeared that there was more to her than the agouti man realized. It could be she was just the type that didn't like to be cared for like a pup, a self-dependent nature. But before he could finish another thought her crown shifted to look at him with a determined look in her gaze that contrasted with the hesitant nod. She had decided to accept the offer, but not without a catch. As he expected there would be. In return for his generosity she would compensate it once she was healed. An argument lay on the tip of his tongue ready to decline her rebuttal, but the way her body posture stood and the sternness that laced her words he knew such words would be useless and unheard of by her.

This brought a slightly wider smile to his lips as his ears caught every last word that fell from her mouth, giving his dark masked head a nod of its own. "Wise decision, my dear and as much as I would like to argue you do not owe me any compensation I can tell you won't budge on the subject. Thus I will leave it at that." A gleam cast over his golden pools, but the emotion that caused such unknown as he blinked it away. "Are you hungry at all?" He then asked, remembering a set of rabbit tracks in the snow that looked recent enough to still hold the promise of a successful catch. It would be a longer journey than usual to the northeastern side of the lake with her sprained ankle and the chance of stopping for food once they got started moving would be slim. The patriarch wanted to get her back as soon as possible. Not only for the dwindling sunlight of the setting sun, but for his own concerns for the pack being without his presence for too long. Anthem was gone still on a second scouting mission for potential members to boost their numbers. The only wolf within the pack he felt comfortable leaving the territory to under his absence. That left the newest member and yearling girl Rift and the submissive woman Samhaine who liked to wander off and explore near by areas. Not much of a defense team for whenever Vespertio was away.

Thoughts are like burning stars and ideas

The Star Dancer

They flood and stretch the universe

Vespertio grinned at her words, though from amusement or something else she didn’t quite know. She was pleased to see that he agreed to her words, though it seemed that he knew that, even if he had said no, she would have done it anyways. Namid could be quite sneaky is she needed to be, and once everything was better they would likely find some extra prey ‘appearing’ in their midst. It was better to just let her do it instead of going through her stubborn process. The pale pelted woman was only like this in certain situations, other than that she was a likely candidate to be quite compliant. Perhaps it was the cold and the hunger making her slightly out of character, or perhaps it was just meant to be so.

“Are you hungry at all?” He questioned her, and though she wanted to protest the pit in her stomach that felt as if it was consuming her weighed over her kind spirit. In the air, the still slightly fresh scent of rabbit hung which ensured an easier catch that usual. This was a good thing, as she didn’t want to create a hassle and he clearly had been wanting to get back to his land. The repeated looks in that direction showed that to her, and she wandered what the situation he was in could be. Could it be that he had a family there? Hopefully there weren’t any young, she would likely feel worse if there were. “I would like to say no, but I think my stomach might eat me if I did such a thing,” She replied.

A light chuckle rumbled in his chest at her reply before giving a silent dip of his head to dismiss himself from her presence, cream paws turning his body towards the direction the tracks lay and traveled out to. A quick glance over his dark tinted shoulder he let the gold of his eyes meet the mismatched pair of hers. "I'll be back as soon as I can. Try not to hurt yourself anymore, yeah?" He spoke with a teasing tone lacing his ladder words as a glint of humor glistened in the pools of his eyes before his head turned to lower to the snow pack beneath his pads. A couple inhales over the indents in the powder gave his nose the scent he needed to track the pair of rabbits that had passed through not too long ago. Soon his agouti frame was off to ghost over the long flat footprints of the snowshoe hares he was closing in on. Keeping his head low he never drifted away from the trail until the tracks came to a sudden end at the roots of a shrug. Knock, knock. Anyone home? He thought with a devilish smirk on the darkness of his lips as he crouched at the base of the shrug and stuck his head in.

A few minutes passed and the silence was broken by the squeals of two animals making their last noises for help, the air leaving their lungs for the last time while the liquid blood of life trickled down Vespertio's chin. Dinner was a success and now came the task of carrying both hares back to the awaiting Namid. Dropping the current kill that lay nestled between his jaws atop the previous hare to scream for mercy he nudged the two together with his snout before gripping the two at once by the ears. This was the only place he could think of that would allow him to carry both with little hassle and once he had them situated nicely between the points of his canines he was hurrying back the direction he had come. A few more minutes passed before his form manifested in the distance, a confident grin covered partially by the dangling rabbits. It wasn't until he reached Namid that he lowered his head to gently release his hold so the rabbits slipped out onto the snow, a quick tongue action ridding the bits of fur that collected on the roof of his mouth. "Dinner is served. Eat what you can." Taking a step back he allowed the she-wolf to eat what her stomach allowed, opting to eat what was left for himself. She needed the food more than he did and there were caches back within his territory that he could scavenge once they returned.

How lovely are the portals of the night

Namid Macieo

when stars come out to watch the daylight die

Vespertio disappeared and she was left alone with her thoughts, most of them leading toward him and some to where she would be going. She was curious as to why he was being so generous, but perhaps his heart held a bit of what her own did. Perhaps he was just compassionate towards others in need, which was truly what they needed more of in their species. Maybe there wasn’t an ulterior motive at all. From the character she’d gathered from him, he didn’t seem the kind of man to want such a thing. Especially after expressing that he really hadn’t wanted anything in return for sheltering her. The brief flickers of something in his intense golden gaze had left her questioning his past in some ways. He seemed he could be a hidden soul, as he had hidden some of his thoughts and emotions carefully. There was more to the tawny male that met the eye, which made her all the more curious in the end. Of course, her curiosity also spread to her new coming residence for the time being. Who would she meet when she came about? Hopefully they would be as compassionate as the man had been, though the presence of new wolves didn’t always happen to be that way. Some saw it as a threat to have someone new come into their home, and it was understandable. She would just have to earn their trust.

The sound of crunching snow alerted her to the coming presence of her new found friend. Turning her gaze in the direction, she found him carrying an impressive duo of snowshoe hares. Their soft white and grey fur was browning in some places, hinting at the coming spring and she couldn’t be happier at this evidence. She had never been one for winter, despite her thick pelt. This winter had been particularly unbearable, having been alone and that fact that she was slightly emaciated which took away from her coat. Her tail unfurled to settle into a gentle wag at the sight of sustenance, her mouth salivating already. He gently placed them in front of her, telling her to eat all that she could.

Namid paused for a moment, looking from the hares to the man. Her cranium tipped to the side, giving her a curious, almost puppyish appearance despite her age. A gentle look of gratitude flickered in her heterochromatic gaze and she uttered a thank you before pulling one of the hares to herself. Quickly she dug in, her canines pulling and tugging and grasping the delicious meat into her waiting stomach. Crimson blood stained the front of her muzzle, though she hardly cared. She polished off the hare in no time flat and considered the second. However, her stomach felt a healthy amount of full and she knew that, in her condition, it wouldn’t be wise to eat more than she really needed. When one had been starving, it would only create even further problems if you ate vast amounts at a time. So, instead of moving to the next she nudged it his way. “Please, take that one,” She said with a smile. Her salmon colored tongue ran smoothly over her maw, carefully erasing the red liquid from her fur with a few strokes.

Ayelie-stock @DA

A satisfied smile found its way to her lips as Namid quickly made due of the hare at her feet, leaving the second for Vespertio to eat after having her fill with the first. He actually wasn't surprised that her stomach was content after just one, knowing very well the struggles of living alone and on the verge of starvation. When food was found it never led to anything good to gorge when it had been so long since the last meal. You had to moderate it and slowly build yourself back up to eating normally. It was a simple act of kindness that made him leave the two for her, letting her decide how much was enough for herself. Soon her mouth was lightly coated in blood from eating as she pushed the second hare towards him, insisting he take it. No argument was to be had as he nodded his head silently and craned his head down to snap up the hare and bring it closer to his paws, using them as a weight while his teeth made quick work of removing the pesky hair before ripping the skin back to reveal the prize meat inside. A few bites in and all that remained was fur and bones on the snow with the puddle of spilled blood from devouring. Much like the pale woman, his muzzle held a tint of red upon the cream of his fur. Nothing a quick few wipes of his paws and rubbing in the snow couldn't fix. He was right back to his eyesome self.

Now that both of their bellies were idle for the trek home he scanned his golden pools over her frame briefly, shifting forward and swinging his body around to stand at her side. If need be she could use his body as a crutch when the going got tough with her sprained ankle. "Are you ready to start heading out?" He asked with his head near hers from his current position, a brow raising curiously while waiting for her go ahead to start leading the way. The sun was beginning to sink in the sky and it would take them a couple hours at least to make it to the borders of the pack. The sooner he could get her into the warmth of the den and get her off her ankle the better.

How lovely are the portals of the night

Namid Macieo

when stars come out to watch the daylight die

The pale woman sat quietly as he, too, filled himself on the meat of the second hare. She looked around them, scanning their environment carefully and wandered which direction they would be heading in. Her paw had taken to a dull throbbing, which she noted in the back of her mind but tried to keep it out of her center consciousness. Pain was known to be worse when focused on, and the less she thought about it the farther she would be able to go. Hopefully he was up for conversation, because that was one thing that she would be trying at on their way back to the refuge. It would have duel benefit, she could learn more about the mysteriously generous man named Vespertio and she could ignore what was bothering her as usual.

He finished, taking a moment to himself and glancing over her before rising to his paws swiftly as moving to her side. She knew what he was doing without words, offering her support for her injury. It was unlikely she’d be able to put much weight on it, and he’d be there to take some if need be. A nod bobbed her silver crowned head and she took a breath before lurching her upwards. A hiss escaped through her teeth and she cringed, stumbling sideways into Vespertio. Normally she was a graceful and gathered being, with a lithe body and long legs build for speed and agility. Her state had left her battered and bruised, not her normal self in anything other than spirit. Physically, her beauty was smothered beneath a boney physic and dulled pelt that had grown slightly ragged over the past few weeks, leaving her to look not quite so eyesome. She looked a mess, though her composure was still there in words. Namid doubted that, with her current weight, she would even cause him to budge though she had fallen into him.

Removing her body from him, which she found to be comfortingly warm, she apologized before steadying herself. Taking a moment to test her ankle, she just barely put it on the ground and found that much was at least bearable. Full weight was of course a no, but she found a bit was enough for her tolerance. Turning her gaze on him she offered a small half-smile, “As ready as I shall ever be, just do not slow me down,” She mused and took it upon herself to take the first few steps in the direction he seemed to be wanting them to go.

This was going to be an interesting walk.

Fade

Ayelie-stock @DA