Nevouku had been moving alongside Lucy, keeping a lookout for anything that may get in their way, or that could be dangerous in anyway possibe. Teekon had become much more dangerous than he ever recalled last time he was here. His fear had really gotten to him over time. And the fact that Broken Antler Fen had falen apart did not help one bit. In fact, it made things worse for him. He had yet to have another panic attack, however.
"So L-Lucy, which way?" he asked, still cautiously looking about. These woods they had come into, they did not look one bit welcoming.
The trio had trekked with each other for a short while. They'd left the fen behind, moving into the deep wood. Twisted oaks reached out with gnarled hands at the wolves that passed. Lucy had faced far worse, and so she turned her head back a ways to lock eyes with her companions before gesturing with a sweep of her muzzle.
“Through the wood,” she answered, trying to muster some certainty from within her gut. As sweet as Nevouku was, the shadow was pleased that Skwol had opted to stick by her side for this long. She enjoyed the pale wolf's company and felt safe while traveling beside him. Lucy was intent on making sure that she successfully got Nev to a pack's borders. It was heartbreaking to think that he had left and lost his family... everything he'd remembered. She could not help but to empathize with the situation that he was in. So, the scent of wolves on the other end of the wood was a promising start.
Looking at the wood, she swallowed the lump that was rising in her throat and pressed forward. Her pace had slowed slightly so that she was not trailing too far ahead of the other two. Should anything leap from the shadows, she wanted to be prepared.
Skwol had always took comfort in the daily routines and duties of his home and, in some ways, accompanying Lucy on her quests reminded him of those. He felt more at ease these past couple days than he had since he had left.
The small shadow had the lead as the trio travelled away from the glen. Skwol took some amusement in this. She was the youngest, and her faded black companion the oldest. Skwol wondered about his upbringing, that he could be so insecure and, well, lost on his own. But as usual, the white wolf did not inquire into it.
"Do you have a place in mind?" Skwol asked of the dark girl.
Nevouku had expected, or rather had been hoping, for a better answer beside that. They could get quite easily lost in here, and that was something he did not know. "Th-through the wood?" He turned his head to the third of their party, who Lucy had met before Nev. If they got lost, then getting to whatever place in mind, they wouldn't be reaching any time soon.
The girl was grateful that Skwol had remained with them for the duration of their hike. She was eager to make sure that Nevouku found a home. He was kind and she was certain that there was someone out there who was searching for him. She did not know that her home pack sat on the other side of the wood. She had been far too young when she had been taken. She did not know that her parents resided there, and a slew of new siblings with sparks in their eyes. The dark wisp was only eager to make sure that their faded traveling companion had found a piece of what he was looking for. So, she turned back to face them and nodded.
“We go through the wood and there should be a pack near the other end,” she ventured. The scent of wolf had gotten stronger, but she had no proof that there was an actual pack on the other side of the wood. She only assumed as much with the signs she had been given. The quiet young girl had found a talent in tracking and she knew that if there were enough paw prints, it meant enough were passing through.
The faded male seemed to be concerned that they were going into the spooky looking forest. Lucy looked back over her shoulder and laughed softly. “Don't be worried, Nevouku. Skwol is here. I don't think we have much to worry about.” Lucy quickly looked to the white wolf and she winked playfully.
Skwol levelled his eyes on the back of Nevouku's head as the trio pushed into the woods. For the sake of the little shadow he bit his tongue and hid the fact that he did not find the older male's fear endearing and only moderately endurable, despite the bit of amusement he held over Lucy's leadership. Had he known them longer, had they been packmates of his, the white wolf would have imparted some tough love on that male and told him in no uncertain terms to get a grip.
Lucy reassured her companion, casting a wink Skwol's way. He smiled back at her and realized then how negative and intolerant his thoughts had become. The heat of hunger was in his belly — and that always made him grumpy.
"I'm sure the trees don't bite," he quipped, making an effort to shed his moodiness. "But I'll bite them back if they do, heh."
Nevouku had to admit, the reassurance did calm his nerves somewhat. And Skwol's quip even gave him a little laugh. "Th-That's good to know...though I th-think these trees are more b-b-bark than bite" he joked, trying to lighten up the mood his own way. Than he realized his joke sounded better in his head.
The young ghoul could not have precisely said what it was that drew her to the pallid male who followed. Skwol was direct, but he was kind and she had not quite experienced that in another of her kind before. She had seen the monsters and the sweet smiles of the children who had hid her away from such terrible things. Lucy knew the terror that existed beyond the wilds, and even more so; the terror that existed within them. The inky wisp believed that she had seen them all, but she was realizing that Skwol was much more. She imagined that he was the brave and daring knight who chased those monsters away – he made her feel safe.
Skwol humorously quipped up a remark on the trees and Lucy turned her head away to chuckle softly to herself. When Nevouku piped up in his soft voice, the young Blackthorn was surprised at his comment and turned back to smile at them both. She did not believe that they were in any sort of danger as long as they remained together. The back of her mind began to race and she realized that there would come a time when they would no longer trek side by side. A pang struck her heart and she tried to pull herself away.
“These woods might be peaceful if they weren't quite so dark,” she remarked after a few minutes. Her pale blue gaze wandered along the trunks of each tree, following them upward to the sky.
The white wolf snorted at the older male's joke — it was so bad it was almost good.
"Is the dark not peaceful?" He asked softly of Lucy. There was genuine wonder in the warmth of his gold eyes. He knew how the darkness could upset the souls of some and he did not mock her comment. Rather, Skwol knew that it was all perspective. He himself thought the shadows of timber was peaceful, and nighttime too, even though he was a wolf that was drawn to the sun. Much of that perspective was learned. He had been taught to see the worth and the good in all of nature and he sought, in his own way and starting with this question, to guide her to the same level of comfort that he had. To help her be at ease wherever her paws took her... and perhaps their stuttering companion too.
Nevouku smiled a little at the response to his bad joke. Even he knew it was bad, but at least it lightened the mood a bit. Took his mind off how easily they could get lost in here. He kept quiet for most of the time, trying not to listen in on Skwol asking Lucy something. So he instead glanced about the dark forest.
The inquiry struck her and immediately, Lucy felt very insecure about herself. She had wanted to agree that the darkness could be tranquil, but she knew all to well about the things that hid in the obscurity of night. She turned her slender muzzle to point it toward the pale knight and she frowned. How was it that someone so kind felt so at ease no matter where they wandered? She could hardly believe that Skwol was truly as stalwart as he seemed, but perhaps... perhaps he had found peace where she could not.
Mouth gaping, the ghoul tried to form a response, but only stammered over herself before huffing a sigh through flared nostrils. “I used to think so,” she finally muttered to him, but she felt shamed to admit it. “It seems that I've only found all the vile things in this world belong to the darkness.” It was where all the evil creatures felt safe, she believed, because nothing so foul could stand in the light. It did often make her wonder if she too belonged there. Was she not painted in the deepest of pitch? Perchance, this was the reason why she had been haunted through her life. The devils were trying to pull her back to their grasp.
"It seems that I've only found all the vile things in this world belong to the darkness."
The white wolf folded his ears and allowed the corners of his mouth to drop. Such a solemn statement for a wolf so young. He almost let that sentiment go and allowed the trio to seep into the forest quietly; but he was not content to travel ahead on such a note.
"So do the stars." Skwol pointed out, the depth rumble of his voice lifted and made upbeat.
"Fireflies... and the moon..." He lengthened his stride and quickened his next couple paces so that he drew nearer and could reach forward and tug at the tip of Lucy's tail. Like a good dog, Skwol was known to clown to make his companions smile.
He darted forward then, tagging Nevouku with a nip to the shoulder as he galloped ahead and spun himself into a play bow in front of them. His hips swayed and his tail fanned high in the air as his eyes challenged them with a mischievous glint. Then with a woof, he carried on at a lofty sprint, encouraging them to chase and play by pausing once to prance and tease before surging away again.
It would do them all good to run and romp.
I think we could fade here with your guys' replies :)
Nevouku was not sure how to take the words of Lucy. Quite odd, talking about dark and such, it just left him confused. Then again, he would take the dark...fire at anytime. Just thinking the word gave him the shakes. He watched as Skwol went ahead a bit to tug the tip of Lucy's tail, and stifled a laugh at that. Maybe he could get used to traveling with them, at least till he found a spot to stay.
The young girl could appreciate the sentiment behind Skwol's first few words. He was not wrong, after all. The stars were one of the best parts of being enveloped in darkness. She had spent a great deal of time looking up at the night sky when she had been far from home. After her run-in with the humans, she had tried each night to count the number in the sky, but it seemed almost as though it had changed every night. Regardless, it was one of the few things that helped her through the night when she had been on her own. A small smile seemed to work its way onto her face as she looked to him, and the gentle tug of her tail was a light reminder that she was with good company.
“Fireflies... and the moon...”
Almost in an instant, the girl felt the smile slip from her face. Fireflies, she thought to herself with a creeping sadness that seemed to nestle itself right into the pit of her stomach. She thought back and recalled a time when she and Rannoch had chased fireflies through the wood. She remembered the light on his face and the sweet feeling of safety that she had when she had been around him. Lucy thought of Cypress and the piercing gold of his eyes – a sharp glint that did not match the warm drawl of his voice. She revisited memories of them and was wracked with grief. While Skwol darted to and fro, she cast him a halfhearted smile as they continued on through the dismal wood.