Thunder Bowl i've got no roots

OOC! For my notes, this thread happens an hour or two before this.

He could turn back. Act like he never stepped foot into these lands, like last year. Disappear like a ghost and never have to face this god forsaken land again. What was so special about it anyway? It's not like this was a fairy tale land where all your wishes and desires came true with a flick of the wrist. However, as much as he wanted to deny the fact, he was drawn back here like many wolves were. He'd blame it on thinking he saw his brother and wanted to actually talk to his family for once. But what truly drove him here was curiosity and a big slice of guilt. Was his family still here? Were they fine living on in the Cove without him? The Storm was sure they were.

Being abandoned by the one person that took him out of the Lore and away from his family drove him to this sad state of bitterness. He didn't blame any of this on his family. It was all her fault. Luring the innocent boy away, but abandoning him in the winter to fend for himself. Luckily, the boy did survive. But the experience left him guarded and he grew a hard interior, never allowing it to happen to him again. He eventually found his way back to the Lore, to his family. But, it wasn't the same, he didn't belong anymore. So as hypocritical as he could be, the Vuesain boy fled as well into the depths of the forest before he headed due north. 

However, now Aleister found himself back in the Lore, standing around like a fish out of water uncertain of his next move.

He didn't know what he was doing. Not when he promised Askan that he wouldn't take long but the journey was already taking way longer than he expected. Maybe his friend was right about Rayza. The boy didn't need any of his help. Not when he was nowhere to be found and each step had Cottongrass growing more and more discouraged. But he couldn't bring himself to stop looking. Not when his brain whispered all kinds of awful different thoughts in the back of his mind like what if the kid was lost or hurt or dead. He didn't think he could go on in life if he knew someone died and it was all his fault.

So he kept looking. Even when all he really wanted to do was turn around and find Askan and Reyes before they abandoned him.

His paws lead him to different places. From underground caverns he didn't know existed to the mountainous forests he was lost in only weeks ago. He never found Rayza in any of those places but he assumed he would eventually. Slinking back to Askan with nobody behind him and a mouthful of apologies would probably destroy him. Especially when he made such a big deal about finding and helping the kid.

With a muted whimper his big paws stumbled to a halt. Exploring the open tundra was rough even when he knew it was easier for him to navigate and follow scent trails with nothing to mix him up. It didn't make him feel any less dumb or lonely. And maybe he could find somewhere to settle down. He could keep on looking for Rayza after he rested. It was really just an excuse to pout but nobody needed to know that. But it was then the wind blew across the endless rolling hills and ruffled his fur.

On the breeze there was a scent. Distant and muddled but a scent nonetheless. His paws started moving before he could make a conscious decision. Because what if? It could have been Rayza. It could have been a herd of muskoxen and he was moments away from getting trampled, again. But his excitement and hope was too strong for him to reign in by himself.

"Hey, hey, hey!" He barked as he rounded the hill separating him from the source of the odour. His yellow eyes shined and his tail wagged like crazy somewhere behind him. Because standing not far from him was none other than —

A complete and utter stranger.

OOC! Out of character comments here

Shuffling his feet forwards instead of standing there like a dead fish, his dark agouti head hung low as he passed by a grassy hill within the lowlands. He never went through this place before when he left the second time, instead the Vuesain went through the Vale before he turned due north where he stayed for the next year. Now coming through the Lore in an unfamiliar area, put the storm on edge as he wasn't sure what to expect here. 

He had good reason to be on edge. As he was minding his own business, a way too enthusiastic bark exploded on the other side of the hill making the boy cringe and halt, hoping it was just the wind. As he stood there, the creature rounded the hill, his body just full of excitement. The Vuesain, wide eyed and cringing, said not a word as the overly fluffy male wagged his tail so furious, he was sure it was bout to fly away. However, as the stranger saw the agouti Vuesain, his expression changed as well. He must not be who he was looking for. Not many were really looking for him anyway. 

"Can I help you?" The boy asked slowly and with that "What the hell do you want from me" attitude.

That wasn't Rayza.

It was becoming more and more obvious the longer he stood there staring. Because Rayza was tall and golden with a quick smile. He would have uttered some lame greeting or made some kind of joke that he wouldn't understand until the moment passed. The wolf standing before him didn't have any of those familiar characteristics. Instead all he saw was a stranger that was tall and dark and brooding. His expression faltered and he struggled to quell the disappointment welling inside of him.

But it was too late.

The stranger spoke and Cottongrass winced. His ears rolled back against his skull and he averted his gaze while taking an unsure step back. And there was a way to salvage this mess of a first impression, right? He just had to apologize for yelling at them like that and they could both go on with their merry little lives. No harm done! Except his mouth was faster than his brain and before he could stop himself —

"You're not who I'm looking for." Cottongrass blurted out. His yellow eyes bulged and he felt like keeling over. Because what the heck was that? Where did that come from? He had a plan! There was a whole entire script and play! But apparently none of that mattered. Not when his mental filter was forever nonexistent when he needed it the most. And really, he thought he was passed this point. That he already endured the most awkward of conversations with Jessie and he was thereby immune. He thought wrong.

"Sorry." He stuttered. Because social blunders hurt his soul and kept him up at night but what he just did probably hurt more. He just hoped the stranger didn't maul him. That would be hard to explain to Askan and Reyes when he eventually found his way back.

OOC! Out of character comments here

Perhaps his mother taught him better manners than this, though perhaps he's been gone for so long he forgot them. Namid wouldn't be happy with his grumpiness towards everyone, but the Vuesain boy couldn't really help it. There was so much anger and guilt welled up inside him it was too hard to forget about it. However, as the pale stranger took a tentative step away from him like Aleister had struck him in the face, he knew he was being, rather bluntly, an ass. 

Start over. It was like his mother was inside his head. Rolling his eyes, forgetting Cottongrass would see the gesture, though it wasn't directed towards him at all. "Hey, ah- sorry," he started his baritone growling as he met the stranger's gaze. "Who ya lookin' for?" Not that he had much intention of helping the guy look for him, but it was a step in the right direction of being polite for his mother.

(This post was last modified: Nov 11, 2017, 01:55 AM by Aleister.)

There is a deer that was killed by a lynx nearby. +10 Health

The stranger didn't maul him. Cottongrass considered it a very good first step in whatever awkward tango they were doing. Because getting attacked hurt. He knew that from experience thanks to his dad and that one random stranger in the woods. Somewhere behind him his tail gave a stilted wag. Like he wasn't sure if he was supposed to be acting friendly or submissive and his behaviour just fell somewhere in between. His ears rolled forward and his yellow eyes met a mismatched gaze of blue and gold.

"Uh." His jaws flapped uselessly and he sort of flailed like a puppet on tangled strings. "Rayza. I'm looking for someone named Rayza." He gave an awkward nod. Because the wolf he was looking for was named Rayza and it shouldn't have been hard to say that but it was. He kept talking only because his mouth didn't know when to shut up.

"They — they sort of look like you?" Maybe in another lifetime where Rayza was dark and brooding instead of light and shining. "You're sorta the same height but his fur is, uh, lighter. You're eyes are pretty similar, too, I guess?" It wasn't a question but it came out as one. He wanted to sink into the ground and never return.

But since the world was cruel and unforgiving Cottongrass was given no choice but to stand there and continue making a fool out of himself while the stranger probably silently mocked him.