Hot Springs Venturing out

It had been quite some time since Kajika had ventured beyond the borders of Fallen Tree Cove. He felt that with spring upon them it wouldn’t hurt to venture outside the borders in search of prey or anything else that might strike his fancy. Mostly he wanted to get away for a short time, wander a bit. There was still a part of him that did enjoy drifting from place to place sometimes.

The thing that he found most amusing was how well he had adjusted to pack life. He remembered how worried he’d been when he first joined that he wouldn’t be able to settle down. However, as time had passed he found he was quite comfortable in the pack. He was more certain than he’d ever been that he’d made the right decision even if a big part of his reason had been Des, he often did think of her. Still he had to move on despite whatever feelings he had felt for her.

When Kajika first left pack lands he was cautious, he couldn’t imagine Relic Lore had changed too much. He did know that boars had been loose in the forest and he was a little rusty when it came to traveling outside the safety of his home. The further he traveled the less weary he became, more like when he had been traveling alone. The path he had chosen had lead him through an area full of nightshade, which he knew well. Then on to the hot springs. It was here that he stopped his travels. Walking right up to the edge of the water he debated stepping in.

(This post was last modified: Apr 20, 2016, 02:29 AM by Kajika.)

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What fun was there to be had wasting away in a den among looming trees and ridges. Ah yes, her unexpected welcome to the Willow Ridge had offered her safety in her later years - somewhat. The problem was that safety often meant boredom. It may have been safer to sit at the foot of a mountain and look up at the peaks, but it was far more exciting to climb to the top and look down.

Nobody should have been surprised that even at her age she was looking to get her nose in everybody's business. Was that not the purpose of an elder? Granted she was supposed to be more of an advisor than a gossip, but there was something about an old face that seemed to get tongues running. Whether they would continue to do so now that she smelled of a pack territory, well... there was but one way to find out.

She was oh so careful about where she chose to step, taking the path of least resistance (or rather, whichever way was easiest on her joints) and dreadfully careful not to overstep any bounds that weren't familiar. That said, she could always fall back on the lost old lady plan, a forgetful old woman that had lost her way, if she stumbled across well defined borders. For now - she just wanted a drink, and the path of least resistance as it was led her to the gold she sought.

A stranger, a boy, to whom she called out as soon as she'd spent some mere seconds taking him in. The arduous task of adventuring seemed to have paid off. A spring of all places. "Go on then." She urged from a distance. "Jump." Why was it so easy to imagine her using the same tone of voice to urge someone over the edge of a cliff...

The time it had taken to reach the hot springs hadn’t been long which made Kajika wonder why he hadn’t found it before. The area around it was quiet almost serene and yet again his thoughts drifted to the past and what could have been. Things that he didn’t like to dwell on too much, it wasn’t like him to dwell on the past. If he was one to do so then he wouldn’t have made it as far as he had in life and he intended to make it further someday but now was not that time.

Instead he had a decision to make about stepping into the water in front of him or not. On one paw he was certain that it would be pleasant to spend some time in the spring. After all he wasn’t a puppy anymore and the warmth might help his muscles. On the other paw…well he couldn’t exactly come up with any reason why he shouldn’t. Kajika was just about to make up his mind and take the plunge when a voice telling him to jump reached his ears which swiveled in the direction the voice had come from.

His gaze followed a second later landing on the form of a light coated female. He studied her for a moment thinking it quite the coincidence that they would both be there at the same time but pushing that thought out of his mind. “Were you thinking about entering the spring?” He asked curiously, “If so I wouldn’t be opposed to the company.” It had been such a long time since he had spoken to anyone outside of his own pack that it would be nice to talk to an outsider.

Kajika did finally take a few steps into the water letting it wash over his paws and warm them. It was just as he had imagined it when he had first come across this place. He wondered if the woman had come to this place specifically for the spring or if she too had stumbled upon it as he had.

(This post was last modified: Apr 21, 2016, 04:04 AM by Kajika.)

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It had been a long, long time since anyone had invited her to do anything out of the ordinary. Much longer, since such an invitation had come from a man, and never by someone such a fraction of her age. The thought alone was enough to have her tickled with amusement, but she did not laugh. No, her face was stone as ever, even when he turned to meet her eyes she just watched. There was a distinct smell about him, and the warmth of the springs was only aiding her sense of smell. He reeked of a pack that was not her own. That was interesting, and potentially troublesome.

"Nonsense." She all but sputtered at his suggestion, and a shake of her head was met with a slash of her tail. Just one. "I don't swim. That's for the fishes." She could swim, sure. It probably would have been good for her joints, but the idea of having her fur wet down and matted wasn't something she was that interested in. Dare not mess with a woman's sense of style after all.

"However..." she loped forward with slow, lazy steps, nearing the young male, but not getting too close "...I would be happy to sit, and watch." A brief flash of her tongue slipped across her lips, and she found her eyes peering at him with an odd kind of intensity.

"Are you putting on a show, dear boy?"

Sorry this took so long

He had offered for her to join him in the springs, after all something such as that shouldn’t be kept to oneself. The warmth of the water had the potential to help with many things, Kajika could at least see that. The fact that this newcomer was from another pack which he could tell by the scent she carried with her didn’t bother him. It also didn’t bother him to share the springs with her since she had come to them at the same time he had, it was only fair in his mind. So far from what he could tell she seemed nice enough so he didn’t feel threatened by her though he remained cautious as he always did with wolves that weren’t of his own pack. His paws were still in the water and he could still feel the warmth that it offered and while he waited for her response he took another step into the water so came up a little further on his forelegs.

He tilted his head to the side slightly when she finally gave her answer to his invitation. “I think an exception could be made for the springs,” he stated, “Besides I’m not really sure you would call this swimming.” He didn’t think so, he thought it was more along the lines of wading, at least that was what he was currently doing. “You really should miss out on something like this,” he said not wanting her to feel left out.

His ears perked forward as she spoke again and he watched as she came a little closer to him and still remaining a safe distance away. He wasn’t so sure she would feel very left out after her next comment which was somewhat surprising to hi, no one had ever spoken in such a way to him. He remained quiet for a moment trying to decide how best to respond. Finally he settled on, “What sort of show were you looking for?”

(This post was last modified: May 12, 2016, 03:38 AM by Kajika.)

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