It's Raining.

Reusing this from a dead thread. <3

<blockquote>Life. Life was many things. Exciting. Monotonous. Random. Life was everything to the black wolf as he sat high upon the mountains, looking down upon his pack lands. The Lost Lake that separated their home from the rest of the world looked alien from his height. The sky above was an ugly grey. That morning, when the ebony beast had begun his climb to the top the weather had been warm, pleasant, inviting and he had found exploring the peaks and dips of the mountains that protected his home had been not only energizing, but interesting too. sisyhR was forever learning, searching for now discoveries and things in general. Exploring a new area was as exciting to him to this day as it had been as a pup. The higher he climbed, the more tricky the terrain, the more fun it had been. He’d been so interested in the terrain as it changed with each new altitude that he hadn’t noticed the impending grey clouds which invaded the sky. It was only when he reached a peak, as high as he could climb though not the top that he turned to look back at his homelands below. Above his pack lands loomed the shadow of a storm and whilst he was enjoying the views from this vantage point he had to think about getting home before that storm hit the mountains.

Satisfied with the view he had gotten from his few minutes of looking down, he began to clamber back down the side of the mountain that he had travelled up by. It appeared some areas were easier to scale uphill then they were down. A few times the lanky beast almost toppled right over the edge of a narrow ridge or drop. The trek back home was taking longer than he had planned and as he reached the half way point back down the mountain, the storm hit.

Violent winds lashed at his skinny body, tearing at his dark fur. His eyes narrowed, trying to keep the icy rain from hitting him and skewing his vision as he continued to travel home across the rocky terrain. If the rain and wind wasn’t enough, a boom of thunder echoed in the skies above him but seemed to amplify as it bounced from wall to wall of the mountain. There wasn’t a break from the onslaught as a bolt of lightning streaked across the sky, landing here and there. It was a violent storm, one to terrify pups. He only hoped his own pack and female had taken shelter when they first saw the signs he had ignored. Not usually one to defy his own logic, he had put his ignorance of the weather down to a variety of things, his mood, recent events and just wanting time to be alone. The further away he had travelled from his pack the more alone he felt and he had enjoyed that feeling whilst it lasted. Now as he ran across a flat ridge he could only think himself a moron for ignoring his own instincts once again. It seemed his body was never in sync, he could only work with logic or instinct, they wouldn’t work together at all.

As another clash of thunder and lightning hit the land around him, he could do nothing but hope he made it back home in one piece and be grateful that he would hopefully avoid the predators who roamed these mountains... no one else would be stupid enough to get caught in this, right?</blockquote>

After she'd run into Naira and the others (not sure how that thread will play out, but I couldn't resist this one! :)

<blockquote>It had been many months since she'd last encountered the mountains, which had been her gateway into Relic Lore, up close. They were a constant presence in her life, looming high, and mightily in the background as she'd spent her own days nestled within the safety and comfort of the Secluded Spring; some times she wondered how safe her home really was, with the budding possibility war and the inescapable threat that the dynamic shared between the Aquila siblings had birthed. There were days when she'd forget all about it, entirely, however, and her mind would meander through lighter subjects, such as the upcoming birth of her first litter or when she and Ruiko would see his family again. It seemed like forever that she'd been confined to the territory, and had managed to get herself into a bit of a mess - or two messes. On her search for Rhysis, shse'd managed to run into his pack and mate, and gotten lost on her way home. Needless to say, she'd had her fill of trouble <i>and</i> adventure.

But the mountains were not far from home, and she could ascend them in the morning and be back at Ruiko's side by the time the sun set; today, she would do just that. Her growing belly had been a source of frustration due to it's inconvenient size, but the lady had adjusted rather well now and enjoyed any exercise that would keep her mind clear and her muscles from knotting up. Having been born and raised in the mountains herself, climbing them was almost like second nature. She was accustomed to the ways her paws would slip and slide, the way her claws were, in many areas, useless against the hard, rocky surfaces. And she was sure to lose her footing at least a couple of times during her little hiking expedition, as the skies churned and bellowed, raining down upon the range and the ever-serene Spring that was now out of view. Quietly, she wondered if the storm covered all of Relic Lore, questioning the size of the expanse that seemed to be teeming with life she'd never knew existed until recently.

Her movements were slow and calculated as she would place her large, creamy paws here and there, often stopping to tip her muzzle to the winds. After running into Naira and the two females who'd intercepted her at in the lakeland, she tended to take more caution than ever, and didn't really feel like running into <i>anyone</i> new, for now. She'd had her fill. Yet, as the rains poured down and drenched her thick body, she did happen upon a scent she'd come to know <i>very well</i>. It was probably her mind playing tricks, or perhaps she'd just narrowly avoided the shadow of a figure who'd - even in his distinct absence, relative to the shewolf - come to define a large part of her, and her family's, life. Was Rhysis here? Nose to the ground, she followed the trail cautiously.

Low and behold, eventually his figure was discernable in the distance, the dark coat of the villain playing in the currents of the howling, ripping winds as he moved swiftly. <i>Perfect</i>, she thought. While she'd been wanting to have a word with him, her desire had been dampered by her encounter with his mate and a part of her would have been content (and safe) without having seen again at all. But here he was - right under her nose when she'd least expected. Perhaps he'd caught wind of her as well, and she hoped, maybe in vain, that today he was the man she'd crossed in the Ghastly Woods, and not the man who hunted her pack mate, or whose intentions could possibly bring an end to the world she'd come to endear. Keeping her distance and disregarding the pressure of the situation, her voice would break the howling winds, hoping to catch him before he stole away again. <b>"Rhysis!"</b></blockquote>

This is going to be fun. :D

<blockquote><i>Rhysis</i>

His name echoed across the sky, contending with the thunder and wind. At first he thought he had been hearing things. With the wind whipping at his ears and rain clogging his hearing, it was hard to hear anything. The voice that spoke was familiar but strange. A voice he remembered well, but hadn't quite expected to hear it. Not here and certainly not now; which only lead him to assume he had been hearing things.
His mind was never one to play tricks however, and as silly as it seemed, he skidded to a halt. His leather pads plunged down against the rocky terrain and pulled him to a stop. With squinted eyes as they tried to sheild some of the rain from his vision, he allowed his eerie grey gaze to roam across the topography before him. It was hard to see, the dark sky above absorbed everything around him... so when he spotted a lighter, tawny figure he knew he was not mistaken. The outline of the wolf was so solid against a black background that for a moment he thought it could be his Naira come to find him. Closer inspection however told him otherwise, for this wolf was smaller.

Cautiously, he allowed his paws to take him closer. Tentativly so until he could at last make out her features and scent. Aeylen. Unmistakable now was the voice that called to him. Her face was pretty as he could recall and her scent held the tint of Naira's; it appeared she too was carrying young. So why then, was she here? His nose inhaled the air, testing for Ruiko's scent. Surely she would not be here alone? But he found nothing, nothing but her here and that puzzled him; only the scent of her young, her pack and... wait, his pack lined her fur. It appeared she had already been to see Naira. He hoped she was alright. Casting a sideways glance, he spotted an escape from the rain. He hadn't intended to stop, he just wanted to get home, especially to check that his female and her <i>lady gang</i> were all in tact, but it was clear she was here with purpose.

<b>"Over there."</b> he said loudly, hoping she would hear as he meandered over towards the cover he had spotted. A small cave, not very big.... in fact, not really large enough to call a cave but it offered some shelter from the storm outside. He was on high alert as he lead the way, hoping she'd follow peacefully. Whilst they might have spoken graciously before, the outcome of their meeting had been sour and he wasn't exactly fond of her for the way things had turned out. Still, she was here for a reason and he wanted to know just what that was.

As his dark form slipped into the shelter, he turned as if to face her and simply stood in silence. Waiting.

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It always is with you and I <3

<blockquote><i>"Over there."</i>

A part of her seethed fury at the mere sound of his voice now, and the shewolf would not look to the location he had specified. No. Instead, in an instant, and as she had known it would be all along, the lack of respect and vivid distrust she felt for him drummed with a force unmatched by the storm that beat down upon them. Scrutinizingly, she watched each step that he took as he moved for the meager space, not so much as a blink of weakness or a second guess as she calculatingly followed suit. The self-proclaimed leader would turn to face her silently, and as the distance between the pair diminished, so did the civility she was willing to exhibit. She didn't care why he was here, or how she had managed to come across him. Indeed, after meeting Naira - his pregnant alphess, who in no way outmatched the Onida's size - her intentions had shifted from Rhysis entirely. He was no longer the big picture - her children, and Naira's children, were. In hindsight, Rhysis had become only the biting fly in a gaping wound that was the Aquila dispute. Rolu's interjection was not her doing, wrong or right, and Rhysis should not have returned to the Secluded Spring with any expectation for an outcome <i>he</i>, of all, favored.

Well aware the space to hide them from the elements was dangerous with him in it, she stopped short, if only a length or two away. The pressure was there, churning in the back of her mind as she considered the fact that he expected some words from her, but she was utterly speechless as she now stood toe to toe with the dark being. The features of his long face no longer held a meaningless innocence, as they once had the <i>only</i> other time they had met; now, a serpentine quality donned his youthful mask, and for the life of her she could not draw even a single parallel between he and his sister.

<b>"You are a fool, Rhysis Aquila,"</b> Her flat tone held no emotion, not even anger, as her ears flattened to her crown distastefully, <b>"and so was I."</b> Volkan, and many others, it seemed, feared him so, but <i>she did not</i>. Her words held no insult, nor an inkling of provocation, but surely he knew now that the web he was slowly spinning would be so dangerous. Even now, when Rhysis had done very well for himself, he was still a mischievious young man in her eyes - misguided, with an avid optimistic bias, evil. If she were capable of pity (and she was not, anymore, for anyone) he would not be a beneficiary of it. Frankly, she had had enough. Her involvement in all of this - his, and Volkan's plans - was unnecessary, and with her children to be born within the coming days, the tawny wolf was intolerant.

It was she, now, who <i>waited</i> for his cunning, face-to-face explanation concerning his manipulation of her, the thing she craved from her search for him; after all, this would surely be their last meeting before one, or both, of them were <i>dead</i>.</blockquote>

(This post was last modified: May 21, 2012, 04:30 AM by Aeylen.)

Where did you want this to go? I did want to trap her in the cave aha but that’s now difficult as the pups had to be born! Lol. Wasn’t sure what the outcome of this thread should be. <3

<blockquote>She was cautious, that was natural and she took her time to slip out of the storm and towards the shelter he had found. It was small, but it did the job. There was heat trapped in its depths and already he felt the wet within his fur lift a little.
Outside the hole in the wall he had found, the rain continued to tumble from the clouds and hit the rocky terrain with a splat. Thunder and lightning littered the sky but had already begun to move further away, the intermission between each wave grew longer and he had been told as a child that you could measure just how near or far a storm truly was by that silence. As slowly as the storm moved away, did she come forward and into the shelter.

She wasn’t a silly wolf, he had gathered that from their first encounter. She had been cautious then and she would be ever more cautious now. It was obvious Volkan had told their tale, no doubt wrong and painted him to be the bad guy he didn’t believe he was. Aeylen would not have sought him out if she had nothing to say about it.
Now she was closer, he could smell the scent of his female upon her fur. There was no blood and the scent was faint, the must have only met briefly. He could only conclude that Aeylen had come here looking for him.

<b>”A fool?”</b> he questioned after her comment. In truth, he was confused about the meaning. He wasn’t a fool… he had told the truth; she had listened. What had been so foolish about that? Unless of course he believed he was a fool to trust in her, to trust in their pack to accept him into their bosom. Perhaps he had been foolish in that instance, but he had not and would not linger upon it. <b>”Aeylen. You have tracked me across the mountains, alone stand here. Alone. Pregnant. In a cave with me… not doubt Volkan told you the evil, vile things I am and do…”</b> he said, his tone flat, almost bored as he spoke as if he had heard this story over and over again, trying merely to prove that his sister spoke utter bullshit. <b>”So who out of the two of us is the fool now?”</b> he said, a brow cocking as he asked her the question but he made no move of attack, nothing that might alarm her. The purpose of his words to try to show her how utterly ridiculous the accusations were. He was a nice guy… for the moment.

He could have attacked her; she was pregnant, slow in her movements. He might have liked Aeylen, she was sensible for a female, but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t think twice about choking the life out of her. He wasn’t going to do that though. He could make better use of this meeting- perhaps clear the air, remove one of the packs who were after his head from the equation. Of course, that probably wouldn’t happen. Clearly they valued Volkan for reasons he just didn’t understand, but he could only try. And of course, killing the female now would make matters worse- she might have told others where she was going, doubtful as she was here alone, but there was always a possibility. He couldn’t risk anymore heat.

<b>”Why are you here Aeylen?”</b> he then said, not wanting to throw small talk into this. He never enjoyed it at any rate.
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