Drooping Willows Symphonies

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<i>It was all whispers, almost like wind. Rustling, growls, running. He was running, that he knew. Fear drove him onward and into the pale blue of the winter night. His paws were cold from the snow, his legs ached and above the whispers he could hear the loud <i>thump, thump, thump</i> of his heart. His breathing was heavy, he could see it as he exhaled. He glanced behind him, suddenly feeling as if whatever had been chasing him was gone, so the large male slowed. His jaws were parted, he continued to gasp in his breaths. He took a step forward, but the world shifted, he felt a cracking of ice ad then all was cold. The ice felt like a stinging all over, the blue of night was gone. It was just a black void.</i></font></blockquote>

The rapid rhythm of his heart matched the beating in his head. Wave after wave of pain hit him, the nightmare quickly fading from him. He found himself out of breath, so quickly rose to his full height and shook out his pelt. His head hung low, eyes squeezed shut as he tried to block out the annoying chitchatter of the creatures that were in the willows. Birds, mostly. He usually enjoyed their song, but... today, not. They just added to the ache in his head. He had settled himself on the base of a large willow, the draping leaves hiding the male for the night. But the morning was here, the sun peeking through the clouds. It wasn't quite light out, the sky hues of pink, yellows and some purples. Sometimes he'd spend the morning enjoying it, as he did enjoy the palette of the sky. But, again, not today. He was in no mood.

The timber wolf walked on, dragging his paws along the grass until he came upon a small stream. Thankful for running into the stream and not in the opposite direction, he lapped at the cool water until his belly felt full, his head just a bit better, though the dull ache was still there. It would do, he guessed. Richter looked down at the water, wishing he was able to catch fish. Even the birds could catch the small minnows better than he. With a quiet 'hmph', Rich settled down on his haunches and looked around at the willows. A breeze ruffled them, it was cool and refreshing, so he just smiled. When his head wasn't hurting so much, he guessed he could go for a run. It'd do him well to get a little more exercise.

(This post was last modified: Oct 24, 2011, 10:59 PM by Richter.)

It's up to you whether or not he's met Jaysyek yet, in case it ever becomes relevant here <3

<blockquote>She should have turned back.

She hadn't meant to do it, either, to go beyond where her mother's scent was strongest, but it wasn't an accident that she was rushing to fix. It wasn't her fault that the bird she had been obsessively stalking didn't care for Grizzly Hollow's borders, after all, and she had made a promise to herself to catch it or watch it fly out of range, and it had taken flight, but <i>not quite high enough,</i> and she had whispered <i>just a little bit more</i> -

And now here she was, in the middle of nowhere, alone and, to top it off, the bird had finally eluded her. In all ways, the situation was a mess.

Trisden couldn't have been happier.

Prosper had talked of his adventures when they were younger, and Trisden - back then still bearing traces of mildness - had felt jealous but incapable of emulating him. Now Prosper was gone, and Trisden had long decided to be the heir that he had failed to be. Whilst irresponsible gallivants across the countryside weren't exactly what she wanted to build her name on, she figured that it couldn't hurt to expand her many talents. It wasn't running away from home, it was just... a demonstration that Trisden Lyall could look after herself just <i>fine</i>.

Head high, the young girl strolled through the willow forest, following the stream that she had chosen to be the figurative string around her belly, for she knew roughly which direction to go in when she reached its source. See, she knew what she was doing! Utterly confident in her own safety and more than happy that her abilities could ensure it, she continued on in this manner, largely oblivious to danger and her surroundings in general. It wasn't an exciting adventure, but that was something she could gloss over. So enthralled was she with herself that she even failed to notice the tall, resting wolf on the opposite bank of the stream until it was almost too late - stopping suddenly, her eyes widened and heart sped up a fraction until she remembered who and what she was.

Nose raising into the air again, she tried to mask her doubts and appear aloof and confident, a child masquerading as a fully independent adult. He could have been one of those nasty wolves that her mother told her about, but then she remembered that Jaysyek often came home smelling of strangers with nary a scratch on her, so Trisden calmed a fraction. Whatever made people nice to her mother ran in her veins, obviously, so she would be fine, surely. Her logic was infallible.

Still wary, she continued to slowly follow the stream, keeping one distrusting eye on the stranger at all times.</blockquote>

HRM. Let's say after ouo

The day was going to be a slow, monotonous one. But he could do without excitement for one day, he was tired and his head just hurt. The wolf had settled down beside the stream, eyes drooping. He let his head rest on his large paws, then yawned. He was fully intent on sleeping away the rest of his headache, however a new scent hit him and his eyes opened. He then saw a pup. She looked startled at the sudden sight of another wolf. She continued on her way, though her gaze never left him. He sat up, jaw open as he sniffed the air. There was no other wolf around, no adult, no scent of one.

"Wait," he suddenly said as the realization that the pup was alone hit him. He quickly rose to all fours, half wanting to cross the stream and half not wanting to scare the pup away. Richter walked over to the direct opposite side of the stream, deciding to let her have a little distance until she deemed him safe enough to get a little closer.

Richter was, for once, at a sudden loss of words. He had not met a pup on its own before, he didn't know how to deal with pups. They were immature and young and yeah, cute a lot but he still didn't know how to take care of them. He bit his tongue, "Little Miss, why ya all out on yer own?" he did know that some pups didn't like being called 'kid', usually he just settled for little. It sounded polite and she was smaller than he.

"Are yer parents around?" he again looked around, worried that two not-so-happy wolves would come and jump him. or something, That was the last thing he wanted to deal with right then. He forced himself to stop looking around and to give the girl some attention. Rich nervously licked his nose, his whiskers twitched and he sat down. "Y'know s'dang'rous out 'ere all on yer lonesome," he made sure to speak loudly and clearly, using warm tones. If the pup was in his sight, she more than likely wouldn't end up dead and he wouldn't get blamed.

<blockquote>Oh no, he was talking. Unlike the last time Trisden had run afoul of a stranger, she was in strange territory and with little to no hope of Elettra swooping in to save her should the situation turn bad. Whilst Trisden's bloated confidence was never going to drop to reasonable levels, she could at least understand that her prospects looked grim if this huge wolf turned ugly. The best she had hoped for was that he would ignore her and then, somewhere along the stream, she would suck up her pride and turn back home. Though fleeing to the familiar forest would have been a wise choice upon alighting upon a nomad of Relic Lore... well, her ego just wouldn't account for that.

Now she was stuck.

Upon being addressed, Trisden instantly stopped and stared at him, waiting a splitsecond before raising her nose and tail even higher in a determined display of superiority. He wouldn't hurt her if he understood that she was better than him, right? But his words weren't scary or threatening, and she felt her nerves slowly vanish as he spoke, for though he was large and unknown he didn't look like he was going to do anything untoward. His parting comment, though, inspired a shiver of resentment in the girl; she knew that! Was he threatening her or something? <b>"They's around,"</b> she said haughtily, for how would he know she was lying? Oh, if only she had the security of Elettra nearby... it was a shameful thing to want, but she never had to admit it. <b>"Besides,"</b> she added, her arrogance getting the better of her, driving her to prolong the encounter that should already be over. <b>"I can look after myself... if I have to. Who says I can't?"</b></blockquote>

The girl raised her tail and Richter couldn't help but to smile. It was... cute. Pups were cute, though he'd never found it in his heart to settle down and have his own family. She said that her parents were nearby and Rich gave a nervous look around. No, no parent would leave a little pup all by their lonesome. She was lying, but he didn't need to let her know that he knew that. He decided, then, to cross the stream, though did so cautiously. He let her have space, he walked slowly and non-threateningly. He sat down, but then lowered himself even more. "Well, I don' think ya can't. Ya look like a pretty strong girl," he again offered her a kind smile.

He was glad that he had been around. Well, him over any other wolf. He might have to help her find her way home. Which wasn't that big of a deal, he wasn't planning on doing much that day-- nothing past attempting to get rid of that headache and finding some food.. he was just feeling a little too lazy to catch food.

"What's yer name, Little Miss? M'names Richter. But you, darlin', can call me Rich," he again spoke gently, if anything to let her know that he wasn't going to hurt her. Or threaten her. He was still a little antsy about her parents, but luck was usually on his side. Maybe he'd be looked at as a savior than someone that wanted to hurt a little pup. And, really, who could be so harsh to be like that? Bah, hurting pups. Only low-lives would do such a horrible thing.

<blockquote>Trisden had grown up a little since first meeting Crux, and whilst her naivety was still quite impressive, it wasn't quite as susceptible to patronisation any more. Her eyes narrowed as she considered his reply, trying to decide whether he was being genuine or simply saying what she wanted to hear. The compliment, in the end, got the better of her, and she allowed her ego to be manipulated and thus her concerns to relax, just slightly.

That he approached was vaguely frightening, but in order not to prove him wrong, Trisden held her ground, watching him intently for any signs of a bad move. So far, he acted as amicable as he sounded, and she was reminded of Crux. Perhaps this Richter was just another big friendly wolf? Feeling herself calm further, in part because his charming manner of speaking was tickling her curiosity, she regarded him seriously for a moment.

<b>"Trisden, Trisden Lyall,"</b> she replied cautiously, happy to give the name for free because hey, it was a name that the world should know. The declaration of her identity was enough to lift her head and puff her chest out slightly, for it was a good name and she was damn proud of it. <b>"I live around here, so don't go pulling any funny stuff, or my mum will get you. And her second."</b> The way she said that last addition made it clear that Elettra Archer was more than enough to intimidate <i>her</i>, so this Richter would hardly stand a chance. But with the casual threats out of the way, she cocked her head, allowing curiosity to seep through. She couldn't smell anything on him, nothing of significance. <b>"Are you one of these wolves without a home?"</b></blockquote>