Wapun Meadow day after day, alone on a hill

@Sunny! she's finally down in rising sun valley, haha

The smell of sea salt on the coastline eventually got to her. She had been born and raised by the ocean, waves a constant murmur in the distance, seabirds squawking overhead. Salt had once been a comforting scent; now it was sickly cloying, a reminder of the carnage behind her.

Larksong Grotto had been too close to the sea. So she traveled further east, looking for landlocked refuge. Made her way down a silvery path, nestled near some small mountains. Picked her way through wetlands and marshes, cringing in disgust as her ebony paws soaked and sucked through the damp. Along the way, she thought of everything that had transpired. Wept for her broken family. Feasted on bits of carcass left behind from wolf feasts and vulture scraps.

Finally, Miyako came across a meadow--and what a meadow it was. Bright summer colors, just beginning to fade into autumn. Birds and insects fluttered about, feasting on the flowers. The scent of deer caught her nostrils, pungent and delicious. The meadow was ambrosia for the senses, redolent of pleasure.

With a sigh, she settled near some trees, her black fur camouflaged by the dark thicket. Exhaustion overcame her; she had been moving nearly constantly since leaving home. Her eyelids began to flutter, drooping over her amber orbs, her muzzle resting heavy on her paws. Of all the scents here. . .salt was nowhere to be found.

Sunny had left Easthollow for a visitation to Morningside earlier that day, and after a few hours of travelling he grew hungry and thirsty. He stumbled into the meadow and sniffed the sweet air, full of flower scent and various types of prey deer being the strongest. He moved through the tall grass, his eyes taking in all the colors allowing himself to be distracted by the beauty before he set out to hunt.

Finally the sharp meaty scent of rabbit caught his attention, and ahead of him he saw rustling in a patch of particularly tall grass. Watching the way the grass moved he tracked the direction the rabbit was heading. He crouched low in the grass and watched as the unsuspecting prey moved toward him. Before his scent could be found he changed directions, hiding in the grass to his best ability until he had circled behind the rabbit. Close enough to make a safe lunge, he parted his jaws and snapped them forward. A loud death shriek echoed in the air as he killed the rabbit and sank his teeth into it's flesh. He carried it away to an area with a thicket and that's where he noticed the she wolf laying down. He couldn't tell if she was alright or not, and dropped the rabbit giving a low whuff his tone hesitant.

When she was little, and had trouble sleeping, Miyako had taught herself to count elk. Yes, elk. Or any animal, really; it worked to keep the mind on a singular task so as to not wander, and fall asleep shortly after. She was on her nineteenth--or twenty-ninth? she had lost track--bull elk when a muffled sound close by jerked her awake.

"What the--" She clamped shut her jaws on her exclamation as she opened her eyes to find a young grey wolf staring at her in puzzlement, a dead rabbit at his paws.

Stretching languorously, she rose to her feet and shook out her pelt, debris from the ground sprinkling away like little droplets of water. "Great, you brought me dinner," Miyako greeted, her voice wry. "Who the hell are you?" He couldn't be more than a year old; he still had adolescent features, and looked quite young in the eyes as well. Maybe her little sister's age?

Sunny jumped back about half a foot when she snapped awake, his ears flattening back against his head. He gave her a wary look and blinked one in shock as she snapped at him "My...My name's Sunny ma'am. I come from a nearby pack, I'm going to visit my pa and sister at a different one." he explained nervously. He hadn't meant to scare her, she must think he was going to creep up and attack her or something.

"Sorry for scaring you, I...You were just laying there and I wasn't sure you were okay." he explained offering her a hesitant smile. He walked back to where the dead rabbit was and though his stomach growled, he remembered her comment about bringing her dinner. "It wasn't my original intention, but if you're hungry we can share. I ate before I left the pack" he offered and nudged the still warm rabbit in her direction.

Noticing she had disconcerted him, Miyako softened her gaze at the boy. Though he might be the same age as her younger siblings, he clearly had not spent time with wolves as sharp or profane. 

"Nah, don't worry about it," she responded, nodding at the rabbit. "I was joking with you. And I ate yesterday. Well caught -- finder's keeper's."

She gave him the closest thing a wolf had to a smile. "My name's Miyako." She inhaled and, indeed, found pack scent on the lad--more than one, in fact. His story held up.

"Your dad and sister are in another pack? Why? Not that I'm judging," she assured. "My dad once left for a few months to join another pack. Said he was sick and tired of us. Came crawling back when they kicked his sorry ass out."

Sunny settled back down on his haunches "Suit yourself, I don't mind sharing a meal. Never know when you'll eat out here" he said and took a bite chewing slowly and swallowing as she introduced herself. "Miyako...that's a really cool name" he said and he meant it. He had kinda learned that his dad and Amber hadn't been too original when naming him. He was surrounded by totally cool and Unique names like Valette,Nikai,....Illecebra and here he was named after a type of weather condition. It did suit him he supposed.

"Well...Me,My sister, and Our dad were all originally from Easthollow. I was born there with my sister Dawn. Our mama abandoned all of us as soon as we were done drinking milk and Daddy kinda...avoided us. But he really was a good dad. So one day he decided to take us on an adventure, but what he was really doing was leaving Easthollow with us and starting a different pack." he began to tell the story rushin through the tale he had told way too many times for his liking. "So then I was a Morningsider, that's my dad's pack but I missed my friends from Easthollow and Auntie Valette and...Uncle Steady" his voice grew soft for a moment before he cleared his throat and started speaking again. "And when I got older I understood that he hadn't really wanted an Adventure. he told us that to get us to leave our home happily with no complaints. So I told him I missed Easthollow, and that was my home and I was goin back. And i did. And that's that.." he said finishing up as quickly as he could. The story even now brought up some bitterness, but he was getting over it quickly.

She smiled silent thanks at his compliment of her name. Her mother had given it to her. She felt a pang of empathy for the young wolf as he described the circumstances of his life so far--a runaway mother, an aloof father. So many days, Miyako had woken up, wondering whether her father would be there for them or not. In a way, his death had been a blessing: an end to the everyday question of his presence.

"It's brave of you to leave your family to go back to the place you want to be," Miyako said gently. "So many wolves cling to blood. And you get to visit them, which is the icing on the cake.

"How many wolves are in Easthollow?" she asked, truly curious. She wasn't quite ready to join another pack quite yet, but winter was coming, and food would soon become scarce. If she was to survive. . .  Miyako pushed away the thought. She would cross that bridge when she came to it.

Sunny nodded and took another bite from the rabbit,suddenly not too interested in it. He hadn't really ever thought it was brave, he had just wanted to go back to Easthollow and so...he did. "It was hard to decide, and My sister hates me because I left. Me and my dad have had a rough time of it but now we're okay again." he said and wagged his tail as she said the vistation was the best part, which he completely agreed on. "I am really happy that they want me to meet my baby siblings. It....It would have hurt if they didn't want me near anymore" he said honestly his eyes darkening before he looked up at her, the next question making him think.

He had to count the wolves that he had smelled around but not really ever seen, and his eyes widened at how many members they really had. "9 adults if you count me and Nikai being in an adult rank, and 6 pups." He answered proudly. They had grown a bit within the past few months, and now they had enough members to possibly take down those Buffalo that Valette wanted to catch. "Are you looking for a pack? Valette is usually really good about accepting all trades. We have medics,Mercenaries, and hunters right now but caretakers and stuff would be nice too since we have babies" he asked and then continued on to make a case for Easthollow. "It is a bit nippy in the winter, but our dens are sheltered and we work together to make sure that everyone is taken care of" he smiled at her, hoping he was doing a good job of recruiting.

Are you looking for a pack? The boy had asked the question she didn't know how to answer.

She weighed her options. Summer had just turned over into fall, which means she had a couple more full moons before the snows would start to fall--unless, of course, winter came early. Time enough to make a decision.

On the other hand, Easthollow seemed crowded. And what was this Sunny spoke of "trades"? Miyako could run fast, and she had taken care of all of her siblings almost single-handedly, but she didn't have what these wolves might consider a "trade." She was afraid, as she always was, she might be a burden on a pack. Dead weight.

"Well, I mean. . ." She floundered for a moment, trying to come up with the right thing to say. "I-- Thank you, Sunny. For telling me about your pack. Can I. . .Can I think about it?"

She cast him an apologetic look. "I'm sorry, that's probably not what you want to hear right now. It's just that. . .I recently lost half my family. Half my pack. They tore each other apart. And I don't know if I have enough trust in me to join a band of strangers. Sunny, they--they were my blood. And they. . .destroyed each other." The words came fast, spilling out of her jaws until she was left, silent and shaking with emotion. "Sorry."

Sunny watched as she seemed torn in her decision. He hadn't meant to put pressure on her, and he flattened his ears back "Yeah, of course you can! I didn't mean to put pressure on you, I'm sorry" he said quickly and earnestly, looking at her sheepishly. She gave him an apologetic look and he tilted his head to the side, listening as she explained where she had come from. His eyes widened and he opened his mouth to speak, but shut it again unsure how to respond.

If Easthollow suddenly had internal warfare and everyone he loved started killing each other, what would he do? He imagined it and shrunk down his eyes watering slightly. Even worse was imagining Morningside doing that, and he couldn't even think about that without a small whine leaving his maw. He watched as she trembled and shook his head slowly moving forward and touching his nose to her shoulder gently "Don't be sorry Miyako, If that had happened to me I wouldn't be too excited to join another pack either. If you do ever need a home and am unsure where to go, Easthollow is a lovely place. We've all had rough pasts there and we treat one another like family, even the newest members." he said reassuringly once he had stepped back away from her.

He looked sad for her, but he didn't pity her. It was more that he wished he could fully understand and help her through her pain. It must have been a terrible thing to witness, and he realized how truly lucky he was in life so far. "Will you be okay?" he finally asked after a moment's silence.

His words brought a sob to her throat. She ducked her head, so as not to show emotion. So simple, yet so reassuring. She felt unworthy of the pick-me-up, yet she drank it thirstily in, hanging on each syllable like a life raft. 

"Thank you, Sunny," she said sincerely. "Thank you. That means more--"

Miyako smiled. "I'm not ready yet. Gonna wander this fall. But if I'm still alone by this first snowfall--" she nudged Sunny on the shoulder-- "I'll be your packmate. Promise you that."

She sat with the gray, smiling. It felt good to not be alone.

He looked at the rabbit and sighed softly, knowing he wouldn't finish it. If she didn't want it he would bury it in the dirt, and check on it on his way back to Easthollow. She thanked him and he lifted a shoulder in a shrugging gesture "Don't thank me Miyako, everyone deserves kindness and sympathy when they're in pain" he said gently. when she finished speaking Sunny held still as she nudged his shoulder, giving her a warm smile.

"If you're going to rest here for a while, would you like the rest of the rabbit? I am afraid i won't finish it. If not I'll bury it. If you're going to spend the fall alone, you never know when the next meal is gonna be" he said with a grin. He would like to experience travel for himself for a while, get out and about maybe meet some new friends. The thought made him excited but he had already taken a small leave to visit Morningside, he would wait to ask Valette about a longer period of travel when her pups were bigger. When they were weaned ad eating meat he would try to take a trip for himself.

"If you want company for a while, I can stay for a few hours. After that I should go though" he offered not wanting to ditch her if she was feeling down right now. He eyed her with a friendly gaze, his tail slowly swaying behind him.

The young wolf was eager to get back to his folks in Easthollow, she realized. Miyako shook her head at his offer to stay. "No, I'll be okay," she responded gently, shaking herself out of the momentary funk she had descended into. "I'm mostly over it. It just all comes back sometimes." Her eyes twinkled as she gave him a grin. "I will take that rabbit, though, if you're just going to leave it."

She briefly wondered whether she was making a mistake, turning down Sunny's offer. What if she didn't run into a wolf as nice or a pack as accepting? Miyako was made of tough stuff, but she had never spent a winter alone. She had no idea whether she could handle it by herself.

It might be warmer by the southern coast. . .  But she shuddered at the thought of returning to the sea, salt acrid in her nose.

"You're good to go home, Sunny," Miyako murmured, feeling suddenly sleepy again. "I'm happy I met you, and I hope we meet again someday."

Sunny stood back up nodding and nudged the rabbit toward her. He wagged his tail slowly and pondered on whether to step forward and embrace her before he said goodbye. Deciding against it he lowered his head to her, bowing with respect "In that case, I'll be off. It was nice meeting you Miyako and I really hope to see ya again." he said before lifting his head and turning around and walking away. Stopping again a few feet away, he hesitated and frowned turning to look over his shoulder "Be careful okay? folks around here aren't always so nice..." he warned as the memory of Easthollow being on guard due to an unknown woman played in his mind. His father had come to warn them about her, saying she had attacked someone from a pack near them.


Shaking his head he flicked his tail in farewell and trotted away through the grass until he disappeared once again.

i enjoyed this! Thank you so much! Feel free to post again or just archive it <3