Lost Lake Gangstas Never Die

Both of the wolves moved fluidly without any mishap so far, and Ash was pleased to see how easily they worked together. Even after being separated for so long, they still made outstanding partners. His eyes moved towards where Ava’s seemed to be looking for a while and grimaced slightly at the sight, there was no way his large ass was going to be able to haul itself over the large gap that was presenting itself to them. It seemed as though his friend found another little pass along the way, but Ash did not follow immediately, taking the time to investigate his next jump. He was considerably larger than his friend and did not want to end up plopping down on the red- well whatever it was down there. Before he could really jump though, Ava intercepted with some words of her own, giving him some insight as to her new life. At the quirk of her becoming alpha of a newly founded pack brought a small grin upon his lips, generally happy for her, and at the mention of her pup’s names, a bigger smirk slapped itself on his face. "How comforting to know, I never got to get my paws on the man that knocked up my best friend." He winked at her jokingly, though he was sure that his joke was very much true if this male ever decided to hurt her.

Bunching his muscles he then launched himself on the narrow path, a sharp yelp escaping his muzzle as his foreleg slid off the side before he quickly regained his balance. He then swiftly jumped towards the rock that Ava had landed on, quiet unevenly, as a dull pain made its way into his shoulder, before going away. At least he was glad that he hadn’t broken anything…or if he had he definitely could not feel it. Clearing his throat, he spoke to the black woman, "Athena had two children: Aphrodite and Elliot. " He returned Ava’s small bit of information with some of his own, his mossy eyes searching out another place where they could jump from. They were almost to the bottom, and if his calculations were correct, than this was the last rock that they would have to jump towards before they would be able to land on the red substance at the bottom. So bunching his muscles once again, he sprung off of the rock that they were on and landed easily on the one he had in mind. It seemed stable enough and he looked back up towards Ava waiting for her to join him.

I think I've finally seen the light..in you.

Ava waited patiently as the larger man navigated his own route, which she figured in hindsight was a lot smarter than blindly following her. Though she was rather unimpressive in size and stature she did at least tend toward a hunter's more svelte build and Ash had all the muscle tone of a true Guardian. Narrow passes did not suit him. "How noble of you to care for my reputation," she joked with a brilliant grin, but added on just in case, "He is wonderful." To think a year ago she had a girl's crush on an esoteric man, Guardian of Grizzly Hollow, feeling the warmth of his body as he laid close to her every time her leathery pads touched the pebbled shores of the Lost Lake. Now he was her husband, the father of her children, the leader of her pack, still and always the love of her life. How it turned out like this she didn't know, but Ava appreciated it.

He proffered two names of Poison Path's own to counter hers, which she smiled warmly to hear. Elliot and Aphrodite. Given the man's attachment to Belladonna she had no doubt that these fatherless children would not be without a dad after all. "They sound lovely," she returned, curious as to their nature though Ava would realistically not see them until they were old enough to travel on their own. It was a shame, of course. She wanted her kids to have as many playmates as possible. Times were good and she was going to reap as many benefits as she could before something dark and scary descended on them again.

Ava followed him down to the last rock, cocking her head to one side as she surveyed the distance down. Figuring it was safe she jumped one more time, dark legs outstretched and tensed for the landing in case the red substance was unkind. But to her great surprise the landing was soft... was that... "Sand?" The flabbergast was obvious on her dark face as she flexed her toes beneath the tiny red pebbles, enjoying its sun-soaked warmth. Given the heat of the substance and the vibrant color it really did look like blood. She shook her head to rid herself of such a morbid idea and turned to see where Ash had landed. Unable to help her childish whim the coal-pelted lady dug into the sand, spraying red behind her as her tongue lolled out the side of her mouth. "Isn't this something?" she hummed, utterly amused.

art - threads

Both friends mad it down into the cavern easily, his mossy green orbs shining back towards his friend. As they made the final jump, he too had been expecting a hard ground and was slightly surprised when his weight caused him to dip forward into the dirt. No…it was not dirt…definitely not dirt. This was sand, something he had hardly come into contact in with his life. Mouth open in surprise, he looked towards his best friend, watching as she dug her paws into the red sand and a rumbling laugh shook through his chest at the sight of her. Here they were, the two friends, causing mischief and going on an adventure as if they had never been separated. A large grin spread across his face as he looked towards her, a look of pride on his face. They had both succeeded in getting down and not killing themselves in the process…that was definitely something to celebrate about. Wagging his tail encouragingly behind him he stood up tall, his green eyes capturing her own amber ones.

Finally he spoke, getting other the captivation of the scene around him, "So what’re we going to call this place?" Just like the Lost Lake was once hers and was now his…this would be theirs. They would not have to share anything, they would both get to own something now. Something they had both found together and in their opinion, no one else had found before. Only they knew the safest way down here and could carefully scale out their movements when coming down towards their sacred place. It could be a sanctuary for those who wanted peace or needed some privacy away from the outside world, and the jutted rocks above them were enough to seclude any wolf that would come down. A cocky grin grew on his face at the thought and soon enough, his attention was back on the mother in front of him.

I think I've finally seen the light..in you.

The ghost of a smile adorned her ebon lips as she slowly lifted her paw from the red sand, watching as the little pebbles slipped from her fur and pads and left an indistinct imprint of her identity where she'd once stood. Still in awe Ava let her amber gaze flicker between their surroundings and Ash's green eyes, her tail mirroring his in a steady sway as she found he was just as amused by their discovery as she was. His question, however, caught her somewhat off-guard - she had forgotten it was their responsibility and privilege to give an identity to this strange land they'd found.

For a moment she considered naming it after its violent color in so bold a word, but the word blood was awfully harsh for so curious a place. After all, they hadn't gotten hurt in the descent and it seemed that the climb out would just be the same process but in reverse. There was no need to name it so dastardly. As much as she'd like a homage to their former shared home, as well, the glittering sands looked more like a stream of water than a lake - and besides, she'd rather give an impolitic claim. The red sands were not for Poison Path or Darkwater Rapids or anything besides their fortified friendship.

Moments of deliberation later she hatched a clever saying, relinquishing any hesitation as she let her wandering eyes fall upon her burly friend once again. "Sanguine Sands?" she suggested, the alliteration slipping between her teeth with a serpentine hiss. There was enough mystery in the name to keep the newly discovered property enigmatic in words, but the title would not mislead anyone who might discover the gorge's secret. Only, of course, if her esteemed companion found it likable. Ava's eyes sought his opinion.

art - threads

He truly was happy they had ended up finding a place for themselves and though they were certainly not settling down there, it had a nice little finality to it considering they were the first to be here in who knew how long. They had claimed it as theirs and it was nice knowing this. He waited patiently for her answer; wondering what could possibly be running through her mind. This place that they had found was extremely beautiful and Ash had a hard time keeping his eyes trained on his smaller friend rather than the area all around them. He had never seen anything more beautiful in his life…except maybe one certain female that he would rather not mention. Flicking his tail back and forth, his head snapped towards Ava once again as she spoke to him. Testing the words in his mind, a small grin broke across his face. It definitely was a mysterious name and if the duo and the place they had found weren’t mysterious than he did not know what was.

Nodding his head in excitement, he stated calmly, "A beautiful name for a beautiful place," he then paused, winking in the middle of saying the next part, "And named by a beautiful Queen." A playful grin broke across his face as he watched her. He was glad that he had the luxury to joke around with her about this. He was sure that if it was another other man (besides her mate) she would probably be assaulting them right about…now. The smirk remained on his dark face as he looked at the area around them. Sanguine Sands was fitting and he definitely did like it…now was the problem of getting back up. Another grin spread across his face as he bent over in a mock bow, gesturing back towards where they had first come, "After you, Your Majesty."

I think I've finally seen the light..in you.

Shall we fade to black in the next post or so? I'm trying to keep my timeline clean so I have an accurate reply for Namara/Ash's join thread x3

The burly male's approval of her slippery title started a wag in her tail, dark fur sweeping against her heels as she let him finish his thought. Ava feigned a gag at his compliment, a ridiculously exaggerated rolling of her eyes which required her chin to follow the arch covered up her legitimate flattery. His words were too kind and in some way left her with a faint regret that she'd ever left partnership. There had been bad times in their past, certainly, but good times peppered the way too. If only he wasn't so far away. She wished her friends were closer now.

Not one to resist her playful impulses she gave her best imitation of a curtsy in return to Ash's bow, bending at the elbows and crossing one hind foot behind the other in what could've been a graceful display had she not been on an unsteady surface and so very out of practice in the manners of court. Regardless of how silly she looked Ava's grin remained unperturbed, not embarrassed at all in front of her good friend. Following the Poisoned man's gesture she turned her amber eyes back up the climbing sides of the gorge, briefly admiring the alternating lines that striped along the sides as the content of sediment changed over the many, many years that had built the rock and torn it down. Scaling it didn't seem too hard, if only as difficult as it had been to get down, but before they made the climb she had to address a nagging feeling.

"This won't just be a chance encounter, right?" she questioned half-assertively, looking for his approval as well as stating her own desire. "It'd be nice to pay a visit to your Lake," she smiled at her emphasis, as it was his in leadership as well as symbolism now. Letting her head drop over her shoulder she fixed him with a wanting amber stare, the unspoken, How about that? drawn in her pupils.

art - threads

Sorry this took me so long. Kisses! <3 I feel so smart, I learned that Milaya means "my sweet" in Russian. Also learned that Hervok actually has some Russian heritage in it...sooooo! It would only make sense that the meaning was passed down through the generations. xD

At her playfulness, it was all Ash could do to contain his grin from growing, but considering who he was with, the attempt was futile. Before he knew it a large grin graced his ebony lips. Amusement danced in his eyes for his friend and he wanted nothing more than to enjoy her company for hours but both of them knew their times were coming to a close with one another. They had found this glorious place together and now it was time for the pair to return to their separate homes. Watching as she jumped up ahead of him, Ash made sure to take his time scaling his way back up, preferring to makes sure that his measurements were correct so that he would not fall back and split his head straight open. Finally when they were both safely up, he took the time to take in his dark friend, happy to know where she was now a days. Just as he was about to speak his farewell, a well thought of question escaped the woman’s lips and Ash couldn’t help the sly grin that came over his features.

Nodding his head at his beautiful friend, he spoke calmly, happiness radiating off of him in waves, "Well of course! Now that I know where you reside don’t be surprised if I just pop up one day and chill out for a bit," he joked with her with a small wink, though completely meaning that they would have to see one another more often. If only he knew that his joke wouldn’t quite be one in a few days time, it wouldn’t have thought of something so crud, but it didn’t matter, the words were said and he was quite sure both friends would visit one another from time to time. It was time for him to return to his throne though, so clearing his throat, he made another bow for his friend, his deep voice kind and deep, "I must be heading back to my family now. Until next time, Milaya." Then with a brisk nod he turned on his heels and headed back towards Poison Path, his home. If only he knew what he was going to find when he returned.

{END}

I think I've finally seen the light..in you.