Secret Falls Swimming In Shadows

I don't even know, I just rolled with it honestly. @Anneliese Backdated a bit to leave travel time for thread with Nathaniel :)

Midnight | Humid | June 30th

One with the shadows around him, Dorian glided silently like a phantom across the darkness they provided. Obscuring his fleeting form while light tinted limbs thrummed over the softened soil beneath in a rhythmical pattern as coral tongue dangled off to the side between the leathery lips of his parted maw. Beams of moonlight striking between trunks of soldier like Cedars that were easily skirted around. Laughter in its purest form escaping his vocal chords to flow out into the nocturnal world like a child sharing a secret with a friend. In Dorian's world, though, the shadows were his friends. The abandonment by his parents, the death by his paws. The shadows witnessed it all and cast no judgement. Instead, offering the lad the protection he sought.

Exhausted pads came to gradually slow as the sound of running water filled his eardrums. Chest heaving with the effort of bringing in new oxygen to his lungs while single optic scanned the surrounding foliage for signs of others. Unlikely as it was, there still ran the chance of a stranger stumbling onto his path that humid night. Only when the darkness deemed itself clear did he dare search for the source of water. A trickling stream weaving its way from beneath the mass of a fallen tree caught his attention as it glistened in the pale moonlight. "It's beautiful, isn't it my friends?" He spoke aloud to nobody in particular. Lost in his fantasy world of make believe where the shadows around him could talk back like living beings themselves. Imaginary friends, if you will. "You'd best drink up while you can!" urgency lacing his voice only to be silenced by the delicate lapping of his tongue across the crystal clear surface of the stream. Soothing the dryness of his throat. 

(This post was last modified: Jul 03, 2015, 06:30 AM by Dorian.)

Anna had been thoroughly enjoying stillness for once. After a time spent traveling, she had come to rest at the base of the falls. The waters crashed relentlessly around her, thick mist a constant presence in the air and the sound of it all a neverending roar in her cream ears. It was a place of complete serenity for the woman, the energy of nature around her enough to placate her as she gave her adventure-hungry paws a rest.

She breathed slowly, blonde sides rising and falling in a smooth rhythm as she lay on her flank, paws stretched out and eyes closed. The foliage that coated the spring's bank also camouflaged her existence, hiding the paladin's presence from anyone who drew close. Anneliese felt at peace, felt safe. This was certainly a place she would be returning to each and every time she trekked this far north. Which she hoped to be often, if only to be able to catch up with Naia more often.

Losing track of time, she wasn't quite sure how long she'd been there when something roused her from rest. It was his voice that had given away his approach, and the woman immediately tensed up, silently berating herself for allowing her guard to fall. Shifting onto her stomach, she was relieved to realize that her cover had been successful, as the man did not seem to be at all aware of her presence. Beryl eyes peered through the foliage to spy him, standing alone as drinking from the cold waters.

Who had he been speaking to? She searched fruitlessly for any sign of another wolf, and when finally forced to give up, she could only come to one conclusion; he had been conversing with himself. The realization unnerved her, as such behavior hinted toward mental instability. While this did not mean he was a threat, it meant he was unpredictable, and therefor not a wolf she could ever truly feel safe around.

Still, she was somewhat intrigued, specifically by the scars that ravaged the right side of his face. Lifting herself up out of the growth, Anneliese relented her cover to step forward. She skirted the waters, cautiously making her way around to him.

"Hello," she greeted, genuinely amiable as always, though underneath her muscles remained tensed and ready for whatever reaction the male might have to her sudden presence.

PLOT WITH ME!

Feel free to shoot me for crappy replies >.< @Anneliese

Coral tongue lapped feverishly at the slow flowing stream to quench the thirst his throat inherited from the humid air, a single paw straying forward to submerge beneath the waterline. An occasional leaf twirled from above in the swaying of the sun kissed breeze to land with a soft plop upon the crystalline surface where a swift nudge of Dorian's muzzle dispersed it further down stream. Singular jade optic vigilantly watching what little surroundings it could focus upon as he drank. Rounded slate tipped audits rotating constantly to and fro catching the slightest noise that dared disturb the midnight silence of the warmed forest. A rustle of nearby foliage and a shift in the atmosphere evoking a rapid lifting of his silvered crown. Droplets of water dribbling down the length of his muzzle from the motion. Someone was here and not his shadows friends either. Someone else. He could feel it in every fiber.

"Hello." An unknown voice reverberated, sending the young lad toppling over his own paws into the chilled waters. Sprays of water launched in every which direction as tawny embodiment hit the pebbled floor, fur soaked in a matter of seconds. Instantly ears were drawn back toward Dorian's skull as panic flooded his veins, light tawny form sinking further towards the bottom of the stream with tail tucked firmly beneath his belly. Hugging it like a frightened child would a stuffed animal when facing the monster in their closet. Whites of the man's eye visible under the pale moonlight that cast the forest aglow. "D-don't hurt me!" Lips proclaimed in fear without further provoking as cinnamon dusted limbs struggled to find steady footing against the moss slicked rocks beneath. Whomever this wraith of a wolf was, her sudden presence couldn't be a good sign.

Perhaps she had surprised him, and given the severity of his reaction it certainly couldn't be said that the feeling instilled in Anneliese by it was anywhere near equal to the panic that rushed him. All the same, he gave her quite the scare as well. Anneliese pedalled backward swiftly to avoid the spray of water, posture shifting rapidly into a much more defensive approach. No, this wolf certainly couldn't be trusted an inch, and Anneliese knew now to not let her guard down even an inch. Even with as frightened as he was by her, this wolf was far too unpredictable to be safe.

Still, she was not heartless, and did not feel compelled to flee just yet. He begged her not to harm him, and she wondered what trials this pitiful creature had suffered to incite just a reaction when all she'd done was merely said hello. She now assumed that instead of having earned such horrid scarring in a valiant battle, perhaps this man had been nothing more than someone's wretched victim.

"Why would I hurt you?" she asked, voice level and with a measured dose of tenderness. She wanted to ease him, but could not bring herself to entirely pity him.

PLOT WITH ME!