Her river, she'd begun thinking of it like that a while back, seemed to only grow wilder with every day. Temperatures continued to spike higher with every few days, the plummets in-between often bringing snow that then melted again shortly after; The water only adding to what was presumably coming from higher areas, forming wild rapids where the river curved. One of these bends in particular had become a favored spot of the young wolfess. Here, the water rushed over a large collection of rocks, from boulders bigger than herself and down to tiny pebbles, all smoothly rounded by the constant stream. It was an excellent spot for treasure hunters of all kinds, all manner of things being washed up in the river and caught between the stones. Many things had been found here over the spring, though the favorite find for Nalda Zamora was always food. Everything from stranded fish to drowned critters or parts of larger carcasses had become a quick meal for the young scavenger here, and sometimes she'd even find enough to bring something home, such convincing everyone that she wasn't completely useless.

Today the river was a true fury. White foam and churning rapids rising high above even some of the larger stones, the crashing waves having even eaten off some of the dirt from the opposite bank. The almost-yearling watched the mayhem with her face twisted in a displeased grimace, golden eyes dark. She was very unlikely to find anything in this mess, let alone the meal she'd been hoping for. Her river had become a favored escape over the past months, one place she was sure not to be disturbed by any of her pack-mates, yet still be close to home. It was a lively biome, always with something interesting to watch, animals of all kinds, hunters, prey, birds, insects, a true wonderland for a studious soul like Nalda's. And usually with an easy snack too. Though not today it would seem; Such a waste of time!

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"Speech" Thoughts

Dark eyes kept sweeping the bank, looking for any catch they might have missed the last time over. The tween was nothing if not determined, but it seemed today, her diligence would not pay off. A sigh feel from her lips, just as the sound of steps in the gravel reached her, making her oversized ears flick back alertly. Her attention turned from the water to cast a quick glance over her shoulder as she considered a quick exit, though when she saw who was approaching, she relaxed s bit, eyes returning to the rocky shore. One russet audit remained poised, turned towards the Asurn as he continued his advance, but she didn't bother looking – unlike with most others, the youth felt comfortable in her male leaders presence.

Even when he made his agitated proclamation, Nalda hardly twitched, a tiny smile gracing her face; Which she quickly turned to make sure he didn't see. Instead she continued her search, taking a few short steps along the raging water, large paws balancing surprisingly well on the round stones. "A' like th'rocks," She mused flatly, eyes still turned to the water's edge; "They make th'water break, catch stuff sm'times." And just as she said it, her hunt finally became a success, golden eyes widening in glee as they fell on a worthy prize, wedged between to medium-sized stones.

Teeth bared and tail wagging high in triumph, the almost-yearling bowed to free the carcass from its spot among the rocks. With well-practiced motions, she bit into the clump of brown fur, wiggling until it came loose and raised her head with the creature locked tightly between her jaws. It was a muskrat – likely from one of the year's first litters – which had apparently been caught by the wild streams and smacked against a hard surface, breaking its back. Nalda turned to face Eirian, brandishing her find with a toothy grin; "See?" Her voice was muffled by the wet fur, but that did not spoil her pride, and she joyously wiggled the limp, water-soaked body. Though it did occur to her, since he was here, she might end up having to share her catch, which did darken her eyes a bit; There's barely enough for one…

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"Speech" Thoughts

Consumed by her catch, and the task of freeing it from the rocks, Nalda did not notice Eirian's confusion, only looking back to him when he exclaimed in surprise. The phrase made her snort slightly, quirking a brow at the advancing male. The closeness might have irked her with any other adult, but once you'd spend a length of time with someone's tail practically in your mouth, boundaries sort of dissolved. So she straightened up, dutifully presenting the rat for her leader's inspection, while secretly praying he wouldn't take it. For now it stayed firm in her grasp, and she continued to wag her tail, ears flattening sideways at the praise. While she'd never admit it, the pup relished any appreciations of her achievements, especially from Eirian. Her gaze turned down, intensely studying her paw as it scraped against a rock, mind for a moment blank on how to respond; Which only served to further her embarrassment, if there was one thing she hated it was being speechless.

Moving quickly to hide her dumbfounded state, the almost yearling used the muskrat as an excuse for not speaking, looking pointedly around for somewhere safe to set it down. After all, she couldn't risk the flood sweeping it away once more and rendering her entire day's work fruitless. When finally she found a flat-topped rock, far enough away from the river and gingerly set down her prize, she had recovered from the fit of jitters and could meet Eirian's eyes evenly. "'s'easier t'find stuff th'n 'ave t' hunt y'self," She admitted, shrugging her shoulders lightly. Keeping her scavenging hidden had served her well, awarding both food for herself and praise whenever she elected to bring a find home. But she could hardly keep lying with the evidence so obvious, so she might as well confess. It didn't feel so bad though, since it was him, and he had seemed quite impressed with her discovery.

A sudden, rare smile popped onto her creamy muzzle and she dared to leave the rat for a moment, to instead move back towards the water. Long, spindly legs moving with well trained skill, she balanced on one round stone after the other until she was just at the edge of the rushing river. Looking upstream, batish ears perked, Nalda allowed herself a few moments to revel in the power of the masses of water, foaming white as it splashed over the many round stones. Then she turned back to Eirian, light in her golden eyes as she called, voice raised to sound over the roaring river; "'is really cool! A' saw a whole deer once, must've fallen'n tryi'n t'drink." That had been one of her first days at the river bend, back when the spring floods where just starting. "Couldn't catch't though," She added, a slight pout to her lips at the memory. Such a shame too, it would have been quite the spectacle dragging that back home. It had inspired her to start searching among the rocks though and she'd found the leg of another unfortunate ungulate, nothing big enough to parade through the pack lands, but it had satisfied her own hunger. And since then she had been back to hunt countless times.

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White foam sprayed against her chest, the river's roar filling her ears; Witness of the strength hiding in the dark torrents. The pup leaned out over the water, golden eyes gazing into the depths, filled with fascination. The mere forces at play were so overwhelming, plenty of evidence of the rapids raw power whirling by under her watch. Drowned creatures, uprooted trees, even rocks like the one she stood on right now, had once been swept up by the flow, carried away from their original resting place to land in this bend. Nalda hadn't even realized she was smiling until the low snicker made her head tilt up at her companion, smirk now directed at the Asurn. There seemed to be a compliment in that bright orange gaze, he certainly wasn't belittling her work, and it send an odd shiver of warmth through the young chest.

She quickly turned her eyes back down at the water, but dark-tipped tail wagged lightly at her hocks. Despite shouting, his words were muffled by the water, and an oversized, russet ear flicked, brows furrowing slightly; My share? Nalda had never thought of her escapades by the river as work, her brought-home prizes were a means of mitigating the adults, an excuse for where she'd been all day, why she hadn't been working. The fact that her treasure hunts could pass as actual support of the pack was mind blowing, and for some reason deflated her previous pride. Eirian didn't seem to notice the effect of his words though, bending down over the rushing water like she was, watching the swirling foam. The pup snorted at his words, stretching up into a stand and looking over at him with her head askew, eyes narrowed in thought.

After a few moments she turned her eyes down, looking through the cracks between the stones, hopping around for a while until she came across a fitting prop. Gripping the piece of wood between her teeth, she balance her way over to the adult's side, looking to catch his eye before she pointedly dropped the timber into the rapids. It was swept up instantly, rushing back and forth over the surface a few times as it was carried downstream, then disappeared below the surface, sucked down by the raging current. Nalda watched it go under, then glanced back at Eirian, shrugging a shoulder; "A' us'ly jus' look b'tween th' rocks for wha'stuck. Try'n t'grap something out'a'there doesn't seem… smart." Her voice was neutral, though it was more of a resigned statement than a defiant one, not meant to contradict the man but just state bleak fact. There was a small glint in her eye though, a light of excitement as she wondered if maybe, he was brave enough to try it.

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He followed her display with close interest, a detail that pleased the young wolf, and first when the wood was well and gone down the river did he turn back, giving his answer. The words surprised Nalda, her calculating mind so used to focusing only on the rational side of things. To her the deathly current was a fact, but to Eirian it was a challenge. Golden eyes widened as they watched the man step out into the raging water, equal parts awe and horror showing on the russet face. Now, the concept of showing off was not unfamiliar to the girl, she'd done a fair bit of it herself, but always calculated, with careful thought of the risk. This? This was madness! Yet a madness she found herself unable to look away from, and as she watched to Asurn cross further and further out into the stream, a tiny smirk lit her features.

Never removing her gaze from the auburn man, Nalda slid down the rocks towards the water, as careful as ever about where she placed her paws. The rush of the river roared in her ears, foam springing up to leave damp spots on her legs, calling her to join the stream. A careful, russet paw slipped into the churning masses, fumbling for a moment before finding purchase on the slippery gravel below. Up ahead, Eirian was in water up to his chest, looking back at the pup with a triumphant smile. She grinned back, the admiration clear on her face as she slipped another paw into the water. Pausing, to steady herself against the pressure of the current, the pup let her eyes drift up along the river, feeling her heart beat in exhilaration, feeling the strength of the stream as she watched it. Then the grin died on her face, as a dark shadow rounded the bend. Large and shapeless, it loomed towards them, easily spanning half the width of the river.

Whipping her head back around, the girl screamed at the top of her lungs, desperately trying to reach the man over the thunder of the river; "Eirian, watch out!" Instinctively she moved forwards without thinking, jumping out into the water to try and get to him. But as the full force of the current hit her, she realized the madness, there was nothing she could do. And suddenly she found herself caught in the current as well, torn between helping her pack mate and saving herself.

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