Riddle Heights A Land So Strange

<b>(This thread is set shortly after Steel joins PP!)</b>
Early morning, misty and cool.


Jade was excited. She was getting closer now and she could almost <i>feel</i> that her reunion with Steel was right around the corner. Her step was light and free and she moved with a smile on her face, sage green eyes lit with happiness. She had skirted the southern borders of Drooping Willows and had thoroughly enjoyed the trip through the woods once she had a sure lead on Steel's whereabouts. It seemed to be in the general direction that she had run into her first wolf, a midnight fae by the name of Ava. The irony was not lost on her. That would be just her luck to come full circle in her relic lore search for her brother.

Unfortunately, she'd left the welcoming trees behind and was once more in the strange misted area again, further south this time. It had the same secretive feel about it that unnerved her. She still found is strange that she felt so uncomfortable in these lands when she was completely at home everywhere else. Again, she felt as if she had not passed muster and the land wanted her gone. She would go, but not yet. Not until she found her brother and at least assured him that she was alive... and that Mother was not.

The ground was rough and uneven, slowing her progress. Nearly at a snails pace already, a thick bank of mist came on and Jade was tempted to stop, but an uncharacteristic stubbornness took hold of her and she pressed on. When the mist moved on again, Jade let out a loud yelp of fright. She was only feet away from a rather steep drop off of about ten feet. <i>All right... no sight, no movement!</i> That was entirely too close. She stood her ground for a few minutes, trying to catch her breath and still her frantic heartbeat.

When she had calmed and was about to turn away, something caught her eye. It was a rather small tree, stunted from growing almost literally sideways out of the rocky outcropping that she'd nearly stepped over. The branches were almost perfectly smooth with small pale green leaves that matched the color of her own eyes perfectly. The branches grew out from the trunk sideways and then twisted and danced together as they reached upwards for the sunlight, stubbornly refusing to give up even though the small tree should not have survived where it was located. It apparently had deep well-seated roots as a strong foundation. A breeze blew and the small leaves danced in the sunlight and displayed tiny pink blooms that were previously hidden from her view. The delicate beauty of the gravity defying tree simply put her in awe and she loved the little tree with it's hidden strength. She breathed deeply of the subtle perfume of the blossoms and found the one thing in this strange land that called to her.

OOC: Surprise!! It's Ash! :D I guess this can be after Ash joins PP. . .because he joined before Steel.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v201/bluepups/AshTable.png); background-position:top center; background-repeat:no-repeat; padding-top: 250px; padding-bottom: 20px; padding-left: 20px; padding-right: 20px; text-align:justify;">It had been too long since he had trained his own paws in the mountains and he feared that soon his own paws would not be able to handle the mountains once again. . .and he would be forced to train his own pads again. He had already climbed over the mountains and he had the satisfactory in him to see that his own paws were not bleeding. This pleased him highly, for it would have been unfortunate to lose his touch on the mountains so soon. Enough time had passed for him away from Poison Path and his own love, Treena. He hadn’t seen her since the day he had joined the newly formed pack and it had saddened him highly. He felt like the two of them were drifting apart and that was something that Ash didn’t want for the two of them. He loved her dearly, and he wouldn’t want anything to ever hurt her.

It had been unfortunate for him to find out that he had indeed. . .not killed his sibling. He had failed his father and it upset him deeply. . .but now he would have to move on. The deed was done and the oath was broken. . .Nina had gained a mate and that had taken away the chance of him killing her. He wouldn’t be able to injure her without being known as a criminal, not that he already wasn’t one in other wolves eyes. . .but he only hoped that it wasn’t important to Treena. . .he never wanted to lose her love as long as he lived. She made him happy and she was all he would ever need to ask for.

As he was coming along the bend of Riddle Heights another’s scent hit his nostrils. He had to cringe back immediately, not wanting to be close to another yet. But it couldn’t wait for him. . .for he knew there was a fifty percent chance that the other wolf had scented him too. From the smell of it, it didn’t seem as though it was in a pack. . .and it was also female. A small unfortunate voice screamed at the back of his head to turn away, but he couldn’t. . .for common curiosity tugged at his paws. . .why was a female as small as she out here by herself?

It seemed as though the female were staring at something. . .so his head instantly swiveled to the side, one of his eyebrows shooting up at the scene before him. What an odd tree this lady had found. . .his throat soon cleared, another indication that he was here, and not an illusion. He then spoke, his strong voice ringing, "Hello there. I am Ash!" And with that, he shot her a mischievous grin.

The incongruity of the beautiful little tree in this unwelcoming land amazed her as she watched it for a while longer, suddenly not in such a hurry to move on. It was almost as if they were kindred spirits and the tree had called her to it to witness it's wonder. For a moment, she closed her eyes, breathing deeply of the tree's blooms and let everything fall away, save her and her tree. With a smile, she opened her eyes. Yes, it was <i>her</i> tree. For some reason, it filled her with confidence that she had lacked before. At least in it's presence, she felt whole for a few moments.

Then a voice came, seemingly out of the mist. As she scrambled sideways, away from the sound, she saw that it was a wolf and no spirit being. Unfortunately, that was worse in her eyes and she stumbled away a few more steps, bringing her dangerously close to the edge near the tree. She finally stopped, and faced the wolf who was grinning at her, heart in her throat, tail glued to her belly and the ground at the same time in her low, fearful crouch. Her ears were flat against her head and her sage green eyes were wide as her entire body trembled in fear.

OOC> Sorry it is so short and choppy. I can't think of anything for him, but I wanted to get something up for you.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v201/bluepups/AshTable.png); background-position:top center; background-repeat:no-repeat; padding-top: 250px; padding-bottom: 20px; padding-left: 20px; padding-right: 20px; text-align:justify;">He seemed to have interrupted the other female’s thoughts, but the reaction he got out of her slightly shocked him. Did he look threatening to her? His large brown head tilted to the side and his green eyes watched her carefully. Was she alright? Her eyes gave him the slight sense of familiarity. . .they were green, as were his and it have him a slight boost of confidence to speak to her. To seem slightly less threatening, Ash’s head lowered slightly, to seem as if he was just simply another wolf to her, which was exactly what he was.

He once again opened his mouth and spoke, "Apologies, miss. I didn‘t mean to startle you." And his words were true. He had thought that she had at least scented him, but when he had spoken she had proven him wrong. He was a stranger to her, as she was to him. His tail wagged slightly, showing that he wasn’t a threat to him. It was easy for one to open up, as long as they weren’t terrified of him at first.

Scrabbling over a large rock, Kieth only just managed to heave himself over it. His pads were sore and bleeding for walking over sharp stones for days. He was panting heavily from climbing up the steep slope. For a while now he had been wandering around Relic Lore when he came upon this mountian. There was no way around it so he decided to go over it. But maybe it wasn't such a good idea.

He must keep going, or all this hard work would have been for nothing! Hauling himself up over another boulder, he caught a scent. No, not one, but two. So there were wolves on this mountain, like him. As he continued up the mountain-side, the scents got stronger. One of them scented familiar, but he didn't know which wolf it belonged to. Finally, the land leveled out and he rested for a few moments before looking up. What he saw made him gasp, there was Jade, with another wolf he didn't recognise. But what was she doing on the mountain?

<b>"Hello. I am Kieth, may I ask your name?"</b> He felt it was needed to cut to the chase. His eyes shifted to Jade, he hoped that she still remembered him! Then he looked at the male, he was by far larger than him, but looked younger. As he waited for the male's reply, his gaze turned to Jade once more. Maybe she was still looking for her brother, maybe that's why she was on the mountain. But he couldn't be sure until he asked her.

You can run, but you can't hide

Jade shivered at the size of the male before her. Kieth, the first male that she had met had been huge compared to her own tiny frame. This wolf was absolutely massive next to her! She trembled as she took in his size and stature and took another small step back, where her left hind legs slipped and she tensed as she regained her footing, sparing a brief terrified look over her shoulder to see pebbles bouncing off the rocks ten feet below. With a gulp, she looked back towards the large male, now shaking with fear from two fronts. Well, front and back to be more specific.

He apologized for startling her and she gave him a tiny smile of thanks. Once her heartbeat slowed, she took an even smaller step forward, away from the ledge and tried to stand a bit taller. She managed to get her tucked tail off of the ground, at least. Once more, heat was creeping up her neck. She was by no means comfortable, but he hadn't acted aggressively in the least and seemed baffled by her behavior as indicated by his tipped head. <b>"N-no. M-m-my f-fault!"</b>

Before she could even attempt more or the other respond to her, another form came over a ridge. A familiar form. Instinctively, her tail wagged although it was still plastered to her belly and she called out shyly, <b>"Kieth!"</b> at the same time as he introduced himself to the other wolf. It was great to see a familiar face, but she was feeling smaller than ever right now, flanked by two males now and backed up to the ledge that somehow nourished her little tree.

Another day of stamina and agility training. Sure, she was an excellent healer, but that didn't mean she couldn't fight. Her muscles were toned and her heart strong; she could handle running across the mountains forever.... at least to her, that's how it seemed. She bounded along gracefully, head held high as the hypethral region revealed no sun. The clouds were all over, their gray masses threatening for rain, but instead brought mists. The feeling against her fur and flesh from the mist was unique yet highly refreshing. As she bounded down the rocks, her eyes suddenly focused on three figures in the distance. She immediately halted, her white paws gripping onto stone as she did so. Small pebbles tumbled down as she stood and observed. One of them appeared to be familiar...but who was it? Her nervous stature gave it wall away. Jade. Smiling softly, Chantille flicked her tail before diving downward. Though she knew Jade, she did not know the other two wolves. Sure, she now knew one was within her pack, but her mind was not registering him as such- it almost refused to do so. Her head was held high as she walked toward them, her tail raising itself as well.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v201/bluepups/AshTable.png); background-position:top center; background-repeat:no-repeat; padding-top: 250px; padding-bottom: 20px; padding-left: 20px; padding-right: 20px; text-align:justify;">The small female’s voice intrigued him, for he had not heard a wolf as nervous as she had been. It literally pissed him off. . .but he remained quiet, keeping his own self-control in check. Those who cowered beneath him were weak and it seriously did tick him off. He was nothing to fear, if anything it should have been his father that they all feared, but they of course didn’t know him. Soon, two more scents were carried towards his nose. The little female’s voice then sounded much more confident and assured. Kieth. . .his name was, how could this encounter become anything more than interesting.

And, of course, his question was soon answered when the scent of a pack mate washed through his nose. His head turned towards where another female was heading, towards them, it seemed. From his line of vision he could only tell she was smaller than him, white, and her scent seemed to be shielded with herbs. . .and his head tilted. She was a healer most likely, but at the moment he remained unsure. Her head raised, along with her tail, and his head soon lowered as he approached. Kieth’s own voice reached his own ears and when his pack mate officially approached he then spoke, "I am Ash Hervok." His own last name rang through the clearing. No connection should be made to his family, unless Treena had spoken of them. But otherwise, this other female that smelt of Poison Path. . .shouldn’t have known about him. She too, was a new face.

Kieth was genuinely pleased to see Jade again. He had missed her when they parted and it seemed as if she did too. This pleased him. But here she was, along with another wolf. This male was even larger than him, so Jade must be terrified of him. When the other male spoke, he gave a small nod with his head to acknowledge that he heard him. He walked closer to Jade and Ash and winced slightly, he forgot that his paws were bleeding.

Clearing his throat to speak, he froze as another wolf walked over to them. It was a fae. As he studied her, he noticed that she was roughly the same size as him. She also smelled like herbs. So this fae was likely to be a healer. Kieth turned his head so he could clearly see her. She had an air of confidence around her, and held her head and tail high. Was this pack territory? He had been so focused on climbing the mountainside that he could have passed right by them.

But neverless, he didn't lower his head. Kieth didn't know this female so he wouldn't give her the right to boss him around. His eyes flicked briefly to Ash and he saw in amazement as his head was bowed. As he looked back at the fae, he dipped his head in greeting. <b>"I am Kieth. Who are you?"</b> His voice was neutral, it had no coldness in it but wasn't too friendly either. Until he knew this female, it would stay that way.

(Don't get the wrong idea about Kieth! He's just unsure of her xD)

You can run, but you can't hide

The small wolf was adjusting to the fact that she now faced two males, one huge and unknown and the other her friend Kieth. They had only met briefly, but in the end he had managed to break through her instinctive fearfulness and befriend the shy she wolf. Then from another direction came another form and her tail wagged furiously against her belly. <i>It was Chantille!</i> Her friend from the meadow of fiery flowers. <i>Friend.</i> It sounded so strange to her, even in her own mind, to have friends. But, she had parted ways from that encounter as friends with both Chantille and the young fae Narime'. <b>"Chantille'!"</b> There was no mistaking the pleasure in her voice as seeing the other fae once more.

Despite knowing two of the three wolves that now surrounded her, Jade was a ball of jittery nerves by her tree. She couldn't remember ever being so close to so many wolves. Especially when her line of retreat was effectively cut off by the steep ledge behind her. Then Kieth said a greeting with cautious formality. When he had met her he had known where he stood with her (leagues above!), with Chantille exuding her confidence like it was the air that she breathed, the question hung in the air. Of course there was still the large stranger Ash to consider. He was definitely a wildcard in what could be an amicable meeting or something more scary.