Heartleaf Creek Pray for my enemies

For @Aideen

Life was depressive, quiet and every sense of the word boring within Eirian's temporary mountain home even with the minor upset of the sickness that had claimed not only himself but the ebony female Abbadon as its victim. No doubt others of the pack still let the blame for such an invasion rest solely upon his shoulders considering the single factor that to this day he still remained the newest addition. Which was fine with the copper male. It wasn't like he was trying to make friends here anyway. Keep under the radar, watch his daughter. That was his sole reason for submitting to the beasts that dwelled here and that thought alone still warranted a shiver to course along the length of his spine. 


So it was with his lack of closeness to those he slept amongst that Eirian found no qualms with taking some personal time to descend from the mountain heights under the excuse of going out for a hunting trip to help aid the pack in building their caches for the approaching winter that would descend upon them faster than a rabbit could dive into its burrow. His paws skirting along the edge of the willow forest his daughter called home; for now, and following the babbling water that divided the land until a familiar ache began to gnaw at his pads. 

Here, beneath the fiery canopy of the heart shaped leaves Eirian paused with the belief he had pushed the boundaries of how far to travel. He wouldn't want to piss off his leaders too badly being so new still. Head lowering to allow his salmon tongue to lap at the surface of the chilled water. For now, he would rest and then maybe he would entertain the idea of actually hunting but whether that was to fill his own belly or provide for the pack he was still indecisive about. 

She took her time heading home. Though she knew she had already been away too long, the meeting with Sylva and her pup had only given the Woodland queen more to think about. Trailing Heartleaf Creek from its start at the falls, she made her way slowly homeward, taking note of the first leaves starting to shift in the trees along the bank. The creek held its own host of memories, many bitter sweet, yet she relished them all the same. She’d come a long way since recovering Coal, half dead, here next to the water and taking him to Secret Woodlands. Since then she’d even stopped by a few other times, both with Miccah, and most recently fishing with Duckweed, again two memories of mixed emotions. Refusing to speculate about her homecoming - she would have to confront her mate soon enough - she instead focussed on the boy; How long had it been now, since he left them? Bella’s death had been hard on all of them, but especially on her son, of course. When he set out to mend his heart, Aideen had desperately hoped that he would return, but part of her had known that he wouldn’t. She just hoped, wherever he’d ended up, he’d found a way to be happy despite his loss. So deep in thought, she didn’t notice the stranger until she was only a few steps away, head jolting up when she suddenly caught sight of the bright senopia figure. “S-sorry,” she murmured, uncharacteristically demure, cheeks burning with embarrassment. A couple more steps and she would have rammed straight into him. Now she looked at him with a nervous smile, studying him subtly as she tried to regain her composure. He looked very familiar, with a medium, well muscled builds, covered in a deep tawny fur, marked by cream and black. She realized, he reminded her a lot of her youngest brother - and by extension his name sake nephew; I gotta get home..! Breathing in deeply, she noted the faint scents of pack coming from him, as well as the last hint of a passed cold. She wondered if she smelled like pack at all anymore, it had been so long. She’d been surrounded by plenty of other wolves though, and the part of Secret Woodland scent that came from her own perfume would of course always remain; It was an odd, heavy realization, that she had become so completely one with her pack in this way, part of it would never leave her, no matter how far she strayed. To her own surprise, she smiled to herself; Heavy, but nice! Suddenly she couldn’t wait to get home. Still, she didn’t want to be rude. So she turned her smile on the stranger, back to her usual, cheerful self; “Hello there! I don’t think we’ve met before, are you new around these parts?” It never hurt to friendly. Right? Word Count: 488 Thoughts "Speech"

Shirstock @DA

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Russet ears twitched at the sound of leaves crunching beneath the weight of paws from behind while his tongue continued to guide the chilled water from the creek to his throat, droplets dribbling off the edge of his chin once his head finally lifted to shift his attention toward this unexpected guest. The woman's apology in regards to almost knocking into his backside fell from her lips in a demure manner and at first Eirian wasn't sure he had even heard it at first, distracted by the sense of familiarity that revealed itself when his citrus eyes took in the tawny fur marked with splashes of gray and a set of copper tinted eyes.


Toe to toe with himself she couldn't be very tall in stature, a dainty size but scraggly looking to the eye until you acquired a closer glance which Eirian had gotten without having to try since she had nearly bulldozed into him in her absentminded wandering. From this closeness, he could make out the well-toned muscles beneath her pelt as well as a few knicks here and there to prove wordlessly she wasn't some pushover. At first glance, this woman didn't seem like the usual atrocities he interacted with, but he had become skilled in realizing first glance wasn't everything. Outwardly she looked the part of pure decent, but that stench of sullied individuals that plagued her pelt wove a different story. A small inhale of his own and he snorted to rid the polluted air from his nostrils.

Soon the strange woman was speaking again and despite the level of friendliness offered to the copper male, he couldn't quite extend the same amount of enthusiasm in having his personal time invaded upon. "To these specific parts maybe, but here in general no." He tipped his head back toward the peak of the mountain that managed to faintly remain visible through the gaps of foliage overhead, returning his attention to the still unnamed female. Suppose it couldn't hurt to introduce himself first right? "I live up on the mountain. The name is Eirian Asurn."

He raised his head from the water, turning to face her and the look in his eyes made her take a few steps back. She hadn’t meant to intrude on his space like that, but it was an honest mistake, though clearly her muttered apology wasn’t enough for the darker wolf. His only response  was an audible exhale that could have been interpreted as rather rude, but Aideen always made a habit of thinking the best of others. Still those flaming eyes seemed to bore into her as he looked her over with cold calculation, the whole air about him sending a chill down her spine. Honestly, she just wanted to leave, give him the privacy he so clearly longed for, but then he spoke, answering her question, and - unlike him - she wasn’t going to be rude.

So the petite woman cleared her throat, getting her smile back in place as she waved her tail once, almost defiantly. “Oh I see,” she said, nodding at his explanation. She didn’t know much about the packs up in the pass, other than that there were some - had she felt more comfortable in the situation, she might have asked about it - but now she simply acknowledged the reply, moving on quickly. “Aideen Smoke,” she introduced as he had, wrinkling her brow ever so slightly. Something about the name, again, seemed vaguely familiar; Does he have family here..? She wanted to ask, but that frosty look still in his eyes made her think twice. Instead she offered: “My own pack, Secret Woodlands, isn’t far from here. I really should be getting home,” Copper eyes gazed towards the west, her tail giving another, more natural, wave.

Turning to Eirian, she nodded lightly as form of salute, figuring he would be happy enough to see her go and she would much sooner be home with her children. But then, because it was in her nature to be considerate even when not offered the same grace, she paused mid step and looked towards those hard, citrusy eyes; “Do be careful around here Eirian, there’ve been several assaults recently.” Her voice was laced with genuine concern, but as she spoke, her mouth set into a hard line; If only I could get my teeth in that bastard..! She’d avenge Bella and Duck, and make sure nothing like that ever happened again.

 

Word count: 397

"Speech" Thoughts

(This post was last modified: Oct 14, 2017, 08:32 PM by Aideen.)

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There is a family of deer nearby. Hunt Opportunity