Fireweed Rise Finding Mushrooms - All Welcome!

Partly Cloudy, sunset, -18 degrees C

There was a wolf on the hunt in Fireweed Rise. His dark figure had been sitting on the edge of the vast white blanket that had covered the knoll. Foal had previously been taking refuge in the Hush Meadow, but he wasn't one to stay for long. Glowing yellow eyes peered out from the cover of the foliage and continuously scanned the expanse of land before him. His colors uniquely matched the shades of dead Mother Nature. Brown and black softly blurred at the edges with white, just like a tree in winter. He was in a particularly aggravated mood this morning, not for any specific reason, he was just seeming to have more uneventful days than normal. His irritated state caused him to huff his breath in the wind gruffly as he awaited another sign of life, preferably one that he could fell for dinner.

A light snow was now drizzling from the Heavens, more so covering his tracks and scent. A small sarcastic smirk lifted at the corners of his muzzle. The light casting over the knoll was a dull shade of orange and everything looked more alive in the dead of winter for a moment. The dark man took in the enlightening view for a moment before rising from his setting. He appeared to merge from the trees themselves and shook his fur to rid it of the melting snow. Obviously there were no signs of prey anywhere close and with his impatience he snorted and started walking the line of trees on the outer edge of the field. Darkness was approaching soon and he knew that he would have to den up for the night before long.

His black nose caught the smell of something rank, slightly musty. It wasn't dead and it wasn't directly enticing. However, he couldn't allow it to go unnoticed. His tail raised in counterbalance to his nose instinctively touched the ground. He took in short draws of breath, trying to find the unknown scent. Suddenly it seemed to hit him in the face..but the ground was covered in a thin layer of snow. Taking a gray paw he dug into the snow being careful not to use too much force. A black item appeared under a light layer of snow and a few pieces lay in his paw. Bending forward he nudged it with his nose and tested the treasure with his teeth. Its stench suddenly filled the air. His face curdled as he bared his teeth in disgust. Unbeknownst to him the male had bitten into a poisonous mushroom and their spores bore into his nasal cavity. He sneezed and rolled out the remaining bits from his tongue.

The sound of snuffling and scuffling was something that attracted Sage's attention, though she tried to ignore it. The fact that she heard it not far from her densite was the reason she felt so compelled to check it out, to see who it was and what it was that the scuffling and snuffling was all about. Naturally, she didn't want to have something snuffling and scuffling all night while she slept, especially if it meant danger to herself, though she did toy with the idea of ignoring it and sleeping elsewhere. She yawned and looked longingly at her makeshift den; she wanted to sleep, not to check out whatever it was making those sounds. She took one more step toward her den but stopped. Would I be able to sleep, she asked herself, Not knowing what it was?

The answer was negative so she heaved a long sigh and turned away from her den. She flicked her ears forward and lifted her head- the sooner she caught sight of whatever it had been that she'd heard, the sooner she could satisfy her curiosity and head back to her den for the night. She sniffed, but the still air wasn't helping her much. It was only when she caught the scent of another wolf that she balked momentarily, before she set forward again. There was another scent in the air, something fetid and rotten- but what would have been rotten in the Winter that wasn't meat? Everything that was dead, that wasn't meat, was below the snow. Something didn't make sense.

She only recognized the scent when she was within sight of both the male and the offending thing, dark and still, lying on the snow. She looked at the mushroom first, warily, before she even looked at the male. She knew what it was by the scent of it now, an old memory had been recalled as soon as she saw it. The male was a dark, sooty sort, with blends of charcoal and tawny brown blended together. He outweighed her easily and would have stood much taller than she even if she'd been trying to stand as tall as possible. It was hard to say much about the attractiveness or lack thereof in his facial features as even the most dashing creature looked quite woebegone and ugly when they had such a sour look on their face. She deduced immediately that he'd had a nasty encounter with the mushroom- whether by accident (which might mean that he was either daft or simply had no knowledge of mushrooms and had been curious) or intention (which meant either that he knew some benefit she did not, or he was bent on harming himself)- she could not decide immediately. If he hadn't known about the impending effects of the mushroom, he would find out soon.

She'd found out what she'd needed to know when she'd heard the scuffling- it was a wolf with a mushroom- but a new question had been posed. Had he discovered the mushroom out of curiosity, or did he mean to find it? He didn't look like he'd enjoyed the smell or the taste, but she didn't think anyone would, even if they meant to bite it. She was quiet for a moment while he tried to get a drag of clean air, trying to think of how she could best phrase her question. In the end, she settled for the simplest possible one: "Y'alright?"

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The effects of the mushroom were upon him before the female came within scenting distance. The dark male felt his vision focusing in and out, distorting figures that he was normally accustomed to. His brows furrowed and even when he placed his feet firmly on the ground he watched as the world around him shifted back and forth. The smell and taste of the hideous thing were no longer within him, but the spores would have to exhaust themselves before he would be rid of the side effects. His toes dug into the ground anxiously as he tried blinking and shaking his head to no avail. The Earth still seemed to spin with eyes closed and the darkness was only making it worse. Faol felt like a grain of sand rolling down the side of a dune as he watched helpless as the world he knew shifted around him. Moments later there was a scent in the air that caught his nose. At least he still had his sense of smell. Light. Female. Was all he could make out before the voice followed.

"Y'alright?' was all that was said, but it didn't match the scent. It was deep and haunting., and instinctively he turned to the origin of the sound and caught sight of another.

His yellow eyes narrowed as they tried to focus. A low thick growl emitted from between clenched teeth, his brown bushy tail flickered like a flame at the tip. Tree branches slipped like molasses from the sky to fall behind the dark figure and curl behind their frame. The large male continued his agressive display, his tone was deep and harsh.

"I don't know who you are. Stay away from me.." he warned.

The fur along his spine stood like quills as the snow lay a thick blanket upon his back. Faol attempted to fight with the reality inside his head, but little did he know the poison was fast-acting. He could smell the female. He could feel the snow. He could feel his feet on the ground. However, a nightmarish hell unfolded before him and consumed his common sense. As the sky fade to black, streaks of red scarred the sky and created distorted images of his long gone family. For a moment he choked seeing the image of his young brother.

He seemed to recoil, eyes wavering, focus lost as he sought to find her. He seemed disturbed, like a sick animal who has been caught, backed into a corner- not frightened but defensive to the point of becoming mildly aggressive. Sage held her ground and watched him for any sign that might suggest an additional ailment- even though winter was not a time that disease tended to spread. Most of those who were ill died in the earlier months and those who survived certainly wouldn't look nearly as fit and healthy as this male. His vague gaze would have been sincerely hostile had he not inhaled the mushroom spores. She looked to the accusing item in question and noticed with some relief that he hadn't eaten too much of it. It was mangled, but bits and pieces were around his paws, evidence that he'd torn it while digging it out, but hadn't ingested too much.

His fur lifted and hers did in retaliation, though its effect was but a pittance; the girl was still dwarfed by the male who grimaced at her. She was warned and didn't take a step closer, but he hadn't told her to go away- he'd simply told her not to go any closer, to stay away. So she stayed where she was, watching the expression on his face turn to a blend of outrage and horror. She watched him carefully and spoke in a level, low voice.

"Sage." She said carefully. "My name is Sage. I've seen the effect mushrooms can have on other wolves before." She explained, and continued. "You didn't eat any, did you?" She asked. It didn't look like it, but how could she be sure there had only been the one? She felt awkward, explaining her experience; not that he'd be interested, or that she felt it gave her any right to help him. But walking away seemed too cold and she wanted him sorted out before she went to sleep for the night, especially if he stayed in the area. The last thing she wanted was for him to find her cornered in her den and decided that she looked like an orange that needed to be peeled or some other monstrous pseudomorph that he decided needed to be killed. No; she would set him straight, or she would have to traipse through the snow in the night searching for a new den, and she figured that this might be easier...

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Faol stood his ground as he watched the scene unfold before him, trying to ignore the images that streaked the fantasy sky. The poison had surpassed it's peak and it was beginning to allow him to focus more on reality. The figure spoke again, their voice shifting from feminine and calm to a dark low growl. It was hard for him to understand and he did't manage to catch her name.

"Mushrooms? What? That's what this is?" he questioned. His fur was still standing and his stance was nothing less than threatening, but if the wolf wanted to help who was he to deny.

The effects of the fungus were unknown to him and this was the first time he'd come across such a thing in his life. Faol had learned most of the lessons in his life the hard way, but this was more than unnatural to him. "No.. I didn't. On purpose. I don't know, I can't taste it anymore." he said to the unknown wolf. His teeth bared in anger and anxiety. He was trying to think back to what he'd done. How could he be so stupid? After all, curiosity killed the.. wolf?

The spores were beginning to shrivel, his own body destroying the poison inside him. The fact that he was so large and had ingested so little was playing to his advantage. His eyes began to focus a little more but his vision was extremely blurry and he felt disoriented. The dark colored male was still wary of the stranger. In all honesty, the female was lucky the effects of the mushroom wore off quickly, because such a small wolf would have soon become lunch meat had he been blinded by nightmares for so long. It was taking him a great amount of time to actually make out the features of the female, but the world around him had turned back to the colors and shapes that he knew so well. He could almost see the sideways falling of the snow as the wind picked up, but with night fall came more difficulty in vision.

He began moving in a sideways circle around the female, his head dipped low to the ground."Who are you anyways? What's it to you to help me?" he growled, his tail swiping the snowy ground behind him awaiting their response. It had nearly been fifteen minutes since he ingested the madness and all his senses had returned minus his vision.

(This post was last modified: Jan 10, 2013, 08:53 PM by Faol.)

This was not turning out to be an average meeting. It wasn't quaint or polite or calm, but instead was turning out to be a disturbingly pseudoclassic case of 'meeting someone new in the worst possible moment.' She'd found him in an altered state and he was beginning to get frustrated, that she could tell. He didn't quite focus on her, and seemed bewildered, confused, and it seemed to be making him more aggressive. She didn't want him to come anywhere near her, for fear of having him lash out and try to hurt her. She didn't doubt that he both could and would kill her, while he was stoned, and she had a feeling that she would have to tread very lightly and watch his every move.

She didn't know much about mushrooms, but he hadn't eaten much of it. She nodded. The other wolf she'd mentioned before had wolfed down a good chunk of mushroom; it had nearly cost him his life, but he'd recovered, though there'd been something different about him following the incident. "You'll be alright," She said, with wavering conviction. Of course, she couldn't promise him that; it was just a suspicion she had and she felt bad saying something like that when she really didn't know if he would be alright.

She felt like a hunted animal when he began to circle her and she recoiled, flattening her ears and tucking her tail between her legs, moving away but making sure she kept facing him as he moved. He circled, head low, like a sick beast. She wondered now if he was this hostile when not under any influences, and decided that she would like to live to see the answer, though she wasn't particularly sure she really wanted to be in his company. "Sage," She said, repeating her name. "I'll be leaving now," She said, not answering his other question as she didn't have a response. She started backing up, trying to make her movements slow and careful- when she felt she'd put enough distance between them she figured she could dart away, but she didn't want to do that too soon.

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Faol kept his head low and continued to move around the female, but his posture relaxed slightly, his fur no longer stood on end. Upon the speaking of her words the large male stopped and turned to face her more directly. He couldn't see her very well but her voice was shaken and she sounded wary of him, but he couldn't blame her. His natural instincts had taken over, and being the protective soul he is, his guard was up. However, the wolf from his nightmares had disappeared and left in its tracks a fragile looking female. She spoke her name and he narrowed his eyes in order to see her more clearly.

"Sage," he said. Taking a moment to realize what he must look like to his acquaintance. Surely it was nothing less than a rabid animal. Raising his head, his teeth concealed themselves and he took his normal stance."You don't have to go.. I'm well enough in the head now to understand," he admitted. His facial features had returned to their normality; clenched jaw, unblinking focused yellow eyes.

The female moved away from him, and he didn't move any closer. She probably wanted to run from him, and in his given state he wouldn't be able to follow her if he wanted too. A tree to the face didn't sound very pleasant. As quiet as she was the lady did seem to know something about the tainted fungus, and he grew curious.

"I know nothing of these things. Do you know how long it will take for my vision to return?" he questioned. Hopefully it would be back by morning.. or at all. He felt a pang of anxiety in his gut as he awaited to see if she would have an answer. All the other symptoms had appeared to fade, so why not this one as well. Unfocused, he could see that the female was much smaller than him, and he took a breath before leaning back to recline on his hindquarters. He tried to seem as less as maniacal and threatening than he did before in attempt to possibly squeeze a few answers from the girl. However, with the revelation of his loss of vision he didn't doubt her to take off like a spooked rabbit back into the woods.

As their footsteps fell in a eurhythmic pattern, one advancing in a wide arc and the other moving in reverse to keep the space between them even, Sage began to regret even speaking to him. She felt hunted now, though she hoped if it came down to a chase that she could outrun him while he was in an altered state. She watched his movements, waiting for any indication that the rugged brown and black wolf would spring into action, though no indication came. In fact, the opposite occurred; he stopped, blinking as though to clear away some invisible film from his vision, and seemed to relax.

Sage stayed put, posture still tense, not willing to trust him just yet. He said her name and the tone of his voice changed, as though the beast's cataracts had cleared both his vision and his understanding. This seemed to be a true observation as he confirmed now that he knew what was going on. It had not taken long, but he'd settled down a great deal and did not seem nearly as effected by the potent fungi anymore. She sniffed the air and watched him still, trying to read his facial expression and see if there was any hint of malice still left gleaming like embers in his gaze; but his eyes ere cold, silver, rational.

He sat down and had asked her a question about the effects of the mushroom. Apparently he couldn't see well, still- not that she could tell. He was looking at her, and his eyes didn't look clouded though there was something vague about his stare. She shook her head, and realized he might not see it. "No, I don't know." She said. "Might sleep it off," She said, though her proposal was simply a guess and her tone indicated that she really didn't have a sure answer for him.

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It didn't seem like to took a lot of time for the potent drug to fade from his bloodstream, and its effects would never be forgotten. It was easily something that could be used to ones benefits if need be, or possibly for vengeance, but he had no reason for either. The black male wouldn't be messing with the foliage anytime soon again. Still his vision was hazy, and he didn't make any more advancements towards the girl. He sat content and still as she spoke, his face nearly expressionless. She didn't seem to have an answer for him, but he didn't expect her to tell him even if she did. The confidence in her voice was nearly nonexistent and it caused a small smirk to curl at the edge of his maw.

"Well, I'm sorry if I startled you. As I imagine I did. I'm Faol," he said, his yellow eyed gaze lifted off past her figure as if he were truly blind.

The smirk on his lips was in complete contrast to his voice - dark and deep. Although his appearance was outwardly dark and uninviting, he found himself to be a rather understanding and protective wolf. His mouth split, revealing a long pink tongue to wipe the saliva from his maw. His taste buds were back in working order even though the previous incident had rid him of his hunger. The female suggested that he sleep it off and with the onset of night fall he supposed finding a den would be the best option. However, doing so in the snow would be no easy feat. His glance broke for the first time from the female, and to his right, then to his left. Nothing but long streams of black ahead and white on either side. Going back into the trees would be his best bet he thought. His focus turned back to the lady.

"I suppose I should sleep it off," he said, more so reassuring himself. Faol was not one to apologize, but he assumed that the gray female Sage would be doing the same - as far away as possible. She was not one of many words."Thank you for your..help," he said with a small dip of his head. She wasn't of much literal help but the fact that she was there to pull him from his sudden nightmare was enough. At this point he waited for the female to turn tail and run from him, and he would then begin the task of looking for a place to reside for the night. Blinking slowly he searched his mind for places he had come across while traveling to the knoll in hopes of remembering somewhere he could sleep. The large male waited for Sage to disappear without another word. He was sure following her into the woods was the last thing she wanted to happen.

He seemed to be in a stable mindset now, though she still couldn't exactly tell how well he could see. Not that it would mean much to her- if he wandered off and stumbled or did fine, it wouldn't have to matter to her, would it? She tried to convince herself of this as their conversation took a turn toward termination, and she shrugged off his apology, shaking her head and again forgetting that he might not see the gesture. One of her sharp shoulderblades raised in a shrug- it hadn't been much trouble for her, and she accepted the fact that she had been the one to go looking for him, he hadn't stumbled into her life, so the fault for meeting him at all was her own.

She almost supplied her name again when he told her his, but she remembered, shortly before she opened her mouth, that she'd already given him her name- twice. She doubted that he remembered it, not simply because of the state that he was in but because she figured that compared to the situation he'd just been in, she was fairly unremarkable. Her name was short and plain- though her full name had a bit more consistency to it, it'd been left unused- and therefore easily forgotten. His was short as well, though it was different. She didn't know anyone named Faol. Fa-ool. It sounded as though there were two syllables, though they ran together so seamlessly that it might have only been one.

He looked about a bit at the mention of sleeping it off which indicated to her that he either didn't know which way he was supposed to go, or he didn't have a den in any direction that he should go to. He thanked her and it seemed like a somewhat dismissive gesture, but she paused. "Do you....Have somewhere to go?"

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