Bramble Falls i think it looks a little better on me. [bwp]

RE: A recent heat wave has left the forest drier than usual.
July 7th.  Open for one or two.  Partly cloudy, afternoon.  75F/24C.

Wandering was something that Arcus was getting very, very good at.  Her itchy paws might have been quenched for a day or two after the incident with Vaken and the coyotes, but the following interaction was one with other pups.  And that was fun!  So, obviously, it sat most firmly in her mind as she stretched out her toes and set to walking the moment her parents turned their backs.  It wasn't like she was trying to be bad -- but waiting was so boring, when she could be doing something useful.  Or fun!  Like finding water.  You could drink the water, you could splash the water...

But the problem was, you see, that the water was vanishing.  She had no idea how it happened, and couldn't quite articulate her questions.  But her mud puddle was long gone, and the smaller creeks and tributaries had receded.  So Archie kept marching with no idea as to how far she'd gone, or why.  Or what direction.  Or when to stop.  Oh!  

Falling water!  But not from the sky, from a...a...from a rock?  Archie laughed in delight, thick paws picking up into a prancing little trot as she approached the falls.  They, too, were starting to dry, but she had no idea this wasn't its full splendor.  To her bright blue eyes, this was everything a puppy could ever wish for!

@Sahalie + @Kino -- Oops ur kids wandering...

(This post was last modified: Jul 09, 2018, 05:48 PM by Arcus. Edit Reason: coyotes. rip. )

She didn't know why she hadn't visited this place sooner. It wasn't very far from the Tarn, half a day's wander there. Valentin had been left under the care of @Lenae and would no doubt also be under the watchful eye of @Odin or @Cyril. The leader just intended to stretch her legs ever so slightly. The sound of the water calling to her due to the heat. It seemed the mountain pack wasn't the only place to receive the dry weather lately.

Laughter pulled her attention from her thoughts and her tail swayed behind her. It sounded so carefree so...childish? Her posture was relaxed as she entered the scene. There near the falls was a child, no older than her youngest son back home. Brown eyes glanced around briefly where she didn't spot anyone else. How odd.

"It's wonderful isn't it?" The mother asked gently as she allowed herself to dip her paws into the water.

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Four coyotes appear from the shadows, posturing aggressively.

"Yeah!" Arcus wasn't exactly sure what wonderful meant, but it sounded really nice, and the woman's voice sounded happy, so... It was probably a good thing. Her tail wiggled as she waded in the most shallow part of the pool, the cool water tickling her ankles. When she turned to face the voice, she gaped. The wolf was white! Her blue eyes went a little wider before the small 'o' of her lips turned into a smile. "Pritty!" she declared, nodding towards the big adult. She'd never seen anyone like that before -- her Papa was the closest, but he was a shiny silver, and nothing like this. It was beautiful!

"Whaddit?" she asked Piety, turning back to the falling water. "Rock water. Water rock?"

Pritty? Was Piety the pretty thing? She was flattered honestly that the child seemed to think her plain appearance was pretty with a view like the falls. She simply smiled, wadding a little bit closer to the child.

A soft chuckle escaped her as she pointed up the falls with her nose. She crouched ever so slightly to get a bit closer to the child so she wouldn't have to talk too loud over the water. "Falls. Water comes from up there and ends up -" Piety gave a small splash with the tip of her paw. "Down here." Her tail swayed behind her more than happy to keep the child occupied until a parent or guardian showed up. The child smelled of others which let her knew no one had abandoned her (for who could abandon such a cute little thing?) and so she was left to guess someone had to be looking for her.

Her head turned over her shoulder as she noticed the figures of coyotes. The leader's features crinkled with obvious distaste for the creatures. "Say," She nudged the child as Piety put herself between the vermin and the child. "Where is your family, little one?"

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 “Fallz,” Arcus parroted, taking a few steps deeper into the water.  It didn’t take her long until the pool was up to her belly.  She couldn’t swim and didn’t wade any deeper, far too interested in the splashing water, the pretty spray.  If she tipped her head just right, there was a speeshul rainbow near the middle of waterfall, right where the waters and rocks met.  She might have asked about it, too, but the pretty woman was talking again.
 
The girl glanced over, her ears perked.  Where was her family?  “Mama?”  She shrugged.  That was a good question!  Arcus glanced in the direction she might have come from – perhaps she’d inherited that Leigh sense of misdirection.  Not immediately seeing Sahalie or Alastor, she shrugged again.  “Iunno.  Went walks.  So I walks!”
 
Just…not in the same direction…

"Yes." She cooed in response - almost proudly - as the girl parroted the word. While she would have liked to keep teaching the girl and keep her safe until someone arrived, it seemed that might not be the plan. The coyotes looked like they had no intention of leaving the duo alone. Had she been a bit more on the mountain she would have considered calling for the Tarn wolves. Alas she was down on the edge of the forest and the mountain.

Despite the slight disappointment Piety felt at the girl's words, she did not let it change her friendly posture. She eyed the coyotes who lurked in the shadows and knew her options were now very slim. "How about we keep walking? I'll show you a place with more water and rocks. We can wait for your Mama there." The child would be safer in Clearwater Tarn's territory where the coyotes wouldn't dare break into. Not to mention she would have a few playmates to keep her occupied until Piety could find a trace of family.

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Piety did an excellent job of distracting the young girl -- between the splashing water and the pretty lady, Arcus had no idea the coyotes were there. Even if she could smell them over the fresh spray of river water, it was possible she wouldn't even recognize the imminent danger. So she hummed happily, enjoying the feel of cold water as it made her fur feel weightless. Enjoyed the company, even if she was a big grown-up. And she might have not been keen on walking some more (her feet were starting to get very tired, but then the pretty lady offered both water and rocks.

Archie's ears pricked forward, her stumpy little tail starting to wiggle. "Mud? Got mud too?" she asked breathlessly, her sparkling blue eyes searching Piety's face. "Mine gone. All gone."

"ARCUS!"

Scorpius had been stalking following—not stalking—her as she had wandered out of the territory. She was so big and he was so small and young in comparison with just a few weeks between them, that he was not able to keep up easily and was so out of breath that there was not a lot of opportunities to announce his presence. But mother had told him that it was no safe to go out alone. They had to use the Buddy System. Scorpius thought that he and Arcus had gotten along well, so they could probably be Buddies. It was better than his Buddy being Aquaria. The only problem was that Arcus didn't live so close to him so it was hard to keep track of her. But by golly, if she was walking out now then he would walk out with her!

When she they had finally encountered the waterfall his jaws hung open. This was a lot of wet! The air was heavy around here with the wet but it was a lot cooler and thus way more enjoyable than the dry of back home. He flopped on the ground, unable to really say anything still.

A big woman with only one ear on her head appeared and began to talk to Arcus. Loath to admit it, the boy was a bit shy around the Big Adults, so he remained in his little bush, getting control of his breath and wondering what he should do. She was talking nicely to Arcus so that was a Good Thing. But then there were other big adults and they were Not Happy. And now the woman was offering to take Arcus away!! This was awful!

"WAIT FOR MEEEEE" he bumbled out of the bush and stopped beside his Buddy.

"Oh I'm sure we could find you some mud." She spoke as she nudged the child gently, aiming to corral her out of the water so they could get a move on. It would be best to travel along the edge of the mountain and use the many stones and crevices as protection from the sun - and the coyotes.

"It'll be a bit cooler there too. Not so hot." The leader encouraged as she remembered how Jenny had whined about the heat. Perhaps this murky fur child felt the same way. Her head turned to keep the coyotes in her field of vision. They seemed to creep a bit closer and Piety could only assume that they wanted the water for themselves. Which, in all honesty, she could not fault them for. The lands did seem to be having a bit of a dry spell.

She quickly snapped her gaze onto the new form that appeared. Mother above there were now two children. One who seemed set on coming with the other. Piety suddenly felt a bit overwhelmed. Traveling would be...slower but she could not leave them alone. Not when the coyotes seemed a bit agitated by the appearance of another child. "Perfect timing." She would round the children and sniff at the air, making sure no other balls of fur were going to jump out at her. "Can't leave you behind, can we?" Intently she'd nose each of them. Scents familiar enough to each other but she figured if the first one had been lost...well, the second one was too probably.

It seemed the Tarn was possibly going to have their paws full until parents were discovered.

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