Verdant Mosses We stand alone under fictitious skies

Silence settled around the dark saddled male as his paws fell as such against the soft material of the moss that seemed to grow underfoot and everywhere else around him now, absorbing everything from sound to moisture. Despite autumn being in full swing with winter just around the bend the usual colors of golden hues were not to be found in the depths of this forest. In every direction he looked all one would see was the greenery of the mosses, ferns and fungi. Green, green, green, and more green broken by a different shade of green. It was everywhere and did little to ease the darkness and sense of emptiness that enveloped the area. Vespertio didn't know the name of this place, but he did know that verdant mosses fit it like a glove. Which was exactly what this place has become to be known as.

It was his inner gypsy-esc soul that brought him two days worth of traveling from his somewhat home back at the Lost Lake where plans between Athena and himself were starting to come together, increasing the odds of them staking a lawful claim on the mysterious waters. He had traveled this way on a previous trip with a task of recruiting potential members, the result being a lone female that happened to be Athena's sister Andromache on a quest to find the ivory female of the lake. Once the duo had returned the two Moon siblings ended up in a scuffle over revenge of their father, a tale that to this day still sent chills up the Vuesain's spine. But that was not the reason for him venturing away from home today. No, today he had put recruiting new members aside and instead focused on himself. He wanted to explore more of these foreign lands he found himself treading upon.

And so he now found himself surrounded by moss, rotting trees and emptiness. It seemed hardly a possibility that something would inhabit this place, yet the smell of rabbits, other small rodents and the occasional fox told him otherwise. At the thought of rabbit his stomach gave an unwelcomed grumble, signaling that it demanded to be fed and waiting another day would not do this time since it had been at least a handful of days since the last morsel he consumed. There was nobody around to manipulate out of a hard earned meal so a heavy sigh fell from his thin lips knowing he would have to do the work himself. Lowering his ebony rimmed crown towards a rotted tree stump he scented at it with hopes of catching whiff of a rabbit to catch or something else that required less effort to catch.

Nothing. The only scent that tickled his nose was the musk of the moss and earthy, decayed smell of the tree rotted to the core that crumbled as soon as his nose touched its moistened surface, exposing the hoard of insects that had come to call the stump home. With a disgusted grimace as the bugs scrambled to find new shelter, Vesper moved onward with his head still held low to catch the faintest of scent trails along the forest floor. Minutes passed as he continued tracking until luck led him towards a burrow fresh with the odor of rabbit. The entrance was too small for an attempt to just dive his head right in and would require some home improvement courteous of the male himself. Placing his paws at the burrow's entrance he began to dig, flinging the dirt behind him as the hole began to slowly widen up until it was wide enough for his head to fit. Then, diving right in he snatched up the unlucky rabbit that was trapped within between his jaws and bit down to end its puny life. It was a tiny little snack, but enough to keep his hunger at bay until a more substantial meal could be acquired.

(This post was last modified: Nov 06, 2014, 10:32 PM by Vespertio.)

Her stomach growled. Instinctively, her nose went into the air. Opella had been searching for small game since the early hours of that day, but so far, neither luck or talent seemed to be with her. Not long ago had she come across her first rabbit, but as she lunged to snap it with her jaws, the little creature dove into a bush, and as she pursued it, disappeared.

As it were, she could hear nothing moving about in the short grass or trees around her. Opella started walking then, her ears flicking back and forth to catch any sound, her nose quivering at a sudden and new scent. The she-wolf had not gone far before she stopped again. A wide patch of moss was beneath her, and she dipped her head to analyze a smell which was not of game, but possibly challenge.

Another wolf—and a male at that—had just been where she stood. Who is this? Friend or foe, it was impossible to tell on scent alone. Opella lifted her headed and continued on slowly to where the scent lead. It was not her intention to meet this male—in fact, she’d rather avoid him—but should he be hunting as well, she might get lucky if the burden of hunting was lessened.

Opella fancied he might scare a rabbit or squirrel in her direction, and she’d catch the little creature and make a run for it. Her morals would never allow her to con another wolf out of an already caught meal, but if he scared one her way, there was no official claim. When the male’s scent became so potent she knew she might encounter him did she not hide, Opella crouched behind a line of rocks. There, she waited. Soon, she saw the strange wolf approach, although his mind was elsewhere. Given his body language she knew he was tracking, and when he began to dig out a rabbit hole, she stood, as his back was mostly toward her.

She watched as he dove his head into the hole and his jaws returned successful. Opella’s mouth opened as he then ate, her tongue growing very moist and another growl sounding from her empty stomach.

Vespertio was hardly half way through eating his snack when an odd sound caught his ear, forcing them to twitch to better decipher what had made it. It was a strange noise, almost like a gurgle mixed with a growl. Maybe he wasn't alone after all? And that thought alone was enough to cause his guard hairs to rise defensively while he scoured the greenery around him for the creator of said noise, taking in the slightest motion to disturb the shrubbery that embraced the young male. "Hmm, must just be my imagination." He commented to himself as the guard hairs along his body settled back into place and his ebony rimmed crown took one more look around him for certainty before leaning down to tear off another bite of rabbit meat from the carcass pinned beneath his mighty paws.

The scent of death and blood stained the air as he continued munching on his tiny morsel, unaware of the fact that just a few feet away from him stood a lone wolf and female at that with her stomach causing the mysterious sounds with the desire for food much like he had been only minutes ago before satisfying it with his lucky catch. It didnt take long then for Vespertio to finish what was edible of the rabbit, lifting his head from a pile of tiny bones and fluff which were the only tell tale signs left for one to distinguish what he had eaten. With a belly somewhat satisfied it was time to continue his adventure through the woods and so he did just that, allowing his footsteps to fall silently much like before. He did not know that he was being watched, but would this unknown stranger follow him? Perhaps even manage to get a snack out of him.

Opella tensed when the unfamiliar male looked about after her stomach had growled, but fortunately he dismissed his curiosity. She waited until he was done, and once out of sight, she trotted over to what had been left behind. Not much of the rabbit remained she discovered as she searched its torn pelt, but that was none too surprising. Opella lifted her head and with her ears and nose detected the unfamiliar wolf’s whereabouts. He had walked away into the trees in front of her, so naturally, she took the opposite direction. The she-wolf had not gotten far before she stuck her nose in a bush heavy with the scent of another rabbit—perhaps the partner of previously eaten one—and to her good fortune a second rabbit squealed and darted.

Heart pounding she wheeled and chased it back to its ruined hole, where the creature continued past in the direction the unfamiliar male had gone. As Opella chased it the scent of the other wolf became stronger. Diving into the bush the rabbit suddenly jumped into, she grabbed it with her jaws and rolled out on the other side. When she regained herself, the victory was short lived. There, a few yards from her was the unknown male. Immediately Opella locked eyes with him and curled back her lips, a low growl emitting from her throat. The fur on her back bristled, and she said, “I don’t want any trouble.” Although she had no way of knowing what sort of wolf he was, she never took her chances. If he proved unaggressive, it was her hope to take her kill and leave.

The tantalizing sound of a rabbit's squeal reached his ears as he continued onward deeper into the forest, causing his motions to come to a halt. Swiveling his ears to and fro he listened for the animals cry once more, but instead of the sweet sound of its cry a different sound tickled his eardrums. Light bounds of the rabbit followed by heavy footsteps of a much larger creature could just faintly be heard against the plush texture of the mossy bedding beneath their paws. Someone was giving chase and he was curious to know who after he had thought he was alone in the verdant mosses. And it didn't take long to find out.

His brows furrowed together as a large bush nestled off to his left by a few yards began to rustle violently, the final squeal of the rabbit for mercy becoming muted as an unexpected wolf rolled out from the brush with the rodent clenched between her jaws. Immediately the young she-wolf had locked her golden gaze upon his own, the black lining of her lips rising to curl back in order for a growl to permit past the bundle of fur in her grip. 'Such a hostile little thing.' Vespertio thought to himself before displaying a bit of his own dominance, guard hairs rising while his own lips curled back to bare his canines in warning to the young white coated girl. “I don’t want any trouble.” the stranger spoke, but it did little to sooth the discomfort he now felt towards her.

"Well that's one hell of a way to show you mean no trouble." He replied in a salty tone, allowing only his lips to smooth out afterwards. Normally Vesper would have turned on his usual charm for the ladies and manipulated his desire at the time from her whatever it may be, but in this instance he pondered if it was even worth it. Though that rabbit hanging from her mouth did sound good even if he just ate one himself only minutes ago.

“Well that’s one hell of a way to show you mean no trouble.” His words struck an obvious chord. Immediately Opella relaxed, and by relaxed, her low growl ceased and her lips uncurled. The hair on the back of her neck still bristled, but her guard was no longer as obvious. “Forgive me, then,” she said steadily. “I simply wanted my intentions known.” Her kill lay at her paws, and she continued to size him up, still unsure if he would ultimately be friend or foe. He was one of the more uniquely colored wolves she had seen in her short time in relic-lore—handsome, even—and he appeared rather calm despite her apprehension. “My name is Opella,” she offered, a small amend.

"Well I got them loud and clear." He retorted before warranting his guard hairs to smooth out, craning his crown back to give his fur a few quick licks to ensure they fell back into their right place and kept his appearance as handsome as could be. For a male he was far from the typical rugged look. She then offered him her name in amend, Opella, while her body language relaxed partially. "Opella." He tested her name, the syllables rolling effortlessly off his tongue as his faint Italian accent gave the name more flavor before offering up his own. "I'm Vespertio and it's a pleasure to meet you m'lady." Now that the formal introductions were done with he granted his eyes to glance over her features taking in the medium build of her body, though appearing large due to the excess of ivory fur that made up her coat. A quick whiff of her scent revealed she belonged to no packs in the area, her smell consisting of strong loner ship and being young in age. She couldn't be more than a few months past her second year making her a year younger than himself.

Able bodied, young and full of potential. Athena may not like the idea of him bringing back another female, but he would get to know this stranger a bit before deciding if she was worthy of him dropping a possible invitation to join the ranks of his soon to be pack back at the Lost Lake. He thought it all to himself before greeting her gaze once more. "What brings you so far from the snow?" He inquired having noted the way her fur was built for extreme cold unlike his own that molted in the spring and now had started to grow longer and thicker in preparation for the upcoming colder months of winter.

His gentle tone and pleasant words of introduction were enough to make her believe he was a decent sort of male. The persistent friend or foe quandary could rest for the time being. At Vespertio’s question Opella pricked her ears, and replied, “Many terrible twists of fate that left me alone, without my birth pack.” It was a not a story she liked very much to go into detail, though in Relic-Lore, she had had few opportunities. The she-wolf stepped over her kill and moved closer to him. Her nose quivered as she analyzed his scent to not be one of a pack wolf, but not one who was entirely alone either. The scent of another female was on him, and his mystery perked her curiosity.

Opella stepped away from him once her stomach released another growl, and she said, “What brings you into the mosses? I came this way for lunch on my travels… though I can smell you have already had yours.” That seemed to be the easiest way to reveal what she knew without admitting she had trailed him before their sudden encounter. Opella lay down beside the rabbit she had caught and started tearing it open with small bites at the belly. Ordinarily she would not have provided such temptation to have it snatched away by another wolf, but she wanted to trust him. He was masculine, a little larger than her and reminded her of her previous alpha, Sorvo. Secretly, she hoped a partnership might form between them that would be beneficial to their survival.

“Many terrible twists of fate that left me alone, without my birth pack.” This caused a single brow of his to rise curiously while his mind pondered the many possibilities there were on how she was to be left alone. Had they seen her unfit to stay among them and banned her? Or, did she leave on her own? Perhaps something even greater had happened to lead the young Opella to the very spot she stood now. Whatever the cause, it was not his place to pry when she evidently didn't feel like sharing any further details with him. And he was fine with that. He already had enough to last him a life time from the details of Athena's past he had managed to hear during her scuffle with her sister, Andromache. She then stepped closer to him, no doubt to analyze his scent in a similar fashion he had done to hers only seconds ago.

With a growl of her stomach that was far from silent she then stepped back towards where she left her kill, turning the question on him as she lay before her snack and began to tear at the belly to reveal the tender meat that was desired inside. "I was simply in the mood to explore today." He offered while his golden gaze drifted between the temptation at her paws and her eyes, fighting back the urge to give his chops a lick. That rabbit earlier hadn't done its job at keeping his hunger at bay and now the beast was wanting more. 'Don't do it.. You need to make a good impression if she is indeed pack worthy.' His mind reprimanded so instead he adverted his gaze from the tiny carcass and lowered his haunches since the two clearly weren't about to go anywhere anytime soon. But that rabbit sure smelt so good right about now..

Dawnthieves.de - Deviantart.com - Table by AshBash

I realize your character is on a slightly different spectrum from mine. But Opella will assume the best in him until his true nature shows.

One rabbit alone would never satisfy her, nor any wolf, but Opella didn’t take more than a few bites before manners struck her. It was in her nature to look out for the common good of others, even if only having shared a small conversation. Opella pulled some meat from the rabbits belly and tossed it to him with a flick of her head. She didn’t know why, but she liked Vespertio. She was young, a loner and had fresh meat between her paws at that, but he seemed to have no will dominate or take from her. He’s like me, she thought idly. He cares for others—he’s decent. Outside of a pack, that can be hard to come by.

As she finished her meal she wondered where the rest of this acquaintance might take her. Would Vespertio leave, to go back to the other female she smelled on him? Or was that left over from a less than pleasant encounter, and he too was seeking company? These thoughts rolled around in her mind until she had finished her meal, and returned to standing on her four paws. “Well, Vespertio, are you alone or do you have friends?” she asked. “You do not smell of a pack, yet your scent is not entirely your own. Winter is still a while away, but two wolves, if agreeable, are better than one.” With this vague proposition she waited for his answer, her head slightly cocked. Her tail flicked back and forth, a sign that never ceased to surprise her on just how much she already revered him.

(This post was last modified: Nov 09, 2014, 10:14 PM by Opella.)