Hearthwood River Reflections

The slight woman weaved through the underbrush that lined the river, her footfalls heavier than usual in an attempt to leave behind more scent for the little princess to detect. Every now and then Naia would stop to roll upon the ground or to brush up against a tree hanging out over the water. It would be a fairly simple problem for the child, since Naia’s path did not deviate from the river for which her pack was named.. Naia only hoped that Orren would follow her example and let Inna figure out the problem for herself. It could be very tempting to provide all the answers to a struggling pupil. After a short moment’s travel downstream the river widened out and stilled, though if Naia listened hard she could still hear the rapids upstream and even the children talking back and forth to one another. 

Naia found a comfortable spot to settle beside the water and gazed out over the placid surface. Her golden eyes landed on a stick floating idly in circles, seemingly caught up in an eddy that prevented it from continuing to move forward. A wry smile found its way to Naia’s features as she recognized herself in that trapped stick. After surviving swift, tumultuous passage through the rapids upstream, it was ironic that the calm part of the journey would present the most difficult hangup for the traveling stick. The Timber lady watched the stick intently as it drifted in circles, round and round. Raising one litter of puppies and then the next, and the next, forever the loyal subordinate..

(This post was last modified: Aug 26, 2015, 01:28 PM by Naia.)

A young deer has been separated from the rest of its herd. Hunt Opportunity

@Inna @Naia Sorry for the wait you two, my life has been kind of hectic as of late :/

Orren's face was one big smile as he watched his sister puzzle out the problem, slowly connecting the bits and pieces of information fed to her, until she had a full picture. For the first time, he understood what Naia had found so amusing and rewarding in teaching, leading the way for a young pupil and watching them get a grips on the world you already knew so well. Inna was obviously confused, but at the same time determination shone in her deep blue eyes. She was listening intently to everything they told her, and furrowing her tiny brows as she tumbled with the problem. It was clear that the load of information was hard on her little brain, and for a moment her older brother doubted the lesson; Perhaps she's too young for this... Then she turned her gaze on him, and her declaration made him beam, head bobbing swiftly in confirmation, she had understood. And her question was understandable, scents could be a confusing mess at first. The dark-masked yearling lowered his nose down to almost meet his sibling's, a twinkle in his warm orange eyes; "Tha's wha' ya' need t' learn, smells are strange and complicated, bu' with time, you'll learn wha' they mean." Encouragingly, he touched his dark snout to hers, winking reassuringly, it would take time, but he had no doubt she would get it. And Inna certainly wasn't slow to understand, though her head initially shook with confusion, she continued to follow the lesson closely, and Naia's demonstration seemed to register with her. Her next declaration proved as much, her understanding of the phenomenon of reflection bringing a fresh smile to her brothers lips. "Yeah!" He nodded as she pointed to the water, grinning proudly down at the pup. And when she mentioned the scent he almost cracked with pride; "Exactly lightning-bug! Ya' nose's tellin' ya' tha' there's only water there, the reflection is just a trick, what ya' smell is what is real." He kept nodding as he explained, smiling adoringly at her the whole time, there was no joy like the one he felt, seeing her crack the code. He nodded again when she asked in about his mention of fishing, making an agreeing sound, but didn't elaborate; One lesson at a time, and I think this has been quite enough! The scout seemed to disagree though, and as she disappeared through the foliage, Orren could only follow her lead, after all she was the more experienced one when it came to teaching. So he encouraged Inna to use what she had just learned, and the pup seemed willing, though there was confusion on her face. Still she pressed on, sniffing around for Naia's scent, which hung thick around them. The hunter nodded approvingly at her, waiting patiently as she got her bearings. Then he added instructions in a low voice, trying to guide her the way Naia had him; "Tha's it, see if ya' can catch her scent, then try to follow it. If ya' can't find it in the air, try the ground, animals always leave lots of scent where they step." It felt a little awkward, being the one to give direction, but he tried his best, hoping he wasn't saying too much, or using words that would only confuse Inna further. All he could do now was try and guide her, smiling encouragingly and waiting patiently, ready to follow her once she found the trail, and lead her back if she should stray. Word count: 585 Thoughts ”Speech”

Dawnthieves.de

PLOT WITH ME!

No worries, Mine has gotten very hectic as of late too.

Reflections seemed to be troublesome things to Inna. She was thankful to have her brother there to help her piece everything together but she also liked the fact that neither he nor Naia gave her the answers. Instead they offered clues and allowed her to piece them together till she reached the answer. Inna felt that to be important because it made her think about the problem. This was something she felt she had to learn and though it might be hard and confusing it was something that would serve her well in future. It was becoming clearer to Inna that the world could be a confusing place but she was glad to have her brother and Naia to help her understand it. Orren’s  words about learning what smells meant taking time was a little disappointing because she wanted to know what they all meant in that moment.  At the same time they were encouraging because she might still have a lot to learn about them but by her piecing together and understanding about her reflection she was sure she would learn about the other smells too. "I want to learn what they all mean," she told her brother confidently before giving Orren’s muzzle a lick as he touched it to hers. She hoped it would show him she appreciated his encouragement.

As she put the clues Naia had given her about the water and reflections together she was sure to voice her thoughts to be sure she was on the right track. It wouldn't serve her to try and figure it out if she was completely off base with her thinking. Each time Orren affirmed that she was on the right track she wagged her tail happily. It was even clearer that she could not rely on just her eyes to get all the information she needed about things. “So the water is real and the puppy, well that me,” she indicated the puppy with her nose, “Is not which is why it wouldn’t play with me,” she supplied to show her understanding of the problem.  “Water can be tricky too,” she added eyeing the water suspiciously.

A new lesson was upon her that Naia seemed to feel she was ready for and so the female disappeared from sight up the river.  Inna felt that after successfully learning about reflections she should be able to grasp this lesson as well.  Her task was to find Naia using her sense of smell.  At first that seemed a little daunting especially as she rose her nose into the air and sniffed smelling Naia’s scent all around her. Even though she had seen the direction that Naia had gone Inna couldn’t discern through scent that was the direction she’d left.  So she looked to Orren to be sure that she was doing it right.  He confirmed that she was but also suggested trying to follow Naia’s scent by sniffing the ground, I think I’ll try that, maybe it will be easier,” she stated hoping she would have better luck.  She didn’t want to cheat herself of the lesson and just go off in the direction that Naia had gone. She wanted to do it right and get all that she could out of the lesson Orren and Naia were trying to teach her. So she put her nose to the ground sniffing as she walked around the area that the three of them had occupied till she thought she had finally been able to tell the direction Naia had gone by her scent alone. With her nose to the ground she set off following Naia’s scent in the direction she’d gone.

(This post was last modified: Nov 14, 2015, 08:28 PM by Inna.)

Please see Kajika's OOC profile for OOC preferences, thank you.

 

Naia traveled at a steady pace alongside the river, stepping with heavier footfalls that usual so as to leave a heavy trail for the child to track. After a few minutes of travel the river flattened out, and the current slowed to nearly a halt. The river was at least three times as wide in this spot as it was when Naia had begun, and the water was still enough to provide a second example for Inna.

“Nice job!” Naia said with a grin as the pair arrived at her spot. The scout had settled down beside the river, and she now directed the pup’s attention out over the still water, to the opposite shoreline. “Look,” she instructed, “See the upside-down trees there, how their image reaches out across the water when it’s flat and still? It’s another reflection.” The woman’s honey eyes gazed upon the child’s features as she explained, hoping to catch the flash of understanding an wonder.

Her next lesson was directed toward the older Baranski. “Orren, can you tell me why the river is so still and wide at this point?” She wondered if he would smell the faint scent of beaver upon her pelt, leftover from her hunt in this very spot earlier in the day, an perhaps put two-and-two together. There were a few other telltale signs that a beaver family had moved in; a few felled trees and the odor of beaver scat. The sharp young man would have no trouble with this one.

So many lessons! :D @Inna you're up <3

He laughed softly at her sign of recognition, watching with glowing eyes as she pieced together the puzzle. There was no doubt in his mind that his baby sister was a natural, and her gumption was contagious. Orren grinned widely, tail wagging eagerly as he looked at Inna, sniffing around, searching for the trail. "Ya'll learn soon enough lightning-bug!" He assured, smile widening at the glare she shot at the river; "Yeah it can, bu' it's also helpful, and we can't live without it." The river was the life blood of their pack, it had been at Cut Rock, and it was here, he didn't want her to disregard it. But this was not the time for seriousness, and the little fire-cracker was already off, having located Naia's trail and following it swiftly, nose to the ground; Look at her go! The yearling barked encouragingly, quickly taking up pursuit along the river, keeping right behind the dark pup. It didn't take them long to catch up to the scout, who praised Inna for her quick work. Orren offered his own congratulation, by way of tapping his paw on the girls head. Then Naia once again directed their attention at the river, but while she explained the reflections to their mutual student, the aspiring hunters attention was drawn by something else. At the spot Naia had chosen to stop, the river spread out over a wide area, the water's surface appearing still as opposed to the otherwise constant rush the heart of Hearthwood. This was not, however, like the shallows of Cut Rock, where the stream widened to flow over the large, flat rocks. This water may look peaceful, but it's color spoke of dark depths and possible undercurrents; A pond had formed in the middle of their river. Naia's voice made her older student snap to attention, head spinning to look at her, a fresh smile appearing at her question; So Inna's not the only one getting tested..! And Orren wasted no time in sowing his worth; "Something's blocking the water…" He looked back out over the small lake, searching for an explanation. In this flat land, it was unlikely that rocks or dirt would have tumbled into the river. Whatever had changed the flow of the water, it hadn't happened naturally. In the end, it was the scent that gave him the answer, just like he had been teaching Inna. The yearling's grin was crooked when he looked back to his mentor, excitement glowing in his eyes; "Beavers!" Word count: 419 Thoughts ”Speech”

Dawnthieves.de

PLOT WITH ME!

Orren seemed confident that she would learn all of the scents soon enough and she thought that it was best she listen to this advice since he had to have been in the place that she was now. After all he had to have been a puppy once too though Inna hadn’t really given it much thought till then. “I suppose when I’m your age I will have learned about them,” she surmised. As she looked at the water he offered up another piece of advice, they had to have water in their lives for drinking but she wasn’t sure exactly how it could be helpful. All it had done so far on that particular day was to confuse her. She guessed that in time she might learn the other ways it was helpful like she would learn about all of the other scents she still had to learn about. “I guess accepting that it can be tricky is necessary since we can’t live without it,” she said looking to her brother for confirmation of this thought.

Naia had left her with the task of finding and following her trail which was strong so Inna didn’t have much trouble following it. She was thankful for that so using her nose she followed Naia’s trail up the river till she had finally reached the place where it ended and they had found the scout. Inna couldn’t help the pride that she felt at having successfully followed a scent trail and it was clear on her beaming face. As she looked out over the river Inna had noticed a difference in it from what they had left behind where she had seen her reflection in the water, it seemed to be moving slower. Inna looked to the trees that Naia spoke of as she was told while the scout explained that they too were reflections in the water, “The water doesn’t just reflect us it does other things too?” she said looking to the scout to see if she had gotten that right as well.

Naia’s attention then focused on Orren and it seemed that he was to get a lesson too and while it was about the water too it was different from what Inna had been learning. It seemed that Naia wanted to know if Ori could figure out why the water was different in this part of the river. Though it was a lesson for her brother Inna listened carefully since she thought she could learn something too. When he said that something was blocking the water Inna immediately began to look around the water to see what it might be and then he exclaimed that it was beavers. “What are Beavers?” She asked the confusion she felt clear in her tone.

~Table by Mimi

(This post was last modified: Dec 16, 2015, 03:38 PM by Inna.)

Please see Kajika's OOC profile for OOC preferences, thank you.

 

I think it's time to fade this one out, everyone. It's getting long and they have definitely exited the "Hearthwood River" den area, where the thread is technically set. Don't forget to claim "practicing" skill points-- either hunter or scout would work for this thread.

“You’re both right!” Naia beamed at each of her students as they gave their answers in turn. Inna—of course—had another question right off the bat, and it was one Naia was happy to answer. “A beaver is like a rabbit, but much bigger, with a giant flat tail shaped like a birch leaf.” The teacher paused then, unsure of whether her description would make sense. Inna had spent all of her short life in the redwood forest, where giant sequoias were plentiful but deciduous trees were few and far between.  Would Inna even know a birch tree if she saw one? "They can swim too, and build their dens out of poop and sticks.” Naia wrinkled her nose comically at the pup, as if she was smelling a poop-den right now, knowing it would make the girl laugh.

“Beavers are not good neighbors to wolves, unfortunately,” Naia said, turning her honey eyes to Orren so he knew she was still lecturing to him as well. “If we let them, they would keep building their dens until Hearthwood River became Hearthwood Swamp. We can’t let that happen, right?” Naia paused for the children to shout a response, and then began trotting in the direction of the beaver dam.  She knew that the younger wolves would enjoy themselves, playing in the shallows and breaking apart the dam (everyone knows how children love to destroy things, especially if it took hard work to create).

As the group walked, she gave one last lesson, “Remember, beavers are aggressive. Dangerous.. If you see one, give it distance.”  After her visit this morning she was certain that the inhabitants of the dam would be long gone, off to build their watery kingdom where there were fewer wolves to contend with. However, if Inna or Orren encountered a beaver in the future she did not want to leave them with the impression that it was a harmless, oversized rabbit. Her final warning delivered, she settled in to watch the children play together, creating so much chaos that no beaver would dare return and getting unrecognizably muddy in the process.

Fade out as they all play together.