Hush Meadow Scouting Around

It had been nearly a month now since she had returned to her pack. Content to leave Minka in her place for now, Narimé simply picked up on work that needed to be done. She had been a lead hunter in Willow Ridge nearing the tender age of two caused simply from her fathers basic teachings of the hunt and her own talent. Now she was using those skills to find any source of food for the dwindling if not empty caches that littered their territory.

Seeing how low the food stores were brought the silver wolf back to her senses. Instead of moping around because her sweetest quietest child seemed to hate her Nari took it upon herself to scout around searching for food. Though she was half tempted to howl for Inali's help, Narimé decided to bring someone who had wanted to stretch his legs for quite some time. Titan was not too far behind she was sure. Probably distracted by something or looking around at the scenery. He seemed to be very curious and adventurous, with large ears, joints, legs, and paws that didn't seem to fit any part of his lean body all straining to learn about the world around him.

She was proud of how he was growing. Though it was hard to tell how tall the young male was when Titan kept his head lowered most of the time around the other adults. Now, out in the open obviously in a place where he felt comfortable, Titan held himself upright. She could see that he might very well be taller than her now.

It was all the more reason to be looking for more food now. Not just to feed the pups her were about adult size, but also to feed the rest of the pack.

"If you catch site of anything or smell something that's like food tell me and we'll investigate." Nari gave a loud bark to the young boy someplace behind her though she was unsure if he was listening. Then she looked back to the barren wintry landscape around her. As she pushed through plowing through the snow, Nari found herself wondering if any of her other pack mates were nearby. She and Titan wouldn't call the others closer until they found something. If they came across a carcass it was likely that the pair would simply eat their fill then take the remains to the rest of the pack. That was if there was enough on the carcass or even a carcass around at all. For now she scented nothing.

Absolutely nothing.

However, if something edible were to run by she would quickly call up her pack for a hunt that they definitely needed for their low winter stores. It was all up to whether they found anything out in this cold hell.

(This post was last modified: Feb 05, 2014, 12:21 AM by Narimé.)

It was a bit awkward to be trailing along after his mother. Honestly Titan had expected her to yell at him and punish him for being bad while she was gone. For all the times he had disappeared either attempting to hunt, learning borders, and the one time he had gone after her and gotten very... very lost.

So why hasn't she yelled at me yet? Keeping himself far behind the silver form of his mother Titan thought back to when he'd first seen that she had gotten back. He and his siblings had been called by her back to the den so that she could talk to them.

When Titan had first looked upon his fatigued lean mother he was struck by how small she seemed.

Now he could tell that it was really his body that had gotten bigger. His mother was still that tall strong woman he looked up to and loved with every beat of his heart. Maybe that's why she let me come along... Or maybe this is punishment for all the stuff I did... He really couldn't be sure. Not unless the child actually decided to ask her himself.

The dark Thorben had been gathering up the courage to ask his mother if she hated him when her bark reached his ears. She told him to look out for food and anything that smelled like food. Then the lithe gray form went silent once more. It took another few minutes before Titan began rambling about what he was thinking.

"Momma? Are you at all mad at me? For like... getting lost a while ago when you were gone?" He asked wondering if she would snap at him for being reminded of his stepping out of bounds or if she would continue to be as patient as normal. For now she seemed to look more calm than angry as she pushed a trail through the snow where he could follow more easily.

WHISPER Caverns

They had moved a good few hundred yards through the high snow before her ears caught Titan's voice sounding warily behind her. She paused in her snow plowing before closing her eyes and sighing.

She had been a little annoyed at that bit of information when Inali and Malia told her that Titan had gone missing for some time from the pack. However knowing that he had been found again had curved the anxiety Nari would have had if Minka had not found her child. I can't growl at him for something that I always used to to myself. Even before Willow Ridge I liked the adventure of roaming around with da. Even with danger being all around us... She thought quietly then turned her loving gaze to look down on her firstborn.

"You are getting older now so I don't mind you wandering so much, and I suspect you know the reasons why you weren't supposed to wander too far before..." She paused then thinking of how to say her next comment. "Besides I think Tokino might have punished you enough since then. I have no need to now... Unless you want me to punish you?" She gave him a crooked smile then turned and began plowing through the snow again. She couldn't punish him for something that had already happened such a long time ago. Instead she hoped that his experiences would teach the young boy that he should be more careful.

Her nose went to work again but not a scent came to it. The chill wind had died down now making the hunter wish that she were a bird who could spot food from miles away.

"So...I'm curious. Will you tell me what you saw on your journey and who you met?" She cast the question over her shoulder unafraid of startling any prey since there was a lack of anything around this winter.

(This post was last modified: Jan 30, 2014, 01:44 AM by Narimé.)

When his mother had paused Titan hadn't noticed. He had his eyes to the ground while his nose got hit full on by her silvery tail. The boy pulled himself up quickly before colliding fully with Narimé then stepped to the side while she looked at him with a look that crumbled his hard facial features. Her soft gaze made his face melt to a blubbery mess.

Shespoke and his ears angled quickly to catch her words. Surprise graced his darker blue gaze while her lighter one looked over him.

"You are getting older now so I don't mind you wandering so much, and I suspect you know the reasons why you weren't supposed to wander too far before..." He listened as she dismissed his wanderings so quickly still unsure why his mother was going so easy on him when everybody else had been all pissed about it.

"Besides I think Tokino might have punished you enough since then. I have no need to now... Unless you want me to punish you?" The question following her words brought clarity to the young male. She knew that the others had already punished him. So she doesn't want to punish me anymore... He mused quietly then quickly added a fast shake of his head to answer her amused crooked grin.

"No I think I'll pass on being punished more." He answered quickly and wisely while watching the gray wolf turn back around and begin pushing through the high snow once more.

Titan was still amazed that she didn't feel angry at him. It lifted his spirits and for a moment Titan felt the urge to briskly run around her plowing and playing in the snow as he went. He might have grown but Titan was a momma's boy who still liked to goof off and have fun when the time was right.

He started jogging forward and stepping into the chest high snow when Nari's voice made him pause. Changing direction, Titan moved back onto the trail his mother had plowed and listened. Why would she want to know where I went? Was the first question that came to his mind however he was quickly able to answer that. She was worried about me. Maybe momma wants to know if I was in any dangerous situations... He felt apprehension at answering her. If he told her the truth she might tell him that he was not allowed out again. ...but she already said she was okay with me wandering... He paused a second more before moving to her right to help push through the snow.

"Well... First I went to Willow Ridge cause you have friends there, but I didn't smell you anywhere near there. So then I was heading back when I saw some really big birds. " He paused wrinkling his nose at the memory. "They were very large and most of them ran along the ground. I chased them trying to catch one to eat..." He looked down in embarrassment afraid to tell his mother what had happened next.

"One of the biggest birds hurt me. It cut right here." He paused while walking and pointed to his thick chest fur while moving away the fur to show the small scar. "Then after I ran away from it I realized that I had chased them into a place that was very wet with tall grasses that had thick ends on them." Titan tried describing the cattails he had seen but it was hard when he didn't know how to describe a plant very well yet.

"A young lone female wolf then came by and bugged me for a while until I finally ran off... " the dark Thorben growled as he mentioned the young female. She had been very rude. "That's pretty much how I got lost." Picking up his head once more Titan glanced towards his mother to see the reaction on her face.

"After that I started for the closest forest I could see. A few days later I found some weird place with a lot of water, but the water was hard and cold. I don't know the word for it, but I almost fell in when I thought I heard thunder. It was then that I ran onto the bank into sharp bushes while looking for cover." He smiled sheepishly knowing that his mother would be worried about the frozen water part of his story. It was why when Malia had ventured out onto the frozen water that Titan had wanted her to get off of it so badly.

"Then a nice guy helped me out of the thorny plants. His name was Gent Lieris, he even helped make a shelter for me, and also tried sending me in the direction that a pack was in.. " He smiled at that memory. Titan was glad that not all loners were sadistic bitches like the first loner he had come across.

"It was quite some time later, days maybe even weeks that I can't remember when I ran into a big male named Maksim Baranski. He was really nice and offered to help me look for you. " After realizing that helping to plow the snow was actually getting into Nari's way Titan slipped back behind her as he spoke his story to the silver woman. So now he couldn't gauge her reaction to his story.

"He leads a pack called Cut Rock River pack. They live in a forest much different than ours. It has tall trees that don't lose their leaves in winter, and I even got to see what a river was." He explained while completely forgetting his original mission to scent for food of any kind.

"Some time after that Minka came to the border of Cut Rock River and talked to Maksim. He realized that she was from the pack I came from and called me there. From there on I was back in Whisper Caverns getting barked at by Uncle Tokino..." He finished not hiding the bit of disdain in his voice for the silver hued male that lorded over the young pup like he was his father or something. Heck, even Sloane hadn't bossed Titan around like Kino had.

WHISPER Caverns

Narimé listened quietly until she felt Titan come up beside her. He wasn't looking her way but the child's strong steps assured her that he was trying to help with the path. Unfortunately the pup wasn't walking evenly with her so the snow tended to fall into her direction making it a bit harder to plow through the thick white stuff.

She had caught the relief in his gaze before when Nari had said that she wasn't going to punish him. Then her gaze fell on the landscape ahead of them searching for any sign of movement. Her nose worked also while the silver womans ears flicked listening to Titan's still youthfully high voice.

Narimé listened as Titan first spoke of visiting Willow Ridge. She was a bit surprised at the fact that he knew of her former pack, but felt no anxiety over him visiting there. She trusted Willow Ridge and its wolves to be good to her own family and pack mates as they were closely tied to each other from the start.

"What you saw was a gang of turkeys. Turkey's are large birds that mostly move around on land." She taught her son the name of the bird species he had seen. Normally a wolf wouldn't worry about the huge number of birds and their names, but anything that could be of use to them still had a name. Crows, ravens, and vultures were useful to wolves because they sometimes showed where a carcass was if the wolf couldn't smell it themselves. Turkey's were on the list of birds to know because they were something that was hunted, albeit hunted only rarely. Eagles and hawks were dangerous to pups while they are small; so those birds also had names to the wolves.

When her child got to the part where he was describing the first strange place Narimé tried to think of what he was describing. A wet place with tall grasses? Grasses with clumps on the ends of them? Cattails maybe? He must have been in the marsh... She reasoned rather quickly while Titan paused in his speaking.

"That wet place with the grasses was Whisper Marsh. The marsh is actually somewhat close to our territory. If you go straight north..." She gestured with a flick of her tail in the northern direction. "...from Whisper Caverns territory you will run right into the marsh." The silver wolf explained as she plowed forward.

As for the grasses he had seen she was not positively sure if they were cattails or not. So Nari didn't speak of naming them. There were many kinds of grasses around that she could get him mixed up with if she taught him wrongly. I'll leave plant teaching to Simaea..hehe...

Her thoughts stopped as the silver flecked dark child began speaking again. Nari was a bit worried hearing about the lone female. What happened in the past is something I can't change... At least he wasn't killed by her. She tried thinking of ways to help him keep things from happening like that again. The only thing she could come up with was to feed him till he was big then teach him how to defend himself properly.

After a second of pause Nari spotted him looking towards her. She gave him a nod to say she was listening then turned her gaze back to the snowy world. The Thorben started speaking of a large water filled place. Though she was confused for a moment when he'd said the water was hard. It wasn't until Titan said "and cold" that she realized he was talking about ice. When he stopped to shrug sheepishly she gave him a quick nudge on the shoulder worry clouding her gaze.

He had been in a lot of danger while out on his own.

All she could do now was teach him about those experiences.

"When the world gets cold like this and the white snow falls, that is the time of winter. The tree's sleep and many of their leaves fall. Then the water freezes up. The cold hard water is called ice, and if the ice is too thin it will not hold your weight on top of it. Wolves die when they walk out onto thin ice, but if the ice is thick enough it can be safe. You just have to be really careful and make sure it is strong enough to go out on." She explained ice to him while purposefully looking towards her sons deep pool blue gaze. She wanted him to remember the dangers of ice. Though that might be unnecessary since he had already almost fallen through thin ice before.

Another minute passed and Nari was looking out over the snow again clearing a trail beside her boy. He spoke of a male named Gent Lieris. She spoke the name in her head over and over again in order to remember it. If the mother ever met the wolf who had helped her son she would be dearly indebted to him for some favor in turn.

Then the rather one sided conversation turned to a male named @Maksim . Nari had not known of a pack to the north of their territory. She would have to check them out one day or speak with Minka about them. If Minka met with them she must have been there on business. I wonder if she tried to ally our packs? silver ears angled sideways as Titan spoke the name of the pack. Cut Rock River... Nari would definitely remember that.

"One day I'll have to visit with them and say thanks for helping you out. Maybe you would like to come with me when I do?" She smiled as Titan began to slip behind her. He must have realized just how much snow he was pushing into her path.

Sighing the young alpha continued pushing forward a bit depressed that she hadn't been able to help Titan while she was gone. Hunger racked through her belly as the lack of prey scent and sight fluttered at the edge of her consciousness. Was there truly nothing to be found in the meadow? Not a rabbit, hare, or even one damn coyote?

He was feeling a little less awkward walking with his mother than when they had first started their little scouting trip. Now Titan thought silently upon the information that Narimé had given him. He had nodded and given her a slight woof "yes" when his mother asked if he wanted to go with her to Cut Rock River one day. He would be happy to go see Maksim again. The River male had been respectable and kind to Titan while he stayed for a short time on the fringes of the alpha's territory.

Now they were quiet. The snow buffeted the pair of wolves fur as they trudged onward. Titan was reminded of why he was brought out here in the first place when he noticed his gray mother sniffing the air around her. Lifting his own regal dark crown, Titan Thorben sniffed the frozen air. His blue gaze traveled around to the nothingness of the surrounding landscape. It was stark gray all over. From the snow covered earth to the gray skies where snow still fell.

He felt like all the food they would have normally been able to find might be under all the snow and ice. The thought brought the question to mind, When will I eat again? as Titan sighed fitfully hearing his mothers stomach growl. They were both hungry, but so was the rest of the pack. Does that mean the rest of the packs are doing bad like us? He wondered nonchalantly while turning his gaze to the right. High in the sky a bird screeched bringing his attention to the tiny speck barely discernible among the thick gray clouds.

It seemed today was going to be a long day.

WHISPER Caverns

(This post was last modified: Jan 30, 2014, 08:38 PM by Titan.)

Now that silence enveloped the silver woman and her dark crow child Nari was able to further concentrate on finding food. Of course it didn't help that she couldn't even spot any tracks of prey in what seemed like virgin snow. No mark disturbed the perfect surface of the great white expanse before them spare for their own trail.

The gray she wolf eyed the sky with her light bluish gaze where the sound of a bird screeched from above. Glancing back to Titan Nari realized that he was probably no longer a good target for hawks and eagles. The boy was still light framed; not having the muscle of a full grown male, but he was by far tall enough to keep any predatory bird from thinking the child as a meal. So she worried not about the eagles call from on high. Instead she began searching for groups of ravens, crows, or vultures. The hunter mostly did this because she couldn't scent anything whatsoever. So perhaps the birds might tell the she wolf where a meal could be.

More time passes as the she wolf loops around Hush meadow. There was no doubt that food was not going to be found within their own hunting territory. The only other places Narimé could think to look were within the forests where food for deer may still be on or below the trees. However now Nari would have to be careful of Willow Ridge wolves in Drooping Willows and this new pack Cut Rock River in Cedarwood forest.

"Perhaps I should ask Inali if she wants to scout around with me tomorrow." Narimé spoke mostly to herself thinking that Inali might want something to do a part from sleeping within the den. Although at the rate this winter was going that might be the only thing she and her pack could do. Just sleep the last few months away.

The wolf felt as if she had become a walking icicle. She paces slowly, conserving what heat she had left in her body. Her tail remained lowered and tucked against her hind legs. A pounding headache made her a bit clumsy; she would trip here and there in the snow. Food is what was on her mind. Traveling during the winter had been a mistake, but it was one she would remember. Pausing, Coquina lifted her muzzle into the cold air. As a wind blew, the scent of other wolves entered her cold nostrils. A shiver ran through her body before she shook her coat out. Curiosity began to take over her mind, and she obeyed. The adventurous woman picked up her pace now, a bit excited.
Her bear-like face remained lifted as she continued to scent the air. Where were they? She couldn't tell how many wolves there were, be she definitely knew there was more than one. Quin could be getting herself into trouble without realizing it.... what if they weren't friendly? She was in no mood nor shape to fight. At least she could easily see what was around her. There were barely any trees to obscure her vision. The wind blows again, sweeping snow that was already on the ground into the air. Squinting, Coquina continues forth. Her ears flattened against her head as she trudged forward.
After many minutes passed, Quin perked up as the silhouettes of wolves came into sight. The blowing snow made it very difficult to see. The woman stopped in her place, feeling her heart rate begin to rise. It would be better for them to approach her first. If they ran toward her, she would run. If they walked, she would remain calm. Perhaps they wouldn't notice her at all.

You can skip Nari. She'll post after you do.

Titan relaxed as he sped along behind his mother. He marveled at how the white flakes of snow hit his chest and legs. The little frosted stars would sit there for a few moments before melting which allowed the young male to view their splendid crystals. The triangular and star-like shapes intrigued him as liquid blue eyes stayed distracted upon the snow. Titan didn't realize when he'd picked up his pace until he bumped into his mothers tail a second time.

Whipping his eyes up Titan slowed quickly to a leisurely walk until a snowflake landed in his eye. Blinking and looking at the snow flakes overhead the young Thorben snapped his jaws at the teasing flakes. He grabbed them and relished how the cold things melted in his mouth. Then, very childishly, Titan sprang into the snow to the silver hunters right landing softly on his side and mouthed at the falling snowflakes. Yanking his head from side to side the boy snapped at all the white flakes he could grab. Then with a burst of playful energy he sprang up from his soft but chilled bed and ran around the snow. His ebony form in high contrast to their surroundings, Titan ran around chasing the falling snowflakes with his tail wagging furiously.

Looping around his mother one last time and laughing; Titan dashed forward past his mother head swinging to catch every last crystalline piece of water floating from the sky. The dark blue gaze of Narimé's son fell upon a white figure well hidden in the background of the snow. If he hadn't been rushing towards her Titan would not have seen her. His eyes widened as he slowed to a stop and looked over the female from a good distance away. There were a few white wolves Titan had met and known in his short life. Ashanti was one but she had been bigger than this wolf. Instead his thoughts turned to the Poisoned Princess. Had Aphie returned?

"Aphrodite?" Titan called his tail wagging in a friendly manner. The wind was blowing at his back so neither he nor the child's mother could scent the newcomer well.

WHISPER Caverns

(This post was last modified: Feb 05, 2014, 01:02 AM by Titan.)

One of the figures began to come toward her. Feeling herself stiffen up, the Ladios woman did not move. Her golden-brown eyes watch as the wolf came closer and eventually stopped. The dark-pelted wolf called out to her. It sounded like a name... Aphrodite? What? She was only capable of hearing him clearly due to the wind's direction. It had carried his voice to her frozen ears. Confusion now strung itself up in her mind. With a tilt of her head, Coquina steps forward. She parts her jaws to speak: "Aphrodite? I am not her...." her voice drifts off in the wrath of winter. With another step, her smooth voice sounds once more "I am Coquina." She felt like she hadn't spoken to a wolf in forever. Surprised that her voice came out calm, she allows a small and friendly smile to cross her muzzle.
She had never been mistaken for another wolf before. She felt a little embarrassed... not for herself, but for him. Stopping a short distance from him, Quin awaits his actions. Her breathing remains steady as she steels herself. Her skin was itching from the cold; her thick coat seemed like it was worthless. Gazing at the wolf, Coquina did not feel threatened. It seemed as if they were out on some duty- perhaps they belonged to a pack. Who was the other wolf with him? Her gaze switches to Nari now, who is but a mere silver blur in the blizzard of snowflakes. "Who are you, if you don't mind me asking?" She returns her gaze to Titan. Black-tipped tail flicks side to side for a moment before holding still once more. It felt like it was going to snap right off.