Stone Circle alleyways and pay phone calls

The sheepdog had settled further into life, somewhat reassured by the thickness of Murdock's scent on her fur and the potential it held for making sure others did not see her as food. A week had passed, and yet no one had attempted to eat her, and thus she was growing fairly optimistic. 

Today was warm, in contrast to the past week's shill, sun sparkling off the white and highlighting the tiny footprints of prey. It was an endeavour that had taken her most of the morning, but she had succeeded; she trotted towards the sunnier part of the territory with a hare in her maw, tail wagging as she searched for a place to rip into the cooling body, the first piece of substantial prey she'd found in a few days.

Illecebra was out and about again enjoying the way today's weather wasn't bitter and windy. It was pleasant and as she reached the sunny side of Easthollow she once again caught that weird scent. Pausing in her steps she also smelled fallen prey and began to follow the two scents until she saw Poppy. The first reaction was that she was an intruder but she wasn't healthy enough to assume she could leap into battle,besides...this animal with the prey was odd. Uttering a loud chuff to grab the females attention she moved forward slowly, her one good ear perked forward curiously. Her posture was stiff and she crept more than walked but as of right now her eyes were wide open and her lips were lowered. 


When she reached the female she sniffed her, drawing in the scent of easthollow and Murdock. How interesting! "Are you a pack member?" She asked once again retreating a few paces, unsure what to make of her quite yet.

Oh dear. Here was the wolf of her mother's fable, stalking across the snow towards her. Grey and white, her colouring was common, her markings something like her brother's. She blinked, rabbit held tight as she froze, wondering if she should flee back to Murdock. This woman had scars, and what appeared to be a short tail was revealed to be no tail at all. And her ear-

Before she had much chance to do anything than stare, the woman was upon her, yellow eyes scanning her. She dropped the rabbit when she spoke, taking a slightly nervous step back. "yes," she added, after a moment, "not food." 

Illecebra blinked once in surprise when the poor girl stated she wasn't food and then started laughing, her nubby tail wiggling behind her. "I didn't think you were food hon, don't be scared I won't hurt  you. What...are you though?" She asked curiously deciding to get straight to the point of it. "You're scent reminds me of my mate's...but still different. Mawk's a wolf dog" she stated hoping it would give some explanation to why she was asking.

The wolf started laughing, which seemed wrong; surely a wolf missing a few appendages, including a tail and ear, would only scowl and stalk about. But it seemed the woman was not the nursery-story wolf she'd thought her; and she wondered briefly if any wolves would eat her, if even this scarred warrior-looking one did not seem interested. 

Her ears, large and bat-like as they were, flicked forward when she mentioned her mate. "there's another dog here?" She asked, gaze glistening with the beginnings of excitement.  She thought she'd left dogs behind a while back, and while she mourned not seeing any again, she'd largely gotten over it. Her head canted to the side, adding a moment later, tone lighter,  "I'm a sheepdog. A collie." She was a mutt, really, but took largely after her border collie mother, and thus neglected to mention whatever her father might've been.

A dog.... something that Illecebra only had the vaguest idea about. She knew they were some sort of related species type thing since wolves can breed with them but other than that she hadn't the foggiest idea. "Well um...Mawk is a mix. Of wolf and dog. He looks more like me but he has this cute curly tail...he says that's a dog thing" she said awkwardly her eyes going a bit dreamy as she pictured the way his tail bounced around.

sheepdog was a confusing term to her but she put two and two together and supposed it was a breed. Just like there were timber wolves and red wolves and Mackenzie Valley wolves...

Snapping back to attention she motioned to the girls food "you can eat hon, I won't steal it. My names illecebra but feel free to call me Cebra." She introduced herself politely her features softening as she lowered her haunches to the ground hoping the more relaxed position would put her at ease. "if you want I can bring him to meet you? He might like meeting ya. Also...forgive me if this is forward but um...are you Murdock's girl?" She asked embarrassed. "I mean like...his mate?" She rephrased the question.

This girl wasn't frightening in the slightest, the collie was coming to learn; rather she reminded her in some ways of her sister; she spoke of her "lover" with the same dreamy look, though she had been far younger, and the lover had been some hunting hound seen only distantly. Shaking thoughts of her sibling from her head, she smiled and tore open the hare delicately, slowly moving to sit and wrap her feathery tail around her hindquarters. 

"yes, I'd like that!"  She beamed, to the woman's next question furrowing her brow in thought before slowly dipping her head. She supposed the could be labeled as Murdock's girl, for he had brought her here, after all. But when she clarified, her eyes widened and she shook her head rapidly. "oh, no!" She was quick to correct, adding a moment later, "I'm his  companion." She'd go as far to call them friends, but that was the word he'd initially used ad=d that the word she used to describe them.

If a wolf could blush She surely would have because when poppie said no, Cebra felt mortified. She ducked her head and flattened her one good ear "oh...I apologise, I kind of assumed since you smell strongly of him that you two were.." she trailed off and cleared her throat awkwardly deciding to change the subject. "I'll definitely tell Mawk about you and ask him to come visit you. Um...if you need anything you can come find me okay? I don't think you have anything to fear from anyone in Easthollow" she said though she hadn't quite met the entirety of the pack.

"At least not from me,Mawk,Keoni, Valette, and Murdock. Oh! My boy too...his name is Cyron..he's a good child" she said listing off the names of the ones she felt the girl was safe from. Giving a more awkward smile she motioned to the hare "good catch, you must be fast!" She complimented.

The female looked quite suddenly mortified, flattening her ear and lowering her head. Poppy wondered idly where the other had gone, but decided that surely an ear would not go missing without a dark story to explain why, and probing was rude. At the woman's reassurance, she canted her head again. "Valette said I might be eaten." She said, confused. She didn't quite completely believe the alpha; but the news made her wary all the same. She'd never been one to succumb to outright panic, though. 

The woman had a son, news she received with interest. She rather liked pups, she'd found, after her meeting with Clary. Steph was odd, and she was fairly sure the girl didn't think much of her, and she hadn't seen hide nor hair of the girl since the borders. ears perked, she received the compliment with a grin. "very." It was an attribute she was proud off, what made her the best out of her siblings at herding. Of course, here there was little to herd, and thus she made do with hunting. "how old is Cyron? I don't think I've seen him" Quietly, she hoped he'd be young, like Clary.

Illecebra had caught her staring at her missing ear quite a few times and while embarrassed about it she felt the need to offer an explanation. "I must look quite rogueish to you huh? Well...I've had a lot of trouble these past months. A cruel pack stole Cyron and me and Mawk went after him. They refused to give him up and when we started returning home I got lost and stayed that way for a while. During that time I saw a member of the same pack that stole my baby and out of rage and grief I attacked him. He whopped my ass and took my ear and tail" she babbled through it quickly and turned to give the nubby tail a quick wiggle behind her.

That being said she quickly moved on. "We found Cyron in the snow. He's..safe but traumatized. He'll be seven months old soon and unfortunately most of his time has been a prisoner at Blackfeather where...we can only imagine what was done." She said hoarsely as her voice broke with emotion. "Anyway... I'm sorry. I didn't mean to unload this on you..I just saw you looking and didn't want you to think that I'm a killer or something" she said once again in a more polite and meek tone.


It finally sunk in that poppy had said Valette mentioned her getting eaten. "Wait... Valette threatened you? She does realize you're kind is like...distantly related to wolves right? Look...I don't think she'll hurt you but if anyone gives you trouble call for me and I'll be there" she said feeling bad for the girl.

She must have glanced at the ear more than she'd realized, even though she'd been studiously avoiding staring at it. Still, the woman picked up (or perhaps guessed at) her interest, and launched into a story just as dark as the girl had expected, leaving her with rounded gaze and blinking gaze. A wolf's life was harder, meaner, than she'd ever truly expected, and her lessons in cannibalism would only serve to further that point. Still, there was some part of the sheepdog (perhaps laid there by her sled-dog father) that had the wild call to her, with all its beauty and danger. Still, it'd be a while until she learned just how deadly the wild could be. 

"I'm sorry. I'm glad you found him, though."  Came her small voice, ears tilted back a fraction as she took in the woman's story. Another question was launched her way, however, one she scrambled to answer. "I wouldn't say she threatened me, really. Just that she told Murdock to tell the others I wasn't food."  She was a little relieved to hear the woman's reassurance, and smiled in quiet gratitude as her ears flicked in happy relief. Surely Illecebra would be quite to ward off anyone that might try and eat her; she certainly looked fierce. [/font]

Cebra dipped her head with gratitude toward the girl and offered a brighter smile. She was glad Cyron was home too but now she worried about what had been done to him at Blackfeather. What wounds lay hidden beneath the fur where she couldn't see them? How would she tend to those wounds when she did find them? 

shaking off those thoughts she listened to Poppy explain what Valette had said. Still an expression of disgust was written across illecebra's face and she snorted "as soon as I saw you I knew you weren't prey. I hope that all Easthollow members have the same common sense." She muttered. "I'll be off then, let you eat in peace. I'll have to bring Mawk and maybe Cyron to see you soon." She said as she pushed herself to her paws and turned to leave. On a second thought she turned around again "be careful near the borders, if you see a strange wolf avoid them...that's what I'd recommend" she said kindly.

The woman seemed disgusting by the prospect of eating her, something that made Poppy a little glad. Surely to not want to eat another was a sign that they were, to an extent, equals; though Poppy could not shake the innate feeling that wolves were and always would be better than her. Still, the sheepdog did not mind, for this was simply the way things were.

"I'd like that," She said sincerely as the woman promised to show the girl her family. Her advice was taken with a smile and a quick dip of her head, the nugget of information stored among all the other hundreds of things she learned each day. As the woman padded away, Poppy called after her,  "goodbye, Illecebra. and thank you!"  Feeling a great deal more at ease, and pleased with the positive encounter, the girl watched the woman retreat a while longer before taking her own leave.