And it all came tumbling down

Thoughts are like burning stars and ideas

Whisper Caverns

They flood and stretch the universe

This is so not the right way. Namid thought to herself, frowning deeply as she squinted at her surroundings. Of course, what way was the right way anymore? She’d been wandering in hopes of finding her home again, getting back to her friends and loved ones was her top priority. Or, rather, at this point, staying alive was. Her stomach felt as though it was eating itself, slowly caving in upon itself like a black hole. The rabbit she’d eaten the day before hardly satisfied her hunger. In the end, it had just left her craving more.

Her stamina was depleted drastically, her body obviously weak from weeks on her own. The Star Dancer’s paw pads were torn and bloody, slightly frost bitten from her travels across the land. She knew she had crossed lands she’d crossed before, but that had been in the summer when the trees swayed with sun kissed leaves and everything smelled of soil and life. Now, everything was cold, dead, and stale. The trees shuddered in on themselves, waiting to bud in the spring that seemed to never come. And, honestly, Namid was thinking that herself.

With her multicolored gaze drifting along, she didn’t notice the slight abnormality in the density of the snow. Her foreleg landed, then proceeded to break through a ledge of snow. Her balance was offset, and with a cry she was sent tumbling down a downgrade, falling over herself and rolling, trying desperately to regain her balance and failing terribly. All she could do was try her best to stay conscious as the world swirling around her. Finally, she came to a sliding stop at the bottom of the downgrade. A groan emitted from her throat, her body shuddering. She hadn’t broken anything, that much she could tell from the lack of intense pain. Not to say she wasn’t in pain, though. Her whole body throbbed, and all she felt like doing in that moment was laying there and letting the darkness that was clouding the edge of her vision take over.

However, that was not in her spirit. Clenching her teeth, she breathed in through her nose, then heaved herself to a standing position. Or, rather tried to. As soon as pressure was put on her right forepaw it gave out and a whine emitted from her maw as she stumbled. Lifting it from the ground she hissed through her teeth, glaring at it and moving to nudge it with her nose. Logically, she knew it was a bad idea but that didn’t stop her from doing it anyways. Pain shot up her leg and she whined again.

Just what she needed, a sprained ankle.

(This post was last modified: Mar 02, 2015, 02:52 AM by Namid.)

It was a chilly winter afternoon as the agouti patriarch found himself once again stepping over the invisible divider that marked the horizontal line where his kingdom began and ended depending which way your paws led you. A foolish wolf would find the beginning and dare to be deemed a trespasser should they take a step past the border unlike the dark saddled man who now was moving away from it, his back facing the direction his empty throne awaited. This time he was not in search of his missing pack members and lover though in the back of his mind he knew he would need to set out again once the second in command; Anthem, had returned once more from scouting the area for potential wolves to fill the all but empty lakeside. Until then the brute made due with following the shoreline of the Lost Lake to fill his antsy paws and their desire to be on the move constantly with hope of finding those that were lost. A pair of golden pools shifted about the bleak snow covered landscape that seemed to be frozen in time for nothing changed other than the amount of snow that littered the ground. Each morning there seemed to be at least another inch or two, concealing any tracks his cream colored paws made the day prior.

Silence surrounded the man upon his arrival to the Northwestern perimeter of the frozen lake, all form of movement brought to a halt while the black tipped points of his ears swerved this way and that. Nothing. Not even the caw of a raven or the rustle of a shrub greeted the soft inner velveteen of his ears. That was until his attention was suddenly grabbed by the sound of rocks falling in the distance followed by a loud thud that was softer in tone compared to that of the tumbling rocks. At this his ears faced forward in complete curiosity. What had created that ruckus? This was something interesting to investigate and needing no outside encouragement his paws were set into motion again to carry his body mass in the direction the sound had come from. It was a whine that brought him to a temporary halt once more, body tense as Vesper listened to see if whoever made the noise would do it again. No second whine came, but it didn't take long for his golden gaze to make out a light coloration against the snowy bank. There was no mistaking the canine shape and wanting to make sure the stranger was alright he wasted no time closing the distance between them. A loud bark broke the silence to warn the stranger of his nearing presence before he came upon the she-wolf. "Are you alright, Miss?" He asked, his voice holding a soft tone with sincere curiousness to her current condition.  

Thoughts are like burning stars and ideas

Whisper Caverns

They flood and stretch the universe

Namid simply stared at her paw for a moment, a feeling of dread welling up in her chest. There was no way she could walk on this, much less hunt or travel. This, by all means, could be the end of her. I am to be taken out by a sprained ankle? What a boring way to die, she thought mutely to herself. There was no one around that she knew of to save her, which simply left her to freeze and starve by herself.

However, out of her cloud of despair came the sound of crunching snow. Her cream colors auds perked, mismatches eyes widening as a bark rang through the air. The sound came from behind her and she turned slowly, hardly believing what she saw. A male wolf quickly trotted toward her, healthy and alert looking. His golden gaze was fixed on her position and his tawny pelt showed a sheen of health as well. It was obvious he was either very good at taking care of himself, or he was a part of a pack. In these conditions, it was most likely the ladder. That meant more wolves.

This thought should have scared her, that she could have been in the territory of other wolves and at this moment he could be coming to attack her. However, she was too stunned to think that far ahead. Here, in front of her, was another living soul, the likes of which she hadn’t seen in months. Her strangely paired eyes looked at him with a sense of disbelieve, paw still held above the ground carefully while her maw was held open slightly. Never before had the Star Dancer looked so dumb founded, nor so happy.

“P-pardon my question, but, are you…real?” She breathed out, her naturally formal way of speech slipping past her darkened lupine lips.

(This post was last modified: Mar 02, 2015, 05:19 AM by Namid.)

There are several fresh rabbit tracks in the mud. Hunt Opportunity

Upon his arrival he was greeted with nothing but the awkward gawking of the woman before him, mismatched pools of brown and blue staring so intently at him as if he was a ghost while the jaws of her muzzle hung agape beneath them. A quick inhale of the air revealed no distinct scent of others on her fur and it left him to wonder how long she had been alone for. Lifting a brow curiously his own gaze drifted downwards to the snow noticing the way the she-wolf held one of her forelegs above the ground. This was most likely the injury she had acquired from her somersaults down the mountain which caught his attention earlier. She was lucky if this break or sprain to her paw was the extent of her injuries aside from the obvious fatigue that dulled the coloration of her already pale pelt and left her weight to be under where a healthy wolf around her sized should be. Being a loner during this season there was no denying her emaciated state. Winter was not a friend to the poor wolves who lived alone like the woman before him and a look of sympathy passed over his facial features before the pale woman finally managed to put words together, catching him partially by surprise.

It may have been rude to usher a soft chuckle as he did so in response to her question if his presence was real, but it amused the patriarch and tickled his rib cage a fraction. Nodding his head a verbal response soon followed the light laugh that echoed within the hollow confines of his chest. "Indeed I am real, but are you alright is the more important question here. I see you holding your paw up. How badly hurt is it?" He spoke, head tilting at an angle to point out her favored paw still risen above the cold surface of the snow. She's a lucky lady to have survived falling such a steep downgrade and obtain such minor injuries. Vespertio thought silently within the comfort of his mind. Be thanks to the gods that she didn't have any open wounds that risked the chance of growing infected. He knew not of any wolves in the area that were trained in the art of medicinal herb use and knew well that nobody that lived under his rule knew the tricks of the trade. Lady luck was definitely on this woman's side today.

Thoughts are like burning stars and ideas

Whisper Caverns

They flood and stretch the universe

A sound came from the male, and Namid realized after a moment what that sound was. A chuckle was rumbling from his chest. She was confused as to why he was laughing for a moment, before rethinking her words. A bemused grin moved itself to her maw upon realizing how ridiculous she must have sounded to him. To ask someone who is clearly in front of you about their existence did seem rather foolish, downright stupid really. She chuckled lightly herself, a light sound she hadn’t made in months. It felt good to her, to be speaking and laughing again even though it had been such a short time that she had been speaking.

His laughter subsided and his gaze returned to its previous state, which, she noticed, showed concern. It was brought back to her attention the light throbbing of her paw and she looked down at it, crinkling her nose in distaste before looking up where she’d come from. She was shocked by how far she’d fallen without realizing it. Blinking, she returned her attention to the man. “My apologies, it has been a while since I have had contact with anything other than my food and my thoughts. I am a bit shocked to see you, I suppose. Yes, I believe I am alright. My paw, however, seems to be sprained…” She replied surprisingly calmly, though there was some amusement to be heard in her voice. It occurred to her, at that moment, that she had yet to introduce herself. Perhaps she should have started there. “I am Namid Macieo.” The Star Dancer introduced hastily, dipping her head in slight embarrassment.

The pale coated woman spoke of her lack of contact with others aside from food and thoughts which his ears listened to intently then proceeded to listen more as she informed the agouti man she held no injuries other than a sprained ankle. The way the she-wolf spoke was so calm and even held a tone of amusement despite her recent events and this he respected. If a switcheroo had occurred and he was the one somersaulting down the mountainside he wouldn't have a calm bone in his body. Anger mixed with adrenaline like a deadly cocktail would be the result and had she found him in that state there was a chance a tuft of fur or two would be missing from her pelt. Talk about opposite personalities.

“I am Namid Macieo.” her name floated out onto the brisk afternoon air, a glint of something along the lines of bemusement or such appearing in his eyes as his golden pools watched her dip her head in an embarrassed fashion. The ebony lining of his lips soon pulled back at the corners to form a small smile in return, his dark masked crown dipping slightly before his jaws parted to offer his own name. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Namid. Though the consequences upon our meeting could have been better." Another soft chuckle rumbled within his chest as his words came to a brief pause. "My name is Vespertio Vuesain. I live on the other side of the lake here." Without thinking his tongue almost slipped and revealed the whereabouts of his pack directly, a no no for any pack wolf Patriarch or subordinate. One of his golden rules was to never reveal the direct location to anyone. 

Thoughts are like burning stars and ideas

Whisper Caverns

They flood and stretch the universe

The man, whom she found to be called Vespertio, seemed like a kind soul to her. That much could be told by his concern for her well-being, and that he had stuck around this long for her. Others would have likely told her to leave, her being so close to their home. She’d found that wolves were very protective of their property, and even being miles away from the actual homestead they would confront any other canine that stepped toward the vicinity. Of course, her time in Whisper Caverns had showed her the reason why. You protected your family, you could never be too careful about who came near them at risk of losing them.

She felt a sadness form in her chest, it having occurred to her that she’d lost two families already. In her condition, she knew she wouldn’t be getting back to them anytime soon. If at all, for she doubted the male knew about the location of the pack from where they were. Namid knew enough of the territory to know that there had never been a lake of this size near the caverns.

Lake

Looking around them again, she now noticed it. An enormous lake that seemed equal to that of a sea, stretching for miles. It hadn’t been as noticeable to her before for some reason, being that her focus had mainly turned from a tumbling world to Vespertio. It was covered in ice, drifts of snow stretching across its surface like a wrinkled blanket masking it from the land view. It would most likely be very obvious from a higher view, but here if one didn’t know that it was there, they would probably walk onto the ice easily. This made it occur to her that her situation could have been much worse if she had gone a bit further. Right now, she could be a frozen Namidsicle instead of dealing with a sprained, but dry, paw.

Bringing herself back to his comment she tilted her head, “Do you mean to say that wolves do not come crashing down from precarious heights all the time? How strange,” She replied, the only indication of joking on her face coming from the mused smile twitching at the corner of her maw. “It is a pleasure to meet you Vespertio. I thank you for coming to my aid, I know of others that would have chased me away long ago being so close to their home.” The Star Dancer commented in earnest, bowing her head to him this time in gratitude. Though he hadn’t yet done a lot for her, he had at least given her reassurance that she wasn’t going to die alone and frozen.

(This post was last modified: Mar 03, 2015, 03:00 AM by Namid.)

Upon mentioning the lake it didn't take long for the woman before him known to be called Namid; who's name, voice, and coat were tabbed to the growing list of wolves to cross his path since coming to the lore, to turn her head towards said large body of water. Silently she gazed upon its iced over surface as if seeing it for the first time which in fact was since her falling off the rocky heights behind them. He wasn't surprised though. With all the snow sprinkled over the glassy surface over the winter months the lake had become more disguised than ever, blending into the surrounding landscape. But the sightseeing was short lived as she returned her attention to the man to joke about wolves tumbling down. At this his own lips twitched with amusement at her ability to joke about her circumstances when it could have been the very thing that ended her legacy. "Ah, but it happens all the time. I can count a wolf on each toe that I've seen tumble from the mountain." He joked back, though a bit grim in comparison to hers(lacking a sense of proper humor) as he lifted a paw to wiggle the digits of his paw as if recounting the imaginary fallen wolves.  

At her next statement his head turned to glance in the direction he had originally traveled when departing from the borders of his 'home' on the other side of the lake. Home was an understatement of what his domain currently was. A two bedroom apartment would be a better description of the state the pack had been declined to with the sudden disappearance of so many members including the lead female and his lover. Suddenly a somber look passed over his features as he recalled this, the flame of hope for finding them slowly dying out. But as quickly as it arrived he dismissed it before this stranger could catch on, a faint smile pulling back the ebony of his lips while golden eyes scanned her over casually. "It's no trouble, Namid. My home isn't much, but you're welcome to come stay until your paw is recovered enough for traveling again. I don't know what plans you have if any, but i'd hate to leave you out in the cold when injured."

Thoughts are like burning stars and ideas

Whisper Caverns

They flood and stretch the universe

Her mismatched gaze traveled his movements, noticing the way he glanced across the river in a single direction. This led her to believe that was the way his home was set in, but she didn’t feel the need to ask. It wasn’t her business, and if he chose not to elaborate then he didn’t need to. In his gaze, she thought she saw something flicker. An emotion of some sort, but at soon as it was there it was gone and he was back to faint smiles and kind words. Perhaps she was wrong, maybe she hadn’t seen anything but she almost felt positive that she had. She knew nothing about Vespertio other than his name, his story being an enigma to her. Perhaps some things in past events were making themselves shown for some reason. Whatever it was, she didn’t let on that she noticed.

The next sentence that come out of his maw shocked her once again. He had invited her to stay with him, though it was quite an inopportune time she supposed with the way prey was scarce and her inability to hunt for herself if she did. Namid chewed on her cheek for a moment, mulling over the invitation carefully for both the good of herself and him. From the scent on him that she’d picked up, he wasn’t alone. It was faint, making it obvious that there weren’t many of them, but it was still strong enough to make it known of the presence of others. It was be unfair of her to ask them to care for her, and the thought of letting them do that made the mostly self-dependent she-wolf a little uncomfortable. However, that was the problem entirely. She couldn’t take care of herself, not at that moment. If she had any hope of actually making it in her condition, she would need the help of others. Even strangers like he and his companions. It would only be for a few weeks until she healed, then she would be out of his fur with compensation for his generosity.

A decision evident in her gaze she looked at him and nodded hesitantly, “That may be the best choice for the moment in my condition. I promise that I will not take advantage of your generosity, it will only be for a short time and when I am healed I will compensate you.” She accepted. The way her posture was set in that moment and the tone in her voice showed that she meant what she said. She’d just made a promise to the male, and the sternness in her vocals suggested that, even if he said it wasn’t needed, she would likely do it anyhow.