Disgusting, absolutely disgusting.

Askan scrambled along with watery eyes as he held his breath, he had to do something, anything to get this damn, horrific smell off his coat! It was like...bleh. As though  he'd rolled in a rotting skunk, that had also somehow managed to spray him from beyond the grave. Yeah, it was that bad. And you know what had gotten him in this damn mess in the first place? A plant, a bloody plant!

Nature was evil. It had to be, because if not then why oh why would it have something so disgusting, so stomach curdling disguised as the mundane? Who would suspect a bush of sensory assault?  Not Askan, that's for sure! He'd only just walked past it, how was he supposed to know that it would end up like this? He was innocent, no one could convince him otherwise.

What was he to do? He couldn't return to Reyes like this,which wasn't to say he'd ran up to him smelling of gross things before, but that was aside the point. The point was...It was just awful, he wouldn't make anyone have to deal with this shit unless he had to. This was a mess he'd have to fix himself. But how?

He'd headed further south than usual, the ferns were teaming with life and so were the perfect location for a bit of hunting. He'd passed through this area once before, when he'd visited the Bend, but other than that? This place was new to him, just as Secret Falls had been all those days ago.

Still, he couldn't wander about hoping he'd find something to fix his problem. The sooner he sorted this shit out the better, so without further ado he dropped to the floor and started rolling about like a maniac, tossing his legs this way and that as he tried to rub the scent away.

Decorum be damned, the situation was that dire.

Hawthorne was fine. He liked the girl well enough, but when she stated that he stunk, well it was hard for him to resist the urge to say 'yeah, no shit.'

He didn't blame her for the overly dramatic response, hell he would have probably done the same. But it didn't feel so good to be on the receiving end of it. He knew he stank, he was doing his damnest to get rid of it. But apparently flailing around like a mad man wasn't working, or at the very least it wasn't getting rid of the stink fast enough.

With a huff, he rolled onto his side and his legs hit the floor with a muffled thud. This was awful. What was he supposed to do? He didn't want to be like this forever. That would be a fate worse than death surely, Askan Selwyn the skunk wolf. Ugh. He cringed and hid his face beneath his paws.

"Yeah...I know. Walked into a stinky bush."He shifted his paw a little and peeked out from behind it, a single bright yellow eye peered over at Hawth."Got any ideas how to get rid of it? Rolling didn't work, clearly."

"Mud?" Askan asked, already grimacing at the thought. He'd never been a mucky pup, he much preferred keeping his coat neat and clean. His fur was already brown, there was no use in trying to make it any darker."That's pretty gross Hawth."

That being said he was willing to do anything to get rid of his awful stink, even if it meant following the advice of a kid.

With a hefty sigh, he pushed himself to his feet and- just managed to stop himself from shaking off his coat. Not only would he just spread the stink about but there was a strong chance he'd just waft it Hawth's way. As salty as he was for her pointing it out he wasn't that vindictive.

"Mud then water?" At least then he could smush the smell away and then wash himself clean. He didn't like to think he was fussy, but the prospect of wandering about caked in filth and slime wasn't a nice one."I think I saw a stream on the way here, maybe we can backtrack, try and find the plant again so we know to avoid it next time?"

The last thing he wanted was for the bush to become a repeat offender every time someone wandered down south to the ferns.

"You uh...Wanna lead so I'm downwind?"

"Oi!"Askan scowled, giving her a reprimanding shoulder bump. Before he'd wanted to stay clear of her so she didn't get stinky as well, but if she kept this up he'd tackle Hawth and make her just as smelly as he did. That'd serve her right!"You don't have to be rude."

He'd changed his mind, he was going to lead the way now. With long strides he quickly caught up with her and once they were walking side by side he stuck out his tongue before averting his gaze ahead. If she didn't want to deal with his stink then she could leave, though honestly he didn't want her to. Childish bouts of backchat aside,she was a good girl, sort of what Percy had been like when she'd been small. Except a little less brazen and moody.

Her question was a good one though, but he wasn't going to answer it without a little sass on the side.

"Oh wouldn't you like to know, huh? You spying on me?"The gleam in his eyes were devious, like he was the cat who had eaten the canary. He let out a barking laugh, short and sharp, before he turned to answer her question."I was doing a bit of scouting, checking out old scent trails, seeing if they amounted to anything of interest."He shrugged. Clearly that was a lost cause now."What about you? Exploring?"

Askan couldn't help but huff in amusement as she tried to trot on ahead. She'd learnt her lesson, there was no need to be a dick about it.He wasn't her Father, or even related to her in any way, but if she needed a firm hand to keep her on the straight and narrow then Askan was happy enough to step in. She was a good kid, but even those misbehaved sometimes. It was just the way things were.

Yeah he wanted her to behave but he wasn't gonna snap her into submission either. Askan would rule, yes that was true, but he wasn't going to do so with an iron fist.

Sneaky sod. Askan shook his head and tutted, though his eyes crinkled in amusement. He honestly hadn't noticed her on the way, not until she revealed herself. So yeah, she'd done a pretty damn good job of it , there was no denying that. Not being one to hand out compliments though, Askan pursed his lips as he tried to think of a way to put it a little less... you know, complimenty.

"You did okay."He said, as he came to a stop in front of a gloriously messy patch of mud. This would do, surely? "For all you know...I knew you were there the whole time. Just played along."He smirked, coy and smug. But it was a pretence, he hadn't even noticed the shadowy pup. She was that good.

"Think this will do?"He asked, gesturing to the slosh with a paw.