Thicket of Secrets Momma's gonna buy you a mockingbird

Nia Hervok Side by side or miles apart For the first few hours of her daughter's life she tried to recoup her energy. Sleeping so lightly that the slightest jostle had her sharp emerald gaze searching. The smell of blood hung heavily in the air. If a predator were drawn in by it there was little she could do. Her lips curled over her teeth at the thought. Her eyes softened as she once over her little girl. Healthy. She reassured herself and let out a soft coo. Nuzzling into the warm wiggly body and taking in that fresh puppy smell. The woman's stomach grumbled. Insticively she parted her jaws to ask someone to grab her something from the caches. Her teeth clicked together as her ears flattened. She was alone in this endeavor. Her selfish eldest had turned her back on family for some swamp rats. Nia's throat gurgled with a low throaty growl of annoyance. After all she'd done for Sage. Her belly let out another complaint. Worry flashed across her face as she peered down at her daughter. Gently she peeled herself away and wanted to cry. The idea of leaving someone so small and defenseless...but she had to. She needed to keep her milk production up so that they could both eat. The wolf pushed the bed of pelts around to nestle the girl more tightly. Nia limped out of the den, her hindquarters drenched in blood. Slowly she made her way further and further from her darling Rosemary. She had set up a cache further away in hopes of avoiding predators and the flaw in her plan was now evident. "Talking" Tags: @ OOC: Slightly gory mentions of blood!

The smell of food had drawn the hungry yearling in. He’d caught the smell and tracked it down, and was sniffing around the area for it. A cache maybe? Something another wolf had hidden to eat? Maybe even a bear. Did bears do that? Ran had no idea. The thought made him nervous, but he was hungry, so he kept sniffing.

Until his nose picked up on something else.

Blood and the scent that his pregnant aunt had held on her fur - something he’d never smelled before or since. But this smell was a little bit different than that one, and he wasn’t sure exactly why.

The boy perked up when the stranger came into view. A decently-sized woman, much older, and… half covered in blood. Ran’s eyes widened, half in fear and half in concern.

“Are-are you okay, miss?” he asked, voice warbling a little.

Between her and the cache. There he stood, a mere stranger, and yet someone who held her fate in his paw. Her muzzle twitched. Emerald eyes sharpened with a dastardly glare. She had to protect her child, but in this state, all she had was mere wordplay and mind games. She was weakened to the point her thoughts tumbled.

She gave him a once over. He was a child himself. A mere boy half scared and likely by the blood. Perhaps she could frighten him away? Nia crept closer without a word. An omniscience presence filled the air between them. Her movements were precise and almost as ghostly as her pale pelt.

Ran Morven froze momentarily, spooked by the woman's movements. She was so tall and wispy, half-soaked in blood and ghastly in the moonlight. Memories of his mother's playful ghost stories crept into his mind and he froze, eyes round as he stared at her.

Was this a ghost after all? Was she dead and coming to haunt him?

"Are you a ghost?" he asked intelligently, as though a ghost would announce itself, just like that, even if they did exist. He did take a few steps back, thoroughly frightened by her display.

(This post was last modified: Jul 03, 2024, 11:43 PM by Morven.)