Turtleback Lake say goodbye to all the glowing eyes

She had heard about the infamous lake south of the Kingswood. Once or twice. Perhaps more than twice. Her father was quite fond of the place, visiting the shores often. She often wondered why the pack didn’t reside there, considering her father spent a good chunk of his time there. Lavender learned quickly that it had not been his choice to settle along the river. Not that there was anything wrong with the river. The pale Stark adored the lazy stretch of water, for it provided endless entertainment when she did not want to stray too far from the communal dens (which was always, but that was besides the point). She knew her father (and mother) were equally fond of the winding river, otherwise they would not have stayed here.

But her curiosity about the lake only increased, tempting her to abandon the redwoods (temporarily) and head south.

So she did.

After spending a few hours in the early morning convincing herself that no, she definitely wasn’t going to die, because her sister (and every other member of Hearthwood) left the territory often.

The last few rays of the morning sun were beginning to dwindle as the clouds rolled in, blocking out most of the blue sky above. She continued along a worn path through the forest. Her father’s scent clung to the ground, which meant it was a path he used often, so Lavender had high hopes that it would lead her to the lake. She kept a moderate pace, taking the time to observe her surroundings and, most importantly, memorize them. Little Lavender was not keen on getting lost again.

The trees started to disperse as she approached the soft stand, her chartreuse eyes widening at the sight before her. It was bigger than she had expected—or perhaps it was because of her small size. It did not matter. She was here. Her tail wagged excitedly behind her as she bounded forward, closing the distance between herself the massive pool of water. She skidded to a stop, her toes dipping into the cool liquid.

As she drank in the sight before her Lavender realized why her father liked this place so much. A calm washed over her, causing her shoulders to sag and a lazy smile to fall onto her dark lips.  

this is a (f)all welcome thread!

Since talking with Ody and making her promise about the island Oksana had spent a lot of time thinking about it. That was when she wasn't thinking about her mum and where she could possibly be. It had been days since she'd left Hearthwood and the smudge was starting to get worried about her. She'd been gone this long before but this time was different, this time she didn't have a plan it specific place she was going. The pup tried her best to stay positive but what if she lost her mum like Rissy and Matheo had lost their mum? Oksana didn't know what she would do if something happened to Inna.

Without her mother around Oksana made her own decision to leave Hearthwood on her own. She knew she wasn't supposed to and she didn't want to get caught again so she was more careful as she usually was. She made it across the border easily and headed in the direction she knew the lake with the islands to be. This time was different, she caught a familiar scent on her path, two actually but one seemed fainter to her than the other.

Lavender and her uncle Lach but it was the former that she knew she was following and didn't have fear that Uncle Lach was with her. She wondered what the other pup was doing so far from home, maybe the same as her. Dreaming about the day she was going to cross that lake to the islands. Oksana quickened her pace and soon reached the lake and found the Stark pup. “Hi Lavender what are you doing here?” She asked as she came to stand a few pace from the girl.

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Like her father, solitude was Lavender’s forté. Despite her sister’s bizarre quirks she still loved her all the same, but there was only so many aggressively spoken poems that the little cloud could handle before her head started spinning. She just wished Lilliana would be normal, or semi-normal even. Lavender was the only one that was allowed to pick on her twin, and she worried that her peculiar way of speaking would cause others to poke fun at her. A frown creased her dark lips at the thought, her brows pinching together, creating a worry line in the centre of her forehead. She wondered where Lil Lil had snuck off to today—was she lurking around the lake as well, or had she gone to visit the tundra? Her paws shuffled uncomfortably beneath her, sprawling out in the damp sand as she waded a little deeper, allowing the cool liquid to kiss her stomach.

She caught wind of Oksana before her voice called out. The pale twin did not mind the dark Baranski—she was not as adventurous or boisterous as her sister, but she was not as meek and timid as she was. She was placed neatly in between, kind of like Mathéo. “Went for a walk.” She shuffled around in the water to face the dark cub, her expression softened by youthful curiosity. “What about you?” The Stark did not see Inna or Lachesis lurking behind the crow, which meant she had gone off on her own as well. 

The first couple of days her mother had been gone the dark pup hadn't been worried, her mother had said she'd be gone that long. Now as the days passed and still no sign of her Oksana became more worried that something had happened it she wouldn't be returning. Her mother couldn't leave her behind could she? The Baranski didn't believe Inna could just leave her behind in Hearthwood. With all if this thoughts going through her mind she needed something to distract her from them. The islands in the lake seemed the perfect way to take her mind off her mother's absence. So she'd done what she'd specifically been told not to do multiple times, crossed the border. As she moved quickly through the forest she caught Lavender's scent so when she reached the lake she wasn't surprised to find the little Stark there.

She had already stepped into the water by the time Oksana had arrived so the little dark pup walked right up to the edge. The smudge's head tilted to one side in response to her answer, “Is something bothering you too?” That was part of the reason why Oksana had come out to the lake so maybe it was the reason Lavender had too. She looked across the lake to the islands as she was asked about the reason she'd come out to the lake. “Them mostly,” she answered indicating the islands with her muzzle. “I met a woman here a few days ago and told her I was going to go to those islands one day.” It was a big goal for such a small pup but she would be big like her mum and a lot stronger than she was now. In her mind she didn't see anything holding her back from it.

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There is a family of deer nearby. Hunt Opportunity

Is something bothering you too? The girl’s lips fell into a thin line, the corners falling as she gave her head a soft shake. No, nothing was bothering her. She was a little on edge because she had never been to the lake before and was in unfamiliar territory, but the pale Stark was free of any daunting thoughts. For once.“Nope,” she answered after a short pause, the ‘p’ sound popping off her tongue as her maw canted to the side. Was something troubling the little crow? Was it to do with her absent mother? Obviously it’s about her mother, you dummy, she thought hastily to herself, her frown deepening. Lavender did not want to pry so she kept her mouth shut and her thoughts to herself. Unlike Oksana, or the Tainn children, the Stark still had both of her parents in Hearthwood. She did not know what to say, or what to do, to make things better.

At the crow’s response Lavender turned her head to look at the floating islands, her brows lifting as curiosity gnawed hungrily at her chest. It would be pretty cool to swim over to one of them, wouldn’t it? She turned back to the Baranski and nodded softly, her frown quickly replaced by a small smile. “That’d be neat!” Dangerous, but super neat. She returned her pale gaze to the islands, her ears twitching. Maybe in the summer, when her legs were longer and the water wasn’t as high… 

(This post was last modified: Oct 19, 2017, 09:54 PM by Lavender.)

The dark pup didn't go into detail of what was bothering her since she wasn't sure she should say anything. What if Lavender said something to her uncle Lach and then her mum might be in trouble. She didn't want to get her mum in trouble even though she didn't think Lavender would purposely say anything. The pup remembered when she had slipped up and almost got her and Rissy in trouble with Lorc, or rather her father. “That's good then. It's easier to enjoy the lake when you don't have a lot on your mind.” Oksana splashed the water a little with her paw as she wondered where her mother might be and what she might be doing.

Oksana then shared her goal to swim to the islands one day with Lavender. The smudge smiled when the pale pup commented on the idea, “I think so too.” She wasn't really sure what had made her decide to do it but she wanted to all the same. “I'm thinking it's going to be hard since they seem so far away but I don't know maybe it's just something I need to do.” She looked over to Lavender, “You know if you wanted to we could do it together?” It was just a suggestion that she wasn't even sure the Stark would take her up on but Oksana felt it was right to at least offer.

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It was painfully obvious that something was bothering the ebony cub, but Lavender was not in the mood to console. She kept her dark lips pressed tight into a thin line, a single brow arched as she watched the Baranski tap her paw against the smooth surface of the lake. Must have something to do with her mother. But it was none of Lavender’s business. Sympathy wasn’t her thing—not yet. She was too young to offer advice. All she knew how to do was explore and get lost, as she could not do the former very well.

Her head tipped to the side as Oksana suggested swimming to the islands together. It was not a bad idea. Better to do it with another, just in case something happened. Not that anything would happen… there was only a huge stretch of water between the shore and the islands… super safe. She gulped, but nodded, her green gaze soft as she studied her dark companion. “Maybe when our legs are a bit longer,” she responded, lifting up her right foreleg and shaking it to emphasize her point. They wouldn’t make it very far with short, stubby legs.  

(This post was last modified: Oct 26, 2017, 01:31 AM by Lavender.)

While her mother was in her mind Oksana was doing her best not to think about it. Inna hadn't been gone that long and she said she would be better when she came back. It was best that she hoped good things for her mother instead of worrying about what could go wrong while she was away. She was here with Lavender and they had a whole lake in front of them and a forest behind them. They could get up to quite a bit with those two options. As she tapped the water with her paw causing small splashes and ripples thinking about all of the possibilities and which ones would be best for the time they had.

She had shared with the young Stark about the islands and she smiled when Lavender brought up the problem with their legs. “Oh, yes of course. I was thinking sometime after I'm much bigger. Mum says the patrols she does is good exercise and I thought it might be good to strengthen my legs. They will need to be strong to get all the way to those islands.” She was certain of that and she hoped her plan was a good one to help her prepare. “We could train together when we are a little bigger, it will be fun.” It would also be nice to have a training partner so she didn't have to do it alone.

(This post was last modified: Oct 26, 2017, 11:56 PM by Oksana.)

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A frown creased her delicate features as the ebony cub tapped the water with her paw, disrupting the mirror-like surface. She watched the ripples cascade toward the islands before they dissipated into the water, succumbing to the distance. She shuffled toward the dry land, for her paws were growing cold and her limbs were beginning to quake. Once her toes squished into the soft sand Lavender gave a small shake to get rid of the excess water that clung to her body. She glanced once more at the charcoal Baranski, her ears cupped forward as the girl spoke once more. A sigh of relief threatened to spill off her tongue but the Stark girl swallowed it, her chartreuse gaze narrowing. She was glad that Oksana was not keen on swimming toward the islands yet, for Lavender didn’t think she was ready.

Her head tipped to the side as Oksana mentioned training together. Huh. It wasn’t an awful idea. Lavender was more of a loner type, choosing to engage in solo adventures (especially since she was basically scared of everything). But, just because she agreed to the idea, didn’t mean she had to follow through… right? “Yeah,” she started with a shrug, her gaze still fixated on her age-mate, “I suppose so.” Fun. Okay.