Thicket of Secrets She Will Be Loved

Warm amber eyes glanced around in adoration. This place, it was unlike anywhere the timber wolf had ever been before. The sights, the smells and the sounds were all new and unfamiliar. They invigorated his senses and made his heart flutter in the compulsion to explore. Today he would be lost to wanderlust. The quiet trills of small wild birds echoed through the shadowy lair of the thicket – causing the male’s ears to flicker with intrigue. His plush tail swayed contently behind him as he trailed in deeper to the heart of the territory, relying on his sense of smell to decide upon the direction he took. Daedalus felt remarkably relaxed today and somehow at peace. Normally he would have grown bored by now but not today. Maybe it was all down to the good night’s sleep he’d had; left to dream completely undisturbed for the first time in many months.

Daedalus paused, one paw still hanging in the air, as he caught the soft scuttle of movement in the thicket. The foliage was too dense to investigate, so with a casual lick of his lips, he continued to walk further along the path that seemed to break open before him. He would grow hungry for another day. Soon enough though, the scent of wildflowers distracted him and his mind was put at ease again as he blindly followed every lead in hopes of discovering something beautiful. Up ahead the foliage began to part and open out into a large field of flowers. Daedalus smiled at the thought of simply spending the day there sleeping in the shade of the trees whilst still enjoying the warmth of the sun. A soft sigh escaped his charcoal lips as he sauntered on further, fully intent on enjoying the day ahead.

OOC: The title made me lawl ;D

After leaving her pack lands, Vlarindara raced away from Grizzly Hollow and Cedarwood forest before she found herself stumbling in the thicket of secrets. It was odd that she found herself right back here where she started off having met Borden after everything was all said and done. The white female sighed softly as she forced herself to keep going, keep moving towards the one place she knew she might still have a home - Midnight Plateau.. if she could get in contact with Angier.

Stumbling into the wide open glade, she stopped, lifting her head and almost gasping at the imagery around her. The last time she had seen the glade, it had been the middle of winter and everything was covered in snow and ice. Now, in the spring she could see how beautiful it was and was loath to move any farther into the foilage with her injuries. The older, scarred ones were closed up - but she had multitudes of small scratches and cuts criss-crossing her ankles and legs from the headlong rush away from her packlands.

The wound she was the most worried about was the gash from her tear duct and curving down across her muzzle to her nose. The white female could tell it was a serious wound as it hadn't closed up yet...she could still feel the scalding hot liquid sliding down her nose and into her mouth. No.. she wouldn't sully the glade with her presence. Instead, the large wolf turned and began a more sedate pace back towards the east and the Mountain of Dire. Her head was low, over-large ears having fallen back along her neck, her once proudly held plumed tail laying limply between her hind legs.

He had only just settled himself at the base of a large tree overlooking the field of wildflowers when something caught his attention. Russet ears perked up curiously as he heard yet another rustle in the foliage close by – except this time it was much from something much larger than a mouse or a hare. A subtle frown creased down his forehead as he caught the sound of movement again, this time noticing a brief flash of white before the silence resumed. His tail flicked with intrigue as he pushed himself up to stand – nostrils flaring wildly as he tried to determine just what or who it could have been. Almost immediately his hackles rose and the bridge of his muzzle wrinkled in concern. The scent was of a female, slightly older than him – but the thing that had him most concerned was the fresh scent of blood. A low growl rumbled in his throat as he stepped out from beneath the shade of the tree and moved cautiously towards the trail he walked down only moment ago.

His gaze quickly wandered up the trail and immediately spotted the fleeting figure of a large white wolf. She seemed nervous with her ears folded back and her tail clinging anxiously beneath her. Daedalus snorted as he inhaled the scent of blood again before promptly setting off behind her. He moved quickly, but not so fast as too startle her. A soft whine whistled from his parted lips as he swiftly slid in to stroll alongside her. A subtle purr could be heard rumbling in his throat as he tried to assure the injured female that he meant her no harm. Amber eyes drifted to her face and upon noticing the deep gash down her muzzle, averted his gaze. It looked serious and would surely get infected if she didn’t take the time to clean it properly. Quickening his pace he padded a few feet ahead of her before curving around to purposely stand in her path, forcing her to stop or at the very least slow down. <b style="color:#8a321c">"Nasty wound you have there." He said softly, his amber eyes warm and inviting.

OOC: XD Forgive Vlar's moods here.. hehe she's a grumpy-butt! XD She'll calm down once she realizes he's not out to like.. nom her. heeh

Much like she had done for her alphas - a shape began pacing next to her and at first, the white female did her best to ignore him or her. Maybe they'd go away if she didn't acknowledge them. However, such wasn't to be as the male plopped himself in front of her, bringing her to a halt only to look up at him. The change in the female might have been startling if he wasn't expecting it - her ears shifted forwards, pointing at him in anger, her lips drawing back over her fangs, a somewhat..grisly snarl thanks to the wound on her muzzle. The hackles along her shoulders and back rose - despite the mud and grime clinging to them from her recent travels in the swamp.

Legs shifting to balance herself on them, her head lowered and shoulders rotated forwards as a growl trickled out between her snarling lips - a growl of warning. But really...had he not expected such of an injured wolf to be so wary? "Thank you captain obvious - now tell me something I don't know.. like when you're going to leave" The snarled comment was directed with an angry snap of her jaws in his direction, but she made no move to attack the stranger - though it was noted that her oddly curly tail was once again curled tightly over her back like a pompom.

(This post was last modified: May 21, 2011, 09:14 PM by Vlarindara.)

As Daedalus padded along calmly beside her, she seemed to give him no satisfaction in acknowledging him. His russet ears perked forwards as he tried to scan her face again, searching imploringly for her eyes – however, failed to make eye contact. Black nostrils flared as he expelled a sharp huff of casual annoyance before resorting to more obvious tactics. He stood, length ways, in the path direction in front of her and almost immediately the large white female came to an abrupt halt. It was only then that her amber eyes met his – along with a less than pleased expression that drew a disfigured snarl across her face. The male’s eyes narrowed as his eyes swept briefly along her wound again; it had to have hurt in that position. He took a single step back and folded his ears back, eager for the female to calm down. But he didn’t dare say anything – she was obviously scared.

As she growled at him, her legs shifting to keep her balanced, Daedalus did nothing except sit down in front of her and waited quietly. "Thank you captain obvious - now tell me something I don't know.. like when you're going to leave" Her jaws snapped in his direction to keep him away, but after shifting back another step and sitting down again the male refused to move any further. <b style="color:#8a321c">"You’re very welcome." He said, a teasing smile tugging at the corners of his mouth as he canted his chin sarcastically. <b style="color:#8a321c">"I won’t leave until you have that properly seen to." He said calmly, in a more serious tone as he extended his muzzle to gesture at her facial wound. <b style="color:#8a321c">"It could get infected if you don’t clean it soon." - Especially given how dirty she was, covered in dirt and mud.

OOC: EEEE Thank yew for my purdy, Sarah!!

The almost submissive reaction from the male made her blink and stop growling if just for a moment. Of course, in that very moment, she heard his comments about the wound getting infected. Slowly, the raised fur along her shoulders and spine flattened, tightly curled tail relaxing to fall between her hind legs, and her lips dropping back to cover her teeth. Vlarindara looked at this other wolf - a male who seemed.. as kind as she was... on a good day. The fact that he was going to refuse to leave without cleaning it made her chuckle, amber eyes noting that he was a bit smaller than her - she was confident she might.... No.. Maybe once she would have been able to send the wolf packing with her size - but due to the recent infection from the bite around her neck she'd lost far too much weight for her tastes.

A defeated sigh escaped the ivory wolf, her head lowering and turning to the side, her ears falling back against her neck. "That's...kind of you..." Vlarindara lifted her head slightly, glancing back at him, an ear cocking as she wondered what his name was. "Please excuse my earlier behavior...I'm a bit on edge..' The wolf settled onto her haunches. More or less, she just let her hind end collapse into a semblance of a sitting position before she let her front legs fold and her head rest against her paws. If he was going to injure her - he'd have done it already.. right? Besides.. if she got injured now, it wasn't like she had anywhere that would miss her.

OOC: OMMG!! STOPPIT VLAR! >: Bein' all Mopey wolf...-grumble-

Thankfully, it didn’t take the female long to calm down and acknowledge that he was no threat. He watched with bated breath as the hackles along her spine flattened and her posture grew more relaxed. A silent breath was expelled past his lips as he loosely let out a sigh of relief. The timber wolf’s tail swayed contently behind him as he watched her settle down exhausted in front of him. "That's...kind of you..." Daedalus offered the female a small smile of genuine compassion as he rolled his shoulders back to recompose himself. "Please excuse my earlier behaviour...I'm a bit on edge.." He canted his chin in understanding as he leaned in closer to address her at eye level. <b style="color:#8a321c">"Don’t worry about it." He assured her, before rising to his feet again to move in for a closer inspection of her injuries.

Daedalus made sure to keep his distance for now, never daring to lean in to close or even touch her. For now the only thing that stroked across her fur were his eyes as they sought out the various injuries that lay concealed behind blood-matted fur. She had various nicks and scared across her body but the ones that were of most concern to the male were the ones on her face and neck. Both were equally deep and the one on her neck he imagined would be particularly difficult to reach without assistance. <b style="color:#8a321c">"How did you get these?" He murmured quietly, almost as if he had been asking the question to himself as he leaned in a little closer – but instantly paused before he could brush away her fur. <b style="color:#8a321c">"Do you mind.. if I take a closer look?" He asked, stepping away and turning to her again with his warm amber eyes.

The white female lifted her head when he moved to inspect her wounds, sighing quietly before she settled her jaws back on her paws. "The one on my shoulders is from a hunting accident when I was a yearling..The neck and nose are from a wolf in my...in a pack I was in." She chose not to elaborate on the reasons why she was no longer in a pack - besides he would simply come to his own conclusions, wouldn't he? As sad as it was - they usually did. "The rest are just from traveling.."

Vlarindara frowned, lifting amber eyes to look at the male as he asked if he could take a closer look and let her ears flop back over her neck with a defeated sigh. "Sure.." She might have said it wasn't really worth the time it would take to worry over them - she was already sick.. what was one more bout with illness going to do? She would do what she always did - pick up and keep going.. but this time she didn't have Raigo to worry about.. though the white female knew she'd give ANYTHING to change that.. To have the plucky yearling back by her side. Stars knew where he'd gotten off to..

Daedalus paused as she sighed; making sure that she was fine with him inspecting her wounds before he even attempted to move in a little closer. "The one on my shoulders is from a hunting accident when I was a yearling..The neck and nose are from a wolf in my...in a pack I was in." The timber wolf’s ears pricked upright at the mention of a pack. It now made so much more sense: why she had been wary of him in the first place. It was never nice when your own pack member turned on you, especially when they inflicted serious injury like they had on this particular female. "The rest are just from travelling.." The male glanced at her. Russet ears fell back against his head in concern – wondering what she was planning to do now. <b style="color:#8a321c">"You came from Swift River?" He asked curiously, seeing as that was the only pack he knew of in the region.

His muzzle hovered lightly over her neck wound eager to see how deep it went. The fur immediately around the tear was stained in stale blood and the odour was less than pleasant. Black nostrils flared as the scent of blood sting his nose and caused a subtle grimace to tug at his lips. "Sure.." The female lowered her head with a weary sigh as Daedalus carefully brushed away the matted fur that concealed the wound. Amongst all the tears and bite-marks there was seemed to be some evidence of healing. The out most edge had began to scab over but the centre was still deep and open and would not heal soon without a little help. Now usually, Daedalus would have probably sent her on her way in the direction of the river and advised her to spend the rest of the day cleaning it out in the water. But as his amber eyes turned back to her face all he saw was someone helpless and in distress. <b style="color:#8a321c">"I could clean this... if you want?" He said calmly, hoping that she wouldn’t think him too intrusive. <b style="color:#8a321c">"I’m Daedalus, by the way." He offered her a smile as he settled down to sit besides her, waiting patiently for instruction.

Why was he helping her? It made no sense for him to *WANT* to help her... She had been chased from her pack - what more did he need to know to know she wasn't worth it? The white female twitched an ear when he commented about coming from Swift River. "No..There's another pack to the west, in Cedarwood Forest. Grizzly Hollow." How do you tell someone that the omega chased you out? You didn't.

Though she did lift her head and looked at the male, both overlarge ears shifting forward to pay attention to his words. "Daedelus... why help me? For all you know, I could have killed the alpha's pups or something and gotten chased out.." To her, that was the most heinous crime she could think of to have gained such wounds. Granted - it hadn't happened that way at all - she'd never harm puppies... Even if they tried to bite her heels or something..

But, while he'd introduced himself, she hadn't.. so perhaps it was time to do so. Vlarindara waited for his answer before answering with her own name.. "Vlarindara Windrunner, Second of ...ex member of Grizzly Hollow." The introduction she had been giving other wolves for so long had simply come out before she'd stopped it. A sigh choked its way up her throat, but she clamped her muzzle down on it to keep it from getting out when she didn't WANT it to. "My apologies..."