Ghastly Woods Tease Me

<blockquote> She had finally taken the time to de-matt her long tawny coat and had decided to explore the woods. Now this was more like it. She was in her element. What some might find oppressive or unwelcoming sang to her heart. It was so like home she almost howled with joy. The scents, the sounds... so quiet... Branches reached down to stroke through her fur and she shuddered with delight. She hadn't yet claimed a den but if she did, this was the sort of place where she would.

The canopy was so thick the snow only fell in drifts here and there, it was warm and it was as if the trees themselves was welcoming her home. The tug was still there but it was easier to ignore in the homely embrace of the trees. She heard a twig snap behind her but ignored it. It was such a natural sound and with her size she had very little to fear beyond hunters and other wolves, and there was no scent of pack here which meant if it was another wolf it was a loner too. Maybe that was why the tug had lessened? It seemed to do so every time she had company.

She made her way to a small break in the shadows and looked up, a break in the canopy, a struggling sapling trying to make its way to join the giants that surrounded it. A small smile crossed her face as she stepped into the pool of light and closed her eyes, absorbing the suns rays. Maybe one day she would be a giant too.</blockquote>

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Hidden within a thicket of branches, a dark shadow lay. Between the large males paws lay the remains of a sickly beaver- were it not for Triell showing him what these animals were and where to find them, he wouldn’t know what he’d be eating right now, especially with the loss of his hunting partner. The weight he had gained was going to start vanishing soon enough, so he ensured he ate every last scrap of the animal.

The snow drift which lay at the base of the thicket was stained red by the time he had finished. Were it not for his dark fur his face would too be covered in crimson, though the colour didn’t stop it from being sticky. Whilst a coral pink tongue snaked out from his lips to lap up the droplets left, he allowed his steel gaze to lift from his meal and cast out through the cover of the thicket to survey the terrain around him.

As his head turned, a strange scent smacked him head on in the face. A single scent, but wolfish all the same. It appeared a lone wolf was closeby and with a final glance of the few remains he had left, he pulled himself out from the thickets, uncaring with the thorns and branches which snagged at his fur.

Following his nose, he began to track the stranger- he never missed an oppertunity to meet a new face after all and it wasn’t long before his dead eyes landed on the female, though she was still quite far from him, he cleared his throat and said out loud. <b>”Are you lost?”</b>
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<blockquote>The voice came out of nowhere and she spun happily to face it's direction. She knew how to take care of herself and feared very little from other wolves. When she spotted the black male she giggled and had to fight down the urge to race up to the stranger. He clearly was not her darker brother, but the resemblance was scary. Although her brother had a lot more weight than this wolf, he was a rolling ball of muscle. <b>"No, I think I've just found my home... Well, you know, until I find a pack..."</b>

She casually moved towards the stranger, her tail wagging lazily to show she meant no harm. She shuddered with joy yet again as the tangled undergrowth ran through her now untangled coat and stopped a short distance away, observing the stranger. He had the most amazing eyes she had ever seen. As if in confirmation of her previous suspicions, the closer she got, the less the pull affected her. He was large, and lanky, maybe just shy of two years old but there was something in the way he held himself...

<b>"I'm Naira... do you live here?"</b> She asked casually. She didn't want to go stepping on anybody's toes if she was going to make her den here.</blockquote>

(This post was last modified: Feb 10, 2012, 06:09 AM by Naira.)

This is going to be amusing. xD!

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Rhysis elevated his head and cocked a brow as the female sauntered before him. Her movements to him were almost feline like and the way she studied him made him a little nervous. Although he knew he was a handsome wolf, he didn’t like to be looked at, and he didn’t like it one bit and as she approached, closer and closer, even with her casual poise, he felt his muscles bunching up and the hackles along the back of his neck tingle with the threat to rise up. Rhysis didn’t like females in general, his pack held them at the bottom of the food chain, though just before him of course and they had the power to take out their vexation on him. They taunted and teased, they stole his food, they beat him when they were angry and beat him for fun. Then, the only female he trusted, his sister, betrayed him and left him alone in the world. Females were devils in his eyes.

He said nothing at this point, merely listened as she explained she’d recently found a home. With the single scent upon her it wasn’t with a pack; she too was a fellow loner but she didn’t intend to be for long- good, that would keep her out of his hair. He didn’t need to keep bumping into another lone female, there were far too many of those around for his liking.

<b>”Er... Rhysis.”</b> he finally said at last. <b>”No I don’t live here.”</b>
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<blockquote>She cocked her head to the side at his obvious discomfort and backed up a step, settling on her haunches, lowering her head and avoiding eye contact to try and calm his nerves a little. She breathed deeply and evenly, a tactic she had previously found others tended to mimic when nervous. She wasn't submitting, but she wasn't projecting as strongly as before either.

<i>Rysis, interesting name...</i> She made a mental note of it and went back to the puzzle that was this stranger. She had obviously made a wrong move somewhere and needed to try and make it right, switching to her calm, soothing healers voice she apologised. <b>"Sorry if I made you uncomfortable. I'm still getting used to this being alone..."</b> She got the odd feeling he hated her, though why she couldn't tell, they had only just met.

It was hard to see how much weight she had lost because of her long tawny coat. She was a social creature at heart. She had been raised to fight and heal and hunt, and her life up to leaving had been filled with love and support, besides the occasional attempt for others to take their territory. She had been fighting for longer than she had been hunting, and she couldn't imagine anyones life being otherwise. Negativity wasn't something she often projected. Frustrated rage yes, but it took a lot to make her hate.</blockquote>

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Rhysis hadn't realised he'd been holding his breath until she had taken a step backwards and sat down. He released it quickly and casually took another step backwards. One could never be too careful, especially when it came to physical contact and even more so if it was contact with a female. In fact the only contact he could bare to stand would be the occasional bump from Valiant when they had been travelling together, but even then he had snapped once or twice at him and he was the only wolf he did tolerate... in small doses. Still, he couldn't let the female know his little weakness, he had to man up, put in his mask and play the part of Mr Nice Guy.

<b>"I'm not uncomfortable... just cautious."</b> he replied and added a small smile and he too took a seat upon the cold ground. Ideally he'd have liked to run away but that wasn't an option. He had a little recon to do, she was a loner so probably not much help but at the same time he'd also been considering the need for a female for their pack. If he could find one who was willing to take the lead position... without the mate status that would be just wondering. That wasn't to say this female was it, but there was no harm in finding out a bit more. So long as she wasn't one of those crazy arsed bitches who were so all over the place he had no idea what was happening... he'd bumped into far too many of those lately.

<b>"There are three packs in the area, I'm sure one of those would take you in."</b> the black beast added. It might appear strange to others, who wanted a pack as to why he wouldn't have joined one of these packs himself. In truth he probably should have a long time ago, especially with the loss of his hunting partner. Whilst he might have found the secret of keeping himself going as a loner, many thanks to Triell, it still wasn't quite enough to get him into top condition. Still, there was only one pack he would join and he was still awaiting to hear from it's lead female to know his fate there.
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OOC: Recon you say? :p

<blockquote>She nodded in agreement. <i>Three?</i> She had only heard of two so far. <b>"Yes, I recently found out my brother is at Copper Rock Creek, I was thinking about going to see if Swift River were looking for a medic...I know enough to get by..."</b> she said with a shrug. In fact she knew more than a little but she was being modest. Nia was making small talk, this wolf was intriguing her more and more by the minute and she was reluctant to leave before she had him somewhat figured out. It seemed there were a lot of strange wolves around here, like that dark female that belonged to her brothers pack... there had been something in her eyes...

He had no need to be cautious of her and as if to further illustrate the point she lowered herself to the ground until she was laying comfortably facing the stranger, her fur fanning around her where it was long enough to touch the snow. She wasn't submitting, just making herself seem less threatening. She didn't think she was a threat at all.

<b>"Are you looking for a pack or do you have another agenda? Maybe a pack of your own?"</b> she asked curiously. She knew that by joining another pack she was basically robbing herself of the chance at a family of her own. She had so far weighed up the pros and cons, and at this point in time it was in her best interests to join an existing pack, but a girl could dream...</blockquote>

<blockquote>As the female lowered herself to lay upon the floor, nestled in the snow he tilted his head curiously. He'd not seen another female do this before. She wasn't submitting, but simply laying. Oh geez, she was going to be a nutcase too wasn't she? He tried his hardest to refrain from rolling his eyes at the very thought. He could not be dealing with any other psychos. It appeared no matter how calm the female might be, he wasn't about to let his guard down and remained standing a good distance away- and that was just how he liked it. <b>"What's your brothers name?"</b> he asked, it'd be handy to know in the future, especially as he hoped to "make friends" with the wolves in Copper Rock Creek and turn them all against his sister. He had so much to do and so little time it seemed.

Her second comment had him tilting his head again. With a flick of his ear he rested his grey eyes at a spot next to her. He wasn't one for eye contact unless it was to dominate. He had to think about his answer, he couldn't give away too much yet. Nothing had been set in stone and he was still waiting to see what sort of mess Valiant was trying to bring back from his mountain trip. He dreaded to think what sort of roadkill he'd come back with, but he was certain he would at least have a female and that was all they needed. <b>"I'm happy by myself."</b> he replied bluntly. In truth, he was very happy by himself with the occasional contact from outside wolves, who weren't crazy. The annoying matter was that without a pack life around him was tougher, food was scarce, he lacked protection which he appeared to need more and more of late. No, he needed a pack... no matter how much he detested the very idea of it.
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<blockquote>His interest in her brother piqued her curiosity further. <b>"Kanosak..."</b> she said with a smile. She had heard on whispers of the wind that he was the second of the newly established pack and it swelled her heart with pride. <b>"I do believe he is the second over there..."</b> she added with a small smile. She wasn't entirely convinced he was happier by himself, judging by his thin frame. She sensed ambition in the younger wolf but decided not to push the matter further.

As if to back up her decision a noise caught in her ears and they swung to pinpoint the location of the rutting snuffle that could only indicate hogs. A wide smile crossed her muzzle. It had been a long time since she had hunted swine. <b>"Are you as hungry as you look Rhysis?"</b></blockquote>

<blockquote>He made a mental note of the name, relation and his position. It'd be handy to know who was who, especially if he could make a connection with someone close to him. Already his mind was telling him to make a little effort here; getting in tight with a second of a pack could only be beneficial and if he was a <i>friend</i> of his sisters, the second might be more likely to take a shine to Rhysis. <b>"Ah, well if I ever bump into him I'll be sure to say hello."</b> he added with a brief yet handsome smile.

Her second comment had his ears perked. Whilst he was much bigger then he had been when he first arrived, his weight was slowly starting to slip again. Whilst he might be able to hunt with Valiant now, he was waiting for the big clump of fur to return and until then he was on his own... and beaver was getting very tedious to eat, apart from the fact he had to get wet and cold to catch one, the taste wasn't as rich as he might wish. <b>"I could eat... you any good?"</b> he asked matter of factly. Rhysis wasn't too bad a hunter, he was a better fighter but his trips with a wolf lost to him had taught him a thing or two when it came to bringing down larger prey. He supposed he would tolerate her a little longer, especially if food and a potential pack link was on the table.
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