Cedarwood Forest Venetian Doctor

Late afternoon. Cool. Partly cloudy.

With the silence she traveled; a mere ghost in the forest. Her chocolate and tan hued coat granted her the ability of camouflage within the cedared forest. Her black paws lightly touched old crumpled leaves; her golden eyes bright and fiery. The air was cool, but not cool enough to arise goosebumps upon one's skin. Her gait was elegant, for she seemed to walk on air. With a sigh, the graceful woman paused, nostrils widening to test the air. Nothing but the faint scent of bear and moose. Moose. The scent stung her nose, for there must have been a fight. With her black-tipped tail flicking, Idala followed the scent until she stumbled across an interesting discovery.

Before her was the corpse of a female moose, almost fully eaten. A pair of crows picked at the flesh, taking as much as their beaks would allow. With a flash of her sharp fangs, the stealthy woman ran up to the feathered creatures, snapping at them. The black birds took to the air, cawing curses at the wolf below. Narrowing her sun-lit eyes, she lowered her head, beginning to pick cautiously at the carcass. If the bear was to reappear, there was no way in hell that she would stick around.

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Some might consider the dark birds as winged rats, but any wolf who has spent considerable time hungry on his own would tell you otherwise. As usual, Rais was both hungry and alone. When three of the black birds swooped overhead through the wide-spaced cedars, their raucous voices ringing through the forest, the mottled wolf followed eagerly behind the small flock.

Eventually he Rais smelled the pungent aroma of rotting moose flesh, with a slight undertone of bear and wolf. He slowed, allowing the crows to flap onward without him. Either a wolf killed the moose and a bear was scavenging it, or a bear killed it and a wolf found it. A wolf, Rais could work with, but there was no way to negotiate with a bear.More caws had reached his ears, but Rais wasn't sure whether his flock of crows were celebrating, or if they had been disturbed from their meal.

As he came closer, the scent of a lady wolf became more prevalent. No bear, but he would still have to figure out how to get past the wolf. He could try and startle her off, but that would likely result in a fight. Rais wasn't going to get torn up over a rotten dinner, so that was out. An idea came to him, and very quickly he dropped to the ground and wriggled and rolled around, working the dirt of the place into his fur. He had to smell like he actually <i>lived</i> here, rather than just wandered in. Satisfied with the earthy, cedar perfume he had rubbed into his fur, he rose and trotted past the last few trees separating the two. An brown wolf, the female he had smelled, stood beside the remnants of the moose.

The little cloud-colored and currently dusty wolf stood up tall and puffed his chest out with his tail held high. He cleared his throat to catch the woman's attention, then began speaking. <b>"Excuse me, madam. I don't know if you've noticed, but you're quite close to the borders of..."</b> He paused for a second, trying to fish a pack name out of nowhere, <b>"Cedar Grove. Yes, quite close. My leader wouldn't be very happy if he saw you here, and I do think he'll be making the rounds about very soon."</b> Rais knew he wouldn't smell like any of the pack wolves who actually did live around here, but he hoped the smell of the territory rubbed into his pelt would make it seem as if he belonged. <b>"He especially won't be happy to see you eating so close to the border, either. So, if you'd like to avoid any trouble I'd suggest you get moving, and soon."</b>

A voice. Swallowing a chunk of moose, she turned her head, sharp golden eyes focusing upon the wolf behind her. A male of mottled grays stood, his fur lightly dusted in dirt. What the hell? Squinting unknowingly, Idala resisted the urge to wrinkle her muzzle in frustration. Parting her jaws, she allowed herself to speak. "Well, I am not on nor in the territory borders, therefore I believe I'm ok...." Her voice was lush, smooth; feminine. Her face now returned to a stoic one, observing the character now before her in silence. Interesting. He carried the scent of the forest around him; something seemed odd, though.

"Unless you'd like to tell me otherwise?" Idala's question was a bit teasing, a sassy tone erupting within her vocals. She turned casually away from the corpse, black-tipped tail swaying behind her as she faced Rais. A small smile now played upon her lips, one that read as coy and almost amused. So this was going to be her first interaction with a wolf in the Lore? Gee, what a pleasant one. The younger wolf was already trying to make her flee.

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This didn't seem to be as easy as he had thought it would be. The female had turned to face him, but she didn't seem to be phased in the least by his threat. She did have a point though, they were a little bit too far from the border for it to be an issue. He had to think of something, though. The boy scowled for a moment at her as he thought, then he took a testing step forward.

<b>"Well, perhaps if you let me just get a bite of that,"</b> his bright eyes left hers and locked on to the ragged moose behind her. He licked his chops and swallowed back the saliva that had filled his mouth. Er, what was he saying... He looked back to the woman as if snapping out of a daze, <b>"I can be convinced to go find him and get him turned the other way, and we can just forget about this little..."</b> He lifted a fore-paw and waggled it to vaguely gesture at the scene, <b>"Incident."</b> He was afraid the longer this ruse went on, the more little holes would begin to appear, causing the whole sham to fall apart. If he could just dash in and pick up the whole carcass, he would. But the entire thing would be much too heavy to drag along with an angry she-wolf at his heels.

Her eyes narrowed as she looked upon Rais. He was starting to annoy her, but she would keep her cool. "Have all you'd like" Idala said in a cool tone, a small smirk pulling at her dark lips. She took a step toward the gray man now before taking two to the right of him. His path toward the carcass was clear. As she did so, she spoke yet again. "I mean, we wouldn't want this little incident to turn into a big one... now would we?" Your move, wolf.

Sucking her breath in, she moved around him, almost forcing him toward the carcass. Eat, you son of a bitch... you want this damn moose so bad. Wait... he wanted this moose so bad. Is this all he had come for? Was this some kind of trap? Whatever it was, she didn't give two shits. Allowing the thoughts to drain out of her mind, she released her breath, the small grin still lightly placed upon her slender black muzzle.

For a moment, the chocolate hued woman hoped the male would choke on a piece of moose meat, but wishing such upon another brethren would not be polite. Almost laughing at her inner thoughts, a brow remained lifted in curiosity as to what Rais was to do.

(This post was last modified: Aug 10, 2012, 05:20 AM by Idala.)

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What? Now that was <i>too</i> easy. This time he was the one to narrow his eyes. This had to be a trick of some sort. Though it could just as well be Rais' inclination for dishonesty that made him see deceit where there might be none, it sent his nerves on edge. She moved around towards his back, which was unsettling as he didn't trust her. He turned his head as to watch her out of one eye as he looped around the carcass and approached it so that he was facing her, rather than keep her at his back.

Quickly he ducked his head down and tore into the dry, stringy flesh. A swarm of flies buzzed against the side of his face in escape, but he paid them no heed. He was staring at the woman as he ate voraciously, filling his stomach with the stale meat as quickly as he could. He could never tell when his next meal might be. He would probably get a stomach ache later from it, but food was food, no matter how old. He wondered what a fresh moose even tasted like.

Gulping down the last scrap of jerky he cared to gnaw off the bone, he lifted his head and licked his lips clean. With his current mission accomplished, he dropped the top dog act, settling into the wriggly bounciness he usually moved with. A smile crossed his lips as he beamed a goofy, snaggle-toothed grin at the female. <b>"A little chewy, but not bad,"</b> he remarked.

Idala kept her eyes steadily upon Rais as he feasted upon the carcass. Yeah, eat all you want. I was done with it anyway. With a twitch of her nose, she smirked lightly as the gray mottled wolf turned and critiqued the moose. "Indeed." With her mind clear, the woman took a step forth, the smirk still upon her muzzle. "Say... would you mind introducing your leader to me? I've been looking for a new pack..." Her ears were perked forth; her face innocent but underneath it all she was a devious woman.

She stood solid, her legs close together as she did so. Tail hung low but it swayed to and fro in a steady rhythm. Let's see how he would reply. Impatience dug at her flesh, yet Idala did not allow it into her system. She could have the patience of a saint whenever she wanted to, and this was one of those moments. She was highly skilled in keeping her cool, as well as masking her true emotions and intentions. A barrier hard to breech.

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Inwardly, Rais winced, yet kept his face an indecipherable mask. How was he supposed to show her to a leader that didn't exist? He couldn't say that he couldn't be found, seeing as he had just threatened to find him a moment ago. This was certainly an annoyance, and he wanted to scowl at her. Instead, his mouth turned up into an excited grin and his tail flung side to side. <b>"Oh, of course! We've actually been looking for some more wolves to add to the ranks, so I'm sure he'll be glad to see you."</b> He said enthusiastically.

<b>"Follow me,"</b> he called out as he leaped into the surrounding brush, not waiting a moment longer for her response. His tiny grey body scuttled under a shrub and he wove around the tall cedars as he ran. He didn't stop to check if she had followed, but he really hoped that she hadn't. He hoped she got stuck on something or tripped over a root, and he could leave her in the dust. He didn't want his ruse to be found out, with the whole act tumbling down around him when the woman found out he had so blatantly lied. He found people didn't like it when they realized he had pulled the wool over their eyes. Of course, he tended to be long gone before anyone ever caught on.

Rais took off at the speed of light- or so it seemed. Idala was light of foot as well, and soon enough, she was right behind him. She ran with ease; her fiery gaze locked onto the mottled man as they ran through the cedars. Both dodged the trunks lithely, their bodies like blurs to any other creatures who watched. She knew she was lied to. It was fun to see how this wolf was reacting to having been exposed. With her black limbs carrying her close to his tail, she snarled, almost laughing. "You know, you are a terrible liar..." She spoke as she ran, her voice choppy as she breathed in and out.

As they continued to whir past the foliage, she kept on him like a fly on shit. Growing aggravated, she wanted him to stop, but if he wasn't going to, she'd make him. With her tongue lolling from her mouth here and there, Idala spoke once more "If you were smart... you'd stop..." Her voice trailed away as she snapped her mouth shut, brows furrowing as she awaited Rais to halt.

The breeze that blew through her fur felt wonderful; it was like a fan directly in her face. Though when she was directly behind Rais she missed out on it, for the air hit his small frame rather than her own medium one. He seemed to be quite aerodynamic, but would his stamina hold up?

(This post was last modified: Aug 18, 2012, 06:51 PM by Idala.)

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A frown pulled at the boy's lips when he heard the steady patter of paws take after him, and soon caught up just behind him. For a while he tried to shake her off, outrun her, but the older woman had no trouble keeping up with the yearling. He was at a loss for where to ditch her, and considered running right into the actual pack land just to get her to stop following him. When she spoke, he winced. How did she know? He'd have to work on his skills of deception, if he were so easily figured out.

He kept running for a bit, trying to lose her still but growing more tired by the second. If she knew he had lied, why was she still after him? He could only think that she might want to punish him for trying to deceive her. Again her voice came from behind him, interrupted by her own breaths. Fine, if she wanted him to stop. He couldn't out run her at this rate, anyways.

Immediately he put on the brakes, all four limbs straightened and paws digging into the soil. Before he had even stopped sliding along the ground from his momentum, he whirled around to face the woman. <b>"<i>Fine</i>,"</b> he panted, his tongue fluttering and his sides heaving as he tried to catch his breath. All pretenses of manners had left him, leaving just an annoyed child. His tangerine eyes were narrowed to two small slits, and his shoulders were hunched defensively. <b>"What do you want? If I was lying, then why did you follow me?"</b>