Dawnlark Plains Take me higher, where blind men see

Set after this thread. AW, if someone would like to take on this little charity case. ^_^ 

Edited because my brain was in two different places writing this post XD

Dash had wandered for days. His famine-warn body was even leaner now, and his bones were beginning to protrude from his lack of muscle. His hearing had returned somewhat, but he still got that insisent ringing that drove him nuts. His eyesight had yet to returned, filling his life with blackness that he feared would never go away. His nose told him he was by the shore, and he followed it. If it was to the left of him, he was headed north, but he wasn't sure where he was in relation to Moonspear. He had lost his sense of direction, and wasn't able to fully get it back. 

He stopped in what he didn't know was a large, open field. The wind swirled around him, making it impossible to sense where he was. He sat back on his haunches, whimpering. He knew he would die soon if he didn't find food. That seemed impossible considering he couldn't see anything.

Hush dove into the wilderness without a second's hesitation, duty driving him to hunt and scout outside their territory. Food was coming back, slowly. Rodents and lagamorphs became all the more common on the Dragon, but Hush wanted, no, needed to know if there were any herds. His Drotting, so close to giving birth, needed all the food she could in order to ensure her and the pups' survival. They would be the first litter born in Drageda, and Hush wanted them to live to their first year.

He passed south, skirted the Moraine through the Herbalists' Cache, which was still barren, into the grasslands. He was aware of the packs to the west, and treaded carefully in the buffer zone between them. But it was likely that herds would return to the wide open spaces west, north, and east of the Dragon.

His stomach gurgled, reminding him that this little scouting mission could not last for long before the need for food drove him back to the Sleeping Dragon, but he still pushed into the field, his nose in the air and down towards the ground in search of something edible.

What he found was edible, but to eat such a thing was sinful to the coywolfdog. He looked towards the stumbling wolf curiously, his head tilting to the side. He chuffed, approaching the wolf carefully. Was he ok?

A chuff reached his ears between the sounds of ringing. They perked atop his head as it jerked in the direction of the sound. His eyes sought the creature, but of course Dash couldn't see him. Who's there? he asked, fear obvious in his voice. Dash knew he was at a disadvantage. If someone were to attack, it was most likely he would lose. 

He lifted a front leg, wiping it against his eyes, as if that might help bring back his sight to see who was around him. Placing his paw back on the ground, he was dejected to realize he still could not see the world around him. He could only hope that whoever was there would take mercy on him, and either kill him quickly, or just let him go.

He couldn't see. Whether the wolf was recently, or temporarily blinded by something, or this was an affliction he carried his whole life (if that was the case, then why was he wandering alone?) didn't matter to Hush. He was lost. Alone. In danger.

In plumper times, he might have led the wolf back to Drageda without question, sure that Heda would take him in, at least for a while. But now...this wolf's future was uncertain. With pups on the way, with the famine...Heda wouldn't tolerate this at all.

He approached the wolf cautiously, aware of his inability to speak, knowing that the wolf was confused and frightened. He nudged him gently, chuffing again, trying to impart his gentle intentions.

Whoever was there didn't respond, which utterly confused Dash. Had they realized he was blind and simply moved on? In this famine, he was an easy target to just about any predator, wolves included. The creature near him neither spoke nor attacked him, which left him simply sitting there, waiting. 

A sudden nudge caused Dash to jerk back, but then he heard the chuff again. The pressure against his side had not hurt, it felt more like a nose. If the creature was playing with him, he didn't hear any laughter, but nor had they spoke yet. He figured if they were out to eat him, they wouldn't be wasting the time and would have done it already. So, maybe this unknown individual could help him. I'm in need of help, he said. Well, obviously. Could you take me somewhere I could rest? A hole in a tree, or the ground, wherever, he said, his voice almost pleading. Dash was not a begging creature, but he knew he could not help himself at this moment. He would not ask for food, fearing it would be too much, but if they could find him a hiding spot where he would be safe, maybe he could figure the rest out for himself.

Hush looked around for something that matched the wolf's request. He was not familiar with this territory; he only passed through here from time to time. Nothing found his gaze at first, prompting the coywolfdog to nudge the blind wolf back towards the area around the Sleeping Dragon, where Hush was bound to know the land.

He tugged the wolf's leg in the direction he wanted to walk in, herding the wolf like a sheepdog would a lost member of the herd.

He waited with baited breath, his anxiety of not being able to see rising to the point it increased his heart rate. He hated being at such a disadvantage, with no one he knew around. At least, he didn't think they were around. Suddenly, he felt a nudge, taking a step or two in the opposite direction to get away from it. He didn't have any idea what this creature was up to. 

And then it grabbed his leg, tugging on it. It wasn't aggressive, nor did it hurt. Dash understood he needed to go in the direction of that tug. He walked, his senses telling him the creature was nearby, guiding him where to go. Dash had no choice but to trust whoever it was that was taking him, hoping he wasn't taking him to his death.

He walked, pressed hard against the wolf, silently reassuring him that he was not walking alone. He figured that he would guide the wolf to the Herbalist's Cache; it was sheltered and full of life. The blind wolf would have a better chance surviving here than on the Moraine, or in the empty spaces of the Plains.

The other creature, which felt like the size of a wolf as it pressed up against him, led him away from their meeting spot. Dash followed, having no other options but to trust the other. He could be leading him to his pack of wolves, who maybe wouldn't hesitate to kill Dash. But, he sincerely hoped that he was being led to a safe place. 

As the open air was replaced by the overbearing canopy, Hush stopped, gently nudging the blind wolf to the roots of one tree which were gnarled and curled in an almost nest like form. He didn't know what to do know. The scent of a pack was faint, and unfamiliar when he did smell it. Heda would not accept this wolf; he just knew. But to just leave him here? It was unethical at best, cruel at worst. What to do...

The blind Dash walked for as long as he was nudged to. Suddenly, he was pulled on, and interpreted that as to stop, and he did, his ears swiveling around for any sounds that might alert him to something bad. The faint smell of a pack reached his nose, and he lowered his body a bit, worried that others might come to hurt him in his vulnerable state. He would fight, of course, but he knew his disadvantage lowered his chances of winning  greatly.

He was nudged into something stiff, and he bumped his nose against what smelled like a tree, feeling around with his muzzle. He sneezed when he hit dirt. He could tell the general outline was hollow in the middle, and attempted to slowly stick his head in. Finding that he had room to spare, he took one step, then another, and more until he was curled up inside the cozy roots of the tree. Thank you, he said to the stranger, hoping he hadn't just willingly walked into his own death trap. He had no choice but to trust the silent wolf, though, and hope for the best.

End here?

Hush watched as the wolf tentatively snuggled himself into the roots of the tree, barking as if to say "You're welcome". They were in an intriguing position; the mute and the blind working together. He wasn't sure what to do next. The wolf was far from home, far from assistance other than himself. Was his blindness permanent? Was it a recent affliction? He had no way of asking, and he doubted that his leaders would readily help, not with children on the way.

He barked once more, walking away. If he could, he would find something for the wolf to eat and return, but he was at a loss. He did all he could, he admitted to himself, barking once more so the blind wolf would know that he was walking away. Whether he trusted Hush enough to return, he had no idea, but he trusted himself to.

Sure! Would love another thread between the two! <3

The other creature barked, and Dash was sure it was another wolf then, or at least maybe a coyote. Either way, he owed the male his life. Another bark that sounded further away let Dash know that the other was leaving, and so he placed his head on the ground, intending to get a little rest before he tried to make his way back home.