Hidden Tree Way Down I Go

@Annaliese
@Clover


Okay, so it might not have been a good idea to try to find water on an ice capped pond only to slip and fall when the ice proved too slippery for his clumsy paws. Luckily, either the ice was thick enough to hold his weight or his weight was light enough not to crack it. So all that happened was his coat got slightly wet when he waited a moment to catch the breath that had been knocked out from his chest... And maybe it hadn’t been a good idea to wait so long to find shelter, not when it wasn’t even a sunny day to wait out the overcast clouds and try dry his coat out a little.

Huffing slightly, Casper wondered if it had been a good idea to even leave his pack so close to winter. His parents had warmed him to at least wait till spring to go but god damn it, they’d fussed over him enough so Casper had wanted to put some distance between him and them!

Besides, the troubled looks they shared between each other weren’t missed on him, even if they tried to hide them. The pale boy wasn’t the fighter they were expecting like his mother and while he was an alright hunter, he certainly wasn’t one like his father. And he definitely wasn’t the hulking brute fitted for guardianship that was his brother.  Even the herbs his sister attempted to show him never quite stuck in his mind like they did to hers, so the boy was feeling more like a ghost floating behind his family as they flourished before him. It felt like he was just doing a servile duty to his parents and not much else for himself.  Huffing loudly, Casper paused and sat down heavy near a tree. He left to find his own way away from his family, not to constantly think of them! Sure, he missed them but that didn’t matter out here.      

Suddenly, as he went to lean back against a tree, the solidness of the tree that was expected wasn’t there and Casper let out a loud yelp as his eyes closed while he tumbled head over paw into darkness. Was he being punished for thinking ill of his family? Shot through his mind as his tumbling came to a stop and made him hit solid ground. Yet he didn’t move nor open his eyes, to which he’d see he’d simply fallen into an old den, slightly terrified that something had caused a tree to swallow him whole for some unknown transgression.

(This post was last modified: Jan 10, 2021, 11:03 AM by Casper.)

It had been an eventful day, so Annaliese had decided that maybe just maybe a nap couldn't hurt. Yeah she needed to focus her time on hunting and all that good stuff...but maybe it was okay? Regardless of whether taking a nap was the right or wrong thing to do she retired into the comforts of the tree.

She had just lulled off into sleep when a heavy thud shook her awake. Annaliese howled out in shock, jumping out of under the male. Without a second thought she was a bristling snarling ball of fury. Her teeth glinted in the dark and she clicked them at the wolf. Her tail curled over her back, What the FUCK man?!" She looked from him to the damage, "Look what you've done!" Ana had just found this place and he was running it!

She took a few steps forward, looking down at the wolf on the ground. Her ears were pinned and she gave him the greatest stink eye the yearling could muster. She didn't know how he could do it, but she barked the order out regardless, "Fix it!" Her anger was perhaps childish but she could see past the red she saw now.

OOC: Annaliese smells like the Valle boys due to human antics.

(This post was last modified: Jan 10, 2021, 11:34 AM by Annaliese.)

Currently Annaliese smells vaguely like Valle wolves. During transportation, the humans rubbed her with their scent.

A warren of rabbits is hidden under a nearby tree. +3 Health

She had gone searching for more herbs, but found herself unlucky due to the snows limiting her ability of finding the underground roots. She would have to wait until the snows began to melt before really looking for them, but for the time being she was satisfied by the cedar bark she had found earlier that day. It would have to do for now. So she found herself trekking back to where she had stashed the herbs found so far which, admittedly was not a lot, but at least she was trying.

Her creamy ears pricked up when she heard a yelp, breaking into a lope just in case whoever had made that sound needed help. As she got closer she heard angry shouting, very angry shouting at that, coming from within the hollowed out den of one of the trees. It was the same den Annaliese had taken Clover to earlier, and she wondered with worry at what the darker female had gotten herself into. She hesitantly poked her nose into the entrance of the den, eyes squinting as they adjusted to the darkness within. She could see two wolves inside, one of which was her new acquaintance - and hopefully friend - and another wolf who had a much lighter coat, similar in hues to her own.

"I'm sure this has all just been a misunderstanding," she said quietly but with some force in her voice, hoping to de-escalate the tension before something terrible happened. Her body was low to the ground, ready to jump backwards if the wolves inside decided they wanted to be in a more open space.

(This post was last modified: Jan 10, 2021, 05:49 PM by Clover.)

@Annaliese
@Clover
Snapping his eyes open as he landed on something soft that turned into someone very angry that he dropped in for an unexpected visit, Casper wondered if he’d just gotten all the bad luck lately.

“I’m so sorry!” Casper yelped as he leapt away from the girl, tail tucking between his legs as his ears dropped. He’d thought he was leaning against the hard wood of a tree but could have been rotted wood? Which was prone to breakage if enough pressure was applied. Glancing over to where he had fallen in, Casper winced. It looked like he’d leant up against the edge of the hidden entrance, which did look like it was slightly rotted. If he had to guess, it did really break off upon leaning against it and sent him cartwheeling onto the girl who ordered him to fix it. Blinking in confusion, because how was he supposed to fix it? Yes, he’d broken her home but it was unintentional and all it had really done was widen the entrance.

Yet before the words could come out to even apologise, someone else spoke and Casper almost yelled out of fright as he whirled around to face another wolf. With his heart beating in his chest, Casper scrambled out of the den as soon as there was room to.

“Yes, yes, it is.” He finally managed to breathe out as soon as he caught his breath, tail still tucked under him. “I’m so sorry about your home. I’ve just been traveling for a while and decided to rest but I guess I picked the wrong tree...”  

(This post was last modified: Jan 14, 2021, 05:36 AM by Casper.)

Annaliese was displeased by his silence. She scowled at him, approaching so that she stood directly over the male. The yearling lowered her face to his and snapped her teeth near his nose. Her eyes searched him for an answer to her demands, but only an apology was given. Before she could mutter anymore nasty words a familiar voice interruptted.

The dark female glanced over with an unamused expression. Her lips shut, tightening into a deep frown. Part of her wanted to reason with Clover, but a childish anger fumed within the girl. "But look at this mess." she whined, gesturing with her muzzle.

Begrudgingly the girl stepped away from Casper as he spoke. Her fur still stood on end and her gaze held anger. "You still damaged my den." She pointed this out as if it were not obvious to all in attendance. She didn't relax as he went on with excuses, "I'm not asking why, I'm saying fix it." She spat out at him. "Its cold, now more air is going to come in, you fool!

Exasperated she looked back over to Clover for help.

Currently Annaliese smells vaguely like Valle wolves. During transportation, the humans rubbed her with their scent.

Clover had but a moment to scoot backwards just as the ghostly wolf shot out of the den, ears pulled back as she felt the air whoosh past her in his haste. He offered up an apology and an explanation, and she felt her heart warm a little at the sincerity in his voice, but it would not be up to her to forgive him. That was all up to Annaliese. Her gaze turned to the darker girl still in the den, a look of sympathy on her face. She did have a point; there was now a hole in the wall of the den where the ghostly male had fallen through, but it was not unfixable in her mind.

She frowned at the anger in the other girls' voice, understanding why she was angry but still feeling like there should be a little more civility in her tone. While she did not feel close enough to Annaliese to ask her to calm down and be a little less hostile, she did have a possible solution to the den issue. "I'm sure he will be happy enough to help fix it," she said calmly while looking at him, giving a slight nod to show that she was trying to offer him some assistance in fixing his mistake.

"The bark on some of the trees here are able to be pulled off quite easily, and if careful enough we can gather large enough pieces to patch up the hole." Her gaze flitted between the trees, eyeing the trunks with the bark she spoke about. They would not require much to fix the den, and it would be a good enough solution to stop most of the wind and cold from entering the den. She looked between the two wolves, ears now pricked as she awaited their responses to her plan.

Did she think he was stupid? It certainly was a mess, and an accident at that, so it confused him as to why she was so angry about an old rotten tree. Sure, she called it her den and presumably that meant it was her....home? What was with wolves and making old dead trees their home? It was still a tree for gods sake, nothing as sturdy as a stone wall or even packed dirt.

The other wolf that was unfortunately caught in between the two of them stayed calm through the whole thing, obviously not wanting a fight to break out and honestly? Neither did Casper yet it felt like if they didn’t fix this tree up, he might have to.

“Of course I’d be happy to help.” Casper agreed with the other pale wolf, though internally his soul just screamed out of embarrassment and tiredness. He just wanted a nap and the both times he’d stopped to get some rest in the last two days, either someone had told him off for resting on his log and now he’d broken someone’s home! It had barely been two days since he’d arrived in this snow covered land and already he was beginning to think it was a bad idea.

Pale amber eyes flicked over to the other cream wolf as she suggested ripping the bark off of some other trees and making a sort of barricade to stop the wind getting it.

“That’d work, I think. Just point me to the bark, show me how to get it off and your den will be as good as new.” Glancing around at the trees like she had, curious to know which trees she spoke about because otherwise, he'd make an even bigger fool of himself if he just went up to a tree and started tearing the bark off.

Annaliese looked to Clover as she spoke then to Casper. It was agreed then. The dark yearling shook her pelt and dropped her tail. The tension in her body eased up and her domaint stance faded. By no means did she look happy now, but it was a start. She slipped out of the den to stand closer to the other two.

Ana smiled at Clover, tail giving a soft wag, "Will we need to dig up dirt to pack it in?" The ground was pretty hard and the snow cold. That didn't bother the girl though, she was larger with enough power to get it done. She looked between different trunks, following the female's gaze. Then the male spoke. Her tail fell and smile faded, but she listened nonetheless.

Casper was trying to make amends. He was going to try fixing this. Ana knew she should lighten up on the guy....but she was still bitter about the whole situation. This entire problem could've been crisis avoided if he'd entered the tree instead of leaning on it. Of course...she'd still of been mad but maybe that would've been better? She played the scenario out in her mind then sighed. The ghostly lad couldn't catch a break with this lassy. Annaliese finally offered him a small smile and nod.

Currently Annaliese smells vaguely like Valle wolves. During transportation, the humans rubbed her with their scent.

She smiled warmly at the creamy male's agreement, glad that he had taken the olive branch she had extended to him. The dark girl seemed content enough at his words as evident by the relaxation of her stance, though she still did not seem particularly happy, but who could blame her? Her den had just been partially ruined. However, it seemed that a fight was no longer going to break out before her very eyes. That eased her mind a little.

Clover nodded at Annaliese, a thoughtful expression on her face. "Yes, the dirt will help keep the bark in place and plug up any gaps to stop the wind from getting through." The ground would likely be frozen and difficult to dig up, but she was sure that together they could manage it. She looked back at the male as he spoke, seeming eager to start getting to work. That was admirable. "You and I can gather the bark while Annaliese digs up some dirt." Splitting up the work would mean the patch-up job would be done faster, and if the dark girl struggled with digging through the frozen ground her and the male could always help once they had fathered the dirt.

She motioned with her muzzle for the creamy male to follow, and made her way to one of the trees, eyeing the bark with a steely gaze. "Some trees have bark that can be easily peeled off, others you will struggle to get the bark off without it breaking into small unusable pieces, and there are specific trees, like birch, which have bark that peels off naturally," she said to the male, offering him a quick explanation so he would understand why they could not just get the bark from any tree.

Lifting her front legs up into the air Clover scratched at the bark with her claws carefully, tail wagging when it began to peel from the tree. "See how when I use my claws to tear the bark it lifts away from the trunk? If you peel it away carefully you can get a nice large strip that can be used for many things." As she explained she continued to tug gently at the bark, finally grabbing it with her mouth to completely tear it away from the tree. Her front legs returned to the ground and she turned to face the male, the large piece of bark still in her mouth. "You try!" She said encouragingly, words slightly muffled around the bark.