Secluded Spring Where Are You

Set after Dust Bowl Dance, but as there is no outcome yet keeping it vauge.

carry on, oh, little lonely prince

Adonis Aquila

He was in the clear. God, he hoped he was in the clear. He kept throwing glances over his shoulder, searching the rocky backdrop behind him for scents, sights and sounds of any of his latest pack following him. He didn't think they would, but he got the feeling more and more often that the dark wolf that his mother had selected to lead with her, was watching him like a hawk. He and his brother... yeah, that bone head was living amongst them now. What a tool he was. He had never known such a fat idiot- all the guy did was eat, make threats and try to get everyone's attention by doing the most retarded of things. It was funny really, after all this time of yearning for a family, now he had one he wished the guy would go back over to the other side of the mountain and stay there- he was a spoilt sport with nothing better to do than to annoy Adonis. Jerk.

Annoyed with the golden boy, Adonis had left the lands early that morning- he had told his mother where he was going, and of course she had protested by he promised to take someone with him... only, he hadn't told anyone else he was going and ran out or the borders the first chance he had. No way was he being escorted like a kid- he had probably been through more than all of them put together by his age and nothing would phase him. Of course, he had never seen death, felt real fear and all that jazz, but he thought himself quite brave, even though he was a tad shy, he felt like he could take on anything the world would throw at him.
His escape had taken him back towards the lands he had wandered before he found the lake, where he spent a good few months of misery before at last going to a place he felt worthy to call home. He loved his new home, it was exciting, tricky, new and all his, but there were eyes there that watched him - he was not used to the feeling. Sure, he had always had his mother to watch over him, but even she had to leave him to his own devices sometimes, which had given him space to breathe, now it was different. Sure, everyone was nice, Thorpe was creepy and he wanted to cling to Valiant, but he still needed to breathe.

The spring before him called to him. The sounds of running water called to his parched throat and cautiously, he tested the air. He stuck close to where the mountain changed from rock to forest, skipping amongst the boulders and trees as he surveyed the area for danger- when he found none upon the wind, he crept like a panther towards the bank, sticking close to shadows and tree trunks to keep himself hidden. He was a realist after all, and knew full well that if he met a bear, or a wolf with a problem like that freak he had met before, he wouldn't put up much of a fight... he was too young, not enough power in his body yet and untrained- he would have to speak to Valiant and Tenzin later about getting some help with that- after all, he wanted to be able to protect his mother from all danger, so he would have to start learning to do that at some point.

Sure the coast was clear, he crept from the border of thickets, keeping his head low and legs coiled likea spring. He reached the waters surface in utter silence and it was only when his pink tongue touched the water and caused a lapping sound was he heard. He drank with his eyes open, pausing often and glanzing around to make sure he was alone and he wasn't surprised to find he was- alone that is, always alone, forever alone. He had thought having a pack, a family would be the end of his loneliness, but it appeared he was very wrong. Maybe it was just him, maybe he just repelled company or perhaps that was why he wanted to travel so badly. Last time he had wandered he had met a friend, the only friend he had in the whole wide world and perhaps on some level he hoped he might find another. With an inward snort at the thought, he went back to taking his share of the water. After all, who would ever want to be friends with someone like him... A loser, as his brother would taunt. A wolf with a disability thanks to the blurry vision he carried in one eye. A pup who couldn't keep his family together, no father, his sister missing and the other didn't want to be with him. He hadn't seen his only friend in the whole wide world for months now and no doubt he had been forgotten- yeah, he was real friend material.

Every inch of those eerie woods made her skin crawl. Even when the mid-day sun hovered high above the tree tops it was as if the light wasn't strong enough to penetrate the tangles of gray, seemingly dead branches. The only comforts she found as she traversed over the tortuous roots and patches of ice and melting snow were the birds. She couldn't see them, but their songs echoed from what seemed like every direction; high pitched, rhythmic chirps and melodious coos sung a spring song that she thoroughly enjoyed. They all just sounded so happy, and so she tried to be, too.

Eventually the haunting woods gave way to a more likable scene. The gnarled trees faded from view, and where the snow had melted she could see the previous years grasses, brown and flat. She probed the ground with her snout curiously, pushing aside some loose ice and dead vegetation to get a thorough whiff of the dirt. To her surprise, beneath the damp blades of expired grass she found a single yellow wildflower. Either it was perfectly preserved by winter's cold weather or it was brand new. One way or another, she decided that she liked it here, and lifted her head to breathe in a fresh, gentle breeze with satisfaction.

In the distance she could hear the bubbling of water, which replaced the songs of the birds as she glided forward. Approaching the creek with a silly degree of caution, she poked her head over the bank to get a good look. The water was crystal clear and she could see straight to the bottom. It was shallow enough that she contemplated crossing through, and after a moment of hesitation she tested the current with a single paw; immediately she took her paw back, gulping down the discomfort of how cold it was in there. With determination she took a few steps backward before bolting right at the stream, leaping over it with just enough grace that she almost avoided a clumsy landing.

She wasn't far from the spring now, or from the scent of the young man who remained hidden to the girl who was just glad to have made it out of those damn woods.

♥ Allie

(This post was last modified: Mar 15, 2013, 07:05 PM by Lucero.)

          To call Northern Eden her home was becoming much more comfortable to the D'Oliva. What was a home when one sheltered themselves away from it, however? Ecco had been in recovery and recuperation from her rogue lifestyle for several weeks now. Since becoming one of the original members in the creation of the Secret Woodlands pack, Ecco disappeared from the radar momentarily. The Woodlands had took her in at her worst; nothing but flesh and bone, barely hanging on to see one more sunrise, suffering from an extreme bout of malnutrition, a starvation of hope, of faith and survival. Her recovery restored her back to a thickened pelt, muscle on her legs, and the natural fire gleaming in her warm, amber eyes. Ecco was coming back to life in the world, and on this day decided to stray away from the safety and comfortability of her den back in the Woodlands. There was a life to live, a day to conquer, and Ecco finally mustered the energy to become one with society, with the grander scheme of life, once again.

          The quelling thirst in her throat and tongue drew her to the Secluded Spring. Only briefly passing through once, it was a serene and peaceful Spring to spend one's day at in solitude. Although Ecco had gained enough solitude from her Winter's recovery, sporadic scents lined the Spring with passing travelers and pack wolves alike. On this day, one adolescent was already at the foot of the Spring, quenching his thirst. Darkly coated as herself, her nose could smell from her distance of a peculiar aroma of another pack, unlike that of the Woodland. Ecco approached the youth, making sure to establish her own area to quench her thirst at a comfortable distance as to not startle the young male. Taking her drink in laps first, Ecco then rose, licking her lips and swaying her tail some. "Some of the best Spring water up North I've came across yet, don't you agree?" Ecco then said, in light and friendly conversation to him. Ecco did not notice the other lone wolfess bounding over streams yet, for Ecco's nose could not pick up her sight or especially her scent right away, due to the fact that lone wolves often smelled just like nature herself, and was a devious camouflage.