Dragonveil Fold repeating simple phrases

It had been two, maybe three, days since he’d last caught wind of the yellow-eyed snowball around the shallows. The Edge Lord’s had allowed the tawny boy to stretch his legs and sniff around for the pale subordinate. It was too cold to be wandering around without a pack to come home to and Sachiel couldn’t help but fear for the worst. What if something had happened to the snowflake? Something bad?!

No. He had to remain positive. They were in new territory, after all, and there was snow everywhere. Which made it even harder to navigate—even for the walking map, Sachiel.

Cottongrass just got turned around, that’s all. And the agouti Leigh was determined to find him and bring him home.

He kept marching west, his gangly legs dragging through the snow as he pursued the mountain in the distance. The boy had no intention of climbing it—not in this weather!—but he wanted to skirt the bottom. It was possible that Cottongrass had gotten too close to the mountain and found a cave, or something, to hide in. His pace quickened, his brows falling into a tight line as he fought the snow falling from overhead. It was not as bad as it had been—he could still see, which was a plus. But, the further he distanced himself from the shallows, the more he began to worry that he would end up lost too.

Stay positive.

He nodded to himself, his oversized paws pushing through the snow as he surveyed his surroundings. It looked like he had found his way to the edge of the mountain. Trees were scattered around the frozen river, large snow-covered boulders placed sporadically around the foothill. A sigh escaped him; relief.

Now he just had to find Cottongrass’ trail…

Whispering Pines send my baby back to me

She was worried. She had good reason to be. Weeks had passed without sight of Cotton and thoughts of every unimaginable doom came in mind. She wondered if he had ventured back to Heartwood River to help his friend out that she herself couldn't help; visiting there left her empty handed. She wondered if she was missing him at the new pack they were both to call home but his scent had become increasingly stale with each random visit. Today would be her third try in finding him, the path she traveled toward Shallow's Edge was well worn. On this visit something different happened, in the absence of Cotton was the agouti form of a young wolf, and they were coming from the direction she was going; a Edge wolf. Her paws moved faster in hopes of catching him before he disappeared without a trace, like her friend had done, and when she was within range she realized that he look preoccupied with something. She took the opportunity to ask if perhaps he'd seen her friend but first. "Are you from Shallow Edge?" she asked with a voice and tone different than her usual but panicked all the same. This was a real emergency.

Ashbash 2016 - Ian Schneider

He stuck close to the frozen river but dared not stray too close, for he feared the ground would collapse beneath his paws. His brows were furrowed in determination as he searched for Cottongrass’ scent, his oversized paws dragging slowly across the snow-covered ground as he made sure to be as thorough as possible. It seemed odd that the dandelion-eyed wolf had disappeared, no explanation given and no trail to follow. He had been one of the founding members, along with one of the wolves that managed to coax Sachiel into joining. Disappearing was highly out of character for the owlish wolf.

The sound of another approaching caused his steps to cease, his bi-coloured gaze narrowing as he swung his nose to meet the yellow eyes of the stranger. For a fleeting moment he thought he’d found the snowflake—for the fur and eyes were all right—but the scent, the gender!, was all wrong. A frown creased his features. However, at her question, the boy’s head tipped the side. Her voice sounded panicked; yellow. It matched her eyes. Something was wrong.

He nodded, confirming her words, before responding with a single word: Why?

Whispering Pines send my baby back to me

He was most likely alarmed, wondering where she had come from and what she wanted but the urgency never left her voice, the fear suddenly intensified on her features. He had been looking for something and she determined that her predicament should take precedence over whatever he was in search of, a life was in danger and it would not have bothered her if this strange disappearance wasn't so unusual for her beloved friend. She hadn't even been able to give him the good news yet, that she had intended to join him and his pack so that she could be with him and the two of them could look after each other together. He would have loved that, his yellow eyes would have widened with excitement and that usual goofy smile of his would have caused her own but instead this wolf, this young male, had eyes that were foreign to her. At least his familiar scent reminded her of him and she probably would have noticed it earlier if she hadn't been in such a mess. "I'm asking because my friend, his name is Cottongrass, he's been missing." she said, but she refused to believe it, maybe his pack mate had seen him recently. "have you seen him? White, bright yellow eyes, handsome, cheerful personality." she described him just in case this young male needed a visual and waited for what seemed like hours for him to respond.

Ashbash 2016 - Ian Schneider

He had never seen the girl before or scented her around the borders—not recently, anyway. His frown continued to deepen, his tail stiffening behind him as he waited (impatiently) for her response. There was no time to chit chat was strangers—he had a wolf to find. The longer Cottongrass remained on his own the more worrisome the situation became. Perhaps she had heard of the Edge before and needed directions—or… what?! He blinked, his nose wrinkling as she spoke. She knew Cottongrass? His tongue clucked against the roof of his mouth as she continued, describing features that Sachiel already knew. How do you know he’s missing? He countered, his head tipping to the side as he studied her ivory frame, his brows narrowed darkly. The tip of his tail twitched. I’m looking for him, too, he admitted reluctantly, for he did not know whether he could trust the lace-coloured loner. Had Cottongrass gotten hurt and she was looking for him so she could finish the job? Did she have something to do with his disappearance or was she speaking the truth—was she searching for him? An overwhelming feeling of uncertainty consumed him, weighing heavy on his shoulder. Yellow, cream, chiffon.

Whispering Pines send my baby back to me

It seemed that mentioning his name had peaked his interest and the woman found her heart lurch in her chest--he knew. She wanted to hammer the questions on, that was what one did during a investigation but she had to remember that this wolf had other things to do and probably couldn't be bothered so she waited for him to give her the definite yes or no. What she received instead was the knowledge that he had been in fact looking for her friend too and judging from his attitude, hadn't been having any luck in finding him. Instantly she grew more worried. My name is Rory, I am one of his best friends. I came looking for him a few days back and he wasn't here and I checked many days afterward but now...now his scent is stale." he probably knew most of this but it was important to add. "I'm know he mentioned Heartwood...something about a friend missing and delivering him there. That was the last time we spoke..." she wondered if he knew more and could fill her in.

Ashbash 2016 - Ian Schneider

The chiffon girl must have been a good friend of Cottongrass’, otherwise she would not be dripping with such an electrifying shade of yellow. Sachiel shared her worry. It was unlike the owlish male to be missing for so long. Especially since things had gotten so comfortable at the shallows. The only conclusion Sachiel could come to was that something bad happened. Something that prevented the yellow-eyed snowflake from returning. The thought caused a shiver to run down his spine, his mismatched gaze still focused on the alabaster loner as she spoke up once more.

Rory. He stored away the name for future reference—click!—but it wouldn’t be difficult to memorize. Remembering was an exceptional talent of the boy’s. It was highly unlikely, impossible even, that he would forget her name—or her face. Hearthwood. His head tilted at the name. As far as I know he didn’t mention anything about Hearthwood to our alphas, he responded, his voice soft as a crooked frown cracked his tawny features. I-I don’t have much information, he added with a defeated sigh, his ears falling back against his skull. I just know he’s missing and has been for awhile. I’ve been tryin’ to find his trail…

Whispering Pines send my baby back to me

She wondered if something had happened on his trip to Heartwood, or if he had even ventured back there in the first place. She wondered what evil wolf would want to harm someone as kind as Cotton and whether they were still roaming around the Lore in search of more victims. Her mind wandered to the story he had told her, of the Qalupalik who stole away children beneath the ice but then she remembered that it was just a childish story and couldn't possibly have been real. But something had to have kept him from returning back to Shallow Edge. "I can help you look, I'm sure it'll be better with the both of us searching." she assured him, ears pressing against her head. "what is your name?" she asked, hoping to make the search a bit less awkward if they were able to properly know each other. They had, officially, become a team.

Ashbash 2016 - Ian Schneider

His nose twitched at her offer, his forepaws shifting uncomfortably in the snow. Two noses were better than one… and the cream-coloured girl claimed to be Cottongrass’ friend—his best friend. Or so she claimed…

Whatever.

If she was bad news he would run. His limbs were becoming more coordinated and he was getting fast. Which meant outrunning her was definitely a possibility… Uh, he started, his maw canting to the side as he took a step to the side, his mismatched gaze sweeping over their frosted surroundings, sure. Name. Oops—he had forgotten to share that information with her after she’d introduced herself. The boy had a bad habit of keeping his name to himself. It was why Pumpkin Eyes had learned his name through other methods (aka Askan, the snitching Edge Lord) instead of his own mouth. Sachiel, he introduced with a slow wag of his tail. Where have you looked already?