The Wildwood When it Rains

Lani stood at the outskirts of the cave watching wairly. She was a little winded from her plow into the wall and slightly embarrassed, but she wasn't going to let that distract her. She paced back and forth waiting, should Red need her aid. So far the big female wasn't attacking, but seemed only to be forcing her way inside the small cave, while Red was slowly trying to force her way out. 'Two forces moving in different directions, one of them is going to have to give.' She thought to herself. She cringed as she thought of the large wolf baring down on Red. She stepped forward, about to make another attempt to move Big, hopefully one that didn't involve running into a wall, when suddenly the mood changed.

Big swung sideways positioning herself so that the smaller female could escape. Red lossened her grip and took a few free bounds before rounding back. She set her sights on Lani and slowly approached. Lani stood tall, and kept her face guarded. Red's signals seemed to be a little confused as if the fae couldn't decide what she was trying to portray. "This is one pretty mess, isn't it?!" She was still a little hostile, but it seemed as if she was offering something, apolgy maybe? It wasn't much but it was something, and if Red was going to try, Lani might as well meet her halfway. Lani gave a toothy grin. "In my case, maybe not so pretty." She said, nodding to her mud stained fur.

Red turned to big, who was now the only occupent of the cave. "But I guess you got everything you wanted, right?!" Lani positioned herself at Red's side, not showing friendship, she didn't trust her enough to call her a friend, but displaying a pact for mutual survival. Red began ranting at the female that was in the cave. Lani glanced at her, realizing that this might not be the end of the fight. While Lani was willing to defend Red, she wasn't going to fight over a little cave. Taking a chance, she placed down her own version of a white flag, she said to Red. "Come on, let's find somewhere else to sleep, since she's obviously not willing to share." Lani wasn't sure if Red would be willing to stay with her, but she didn't want to leave her alone with Big.

(This post was last modified: Oct 21, 2013, 02:02 AM by Lalani.)

Pain is like a fire, flaring, blooming; it had roared into life when the teeth had latched on, but quickly faded to a dull throb. The ache remained even though the teeth did not, and Cézanne's gaze was flat, unforgiving, as she regarded the field of.. victory? Hardly. Her pride was somewhat dented and the odds stacking up against her. Their desires had simply happened to align.A twitch ran along her lips.As dreary as the day was, it wasn't over. She remained silent—for now—and watchful, bright eyes skipping from one and to the next, and back again. The sound of rain was different in here, and her ears swiveled, mindful not to miss anything important, to not let the curtain muffle it. The fiery girl seemed to ally with Black, and Cézanne grit her teeth. She'd tested the mettle of the world, found it strong, yet she knew she might still pay for her wicked games. A ripple ran down the fur on her back. Somehow, she almost wanted them to rebound, come snapping at her with their hungry fangs, to once again release that flood of black rage. It had felt good.

And, of course, they did—after a fashion.Cézanne straightened up in her small shelter, ears sweeping forward and her lips curling into the subtlest of sneers. She'd let the girl out; did she want to come in again, or just to think that the world wanted to listen to her crying? Cézanne's eyes were cold and hard, drinking in the girl's defiance, tasting it—and answered it with a rumbling growl, thunder shivering through her chest. The black tip of her bushy tail stretched towards the roof, just as Aideen's went to the sky, and with tightly controlled rage, an edge to her step, she came halfway out again. She easily towered over them both. There were limits to how much folly Cézanne could take in a day, and this head-in-the-clouds, arrogant girl was rapidly approaching it.» And why do you believe you have a right to anything, if you cannot defend it? « she spoke in response, danger thrumming through her voice, her posture, black lips curling back to reveal her fangs. Was this girl a wolf, or a stupid mouse? First the don't-wake-me-up and now the whining; why was she still alive? Barely a breath passed before she settled her cold eyes on Black, debating whether or not to point out that she, in fact, had been willing to share, but clearly Aideen hadn't. Half a heartbeat's contemplation, and she decided it wasn't worth wasting her breath by fanning the flames of idiocy further. The sooner they packed up and left (or came to their senses, but Cézanne doubted they would), the happier she'd be. Cold as a statue but with fire running just beneath her skin, Cézanne waited, expecting anything or nothing. You could never tell what senseless, illogical brats would do.

Even as she snarled the words, the orange girl felled her temper fading, the cold rain washing down over her and cooling the hot anger. She wasn't even that mad really, just annoyed at the situation and the superior behavior of the big wolfess, so Black's words were easy to accept; I don't even wanna fight this bitch! Aideen rolled her shoulders and shook her head, water and tension leaving her body in equal measure, eyes still glaring at the light pelted cave dweller, but ears now halfway lifted from her skull. She was about to reply when Big gave her queenly response to the threat, approaching the two others with a booming growl. Aideen watched cautiously, ready to back up if necessary, but averse to running away from the brutish woman, to stubborn to let her violent ways win out. She responded with a snarl, but held her ground without advancing at the other, tail lowering to a neutral position; she wasn't gonna fight back. And she wouldn't argue anymore! I'm done with this! The tri-colored girl took half a step back, head and ears raised in a superior expression, voice cold as she spoke: <b style="color:#c7470f">"I believe in common courtesy, and sharing!" Glancing over at the black female while speaking the last words, her eyes softened and ears lowered slightly. She hoped the other would understand this as an acceptance of her proposal. There was still an apology that needed to be given, but Aideen would greatly prefer to save that until they had left Big behind. Word count: 258 I'm not stupid <b style="color:#c7470f">”I've got bark!”

PLOT WITH ME!

Lalani watched the two females, slightly irritated. Her anger at Big was gone now. They were in no serious danger, but now the two females were taking up precious time, and Lalani was now completely soaked to the bone. As Big stood there, looking high and mighty, Lani caught something in her gaze, but couldn't quite figure out what it meant. She watched as Red sent just one more dig at the female, but could tell that most of the fight had gone out of her. Lani stepped forward, effectively putting herself between the two and said, "The fight's over. We're done here." She looked to the sky, blinking away rain, not seeing anything but dark clouds.

Why had she gotten herself into this mess? She should have just moved on and found another place to rest. She'd probably be dry by now, and definitely not as tired. Glancing at the other two, she sighed. She couldn't have ignored the cave if she wanted to. She was too damn curious for her own good. She lifted her paw from the muck that used to be earth and watched with disdain as is slopped back to the ground. Looking back to Red she saw the look she gave Lani and resisted the urge to grin. At least she had managed to get something out of this, even if it meant just one less thing that was trying to kill her. She turned her head to the trees, not sure where in the world they should start looking for shelter. She had searched these woods but hadn't found anything promising. Heaving a heavy sigh, she said to Red, "I suppose we should get moving then, huh?"

There's never a reason to snap at each other's throats until life has been bled dry—not truly, and Cézanne knows this. Least of all is there reason, a just cause, to do it over something trivial, something as trivial as this. Still, it's a tempting thought for those who feel their hunger, their blood-lust, is never truly sated. Tempting, and foolish. Cézanne's cold eyes settled on the redhead girl, lashes keeping the rain at bay, and knew that all the things she could teach her, all the lessons she could carve into her skin, would only matter if she was alive. Corpses have no use for their knowledge, wisdom dries up as the blood does. Pride is a lousy thing to die for.The rain reminded them whose mercy they were at.Not Cézanne's, not Aideen's, not Lalani's.Nature's.Black forced herself in between them, the embers of anger going out in the downpour. The spikes in Cézanne's fur were not of wrath, but of wetness, and the rain sluicing down even had her ears momentarily abandoning their position to hide at the back of her head. A second later they flipped back up again, and instead of growling, she simply chuckled—dryly. » Sure you do, nose-biter. « There was more than a hint of irony in her voice, in her yellow eyes, but strangely enough it was mixed up with amusement. She'd gotten what she wanted, and after a fashion, the fiery one had, too. It seemed pointless to go on.

Still, her tail remained to the sky, but the paleness of her eyes seemed less harsh, more forgiving; the set of her ears more curious. Slowly she retreated a step back, away from the rain, though it still spattered down upon her nose, causing her whiskers to twitch. Her scruff ached, more so when the adrenaline faded, but she was a wolf, used to cuts and scrapes, so what's another one? Just another scar, marks that will fade but memories that will not. Memento mori.She hadn't won. She hadn't lost. She was satisfied, but barely, and suddenly the dreary rain seemed cold and foreboding, the forest and its endless song of pitter-patter unwelcoming; she was sheltered in the beckoning dark, and her eyes settled on the two females outside. Slowly, Cézanne sank down on her haunches, and her head tilted slightly to the side. What is kindness; mercy, pity, regret? She knew few of those, knew only the pulse of life, to take what you needed and damn the rest, but where survival is concerned it leads to few grudges. She would not fault a wolf who stole her food, only strive harder to be able to defend it. Some things are simply a part of life, acts with no personal meaning behind them.» I would not eat you, should you choose to come in. «And with that, and a small shrug, Cézanne rose gracefully and—slowly, ears listening to what they would do, or say—began to head into the comforting, dry darkness.It almost felt like fleeing from their inevitable rejection.

She flicked her ears back in annoyance when Black stepped between her and Big, blocking her view of the opponent, and speaking pretentious words. Did she not understand that a wolf needed to stand her ground, show others that they couldn't just get away with stomping on you?! On the other paw, Aideen couldn't fault the lass for wanting to prevent a fight, after all she didn't really want to make good of her threat, if it could be avoided. So she shook her fur, spraying a decent amount of water in direction of the dark wolfess, and gave her a sour look, but then stepped back and straightened her body, glancing to the sky with a small shiver. That shake didn't really make any difference... She noted, as droplets showered down over her snout; neither in making herself drier or Black wetter. The red girl sighed and looked back to the cave before her, posture and expression neutral. She eyed Black's muddy pelt, smiling sympathetically when she lifted her paw to watch the mud drop heavily; feeling the wet earth between her own toes. She was nodding along to the lass' suggestion, when Big's toneless voice sounded from her shelter, presenting another, thickly shrouded, offer. Aideen sneered, taking a few swift paces to get back into view of the self-righteous dame, only to be confronted with the swag of a high lifted tail, as Big disappeared into the shadows at the back of the cave; How MIGHTY big of you! The fae thought, snorting lowly, but she kept her mouth shut; as much as she was done fighting, she was done with arguing too. The rain kept pouring down as Aideen glanced to Black to see her reaction. As much as she wanted to find shelter, she wasn't keen on sharing the cave with this high and mighty she-wolf, she knew how little space there was in there. Tail oscillating wildly around her hocks to show her discomfort, she left it up to Black to make the decision: <b style="color:#c7470f">"What do you think?" Word count: 343 I'm not stupid <b style="color:#c7470f">”I've got bark!”

PLOT WITH ME!

Lalani had raised her head and found that she was being sprayed by yet more rain. She turned to look at Red and saw that the small female had shook out her fur, knowingly spraying Lani. Red shot her an irritated look, but she only ignored it. <She's a vindictive little bitch ain't she?> She would have said something except for the fact that it didn't really make any difference, she was wet, Red was wet, it didn't really change anything. She also didn't really feel the need to stir anything else up.

When Big spoke, Lani felt a flush of satisfaction. She had managed to stop the fight, but not only that, now Big was offering to share the cave. She was proud of herself considering that both females had firery tempers and were not easy to control. <If only Caniri was here to see this> Her joy vanished. Caniri. He wasn't going to be able to see anything any more. She had abandoned him. She heard Red speak but her voice sounded muffled and distant.

With the rain pounding down on them and sloucing off her back she turned to the cave. Her tail hung low as entered. She circled, then lay just inside the mouth. She was wet, exauhsted, and sick at heart. She really should be grooming some of the mud from her fur but she really just wanted to be done for the day. Shivering, she ignored the other two, and stared at the wall.

Ooc: Skipping Cézanne with permission from Fen

The drenched girl watched disheartened as Black silently accepted Big's offer and entered the cave, leaving her alone out in the rain. She had hoped the other fae would stick with her and they could find a dry spot together; There's still that apology... However it seemed that the dark wolfess was more interested in getting cover now, than getting away from Big, and by the look of her form, curled up near the cave mouth, staring at the wall, she wasn't open to any more discussion. To Aideen this was completely baffling, but then again, it had mainly been her who had had the beef with Big, and Black didn't know any of them; Maybe it isn't so strange... She hung her head, water dribbling to the ground from the tip of her snout, gazing into the dim shelter. The thought of cramming herself in between the two wolves was less than pleasing, especially having to lie close to the light-pelted giant. The red femme grunted and shook her head, eyes turning to watch the wet forest over her shoulder. She wasn't gonna do this. She couldn't! Even if she could forgive Big, she didn't trust her past a hair; any sleep se would get under this particular cover, would not be much use. Sighing, Aideen turned on her paws to continue her trek southwards, hopefully finding another, and more peaceful place to rest. As a salute to the two she-wolves, she turned her head and spoke lowly, in a tone that had a slight hint of poison; <b style="color:#c7470f">"Sleep tight." Then she left, head, tail and ears hanging even lower than when she had come. Word count: 276 I'm not stupid <b style="color:#c7470f">”I've got bark!”

Exit

PLOT WITH ME!

(If you actually don't want to thread anymore aideen, we can have this deleted.)

Lalani felt seperrated from her mind, she was in a dull and dead state while it ran wild. She watched her thoughts chase each other acoss the wall, snapping at each other with glinting teeth and slashing with claws set on rending an tearing. It was her own fault she was alone. She might as well have been the one to kill her brother. She watched as the phantoms on the wall morphed into her father, and Caniri, replaying that horrible day. The father phantom then changed before her eyes into a phantom of herself. She watched horrfied, yet unable to look away, as she tore into her brother. Somewhere in her mind, Lalani knew this wasn't normal. Maybe she was losing her sanity. She fought the urge to laugh histerically. It was ironic that her brother's life was lost to save her, only for her to go crazy. Through a haze she managed to make out a voice. "Sleep tight." It sounded dissapointed, almost sad.

Something in Lani surged forward. She recognized that voice it was Red's. She could hear her footsteps growing faint. Lani might not have known Red but still, she had risked her own safety to try to help the female. She wasn't sure why she had, just like she wasn't sure why she did this next part.

Her body acted of its own accord. She dashed into the rain, legs skidding in the mud and shaking slightly. "Please don't go!" She tried to keep her voice under control but found that some of the desperation leaked out. She snapped her jaws shut. What was her problem? What did she care if the female wanted to leave? The thought came unbidden. <You don't want to be alone> She screamed at her subconscious <I won't be alone! The other female is here.> But it decided to ignore her. She was definitely losing it, she needed some serious help. She couldn't tell if Red had stopped or not, she had turned her gaze to her feet, not in submission but in embarrassment. This could be a sign of weakness, needing the company. She glanced at Big out of the corner of her eye. Would she have done the same thing if she had decided to leave? Maybe. Lalani might not be completely sound but the company might just cure that.

Sorry for the delay, haven't had the best week.

The walls were rough, the floor hard, ticking to the rhythm of her crawling steps. Cézanne writhed, thick fur grinding against uneven rocks, until she lay propped up against the wall. She could see well enough in here, pupils wide, and was actually surprised to see that Black crawled into the mouth of the opening as well. The queen met it with a slightly surprised rise of one 'brow, an expression lost in the darkness between them and the other's vacant stare. It didn't look like she'd be trouble, if the set of her face was anything to go by.She had just decided to rest her head upon her paws, to let her frantic mind ease its grip on the world and sink into oblivion, when the black female rose, and bolted out into the rain. It happened so fast that Cézanne was halfway to her feet before she realized they were still safe—the rain fell in thick sheets, but the wind carried no scent of bear, or anything else that might pose a threat to a wolf. "Please don't go!" Seems like you picked me over her, the witch thought, lips curling into a grimace. And apparently it didn't sit well with the fiery girl.» Either come in and shut up, or follow and show that you mean it, « she advised with a certain lack of humor, but still, it was sincere advice. Never do anything half-assed; show that you mean it. Put your heart in it. You can't get if you never give. Strange wisdom coming from her, perhaps, but Cézanne settled back against the wall, lids closing over lantern-eyes while her ears waited, either to hear the sound of the female re-entering, or only the silence of the rain as she followed the other.Life was never easy, was it? Always those tough choices, between safety—comfort—and that.. other thing, altruism, empathy, company.Life's a bitch and so am I. Literally. With a smile, which origin she did not care to contemplate, Cézanne prepared to sink into the light doze of one remaining vigilant while resting.