Wolf RPG

In the absence of rain that came following the eclipse, a heavy fog rose with the day and lingered. It was warm and damp but not stifling, though it would have taken much warmer weather to truly bother Mordecai. Yet the coolness he found in the low points of the hollow was refreshing, and the alpha male steadily made his way through the nooks and crannies where the waters cut deep.

There was still much of the territory that he hadn't seen for himself and on that particular day, he could not think of a better thing to do. Though familiar with the territory on a whole, Mordecai was keen to leave things to be looked at in depth until later. It had never seemed right to suck the mystery out of something quickly and as it were, he believed all places to have some secret to them left to be uncovered.

The gods had been kind to the wolves of the Hollow as a whole. Those that had gathered around them to call this place home had risen magnificently to the challenge of claiming the land and preparing for Winter. They were far from where they needed to be still in preparation for the impending winter, but the Druid had no doubt that they would be ready when it came. 

Harlyn smiled softly into the cool, misty air as she wandered quietly along. It was her confidence in their ability that made her feel comfortable taking a break from her work for a little while to simply enjoy their new home. She took in a deep breath to taste the air, which is when she caught her co-alpha's scent. Turning her steps, she sought him out. She could never pass up the opportunity to spend some time with him, even if she didn't have any business to discuss.

"Why hello, Mr. Ostrega," Harlyn said with a smile as she strode to his side. She bumped her shoulder lightly against his, her ears slipping back demurely as her tail wagged softly at her haunches. 

He did not have to venture alone for long, as footfalls made their way closer and closer to him. His steps halted as he turned to catch sight of Harlyn, and a thin smile broke across his features. His tail waved to welcome her in, a soft nudge given in return as he brought his gaze back out over the rush of waters beyond. This was yet another vista privy to their home, so perhaps it came as little surprise that he would find this one in Harlyn's company too.

"Hello to you too," he murmured in response as his gaze finished a silent assessment. "Were you following after me again?" It was a cheeky comment reserved for her, since she seemed so keen not to let him wander off alone for too long. He had his moments when he had stolen away from them all, sure, but a fair portion of that time he had not gone without company of some sort.

Mordecai stopped as she approached and gave her one of those smiles that made her swoon.  His comment made her chuckle softly and she gave a little roll of her eyes.  In truth, she was quite smitten with him and had she less self-control and more immaturity, she may very well have taken to stalking him simply to spend more time with him.  As it was, their happening upon each other was mere coincidence - although Harlyn silently thanked the gods for leading her down this particular path today as it lead her right to him.

"Come now, we both know you need looking after," Harlyn tutted with a smirk, "There are so many ledges and streams around here.  An old man like you is liable to fall and break a hip, and then drown."  She kept her face as serious as she could, but there was mirth in her eyes.

The seriousness in her face prompted a short-lived chuckle out of him. There may have been an ounce of truth in her words for all of them — it would have been relatively easy to slip and go down in history for it. But life was full of all sorts of pitfalls, both deadly and not.

"I can think of worse ways to go," he commented as though it were an off-hand remark. His eyes went back over the tricky ledges and damp footholds momentarily. "Are you sure I wouldn't just take you with me on the way down? But then again," he paused for a beat, "you'd probably just use me to break that fall, right?" And with a cheeky grin to bloom in place of words, his gaze swung back to capture her response.

Though the Druid prayed for the contrary, she was realistic enough to expect that they may have a few accidents on the ledges that littered their new home. She was a good enough healer that she didn't worry too much - No one was likely to injure themselves too severely anyway. She truly didn't even worry about Mordecai, though it was more fun to pretend that she did.

"Well of course," Harlyn admittedly with another soft laugh, "That's another reason I follow you around all the time - I'm just as liable to fall as you are you know. I am the same age as you."

A low growl of mock annoyance left him as she laughed, though her next statement prompted his brows to raise with suspicion. "Oh, are you? I don't believe that," he returned. He turned to face and give her a once-over, as though there was something about her that would suggest her true age. He had never put any thought into her age though obviously, she had to him.

"I don't see it, there's no way," he went on, chiding.

Harlyn gave him a playful smirk as he stood back to inspect her.  She stood taller as she posed for him, watching him expectantly.  It would be polite for him to have discouraged any thought that she could have been a day over two, but knowing him, there was a perfectly good chance that he could take the mischievous route and suddenly declare that wow, she really did look super old and he'd just never noticed it before.

Mordecai took the gentlemanly course of action, and Harlyn gave him a fond smile to express her gratitude.  She laughed gently at his words and shook her head.  "It's true - this will be my fifth Winter," she said with a smile that turned into a slight wince of trepidation, "That's not.. too many more than you, is it?"  She had always teased him for being an old man, but she realized quite suddenly that she didn't actually know if he actually was her age at all.

Five winters? That was certainly a long time in comparison to how long some of them really did make it. But then again, there were those that Mordecai recalled as being as old and grizzled that nothing really surprised them any more. It was safe to say that at least there, they didn't really have those sorts. Not that there was anything particularly wrong with the more experienced variety of wolf — there wasn't.

"Hm, well I guess that would account for some of the grey I see," he said with a click of his teeth in jest. "But honestly, I couldn't tell you. I don't keep track," came his voice again, this time without the cheeky commentary to follow it. "I know I've been around for a while, but I guess maybe not as long as some. Maybe I am old." Having spent so much of his life simply moving at his own pace, he had never considered the amount of time that had actually passed him by.

"Does it really matter?" he asked, only half-serious.

Although she felt a slight trepidation at his response, what Mordecai eventually said coaxed a grin from her.  She wasn't sure that she liked anyone pointing out her grey, and she had definitely never been too big a fan of being considered "old" before - but he ended with an admission that perhaps he too was old, and suddenly being old didn't seem quite so terrible a thing.  She'd be in good enough company, at least.

Mordecai asked if it mattered, and Harlyn could think of no response other than to walk confidently towards him, plant a kiss on his cheek and nuzzle her head against his throat.  "Not in the slightest," she growled softly with a wag of her tail before stepping lightly away.  She turned to look at him again after a moment, an idea randomly striking her.  "Do you want to hunt?  Just you and I?" she asked, mischief glinting in her eyes in a fairly uncharacteristic way.  She was feeling oddly frisky and energetic suddenly, and the thought of trying to kill things with her partner was seeming like a great deal of fun at that moment.

She stepped in toward him and they embraced for a brief moment. Any note of tension he may have felt lurking seemed to melt away, and Mordecai managed to place a well-timed kiss at the crown of her head. A smile broke through his stoicism even as she pulled away, almost as though the mischievous thoughts she had were open in the air. What they were in detail he could not have figured out, though it did not take long for Harlyn to suggest one.

"I think that sounds like a good idea," he answered. "It's been a while since the two of us have gone for a hunt, hasn't it?" But then again, he could not help but think, they had been busy with other things to truly stand aside and hunt together. Stepping in closer to her once more, he nudged her start their shenanigans.

Harlyn nodded, confirming that it had been a while since they'd hunted.  It was understandable, of course.  They had been rather busy with leaving their old home, finding a new one and starting a pack there.  It was an accomplishment that the druid still marveled at, and one she was simply elated that she had been able to do with the handsome Ostrega at her side.

With a flourish of her tail like a beckoning finger, Harlyn set off into the woods with Mordecai quick at her heels.  They would hunt for a while, maybe chase a fox or something just for fun, and wind up with a nice little morsel to share for dinner before settling down for the night.