Whisper Marsh dead gardens

OOC: For @Yvly Hope this is okay!

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Hush Meadow had lived up to its name as Wraith traveled through it. Not even the odd ptarmigan could be flushed from the frozen landscape which was a disappointment as the bird had become the dark male's favorite prey to hunt. Frustrated that his attempts to hunt and entertain himself had gone in vain, the brute naturally angled north through a thin stand of trees towards the frozen marshlands where he may perhaps have more luck. He'd seen the occasional goose flying overhead when resting the his pack mates heading that way.

The very moment he stepped from the trees, an eerie chill settled across the mantle of his back, causing his hackles to raise. The whistling of wind through the trees now behind him did little to calm the sudden anxiety nipping at his heels and Wraith wondered exactly when it was that he began to frighten so easily. He never used to be afraid of something as simple as the wind and cold air.

Honestly, he didn't have to wonder. He knew when it was; the day he'd made a terrible mistake. The wolf growled, shaking off any memories before they had a chance to repeat in his head again and again. Since arriving at Willow Ridge, he'd kept distracted enough to avoid the majority of those lingering thoughts of fault and blame.

Annoyed with himself, he tromped deeper into the marsh, on a mission now to find himself a duck of some sort whose neck he could chew on. The wind buffeted stronger against him, sweeping the dusting of snow off the thick layer of ice - now well formed - beneath his paws. Wraith jolted, amber eyes caught on the miserable face of an open-mouthed fox who had likely drowned beneath the ice. While he had no love for the vermin, finding their slinking about the den irritating, he could certainly feel sympathy for the poor animal. Such a death would have probably felt like years. It was an agony he never hoped to experience and had him treading more lightly across the ice, fearing for his own hide.

As he edged back towards the marsh's tattered bank, Wraith found several other corpses that had suffered similar fates as the fox, though they consisted mostly of small mammals. What a cruel place these southlands could be. Back where he was from, death usually came quickly in the form of a long fall off a steep cliff.

It's great :D

Feeling the need to escape the confines of pack lands the tawny female had ventured south. If the aeonian winter had not been present she would have travelled further, but as it was she went only as far as the now frozen marshlands to the south of Grizzly Hollow. Usually murky places sent her running; she hated the feel of muddy water upon her toes and the sticky substance lingering on her fur, but now that it was covered in snow and ice she prowled along the edge of the clear icy surface, keeping to the banks. The scent of decaying corpses filled her nose, and she reacted by curling her lips and flattening her ears. Death was something she tended to avoid, but at least the dead didn't try and speak.

An unearthly frigidity seemed to hang around the marshlands, sending shivers down her spine and hackles to be set on edge. Dark amber eyes scrutinized the surrounding area... she didn't feel quite alone anymore. A dark shape was seen in the distance, hazy in the freezing fog that had decided to settle among the frozen wetlands. Lifting her muzzle she inhaled deeply, but with a shake of her head swiftly lowered it, only able to catch the scent of putrefying corpses. She would have to get closes then. Crouching down so her belly was nearly touching the frozen bog, Yvly crawled slowly along the banks, steadily making her way closer to the dark shape which was growing larger the closer she got.

The second she caught a whiff of wolf she froze, ears pulling back along her skull and body trembling slightly. This wolf, whoever he was, was very much larger than she, and belonged to a pack... Willow Ridge. The tawny female recalled meeting a black and white she wolf from that pack about a month ago, but she wasn't a fool to decide this male was as friendly as she. And so she slowly crept backwards, desperately hoping he hadn't heard or scented her. This wasn't a place to mingle among strangers.

346 words

Yvly Doramor

imagine we are higher than the arrows,
casually we're breathing with the pharaohs,
tragically we fall just like the arrows.

There is a family of deer nearby. Hunt Opportunity

OOC: Good job Wraith.

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Unfortunately for the female trying desperately to avoid his attention, Wraith's nerves had him far too reactive for her to get away without notice. Even more unfortunately, the shifting fog had her form appearing quite ghost-like on the icy landscape as she tried to edge away. Frustrated with all these tricks, the black male surged forward in a rush of power with his teeth bared while his head, ears, and tail were lifted high.

"Enough!" he snarled to what he assumed was truly empty landscape, snapping his teeth on empty threat as if the sound of reality alone could chase such a specter away. Wraith hadn't heard any talk among the pack of hauntings like this before, but he imagined such things would follow him for the rest of his life for the crimes he committed against his own.

It was only when the male drew closer that he realized this supposed spirit had an awfully strong scent that smelled of pack and female. While the pack scent wasn't one he recognized personally, he had not been raised to attack females as ruthlessly as he had planned for the damned ghost. Realizing his mistake, Wraith blinked, his lips falling back over his teeth while he stopped his forward momentum.

Of course, he hadn't factored in the ice. Despite his nails digging in to the slippery surface, the large brute slid right into the poor cowering lady, sending the pair of the skidding across the frozen marsh. Before they even stopped, panicked apologies poured from Wraith's mouth in a pitiful attempt to undo the disaster he had just caused.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry. I thought you were - I didn't mean to hurt you."

OOC here!

She hadn't anticipated the large dark male to suddenly snap and rush towards her, teeth bared and body language clearly stating he wasn't in the mood to have a friendly chat, which she would have much preferred over having him assault her. The tawny female had no time to react, and she scrabbled fruitlessly on the ice beneath her, nails making no impact at all on the slippery surface. Her eyes widened with fear as the brute slid towards her with no intention of stopping anytime son. With a gasp as his body slammed into hers, Yvly was sent practically flying into the air, her lithe body tumbling head over heals on the frozen marshland until she finally came to a rest on her side.

Blinking, she lifted her head to glance momentarily at the dark brute that had ran into her, tawny ears barraged with relentless pleas and apologies from him. Shaking her head in an attempt to rid herself of the dizziness plaguing her vision, the tawny female shakily rolled onto her stomach, quivering legs heaving her into a standing position. Ears folding backwards, she curled her lips in a silent snarl. This was the second wolf from Willow Ridge to knock her over... apparently it ran in the pack, and she was not fond of it. "Shut it!" She snapped at him, simply wanting silence to ease her ringing ears. Whereas Enoki had been somewhat her size, this male was much bigger than her, and so packed more of a punch. She considered herself lucky to be standing. Narrowing her eyes, Yvly scrutinized him, taking note of his black coat and amber eyes for future reference. If she saw him again she would likely just turn tail and head the other way.

295 words

Yvly Doramor

imagine we are higher than the arrows,
casually we're breathing with the pharaohs,
tragically we fall just like the arrows.

The harsh impact made an audible sound in the otherwise silent snowy landscape, as did her rough landing on the ice while she tumbled haplessly across the ice, eventually coming to a stop on her side. On the other hand, Wraith immediately dropped to his belly, his jaw cracking against the solid surface in a way that had his head ringing similarly to her own.

Her snapping demand lashed out across the short distance separating the pair. Immediately, the larger wolf fell silent, ears drooping guiltily against his head. She was quite a bit smaller than him and had taken too strong a hit for Wraith to feel comfortable about it. He made no attempt to stand up off the ice, head lowered onto his paws. The male half hoped she would take out a considerable amount of aggression on him for his blunder.

It wouldn't be the first time he'd run head first into another wolf. In fact, Wraith had met his best friend, Craw, in quite a similar manner. Racing from his ghosts, the male remembered, rather than at one. Of course, the tawny she-wolf was no ghost, but flesh and blood and bitter temper. He certainly couldn't fault her for it. A quiet, sorrowful whine eased passed his teeth and even rolled to show his belly and expose his throat for her. Already, Wraith could hear Craw in his head screaming at him to pick himself up off the ice and stop acting like a pup around an opposing pack wolf.

Sorry for the wait! I was eating sushi xD

The dark brute immediately fell silent after her outburst, and the tawny female breathed a sigh of relief. Maybe now that there was sett silence the ringing in her ears would go away. However, she hadn't expected the male to further lower his head onto his darkly furred paws and roll over onto his back, exposing his stomach and throat to her. Taken aback, the silent snarl slid from Yvly's face, a confused look crossing her maw. Eyes narrowing into slits she took a step back, suspicious of the male before her. She didn't like it when other wolves surprised her. She liked being able to predict what they would do because it left no room for surprises. But now what was she going to do?

Tawny ears twitched at the sorrowful whine, and for once she didn't know how to react. He seemed to be truthfully sorry at knocking her over... and so she relaxed her posture, slowly reclining back until her haunches rested upon the snowy ground, dark amber gaze still warily watching him. "You can get up," Yvly said softly, her voice barely a whisper, "I won't bite." Well, unless he did something else stupid. She had no idea how he would react. He was a strange one... first he acts like he's going to eat her and then the next he's apologizing like his life depends on it. It hurt her head just thinking about it, or maybe that was just from the hard knock to the ground.

252 words

Yvly Doramor

imagine we are higher than the arrows,
casually we're breathing with the pharaohs,
tragically we fall just like the arrows.

(This post was last modified: Jan 19, 2016, 03:01 AM by Yvly.)

OOC: no worries! this might be my last one for the night. internet is getting pulled soon. but i should be back tomorrow evening if you're still interested in spreeing!

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From the way her expression morphed from fury to confusion and distrust, Wraith could tell he wasn't going to get that bite he deserved for crashing so ruthlessly into her. It was another tick on the list of debts he owed; one that he was beginning to realize he had no hopes of repaying.

At her gentle words, Wraith rolled onto his side and remained there for a moment. Best to keep his movements slow so as not to startle her anymore than he already had like the great big oaf he usually wasn't. Only when she had no reaction to that did he slowly ease into a sitting position, though his head hung uncomfortably low to keep himself beneath her gaze - not an easy feat for one so tall.

"It's going to sound really silly and like a bad excuse," he began quietly. "But I..." Oh, and not to mention embarrassing. It was most certainly going to be embarrassing. "I thought you were a ghost." Did wolves normally go attacking things they imagined were ghosts? Probably not, but Wraith had had his fill of them lately.

While the male's jaw ached from where he'd smacked it against the ice, he dared not lift a paw to press on it, considering the throbbing ache just desserts for his fumble since it didn't seem she'd take her pound of flesh herself. Only just now becoming aware of all the twinges along his body, he winced to think of how she must be feeling. What an idiot he was and paranoid to boot, worrying himself to death over ghosts and the like! Any minute now and she'd laugh him back onto the ice.

Sleep well! :) And I will certainly be happy to continue spreeing with you

The large brute rolled onto his side slowly, and she watched him with curious eyes. He eased himself into a sitting position, head hung low and eyes averted. Not in a subordinate way, but one that spoke of shame and regret. Her tawny tail swished back and forth behind her along the frozen ground, an attempt at looking more friendly so the male would stop acting as such and get over it. She wasn't made of porcelain, and she didn't break easy. It took a lot more to hurt her feelings, and she could deal with a bruise or two. Plus she had no idea what to do with him moping around like that. Being her usual self would only make it seem like she was mocking him, and she wasn't like that. No, she just liked it where it was peaceful and quiet, and when disturbed usually became snappish.

Her wolfy brows raised incredulously at the brutes mentioning of him thinking she had been a ghost. Usually only white wolves were mistaken as ghosts, and she was definitely not white. Her pelt resembled more the bark on a tree than a spectre in the distance, but she wouldn't reprimand him on his fault. It was foggy out, and she herself hadn't known what he was until she got close enough to smell him. However, wolves mostly only saw spectres and things in the dark when they were running... at least that's what she had been told. "Well this ghost doesn't appreciate it when wolves come running at her like a madman," Yvly said in a soft tone with the hint of a smile upon her face, trying to lighten the mood.

283 words

Yvly Doramor

imagine we are higher than the arrows,
casually we're breathing with the pharaohs,
tragically we fall just like the arrows.

(This post was last modified: Jan 19, 2016, 03:31 AM by Yvly.)

When she wagged her tail, Wraith’s moved in response, thumping against the ice while he smiled sheepishly. She seemed to forgive him readily; though he wasn’t sure he deserved the quick and easy resolution. The male sensed he was embarrassing her a bit, however, and sat up fully. At her teasing tone, Wraith’s tail wagged faster.

“I can’t say I blame you.  I’d react poorly, too.”

Standing, the black wolf shook himself, paws splaying awkwardly on the ice. He lowered his gaze, glaring at the slippery surface. One day, he’d learn. He angled his head towards where windblown reeds lay crusted in snow, indicating they should perhaps find their way off the frozen marsh.

Carefully, Wraith tiptoed to the edge, finding a path easiest for them both to make it safely without any more snafus. “My name is Wraith. I’m new to the Willow Ridge pack. These lands are a bit strange to me. Ah, are you from…” Shoot, Craw had told him the nearby pack and mentioned there may be some animosity between them and Willow Ridge. What was it? Grizzly…something. “The bear pack?” he asked lamely, memory failing him.

The black brute shook his head. “I’m sorry. What is your name? Unless you’d prefer I call you Ghost,” he suggested, grinning to alleviate any lingering tension.