Sierra Hills Lost trail of breadcrumbs

Snow was falling over the Sierra Hills, tiny points of light twisting in the sunlight. Each flake was delicate and minute, but deadly, and it was coming down in earnest now. It was barely winter and already the ochre hills were a smooth line of white, save for the thin wandering trail that ran through it. Under the very nose of the yearling a trial was being laid. The beauty might have been lost on Hodr, but the danger wasn't. He could feel each flake as it landed on his nose. Thin needles of pain that melted away instantly. Memories and his mother's reminding words came back to him. This he had felt before.

'Snow', Hodr mouthed to himself, slicking his ears back to point his face up into the sky. Above him was nothing but falling snow and a weak morning sun. There was nothing to see besides featureless white, yet he held motionless till an errant flake struck his eye. He cringed downward, blinking rapidly. Despite his parents attempts to prepare him Hodr was overwhelmed. Miles from home and any familiar landmarks, he had no way to find water or even shelter. His only hope was to catch back up with his family.

Hodr's muzzle pointed behind him to where his own trail was clearly laid out in the otherwise unbroken snow. Again he saw nothing but featureless white. He knew it was the direction he'd come from and touched his nose to the edge of the path he'd forged as proof. So, he simply needed to travel faster in the other direction. His blank gaze swung back around and he continued, more or less, on the same heading he'd started out with.

(This post was last modified: Dec 14, 2014, 03:52 AM by Hodr.)

Needed a thread, hope its alright if I pop Spieden in here?

Her usual tribute of fish to the pack caches had grown smaller and smaller each time. Winter was settling in, freezing the smaller streams and forcing Spieden's usual catch down into deeper waters where she couldn't reach. Even then, sticking her paws into water when it was freezing out didn't sound very pleasant. Still, they had to eat, and so Spieden ventured out of the Spectral Woods in search of prey.

It was odd to get accustomed to the responsibilities of leading. She had always been hard working, and in that respect things weren't too different. But the feeling of others depending on her was new. She didn't know how long this arrangement would last, Triell's mate still had yet to reappear. But at this point Spieden highly doubted that she ever would. The hows and whys were still a mystery, but Spieden knew the woman must be dead. She had been gone for far too long for there to be any other option.

Sniffing after the hints on the wind, Spieden moved out into the Sierra Hills. The place was strange enough with its red tinted rock. It was even stranger yet with stark white capping everything, leaving bright red smears peaking out where snow had failed to hold. As she rounded the top of a crest for a better view, she could see a small tawny patch moving below. Too small for a deer, too big for a coyote, it was clearly a wolf. She watched for a while longer, deciding what to make of them.

"Ahh, why not." Spieden grumbled under her breath. She loped down the side of the hill, approaching the yearling with her dark tail waving over her back. As she got closer, she chuffed a small greeting.

Everything seemed to be fine now. He hadn't stopped since the snows had started and was still on the same course he started onto. Even more encouraging was the lack of obstacles he found in his way. His muzzle had lifted from it's customarily low probing posture and he was fairly trotting along now. Finally, now he could catch up with his family. It was hard to move fast when was constantly running into things. Out here, it seemed, there was nothing. He almost looked like a normal wolf, albeit one who was very uninterested in his surroundings.

Moving right along... until he heard the chuff. Being blind from birth he'd gotten very good at recognizing voices. His head swung up and to the side in one exaggerated motion. He stumbled to a stop. In his gracelessness, hind feet stepped out of the path he'd created and sank into cold snow up to his hocks. What to do? What to do when he couldn't even see them? His gaze searched back and forth frantically, but there was nothing but whiteness and gray ghosting shapes that could have been a innocent tree stump or an attacking wolf. His mother hadn't prepared him for this and the large yearling sank back in uncertainty.

Finally something separated from the murky whiteness. Something dark and tall, coming directly toward him. He panicked, flailing away from the stranger and feeling his feet twist and shake under him. Something slipped under his grip, a loose rock shifted sideways, and he fell heavily into the snow. This was it, he was shaking too badly to continue his escape now, pitifully he blinked in her direction. "Don't hurt me...

As Spieden made her way to the other wolf, she wasn't sure how this would go. She wasn't terribly optimistic about much of anything, but was still caught off guard when the younger wolf seemed to panic. She immediately stopped moving, pulling her head back as she tried to give both herself and the other wolf some distance. At first she thought she'd simply caught him off guard by her sidelong approach. However his reaction was so over the top she wasn't really sure what was going on with him. She was startled at first by his sudden flailing, afraid he might lash out at her.

Soon it became evident that this poor wolf probably couldn't fight his way out of a wet pile of leaves. Spieden could only wince as she watched him trip and stumble over himself, landing in an ungraceful heap in the snow. In a way the awkward male and his tawny coat reminded her a little bit of her doofy little brother, Kelp. The last time she'd seen him had been years ago, when she had helped him escape the hell hole that their home had turned into. At the time Kelp had been just about the same age as the yearling now cowering right in front of her.

"Hey, easy, easy. I'm not gonna hurt you," Spieden assured him. She stayed in her place, but was now staring at him with a tinge of both curiosity and worry. She didn't look him in the eye, there was no need for the dominance and she didn't want to scare the kid any more than he already had been. Even without the eye contact though he didn't really seem to be looking at her. Perhaps he was dazed or dehydrated? It was hard to tell. "You alright?"

His eyes closed redundantly as he waited, pressed himself further into the snow. It was agonizing to have nothing to do but expect the feel of teeth and listen to them breathe over his body. What where they waiting for? Where they searching for a soft part to bite? His limbs pulled in instinctively, trying to create a smaller target. Any second now it would come and he was tense waiting for it.

When the voice came he flinched in surprise before realizing it was friendly. He was not immediately reassured and remained exactly where he was. Her voice was different than his mother and aunt's, and the inflections and emphasis that would give away their intention would not be the same for this woman. She could be lying. Still, a single ear turned in her direction.

You alright?

Well, that had certainly sounded sincere. He heaved himself from the intended snow-coffin to search for her. She was only three meters away, so it was relatively easy to find her. His aimless gaze finally made it in her direction and he regarded the dark shape with some trepidation. Now what? First an answer, his mother had raised him to be polite and if woman wasn't gonna eat him he could manage a conversation. Experimentally he lifted each limb in turn, then sniffed around him as if to confirm. "I think I'm okay," He offered, voice breaking with nerves. He tried to meet her gaze, never having had an opportunity to learn it was taboo, but couldn't decide where to look and ended up vague drifting over her figure as he spoke. "Did you see which my family went?" Perhaps she could help him?

(This post was last modified: Dec 18, 2014, 07:37 AM by Hodr.)

Spieden crooked a dubious eyebrow as the young wolf claimed to be alright. While he didn't appear to be outwardly harmed, he still seemed jumpy and off in a way that was hard to place. "If you say so," she mumbled, nearly under her breath. He still hadn't looked at her, but she figured he was just particularly submissive. Months ago she would have been uncomfortable with any form of submission directed her way, but she had become accustomed to her much higher placement and was learning to be more comfortable in her own skin.

She didn't expect his question, but at least it answered some of her unasked questions. He was lost, then. Spieden's fiery eyes flicked up towards the opposite ridge, her body tensed slightly. She was suddenly weary that that his whole family might come galloping over the hills at any moment to protect their lost little lamb.

"No, sorry to say, I haven't. I just came from south of here, and you're the first wolf I've run into along the way." Spieden answered with a little bit of regret. That was about all the concrete help she had to offer him off hand. "Where's the last place you saw them?" She asked. She didn't know the whole of Relic Lore, but over time she had gained a pretty solid grasp of the landscape surrounding the Bend. If he remembered any distinct landmarks or even the general direction, she could probably at least point him in the right direction.

@Spieden!
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He wanted help. He needed help. There was no choice but to trust this name-less wolf. His stance was an odd combination of the senses he had use of. Brown ears were pinned tightly in her direction, following even those low muttering with sharp twists. Even with his head pointed in the correct direction, yellow eyes continued their slow drift. In a wolf with normal sight the precise muscles that aimed and focused them also kept them steady in their sockets. Hodr's eyes had no such structure, wobbling with the slightest tilt of his head.

Without her help, he had no chance of finding his parents. But now Spieden was going to help. If she'd seen them Hodr could simply follow her directions—

Oh. Brown ears slipped back at a depressing thought. Oh, no, no, no. Every way Spieden had of giving directions was ineffective to a wolf who could see no landmarks. This could never work. He could never navigate his way to them, even if she knew exactly where they were. No possible way to find them. A deep breathe came out as a shudder. If only he'd followed closer like his mother always told him.

Despite perfect hearing, Spieden's answer yielded no reaction. It was just as well, considering the extent of his searching skills ended at avoiding unexpected cliffs. At least this wolf being nice. He was cold, getting hungry and helplessly lost, the best he could say was she was nice. His mother always told him it was important to be polite. Being nice wasn't going to help him, he was still going to be blind and dead. His breath was coming fast now and he flung himself back into the desperate search, not realizing he was going the way he came. Spieden's question was not mend to needle, but he spun around anyways. He overshot her location and ended up shouting at the space just to her right. "I can't see them! That's how this happened!"

Spieden had meant to be helpful, but was left confused when the wolf uttered not a single word in response. No "thanks", and not even a "bye" came from him as she watched him turn around, oddly retracing his steps. She didn't know what else she could have said to the lost yearling. Its not like she could just summon his family on the spot or anything. Spieden grunted, ready to write him off as somebody a few deer short of a herd. It's not like it mattered to her if he never found his family again.

Spieden's tail flagged upwards when the younger wolf spun around to face her. She couldn't help shake the feeling something about him was strange, and his words soon revealed the reason. Oh... Dear. Spieden stared at him, speechless, as it all clicked into place. His eyes weren't misted over like she normally expected from elders, but the wayward wandering of his yellow orbs should have been enough of a clue for her. However, Spieden wasn't terribly observant, and even then she had never considered that a young wolf would be blind. She was embarrassed by her oversight, and while it would have been wise to just apologize she couldn't help what came out of her mouth next.

"Well, how was I supposed to know," she snipped, a scowl settling on her face. She knew now that he couldn't see her irritation, but that didn't stop it from creeping into her voice. "You're never gonna find them with that attitude," she mumbled not quite under her breath.

(This post was last modified: Dec 24, 2014, 01:17 AM by Spieden.)

@Spieden Sorry for the wait!
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After the hysterical outburst he had nothing to do but wait and cast his head back and forth uselessly. Now that he'd practically shouted it at her, Spieden had to know what his problem was. While he stood there, turned entirely the wrong way, she could just look down on him and realize how flawed he was. His skin burned with shame and he let his searching face slow and drop into the snow with embarrassment. This was it. She was either going to make short work of him or lavish pity on him. His father was constantly forgiving his mistakes as if being sight-less made him less accountable.

Finally she said something to him and Hodr turned his face attentively to her presumed directions. The peevishness of the words made his tail tuck in apology. His mouth opened and closed once with barely a squeak, and Hodr wondered if was supposed to apologize in advance for being blind. She continued speaking and the large yearly blinked stupidly in her general direction. Politeness was something his mother was always pushing on him, hoping it could be her disabled son's saving grace. And he had tried so hard to be nice. Always keeping his younger sibling entertained with stories, never complained when his uncle gave him the same easy lesson over and over.

"How?" He queried, aiming his gaze at either Spieden or a dark tree trunk. "How will my attitude find my parents?" It seemed to him a positive attitude was a poor substitute for eyesight.

Now she regretted the words that had spilled angrily from her tongue. Much like a curse, she'd meant them to carry more sentiment than actual meaning. And here the lost wolf was calling her on it. Taken aback and off guard, the Coho woman blinked as her jaw worked speechlessly. Maybe it wasn't so bad he couldn't see her. Her verbal response would be just about the only thing he'd be able to tell. Still, she felt like she had to give an answer. Digging about she found what she'd really meant. "Pissin' people off isn't gonna get you much in the way of help." She finally said dryly.

"Either in finding your family, or just making it through the winter... I mean, I don't think you're gonna make it for long on your own." She said bluntly. She thought finding his family was a fool's errand, but she wasn't cruel enough to say that out loud. He couldn't see, he didn't even know where to look for his family, and if Spieden had to guess she'd figure any distance he went brought him even further from them. Her eyes skimmed over his frame, looking at him anew given the light of the knowledge of his disability. He seemed in pretty decent health for now, but certainly his family had to have been helping him get by. After all, how good of a hunter could someone without eyesight be?