Willow Ridge Listening to the wind of change

Clear — 37° F/3° C | mid afternoon | @Castiel

Silent paws fell on cool dirt as the piebald woman known as Enoki Ashrelle lazily made her way from the small den she had come to call her own, nestled immaculately in a secluded area from the rest of the pack and under the welcomed shade of one of the many willows that gave the pack its name. Pausing just outside the entrance she gave the dark hued fur of her pelt a gentle shake to free the bits of fawn tinted dust that had settled upon it, a result from her early afternoon nap. Now as a yawn passed the lining of her lips, tongue rolling out between her teeth; her upper body bent into a bow and extended her muscles in the form of a confluent stretch. 'What shall I do today?' She curiously asked herself. The caches that were embedded within the territory were stacked near to the brim with thanks of her most recent hunting expedition she had taken with the dark coated yearling lad named Titan. And with help from his mother, Narime who just so happened to be the leading female of Whisper Caverns.

Ivory dipped tail hung limply behind her as she rounded the thick truck of a tree that caused the shade above her den. Her amber tinted gaze swept disinterestedly at her surroundings, a small smile gracing her countenance as the wispy branches of an elderly Willow tree brushes against the apples of her cheek like a welcomed pat, a result of the mistral that blew through the lands that day. It was this very tree that she had dubbed her favorite and why she decided to dig her den beneath its weeping canopy. Serenity was found here where the only other place she found it was at the rise under the blackened cloak of night. Nipping in a pup like manor she grasped one of the branches between her jaws only to release it a minute later, inhaling the sappy, piquant aroma the gaunt branch released upon the stripping of some of its bark. "Why must you smell so intoxicating?" She inquired the inanimate object knowing very well that it could not answer her. Instead of waiting forever to hear an answer that would not come, she continued on her way down the well worn path that led closer to the center of the territory and where majority of the pack members could be found. If there was anyone to be found today.

The Ridge Prince padded lazily through the territory of Willow Ridge, his jaws hanging open just enough to let the tip of his tongue poke out, and his head lowered a bit more than usual to the ground. It was a warm-ish day by his standards, with a clear, stunningly blue sky, and more importantly: mid-afternoon. It was the point of time during the day when the sun was at its highest peak, shining down upon the lands of Relic Lore. He had decided to go wandering his homeland in search of something. A brother, maybe, or a pack member that he had yet to meet, or maybe even something to chase down and make a meal of. Something other than lazing around in the den doing nothing and seeing no one. That was boring, and he was feeling quite adventurous at the moment.

It wasn't long before Castiel caught the scent of a stranger. Not stranger as in the sense of a wolf not part of Willow Ridge, but a wolf that was unknown to him and he hadn't met. Pricking his ears and lifting his head he followed the scent trail with a bounce in his step. He soon came upon a black and white wolf, a female at that. Letting out a woof, the Ridge Prince smiled widely. He would finally get to meet someone that wasn't related to him. "Hello!" He called out, his tail wagging behind him. "I'm Castiel, who're you?" Maybe they could become friends?

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(This post was last modified: Oct 21, 2014, 09:59 AM by Castiel.)

The sound of bouncing footsteps light in nature from behind caught her attention as her ears swiveled to catch more of the sound and stopped to listen. But it didn't take long before a woof tickled the hairs that insulated the inner section of her ears then speech, young in tone. Perhaps it was Deacon coming to play with the piebald woman again? Her body shifted in order to face the energetic pup she expected to see, but surprise almost crossed her face as her amber orbs didn't settle on a ball of black tinted fur. Instead they fell upon an agouti colored pup fitting the same age as the dark hued pup she had played with under the moonlight. This little one must be one of his litter-mates, another future prince of the Ridge.

His tiny tail wagged happily behind him as he greeted the older woman before introducing himself. "I'm @Castiel, who're you?" He inquired which allowed for her lips to pull back into a warm smile as she slowly closed the gap between the two and lowered her head to reach his eye-level much in the same way she had when meeting Deacon. She didn't want to spook the poor boy and rather him feel at ease around her. "'Ello there Castiel. My name is Enoki and its a pleasure to meet you, little prince." After her introduction was over she let her gaze take in the coloration of his pelt, perplexed that his differed so much from his mother and brother. From what she had come to notice was that the Archer line was a predominantly black coat adorned with only flecks of color; rustic from the couple encounters she has had. But then again she had yet to meet the lead male that stood beside Elettra which she mental knocked herself upside the head for for not getting around to that. Maybe he was the culprit for his unique coloration? The thought didn't last long as she returned her attention to the pup at her paws. "What brings you out and away from your siblings?"

Castiel saw the warm smile appear on the black and white females' maw when she turned to look at him. She slowly closed the gap between them, lowering her head to his height while doing so, and he leaned foreword to give her a quick lick on the underside of her chin, soft whines emitting from his muzzle before he pulled back. His mother and father had taught him to be respectful of his elders and others within the pack, and to show that he appreciated them and their hard work, and also that he knew where his place was in Willow Ridge.

"Enoki," he said softly, liking the feeling of her name rolling off his tongue. It fit her well. "It's nice to meet you too!" he barked happily, his tail wagging like a banner in the air So far she seemed like a very kind wolf, especially when she lowered herself to his level so he didn't have to crane his neck to look up into her face. A wolfish grin appeared on his young face when the black and white female asked what he was doing. "Well, I got kinda bored being alone in the den, so I decided to explore. I was looking for one of my brothers to play with, but I guess hanging out with you will do for now,".

The Ridge Prince curiously looked at Enoki for a few moments, his brows furrowing slightly. Her scent carried the scent of Willow Ridge, but it didn't seem as strong as everyone else's. Maybe she was new to the pack? "What's your reason for being out here?"

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(This post was last modified: Oct 24, 2014, 11:20 PM by Castiel.)

"Well, I got kinda bored being alone in the den, so I decided to explore. I was looking for one of my brothers to play with, but I guess hanging out with you will do for now," A soft chuckle fell from her lips as he deemed the newest pack member his new play mate seeing that his brothers were not to be found. The corners of her lips pulled back to widen the length of her smile as her own tail began to wag slowly behind her in a back and forth motion. Nudging the little pup's cheek she followed it with a playful nip to the tip of his left ear, being ever careful not to hurt the little guy. A little romping would do them both some good and allow her to build upon her bond with the pack, although it still remained as weak as her pack scent that lingered faintly on the hairs of her fur.

"What's your reason for being out here?" @Castiel spoke up again as she slowly lowered her upper torso into a bow, elbows meeting the loose dirt of the ground in order to meet his gaze even easier. It would put an awful kink in her neck if she had to look down for too long. "Well I just woke up from a nap and was heading to see if there was anyone around. I'm still really new to the pack and haven't met that many members yet." So far the only Ridge wolves she had met were Elettra, Titan, Xetor and recently Castiel's brother Deacon had his named added to the list. Titan was alright in her book, a sweet little boy that she enjoyed being around. Xetor was alright too, but definitely seemed like he could cause trouble with the ladies that could possibly rub her the wrong way. Now Deacon was the first pup she had met ever and he was a funny little thing. So full of energy and spunk. She liked him and wondered if Castiel was anything like his brother.

A giggle escaped from the Ridge Prince's maw when Enoki gently nudged his cheek with her muzzle, before playfully nipping the tip of his left ear. His tail whipped back and forth at the invitation to play. For a while no one had wanted to play with him. It was all "be a good boy and don't run off" or "maybe go find one of your brothers to play with you". The adults didn't understand that sometimes he wished to be apart from Deacon and Greer and play with said adult. The black and white female seemed to get him though, and he felt like their relationship could bloom into a great friendship someday.

Cass listened curiously as she spoke in answer to his question of what she was doing. He shifted a paw across the ground, guiltily looking down when she mentioned not having met many members of Willow Ridge yet. Even though he had been born a part of this pack, he too hadn't gone around and met any of his fellow pack mates. That was something he should fix, and he resolved to in the near future that he would meet more of them. When the Ridge Prince looked back up, he noticed that the black and white female had lowered her upper torso in a bow, one that signaled she wanted to play. Lowering his own front legs into a bow, Castiel let out an excited woof. He darted forward and tapped Enoki on the nose with a front paw before grinning and bounding off, wanting her to chase him.

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Word Count-262

It didn't take long for her initiation of play to become noticed by the Ridge prince, his body mimicking her posture before his little body bolted forward to tap the tip of her coal black nose. Enoki twitched her nose with a subtle sneeze, the smile on her lips spreading into a grin as she watched Castiel turn to bounce away with the desire to be chased. Raising gracefully from her bow it didn't take long for her to be in pursuit of her agouti colored target, though she kept her pace at a minimal lope knowing he couldn't stay ahead of her for long. Allowing herself to occasionally close the distance between them she would adorn his flank with a playful nip.

The piebald woman let the prince run from her for a few minutes before bolting ahead, giving his crown a lick as she did so to encourage him to continue the chase. Enoki becoming the target now. A soft chuckle would occasionally fall from the blackness of her lips when she would feel his tiny teeth snag on the tip of her tail causing her to raise it just out of his reach in order to make it more of a challenge for the agouti pup to grab a hold of it. "Keep up, little prince." she chastised Castiel as she picked up her speed just enough to hide the majority of her bulk behind the thick truck of a near by willow tree. It was time for a new game. A game of hide and seek.

@Enoki

Glancing back over his shoulder, Cass giggled, excitement coursing through his veins when he saw the oreo coloured female pursuing him. Pushing himself to go faster, the Ridge Prince dodged and weaved through the large willow trees, feeling the playful nip every now and then on his flank as his new friend closed the gap - probably intentionally - between them before letting him draw ahead, and then repeating the process. He didn't mind that she was allowing him to stay ahead, because that's what made the game fun, knowing that the other was playing all with his game of 'chase me!'.

After a few minutes Enoki ran to his side, briefly licking the crest of his skull, right between his ears, before quickly drawing ahead and becoming the target of the game. Growling as ferociously as he could Cass darted forward, his teeth snagging the tip of her fuzzy tail, but not grasping it. She raised her tail before he could attempt to grab it a second time, making it more of a challenge for him. He tried again, leaping forwards, but missed by centimeters. The black and white female chastised him, picking up her speed enough to disappear out of view, telling him to keep up, and soon she was completely gone from sight and he had to use his nose to find her.

Lowering his muzzle to the ground, the Ridge Prince inhaled deeply, following the trail left by Enoki, knowing that it would lead him right to her. That is, if his tracking skills were up to par. The many scents from the willow trees, flowers and scarce prey here and there mixed him up a few times, but eventually he came up to a thick trunk of a willow tree where her scent was the strongest. "Found you!" He called out proudly, his banner waving high in the air as he lifted his chin up, eager to let his friend know he had found her.

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There is a rabbit's nest nearby. +1 Health

Backing up to lower her haunches so as to hide her mass more efficiently behind the mass of the willow she now hid beneath, it took a lot of self control to keep the childish laughter that bubbled under the surface from escaping and revealing her exact location to the pup. There was a double meaning to the games the two were playing and this game of hide and seek had a beneficial gain for the young @Castiel helping to build up his tracking skills for the future. So not ruining the fun the double colored woman kept a tight seal of her ebony lips no matter how badly she wanted to chuckle when the prince would venture closer, but then become distracted by a secondary scent.

In her patient waiting she had began to hum an old tune her mother would sing whenever she watched her litter of royalty romp among the mountain side. During this musing it went unnoticed that he had steadily grown closer, hot on her trail now that it grew stronger the closer he got to her hiding spot. Then with a proudly proclaimed 'Got you!' her mind was reeled back in to reality as her body gave a slight jump in surprise. This time her laugh was allowed to break from its prison behind her lips and filled the willows with the tone, her amber gaze drifting down to settle on Castiel's face now raised a few degrees in his pride of finding his target. "By my stars, you have found me!" Slowly rising to her feet her own tail began to wag in good spirits at his accomplishments, a warm grin adorning her countenance. "You are one smart pup." Enoki praised his efforts verbally before nudging his cheek with the cold wetness of her charcoal colored nose.

The praise was soon cut short as a familiar scent crossed their path causing her nose to twitch from the pleasantness of the aroma. The smell of rabbit was pronounced on the gentle breeze that stirred the low hanging branches around the two wolves, the Ashrelle's head lifting a fraction to better obtain the odor. A grumble of her stomach was soon triggered the longer she scented the air, stealing a glance downward at her new companion. "Are you hungry, little prince?" Surely with the amount of running that had occurred it worked up some form of an appetite in the rapidly growing Archer and now that she had wind of prey she could fill that void in his stomach to refuel his energy for whatever future games the Ridge prince had in mind.

Word Count: 440

(This post was last modified: Dec 11, 2014, 07:02 PM by Enoki.)