Cedarwood Forest Leading Me Astray

Sunlight cuts through the thick leaves and branches of the sprawling forest, casting shafts of light onto the soft floor below. Despite the Suns' harsh glare, it was still relatively cool amongest the scattered trees as it was protected by sweeping branches and broad, greedy leaves. The good weather sent the forest dwelling creatures into a quiet lull, the ambient sound of birds calling providing a white noise as the larger creatures went about their business of foraging or hunting.

Jackdaw weaves his way between the sentinel trees, amber eyes scanning the unfamiliar territory as he moves onwards. His long tail sweeps behind him, curled slightly to show the tension he still held despite the peaceful atmosphere. He pauses, inhaling deeply. He can smell predators, sharp and musky on the breeze. There is a pack, or perhaps packs, in this territory and he'd rather not run into them. It seems the scent of strange foes comes from every direction. Where the Hell had he lead them to now?

He shakes out his dark pelt with a snarl, the black fur heavy with the suns relentless heat. This place has his hackles up. He doesn't trust it.

He swivels his broad head back at the sound of clumsy paws clattering through the undergrowth. He winces in agitation, glaring as his sister comes into view. She wags her tail at him, tongue lolling from her mouth.

"Please, make some more damn noise. I don't think the entire fucking ecosystem knows we're here yet."

He snaps, amber gaze cutting back to the dense surroundings. He is now stiff with paranoia, surely someone must already know of their presence, and squints into the darkness of the forest. He doesn't like this place, doesn't like all these trees. Their homeland had been rocky, any trees were scattered about sparsely. He longed for that openness now as he searches the enclosed, cluttered area before him for any hidden threats.

He also longs for the guarantee of steady prey a pack would bring him. It was getting to the point that feeling hungry was becoming a normal part of his routine. Sure, they could go a while longer without food, their ribs had still yet to press against their flesh, but he'd been sacrificing most of his share to Falcon. And he supposed he was a rather spoilt bastard, having grown up in a large pack that always had plentiful food. He was just a pathetic puppy, wailing for its' mothers breast, at this point.

He shakes his head with a snap of his teeth, setting his nose to the ground now. He snuffles around quietly, searching for some sort of prey-scent they could exploit. What a Tor damned hassle this shit was. He wasn't a tracker, his nose had been the brunt of too many attacks to be of any use to him in the finding food department. It was bullshit, that's what it was.

"We need to find food or some shit. Today preferably. Then we can get the fuck out of here, this place puts my teeth on edge."

He grumbles to his sister, peering into the shadows with caution once more.

Falcon, on the other hand, was rather enjoying herself! The tawny female bounded behind her brother, taking great pains to stick her nose in every hollowed tree or rotting log. There were so many hiding places for food! She wasn't sure what Jackdaw was bellyaching about. She'd even found a funny looking toad, though knew better than to try and eat it. That lesson was learned long before back home where the toads tasted worse than dung. But she did paw at it until it rolled on its back and feigned death. Falcon knew that trick as well, but she left that one alone considering her brother's fast pace.
At his snapped response to her approach, Falcon had half a mind to grin and howl. "Your growling is louder," she said instead since he did have a point. They'd been traveling along several boundary lines for the past few days and she felt certain they would run into a pack any day now.

Part of the female longed for it. She missed being around other wolves. Thrived on those interactions, even. However, her brother had been right to leave. Now that she was away, she could look back and see she was being taken advantage of in their last pack. When in the midst of such things, it was often hard for her to notice. Falcon was so concerned about others that she hardly ever thought of her own well-being. She was simply grateful to belong to a strong pack that could provide food in her belly and a nice place to sleep.

Her brother hadn't been so grateful and she was relieved to have him away from them, too.

Her ears quivered as she heard a soft whistling. Falcon closed her eyes and listened more closely before her mouth fell open in a wide grin, eyes twinkling merrily. The darker left eye carried a mischievous glint before she raced towards the sound on fleet paws.

Using a log for a boost, Falcon launched into the sky to yank down a fleeing mourning dove. The bird gave only one flap of its wings in her mouth before falling still as her jaws punctured air sacs and suffocated the animal. Her namesake had been well chosen by her mother; Falcon loved to hunt birds.

She trotted back to her brother with pride in her step before setting it at his feet and licking his muzzle. "Better?"

Jackdaw snaps his teeth at Falcon.

"My growling wont be so loud when its' muffled by your throat. You could stand to loose some flesh from that region, it might make you a little damn quieter. I'm sure you don't need your throat completely intact to live a rich and fulfilling life."

He stomps onwards, eyes still alert on the surrounding darkness. He starts to pace uncomfortably in one spot, pelt bristling as the scents of predators clog up his senses. He doesn't like this. He doesn't like that the scents are so fresh and diverse. From this distance, he still can't estimate how many there may be living in this territory. If it's a large pack, they are thoroughly fucked. If that's the case they'll be lucky to be hounded from the area without new breathing holes.

He flinches at the sound of rushing pawsteps, whirling around to watch his sister bound across the forest floor and launch herself into the air with the aid of a log. He already has a scream of frustration and rage building in his throat, hadn't he just fucking said to be quiet?! He was sure as shit he had said to shut the fuck up! It instead gets chocked off when Falcon comes back to earth, a dove crunched between her jaws.

Jackdaw pants slightly to ease the tension which had gripped his body, eyes closed as he battles down the fierce temper howling within him. He listens as Falcon pads over to him, lets her lick his muzzle.

"You great, slobbering meowbeast. Good catch, asshole. "

He snaps out, shaking his fur to smooth it down. All in all, the catch had been clean and quiet. And he had said they needed to find food. He would just like it if Falcon would fucking communicate with him before sprinting headlong into things. Thankfully it was just a bird and not the jaws of some starving horrorterror she had run to.

He butts at her side and straightens up to peer around once more. Maybe they shouldn't have hunted here. He isn't sure if they'd passed any boundaries or not and if a pack did live near by, or nearer by than he expected, then they could technically be poaching. Better eat fast.

He tears off the wings, quickly and efficiently, and leaves the rest for Falcon. She caught the feathery asshole, she can have the good meat.

Jackdaw starts to pluck the feathers from his share, spluttering in irritation as he does so. Fucking feathers getting stuck between his teeth!

"Better get that down your meat chute fast, Falcon. If this is someones' territory, they're not gonna like us plucking this feathery bag of dicks. It's eat-and-run, fastest one out of the Forest of Disembowelment gets the grand prize of keeping their blood-pushers. "

He growls around his meal, pausing every so often to glare around suspiciously.

Though Jackdaw sounded about as kind as a territorial cougar, Falcon knew he meant well. She practically vibrated at his completely, unable to hold still while her tail wagged happily. He was mellower while he ate, she very well knew. As long as no one else was around. Falcon shook her head and went on guard for him. "I ate a toad," she lied easily. It hadn't escaped her notice how he'd been giving her the majority of their shared meals to make up for the so-few ones she was allowed in their previous pack.

The lowest rank, a hungry wolf did make.

Though she knew he'd be loathe to hear it, Falcon always thought Jackdaw sounded like a grumbling feline when eating. It made her smile as her eyes tracked up to the tree tops.

Falcon was used to seeing the sky at home no matter where she was. It was a little disconcerting to look up and see only branches and leaves. But the songs and calls of birds were familiar, even if they weren't the same, and allowed her to feel comfortable enough in this strange land. Besides, Jackdaw did enough worrying for the pair of them.

"It can't hurt to linger for a bit."

Besides, she wanted to explore still. Perhaps it was the pup in her. The part that never grew up.

That part took hold front and center when she saw a squirrel leap above to a neighboring tree. The bushy-tailed mammals were rare at home and so fun to chase!

Falcon couldn't help the excited yips that fell from her mouth as she bounced up and down, though the animal was far out of reach and paid her no mind at all. Her barks and yips were more than enough to draw attention to any potential wolves nearby.

For the past few weeks, Aphrodite had been hard at work with Tokino. Her advisor training was going quite well. At least she thought it was going well. The girl hadn't been too bothered to ask her mentor about it since she didn't necessarily want to be told that she was doing badly. He hadn't been correcting her too much and she'd been enjoying their lessons, so Aphrodite was quite certain that she was well on her way to becoming a queen. Not that she'd ever tell Lady Minka or even her mentor that. She was just studying to become an advisor. That was all.

Tokino had given her the day off though, and she'd taken advantage of it. Rising early to keep up the habit, she decided to make the short trip to Cedarwood forest. Aphie wasn't quite ready to face the mountain yet. Although, if that was due to physical or mental limitations, she couldn't yet admit it to herself. The day was growing into a cool yet pleasant one, and once she found herself among the shady branches of the trees, she felt right at home. The open air of the territory her pack rested beside was still something she was working to get used to, so the dense cluster of wood that was Cedarwood forest was perfect.

If not a bit loud. Somewhere up ahead a couple of wolves were having what sounded a bit like a one-sided conversation and there was the rustling of flora. Her nose twitched with interest, though it didn't seem as though either wolf were affiliated with a pack. Aphrodite hadn't exactly planned on spending her day coaxing strangers, but a crowded home was a happy home. As she approached the group, teal eyes occasionally squinting through a bright burst of light that came through the trees, she spotted a lighter colored female about to chase a squirrel up a tree. She kept her distance (a few yards) from the duo, but made no attempt to hide.

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There is a deer that was killed by a lynx nearby. +10 Health

Jackdaw snorts, unimpressed by Falcons' blatant lie. Did she smell of toad blood? No, she did not. Why the fuck bother lying to him at all. His nose sucks dicks at tracking but it isn't fucking broken. But he indulges her, only giving her a quick glare that tells her if she was a stealth-wolf she'd be a very dead stealth-wolf.

He goes back to the damnable task of picking feathers from his teeth, crunching on the still hot mess of meat and bones. He relishes in the feel of hot blood welling in his mouth, the cloying, metallic film that coats the inside of his throat as he chews. He curses a few times, feathers jabbing at the roof of his mouth. He gives up at some point and just drags his tongue heavily over the warm flesh instead of chewing the matted substance.

He snorts at his sisters' suggestion.

"Please stop before your idiocy becomes contagious. No really, it's catching, I can almost feel my brain trying to chew through my cranium and escape. Why the fuck would you even want to stay in this cluttered shitfest? Can't even see the fucking sky through all these over-sized saplings."

He glares around as though the trees personally offend him. They do, actually. Fucking trees, clogging up his senses with their grand abundance of sap-scent. He fucking hates trees, he decides. Waste of valuable space he could be using to search for things.

At the moment Falcon starts yapping incessantly, he snarls loudly and bares his teeth in her direction.

"Shut your diseased word-hole, shitreed! Are you fucking trying to alert our presence to every being capable of thought within a three mile radius? If you don't fucking desist in your attempt to get us both heinously butchered I'll fucking choke you on your own tail! I'd try to explain the reasons of shutting your mouth to you if I wasn't so fucking sure everything slithers right on out of your ears as soon as its' spoken. Shut up!"

He barks in frustration, getting to his paws to bound after her and beat some sense into her great, impenetrable skull. He halts however, choking on his wrathful shouting. He goes stiff all over, coarse fur bristling. His ears ram forward, even his broken one that always flops over, and he stares intently into the darkness.

"Falcon. Falcon, get back over here. Now."

He bites out lowly, voice hoarse from the growl that rumbles underneath it. They're being watched, how the fuck did he not notice it before. There's something just before them, slinking amongst the trees. His body is a rigid line, muscles taut and ready. Ready for what?

"I know you're out there so you better hurry the fuck up and show yourself before I get really pissed off and come in there after you."

He snarls, pupils blowing wide to try and take in more light. He slinks over to his sister, taking a defensive stance before her should they be pounced at. He snarls as his shitty eyes finally make out the strange predators outline and he notices with supreme fucking wrath that it wasn't even trying to hide, it was just standing there and watching them. He snaps his teeth briskly.

"Who are you and where the fuck did you come from? Are there more of you, we know there's a pack somewhere in here so you better not fucking lie to me the second you open your maw. "

He asks shortly, amber eyes intent. His long tail writhes in an offensive gesture as he waits for the other to identify itself. He isn't taking any shit, not today.

Falcon wriggled with delight as the squirrel scampered closer down the tree. Her eyes were intense on the bushy-tailed mammal as it flicked its tail in an almost teasing fashion. The tawny female's bark of invitation for the little squirrel to join them was interrupted by Jackdaw's yowling. Falcon hardly spared him even a glance and continued on with the ruckus.

His voice took on the kind of serious tone that put her on edge, however, and she turned to face the same direction he was glaring. She peered around her brother, tail wagging while her head automatically lowered as she regarded the newcomer. When Jackdaw snapped at the poor female, Falcon nipped at his shoulder lightly.

"Don't be so mean," she chided lightly, stepping around the dark male to cautiously step closer. She didn't mention to him that he had feathers hanging from his chin still.

Falcon was careful to avert her eyes between pauses, but her tail lay low and wagged in fast, wide swings. "What my brother means is that we're sorry if we've intruded on your pack's territory." Though the female was awfully goofy, she did understand diplomacy.

"I'm Falcon and he's Jackdaw." She would have added that his bark was worse than his bite, but her rump knew otherwise from their play fights! Trying to keep the peace when her brother was so quick on the offense—he saw it as defense—was always a challenge, but Falcon hoped the female wasn't easily offended by crass language.

"We've come from a long way. I hope your pack won't mind that we took a bird. Well, I did. We're a little hungry. And tired," Falcon admitted, her tail slowing as she dipped her head lower in apology. In tense situations, she tended to talk a little too much.

Aphrodite had not expected such flak from simply standing nearby. She'd been about to speak, make her presence more known before the dark wolf, a male, began to aim rather violent words at her. Stepping closer to them, she revealed herself, and the fact that she was larger than both of them. A jowl lifted at the male, exposing her white teeth. But that was the only attention that she gave him before turning her bright, expressive gaze upon the paler female that he had summoned to his side. He had called her Falcon, but it seemed as though he said quite a lot of things, all of which she cared little for. She'd had enough abuse for a lifetime, and she was not about to take it from a stranger and a loner at that. Falcon, if that was her name, seemed much kinder, and Aphrodite was more than willing to give her attention to that stranger.

"Oh, don't worry about it. As far as I know, there's no pack around here, and I ought to know." Her eyes rolled up and away, somewhat giddy that she'd learned so much in so short a time, not that her happy tone or expression would mean much to these two. Of course, she knew there was a pack nearby, but they weren't on their lands. Still somewhat frustrated by the male's attitude, she couldn't quite bring herself to smile directly at the pair or wag her tail as she refocused. Her own body language was partially aggressive. Hackles raised and tail held high, she would keep her tone friendly, but her gaze hardened somewhat.

With a sideways glance at the woman's companion, Aphrodite scowled and turned her eyes back on the woman after a short second, "For someone so tired, it seems your brother speaks an awful lot." Aphie spoke most unapologetically, pale brows arching over her eyes. She had come to the pair in the hopes of drawing them towards Black Thorn Downs, but she wasn't so sure she wanted to anymore. The girl seemed kind, but undoubtedly she'd go where her brother led.

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At Falcons' nip, Jackdaw turned to her with mouth wide open and fangs dripping. He did not, of course, lay a fang on her. He had at first considered it a warning but then gave the fuck up because his sister probably wouldn't even recognise it as danger, even if he had sunk his teeth into her throat. Mean? He was positively in a chipper mood, fuck you very much! But anyway, this wasn't about him.

He doesn't stop snarling at the stranger, tugging lightly on Falcons' tail as she moves passed him.

"Stay the fuck here, stupid! Are you trying to get your throat torn out?"

He snaps because fucking really? This could be a stealth-wolf and it could be on them in a second. It could be waiting for them to lower their guards so that it could horrifically spread their intestines across the valley (Forest, he was in a forest now.) floor, a warning to all intruders. Do not trespass, this is what happened to the last pair of retards that did!

At the wolves display, fae now, he could smell it, he curves his spine more and bristles out. The pale bitch was about the same height as himself and he was in no fucking mood to be intimidated. When she cut her gaze to him in hostility, did she fucking think he wouldn't notice that? And then proceeded to ignore him, he resists rolling his eyes.

At her words, he lets out a more rattling, warning growl.

"How very astute of you, thank you so much for your fucking observations, Miss. Now if you could cease acting like I'm not here, pretty fucking sure I haven't turned invisible, you can tell us why you approached. If this isn't packland you have nothing to gain from revealing yourself to us. We planned on leaving soon anyway since this place is obviously infested so don't bother trying to chase us."

He huffs, giving his entire body a hard shake. His crooked ear flops back over while the other remains perked and his stiff coat flattens, only slightly. He eyes the she-wolf warily and keeps on his sisters heels, should something happen. He runs his tongue over his scarred muzzle, almost a nervous tic.

He notices that while his sister had introduced them and promised no ill will, the stranger had not. He would press the issue but that would just make Falcon more loud and stupid as apparently he often sounded 'offensive'. He kept his eyes hot and intense on the fae however, not looking away from her once, even as she refused to acknowledge him.

He may always be judged harshly, with good reason, he was an asshole, but he wasn't fucking stupid. Everyone may think Falcon was nice and like her better off the bat but she was fucking naive. This wolf could lunge at her and she'd simply roll over and present herself. His sister wasn't stupid but when it came to issues of dominance she was brain-dead.

Jackdaw takes in the dominant signs from the fae and lets off his own. This is free land, he can do and speak as he will. This strange bitch has no pull over him or his sister and she wasn't going to fucking think she had for even a second.