Hush Meadow Smoke, Mirrors and Knives

ARTEMIS

What a nice and pretty little meadow! What a soft and gentle sigh that the wind carried through! What a hideous woman, cutting straight through the meadow with a snarl plastered on her face. Golden eyes were locked on a small hare that was charging through the grasses, desperately searching for a burrow to escape into. Unluckily for it, Artemis was a fast little wretch and, with a final push of her legs, she darted to the hare and snapped her jaws around its stupid little head. Yanking it from the ground and shaking it wildly from side to side, the scarred woman applied pressure with her jaws until a satisfying crunch filled her ears and the hare fell limp.

Dropping it to the ground with a thud, the tiny woman huffed like she was a champion; like she needed her brothers to hunt for her. She was doing fine on her own! Her own ego bested her, however, as she was rather underweight and hungry. So, without wasting another second, she set to work on wolfing down the hare. With a satisfied huff, Artemis sat down and licked her bloodied lips, smacking them now and then as if she were dining in a five star restaurant. She peered down at what remained of the carcass before edging it around with her paw. She took a delight in seeing dead things, ever since she was a child, and this little critter was no different. It fascinated how the body stuffed so much into it. Heart, lungs, guts and all the other stuff.

Lifting her paw from the hare’s remains she scoffed. Now, look what she’d gone and done! Her paw was all covered in blood. Shrugging internally, she lapped at her pads hungrily. Every little bit counted, right? She wasn’t going to waste a little bit of blood. Finishing up, she stood again and stepped away from the remains of supper. Let some scavenger deal with it. So off she trotted, content and happy before she found out a snippet of information that caused a sly little smile to cross her weasel-y face. Pack borders. Careless as always, she strode along the seam where pack met wilderness. A game or two with some sucker might be fun …

(This post was last modified: Jul 24, 2013, 03:10 AM by Artemis.)

As her three children grew, no longer needing the constant care (milk) from mother and mother alone, Elettra Archer found a new sense of freedom she had not felt in many a month since pregnancy, birthing, and nursing alike. The pups fed on the already chewed food of all the pack members, transitioning from liquids to solids and while there was others to care for them, the mother slipped away for what she originally assumed to be only time to herself. Yet business (and friendship) called her and here Elettra was, moving south west to the Hush Meadows. The lands bordered the chain of Drooping Willows just as the Rise and the Wildwood ahead, but the Archer Matriarch's destination was certain. Her former member and Leading Huntress had been sick and as both ally and friend Elettra thought it well enough to visit whilst she was out and in this direction. The pack was not far from her own after all, sharing certain hunting areas and dividing the rest with all the open and unclaimed lands around them.
It just so happened that the dark fae, painted in blacks, greys and silvers, knew exactly the location of this pack and it's den. After all, Narime had been trapped within the caverns unexpectedly before and much of the Willow Ridge members had tended to Narime until she had safely navigated out of the location which was now her new home. Of course, respectful and lawful as the older woman was, Elettra was content to await at the borders, calling out to the young Leading female. Though as she trailed the edges of the territory in wait, it is here where she found another woman, not holding the scent of Whisper Caverns and thus not one of it's members. Elettra had no rights spatting demands along another pack's land, but she was there ally and so, would protect them none the less. Curiosity tugged at her and she drew nearer to the smaller, slender woman. "Do tell me you've reason for your...peeping." A brow lifts, a lip twitches and all the while Elettra tries to remain neutral on lands that were still yet equally this - neutral.

After her little soiree in the crumbling wildwood, Partessence hadn't found the energy to return to her makeshift home on the mountain. Instead, she found respite in the wood she'd hunted in. When the sun rose in the morning, the female pondered whether or not to head back east. She already knew what waited for her up there. It helped to know where you were sleeping. But what was south of here? What was further east, up the mountain and back down? She hadn't found one pack yet, or at least she hadn't had the opportunity to speak with any pack wolves. For someone so intent on keeping their freedom, Partessence found herself devilishly curious in the packs in this place. It would come in handy one day when she found herself in need of a home. Instincts would kick in eventually, forcing her to claim a home, so why not get to know the places that could one day be her home?

With reluctance, yet a hop in her step, Party headed south. Most of the way there, she ran, finding that she had a lot of energy after her good night's sleep. It felt good to run. Stretching your legs, getting the heart pumping, and racing your own shadow. This was freedom. To go wherever you wanted without having to worry about someone else or have another worry about you. Well...Having someone worry about you was nice. No one worried about her own, not even her own parents. They trusted her decision when she left. She got the feeling that they would only dream about her now. When they woke up, their beloved Partessence was no more than a distant memory.

It wasn't long before two scents battled for her attention. She'd clearly entered some uncomfortable territory, between a rock and a hard place. Her ears twitched as she tested the air, trying to make a note of the scents so she could pick between them. It took a moment for her to decide. In the end, she picked westward. She'd have to head back to the mountain eventually, so she'd end up passing the other pack soon. It was her hope that she'd learn something without getting her legs chewed off. She soon came upon a bit of a confrontation, and crouched down, eying the situation wearily. She wasn't typically one to eavesdrop, but she also wasn't necessarily interested in walking into a fight, especially with the faint scent of blood already on the air. <b style="color:#8f8806">

ARTEMIS

Her eyes drifted, slowly. What a dull little place to make a territory near … a meadow, really? Of all the wondrous terrain a wolf could conquer? They chose this? Ha! Artemis had climbed great mountains, navigated canyons and sniffed through forests. Anyone who picked something as boring as meadow really didn’t deserve her presence in their pack. Hardly any did, in fact. She was a woman of desire; if she saw something she wanted, she would damn well get it. At least, away from home, she would, and she was unafraid of using any means necessary.

And so, whilst minding her own business and harbouring a strong desire to cause some sort of trouble, Artemis’ ears twitched at the sound of a woman and a tiny smile creep onto her face when she gazed upon the black woman. She couldn’t help but be curious about one thing: this black lady did not smell like this territory. Why the hell should she care where Artemis went peeping? Not like she was on whatever land this woman patrolled. Still, with the smile on her face and adopting a voice so sweet it might make you feel sick, Artemis spoke up. “I’m new to these parts, ma’am!” She beamed at the black lady, taking a step away from the border so she didn’t come across as too suspicious. “My name’s Vesta,” her mother’s name rolled smoothly and guiltlessly off of her liar’s tongue. “I smelt a pack so I figured I should check it out. Father always told me you’ll never get nothin’ done without gettin’ into a pack.” She paused before a question clicked in her head.

“I’m sorry to be so demanding of your time, ma’am, but would you happen to know any other packs around? I’d like to check all my options first before I settle.” Of course she cared nothing of the sort. She wanted to know because knowing meant more opportunities to have a little fun. Glancing the area over, Artemis spotted another female not too far away and wagged her tail. My my, they certainly weren’t short of wolves here, were they? “Looks like we’ve got some company! Another peeper, at that.” She tossed the last sentence in, playfully, hoping to gauge some reaction.

Quick in and out for her, I guess? Whisper Cavern wolf needs to get here!

...And it was so sweet, and it did make her sick. The woman's attention swiftly turned to her and her fake personalty sucked up into Elettra's ears and vision. Though Elettra was not a complete fool, she was no scholar and she was no mind reader. The Archer line was breed of tanking warriors and gladiators with the few with more cunning smarts to be assassins. Thankfully, Elettra had a bit more of wit to her but not enough to see through to the lie which this stranger was feeding to her. If peppy, happy and down right annoying was the thing Artemis was going for, she had been completely successful. Elettra's ears instantly turned down, her eyes narrowing into silvered slits as she listened to the younger woman...and listened on.
Already with little care (and having not expected this along with it not being her problem to deal with) upon the matter of the woman and her interest with this pack, Elettra passed by the invitation of herself if only due to the fact that she had not intention of recruiting on another pack's borders, as well as busy with answering the woman's question. "Many. ...There is mine, further to the east and two more on this side of Relic Lore north of here. I couldn't tell you how many on the mountains, nor on the other side of them, however..." Obviously, there was only one more pack north of here, another ally of her own pack, though Elettra was unaware that the former Grizzly Hollow members had up and left their home. She was also certain of two packs on the mountains as well as Phineas having made a home on the other side of the Lore, though she was uncertain if more were out the mountain and beyond. There was many, as she said, too many, though was thankful out of all the Western region she needed not worry about being overrun.
A snort took her at the woman's last comment, willing to leave it at that. If this wolf was going to hang around Whisper Caverns to try to get to know the pack before making any decisions, perhaps it was best for Elettra to come by at a later time. The Cavern wolves were doing well with recruits, it seemed, as Elettra's eyes shifted to yet another rogue peering from afar. Willow Ridge had lost members and lost more, though Elettra had yet an interest in seeking out others to join her ranks. She did not beg, ether. Wolves came to her and asked of her, if not, then unless they had something clear on the plate Elettra wanted, she did not go for it. After all, she was picky and perhaps far too protective of her children to just let anyone in. It was quality over quantity, she had learned. "Well...good luck with that." Her words snap with a wrinkling of her muzzle to the high spirited woman as she turned, ready to exit from which she came, all the while sparing further notice to the other woman content to hide in the brush.

(This post was last modified: Jul 24, 2013, 06:14 AM by Elettra.)

Hurry WC wolf!

From her distance, Partessence could make out a few key words. Mostly that there were other packs in the area and apparently the darker female didn't actually live here. The sickly sweet tone of the lighter woman unsettled her. There was something wrong with it. Party only wondered if the darker woman noticed that too. Her legs shifted slightly beneath her as she crouched, not hiding very well in the grass. She was mostly hoping that her distance would hide her, but it didn't take long for her to be called out. Scowling, Partessence stood up, looking between the two wolves. The woman took a tentative step forward, tail swaying as she attempted to put on a happy face. But it didn't seem to matter much. The leader woman announced her departure and abruptly swept past Partessence.

Her ears flicked back, displeased by the turn of events. She wasn't particularly in want of the company of the sickly sweet woman, nor did she find much pleasure in the meadow lands that held this pack. <b style="color:#8f8806">"Uh, well..." The woman laughed, cracking a smile, before she took a few steps back, casting a quick glance over her shoulder to see if the darker woman was still in view. She was. <b style="color:#8f8806">"It was nice ta see ya." A few more steps back, and Party flipped around, taking chase after the dark woman. Perhaps her back was the one nearer the mountain, certainly a place she would much rather be. And it seemed she'd come right across the woman that lead the pack. An excellent source of information, if Partessence did say so herself. <b style="color:#8f8806">"Hey, wait up!" The yellow-eyed gal called after the departed. <b style="color:#8f8806">

Sorry for the lateness! Wowwss three of you :D
-Okay so party and El left already- also note to self this has taken place after Kino brings a lost princess to WC

With a yawn the silver wolf licked clean her face of the water droplets that littered her few whiskers and masked her muzzle. She had gone out form the main den to get water and stretch her legs a little in the sunlight. The Whisper Caverns wolves did have water in their lower tunnels but the woman didn't want to stay in the dark for a whole day without getting outside for at least an hour or two. She was growing more trusting of her subordinates in taking care of her young ones back at the den while Nari was away.

After finishing her drink the young mother began trotting not purposefully towards the borders. Incidentally as she neared the area of their borders a number of strange scents hit her nose. One was an achingly familiar one which set the girls tail wagging. Elettra was nearby, and ever since she'd helped Nari with her recent illness the young she wolf had wanted to somehow make it up to the woman. However she knew not how to do such a thing right now. At least I can show her that the herbs are working some. Nari thought of how she must look to outsiders. Thin as if losing weight, but actually the she wolf was gaining weight back. So did her attitude improve as she got better. Nari was a little more of her peppy kinder self.

Hustling to reach the border Narime noted two other scents that she did not know. Neither of those scents had Willow Ridge scent on them so she was a little curious as to why they were near her border. Issuing a quick howl to alert those nearby Nari made sure that they knew she was coming.

About four and a half minutes passed as Nari began loping towards the three scents; only hoping that she had not missed the dark regal near her packs territory.

"I'm here! I'm here! No more waiting!" She spotted two wolves at first far a somewhat long distance away. The grayish brown pelted wolf and what looked like the back of a dark figure disappearing into the tall grass. The scent of Elettra and two other wolves hung fresh in the air that blew onto her shining black nose.

As Narime halted to a stop on the very edge of her territory she glanced around looking at the one wolf who'd seemed content to stay at her border and wait for a little longer. The silver girl checked the other brownish grey furred wolf with amber eyes and was careful to try and hide her weakness (her thin body) by keeping her silver head and banner held much above the apparent loner.

Glancing over at where the other wolves had disappeared Nari wondered if El and the other woman would turn back or not. However until they did she decided to look over the stranger before her first.

"My name is Narime Lagina Thorben alpha of Whisper Caverns." She gave the smaller wolf a nod as a greeting while wondering if Elettra could be watching her back judging her. Don't worry... Let her see Nari. If she comes back over anyways.(Not that she knows the others left yet) Nari kept her gaze upon the brownish wolf sparingly looking over her body condition and mentally noting whether the stranger would be a good hunter or not.

"So what were you doing at my border?" She asked cocking her head the tiniest bit while waiting for someone else to pop in with a comment behind her if El or the other stranger came forward. It seemed however for sure now that she had missed her other two visitors for their scents were beginning to fade already. What other faint scent Nari's hunter nose did catch was a faint smell of rabbits blood. She wondered if the loner might have made a catch some place before reaching her border.

(This post was last modified: Jul 25, 2013, 01:48 AM by Narimé.)

ARTEMIS

Not even a greeting or an introduction was given to ‘Vesta’. Hmph! How rude! Regardless, this black woman had a pack of her own, huh? Artemis nodded, expecting some pack wolf to appear from behind to try and win her over. Pack wolves could be so stupid sometimes, thinking their home was the best. It was almost laughable. Alas, no one came bounding spewing nonsense about how great this pack was and at least Artemis had some information, easily acquired from this lady, alpha of some pack somewhere. Little miss no good could interrogate whoever appeared as a representative for … whatever this pack was called soon.

And then, suddenly, the dark coated woman was leaving with a brief ‘good luck’. Artemis would’ve scowled and called her a nasty old hag if she hadn’t wanted to keep her cheery façade for potential use at some later time, should she run into her again. The other stranger who’d crept forward barely bid her own version of a farewell. Nice to see you. Really? Saying good bye like that, as if they were old chums who’d bumped into each other before setting off on their separate ways. Artemis watched as she ran after the black lady like a puppy nipping at the ankles of adults. How very rude! She almost snorted at the image, half expecting the smaller lady to start playing with the larger one’s tail. It looked really … really stupid.

“I’m here! I’m here! No more waiting!” The voice made her jump, snapping back to reality after watching the two women disappear. Turning her head quickly, as if she were about to shout the woman down, Artemis huffed internally. Narimé … Lah-de-blah Something-or-another. Who cared? One word shot out and shone brighter than the others: alpha. Immediately sinking back into the role of happy-go-lucky sugar coated cutesy wutesy, Artemis lowered herself to the ground and curled her tail beneath her, though it still wagged. “Hello, miss Narimé. I’m Vesta.” Glancing up to catch Narime inspecting her like a hunk of meat (how very, very rude!) though she looked down immediately and showed no outward sign of irritation.

“Uh, well, you see, I’m new to the parts,” that was no lie, “and I was wondering what you could tell me about your pack.” What was it again? Hush Caverns? Whisper Caves? Whatever. “I’m trying to learn what I can before picking.”

The woman in front of her gave Nari a short name "Vesta" to call her by. Unlike Elettra the young alpha trusted too easily and smiled to the woman nodding. So far to Narime, Vesta was coming off as a nice enough wolf healthy and able to hunt well for herself. Her pack already had a scout, guardians, a teacher, and a very good hunter among the ranks. If this woman wanted to join she would have to show some sort of skill to the silver wolf.

However Vesta quickly gave her reason for being there. She seems to be kind of like Tokino in a sense. Wanting to see all the territories before choosing which to go to. She went over that mental map in her head thinking of all the packs she'd trod upon the past year and a half.

"Well a part from my pack there are at least five other packs that I can direct you towards. Would you like the names and location of each that I know of?" She asked simply glancing away from her border in the direction of the northern marsh. A goshawk cried winging lazily over the tree's towards the pair of wolves searching for a good meal.

Her blue gaze turned back towards the long grasses still watching for a sign of other wolves. It seemed she had indeed missed the other pair for their scents continued to grow more stale by the minute. Shrugging off the unease prickling at her shoulders Nari moved her head back to Vesta without looking directly at the woman. All she could do now was help this loner along her way if she didn't plan on sticking around for a while.

ARTEMIS

Though she was an ugly woman at heart, Artemis knew when to listen to someone … sort of. The information she sought was all she wanted, nothing more and nothing less. The fact this Narime woman knew of five other packs would be of valuable information to her. The bitch smiled happily, her tail swaying behind her. Five other packs meant five prime opportunities to be bossy little queen of the nest. And what if she didn’t like the wolves there? Well, she’d preen her feathers and take flight. A vulture in a robin’s clothing. Who cared if she upset the alpha, it’d just make things harder for loners and that was always, always, always fun. She’d have to be careful, though. Some wolves were a little more protective of their territory. Sugar and spice and everything nice wasn’t going to work all the time, was it?

‘Vesta’ nodded, keeping low to the ground. “I’d certainly like to know what you know, miss.” The more she pondered, the more her tail wagged. Why not stay a while, hm? This woman seemed like the overly friendly type, easy to gain the trust of. Artemis would get what she needed to know and food! And warmth to sleep with! Then, when she tired of this boring little meadow, she’d move on. Oh yes. This would be so perfect. She resisted the urge to let a cruel grin sweep over her face and instead remained pleasant as cherry pie. “But, please, could you start with your pack? Such a quaint little meadow.” Yeah right.