Stonewatch Timbers dancing in the dark is fine

@Maera

He had finished his first fish in a few minutes before he watched his dark company. She seemed so effortless in her attempts. Kerberos had quietly come to a conclusion that he'd always be one step behind her in skills. He knew she had a life of being a Loner in her experience but he felt bad. He wanted to be as good if not better. It wasn't a manly instinct to provide, it was more of a nurturing instinct. The tawny male couldn't help but be worried that if he could barely trust his skills how would he ever be able to get through the coldest of months. Maybe Askan was right. There wasn't anything wrong with asking for help.

The Rigel male almost didn't notice that Mae had slid half of the final fish over to him. "Thanks, Mae." He offered a smile before he scarfed the food down. He would need all the energy he could get and there was no point in leaving food in an unguarded place. As he finished up the fish his ears leaned towards her to hear what she had to say.

"What do we call it?" He hummed softly to her. Nervously he placed his paws on the large rocks. If he didn't trust his nose he certainly didn't trust his paws to keep him balanced.

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Maera didn’t ever really feel the need or come across the notion that she should ask for help. She’d always been raised to think that she couldn’t, that it somehow would make her less of the wolf and woman she was to ask for another to help her with something. If they asked her? Well, that was a different story and somehow she’d managed to draw her own conclusions based on the logic she knew she should apply to her own views. Her tail waved softly at his thanks. He really didn’t need to thank her. They were travelling partners, friends, and that was what friends did, right?

Besides, coming from a pack, he wasn’t as use to the hunger that she had lived through. It was only fair to try and be fair with the food. He moved beside her, asking what they should call it as she slowly and carefully started to brave the rocks, an adventurous gleam in her eyes as she made her way a little farther, looking back at him. “It looks like it used to be a river… could be a wash? It’s been dried up for a while too… the stones aren’t as smooth as they would be if it weren’t.” She posed the logic first before springing a name. She wasn’t a very creative wolf, after all. Her name was created off of logic alone. “Dried Stone Wash?”

He was more than content to trail behind her. The tawny male would try his best to swiftly follow her steps the best he could. His faith had laid in her this far so simply moving across the rocks with her should be easy. As long as he didn't slip and kept his paws away from any cracks in between the large stones. Easy enough.

The Rigel male's ears tipped forward. He tried his best to catch every one of her words. Kerberos had grown used to hearing her voice. She was, of course, the first and last wolf he usually saw in the day. "You definitely aren't wrong." His head lifted from looking at the ground to scan the area around them. "I like that name. It's rather fitting." He smiled and laughed softly. It was hard not to be relaxed and happy around Maera.

With a few bold jumps he caught up to her. His nose gently nudged her shoulder and he looked forward. "How far up do you think it goes? Mere wolf lengths? Miles?" For all he knew it could run on and on forever. They didn't have all the time in the world to explore Dried Stone Wash (as they had decided should be the name) but it wouldn't hurt to push on some. What if something up there would be worth the effort?

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@Kerberos

He relaxed her, a peculiar reaction that she never really expected to feel with anyone. She’d always been tense, uptight, looking out for her best interests. Now, it was their best interests. It was a push and pull, and she was coming to rely on him to be there when she woke up which terrified her, even if she refused to show it or let him know that there was anything amiss. His smile was infectious, and one fitted her own features, growing to match his. He liked the name, and so it became. She looked back down it from where they’d come from. Dried Stone Wash.

He asked how far it went and she squinted, looking carefully. “Only one way to find out, right?” She asked, admittedly rather playfully as she started to press on, looking over her shoulder to make sure that he was following. She didn’t mean go on forever and ever, just follow it for a while to see if it kept going before they could start to head back south, or maybe a little farther north. She didn’t know yet, but she knew it wasn’t just up to her either. There was another factor in the equation apart from what she wanted, and apart from where food was headed. Maera very much enjoyed the few moments over the course of how long they'd traveled together when they got to lay low and perhaps act a little funny, and not worry for just a moment.

-Exit for Maera-

Kerberos admired every spitfire and ambitious trait about his dark coated friend. Her words caused him to laugh and move forward with her. The tawny male knew she was right so he saw no reason not to go along with her. They both were smart enough to know they couldn't spend all day here so he wasn't worried about having that issue addressed. "Right!" Like usual.

He worked himself up the rocks. The further along he got the better he got at moving along the dried, worn rocks. There was so much to see and he wanted it all. Not for just himself, though. He would obviously wish to share the views of everything that the dried wash offered with Maera. She was his friend and perhaps his closest one at that. The Rigel male knew that things shared with a friend were much better than things kept to himself.

As they inclined higher some of the rocks got bigger. This was truly an interesting place he would love to return to one day. It would likely forever hold a special place in his heart. Just the fact that this was a place he had helped discover was enough to make it some kind of special.

-fade-

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