Mountain of Dire [BWP] dressed in black, head to toe

OOC: @Lyanna and whoever else wants to pop up

I feel numb, born with a weak heart

Climbing was something Vaken was learning to enjoy. It wasn’t easy, or quick, but it was something he felt good at. His small frail and agile paws seemed to find secret paths along the mountain that made travelling easier. Each step he took brought him closer to the top. He glided along the edges with new found confidence.  He was thankful for his petite size at moments like this, where he found it so easy to navigate.

He had struggled more the first time he had crossed the mountain. This time, it was almost second nature. He knew what to expect this time. A larger wolf would have struggled to balance the way the yearling was now. He was almost floating. Flashing himself a cocky smile, Vaken decided that the mountains were perfect for a wolf like him. Maybe one day he’d consider finding a home in an area like this.

Today was not that day. He was finding the most stability in the wildwood. He felt a loyalty to Kino and Sahalie that kept him close by, but travelling was in his blood. He was not looking for family the way he had been at the start of his journey. Instead, he was travelling just to explore. He just wanted to keep moving. He was young and adventurous and he liked testing his body’s boundaries. Once he was tired, he’d head back to the wildwood. Maybe he’d spend the night on the top of the mountain.

It all depended on the coyotes. Vaken’s smile disappeared at the idea that the coyotes could follow him. He hated them more than anything on earth. He hated the way they looked, the way they smelled, even their glowing dumb eyes. Taking a seat on the mountain ledge, Vaken felt himself tensing up at the idea of having to fight more of those idiots off.

I guess I must be having fun

(This post was last modified: Jul 17, 2018, 01:59 AM by Vaken.)

currently travelling with Circe (she can jump in any of his threads)

She adored the atmosphere of the forest, it was true. Since her return, she'd spent most of her days tucked away within the safety and confines of many of them on either side of the mountain. But with the summer weather in full bloom, her places on the eastern side of the mountain had proven to be a bit humid, and the thickness of the air had felt confining. It was in the dead of night that she'd unfortunately awoken before she'd spent enough time in the comfort of her dreams, surrounded by familiar faces in places too beautiful to exist reality. Before dawn, she'd blinked the sleep from her tired eyes and decided to get out for some fresh air - up on the mountain.

Lyanna travelled well into the day, finally finding herself on a stony path on the side of the mountain. Just as she'd anticipated, the air was thinner, fresher, and the winds that howled up here felt freeing as they slipped through the fur of her tawny coat. It was easy for her to decide to waste the day away here, a little closer to the sun.

It wasn't until thirst and hunger set in that she'd slowed down some. There really wasn't much to eat and it had been hours since she'd seen water. From where she perched herself, she could see the spaces in the trees down below where a river flowed through the Vale, but...she couldn't get there anytime soon. With a sigh, she supposed she'd better enjoy what she'd came here for in the first place - a breath of fresh air. She'd return to the woods and their rivers soon enough.

Rounding a bend in her path, his scent caught her attention before the sight of him did. With a flick of her tongue, the girl tested the air a bit before curiosity sent her onward to happen upon him. Sitting just below her on a rocky ledge was a boy with the strangest pattern of mismatched fur... "Quite the view," she remarked, her russet-colored ears tipped forward.

I feel numb, born with a weak heart

“Hm,” the young wolf sighed, his ears twitching back at the sound of the female’s voice. He realized that the words had been targeted at him, and being vaguely startled, searched for the source. He did not smell her, and he had not heard her. It was almost like the voice had belonged to the wind. 


When he realized it had come from above him, the small wolf relaxed and gave a small smirk. “Oh, yes, quite the view.” The words came out his mouth without him really registering them. He hadn’t meant them with much passion, it was only small talk. Just a way of acknowledging that he was not a threat, but a fellow sightseer. His lack of interest made the words dry and robotic, but not quite rude.

Realizing how empty his sentence had been, Vaken attempted to soften his body language. He nodded his head in agreement, looking over the territory below him in a caricature way. He was overdramatizing it to make sure she knew he really did appreciate the view. While he looked, all he could think about was how dangerous of a fall it would be. He broke his eye contact with the surroundings and focused on the approaching female. 
Why did she look so familiar? He squinted his eyes at her, but couldn’t quite put his paw on it. Clearing his throat a little, he lifted his muzzle up to get a better look at her. "Have we met before?"  

I guess I must be having fun

(This post was last modified: Jul 17, 2018, 01:09 AM by Vaken.)

currently travelling with Circe (she can jump in any of his threads)

The tone that accompanied his words were apathetic but it was easy to note that he was adjusting to be more approachable, at least. It struck her as being strange that he was up here alone, sightseeing perhaps, until she realized that she was also alone up here. Sightseeing...When he asked if they'd met before, she was sure that they hadn't. "I don't believe so," she replied, her voice neutrally soft.

In all honesty, Lyanna was tired. Hungry. Thirsty. A little lonelier than usual. All in all, she hadn't been prepared to meet or make small talk with anyone. But here the two of them were, nonetheless. She'd give it her best shot. "What brings you up here, alone?" Perhaps the air down there was too stuffy for you, too.

Four coyotes appear from the shadows, posturing aggressively.

I feel numb, born with a weak heart

Vaken still couldn’t put his paw on what was so familiar with the girl. She clearly did not recognize him, but he couldn’t shake the idea that they had met before. He continued to search his brain while she talked, but failed to remember where he could have stumbled into her. Her scent was not familiar, he doubted she was from a pack. Her eyes were a common colour. Her colouring was fairly neutral too, though he hadn’t met a lot of lighter wolves. Eventually he gave up, moving his attention back to her words.

He sniffed around, tasting the surroundings with suspicious curiosity. The smell of coyote was on the breeze, but Vaken was not worried. If they were on the mountain, he was sure he could outrun them. He was nimble on the rocks and almost comically confident in his ability to run. If it came down to it, he wouldn’t even bother trying to fight them off.

Adjusting his position slightly once more, the wolf reached out his black paw and knocked over a small rock. It hit a few ledges on its way down, crumbling into pebbles. He couldn’t hear it hit the bottom, but it was satisfying nevertheless to watch it tumble. Placing his paw back on the ground, Vaken gave a small smile. What an odd question.


If the female hadn’t been so polite and non-threatening in her body, Vaken could have easily misunderstood it as a threat. He didn’t have any explanation. He was always alone- almost. Being alone for him was second nature. It seemed strange that she had inquired about it, since it was so natural to the rogue wolf. Forcing himself to come up with something, anything, the wolf opened his mouth before he was ready to speak. “I like to climb,” he said cooly. It was the easiest explanation he had. While it wasn’t the most small-talk friendly, Vaken felt it was the truth.

He shrugged his shoulders, and forgetting his manners didn’t ask her the same question. Instead, he used his muzzle to knock over another rock, this one bigger, down the side of the mountain.

I guess I must be having fun

currently travelling with Circe (she can jump in any of his threads)

She watched as the boy mindlessly pawed a rock over the edge of his ledge, her eyes passing from the side of his face - as he wasn't looking at her - to his paw, to the rock as it tumbled over and back to his face again. Was he...bored? What was his life like if he had time to sit on the side of a mountain just to push rocks over the side and listen to them fall? Somewhere between shock and thinking she may have come across a crazy one, Lyanna looked around as if to see if anyone else was seeing what she was. "I like to climb," he'd answered. And then, as if it hadn't been strange the first time, he did it again! Her eyes widened, blinking in confusion as her stomach growled.

And then it happened. Why did it always have to happen to her. There they were - all the coyotes, emerging from the shadows like a broken-record-nightmare. And on the side of the mountain? And this boy - was he going to play with rocks amidst the nasty snarling of four coyotes? What, was this the fucking twilight zone? That was it. She had had enough this time. As the gang of them drew nearer - as if they were going to actually do something - Lyanna lost it.

"Get up," she commanded the boy, her tone absolute. She squared up to the band of coyotes fiercely, her tail arching high over her back, the fur along it rising up as her lips curled back to reveal a real predator's weapon. With teeth bared, a low and savage growl rumbled deep in her chest and throat. She didn't come here to be killer, but that didn't mean she couldn't play the part very well.

It was not lost on her that the two of them most likely couldn't win this fight. Their best bet was to run, even if it was the last thing she wanted to do. She lurched forward suddenly, snapping toward the face of the band's boldest. It was her final warning and the closest she was willing to get without real back up. She looked sideways at the boy on the ledge beneath her if only for a second. "Run."

If he could get a head start, she could surely follow suit and maybe they could make it off the mountain unscathed.

I feel numb, born with a weak heart

Vaken usually did not like to take orders, from anyone, let alone strangers. In this situation though, the orders went through one ear and out the other. He did not need orders to know how to keep himself alive, but the heads up was nice. Her voice hit him at the same time the smell did, coyotes. He raised his fur and let out a loud howl, letting the pests know that he was there and meant business.

He cringed knowing that it was probably his rock-hitting that drew them to him. It was too late now to take it back. Placing his paws instinctively on the rock below him, the small yearling did not hesitate to move. 


He didn’t even glance up at the female to make sure she was okay, too focused on his positioning. He presumed she could take care of herself. His main focus was his own well-being and working quickly to manoeuvre out of the danger. The blood in his veins was thick and warm, the adrenaline pumping in overtime to fuel his speed. As quick as a blur, Vaken glided down the first feet few with unhesitating grace.

After the first few feet, Vaken could comfortably run in long strides without having to reposition his paws too much. It was bumpy and rough against his paw pads, but he was too focused on escaping to register the pain. He listened carefully behind him, trying to identity the sound of her paws over the sound of the yipping coyotes. 


He didn’t want her to get hurt, he wasn’t evil. He just wasn’t willing to put himself on the line to protect her. She was a stranger. Vaken felt comfortable presuming that she could get herself off the cliff, since she was capable of climbing up it. She was smart enough to know not to fight them, that said something too. Throwing his weight forward, and using the momentum of the incline, Vaken was practically a bullet. All he could hear was the sound of his heart beating and his paws hitting the hard stone.

I guess I must be having fun

currently travelling with Circe (she can jump in any of his threads)

Just as quickly as the situation had unfolded, her counterpart let out a warning of his own before making his escape - right off the edge of the cliff-like drop where he'd tossed his rocks. Lyanna could have easily turned on her heels and left out the way she'd came in, but instead she opted to follow the boy. She made quick work of leaping down to his pedestal and even quicker work of maneuvering her way as carefully as possible down the path he'd taken. Her paws slipped here and there, but her legs and back were as strong as her will and easily enough she'd managed to also escape the danger that still loomed above, in the form of the four angry coyotes that were essentially left in the dust.

With what grace one could muster while fleeing down the mountainside, soon enough she was right on his tail. In short time - because the time really flew when you were having fun, right? - she'd managed her way to a stony surface suitable for standing, and it was there that she stopped to look over her shoulder. The distance they had covered was remarkable, and up above the coyotes stood at the rocky edge of the landing they were now free to claim, looking as disgruntled as they had when they'd first emerged to make her long day that much longer. Huffing in a breath, her gaze shifted to stranger who had yet to look back. A single corner of her lips pulled into a smirking grin.

"Hey," she called over to him, "I'm all good over here - no need to worry!" Maybe it was due to the adrenaline rush or the overall feeling of insanity she felt from all the rock-tossing and coyote-haggling, but a laugh escaped her then. She couldn't even be mad at him for rushing off basically without her. Maybe he hadn't appreciated her barking at him, but she hadn't meant anything by it. If anything, the bottom line was that she didn't want either one of them to be hurt. She hesitated where she stood for a moment, waiting to see if he'd care to respond or opt to leave her in the dust, too.

I feel numb, born with a weak heart

It felt good to run. The small boy panted, cracking a large smile himself. Looking over his shoulder at the female, he barked happily. “Nice run,” he agreed. He was glad they had both gotten out in good condition- almost. He could still hear the coyotes’ excited yips and the sound of their feet racing down the mountain. They didn’t have a lot of time to rest.

He moved his head to the girl, to the mountain, and then the forest. He tried to catch his breath, well aware that he was going to have to keep running in a few moments. Exhaling deeply through his mouth, the boy relaxed his shoulders and cleared his throat. “What’s your name- by the way?” 


He hadn’t asked it before, but now it seemed important. She had helped saved him. Maybe her name would help refresh his memory. Giving her an encouraging smile, he looked towards the coyotes once more.

I guess I must be having fun

currently travelling with Circe (she can jump in any of his threads)