Northstar Vale zero to studying in less than sixty seconds.

Life had been quiet as of late. It was a welcome change of pace from all of the excitement the wolves of the Vale had been through the past couple of months, but Liffey in particular was gratified by it. It gave her time to think about her place in this new life she'd found for herself and to focus on the things she wanted to accomplish. It also gave her time to daydream about @Rannoch, which she did rather often in spite of knowing she should really focus on making herself useful.

On lazy evenings such as this, that was quite a tall order. The yearling had explored what she believed to be every inch of the territory she and her friends had claimed. She had set out to scope out the borders or perhaps attempt to hunt something, but instead she had found herself trotting through the willow trees towards the path up to the ledge Rannoch had found for her. The lack of clouds in the sky told her that this would be a clear night and though sunset was still a good couple of hours off, Liffey felt that it wouldn't hurt to go relax in the vicinity for a little while before darkness revealed the stars.

The gamma shook her coat as a willow bough trailed along her black spine, tickling her. She ducked lower to creep beneath another cluster of dangling limbs, then turned to bring herself to the banks of the spring for a drink. Her ear twitched as a dragonfly buzzed past and she looked up to watch the glittering, blue insect hover over the reeds.

For a majority of the day, Rannoch had spent his time in the northernmost portion of the Vale. A lot of things had been on his mind since returning from the Caldera, and with no new members joining their ranks, sans Genie's visitor, Chusi, Rannoch often found himself preoccupied with a simple routine as he attempted to work out his thoughts. This habit consisted of him patrolling, checking in on some of his members, and then escaping from his claim to the undocumented lands that laid to the north. It was here that Rannoch found himself with his thoughts and it gave him the silence that he needed to work his feelings out. 

His feelings for Liffey had continued to grow, and at this point, there was very little room for anything else. She was his muse, his inspiration, and what drove him to do the best thing. And it was these intentions that drove him away from the heart of Northstar Vale. He had had a conversation with Elwood, in a thread that Chan was supposed to start ages ago and still hadn't, regarding his future with Liffey. It was from this conversation that Rannoch had conducted a plan: make her both his Beta and his girlfriend.

But he had no intentions of asking her this today, especially since his scouting had been sidetracked by a pile of Moose droppings. He wasn't sure just what animal it was. Due to his uncertainty, and his fear of something savage running amuck near his land, Rannoch swan-dove into the pile so that he could get the scent on his pelt and carry it back to his pack members to see if they could recognize the smell. 

Satisfied with his day, once the right side of his mane was caked in the remains, Rannoch returned home. As he entered the territory once again, the wolf found himself sidetracked once more by the scent of Liffey and because of this, Rannoch rerouted his steps in an attempt to catch up to her. Her perfume was intoxicating, and he found himself caught up in thoughts about her once again to the point that he didn't notice the reek that clung to him. 

"Hey, Liffey!" He called once he had reached the cherry blossoms as he lowered himself to army-crawl under the millennial pink foliage.  "Wait up!" he asked as the gentle rapt of his heart quickened.

Liffey watched the dragonfly as it fluttered about. It was so quick and bright and weirdly loud, but most of all distracting. She didn't notice Rannoch approach during her inspection, but eventually his scent trickled into her nostrils and she turned, startled, to see him calling to her as he approached.

Something was off about his scent, and so she had to fight to not recoil. Being a wolf, Liffey wasn't quite as affected by a foul stench as a human might be. Her dislike of it stemmed only from the way it masked the evergreen spice that he usually carried - a scent that she so loved. She quirked a brow as he came nearer, her head tilting slightly as she asked, "What on earth have you been up to?"

By the time that Rannoch had reached Liffey, the stench had went unnoticed. He was all too focused on the trail that she had left. It was only her greeting, coupled with her expression, that brought his lovestrick brain back into consciousness. A horrified look crossed his face as he came to a stop and quickly and exploration followed. 

"Is it that bad? I... actually forgot about it," he confessed with a nervous chuckle. "I was scouting in our hunting grounds and came across the smell that I didn't recognize. So I, uh, brought it back to see if anybody knew what it was..." he trailed then as his ears fell to lay on top of his head.

Liffey smiled at the expression on his face, her ears falling back as she realized a little guiltily that she had embarassed him. She chuckled to lighten the mood and gave her head a shake. "It's not bad, just... strong," she told him with gentle honesty. Her head tilted slightly as he explained he didn't know the scent, which was why he was covered in it. Her heart beat faster as pride rushed through her veins. She knew that scent.

"It's moose," Liffey informed him, "I came across a scent trail for one in Bramblepoint when I was young and was completely shocked when I finally caught sight of it. I didnt expect it to be so monstrously huge. Not a scent I'll be forgetting soon."

With Liffey's reassurance given, even though it was the news that he didn't want to hear, Rannoch was able to momentarily focus on what she had to offer in regards to what the smell was. Since he had never seen a moose, Rannoch felt himself grow concerned at her description of the creature. 

"Do you think it's dangerous?" he prompted with honest concern, unsure of what this giant would do lurking about in their lands.

The moose had been an impressive sight. Its body alone would have been intimidating enough, but add that large rack of antlers to its head and it was just plain overwhelming. Liffey considered these things when Rannoch asked her whether or not it was dangerous. She also considered how her mother had told her a story once of when she had teased one just for laughs. It was hard to reconcile that crazy, awesome free spirit with the mother that had been overbearing and controlling that had driven her from her home. But that was neither here nor there.

"They usually just avoid wolves, so it's probably nothing to worry about," Liffey answered, remembering what she had learned about the beasts from her mom, "Apparently they can be vicious when provoked, though. Might want to warn everyone to steer clear of it, just in case anyone comes across it and gets any ideas." Redshank and Titmouse specifically came to mind, but she knew she didn't need to call them out for Rannoch to understand.

Rannoch nodded, having no reason to distrust the information that Liffey had disclosed. In the time that they had known each other, the alpha had found that his Gamma had a wealth of information to her name. It was one of the many aspects that had contributed to his initial interest in her as both a potential packmate and partner. 

With the mystery solved, Rannoch suddenly felt revolted by the idea that he had rolled in feces and wished to remove them as soon as humanly possible. "Now that I know whats going on, would you mind helping me get this stuff off of me?" asked Rannoch with baited breath as he wondered how she would reply.

Rannoch accepted her input without question, which was immensely gratifying for the gamma. She had spent much of her young life being - in her opinion - controlled and belittled by her mother. It was a wonderful feeling, being trusted and respected like this. As much as she had come to forgive her mother for what had happened, she would never tire of how it felt to stand on her own four paws and be treated like an equal by those in charge of her pack.

His request made her grin, and because she was in a teasing mood, she replied with a quick glance to the picturesque pool at her side. "Are you saying you need me to throw you in?" she queried innocently, a playful smile twitching across her lips, "Or do you not know how to swim and need a lifeguard to make sure you don't drown during your bath?"

True to her nature, at least the variation of it that Rannoch had grown to know and love, Liffey replied in a lighthearted manner that initiated a glint of mirth to his turquoise eyes. She had a way of bringing out the puppy within him, and this occasion was no exception.

"You'll never be able to push me in," he countered. Rannoch's comment had had the potential of making the situation awkward, but, thankfully, that had not been the case. With his retort offered, Rannoch's forelegs slid until he bowed as if he were silently beckoning to bring it.

Rannoch was easy to draw into her playful mood. She grinned as he bowed before her, challenging her ability to make good on her offers. There was a mischievous glint in the embers of her eyes as she regarded him, but instead of matching his bow with one of her own, she shifted into a tall, superior stance and gave a slight shrug of her shoulder. "You're probably right," she said to him, turning towards the water, "You're too strong for me to overpower you like that. I'd be a fool to try."

With casual steps, Liffey stepped into the water herself. The water was cool against her skin in spite of the heat, so she shivered slightly as she glided into its depths with graceful strides of her long legs. The water came to her shoulders before she stopped and turned back to Rannoch, slipping effortlessly in an arch to face him with a coquettish smile.

"Join me?" she said, tilting her head sweetly to one side. He was a large, burly wolf and she a small, slender one. She could never overpower him physically to get him into the water. But this method of persuasion certainly seemed like it would do the trick.

When it came to anything with Liffey, Rannoch was easy to sway.  Despite the apparent threat of Liffey's inevitable ambush, the man followed her without question into the water to his eventual watery demise. In time, after some play, Rannoch would find himself clean as a whistle, and it was only then that he would wave the white flag of surrender. 

Once yielding to her, Rannoch decided it was only fair that she receive something for her victory. With this thought, he promised her a hearty dinner and after some time of hunting upheld his promise to her.