Mountain of Dire Climbing

Silent, she had finally found a steady pace to walking up this mountain.

You can't make people want to be around you.

Those words seemed to keep on a loop within her thoughts. Anytime she began to think she may benefit from getting to know someone, these words kept her back. Painful as it was, it was easier to stay away than take a chance and be rejected.

All she wanted was to leave him behind, but the memory clung to her like the ghost of a vine wanting nothing more than to cover her and take her down forever.

Images flashed through her mind. Those teeth, those…sharp and terrible teeth...the splitting pain of being struck down to the hard, cold rock floor.

Why did he have to do that? Why couldn't he just verbalize the word "no" instead of having to tear her apart to get his point across?

Shaking her head as though it would have a literal affect of banishing these recollections like one shakes off water, she tried to clear her mind and just keep moving forward.

One front leg extended down, expecting to come into contact with the rock below that didn't seem to exist, causing her to almost trip over the edge of the cliff. She was so used to tripping over herself that thankfully she was able to regain her balance…this time.

Just. Keep. Moving. Forward.

(This post was last modified: Feb 19, 2013, 04:58 PM by Aeyla.)

Border patrol. The very bane of his existence and yet something he found himself doing more and more often. Things were quiet in the pass, except for a few tremors here and there but what more could you expect when you opted to take residence within the bosom of the mountain. It was a smallprice to pay for the beautiful, untouched lands that they now called home and he called his kingdom. From up here, the pass was almost invisible. Like their home before, they had opted for an area that was hidden from view to the outside world and only those who knew how to find it, could knock on the front door. The paths down were tricky, thin and it was a good job that he was no fool to the tricks of the windy mountain roads. They would vanish from under your very paws if you did not pay careful attention.

A scent upon the breeze dragged his head up and paused his aimless wandering. His gaze focused on the next ridge over, where he spotted a slim dark figure almost take a tumble right off the edge to her doom. Pity really, he could have done with some entertainment for the day and seeing a wolf fall to their demise had a way of making your day pass quicker and tasks such as boring border patrol seem a little more worth while. The stranger however did not fall, they caught themselves just in time and settled back, most likely somewhat shaken. He studied her for a moment, dug deep within his memory not to find a name to her face. Her scent was her own, no trace of a pack touched her dark pelt so for now she wasn't a big threat, just a nusiance.

With a glance behind him to ensure the shadows to the path home were concealed, he began a trot in her direction. Eager to know just who this stranger was. She was not near his territory, not yet anyway and he would need to know just what she was doing heading in their direction. You could never be too careful you know... not when you were perhaps one of the most wanted wolves in all the land.
He closed the gap quickly and pulled into his dominant, regal stance. Head high, tail stiff, hackles bristled ever so slightly whilst his chest puffed- a clear sign of just how important he was on his mountain- he owned the thing and he wanted the entire world to know it. He didn't make a sound as he drew closer- no it would be up to her own nogging to realise he was there and how to react in his presence.

Keeping with her mantra, she returned to her steady pace. For once, she had at least been able to rest beforehand. Though food was still an issue, she was able to keep a more confident strut.

This is actually a pretty place, she thought to herself. Though the cliffs and rugged terrain did not lend well to her klutziness which made it so she had to keep her concentration on where she stepped. Guarded as always, she was used to having to keep alert. As long as she kept herself out of her head, she had a good chance.

Where am I going to end up, anyway? How long can I keep traveling like this with no direction?

Her thought was interrupted when she thought she heard something move behind her.

What was that!?

After a quick glance showed nothing, she tried to talk herself down.

It was probably the wind. Yes, wind. I haven’t seen another wolf for what seemed like forever. What would another wolf be doing on these cliffs anyway? For that matter, what am I doing?

Her anxiety began to increase at an alarming rate. Without much direction from her conscious mind to her body, her pace quickened a bit. She couldn’t help it, she had to check behind her again. Her body almost made what seemed like a quick jerking motion to turn around. There had to be something, though if not it wouldn’t be the first time her mind had played a trick on her.

This time, she saw what she initially recognized as a dark, shadowy figure. Was this just a figure of her imagination? Squinting, she leaned forward a bit and took a careful step to get a closer look at the dark cloud. She changed to a low, quiet demeanor. Upon coming closer, she suddenly had the realization that what she saw wasn’t a dark cloud at all, but a much bigger wolf. If he was a figment of her imagination anyway than she had a lot more problems than she already knew.

She snapped back, lifting her head in surprise as a fair share of panic took hold. This wolf wasn’t only larger and more muscular but also a male, which her instinct meant bad news. Hadn’t she just cleared her mind of a dominant male?

Regardless, she knew she was at a disadvantage, as much as she despised it. Walking along this path was challenging enough, and it likely wouldn’t take much from this male to knock her off.

Not knowing whether to keep her head up high or lower it her neck stayed straight along the same level as her back, sort of a compromise between the two options. While she had too much pride to go straight into a cowering position lowering herself, she knew that she couldn’t go full domineering and challenge him.

Her body stiffened. While she wasn’t keeping her head low to the ground, this black wolf in front of her was big enough that she still had to look up, keeping a steady gaze. Trying her best to keep her expression blank to cover up the dread she felt inside.

Ah, not as dumb as she first looked; some of her senses were functioning it seemed as she noticed him on the approach. She seemed spooked, but he didn't halt until he was much closer, a good few feet but close enough to make it clear he had no issues popping her personal space bubble. He was a bit of an ass and he would quite happily be the first to admit it. Still, he wanted to know who she was and what she was doing up here. He couldn't afford anyone to "accidently" stumble upon their home, there were a lot of wolves who would pay a pretty penny to know their location- the lake wolves would give their first born to know where to strike- which was laughable, as if they would do any damage, filthy rats. Ew, he really hated them. The very thought of them caused his bones to burn. He'd love nothing more than to just run over there and rip Athena to shreds and roll in her entrails, but he was on his best behaviour... for now at least.

Her lack of full submission irked him; he liked them belly up and grovelling at his feet, but she was not on his land, nor too close to the borders so he would let it pass for now but it was already a strike by her name. His ego was perhaps a little too large, but he had yet to meet anyone who make him believe he was anything else but a king. "These mountains are tricky, no?" he asked, a brow quirked as his smooth southern drawl left his lips. "You got a name, or shall I just call you clumsy?"

"These mountains are tricky, no? You got a name, or shall I just call you clumsy?"

This one was definitely the domineering type and had no qualms about making it known by the way he carried himself. She had a bit too much experiencing dodging hostility and wasn’t going to let it go to waste. Even if she had many different social blunders, she was always calculated in her actions. This, at least, was one situation where her wary focus was met with an equally intense circumstance.

She knew she had to play up the neutrality side of herself. When stumped, don’t jump to take any sides. Stay blank and reserved. When unsure remain on the least offensive side.

A strategy that definitely meant responding with the right timing and inflection.

“The one’s I don’t trip over call me Aeyla.” She said breaking her gaze to the rocky terrain, specifically the view off the edge looking down. Eye contact could be interpreted as a challenge that she didn’t want to make, especially without even knowing this wolf yet. She hoped that refraining from taking offense to the “clumsy” remark would turn down notion of her being here to challenge him at anything. It is hard to have a battle without both parties chipping in. Her voice was flat and calm, “Can’t say that I have had much experiences with mountains in the past, though the view seems worthy of the risk.”

She had a sense of humour by the sounds of her reply. He could very well imagine her stumbling around after her near miss- he shouldn't be surprised that not everyone was as in touch with the mountain as those of lived on it, but he only ever expected perfection. Up here, there was no room for mistakes after all. Her next sentence justified his thoughts- she wasn't used to the tricky terrain, but something had called her up here no less. He wanted to know what it was.

"Worthy of the risk of death? My, what is this holy grail you believe to be hiding up here?" he asked with a lift of his brows. There were many things to find on the mountains, yourself, spectacular views, a bunch of cowards living by a lake- you know, the usual stuff. In truth, he preferred the flat lands of the forest, but his home in the pass had it's own small expanse of greenery which took the feel of stone away every so often, but the mountains would always be his home. What did he have to find here? Only his entire family, his sons and female, his pack even though they were a bit of a mixture, a place to call home. "Perhaps I can point you in the right direction... save you finding the wrong direction the hard way." he mused with a rare glimmer of humour in his dull grey eyes.

”Oh, there’s always a way to die. Should it really matter if one just stands out more at the moment?“

She only gave him a short glance and then went back to focusing on the view.

It was going ok. At least for those couple of lines. Though she began this interaction thinking she was on par a certain wave of anxiety started creeping into her thoughts from the back of her mind causing her to reconsider.

She had been thinking of her ability to deal with the one in front of her as she did with that certain one in her past…but she didn't factor in how she was different now. In not entirely positive ways..maybe she was weaker now than she thought.

A familiar feeling of stiffening muscles swept in. She tried to keep it subdued to stay looking natural, and for the most part it was working for the moment.

Not knowing how long that was going to last, she had to start working on a way out.