Unitas was traveling much farther from Secret Woodlands than what was usual for him. His paws did not ache from the initial day and a half of travel from the thickets to the eastern springs. It was only until he began to climb a few hills and cliffs that his pads began to bruise against the hard rock. He had never been to this place before, but the trees were still of the familiar kind. Knowing this, the black wolf kept to the shadows as often as he could. He slipped along like a wraith through the thick trunks of cedar, hemlock, and aspen that made up this section of forest. However when the smell of fresh water wafted into his nose Unitas began to feel thirsty. He decided then to turn and look for the source of the fresh water scent. This is when the dark Hervok encounters the giant sized boulders.

The things were easily ten times his size buried within the earth with only their tops exposed to the elements. Soil from their eroded skins lay atop the stone beasts as Tas padded over the rounded stone. Cool to his pads, the stone felt smooth in the places where sand and dirt did not pepper its surface. Water trickled down from one side of the boulder which led the dark wolf to its source.

A silver mist of fog floating in the air hid the view of the she wolf only momentarily as Unitas sniffed at the warm fog. He was amused at how warm the fog was compared to the clear air only a few feet away. As the shadowy youth stepped downwards towards the water he was further surprised at the warmth of the pool. This is very nice. He thought quietly before trying to step into the water. It was then that he stepped forward enough to look past a fallen tree to the she wolf several feet away. She seemed to be very comfortable, and he could tell that he too would have been as relaxed as she was if he was fully submerged. However with the stranger nearby Unitas could only freeze in place and observe her actions. Would she mind him investigating the pool? Whether she did or didn't he would get in anyways.

"Speech"

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As soon as the woman looked his way the dark wolf let his tail wag and allowed a grin to wash across his muzzle. Then the blackish gray woman said something displeasing to the shadow. He turned his nose up to her while continuing to let his teal orbs peer in her direction.

"I can stare at pretty ladies all day long."

Though you are ugly as hell. He skillfully left the last bit out while allowing that black tail to wag as he stepped deeper into the water. She comments on the warm water as he shivers at the sensation of warm water enveloping his legs and washing over his belly. It is nice... Nice enough to treat the old hag nicely for a while to enjoy the water. He thought quietly while lowering himself further into the water. Bitches like it when you compliment them. That much he knew from watching the women in Secret Woodlands. Then he cast her a handsome smile full of confidence from his place in the water.

 

"I feel like this would be nice to dip into during winter."

He casts the comment Pharika's way before letting his teal gaze flutter to the trees opposite the pair of wolves. The warm water seemed to melt slowly into his undercoat. The heat then made its way form his skin to his very core. Even his head felt better. Normally cluttered with thoughts and memories, Tas was able to calm down as the humidity cleared his sinuses and eased his stress.

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He saw the roll of her eyes and heard her sigh loud and clear. This didn't perturb the dark Hervok at all. Her scars also didn't bother him, and he did not even think of those as a defect. Maybe it was because his mother was so badly scarred, but he had no fear or disgust for wolves who bore their own scars. Instead he gave her a smug grin and attempted to wave his now waterlogged tail.

"Icicles would be pretty cool looking don't you think?"

The rather stupid joke rolled off his tongue like honey as he shivered in the water. It was so warm and comfortable, Unitas didn't want to ever have to get out. His ear tilted at the sound of Pharika's next comments. He snorted at her then chuckled at the "You reek" bit. Then he noticed the grin on her maw which matched his own.

"Well at least I don't reek of carrion and sweat. You really should have taken a longer bath..."

He retorted beginning to enjoy their banter back and forth. It was rare for him to be able to chat like this at all with someone. Instead he always had to act like a goody two shoes in front of his mother and pack mates. They seriously ruined his mood most of the time.

"... but yeah I'm from a pack. They feed me and keep me warm when its cold. Ain't nothing bad about that."

He shrugged not knowing how bad the loner life really was. Yeah he went off on his own a lot, but the boy always returned at some point. Even with the need to run further from home something still kept him tied there. Maybe it was that shred of loyalty he felt for Nina, or maybe it was the knowledge that he was the prince of his pack for as long as he stayed. The chance that maybe one day he would have his way with the pack and have them all follow his rules. It was something that he sometimes dreamed about. Though the dreams were mixed between adventures in distance lands and bossing everyone else around.

"Did you come from a pack?"

He asked off the cuff while still enjoying the warm water.

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Unitas listens as both the warm water and the she wolfs good humor lets him relax fully. There was no one in his pack that he could talk to like this. They were all too uptight and worried about rules. Heck they were all too worried about offending each other, and Unitas really didn't care about that sort of thing. If he offended someone then so be it, and if they tried to offend him with words they would quickly find out that such efforts to annoy him did nothing to the boy.

She spoke of vultures which caused him to lookup at the sky just to see if there was anything flying above them. However nothing graced the skies above the odd pair of wolves. Then his attention was brought back down to Pharika when she spoke about how she once had her own pack. When she gave her reason for leaving Unitas couldn't help but release a snort from his muzzle. This is way weird.. Just how much do I have in common with this older woman? Is her life what my future is running towards? He wondered before glancing her way.

"My mother and I don't see eye to eye either, but I'm smart enough to keep my mouth shut about it. I still wind up doing my own thing in the end despite her values and ... stupidly nice personality."

He let the words flow off of his tongue easily despite being visibly annoyed with his mother. Why she always took back the wolves who betrayed her and hurt her he didn't know. Then there was also the family who always tended to leave and come back. If he had his way Unitas would chase them out and kill them the next time they tried joining the pack again. Hell, he didn't even like most of the loners that his mother let join the pack. They all seemed so fake to him. Like nicely wrapped christmas packages that only held wolf shit inside of them. You couldn't tell there was poop in the box immediately, not until you got up close and smelled it.

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