Cedarwood Forest The Hunt

<b>Oh. Haha, same here.</b>

<i>Kauda did not watch Ozera as she moved closer. Her wet abnormal blue eyes were covered by her paws. Kauda hated people seeing her cry, and she wasn't about to let this stranger - well, almost - see her fall apart talking about her family that was probably dead. Like the experienced she - wolf pointed out, she had to stand and wonder, traveling the snow covered lands, instead of joining a pack and settling down, hoping to find her lost family. She was risking her life at this moment, being alone in the freezing temperatures and harsh winds of winter that caused her tears to freeze while they fell from her cheeks and prey to be scarce, because she still had that glimmer of hope that her family was alive. Her story wasn't complete either. For a few months she traveled with her cousin, as his parents had disappeared with hers. His tale was worse though. Kauda and her beloved cousin were sipping from a river when she looked over and he was gone. She wandered down the river a bit, only to find roaring rapids. As she went along, she got more fearful that the pup had killed himself. She still doesn't know.</i>

<i>Kauda finally let a sad electric blue eye peek out from under her jet black paw. When she saw Ozera standing above her, she couldn't help but feel a sense of comfort. She felt protected, like someone cared. It was a new feeling - well, not entirely. But, it was the first time she had felt it since her family disappeared... everyone that she loved.. gone.</i>

<b>"Tell me every single detail.</b><i> Kauda murmured gently. She felt comforted and protected by Ozera's voice, and just her presence in general. She didn't want to go, even though she needed to keep moving. Her family was waiting for her... possibly. Kauda needed them, but she also needed the company of somebody else.</i>

(This post was last modified: Feb 04, 2011, 03:58 AM by Kauda.)

<blockquote><ul><b>ooc</b> → Story timeee~</li></ul>
It was satisfying to know that Kauda didn't mind being in such close proximity to her, especially after having only been acquainted for a little while. Ozera wouldn't have minded being so close to other wolves, even if they seemed rather menacing. Nevertheless, it was always a comfort to know that her ears would remain intact. Ozera's thoughts then began to meander, as she looked down at the little black pup beside her. <i>What horrible things she must be thinking of. </i>

When Kauda asked for every single detail of her years of wayfaring, Ozera had to laugh. "<b>But Kauda! That was three years. It would take me forever to recount all of the moments and all that nonsense. Plus, some of it was very dull. I mean, you understand, right? You've been wandering for awhile. Some days are just dreadfully grey and they all just sort of blend together, and you keep walking through the monotony hoping that eventually there'll be and end...</b>" She paused, realizing that she had meant to cheer Kauda up, not to increase her misery. <i>If you ever have pups, don't ever do the storytelling. Leave that to someone else.</i> But hey, maybe, if one day she actually did start a family, now would be really good practice.

"<b>But, well, there was this one time, back quite a few years, after I reached the top of this hill, I stood looking down into this very vast plain, maybe infinite plain. It was funny, though, because I noticed there were holes in it. All over the place. This whole plain, it was like the honeycomb in a bee's nest.</b>" As she spoke, a light smile tickled her features as she recalled how strange the scene had first been to her. "<b>It had to have been one of the weirdest things I've ever seen.</b><i> Anyway</i>, <b>I began to walk down the hill, trying not to fall in any of these holes, although it was difficult, because there were holes everywhere you looked. I might have fallen in a few once or twice, I don't know, I'm a klutz. But suddenly, this little tiny critter poked it's head out of one of the holes. Looked like a large rodent, or a rabbit with no ears. I guess these things lived in the ground, although that seems incredibly strange. I was so hungry at the time, and even if it had spooked me, I had taken it by surprise too. I clubbed it on the head with a paw and killed it swiftly. But would you guess what else happened then?</b><i>More</i><b>of them started popping up! Dozens, hundreds of them, all looking at me curiously with those beady eyes. Perhaps they had never seen a predator like me before, because I was able to fell at least 20 before they began to get the idea.</b>"

Her tongue slipped out of her mouth, circling her lips as she tried to recall the taste. "<b>I can't ever remember being so well fed.</b>"
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(This post was last modified: Feb 04, 2011, 08:29 PM by Ozera.)

<i>Kauda smiled at Ozera's words, seeing that she was attempting to comfort her. Kauda didn't mind listening to dull days, she has had so many of them they seemed regular now. Her deep, blue eyes were drying of the tears. The comfort of being with Ozera made her calmer. Maybe it was her experience of life, or her soft, gentle voice. It didn't matter, she was here.</i>

<i>The small onyx black she - wolf listened to her speak of dull days. Very descriptive, she noted to herself. Kauda could describe them as the days that you just feel like going and jumping off a cliff for action. For her, the days that she had absolutely no hope. The days that she felt helpless and where she felt like she was never going to make a friend or never was going to find the ones she loved. The last part was true. She could possibly never find them if they were dead. They've been gone for six months, over half of Kauda's life. She remembered the dull days, but she also remembered the action. They days where she felt so full of pride and joy. The days where she was stuffed full of food. The days where she taught herself how to survive in the cruel world. Those days.</i>

<i>As Ozera spoke of the small, earless creatures Kauda couldn't help but tilt her head with curiosity, her eyes gleaming with wonder. The she - wolf spoke of how full she was. Kauda felt her stomach growl and her mouth water at the thought. She should've waited for that buck. Both she and Ozera would've been quite full. But, she had to blow it. Let it slip through her paws, just like her family did.</i>

<b>"That sounds wonderful! Absolutely fantastic!"</b><i> Kauda spoke enthusiastically, trying to hide her shaky voice, and was pretty successful.</i>

(This post was last modified: Feb 04, 2011, 08:54 PM by Kauda.)

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"<b>Mnnnn,</b>" Ozera replied softly, "<b>I would have stayed there and settled down, but it was so open out in that field. There would be no shelter from the elements. And eventually those ground-rats would have wizened up and I would be out of a good dinner.</b>" It was a shame. The smile faded from her face for the moment as she wondered why such a bountiful food source had to hide underground. But obviously that was the whole point. "<b>Maybe I should have learned how to live underground, too. But no doubt I wouldn't fit in any of their tunnels,</b>" Ozera laughed at the thought of her large frame squirming through dark burrows.

Her head rested now on Kauda's shoulder, "<b>What about you? What was the best day you've ever had?</b>"
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<i>Kauda chuckled, trying to picture the tall wolf, compared to her at least, underground. </i><b>"Wow, that sounds great."</b><i> she smiled, letting the rest of her face peer out from under her paws. Her tears were dried up, probably because she had some loving company. Kauda paused at her next question, thinking back on her short life. Slowly, the edges of her lips curved into a smile.</i>

<b>"It was before my family was gone, making me just four months old, if that. Me and Makita, my sister, were out in the woods with Kanaii, my cousin. My mother and father were out with my aunt and uncle hunting. Kanaii and Makita were splashing in the creek near our home. Brassa, one of the older wolves in the pack, was watcing over us. Just as I was about to jump in with Kanaii and Makita, something flashed by. I couldn't tell what it was, but I went after it. Kanaii followed me, and Makita followed him. We were all chasing it, whatever it was. When it finally slowed a little bit, thinking that it lost us, we saw that it was a fat brown rabbit. We threw ourselves at it, grabbing it with our baby teeth. Besides our age, we worked together. Because we worked together, we killed it. That was the day I killed my first rabbit, or my first piece of prey in general."</b><i> Kauda explained quietly.</i><b> "But that wasn't it. After we arrived back at our home with Brassa, our parents were there. They had brought home a feast of deer and rabbits and squirrels. That night we ate like champions, and we spent the whole day and night together.</b><i> Kauda sighed, laying her head back at her paws.</i><b> "Sometimes I wish I was that old again. The bond between me and my family was so much stronger than anything I've ever seen."</b>

<blockquote><ul><b>ooc</b> - Sorry, it's giving me carpal tunnel to type so much on my phone. xD</li></ul>"<b>That's impressive!</b>" Ozera couldn't really remember when her first skill was, but it wasn't until much later on. She had only started hunting with her pack when she had turned a year old, so she supposed it must have been around then. And single handed kills came much later. Why hunt alone when you had a team at your back? "<b>When I was four months, I was just a little ankle-biter who talked the fur off of all the adults. I was pretty obnoxious when I was little.</b>" Now she understood why they all were so eager to escape the jaws of her conversation. She was determined, though, and startlingly oblivious.

"<b>Has the bleeding stopped?</b>"
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(This post was last modified: Feb 05, 2011, 12:36 AM by Ozera.)

<b>"Me and Kanaii were pretty big for four months old.</b><i> Kauda explained softly, shifting herself to a different position. </i><b>"Makita was pretty big too. Me and Makita stopped growing after a while though. I'm not sure if I'll grow any more."</b><i> the small she - wolf glanced up into the bare branches of the naked trees, trailing back into the conversation. </i><b>"It was a big accomplishment for us, to use teamwork together. I'd like to see us hunt together now."</b><i> she chuckled gently, though pain was in her voice as she spoke. She missed them so much. Her aunt and her uncle, her mom and her dad, her cousin and her sister. They were all so important to her. She loved them all so much... </i>

<i>Kauda gently lifted her head off of her paws, laying her tail down across her hind legs.</i><b> "Yes, I do believe so, thank you."</b>{I} replied Kauda softly.

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Thinking for a moment, Ozera gazed down at Kauda, examining her. "<b>Perhaps you won't, I can't remember growing so much after reaching a year. But you're so small! I can't imagine anyone saying that small forever. You could just have a late growth spurt. Who knows.</b>" Her shoulders, ripped with dark brown and cream streaks, shrugged. Anatomy and the science of puberty and what not, was rather beyond her. Most of her knowledge came only from experience, and the rest were semi-logical extrapolations of what she had heard.

"<b>Oh, don't worry,</b>" Ozera said lightly, "<b>You'll hunt together again some day. Whether or on earth or in the sky."</b>" Of course, Ozera was a firm believer in an afterlife. Maybe she had to be, because the idea of letting go of <i>her</i> family was just too difficult. "<b>You can't give up hope, though. Maybe they're all looking for</b> <i>you</i>, <b>maybe they're close by.</b>" A grin, tentative but hopeful, rose to the surface of her features.

If the bleeding had stopped, Ozera thought, then Kauda would definitely be alright. <i>That's a relief.</i> Another smile washed over her. "<b>Get some sleep, then, Kauda. It'll help you get your strength back.</b>"
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<i>Kauda nodded her head gently as the tall she - wolf spoke. The chances of her growing any more was slight, but there was still hope of her growing into the huge wolf that she'd always wanted to be, but being small like her mother didn't discourage her at all. She'd always loved how petite and cute she'd looked compared to all the other she - wolves in the pack.</i>

<i>The small onyx black wolf paused when she heard Ozera talk about the sky, as if they were.. dead. Her family couldn't be dead! Not after everything that Kauda had been through for them! Slowly, the black ears attatched to her head lowered themseles as Kauda laid her head on her paws. She hadn't seen them in 6 months... they were probably gone, like Ozera's family. Maybe that was why Kauda liked Ozera so much.. because they had something in common. Exept, Kauda didn't run when she could've. She faced the dangers of the forests and mountains and hit them head on. She wasn't going to stop until she got what she wanted, whether it be information that her family is.. gone.. or it be finding them herself.</i>

<b>"Ozera,"</b><i> Kauda began quietly.</i><b> "Will - will you be leaving?</b>

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Ozera cursed herself as she noticed how suddenly Kauda's ears fell back towards her head: she had made her sad. The last thing Ozera wanted to see was Kauda's small body curled up in sorrow, but there it was. She shouldn't have mentioned the possibility of her family's deaths, that was really stupid of her. Instead of apologizing though, she just replied to the little shadow tucked in beside her, "<b>If you want to rest, I'll stay here with you. And I don't know. I don't think I can follow you when you plan on leaving, but you can always find me on the mountain.</b>" Her tongue darted from her mouth and gently smoothed the dark fur of Kauda's shoulder again, "<b>I'll always be here for you.</b>"
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