Sacred Grove i ain't good, i ain't bad.

RE: Namir, a beautiful tune of birdsong wakes you up on a cool, spring morning.
Set morning, open to one or two!

A good, peaceful rest was becoming a luxury. Which was not to say life at Crow’s Crossing was particularly peaceful, but Little Crow had been allowed in the pack den, and she was (relatively) safe in there. In late and up early, so that she was never alone with Orin’s rightful children – but it wasn’t as if she minded the schedule. Even then, she’d been bursting with energy, and sleeping the day away wasn’t high on her priority list no matter how Orisa or Orin valued it.

Now, though – now she was alone, and generally exposed. Even when she found an abandoned fox den to shelter in overnight, there was no guarantee of safety, and with that constant worry came fretful sleep at best. Last evening, she must have been truly exhausted; it had been a very long time since Little Crow had slept a whole night through. She might have dreamt of home even longer, had a gentle bird song not stirred her.

Despite everything, she awoke with a soft smile; there was no one here to see her, and no one to wear the mask for, and so she did not, instead glancing up into the sunlit canopy as she looked for the cheerful songbird overhead. Namir even did her best to mimic the gentle trills and soft whistles, forgetting all about the surrounding world in the morning’s cool mist.

She had crossed that mountain and it was somewhat worth it. There was more land to explore and she could put some distance between her and her brother. Surely he wasn't dumb enough to follow her scent all the way over the moment. If he did cross it, some part of her hoped he'd fall. Maybe that was too harsh but he deserved it after leaving only to come back and take the throne before leaving again. Stupid men.

Abaddon had little idea where she was but that didn't matter. This place was nice enough for her to not grumble about it too much. She could hear songbirds overhead as the morning sun broke through some places in the canopy. The temperature was still cool and hadn't risen with the sun yet. Of course, this place seemed to rainy lately she wouldn't mind the sun heating up her coat.

Her large form waltzed through the grove without a care. She could smell all kinds of things from old deer tracks to fresher rabbits and rodents. Perhaps there was even the hint of a wolf here and there. The dark female was unsure if she wanted to be social again but she figured if she did bump into someone it wouldn't be the end of the world, maybe just the end of a good morning.

Despite her name, Little Crow was no passerine song bird. She could probably carry a melody about as well as her namesake – though that certainly didn’t stop her from her aimless chattering as golden eyes sought out the small song sparrows flitting about the branches. It felt good to hear, almost estival in tune, as if the birds themselves knew the harsh winter was finally over (and they’d jumped headfirst into summer, skipping right over the season that was supposed to be between).

Namir didn’t mind, though.

Summer was the best season, anyways. And she might have continued to whistle and croak at the birds overhead had another scent not filtered in on the cool breeze, setting her ears pressed back against her skull. The dusty wolf fell silent, as did the birds overhead – she did not dare rise from where she lay, lest she give away her position. Dark legs wandered by, not even a mere length away, and Namir knew she had the upper hand. The thin line of her mouth curled into an unkind grin. “If I were a snake, I woulda bit cha.” The loner rose to her feet, sizing the other wolf up. “Gotta pay attention out here.”

No one had ever said that Abaddon was the brightest of wolves. Her calm walk turned into a small stumble as a voice called out. The voice itself was foreign to her but the words weren't understood. While they hadn't exactly been a threat they also weren't that of a friendly good morning greeting.

Bright yellow eyes examined the other female as she softly nodded her head. "Thanks for the tip." The large female said in a fairly sincere tone. "You familiar with this place?" Her eyebrow raised as she did a quick look over of...wherever the hell they were. It wasn't a bad place and the few birds who still chirped here and there in the background were rather soothing. Abaddon wasn't saying she would stay here forever but if the smaller wolf had been a snake and bit here, well maybe the large female wouldn't have minded dying here.

She breathed in slowly to try and pick up the scents of this place. If this wolf didn't prove useful then perhaps some trail around here could. The dark female wasn't looking for some glorious trail to victory (despite how nice that would have been) but a rabbit trail to breakfast would have been nice.

A lynx has left behind the remains of a deer. +5 Health

…was that…sarcasm?

The response actually threw the small wolf off guard, brow quirking upwards as she lifted a paw – but never stepped backwards. Generally speaking, there were two replies she might get to such behavior: she’d get told right off for being an asshole, or she’d get ignored for behaving like a child. No one thought she was funny, and no one ever actually thought she made a good point. Because she couldn’t, not as pack thief, not as omega’s child, and certainly not as the alpha’s other pup. Little Crow couldn’t even begin to doublethink the contradiction the stranger had just presented her with – so the small wolf blinked again, and shook her head.

Shit, if she was a snake, she could have bit Namir right back!

“Ain’t from ‘round here, if that’s whatcha mean.” The girl rolled her shoulder in a small shrug, head tipped to one side. “Been here a bit otherwise, though. Lotsa birds. Lil’ things turn up at the spring. There’s a pack, but it’s a ways.” Which was good. She couldn’t get in trouble for lurking around the water source, waiting for something bite-sized to show up. “Think there’s some fish too, but I ain’t ever seen a wolf fish.”

grab it while ya still can, better not let go

Abaddon nodded her head softly, that had been what she meant. "Full of knowledge, aren't ya?" The dark female smiled approvingly. This one was being useful. Information on nearby packs and food sources. Now Abba had never been a fan of fish but now that she was alone she assumed she didn't get too much to be picky about. Not to mention, going to try and steal something more tasteful from pack borders didn't sound too pleasing. The last thing she wanted was an unnecessary fight or the teeth of many sinking into her hide.

"I've tried it a few times, more for fun than anything." The large female casually shrugged. Finding food on the land had never been much of an issue back home. Water hunting was more for fun and cooling off in the summer. "You willing to give it a shot? Sure you'd have more luck than me." She eyed the female for a moment. There was no hiding that Abaddon likely wasn't the quickest beast in all of the world. She was beefy and had the strength but if she had learned anything from those play fishing sections it was you had to be quick to catch one of them.

Milada Vigerova @ Unsplash 

“Well there sure ain’t no one t’ tell me ‘bout it.”

Namir’s mouth quirked up a little higher at the corner. Even if there was another wolf lurking ‘round these parts, be it a loner or part of a pack, the youth highly doubted they’d share information with a waste of space like her. When you were the omega’s pup, you did everything on your own, that’s just how it was. But if she could share now, maybe this stranger would be inclined to return the favor later…if they ever met again, that was. “Say, you gotta name, wolf?”

Because she’d just keep calling her that, if she didn’t.

But the thought didn’t linger too long, because apparently the older female had fished before. Little Crow narrowed her golden eyes, chewing on her lower lip. Was the other loner having her on? Yanking her chain for springing on her earlier? Made no sense that she’d have better luck when the dark wolf had already tried to fish before…though something to eat did sound pretty good, and with two wolves present, it was unlikely anything small and terrestrial was going to happen by the watering hole as long as they kept running their jaws. “‘ll give it a go,” she huffed, shuffling closer to the water’s edge. “You first, though. So I can see how it’s done an’ all. Ain’t no water for fishin’ where ‘m from. Ain’t no damn fish, neither.”

Eeee I like your fishy table! <3

grab it while ya still can, better not let go

She liked this female. Sure had a bit of bite to her but not enough to be a brat or annoying. It was just the right amount. Abaddon let a casual smile rest on her face with ease. The dark female carefully nodded her head. "Yeah, I do. Abaddon." Her name was spoken with obvious pride and confidence. Even if she was a loner and had lost any possible chance of ruling her birth pack she could still be confident in herself. Besides, anything that she could have done at home she could surely do out here in this new place. "You got one?" Abba raised one brow as her ears stayed focused to catch the name of this spicy girl.

Her tail softly swayed as her large body turned to move into the water carefully. "Well I won't be the best teacher to have but I think I can give you the general idea of how it's done." Abaddon moved about halfway into the water before she halted and held herself very still. She knew enough to know that any fish would scatter with too much unnatural movement in their habitat. Now came the awful part. Waiting. Abaddon knew from watching others that it could take second or even hours. Part of her wondered how the hell someone ever bothered to fish for hours let alone wait for the darn scaly things.

After a few moments she could have sworn she saw something move in the water below. Without a second thought, she swooped her neck down with jaws open to clamp on the water. Just water. A mostly soaked face and a sheepish smile she turned to look back at her company. "Told you I wouldn't be the best but I can give it another go. You can too."

Milada Vigerova @ Unsplash 

ee thankie <3

“Abbadon? Ain’t that fancy.”

Way more than Namir ever was. Idly, the girl found herself wondering if the other female had been named after someone, too – certainly didn’t sound like a thing like a crow was. She sniffed, shrugging one shoulder. “Y’can call me Lil’ Crow,” she replied – nothing fancy, and nothing long. It suited her just fine. Truth be told, she was far more interested in this whole fishing business than she was giving out her own name. Didn’t mean much, anyways.

“Reckon yer still th’ best teacher if I only ever got one, huh?” she drawled, claws dragging across the shoreline as she studied just what Abbadon was doing. Her tail twitched. Was the other loner just standing there, in the water? Was she having her own? The sandy female was about to ask when all at once her teacher went splashing in, surfacing a few moments later with nothing to show but a wet muzzle. Little Crow couldn’t help her soft laugh, mouth slanted in an awkward smile. “Weren’t so bad. Barely even saw th’ fish a’fore y’went in. Thought y’all were havin’ me on ‘fer a moment ‘er two.”

The loner started to wade in, stopping a few lengths away from Abbadon. “That why y’were so still? So th’ fish would come?”