White Fir Notch Rainmaker

Random Event: Jynx, take cover from the rain!
All welcome, one of the pups, perhaps?

After what had seemed to be many months of rainy weather, nature at last, seemed to be giving the wolves a break. Late in the spring season, the days were growing warmer, sunnier and more pleasant. Just the way she liked it too. Jynx would completely take advantage of this milder weather before the hot, humid days of summer set in. Luckily, her home in White Fir Notch, offered plenty of shady, cool retreats. Further into the territory, the cooler air from the mountain in the distance, sometimes blew in. But being so nicely tucked away at their lower elevation, in contrast to the peaks of the mountain, did have some drawbacks. One of which was the un-predictability of the weather, when the two opposing air masses collided.

The day had been off to a peaceful, sunny start. Curled within the cool, earthy depths of the communal den, Jynx roused. Courtesy of the bright rays of sunlight just beginning to filter in. Groggily, she lifted her head, ears splayed back, squinting while her eyes adjusted to the light. With a soft groan, she stretched, carefully stepping over any other bodies inside with her. In recent days, she had taken to spending more and more nights in the pack den, verses her own, private one. She was making progress on all fronts, and despite not being a large pack, she felt settled. Emerging out into the open, a half hearted, still somewhat sleepy glance was thrown to the side, just to check that nothing was out of place. Song birds were chirping, insects were buzzing, going about their simple lives. A welcome melody of nature, to a set of ears newly atuned. 

A small grumble in her stomach promptly reminded the wolf that it had been at least a day since she had eaten. She needed to go find some breakfast, before she could begin her daily rounds. Which included further investigating a suspicious looking burrow a little ways off. It probably belonged to nothing more than a martin, or perhaps some burrowing owls, but being the diligent person she was, Jynx took no chances. Not after what the pack had already been through in such a short period of time. 

For once, feeling much too lazy, and still bleary while shaking off the after effects of sleep, the rust colored female opted to find one of the caches instead of catching her own meal. While she preferred to hunt down her own prey, as it kept her hunters skills constantly sharpened, the idea of perfectly good meat sitting untouched for too long, did not sit well with her. Left for too long, the meat would begin to rot, the stench in turn, increasing the risk of attracting scavengers. Besides, why throw away someone else's hard work? She had nearly reached the particular cache site she had in mind, when suddenly, the heavens opened up. One minute the sky had been crystal blue, with only a few puffy clouds, and now it was dark and gray, releasing torrents of pelting raindrops. Startled by the sudden onset of the rain, and maybe more so by the boom of thunder, she flinched to a stop. Within seconds, her thinned out summer coat was drenched. Soaked to the skin, and looking utterly miserable, she swore up at the sky. "Shit. You just can't make up your mind, can you nature?" And apparently, nature did not seem to be in the mood to relent anytime soon. With no other choice but to seek cover, Jynx darted towards the nearest shelter she could find. In this case, the form of a hollowed out log, spacious enough for a wolf of Gent's size. Squeezing inside, yet still looking very much drowned, Jynx didn't think to consider if it might be occupied.

Just one more pup to find. It had been a deal he'd struck with them while in a particularly playful mood; one round of hide and seek, and then once they'd all been found it would be time for a nap. @Aleris and @Ryker had already been safely deposited within the den, and left alone with his trust that they would snuggle up and await Lucia's discovery. Unfortunately, each trip back gave the girl more time to scurry further, and her scent was all over the place, giving him little directive in where exactly to search.

With a sigh he looked up to the sky, the clouds gathering swiftly, dark and grey. There was a boom from somewhere over the mountain, and it reverberated slowly through the air, meeting his ears just in time to signal the oncoming rain. The downpour was sudden and harsh, immediately clearing the air and soaking everything in its path. Nervousness began to creep into the new father as the possibility of losing his own child occurred to him. What if she wandered too far away and got snatched up simply disappeared? What if she got too cold and wet and got sick, like Daniel had? What if flash flooding happened and swept her away?

"Lucia?" he called out, no more play to his voice. "Lucia."

It was very much urgent and commanding, making it clearly that she was to answer him immediately.

A lynx has left behind the remains of a deer. +5 Health

Lucia had learn that in order to always be the last one found, she had to keep moving around. It was easier for her to hide what with her smaller size, fitting in and under things that her siblings couldn't quite pull off anymore. Still it was hard to stifle her giggles every time she was almost found. The girl had been in transit between hiding places when the rain began, making her yip in surprise and sending her scurrying for whatever cover was nearby.

She dove into the dark depths of the rotted out log, not really caring that it wasn't a very good place to stay hidden in. Her father could easily pop his head in and see, but it was dry and that was easily the priority. She took her tiny self out, but still was waterlogged. Her lip jutted out in a pout; this was not how the game was supposed to go. Considering her options, the girl curled up into herself as she peered out at the rainfall.

Then, something big and loud flurried into her shelter through the other end, giving her yet another start. Her paws scrabbled against the wood as she reeled around to face the intruder, but recognition set in quick. It was the one that looked so much like her mother, Jynx. Without hesitation, the little girl scampered over to the woman's side, snuggling up against her warmth.

Her father's voice barely carried through the rainstorm, and she looked up at Jynx with doe eyes as she explained, "hi'seek."

Unaware that Gent was out and about, partaking in a game with one of his daughters, Jynx was most surprised to discover that her shelter of choice was also equally appealing to little Lucia. Her vividly colored eyes widened momentarily before a sweet smile came to her face. As badly as she wanted to keep dry, she was not about to be selfish. Only a heartless soul would send a youngster out to endure the storm on their own. And besides, the hollowed out log was plenty big for the both of them.

With no real one on one visits with the pups before, the hard working huntress couldn't say for certain how the little ones would react to her. But as Lucia's pitch black, fuzzy frame immediately huddled up against her side, she was heart warmed. Perhaps by the mere coincidence that she looked so similar to their mother was a comfort factor. Instincts of protection and nurturing kicked in and she nosed the little child's chest gently. "Ahh, I see." She replied softly, another smile creeping to her lips. "And you picked a fine hiding place to hide from this..." She gestured with her muzzle to an opening in their wooden roof, a few feet away from their heads. Still oblivious to the fact that Gent was out there searching for his girl, Jynx saw this time as ideal for a little early education. It was not like they would be going anywhere soon, with the storm still in full force outside.

In the dark of the shadows in the log, her own yellow eyes appeared brighter than normal as she gazed down at Lucia. She knew that she was one of two daughters. Both with black pelts. It was hard to tell them apart, especially in this dim lighting. "You found your hiding spot just in time." She began, immense patience evident in her demeanor, despite what antics or flurry of questions Lucia might have. Outside of their cozy little shelter, the rain continued to come down in sheets. Another rolling boom of thunder echoed overhead. "Ah there. You hear that growling sound...?" She met Lucia's eyes for a moment, before turning her own gaze outside through the hole. Thirty seconds later, sure enough, a bright streak of lightning flashed across the darkened sky. Jynx of course, had been expecting this. She turned back to Lucia again. "When you hear that, it always means one of those bright flashes is coming. You don't want to be outside when that happens." While completely serious on the topic, her voice was light. A smile grew on her face again. "But we are safe in here." One eye snapped closed in a cheeky wink. 

(This post was last modified: Aug 17, 2016, 01:45 AM by Jynx.)

Nothing but the pounding of both the rain and his heart filled his ears. His pale eyes scanned frantically for details, for a sooty paw or tail or crown while he desperately awaited for a chirp of I'm here! in her jumbled, puppish speech. When it didn't come, he felt true panic begin to set in. Focusing on his breathing, deep and heavy amidst the precipitation, he tried to keep his mind clear despite the surge of adrenaline. She is fine, she is fine, she is fine became his mantra, playing over and over in his mind. He would find her, perfectly unharmed and simply scared by the storm. That was why she wasn't answering, why she couldn't be seen. The thunder must have scared her, maybe she couldn't hear him? It wasn't because she'd wandered too far, or had somehow been snatched up. He was a truepenny father, he would find his daughter.

Wouldn't he?

His paws set back into motion, rapid strides determined to hunt down the lost treasure carrying him over the forest floor. The rain soaked into the ground and muddied the dirt, flecks of it working their way up his limbs and clinging to his fur. For once, it did not occur to him how unpleasant it was to feel the moisture against his coat. His own discomfort was trivial, unimportant at this point.

"Luuucia!" he now bellowed, voice carrying as far as he could manage through the swelling storm. A howl would have been most effective, but he did not want to alarm the others, specifically @Raela, just yet.

Lucia knew a compliment when she heard it, and as Jynx commended her choice of hiding space, the girls short tail set to thumping against the hollow wood. To further show her appreciation for the woman's kindness, Lucia rolled onto her side and began to paw at the huntress' own large forelimb. Cold paw pads pressed against the warmth of her thicker fur and a toothy smile was thrown upward to meet that kind, golden gaze.

Then the thunder came again, loud and sharp. The runt nearly lept out of her skin, ears pinning back against her skull to protect themselves while she scrabbled to hide. Her stubby snout dug against the adult's side as she attempted to force her way under Jynx's foreleg so that the woman might protect her from whatever vicious thing made such a horrid noise.

Her ears picked up again, slowly, as Jynx talked more. She was explaining, but Lucia wasn't quite so sure that they really were safe. How could something so noisey be kept out by a little bit of brittle wood? Was it because they were hidden, it wouldn't even know they were here? Couldn't it smell them? Oh, she wished her father would find her...

"B-... bu' wha' is it? Where'd it come from?"

Moving this along.
:3

The little black bundle of fun was just so adorable! Looking at her, Jynx had no doubt in her mind that she would grow up to be a very lovely lady one day. Lucia's affectionate, playful charm was infectious. The huntress was surprised to find her own motherly instincts blossoming. Who would've known that she, once a lowly rouge, would have taken to children so naturally. She had bent down to press her muzzle against that small chest, to tickle it with the gentle combing of her teeth, but the loud clap of thunder stopped all that. As Lucia startled, scrabbling for cover under one of her forelegs, she made room. Hiking up her leg, she draped it down again, protectively over the child. "I know it's a scary sound. I wanted to hide too, when I was your age when I heard it for the first time." She assured her in a soft voice, humming slightly. Lucia could take comfort in the fact that Jynx too, had once been in her little paws.

As no big surprise, more questions came from that tiny young mouth. A perfectly reasonable response from a young pup, who had yet to understand how nature works. Displaying that same infinite patience as before, she bobbed her head. "From the sky. If you look up outside, you'll see giant dark clouds. That's where this noise is coming from." She rolled to shift her weight onto her side slightly, so Lucia may rest against her if she wished. "And trust me, it can't get to us. It knows that, so it goes away eventually." During a break between the rumbling thunder, in a period of rare silence during such a storm, a distant sound made her ears stiffen. Straightening, she listened more closely. Was that Gent out there?! Goodness, he must be looking for his daughter! Standing as much as she could in the confined log, she sent the pup a quick glance. "I think your father is out there. Stay put." She added quickly, before hurrying to the entrance of the log at the end. She had to be quick if she were to beat the thunder and notify Gent of her location and that Lucia was safe. Darting out into the open again, but blocking the entrance with her body, she raised her voice, loud and clear. "Over here Gent! She's with me!" Her voice barely made it out into the open, the last few syllables of her words drowned out by another deep boom from above. 

switching up order to flow better

Clouds. She knew what those were, and had seen them swell and grow dark, not just this time but before as well. The major difference was that she'd never been caught out in a storm before. She'd been well undergound, snuggled up with her siblings and parents, and always when they were all together like that, she never feared that something might harm them. But Jynx again promised that the storm would not get them, and she had no reason to think the woman might be so horribly wrong. Trusting her fully, Lucia sighed with newfound contentedness and snuggled against her guardian.

That didn't last long though, as suddenly Jynx was moving and Lucia flipped back onto her stomach, ears up and nose wriggling with concern as she watched the adult. Her father? The pup's butt wriggled as she shifted her weight from hind leg to hind leg, the igneous girl eager to run out there with her and be reunited with her dad. Yet Jynx had told her to stay put, and so that felt to be her only choice. A low whine leaked from her mouth as time ticked by painfully slowly.

Then she heard his voice, and she couldn't be still any longer. Jumping to her paws, Lucia wriggled her way between Jynx's side and the soft wood of the log until her small head popped out and she could see him. A thrilled yip bubbled out from betwixt her jaws, and she didn't mind the rain that was beginning to dot her face.

This panic was not familiar to the black mammoth. Very few things could inspire such a reaction in him, and he honestly didn't know what to do about the igneous prickling along his spine and the muddling of his thoughts. Fear, if ever felt, was always something he could control. But this...

Just as he was about to give in and call out for his mater, Jynx's voice cut through a break in the storm's cacophony. Part of him was alarmed that she was answering him rather than his daughter herself, and he couldn't help his mind jumping through scenarios. Had Lucia gotten hurt and the huntress found her before he could? All speed and no grace he trampled through the forest's muddied growth, following the direction from which her voice had come as the pouring rain rendered his nose all but useless. 

When he saw her, front half sticking out from a large log, he could only relax slightly. Her face wasn't of a horrified witness to same grave injury, there was not that sadness in her eyes that he'd grown all too accustomed to when another wolf had news they wished they didn't have to share. Still, his pale eyes jumped around, searching frantically for his daughter.

"Is she in there?" he asked, moving closer as his nose twitched wildly, desperate to smell her.

Then, as if summoned by magic, she appeared. Just her shadowy little face, but that and the gleeful noise she made upon seeing him all but made him melt with relief.

"Lucia," he breathed, rushing forward to nuzzle the girl, not much caring for how cramped the opening of that log was becoming. When he'd given her a good sniff down, making sure she was safe, his pale gaze lifted to regard Jynx.

"Thank you."

(This post was last modified: Jan 15, 2017, 07:49 PM by Gent.)