Luna Hill The summer rains

For Coquelicot <3

The warm summer climate was not always so perfect and calm. The clouds over the past few days had slowly been thickening and now in the afternoon it could have just as easily been several hours later with how dark the sky was. Walking through the forest was like being out at midnight, perhaps even darker with no moon or starlight. The air was humid and sticky and while he had no intention to find somewhere to rest Weldering headed towards the open pasture of the northern regions. His pace was kept steady and did not change even when the first few droplets of rain fell from the large grey clouds. He had expected the summer rains to fall at some point that evening. How much rain would fall he was not sure of, he'd never been great at skywatching or predictions taking little interest in the weather generally. Though if it was merely a bit of water he saw no harm it staying out in the open setting his goat now towards a small incline, a grassy knoll that he'd never come across before in his travels. Only when he reached the summit of Luna hill did the black masked young male finally pause to catch his breath and take a look around.

table by debain

<center><img src=http://i193.photobucket.com/albums/z151/kittykarnage/fishmaster.png></center>

<blockquote>A raindrop fell on his nose. Coquelicot frowned, his mouth a grim slash as he paused to glance up at the sky swathed with thick gray clouds. He never did like rain or water for that matter. His fur quickly absorbed moisture but was slow to dry off, thus, Coquelicot made his best attempts to avoid getting drenched in any form or matter. The tri-colored male quickened his pace to a steady trot, loping over the fields swiftly as a light drizzle began to fall. It was obvious that more rain was to accompany the preliminary shower.

Swift paws led him across a dip in the ground and up the beginnings of a gentle slope. His trotted nimbly through the long grasses, doing his best to avoid the profusion of blackberry bushes that littered the landscape. Still, he could not avoid the stray berries that were crushed under his feet, staining his paws a dark blue. A figure at the top of a nearby knoll loomed in the distance, and Coquelicot could make out another individual gazing across the fields.

<b>"It's probably going to start raining harder,"</b> he called to the figure, his pace lessening to a mild walk as he neared the stranger. </blockquote>

(This post was last modified: Aug 02, 2010, 02:53 AM by Coquelicot.)

As the minutes ticked away the rain grew steadily heavier and still Weldering stood at the summit of the hill unphased by the dismal weather. He had only once had a den before where when it did rain he could curl up inside and remain dry, but otherwise if the heavens opened up pouring it down then the best he could really manage was a large tree. Even then with a choppy breeze or really heavy rain he was still going to get very wet and cold. It was because of this he was still wondering whether it was even worth taking any form of shelter at all when either way he was going to end up soaking wet. Already he could feel the cool droplets of rain trickling down his long silver hairs, making contact with his skin in an uncomfortable way, it was a much different sensation and much more unpleasant then swimming. There you where getting wet under your own freewill, you were in control and not mother nature. But at least when swimming it was usually done in the middle of a sunny day and was not patches of awkward dampness here and there. His trail of thought was soon abruptly paused as a voice was heard calling out above the rain from a little way down the Luna Hill. Turning his haughty wet body around to face the stranger instead of raising his voice louder then he liked he begun to pad a little nearer down the side of the grass slope. "You think so?" He asked, actually quite curious for maybe this wolf knew something that he did not. "You don't think they'll be a storm do you?" That was something that was put him off standing on the top of an open hill for sure. His gaze looking over the other young male carefully for a moment. "Are you heading for shelter?"

table by debain

<center><img src=http://i193.photobucket.com/albums/z151/kittykarnage/fishmaster.png></center>

<blockquote>
Rain was a common occurence where he had once lived. That phenomenon was likely the cause for the profusion of rivers and streams that covered his old pack's territory like a web. With the constant rain and the opportunities his ill-intentioned brother took to push him in whatever body of water was nearby, Coquelicot was very accustomed to getting wet. But he still didn't like it. He shrugged at the stranger's reply. <b>"Probably. I'm not too familiar with the weather around here, but back where I come from, light rain always got heavier," </b> he answered, turning to look at the stranger.

He was completely monochrome, his striking black mask contrasting against the gray hues of his fur. It was a bit of a surprise to Coquelicot, for he had never encountered another individual with such coloring. With the stranger's second question, Coquelicot turned to scrutinize the sky once again. The skies were indeed dark, but not with an ominous appearance that suggested the arrival of a storm. <b>"I don't think so,"</b> he finally concluded.

Briefly he wondered if it was even worth it to head to the woods. The rain, aided by a slight wind, would still be capable to penetrating the canopy of the trees. Coquelicot still didn't know the area very well and the location of his temporary den was a good distance away. Searching for shelter in an unknown place didn't particularly appeal to him at all. <b>"I guess not,"</b> he answered. <b>"You?"</b></blockquote>

"I've never really paid attention to the weather anywhere." He replied with his usual smooth toned voice, smirking slightly as the rainwater begun to drip from his ash coloured chin. Yet the stranger's words also indicated that like Weldering he was also new to Relic Lore, another one of these newcomers like himself that the Swift River Pack were becoming increasingly aware of. Junai might not seem to like all these lone wolves but Weldering still did not seem what harm some extra inhabitants in this forest could do, it was a step forwards rather then back following the fire, right? But it was a relief to know that this other young male did not think that a storm was brewing, if it was only rain then that was something that Weldering could deal with. So as for seeking shelter he did not see much point as his shoulders rolled back into a soft shrug. "Best shelter I could probably find nearby is a tree... which would not do much good so I think I'm going to stay here." He admitted now that he realised he would only exhaust himself for nothing running around to try to find somewhere dry. "So where are you from?" Weldering asked moving away from the topic of the constantly falling rain. "Is it far from here?"

table by debain

<center><img src=http://i193.photobucket.com/albums/z151/kittykarnage/fishmaster.png></center>

<blockquote>
The soft patter of the rain, muffled by the long grasses and rolling fields upon which it fell, served as a vaguely pleasant noise backdrop to the situation despite the wetness. Coquelicot twitched an air lightly, small droplets scattering unseen amidst the falling rain. <b>"I suppose it's about half a month's worth of travel from here,"</b> he concluded after some thought. <b>"Down south,"</b> Coquelicot added. When he had left his pack, his two sisters had accompanied him. Despite his elder sister's bad sense of direction, she had insisted on taking the lead, causing them to go around in circles hours at a time if not more.

Meanwhile, his younger sister had a more delicate constituency than most and often they had to give allowance for her to rest and catch up. Their trip had taken a month, but Coquelicot conjectured that it would have taken him half the time on his own, hence his estimation with brief calculation. Coquelicot had still yet to encounter many individuals in the vicinity, although it was clear that the population of wolves were growing from the increasing frequency of scenting others while on his explorations. <b>"What about you?"</b></blockquote>

Another vagrant not native to this region. It was becoming more and more clear that the Tainn family really had been the only inhabitants here before the fire, unless everyone else had died and they were the only survivors. But that theory did not really add up too well as Junai never mentioned there being anyone else before and he was sure that was something she would have said by now. No matter, looking towards the past was never the way forwards, there were lone wolves here now and Weldering was not planning on leaving Relic Lore just because the Swift River Pack were not used to sharing. As far as his own personal history was concerned he was not entirely sure why he even brought up the conversation in the first place. "There's not much to tell really, I come from an island and after I washed up on this mainland it took me about three weeks of travel to find this place." There was a little more to tell then that but he was not so fond of letting a strange know the intricate details especially since his past brought back painful memories. "I might actually stay here though... what about you? Going to stay or carry on traveling?" It was only then following his latest question that he still realised he did not know the other young male's name just as he did not know his. It was time for some quick introductions. "Oh I'm Weldering Darksidy. Though you can just call me Welde if you like." The most common of his nickname that at one point everyone used to refer to him as.

table by debain

<center><img src=http://i193.photobucket.com/albums/z151/kittykarnage/fishmaster.png></center>

I had a post earlier and thought I posted but somehow it disappeared? D:
<blockquote>An island? By definition Coquelicot knew islands were bodies of land surrounded by water but couldn't really consider his home bordered and cut off by numerous rivers and streams, to qualify as islands. When he was younger a few of the pack members had taken him and his siblings out to the coastline. He could recall the vicious tearing the waves had inflicted on the cliffs located diagonally from the beach and the cold, salty bite of the ocean waters when his brother had accidentally pushed him into the oncoming waves.

"I've been traveling for a while. I'll probably stick around for a bit," he responded. Traveling had taken a toll on him and Coquelicot didn't exactly relish the idea of traveling through more unknown places. This area was pleasant enough for his tastes and he was already beginning to accustom himself to the lay of the land. "My name is Coquelicot False." </blockquote>

Aww I hate it when it does that D:

Living on an island was not so much different to anywhere else, there was only a few cases where he had to swim through the salty sea water to somewhere else like a smaller neighboring island. Zirenta, where he used to live, was a large piece of land that supported four packs but it was not so different from here with a few mountains, woodlands and plains. Weldering would just have to get used to being in a place so landlocked where strangers were more likely to arrive from any angle and not just one like he was used too. It was interesting to hear the other wolf's name, Coquelicot False, but also just as intriguing to Weldering was to hear his tarry plans for Relic Lore. It was a very similar thinking to his own, Weldering wanted to stay a while yet he would decide whether it was going to be a permanent stay after giving it a try for a few weeks. The rain continued to fall harmlessly as Weldering tilted up his dark painted maw into the sky letting the droplets run down his pointed muzzle. "Have you had much of a chance to look around yet, or meet anyone? I've met some of the resident pack, Swift River."

table by debain

<center><img src=http://i193.photobucket.com/albums/z151/kittykarnage/fishmaster.png></center>

<blockquote>Coquelicot was thoroughly soaked by now, his normally reddish chocolate fur taking on the appearance of a dull brown gray. But with the season still in summer the wetness wasn't unbearably cold, merely uncomfortable. Once the rain ceased his fur would return to his natural state. His ears pricked up at Weldering's next question, curiosity slightly awakened. "I've been around but I haven't met many others yet," he responded. "How are the members of Swift River?"

He had been mulling the idea of joining a pack for a while. Although the prejudice his birth pack had showed him did leave a bad taste in his mouth, Coquelicot knew quite logically that being a pack was usually better than being alone. It was simply logical. After all, there was always safety in numbers, food wasn't as difficult to come by, and there was the protection of territory enclosed with borders. </blockquote>