Stonewatch Timbers In with the new

OOC: For @Sylva - Just to be clear Raela is not truly in heat/fertile right now, she's just in the early stage with scent & behavior changes etc since it's only a week away~ 

2/23/2016
Weather:
26° F, -4° C
Sunny 
2:11 PM

Perhaps it made sense. She was the leader again, and with what had recently happened between her and @Gent well, things were different. There was no dominant wolf to stamp out her rising hormone levels, and no stress from being malnourished. The pack was getting on reasonably well with her return, and the days were slowly warming. Unfortunately, Raela found that she was also warming up. Never before had the agouti woman been able to experience this. The conditions simply hadn't been right, and the thought didn't even cross the girl's mind. Last year she was lucky to be alive, and the year before that was something she'd rather forget. Raela wasn't ignorant about it in the slightest; heats were essential in pack life and both of her former Alphas had been through them multiple times. Hers felt close. 

At first the strangeness of it had left her wondering if she was falling ill; and the explanation wouldn't have been too far fetched in regards to her recent expedition, but by now the Crest matriarch had realized. She'd be coming into heat soon. On the face of it the prospect was relieving, but it was also nerve wracking. For all she knew the chemicals had been spurred on by her new, even closer bond with Gent. It was love now, and maybe her body knew it. The question of making the looming decision to act on it was a whole other ordeal. Did she even dare to entertain the thought? Aside from that quandary there was the fact that she was growing uncomfortable in her own skin. Already her scent was different, but it would only grow stronger as time went on. Her patience was getting shorter; something very strange for the usually mild-mannered woman. Agitation was becoming more of a constant than a deviation from the norm; and Raela hated it. As if I need something else to mess with my nerves... She grumbled to herself. 

In the interest of diffusing the tension and preserving her relationship with her only female subordinate, who no doubt was probably going to start feeling the effects herself if she hadn't already, the Queen had begun to stray a bit. She felt better when she was moving; actively pouring her energy into something else. Tracking the groups of prey outside their borders was an endlessly useful endeavor, and one that the lithe woman took to well. Her great endurance was essential – the critters always seemed to be on the move. Today it was another family group of deer; common in the timbers. While she wove through the trees following the airborne scent, something very different from a deer reached her curious nostrils.  

Another female, and probably young if her nose was correct. She paused her leisurely trot to listen, but the girl was too far away. The Crest's numbers had been dwindling as of late, and with that knowledge Raela took the risk of heading in her direction. She would check on the deer later; the pack desperately needed members just as much as food. Perhaps this stranger was tracking the prey as well. Raela sighed, trying to clear her head before the imminent encounter. At least the air was much warmer than it had been in days past. Under her thick winter pelt it was more than toasty, and only served to remind the woman that spring was on its way.  

(This post was last modified: Feb 23, 2016, 08:13 PM by Raela.)

            

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The young black wolf stepped out between the large snow covered spruce trees, hazel brown eyes shining in wonder as she looked up. Taking a deep breath and shaking out her fluffy fur, some of the snow had been lodged on her back slowly fell off as she looked around. This is why she had wondered out this way, the beauty of the region was just asking to be explored and Sylva’s natural curiosity had finally driven her beyond the Ghastly Woods. She had been reluctant to at first, the Woods both terrified and fascinated her, but if they had so much to offer, what about the lands all around?

She stepped out quietly with some practiced ease from hunting small game through the snow, her paw steps making little noise beyond a soft crouch on the snow as she gave a small grunt of surprise, the sudden bright sunlight reflecting off the snow caught her by surprise after having walked through the forest. Shaking her muzzle as she pricked her ears with the intentions of catching any noise of prey, the long trek had taken her beyond what she had intended and she knew she needed to eat before she could really travel further.

She glanced around, taking note of her surroundings, the faint creaking of the spruce branches over head. She perked up as she caught a faint but repeated noise. Sounds like a bird….or dinner… She licked her muzzle as she strained her ears to catch the direction of the bird calling. Brown eyes shining at the prospect of a good meal, the small wolf moved east, toward the direction of her prey.

Soon Sylva was prowling along a small ridge, a slinking shadow in a field of white as she followed the calls. Coming to the edge of the ridge, she looked down into a narrow valley, and there sat a flock of Pheasants. Sylva fell into a low crouch at the top of the ridge, looking down, she observed that the ridge was fairly steep, but there was a few rocky outcrops that she could work her way down. Slowly she moved toward the nearest one, it was maybe eight or more feet below her on the shallow slope. As she slid down behind the rocks, she became a little more confident and moved toward the edge of the rocks.

Sylva stood on the rocks, listening to the constant calling of the Pheasants when things started to go downhill (literally). She stepped forward, her right fore paw on the coarse snow when suddenly, unaware of a patch of ice under the snow until her fore-paw made contact and slid out from under her. The black and light brown wolf gave a startled yelp as she tumbled, head over tail down the hillside and into the snow below. The Pheasants, hearing the cry of a predatory quickly scattered as the wolf laid in the snow, on her back, soft brown fringed paws twitching once or twice as she groaned, not in pain, but frustration.

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(This post was last modified: Feb 23, 2016, 11:17 PM by Sylva.)

Shallow water has trapped several fish in a small pond. Hunt Opportunity

On another day the smell of pheasant would be a welcome hunting opportunity, but right now it was a mere distraction from her mission. Raela dismissed the opposing scent with a soft snort and pressed on through the snow. The flakes clung to her legs and belly in places, thankfully kept at bay by her guard hair. At least some of it had melted since the great storms of the previous week. Now the woman's legs were only half engulfed in it. In certain areas she even managed to walk atop the stuff to some degree. Either way the Crest wolf slowly approached, perhaps being extra cautious since she hadn't seen a loner near her home in quite a while. 

However, she actually heard the young wolf before spotting it. Pheasants erupted raucously from the trees up ahead and Raela almost jumped. Her wide yellow eyes swung around, heartbeat racing. The way the birds panicked could have meant that any predator was after them, but a hurried check of the air still revealed only the young one's scent. Exhaling her panic, the agouti female pressed on, this time at a slow trot. She rounded the base of a ridge, coming to an abrupt stop when the dark figure, well, part of it anyway, appeared against the snow. Raela squinted. Those are... paws? It was peculiar to say the least. Then it struck that maybe the youth was injured, and concern won out over caution. The ridge she'd fallen from was a pretty good drop. She was lucky there was still snow on the ground. 

While a lesser wolf might have laughed or made some other supercilious comment, (and Raela likely would have a good chuckle to herself later,) instead she barked once in curious greeting. As much as she wanted to, the Crest matriarch had no idea of this one was even friendly. She needed to have enough space to flee quickly. That, and strangers didn't usually like other strangers invading their personal space. 

            

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Sylva laid there on her back in the snow, at first she was scared to move, incase she had injured herself. But suddenly a muffled bark through the snow caused Sylva to jerk her head up. Realizing by the tone that it wasn’t hostile or challenging Sylva slowly rolled over, onto her belly, dislodging herself from the deep snow before slowly standing with a grunt. As she stood her, one could see just how small she was indeed. Soft ebony mixed with brown fur ran along the length of her body and revealed that she was indeed underfed, though some may attribute this to her natural small size. Shaking the snow from her fur she glanced around, searching for the origins of the inquiring bark.

Before Sylva stood another wolf, that much hadn’t surprised her. She groaned quietly to herself, why did almost every wolf she’s met been at a time when she blundered and messed up a hunt. She looked intently at Raela’s, her soft brown eyes taking in the other wolf’s detail. From the yellow eyes to the grey, white and cream colored of her fur mixing and swirling together. “You're beautiful..” Sylva said out loud, she was used to thinking in this form and quickly turned her head away when she realized she had spoken, She’s going to think I’m some kind of crazy loner now! ugh, Why Sylva, why!?she berated herself as she stood there before realizing that Raela wasn't running away.She's still there...that’s a good sign right?

After a few moments of awkward silence the young black wolf trusted herself to speak again “H-hi…” she said quietly, while still debating on just burying herself in the snow, but realizing that would be very rude when she had company, instead she focused on Raela and simply waiting, hoping that the wolf wasn’t going to laugh at her.

ThoughtSylva’s dialogueOther’s dialogue

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Her voice seemed to incite movement from within the snowbank, and her yellow eyes tracked the paws as they vanished from sight, only to reveal the slender body of a yearling, and a small one too. She wasn't a yearling in the usual sense for this time of year though; those were going to be adults in the spring. This one, not so much. Her young age did a great deal to ease Raela's nerves, and even brought some concern to her thoughts. She was so young. Why was she out here alone? The image of Noble appeared in her mind, and this youth was not terribly unlike her; but far too small to be the missing Lagina child. 

The strangers seemed to take each other in curiously for a moment, before the chilly air was broken with a most unexpected statement. Raela's eyes widened in surprise and she smiled. It only grew broader as the child seemed to admonish herself for the abrupt compliment. Her eyebrows raised with curiosity; what a peculiar way to greet someone, she thought. It was immediately charming coming from the young girl, and after some silence, Raela found her voice. "Well thank you," she offered, her tone light and playful. A soft chuff of amusement left her nose. Then an actual salutation was given, and Raela bowed her head. 

"Nice to meet you." In the ensuing silence the Crest Queen glanced up the ridge, and recalled the terrified birds. Had she been hunting, or just clumsy enough to startle the pheasants without even realizing they were there? The next question almost fell from her mouth instinctively, and with some genuine concern. "You alright?" Raela's eyes swept up and down the smaller wolf once before landing again in her brown pools. 

            

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Sylva stood there in the snow, her posture relaxing as she realized that the larger wolf wasn’t going to simply turn tail and leave her to her own devices in the snow. Her ears pricked as Raela spoke, brown eyes filling with confusion as she was thanked for what she saw as an embarrassing slip of her tongue. Sylva nodded as her greeting had been returned, soft hazel orbs glancing around as she mumbled “Y-you too.”

maybe she didn’t see us fall, we could play it off as slee-Sylva’s hopes were quickly extinguished as she notice the agouti female’s gaze flicking to the top of the ridge and she groaned quietly. It as at that moment that her stomach decided to put it’s two cents in and a hungry rumbling emitted from Sylva. The black yearling’s gaze shot down habitually as she spoke “Oh, don’t you start on me!”

A small huff escaped Sylva as her stomach seemed to obey and hushed up as she glanced back toward Raela. Her attention returning to the female just in time to catch her concerned inquiry. “Y-yea….just...um..well you know I was climbing, enjoying the view when someone,” she paused for a moment, her brown gaze drifting down toward her belly for a moment “became hungry and I heard the um, the birds and thought to be good to hunt. So I came slinking up along the ridge when the rocks decided to betray my presence and I took a small tumble….”

She paused for a moment, in order to take in air as her shy shell slowly melted away to her more usual self“So um yea..I’m fine…. and I didn’t fall! I slipped!” to the young yearling it sounded much less embarrassing this way, even though both slipping and falling were the exact same thing.

ThoughtSylva’s dialogue

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(This post was last modified: Feb 25, 2016, 04:35 PM by Sylva.)

The poor thing was so awkward and nervous that it reminded Raela a bit of herself; especially when she was so young. The corners of the older woman's lips turned up a little as her new company groaned and her stomach made itself heard. Come to think of it, the girl did look a little thin. She almost laughed when the pup suddenly reprimanded her own stomach. A look of pure quiet amusement was plastered across Raela's face as the child revealed her harrowing tale, of course ending in her little crash and the scattering of what looked like a much needed dinner. 

The way she spoke was a bit flighty and random, but the message still came across clearly. She was fine, and she definitely didn't fall. The grin swept across Rae's face once more. Whether or not the words were synonyms, the idea she was trying to convey was understandable. The circumstances had been beyond her control and so it wasn't her fault that she landed belly up in the snow. In the interest of humoring the youth in front of her Raela nodded. At least no harm had been done. "I'm Raela," she replied casually. She waited a moment to let the young one respond, hopefully with her own name, before turning her head up toward the sky. She was finding that a meal didn't sound so bad, and it was a shame not to try and help the poor kid. 

"Why don't we see if we can't find those birds hmm?" She asked lightly, looking back at the swarthy yearling with expectation.

(This post was last modified: Feb 25, 2016, 05:08 PM by Raela.)

            

((Please scroll over the text,  there's more than it seems!))

“Raela….” The young wolf repeated the name, a slight tingle ran down her spine and caused her shudder in pleasure. Names were a sign friendship, something Sylva treasured dearly. So far there was a couple of names she knew and now she had one more gem to add to that hoard, a treasure hoard that she guarded fiercely. Sylva couldn’t help it, a small smile slowly formed on her own muzzle, the seemingly genuine concern of the older female was a comfort for the small loner.

It hadn’t occurred to her that the next pause was intended for her to give her own name and instead she tilted her head slightly at Raela waiting for her to go on. After a few moments she realized that she was suppose to do something. Did I miss something? Was I supposed to do something? Oh, no what if I did miss something?! Think Sylva, think! A confused scowl formed on Sylva’s face while she continued to panic on the inside. In the passing seconds of quietness.

Raela spoke up again,this time she suggested that they should look for those birds. Sylva nodded, calming down from a possible social blunder. She turned her head, eyes scanning the nearby trees, wondering if, and hoping that some of the birds may have been stupid enough to hang around and courteous enough to be caught. That sadly wasn't the case this time around as Sylva realized this and gave a small groan again. Great, now I can screw up another hunt. She glanced toward Raela, trying to hide her doubts as she glanced around“So um...how should we do this?”

ThoughtSylva’s dialogue

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OOC: Raela hunting post 1/4 

Despite the invitation, the young one did not offer her name. Raela let it slide; not giving the lack of introduction too much thought. She could always find out later. Instead her own name was parroted back, and the Queen found herself smiling along with the dark yearling. At last her suggestion was met with agreement, and the two wolves glanced into the timbers above for a moment. The birds had to be quite a ways off by now, but with any luck they were on the ground again and not hiding. The sound of frustration turned Raela's sunshine eyes back to her company again with a concerned look, before a soft smile joined them. 

Setbacks like this could be torturous, especially to a hungry kid. The stranger voiced her question, and Rae looked off into the woods around them again. "If we start walking in the direction they left, we might be able to pick up the scent and track them down again." As long as they moved with the wind in their favor, the scent would come up eventually – she hoped. Raela looked back at the snow-covered child and gestured with her head. She at least had a rough idea of where to start. The Crest matriarch set off at a trot, glancing back to make sure the dark pup was following. 

She let silence fall for a few minutes while she tried to concentrate on finding the weak airborne trail. Pheasants didn't usually go too far; especially when there was good food around. Raela wasn't sure what was around here that they liked, or how buried it might be in the snow, but they were in the area for some reason. She paused to take in the cold winter air for the umpteenth time, and finally the critter's distinct odor emerged, though just barely. She immediately began trying to find out where it became stronger, deciding to toss out some small talk as they worked. "So uh," she began slowly, passing glances back to her new hunting partner. "Are you from around here?" She didn't smell like another pack, but then again she could very well have been missing just like Noble or Ari. Why, this kid was right around Ari's age, give or take a few months. What if she'd found someone's lost child?