Wild Cherry Orchard And oh, this too shall pass

RE: There is a shooting star tonight.
@Koda
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Life in the thicket had lulled back into one of it's quiet, in between periods. For as long as she'd lived here time seemed to pass in one of two ways. First were the still, peaceful stretches. No hunger to pinch their bellies and a familiarity -if not outright affection- with her pack mates. Her only priorities now were keeping tabs on the border and making sure the young princes and their mother were fed. In her den Iopah grinned wickedly, teeth flashing ivory in the dark. They were getting so big.

The other times were the upheavals, Iopah thought with a sigh, breath billowing warmly around her. Times of great stress. Violent alterations that left Iopah scrambling to adjust. Koda's leaving. Ashanti's illness. Hollow's disappearance. The past winter was a living hell for Iopah: Knowing what would come if the prey didn't and dreading it with every last bone. Every moment spent wondering what would happen if he never came back to them, or if the prey stayed away.

That was probably why she had the dream again. There were no thoughts to occupy her mind and she dropped seamlessly into the familiar dream. All of her family watched her, almost expectantly, as she paced back and forth at the sight of them. She said nothing, jaws clenched to keep her whine muffled. Even that slight sound would send them away, slipping into nothing like wisps of smoke.

Later, after waking, she found herself staring up at the twilight peeking through the canopy. In the stillness a star skidded across the sky and she whined in uncertainty. Are they still watching me? She rose to her feet as another bright star followed the first. Sleep was impossible. Not sure what she hoped to find, Iopah set out after them. Nimbly she avoided her sleeping packmates, they would not understand this side of her, and set out toward the orchard to spy on the stars.

I kind of threw this together, sorry!

Secret Wood lands was quiet and content, it's ranks would occasionally seem to burst at the seams as countless wolves of all genders pleaded entrance into the pack with a promise that their skills would serve the pack in some way. He was wiser than many others to trust the words of so many who came to their borders and knew that loyalty had to be earned by actions and not merely from words alone. He had witnessed the very wolves who had pledged their loyalty in exchange for a home disappear, and waited patiently for his chance to prove to leadership that he was fully capable of taking back his crown--it wasn't much longer now.

Since his return he had also witnessed the new females that had come into their ranks, most were much younger than he him and reminded him of his daughter and what she would be as she aged into adulthood-- this kept him away from them, far far away. He couldn't fathom giving his heart to anyone who did not understand him like Nina had, she had been the only wolf who had earned his trust and no other could bring him happiness like she could. He feared that his quest for love would go unanswered and he would die an old man, all alone.

He walked the lands, intent on clearing his mind and the nonsense that bothered him on a daily basis now, stopping only once to witness the shooting star, he believed it to be a symbol of good luck and found himself smiling as he walked, finally capturing the scent of her. It had been so long since they had interacted, and their last meeting had gone horribly awkward, though he could not blame her, Iopah had always been the opinionated type. "Iopah," he started, pausing when he was within a few feet of her. Would she respond?

There were no more shooting stars. A fact that didn't concern her much. Despite a strong belief in the afterlife, Iopah was not superstitious. Luck was random. Bad things happened happened because of the weather or other wolves. So, for there to be no shooting stars meant nothing to her. But she kept glancing up, because that was where wolves went when they died, and for her to have that dream meant he might be watching her now. It was her preoccupation on the sky that let Koda's presence slip her awareness.

Someone spoke close by, pulling her attention from the sky so sharply that she crouched in reflex. Her soft snarl faded as she recognized her own name. Drawn by the sound of approaching foot falls she rose, turning to watch the shadowed figure coming towards her. Flaring subtly her nostrils drew in the scent, even without a name (and there were many she hadn't meet yet) she would recognize the smell of any thicket wolf. Koda. She let her pricked hackles fall. Despite how she felt about him, he was no danger. If she had ever had that suspicion she never would have tolerated his presence, even against Nina's wishes.

He was watching her expectantly and Iopah knew she needed to say something. But what? Absently she glanced up at the forest; It offered no inspiration. A conversation about the weather would have been asinine. He lived here and knew the weather as well as she did. And while she was curious what he was doing, she would never ask, she was too private herself. The silence was stretching too long now. Iopah opened her mouth and blurted out the first thing she thought of. The truth. "I saw the shooting star. We used to have them home."

He watched her in silence, allowing his eyes to glance over her face and her aging body before coming back to her face where honey colored eyes stared into hers, the awkwardness growing. It would seem that Iopah disliked him, he could sense the tension in the air from their first meeting where he, Danica and Iopah had hunted together, forgetting the politics of pack life to enjoy a potential meal together; that day had been enjoyable. He had seen very little of his daughter since that day, and Iopah too had become but a lingering scent on the lands, he assumed that she had been just as busy as he had preparing for summer and wondered how her duty as hunter was going. Had she been able to find the migrating scents of prey that had long disappeared since winter?

The question lingered in his head as he watched her without a word, waiting instead for her response and when she spoke he felt the breath he was holding release from his jaws; she'd responded, what a relief. "I saw it as well, I'm hoping it means good luck for us," he spoke, dipping his head and lifting it quickly with a smile, "where is home? If you don't mind me asking..." he couldn't recall learning much about the tawny woman, and since his return their relationship had become strained to a nonexistent state, he could only hope that this meeting would change their relationship for the better. With her in his presence he forgot why he had wandered here but it hardly mattered now, he needed the company and the presence of a familiar face was always welcoming.

She smiled appealingly when Koda spoke further about the stars. She didn't entirely agree with the rationale, but it was too minor of a point to explain. And anyways, she hoped for good luck, so she nodded. She knew the question was coming. She faked interest in a bit of grass, scuffing it with her pale footpad. Where is home? She looked back up to him, her expression softening as he hedged. There was a multitude of reasons she'd never spoken of her birth place before. The main reason being that it was intrinsically linked to her memories of her family. Koda was likely the only wolf to not judge her for what she had done to them, so she only studied him sharply for a moment before making up her mind. She indicated the direction she had been going, drawing her muzzle back to look at Koda and explain, "I was headed toward the orchard."

Her ears twisted to and fro, the grass that she had unconsciously been scraping away at was now completely uprooted. Assuming and half-way hoping would follow Koda she set out. For all their common hue her eyes communicated her emotion more clearly than words. It was easier for her to talk about home this way. Reassured by the sound of Koda's movement through the forest she started, "I grew up on a mountain many miles south of here. They were called the Black Hills," here she turned to peer at Koda, wondering if he knew them, "It took many months to reach this place." Her voice faded away, having run out of things to say while dancing around the suject of why she had left. "What about you? I've never meet another Renier wolf." She pointed ignored the subject of Nina's name.

@Iopah

He watched her, studying the way she dug at the ground as though transfixed in her thoughts and the answer she would give him in response and he pondered to himself, wondering what secrets were buried deep within the lead huntress. It usually did not peak his interest, the history of others, but this night was very different then the many he had come to know and he was beginning to like it already, it was much easier talking about others past then his own and he was patient while waiting the woman's response.

Before she would give him an answer to his question she spoke of the Orchard, a lovely place fairly close to the Woodlands and he nodded his head as if to agree in accompanying her, it would be a trip worthwhile seeing as it had been weeks since he left his den. His pace mimicked that of hers and he easily slide to her side, matching her stride as they walked in silence a first, before she spoke of her home. Black Hills it was a place he was unfamiliar with but nodded so that she knew he was listening, it seemed as if the mountain woman was far away from her element but she didn't dare look it. "I would have never guessed," he started off, looking at his company with new found interest. It wasn't often that he ran into mountain dwelling wolves, and when she questioned his background the burly male shrugged his shoulders, hardly finding his history interesting. "I grew up in a tight knit called Windsong, it's pretty far from here as well but it reminds me so much of this place that sometimes I feel as if I never left home. As far as my surname, besides my children I believe I am the last living.." and he fell quiet, thinking back on his past.

Though tragedy had struck his homeland, Koda had always remained positive and strove to forget and forgive, for the moment he would always live in the present, "so why did you come here, you don't miss the mountains?" and he grew silent as they walked, wondering what the woman thought of his questions.

(This post was last modified: Jun 23, 2014, 03:16 AM by Koda.)

Arla and Emma are the ish and made my pretties!
Koda will most likely always be accompanied by Chiron unless otherwise stated, or requested.

There is a moose carcass that has been scavenged by coyotes nearby. +15 Health

crud. I forgot about the moose carcass, eh, i guess they can just 'find' it later...
@Koda
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Her answer seemed to satisfy him, she could feel his gaze appraising her. The surprise in his voice was palpable. Iopah grinned wickedly in response, not turning to the male, but the gesture was wide enough that her teeth glinted in the dark. He had not been here when Iopah first came to the thicket and had not seen her struggles to adapt. Physically the adaptation was seamless, she could nimbly avoid the vines while her pads had thickened enough to shrug off the thorns, though there were days she grew irritated with the pressing closeness of it all.

A pale ear curved towards him, learning of his home. The idea that this place looked identical to his birth place was intriguing and tantalizing. She murred low in her throat at the thought of living in a mountain. Hearing his amusement with the similarities she glanced at him. "Is that a good thing or a bad thing?"

And there was it, the clincher. Her ears folded flat against her skull and she stumbled. Before he could question or wonder at it she pushed on, nearly forcing herself through the tight thicket. "Of course I miss it. She closed her jaws quickly enough that a quiet click of her teeth echoed around them. His question burned in her still folded ears. Here was not a destination, just random luck. When she left the mountains she was not going anywhere she was just going away.

"There was a famine, I left them." The words were just loud enough for Koda to hear them. The irony was anything but funny. The reason she had difficulty with Koda's return was the reason Iopah ended up in Relic Lore. "I am not welcome back."

(This post was last modified: Jun 28, 2014, 02:17 AM by Iopah.)

I'm okay with that ^^ writing this kind of Koda is hard lol

Her question caused a smirk along his lips, probably the first sign of a smile since his return to these lands and it felt good, he couldn't recall the last time he'd had this kind of conversation with someone where judgement fell out the window and he felt so carefree. He wished that it could last for longer, "It isn't a good or bad thing, I was just making an observation." and he fell silent, contemplating on whether he should elaborate or not, he felt inclined to explain himself to her based off the knowledge of their strained relationship but he instead remained silent; there was no use in pushing the subject.

He moved fluidly beside her despite his size only when she forced through the tight thicket did he slow his gait to a walk to push his weight through, and when he was finished he fell back to a rhythm at her side, his head buzzing with questions. He had never been the outspoken one before, words had always failed him in the past, and yet here the words fell easily from his mouth, as though all this time he'd been waiting for someone to make him feel comfortable and welcomed in his home again.

Her words were short and to the point, almost as if his inquires were making her uncomfortable and the pale male bit his lip in apology, he hadn't wanted to make this meeting more awkward then it needed to be, ""I don't mean to upset you I'm just curious that's all, if you don't want to talk about your home we don't have to..." and he fell silent with ears pulled back against his head. How would this encounter turn out? "and I believe everyone deserves a second chance, it's how we learn from our mistakes..." he trailed off, deciding finally to talk about his own experience, ""I know the pack no longer trusts me because of my history but I'm trying to fix that and my loyalty has never been stronger than it is now. I won't leave again Iopah, I promise" and he glanced at the tawny woman with sincere filled eyes, his only chance now was to prove to the others that he was serious.

@Koda
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She was moving quickly now, having gained composure after her earlier stumble. There was near silence. The sound of her feet swishing through the dense undergrowth, Koda's footfalls in tandem with her own. Brackens fingering along her side, leaving water droplets as she rushed by them. The meadow must not be far now. Her attention was focused on the destination only. She didn't want to face what Koda thought of her little confession. Resentment. Confusion. Anger. A myriad of possibilities. His apology caught her off guard. She was expecting an accusation.

She spun to face him, trampling a fern in her hurry. It pitched wildly, fronds scattering fine droplets of moisture. Iopah ignored it. She didn't want the apology she thought she heard. His words were misunderstood and the misinterpretation riled in her mind. She wanted to carry the full weight of what she had done. How dare he excuse her misdeed. She stared full at him. Her stance accusing as she worked through the rest of his words. The apology was for his question. Oh. She blinked at this discovery, stance diminishing. Embarrassment flooded through her and she turned to look into the forest. It had gone silent with her animated reaction. "I should be upset. What I did was terrible."

"I got a second chance." She gestured with her muzzle, the movement encompassing the quiet, damp forest. It was the next best thing to the Black Hills. Exactly what she deserved after forsaking her parents. Countenance calm she turned back toward him. Ears held loosely, though her gaze was determined. It was a fine line between speaking of her own past and the ex-Leaders past. "Trust is never fixed. It's just built back up again."

Pushing off lightly with her back legs she began moving, leaving the strewn foliage behind. It would be entire and untainted ahead. The destination was the same, but her pace was gentle and relaxed. Between the trees was a widening that marked the end of the thicket. He spoke of a promise and her ears flicked at his words. "I should hope not. Image how mad I'd be if you came back again." She stepped down into the openness of the meadow.

The fruit was beginning to drop and Iopah curled her lip at the saccharine decay. She snorted and sniffed again. Under the rotting fruit was something more appetizing. A few steps forward and another sniff, then she turned to question Koda silently. Head tilted in inquiry, wondering if he smelt it as well. Somewhere in the field was a meal. She started forward, tracking it in earnest now. There was one thing she had wondered about. It didn't matter in the big scheme of things, but after tonight her curiosity was sparked. It was a delicate question, and not one that Iopah would appreciate if it was asked of her. So that's how she started the question, finding it only fair to answer the same question of herself first. "When Kele died. I blamed my parents. I thought I was punishing them by leaving." She climbed onto a fallen fruit tree to canvas the field and watch Koda from the corner of a golden eye. "Why did you leave us?"