Vigils Keep [S] get up from your misfortune

LOTTA SWEARS that's all

Random Event: Snowmaggedon! A foot of snow has fallen overnight!

Her sister was dead and the first thing she had done was fled.

She could not tell if she was more upset that Sephrina had gone and died, or if she had not stayed to see the fall out. None of it mattered when she was faced with the harsh realities all around her now. Alone, unfed and undefended. Isla had to take things by force now without an ounce of backup.

Her life had become hers truly. No one else had say or sway now.

It also meant she could no longer be lazy and wait for things to fall into her lap. When she moved, in a tired stagger, it was with hungry eyes. Searching through the fresh, thick fall of snow for something else. Something weaker, something smaller. Anything she could snap her jaws on.

She could not die.

(This post was last modified: Mar 02, 2023, 10:16 PM by Isla.)

Ryder had so many less cares in his own life, a picturesque opposite of the shadowy girl he was moments away from happening upon. He'd ventured toward that familiar lake with its expansive shores for the umpteenth time, unworried by being alone. Most times, he preferred it that way, able to take things at his own pace instead of being bothered with compromising. That wasn't to say the novel scent wasn't exciting to come across, and that he wasn't eager to see who it belonged to.

He prowled amongst the snow and ice, tracking her down as though she were a hare. When his stormy eyes finally found the stranger, he thought she looked more coyote than wolf. Curious.

Rather than speak, he tried following her in a way that he hoped would keep him hidden.

oops swears

Snow this fresh was not at the stage where it crunched under steps. Which meant she had not realized him as she forged onward. Determined to find something, anything. An old, frozen cache. A den to wait out some of this continuing snow.

The biggest problem would be sorting through all this snow to find it. Find anything. At the very least, she could easily track back her steps after having trudged through all of this.

Which she had meant to do until suddenly the snow stopped in front of her. A drop between stone walls into the labyrinthine workings of the Keep.

Fuck.

Ryder was happy to remain undiscovered, that thrill of be secretive and getting away with something his mother would think inconsiderate welcome to the pale youth. It didn't occur to him that there was anything wrong with this picture, that the other girl might actually need assistance. This child had been blessed enough to still live in a world where children didn't go missing or otherwise lack support.

She stopped a bit suddenly, and an unfamiliar word left her lips. His curiosity peaked, but he couldn't move forward to see what she saw without risking exposing himself. He shifted among winter-bared brush and considered his options, before finally choosing to reveal himself with a sigh. Ryder stepped out onto what had once been a path, and chuffed to at last greet the stranger.

"Fuck what?" he asked simply, acting very much as though he belonged here rather than intruding.

She spun, on edge and faced the boy with a harsh look. Who was he?! More importantly, how long had he been there? Clearly long enough to hear what she had said.

Fuck you. That's what. She spat sourly and fixed him with a rude look. Thinning body took on a hard stance like she had learned from Rochus. She had to be extra mindful of her posturing now.

Who are you?

Admittedly she'd be surprised if he even answered! Especially with how she had started them off. Whatever. It was his fault, if they didn't get along. It could never be her fault.

Ryder might have giggled if it had been @Caspian he'd startled so, but his brother had never given him such a dirty look before. His ears leaned back and his gray eyes widened a little surprise, but then she also spoke and threw that funny word at him and he found himself snorting in his attempt to hold laughter back. The stress of the effort was evident in the wrinkling of his muzzle and the twitch of an eye.

She was goofy. Though, as much as he still wanted to see past her, the boy at least knew better than to get any closer with her all angled like that.

"Ryder. Who are you?"

She could answer her own question at least, right?

Ryder.

The stalker boy who thought she'd play by his rules.

None of your business. She scoffed with a roll of her eyes. Her tail flicked behind her with mild irritation, a sweeping of snow going with her. A reminder of seemingly how much snow was all around here.

Is there always this much snow up here? He was a kid still. Nevermind that she was too. She just figured he had a home nearby somewhere. That he had been around here before. Enough to tell her if this whole place was a worthless wasteland of death traps covered by horrible feet of snow.

'None of your business' was a phrase he was far more familiar with. Again his brows jumped with surprise, and immediately he had the thought that his mother would not like this girl. There was no taking her attitude personally, however; if she wanted to be riled, that was her problem. Ryder was much more difficult to fluster. Still, he couldn't help but state bluntly,

"Wow. You're really rude."

Asking questions but refusing to answer them? Did she not have a mom to teach her manners or something? He finally began to wonder what she was doing here, but knew better now than to ask. Her own query could go ignored too. Ryder dared to move forward, trying to get to that edge she was standing on so that he could look for himself.

(This post was last modified: Mar 02, 2023, 10:37 PM by Ryder.)

i left it as open as possible, it is ENTIRELY up to you what happens!

If that was the worst he had to say, then he was nothing more than another baby. Too stupid and too weak to know what the world was ready to give him at any moment.

Today the world had given him a shrewd Isla.

She watched as he stupidly neared the edge. Her features smoothed as an idea overcame her. Her grief had began to twirl into sharp anger at the world. He would just be another victim to it. If he wanted to be at the edge, he could risk the consequences. She side stepped to attempt to chuck a shoulder into him and force gravity to take hold.

If it failed? Well...it sure was a misfortune there was a lot of slippery fresh snow, huh? Just another accident in a long list of them.

i let the dice decide, they didn't favor ry lol

Ryder had tried to give her space, but the trail was being retaken by nature and there really just wasn't much to be shared. He watched her from his peripheral for any signs she might try to clack those teeth at him, saw nothing concerning, and finally got the view he wanted. These were like the secret tunnels of his dreams.

"Wow," he remarked, glee rising, and then-

She shoved him. He knew it as soon as her shoulder made contact with his, an instinctive snarl bursting from his throat. Given the quality of the snow, the momentum was enough to send him and a sheet of it sliding out over the edge. His body twisted and his claws tried to dig in, the effort sort of working. Ryder ended up not falling but rather hanging, only his forelimbs keeping him in place while his back paws struggled to push up against the sheer wall.

His grey eyes looked to Isla, and narrowed. There would be no asking for help, he already knew better.