Whisper Caverns Hello Old Friend

April 15th 2013
light flurries
@Inali

she doesn't care how she gets there, as long as she gets somewhere she knows... The trees blocked out most of the flurries that fell from the sky, though the ground was still full of slush and mud caused by the melting snow of late spring. Minka tried to pick the driest course along the border though some muck couldn't be avoided, her paws soon became covered. She had her friend by her side once more, and this was something that caused her such happiness that she did not even take notice to the weather. Her plume of a tail beat out an elated rhythm as they walked, stopping every once and a while to mark a tree, or rub against a stone to keep the border smelling strong. At first they walked in silence, though the mood was electric with the enthusiasm and pure joy that the femme felt about her closest friend being accepted into the pack. When they reached a willow with long gnarled roots that intertwined making a raised platform the tawny woman stopped, leaping up onto the elevation she scratched her claws down the base of the tree and pressed her sides against it. Looking down upon her friend she smiled, "Would you like to come up here and give it a try?" The words held enthusiasm, now that Inali was part of the pack, her scent along the borders would make it stronger, and speak of a larger pack, which might deter rogues with mal intentions. She took a step back allowing her friend room to move onto and around the platform, then with another smile she said, "Just do whatever feels the most comfortable for you." Minka knew that her friend had been in a pack before, but she wasn't sure what roles that she had been given, if she had ever marked a border before. The tawny woman had only been in this pack for about a week, but she felt well established here, she had been welcomed in by both alphas, promoted to second, and had met the other woman here, Simaea, and all seemed to be going well. She hoped her friend would find this family as welcoming and loyal as she did, she wanted nothing more than for her friend to find the happiness she had been seeking.

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Inali took a deep breath of the air and took in the view of the light flurries flowing all around her, a big grin spreading across her face. She had a family again and the best part was, her best friend Minka was part of it. Usually she would've noticed the slush on the ground, now seeping through her paws as she walked, and would've groaned in annoyance, but she was too happy to even notice.

Walking along with Minka she watched as her friend took her around the borders of their lands and every once in a while marked a tree or rubbed against a stone, keeping the border smelling strong. She remembered when she was small, her mother would sometimes take her along when she marked the borders and even let her join in sometimes. It was a good memory, and she had always cherished it for some reason.

"Would you like to come up here and give it a try?"

The voice of Minka jarred her roughly from her reminiscing and she looked at Minka apologetically. "Sorry, Minka. I was a little bit out of it. But, of course I do!" She finished her sentence enthusiastically and jumped onto the raised platform. Her paws landed on the intertwined roots smoothly and she flashed Minka a smile. As she rubbed her red-coated body on the gnarled willow tree from head to toe and jumped off the platform she said, "Do you know why I was a bit distracted when you suddenly spoke? I was thinking of a memory of back home. I remember when I was small, sometimes my mother would take me along when she had to mark the borders and even let me join in a couple of times. Its one of those few good memories of back home." Inali smiled softly and looked at Minka.

She said, "Enough reminiscing though. How'd I do?" Inali was anxious to know if Minka approved of her marking her not. Her friend's input mattered much to her.

she doesn't care how she gets there, as long as she gets somewhere she knows... Minka could see the distracted expression upon her friends face and smiled a little as she startled, she knew that things were moving very fast now for Inali and that she had a lot of emotions to process. She watched as her friend rubbed her body along the base and then leave the platform and she walked to the edge, looking over the side at her friend. The emotions were soon explained and a wistful smile came across her own face as memories of her own visited her, "I never did many patrols in my birth pack, where I came from you were assessed as a yearling to determine your skills and then were assigned a mentor." The memories of her mentor came back to her, causing her to blush slightly, "You then were mentored for your whole year as a yearling, mine was in hunting, I lived, breathed and slept strategies and stalking." She chuckled slightly and her blush deepened, "My mentor was a man named Knox, he was fairly attractive and I may or may not have tried extra hard to be the best in my suit." She laughed again, the sound like bells in a warm breeze, she felt so carefree now that her friend was here and she had a confidant. Business came up once more though and Minka brought her muzzle close the bark taking a scent, satisfied she smiled. She leapt from the platform, landing in a fairly dry patch of ground and then approached her friend with a serious expression upon her face. Nudging her in a playful manner she spoke, "Now that tree smells almost as bad as you do Inali!" She laughed once more and continued on their course around the borders, the territory covered a large portion of the forest but the fae didn't mind since she had such good company. Weaving slightly off course to avoid a large puddle her expression became sombre as her thoughts wandered to her chance encounter with that rogue male. She had not brought the meeting up with Narimé because she had not caught his scent anywhere near the meadow since then, but it still played heavily upon her mind. She cleared her throat and looked to her friend, slowing the pace from a lope down to a casual walk. Making a decision she opened her jaws once and no sounds came out, she cleared her throat once more and tried again, "Inali there is something I want to tell you because I don't know who else I can tell." The expression on her face was of guilt, though she didn't really know if she had anything to feel guilty about, this was why she needed her friends help. Minka knew that her friend would know what to do, if there was anything that should be done that is, maybe it was best to just leave it alone.

table by mimi

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Inali laughed as Minka shared her own memory of back home. She teased, "Oh you lucky runt! Everyone that taught me something of the other was never attractive. I always thought my mother planned it that way so I wouldn't get distracted. She was one clever devil, my mother was." She laughed softly, enjoying that she could relish in these memories without any pain anymore.

The young fae watched as her friend jumped off the platform and headed her way. With a serious expression but with a twinkle in her eye her friend teased her, nudging her shoulder. Inali shook her head in amusement and laughed along with her friend. She responded, "Oh, so I see you've got jokes now?"

Inali's eyes glowed as she walked briskly along with her friend, continuing their walk along the borders. She never knew Whisper Caverns covered so much land, it made her thrilled at the thought of exploring when she had the chance.

Inali barely managed to sidestep the big puddle in her way because she was suddenly deep in thought. She had seen her friend's smile diminish and she wanted to know why? Though she dared not ask for making her even more upset.

With a mixture of curiosity and pain she looked at her friend as they both slowed down to a light walk. She hated to see her friend with such a somber expression. Minka spoke as soon as Inali had plucked up the courage to ask her what was wrong.

"Inali there is something I want to tell you because I don't know who else I can tell."

She walked closer to her friend until they were side by side. Inali touched her muzzle briefly to her friends own muzzle in a sign of comfort for her and at the same time, signaling her to stop walking. Rearing back slightly she spoke, "Tell me Minka. I hate to see my closest friend with such a somber expression, you know you can tell me anything." Inali waited for her friend to respond with bated breath. Whatever it was, she knew she would try to help in any way.

she doesn't care how she gets there, as long as she gets somewhere she knows... Minka laughed as her memories as a yearling continued, oh how embarrassing it was that she had such a large cubs crush upon her mentor. She shook her head lightly, "Yes Knox seemed to think I was some kind of prodigy, he said that everything came so easily to me, if only he knew." When she had been announced a hunting student she had been eager to please because she knew what an important role it was, but when they had introduced her to her mentor all she could think of was pleasing him. She shook her head again, a smile playing upon her face as she walked next to her friend, oh she wished her friend could have seen her then, what a laugh Inali would have had at the poor love struck pup she had been. The thoughts that consumed her now were confused, she didn't know if she was making too big of a deal over her meeting with the dark rogue, or not a big enough deal at all. Her friend might have some insight but Minka had no idea how much experience Inali had herself with males. Leaning into the contact of their muzzles the fae was glad that her friend was here to offer her support, she stopped walking but her tail swished anxiously. She looked to her paws before glancing up at her friend and beginning her tale, "I honestly don't know if this is something to be alarmed about or whether it was just a slightly odd encounter, I have no experience in this department." A blush crept up her neck as she thought now of the dark rogue, she shook her head slightly trying to clear her own thoughts which always became jumbled when she thought of what had happened. She sighed before continuing once more, "A couple of days ago I came across a rogue male in the meadow who had just caught a fox. When I questioned him about his intentions in the area he said it was just to catch his meal and then leave, but after he said this he made no move to leave, he stayed and we talked a little. Her heart ached in a strange manner when she thought of how stiff their encounter had been in the beginning, "It was very formal, mostly about hunting and wolf law about hunting territories." The blush was hot across her face now, and Minka shifted embarrassed as she recounted the rest of the meeting, "And then I.....I don't know what came over me, I asked him if there was anything else he needed here, and then I......Well I sort of brushed up against him, I have no idea why, and he just sort of froze in place and I ran away embarrassed." The words came out in a rush and the femme hung her head in shame, she had made such a fool out of herself in front of this rogue, but she didn't know why that fact hurt her so much. She sighed before making one final confession to her friend, "And I don't know why, but I can't seem to stop thinking about him."

table by mimi

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lamest post ever ._. hahaxD

A slow blush crept up on Inali's face and she smiled softly. She said, "Oh Minka. I-I don't really have experience in that department. But, I think I have an idea of what to say to you. I don't think the problem was you at all my friend. You know why I think he froze? Because, he probably did not think you thought of him in that way. Think of it like this. A loner, a male loner, who has been alone for a while with no female companionship, comes upon a beautiful she wolf that seems to be interested in a scraggly rogue like himself. He probably did not know what to do with himself when you showed him that kind of attention."

Inali took a breath before she continued, "Maybe if you meet him again, it is a way of the Fates telling you that there might be something special there between you guys. But, I don't know. That's what I think, I'm sorry I couldn't help you more, my friend." Inali stopped talking then and looked at her friend, waiting for her response.

(This post was last modified: May 29, 2013, 09:38 PM by Inali.)

she doesn't care how she gets there, as long as she gets somewhere she knows... A sort of wistful smile came to Minka's expression as she responded, "I don't really have any experience either and that's never really bothered me, but now I wish I had at least had some." She pondered the rest of what her friend had said, her head tilting slightly to the right, trying to apply that opinion to what had happened. The thoughtful expression soon disappeared, replaced by one of sadness, "I don't think it was that he looked," her voice crackled slightly and she faltered, "Well he looked disgusted by me and my actions." She turned her head quickly, fighting back the hot tears that threatened to spill over, trying hard to swallow the bitter lump in her throat. After a few long moments she could feel the lump reside and the tears left her eyes and she could look back towards her friend. She smiled sadly towards Inali and said, "I don't think I will ever see him again, I doubt he will ever come back here and I....I don't even know his name." She knew how he felt in his presence though, like her whole world was coming undone and yet at the same time like everything was finally making sense. She shook her head and began slowly walking once more, she was determined to put him as far from her mind as possible, it would do her no good to linger upon it. She forced a smile, "I shouldn't be making such a big deal of it, I embarrassed myself yes, but it isn't the end of the world." She looked to her friend as they walked, this time a genuine smile appearing upon her maw, "Now tell me about how you have been since I've seen you last." Her ears pricked forwards waiting for the sound of Inali's voice to waft into them.

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Note: based on after she met Steel.

"I don't think it was that he looked," "Well he looked disgusted by me and my actions."

Inali watched her friend as she spoke and noticed the slight quiver in her voice when she uttered that sentence. Minka turned her head quickly and Inali thought sadly, Oh, Minka. Her young friend was really torn up over this and it made Inali face the hard truth. She didnt know what to say or do anymore to make her friend feel better.

After some long moments of silence, Inali could see that Minka had finally regained some measure of composure when she turned back towards her. She said some because she could see the bright, unshed tears of her friend, glistening in her eyes.

A sad smile began to grace Minka's features and the young fae beside her finally voiced her thoughts. Inali's ears pricked forwards as she heard Minka speak of the rogue wolf possibly never even returning to their lands and that she didnt even know his name. Inali kept silent, but her thoughts were internally all over the place.

Minka slowly began to walk forwards again and Inali followed her, albeit slowly. Minka, once again voiced her thoughts, and by this time Inali had already caught up to her friend so they were again walking side by side.

"I shouldn't be making such a big deal of it, I embarrassed myself yes, but it isn't the end of the world."

Inali thought that Minka thought that was the end of it probably, but Inali thought differently. She had a feeling this wouldn't be their last conversation regarding this rogue wolf. And in her gut, she knew she was right.

Minka once again jostled her out of her thoughts and Inali's own ears moved forwards so she could hear the rest of the question her friend was asking her. From the gist of it, she wanted to know what she had been up to since they had last seen each other.

Happy to see a genuine smile on her friends face again, Inali opened her maws to speak with a smile of her own. "Well, I really wasnt up to much. I was running around Relic, trying to see if a pack needed or wanted another member, you know? It really wasnt exciting since I didnt have much luck, but I did have one interesting encounter. Inali laughed as she thought of it. It really was interesting, for lack of a better word.

Continuing Inali said, "I stumbled upon a packs lands, their name is still unknown to me. At first I was terrified but probably even more so when the Guardian stepped into my line of vision. He was a big, burly wolf and let me tell you, very intimidating. He didnt even speak for half of our total encounter! But I'm getting ahead of myself. He was growling and glaring and I knew he wanted me off his lands. I seriously think I had a death wish or something now that I think back but I just kept on teasing and taunting until I couldnt and I finally stepped off his lands. And even then, I still teased. I dont know how Steel put up with it. That's his name by the way, Steel. Steel Kaldorr. He was big enough for the both of us and seriously could have killed me if he wanted to. I mean-"

Inali didnt even have the chance to finish because at that moment, a Lunker of a log popped into her line of vision. She was so caught up in telling her story that she didnt see the thing before it was too late. To any one else, what happened next probably would've been hilarious, but to her, it was mortifying.

The small wolf tripped over the big log and her legs just tangled together. If that wasnt enough, she also didnt take notice of the big puddle of slush that was there either and the wolf smashed into the puddle face first. In seconds, her whole body was soaked. Trying to untangle her legs, the young she wolf sputtered slush out of her mouth. This is delightful, she thought sarcastically. And disgusting, she added as an afterthought.

A few silent moments passed, and then, a chuckle escaped Inali's maws. She should've been angry, embarrassed, humiliated. But instead the young wolf was laughing. The only thought that was running through her head was, How in the world am I going to go back home looking like this!?

Inali scrambled out of the muck and shook her fur, the dirty slush going everywhere. Only now remembering that Minka was still with her the she wolf turned to her friend, a sly smile on her face. Before her friend could figure out what she was plotting, Inali stretched her legs....and pounced.

(This post was last modified: Jun 05, 2013, 10:59 PM by Inali.)

she doesn't care how she gets there, as long as she gets somewhere she knows... Minka could see her friend become consumed with her thoughts once more and wondered what she was thinking about the encounter, but she felt her pride swell so she did not ask. I'm sure she is thinking what a fool you are, but she's too nice to say it. Somehow she couldn't shake the feeling of embarrassment and shame that flooded her every time she thought of that meeting, and the tinge of guilt, "You don't think it's important enough to bother Narimé with do you? She has enough on her plate with the pregnancy, as you saw it is taking quite the toll on her." The worry was plain upon her maw, her queen had lost a lot of weight though her stomach was swollen, the rest of her seemed gaunt. Food seemed to be her enemy, even when she did manage to scrounge up an appetite she lost all of the food within a few hours, little to no nutrients would be absorbed in that time. She tried to remember other pregnancies of faes she knew but failed, she did not have a lot of experience with this and she did not know whether this was normal or not. Minka racked her brain trying to remember if she knew what pack Steel belonged to, but came up blank, she had never met a Steel and had never heard one mentioned before. Amusement flashed across her face and she shook her head at her friend's story, she was beginning to see a fiery side to Inali that she had never seen before, and she liked it. She shrugged however and said, "I don't know of a Steel, so I couldn't tell you what pack you had wandered upon, one of the alpha's probably could though." She shrugged again and looked to her friend with a smile, and was about to ask her how far her teasing went when her friend tumbled. Laughter split her sides and she sputtered, "Are....Ar....Are....Y...You..Okay?" She gasped through her amusement, her sides beginning to cramp from the lack of oxygen. Suddenly she was hit with a spray of muck and she snarled teasingly at her friend, "You better watch it mutt or I will...." She never got to finish her sentence before the small furry body collided with her own. She felt their bodies roll across the ground a few times before stopping with Inali's atop her own, she growled playfully at her friend and nipped at her ear. Now that they were both completely covered in the muddy slush that covered the ground she gave a great shove with her front paws trying to knock her friend off of her. Laughing she rolled her eyes towards the rusty wolf, "Well now aren't we a sight for sore eyes? How am I supposed to introduce you to the pack when we look like this!" The words were teasing though and her golden eyes danced with amusement, oh she was so happy that she and her friend were reunited again.

table by mimi

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Sorry for the uber crappy post, cant find my muse:(

deep into that darkness peering,

Inali

i long stood there, wondering, fearing...

Inali landed on top of Minka with a soft thud. The force of her colliding with Minka's body brought them both to the ground. They rolled around on the ground a few turns, and finally stopped, Inali victorious on top. Inali smirked as Minka growled at her playfully. Yelping in amusement as MInka nipped her ear, Inali quickly leaned down, nipping Minka's shoulder in turn.

Nali could feel Minka's front paws moving and placed under her belly. With a great shove, the bigger wolf had pushed the petite wolf off easily. "Oof!," Inali exclaimed in surprise as she was pushed off of Minka, and landed a ways from her. And not to her surprise, in another puddle of slush. Bringing herself to her feet, the young she wolf laughed in amusement, her blue eyes twinkling.

Shaking her now-dripping fur out, Inali walked back towards Minka, a smile on her face.

"Well now aren't we a sight for sore eyes? How am I supposed to introduce you to the pack when we look like this!

Inali's ears pricked forwards, hearing the tease in Minka's voice clearly. Laughing slightly, Inali spoke, "Well, were just going to have to clean ourselves up, aren't we? There has to be a river around here somewhere, right?" Chuckling, Inali reached Minka and stretched her head upwards, since Minka was a bit bigger and kinda taller than her, to wrap her head around Minka's neck, in a sort of 'hug'.

"I'm glad your my friend Minka. I'm glad were here, together," Inali said. Of course she was talking about them being together in the pack, and she hoped that Minka caught that. Pulling away, she smiled at Minka. After a few moments of comfortable silence, Inali finally spoke up with renewed energy. "So, you excited for the pups? I cant wait for those little buggers to be born so I can just spoil 'em rotten!"

Near the end, I sorta found itxD So, its not that bad haha