Heartleaf Creek the fine art of making it out alive

dated for January 24 | sunrise
TW for troubled thoughts

He was almost back at the mountain haven. The boy had taken a different route, heading deeper into the woods instead of keeping parallel to the mountains. Travelling soothed his troubled thoughts, making it easier to breathe as he was too busy concentrating on not getting lost to think about his father’s untimely demise. The demise he had caused due to his negligence. What wolf froze in front of a charging deer? It had been foolish and idiotic, and it was the reason why his father was now dead. Cyril was surprised his mother didn’t hate him because, as far as he was concerned, she should. He hated himself.

He hadn’t stopped moving throughout the night for he was trying to cover as much ground as possible. He’d lingered in the Ridge longer than he had planned for. Leaving Adeltra was always difficult, for he never wanted to. He wanted to bring her north, to he mountain, but he couldn’t pull her away from her family. And he couldn’t leave his mother—not after everything that had happened. He felt bad for leaving her so often, to visit his friend in the south, but he always promised to return. All they had was each other; he couldn’t leave her on her own. Sure, Cheedo had hung around, but he couldn’t rely on her not to leave. There was nothing tying her to the land; she could up and leave without notice.

The sun had begun to peak through the branches overhead, illuminating the boy’s path as he continued north. There was a pack nearby, in the eastern part of the woods. Cyril steered clear of their borders. The last thing he wanted to do was accidentally trespass—he did not have the energy to fight off an angry pack wolf. He barely had enough energy to continue north, to his mother.

(Replying to this since nobody has taken it so far. ^^<3)


Cyril wasn't alone. The earthen male had been trailing him for a while ever since he came up on his trail during his nightly patrol. Garmir had no reason to follow the stranger, for he had not trespassed or come even close to the pack territory - but he found himself to be honest somewhat bored - having no real tasks to complete - being the lowest member of the pack. He was... uncomfortable with the amount of freedom he had and thus if Kerberos or Treyah were not going to order him to do anything, he would try to invent tasks on his own to keep himself occupied.

Garmir had been maintaining steady trot, slowly but surely catching up with Cyril until the scent trail was no longer required for him to follow the wolf. He could already see and hear the youngster and so he slowed down, choosing keep distance at first. He wasn't afraid of the young one, but he had no real reason to approach him, thus choosing to remain in shadows and just.. observe.

Would it have been summer, Garmir could have more easily kept himself hidden, his earth colored pelt most useful during the warm seasons, blending almost perfectly into the forest. However, during winters he wasn't so stealthy with all that white contrasting against his colors. He did not really care if he was noted, nor put much effort into stealth. In fact, if the young one had keen enough ears, he might notice there were more paw steps than just his own, although Garmir tried to match their movement..

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He was not unaware of the other’s presence. At first he hoped that the stranger would grow bored of his trail and disappear into the surrounding trees. He was not near any borders—he had made sure of that. The entire trip south (and back north) Cyril had avoided the nearby packs completely, for he was not interesting in making friends or interacting with strangers. The purpose of the trip had been to see Adeltra and now that he had it was time for the sullen boy to return home, to his mother.

It was not the sound of paw steps Cyril noticed first. The smell of another had reached him, resulting in a deep frown that cut across his dark features. His ears swivelled atop his crown to locate his follower as he continued forward, intent on following his path north. He silently cursed himself for not taking the same path as he had before, for he had not encountered a single wolf until he had run into Adeltra in the woods north of the Ridge. But it was too late to turn back now. The wolf seemed keen on following him, despite Cyril not doing anything wrong or trespassing on any borders. The male smelt of others, which meant he belonged to a pack… had they sent him to trail after the boy?

Can I help you? He did not stop walking as he called out to the snow-dusted trees, his tail flicking in annoyance. His nostrils flared as he inhaled the unfamiliar scent once more. The stranger was older than him, but that did not mean he was faster. His tail flicked once more. It was possible he could outrun his follower if necessary… He waited for a response first, as he was intrigued by the male’s silence. 

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

He had been spotted. Not unexpected. Garmir increased his pace slightly as soon as he heard the young male speak but he made sure not to rush after him as it could have been interpited as hostile action. He could already sense there was some tension coming from the other male and of course, Garmir was not here to seek fights. He was just.. bored and curious.

The earthen male took few moments to reply, also diverting away from Cyril's path to walk respectable distance away from him but closer to his side rather than back. He finally broke the silence, knowing that if he kept it up, he would only add to the tension. "No.. I'm just curious, that is all. Young'un like you wandering through the forest all alone. Where you headed?" -he asked, Garmir managing to produce surprisingly friendly and cheerful tone.

The pack wolf kept his eyes on the loner, but did not seek for direct eye contact, instead merely watching his steps and overall studying his form. Garmir's own posture appeared relaxed and his tail was slightly curled, but waving lazily to signal he meant no harm. Smiling was not his forte but he tried that too, that expression falling little short from genuine and landing more into the creepy zone. Solid four out of ten.

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His nostrils flared once more as he took in another deep breath, just to make sure he had not strayed too close to pack territory. But there were no borders by the creek—not any that belonged to the pack that weighed heavily on the earthen male’s pelt. He couldn’t help but frown. Why was this wolf following him if he wasn’t infringing on pack territory? His pace slowed as he waited for a response, his yellow gaze sifting through the trees as he tried to locate the stranger. There was a glimpse of dark fur from his side, earning a hardened expression from the young Kael-Santoro. The stranger spoke, finally, announcing that there was no reason as to why he was trailing Cyril. Curious? Young’un? He almost huffed in amusement. What he lacked in age he made up for in size. The obsidian boy was quickly growing into a body that rivalled his late father’s and almost stood taller than his mother. He could take care of himself—he didn’t need some stranger trailing after him.

Where you headed? It was none of the male’s business but Cyril wasn’t sure if he was in the mood to be rude. He wasn’t really in the mood for a lot of things since leaving the north, unless it involved his mother or Adeltra. Home, he responded, his tone curt and to the point. I don’t need a chauffeur. It did not matter that the dark agouti was being friendly. Cyril just wanted to get back to the mountain. 

It was apparent the young male was not as eager to have this chance encounter as Garmir were. That was fine and truth be told, the earthen male himself would have been somewhat upset if there was a stranger trailing him for no reason, especially knowing his background. He would not torment his boy for long, just ask few questions and be on his way. No harm done.

Moving little bit closer but still maintaining respectable distance, Garmir appeared from behind the trees to properly reveal himself. At the same time his eyes trailed along the dark pelt of the youngster, studying his details briefly before his gaze turned towards the direction Cyril was headed. He seemed to be headed towards the mountains, although Garmir thought his destination would lie beyond it.

He spoke again, even when he was stilll looking away.  "chauffeur?" -he repeated with a smile, not knowing the word but presuming it was some form of insult. His tail waved lazily behind him as he turned to face the same direction to boy was headed. His head turned slightly towards him and he looked at Cyril with a corner of his eye, that smile never fading. "Good thing I'm not chauffeur, then"

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A single brow arched at the stranger’s response, a grim frown still tugging at the corners of his mouth. He did not understand the male’s intentions and he was beginning to worry that things could go awry if he was not careful. Cyril remained composed and did not allow his worry to show. That was the last thing he wanted, or needed. He just had to keep moving toward the mountain and not allow this weirdo stranger to slow him down. If it was a conversation he wanted Cyril could give that to him, more or less, but he just didn’t want to stop. He’d already been gone long enough and feared that if he lengthened his journey his mother would begin to worry and send Cheedo to look for him. Or go looking herself.

Then what are you? He asked, his voice clipped as he glanced over at the earthen male, his brow still cocked. Something about the wolf made Cyril uncomfortable. Maybe it was because he had silently stalked him through the trees… or maybe it was because the smile that he wore looked forced. Unnatural even. Maybe, just maybe, the stranger was trying to be friendly but Cyril was too much of an introvert to engage in proper conversation. He’d gotten accustom to being silent after his father’s death; speaking still felt like a chore to him. But he knew he couldn’t be silent forever, especially in circumstances like this.

OOC: Sorry for delay. Been sickly ( >_<)!!

Cyril's question only turned Garmir's smile wider and as he turned himself to same parth with the boy, he replied quite honestly and simply, seeing no reason hiding anything. "Right now I am creepy stranger who has a habit of spying on others travelling through the night... Don't worry though; Im not going to eat you or worse." -He murmured in somewhat humoured tone while looking at the path ahead, as if intending to walk with the other one all the way. Even though he was perfectly relaxed for what it seemed, Garmir did maintain minimal guard up at all times, subtly but surely by maintaining respectable distance and keeping one of his ears trained towards the younger male.

His eyes turned at his unwilling companion, his smile somewhat fading, but overall friendly posture remaining - even if his scarred face and form might have betrayed image he tried to project. Garmir wasn't horribly disfigured, but anyone with eyes could see he had seen violence in past. As his poison green eyes pierced into Cyril's, he opened his mouth again to speak, his smile ever present almost if that was the only face he could form. "I apologize, that wasn't helpful was it?" -He chuckled, clearly enjoying this moment. "I am but a lowly Omega of Charred Ash Draw. Nothing to worry about." -he assured, bowing his head even in playful manner as he revealed himself to be of a lowest rank.

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His brows narrowed into a sharp V at the stranger’s words, accompanied by a dark frown spreading across his lips. What the—how’d he managed to cross paths with this weirdo? Making a beeline for the mountain was no longer a good idea, for he didn’t want the tawny male to discover where he had settled with his mother and Cheedo. Slowly he begun to change his course, detouring further north, toward his former home to throw the dark stranger off his trail. He really hoped the wolf did not intend on following him the entire way; Cyril was not in the mood for company. He did just fine on his own despite being young.

After the boy remained silent the scarred male spoke up once more, offering an apology followed by a half introduction. No name was given, just a rank and a pack name. An Omega, huh? What had this wolf done to earn him that place within the pack? Was he even supposed to be out this far? His tongue clucked against the roof of his mouth before he answered, his frown still pressed against his liquorice lips. Then why are you following me? He asked, growing bolder with each step he took. I’m nowhere near your pack; I have no intention of trespassing.

So leave me alone!

(This post was last modified: Feb 14, 2018, 07:19 AM by Cyril.)