Cold Water Creek gold dust

@Sahalie <3 -- midday, light snow fall

His mother had returned.

Although it didn’t surprise him — he knew that his mother would never permanently abandon him — it did trouble him that it took her so long. The smudge knew that she had her reasons and that he couldn’t change the pass… but it was still trouble — oh so very troubling. If she left once did it mean that she would not hesitate to leave a second time? Or a third? Or just leave forever?

No — he needed to stop thinking so negatively. His mother was staying and it was permanent. There was no ‘ifs’ or ’buts’, she was here for good and she would not leave again unless he was at her side. However, despite her return Arion was still on his exploring ‘kick’. Staying within the borders of Broken Timber caused him to feel restless, especially when he had just gotten a taste of adventure before Zia’s return. While he wanted to spend time with her and play catch-up, the land beyond the borders called to him, begging for him to discover its hidden treasures.

Which brought him to his current excursion.

With carefully placed steps, the slender smudge maneuvered through the trees, following the creek that cut through the forest. It was a place he visited often, but each visit was different. There was so much to see, so much to explore; he couldn’t possibly see it all in one go. Snow dusted his back as he skipped along, oversized paws fumbling over the rocks and roots that littered the ground. Most of the creek was frozen but R could see movement below the transparent surface. While the bubbling water wasn’t deep, little R was reluctant to test the strength of the ice — mostly because he knew the water was going to be cold as hell and he really wasn’t keen on going for an icy dip.

As they grew older Arion found that he was spending less time with the wonder twins — much to his disappointment. They truly were the ultimate playmates and the majority of his adventures were with them at his side. Even Nalda, in all her stuck-up, conservative glory, was beginning to grow on him — and made an excellent playmate when she let down her guard. As much as he enjoyed the presence of his packmates the boy was also keen on making new friends, or playmates, or whatever. New acquaintances to bother, mostly. He was getting very good on bothering others — especially strangers.

She saw a dark shape pass through the brush before her and her mouth hung open as if to say something. But her words were caught in her throat as she recalled Drestig's warning about bringing home anymore strays. He had a scent on him, but she wasn't sure what it meant. The only other pack scent she was familiar was a group that lived clear over the mountains, but it seemed like this boy — one her own age— was part of one, probably. Sahalie wondered if that made it okay to speak to him, but she was unsure. He looked nice, but she thought that of everyone. Her paws did not follow the same restraint as her mouth and heart, however, and she found herself wandering along with him, vaguely concealed by the withered and snow covered ferns.

Truly, she did not want to upset @Drestig, but wondered if there was some way around breaking the rule she had imposed on herself unasked. Chewing on her lip, she considered her options. The best one seemed to be just to meander accidentally into his path. If the boy spoke to her, well, then, was that really her fault?

As casually as if she were pulling off a heist, the otter girl traipsed robotically out of her place behind a tree. As if she had not even noticed the boy, Sahalie moved passed him —right in front of him— and hopped lightly over the ice. She was too dumb to fear the frigid waters below, but also too light as to incur the wrath of gravity. Her tail waving jovially behind her, the girl continued to walk away. Please say something, she begged with all her heart.

(This post was last modified: Feb 24, 2016, 01:49 AM by Sahalie.)

Luckily the little smudge had encountered some pleasant, or ‘decent’ wolves in the few weeks he had been out exploring. Of course it only increased his desire to see more of the Lore, but for now he would restrain himself. He had just gotten his mother back and did not want to push himself away from her, or end up lost himself. Definitely not a good idea.

His curiosity was constantly running at the highest level possible, driving him forward in all his adventures and pushing him to do things he normally wouldn’t do. With his age he was becoming bolder, his carefree attitude often pushing him close to the edge. Oh — but what a wonderful place the edge was. For now, it was okay to be carefree. It was okay to allow his curiosity to consume him and be silly and reckless. Arion couldn’t imagine getting old and serious — how boring!!! And gross. No thanks — little R would hold onto his youth for as long as he could.

Which meant talking to girls whenever they crossed his path, even if he was still trying to figure out if they were icky or not.

He wasn’t sure if the girl was trying not to notice him or if she actually hadn’t, nor did he care. The scent she carried was not one that he had encountered before and it immediately intrigued him — along with her golden eyes and charcoal-coloured pelt. However he was confused by her actions… had she not smelt him or see his own obsidian pelt? She had walked directly in front of him, surely she was aware of his presence. Or perhaps she had and didn’t want to acknowledge him … how rude. Irritated, he stalked after her, not taking her lack of acknowledgement for an answer. “Bye?” He called after her while keeping a respectful distance between them, even though he desperately wanted to break he imaginary line that separated them.

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

She couldn't stop herself from flinching at his aggravated tone. This was not how she had expected a stranger to take the bait, but really what did she know about strangers? Apparently she had offended the black boy.  The Tainn's ears concentrated desperately on the world of sounds behind her, but the snow muffled any and all footfalls she might have heard. "So, you're not going to follow me?" she huffed, her voice high pitched with dismay. As she complained she had begun to turn around slowly.

Surprise: he was following her after all.

Her mouth curved in a neat little pout as she chewed her lip. "I'm...I'm sorry. I'm just. I'm not supposed to talk to strangers." But she was talking though, right now. Her heart thumped painfully. Her head swung left and right cautiously, as if to check the scene for other oak-scented wolves. None as far as she could smell or see. Emboldened, she took several bounding hops through the snow towards her near-mirror-image. Leaning in, she whispered, "But I won't tell if you won't." The knocking in her chest intensified. 

Looking straight at him, now, Sahalie could see that the pair of them were not, in fact, identical. His eyes were closer to Kino's. As dark as the boy was, he had more silver in him than the chocolate tones woven into her pelt. And he was taller —so much taller. Sahalie's gaze naturally rested at his chest fur, as it seemed to do with nearly any other adult or even child her age. Much leaner than one would have expected for his height, his overall physique invoked a sort of delicately carved look. It was not unappealing.

What a curious creature, he thought to himself as she responded, voice irate before she turned around and realized that he was actually following her. A sloppy, lop-sided grin unfolded across his dark lips as he studied her surprised expression. “But I’m not a stranger,” he responded with a short nod and a slow wave of his tail. Technically he was, but not anymore. “I don't got anyone to tell, don’t worry.” And he really didn’t. The smudge did not know any wolf that carried the same scent that engulfed the espresso-coloured female — and even if he did, he wouldn’t rat her out. Arion was no snitch.

He could feel her gaze dissecting him as he stood before her; his cheeks blushed red beneath his dark fur as he drew his own icy gaze away from her. Shuffling his feet uncomfortably he focused on the ground between them as the flame of curiosity burned furious within him. “Where are you from?” He asked suddenly, allowing his soft voice to break the silence that had fallen over him. Little R preferred encountering wolves who were close to his own age; older wolves were always so dull and serious, two things that he was not particularly fond of. He wanted to hold not his youth for as long as possible, even if it meant being a little immature; it was worth it.

Reluctantly, he forced himself to look up at the much shorter female, his pale gaze studying her slender figure. She was the colour of rich coffee; her fur similar to his own, but instead of silver she had espresso streaks littering her pelt. With her pale yellow orbs her appearance was much warmer — like a summer night — whereas he was the opposite; the coldest winter night. His cheeks flushed once more as he caught himself staring and he feverishly pulled his gaze away as he (im)patiently waited for her response.

Not a stranger? Her left eyebrow rose dangerously high, reaching back to her ear as she took another step towards him. She could feel the heat radiating off of his body. Her breath was frosting his face. "Mmmmm? But I don't think I know you." Unless, for some reason, he knew of her through the grape vine somehow. But that seemed unlikely. As far as Sahalie knew, the rest of Oak Tree Bend did not "get around" as Drestig would have said. Besides, if he said that he had no one to tell then he could not possibly have heard of her through any means that she knew. Shrugging, the girl took a step backwards, noticing finally the awkward movement of his feet.

"South," her muzzle tipped back over her shoulder, "where the wood gets foggy." The transition from this forest into her own was fairly gradual, but marked enough for anyone to understand if they had been that far. The red faded away into blue, and the trees began to grow closer and closer together until it was much darker. She felt the boy's gaze roam over her body, taking her in much the same manner as she had sized him up moments before. But Sahalie was not so shy with wolves she had never met, and she stretched her neck out a little longer. A pirouette was on her mind, but she shelved the thought as it was a bit too over the top.

"And you? Mr. not-a-stranger?" one corner of her mouth turned upwards. In the back of her mind she heard Drestig's warning tone, but she was too deep already. He had spoken to her and she was just too polite to ignore a conversation when it was laid at her feet orchestrated.

“Well you do now!” He chirped back in response in a feeble attempt to cover up the nerves th bubbled inside of him. Her demeanour was similar to the wonder twins’ but still different; she seemed a little more… confident? Was that the right word to use? The twins often depended heavily on the presence of the other, whereas this espresso-coloured girl seemed comfortable being on her own. Unless this was all a ruse, of course, which was entirely possible.

He tried to picture the place that the girl described but nothing came to mind — he had not been much further than the red trees that surrounded them. Perhaps when he was older he would make a trip further south… when he wouldn’t get his head chewed off. With the arrival of spring hopefully there would be a new brood for the adults to fawn over. Then he could pursue his wanderlust desires without having to constantly look over his shoulder to see if he was being followed by an older pack member.

A question tore him away from his thoughts, causing his blue gaze to settle on the bright-eyed girl. With a raised brow he stared at her with an amused expression unfolding across his maw. “North,” he started with a playful wink before he continued on: “between the mountain and the waterfall.” He paused a second time, mulling over his previous words before speaking once more. “Arion — or R, just not Mr. not-a-stranger,” he added with a slow wag of his tail, hoping that his introduction would spark the girl to give her own name. 

She could see the cogs whirling mechanically behind his eyes as he tried to make his mind up about her, but Sahalie had no way of knowing what any of it meant. Not that it had ever worried her: other wolves naturally seemed to get along with her. Of course, she knew about dislike from the way that Jessie and Spieden interacted. She knew it was possible but lacked an understanding of the means that drove such dislike. Most everyone seemed to get along alright in the pack, with her. She assumed that this was pretty much the state of the rest of the world.

As she finished her naive musings, the boy reworked her own format to provide her with the details on his hailing. It was almost strange not to be meeting someone who was from the other side of the mountain, which seemed to comprise a majority of her encounters. She knew there was another pack up north, where the fabled cousin-aunt Kisla lived, but even this knowledge could not stifle the impression that her family was terribly isolated on this side of the mountain. Families of wolves were a time a dozen on the other side. Knowing only of Hearthwood River, she listened carelessly to his description of his home. Waterfalls were usually attached to rivers anyhow, right? 

His little nickname made her giggle and wrinkle her nose at it's curiousness. "Sahalie. Or Halie," Though Kino liked to call her Hal, she figured she would leave that nickname special just for him. Another bubble of laughter, "OR S I suppose." Her joke clearly aimed at him. 

"So you're from Hearthwood River, right? Do you know my cousin Kisla?" Her head tilted left and right.

As peculiar as she girl was, Arion definitely liked her. She was spunky and bold, unafraid of what he might think of her. Perhaps she was naive but that didn’t bother the smudge; he liked her nonetheless and hoped that they would have future run-ins after this one.

Giving his head a little shake he cleared his thoughts. No use thinking about the future when their first encounter wasn’t even finished yet. The girl had giggled at his nickname, her amusement causing his own snort of laughter to drip off his tongue. His pale gaze narrowed slightly as she introduced herself — Sahalie — and a soft gaze rolled onto his lips. S, she added, as another roll of laughter caused her slender body to vibrate. “What about Sa, or Lie, or Giggles,” he added, his eyebrows wriggling in amusement as he stuck his tongue out at her. Giggles seemed like a much more appropriate name, since she could barely contain her laughter. It was refreshing being round someone so lighthearted, when most of the wolves he encountered were so darn serious. It was exhausting trying to play grown-up and be serious all the time.

He gave a sharp shake of his head at her words, his ears cupped forward. “Nope, not Hearthwood,” he started with a slight frown. “I’m from Broken Timber Pines. I’ve never heard of Hearthwood River before — or Kisla. Sorry Giggles.” He was curious of where this River pack was and if his pack knew about them, and the Kisla that the espresso girl was talking about. “I only know a couple o’wolves from Fallen Tree Cove around our age. They’re pretty nice.” And the pale girl, Neha, hadn’t been too hard on the eyes either.