She had been determined to stick to the forest, safe in its dense shadows, and with the familiar cold of the mountains seeping down, calming her nerves. Yet a familiar, almost intoxicating, scent had drawn her out into the open. Blackberries! Though uncommon, even at this latitude, Aideen was quite familiar with the fruits, and the bushes that bore them. The den where she was born had been dug under a small thicket of these same scrubs; a family tradition of sorts, and her mother had sought long and stubbornly for them, so far to the north.




Such drawn by this smell of home, the rust-brown lass was now slowly trekking out into the open, ears and eyes wide in search of any possible threat. Above, the sky wars dark with heavy clouds, carrying the promise of both rain and thunder. It would be wise to seek shelter soon, she thought to herself, while her legs kept dragging her forwards, hasty as always. Soon. Soon she would turn round and hurry back into the dry security of the forest, but first...




As she came upon the first bush her heart swelled, a small sting of longing penetrating her skin, like the thorns. But the pain faded quickly as she inspected the bush, and then, lifting her head, the area around it. Autumn had long claimed most of the berries, but a few, stubborn, black orbs still clung to the branches. In her state of nostalgia, the fruits reminded Aideen of her mother: old and rugged and stubborn, determined to keep fighting, no matter what. Allowing herself this one moment of weakness, the girl sighed and breathed in deeply, relishing in the rich scent of the berries.








Word count: 286




<b style="color:#c7470f">”I've got bark!”

A jolt went through the flame-shaded lass, when a voice broke through her daze. Deep as she'd been in her memories, she hadn't heard the other wolves approach and was startled by the sudden question. Ears laid back after the scare, the girl lifted her head to look at the stranger, meeting his eyes over the blackberry branches. It was a male, his eyes a vibrant, orange shade, glowing slightly in the dark of the building storm; and he was huge!



Aideen had been borne into a family of rather small, scrawny looking wolves. Of course she'd seen big brutes like this guy before, but still a shiver went down her spine. A shiver of excitement; this is EXACTLY why I left home! Something new. Something exciting! <b style="color:#c7470f">"Mhm... Probably. Though it's not raining yet." She spoke in reply to his question, shrugging her shoulders and casting a quick glance at the charcoal sky.



Her ears had flipped forwards now, a bright look of interest on her face. Making sure to release any tension still in her body after the initial fright, the she offered the boy a small smile. That's when she noticed his state; <b style="color:#c7470f">"Are you alright?" She asked, more wary now, eyes sliding along his roughed up body.





Word count: 210



<b style="color:#c7470f">”I've got bark!”

She couldn't help but chuckle slightly at how clearly flustered the boy seemed to be, as he apologized for scaring her and brushed of her concern. Words tumbled from his maw in rapid order, almost melting together as he briefly described his encounter with the other wolf. Clearly he's fine. Slowly, she moved out from behind the bush to face this stranger probably, sitting herself down on the damp grass across from him; confident that he posed no threat, despite his size.





The girlish laughter still ringing in her voice, Aideen aimed to continue the conversation: <b style="color:#c7470f">"Well, I'm happy that you didn't get badly injured." In the following silence she contemplated this wolf her opposer had mentioned, wondering why he would have intentionally provoked the rufous furred boy, who seemed so sweet and calm. Maybe they know each other... She thought, reminding herself that this, quite likable male, was still a stranger. Aiming to change that, she continued: <b style="color:#c7470f">"I hope it's the same with this other wolf... Are you pack mates?" A sneaky question, her mother would say. Hopefully his answer would reveal more about both his personality, his background and how vicious he was as a fighter.





The flame-tinted lass snuck another glance at the foreign mans frame, noticing this time the details of his appearance. Other than being large and muscular, and rather ruffled from the aforementioned scuffle, the boy was quite hansom. His features were fine, his body defined and the fur coloration rather appealing; above all the eyes stood out, gleaming with their orange intensity. It was then, when the two's eyes met once more, that she remembered her rudeness; mother would have skinned me if she knew! The rush of embarrassment adding to her regularly hasty speech, she quickly offered: <b style="color:#c7470f">"I'm Aideen by the way."






Word count: 300




I'm not stupid <b style="color:#c7470f">”I've got bark!”

Watching him closely, she allowed the boy his time to finish, all the while registering every word and mentally noting the important details. It seemed that his hurry to get the words out were not only a question of embarrassment, but rooted in something deeper. He's afraid of storms. The dame's warm smile grew a tad at this revelation, but her eyes were warm, she wouldn't ridicule him like this stranger had done. More explanation came of the unknown wolf, who must have been quite manipulative to get this kind man to attack him, and then the mention of a sister, who was apparently lost. So you're alone, like me... There was no sadness in the thought. Like any other wolf, Aideen was a social character, but the decision to leave home had been her own. She wanted adventure, and that required wandering about and not committing to a pack; at least for a while.






After Rayne's introduction, a stretch of silence ensued, as the reddish fae wanted to make sure he was finished with his tale and had no more to add before her reply. She did note the humor in the similarity of the boy's name and his fear, but suppressed her natural impulse to comment on the subject, figuring that he had been teased enough for one day. Instead, she chose to focus on the sister, and let the previous, unfortunate encounter ebb to the past; <b style="color:#c7470f">"Nice to meet you too Rayne, you seem to have a good attitude." This was in reference to his mention of handling conflict peacefully, an approach that Aideen tended to prefer as well; when her temper didn't blur her sense. <b style="color:#c7470f">"You say your sister is lost..? How, if I may ask, and is there any way I can help?" She felt for Rayne, thinking of her own siblings and how she missed them, and at the same time she envisaged adventure, like she so craved.






Word count: 324




I'm not stupid <b style="color:#c7470f">”I've got bark!”

She listened respectfully as the russet wolf told his story, tri-colored head cocked slightly to the side in a show of attention. The smile had vanished from her face, her affable expression replaced by one of warm sympathy, and her tail had curled around her side; the tip twitching lightly. Meanwhile, her heart was speeding up, as the mystery unfolded before her, every word sparking more thoughts in her head. When Rayne' s tale finished, the fox-like lady shifted slightly on the spot before answering, taking care to use proper tone and not let herself overwhelm with the growing excitement in her body, this was a serious matter after all.






<b style="color:#c7470f">"I don't have a specific plan." She began, replying to his initial question, <b style="color:#c7470f">"Though I was thinking of heading east, those mountains intrigue me." Lifting her head, she pointed her cream tainted snout at the horizon where the mountaintops were just visible above the trees. The she returned her gaze to the red-brown lad, shrugging her shoulders to show that the idea was not vital to her. Then there was another pause, red and orange wolves studying each other, probably both wondering what the other was thinking right then.






Finally Aideen spoke again, deciding to cut to the chase; <b style="color:#c7470f">"If you do want my help, I will be more than happy to give it. If nothing more, at least I can keep an eye out for Senka on my own travels, and tell her that you are looking for her..?" She paused to breath, searching the opposing man's eyes for any reaction to what she'd just said. And then she couldn't keep a fresh smile from sneaking onto her face, adding in a voice that was live with her adventurous nature; <b style="color:#c7470f">"After all, two wolves can always achieve more than one!"






Word count: 301




I'm not stupid <b style="color:#c7470f">”I've got bark!”