Wolf RPG

The mountain held few secrets for her; so once she returned to more stable ground, the girl made a bee-line to the south. She was exposed, but the travel was easier. The rain had ceased, leaving bilious clouds draped across the sky like banners. They gathered what light there was unto themselves, lending enough to Seregryn and her path so that there was a grayness to it. The morning wore on in to midday, and the rolling fog upon the plains lessened as the hours passed. She stopped only when the trees beckoned to her, and she could slip beneath them without issue — but the cluster of forest was small, and she felt it was ill-suited for her own safety. The ledge would serve as a proper lookout until the evening hours though, and so she would linger.

By late afternoon, the long grey form of Lucani had made good progress, following her nose in a search for useful herbs not native to Sleeping Dragon. She had ventured into the warmer West, but this was all she could tell — she was no navigator. But the expedition would be worth it, and when she found the close green trees and the handy growths beneath them she was fully convinced of this. But she wasn't alone. Good afternoon, she said to the striking young stranger. Have you smelled any peppermint in this woodland?

Believing herself to be safe and secure, well hidden upon the ridge with its foreign trees, it was exceedingly surprising when Seregryn heard steps — and then, out of the blue, was faced with a stranger. It was as if they had known of her hiding place, for they stopped their own hiking almost directly before her.

Initially, Seregryn could only stare; the stranger spoke, and in the time it took for the voice to reach her, she was up and placing distance between them. It took another heartbeat for the girl to realize what this might look like — she was not afraid of this outsider, only startled.

Surely this wolf was well trained indeed — Seregryn found it highly unlikely that any beast not of her own ilk would be so skilled. Words did not find purchase here, though. Seregryn simply stood askew upon the ridge, watchful and clearly disoriented.

The truth was this: wise and well-socialised though she was, Lucani did not get out much. Her dedication to Sleeping Dragon and her poor navigation skills resulted in a wolf that was quite content to stay in her own territory. And so when she spoke to the stranger as if she too were a creature of Sleeping Dragon, she momentarily forgot that she was not. Perhaps, in fact, this was not a packwolf at all but one of these lone wolves bound to be roaming the wilds, alone and potentially uncivilised.

The girl, at second glance, was very young and very striking indeed. Perhaps she was shy, but Lucani was reminded that wolf did not necessitate trust. Ah — I'm being too forward. My apologies, young one.

The stranger was well spoken. It did little to ease the tension in Seregryn's body though, and the language displayed across it became clear: she lowered her head slightly so that it was level with her shoulders, ears up and forward to listen to that voice, but the rest of her was rigid and firmly planted. If this wolf was going to forcibly remove her, she would have a fight on her hands. Lastly, her tail was hanging loose by her hocks, but was not swaying in a friendly manner. The girl's crimson gaze was locked on the stranger, practically challenging her with a direct stare, and she studied the interloper like a cat might study a bird.

Still, she said nothing. If this was one of her own kind, she would know — or there would be a clue — but so far, this stranger was only an outsider to her. No outsider was worthy of hearing the voice of a future Commander. If Seregryn was thinking properly, she would have done some reconnaissance — perhaps used her nose, or gotten her head out of her own ass long enough to realize this wolf was of the Sleeping Dragon. Thought she did not know of the pack or the land, she would know of her family - and Thuringwethil was well liked among her kin.

Lucani, a lover of other peoples' stories, would have been quite content to sit here in silence with the other wolf, admiring her appearance and searching subtly for clues of a curious history, but she reminded herself that she had work to do. It did not escape her notice that there was more than a hint of challenge in those blood-coloured eyes, but, frankly, there was nothing to challenge the older female for... except perhaps the ground on which she stood. And she was happy to give it away, as remaining motionless on it had never been her intention.

Although not falling into a defeatist's stance, Lucani blinked her eyes catlike to signal peace, and proceeded off to the side to search for the peppermint and other such resources. She was tall and strong, but lacked the instinct to fight so common in other wolves. Her instinct to tease a story out of this youth was stronger, but stronger still was her sense of duty. She had medical caches to replenish.

Her attempt to stare-down her enemy had succeeded, and Seregryn's ego was sufficiently sated. As soon as the stranger turned away, she felt a glimmer of pride within her own breast; then, the older wolf began to slip away, clearly afraid of the threat Seregryn posed — or so she told herself. She could not quite resist a flick or two of her tail, or the subtle raise of her head as she assumed some form of dominance. The stranger retreated, but Seregryn did not leave; she no longer felt out-of-place with this old wolf, feeling like her challenge had been a success and thus, she could do as she pleased upon the ridge. So when the woman began to hunt for things, Seregryn followed after her — keeping a good distance from her regardless — and behaved much more like a child learning to track their first kill than a rogue operative of Trigeda, which is what she felt like.

Ah, this was the best of both worlds. While many would feel disconcerted at being stalked by a muted lone wolf, Lucani found it very intriguing. It was a way to explore the stranger's persona while also going about her duties.

(Plus, let's be perfectly honest — there's something nice about having a pretty teenage girl follow you around.)

Naturally, given the potency of its scent, Lucani beelined for the peppermint. Mint leaves had endless health benefits, and — importantly — could last a good long while out of the earth. An ideal addition to any healer's cache. With a rabbity twitch of her nose, the elegant female dipped her maw to a dried-up stream bed and gently picked a few of the dull green plants.

The woman did not linger long in any one place, not until she reached a riverbed. When she gave pause, Seregryn did also; craning her neck at odd angles to try and figure out what had caught the stranger's attention so firmly. Sere watched as the woman pulled at the earth, coming free with some sort of object, or perhaps a plant — and then when the other wolf sauntered on in search of more, Seregryn crept up to that spot and investigated. There was a small divot in the ground here, but no indication of anything important. She could smell the wet, exposed soil; she could even smell the peppermint, but without further tutelage in herbs and their uses, it remained an aromatic ambiguity to the wandering girl.

The peppermint had a sharp taste, but Lucani had a method of holding the plant out of the side of her teeth so that her saliva didn't ruin it. If she narrowed her eyes she'd look startlingly like a wolf version of Clint Eastwood.

As she turned to see what other plants lay along the dried stream, she noticed curiosity in the air around the young stranger. Oh her face was stoic, certainly, but there was no mistaking curiosity in a wolf that sniffed around in such thoughtful motions. As she regarded the girl to speak to her, she was reminded extremely strongly of someone — but the feeling passed swiftly. This is the plant I was asking about — peppermint, she explained. It has healing properties.

Thinking the stranger as occupied with her search, it surprised her when a voice was turned upon her. Seregryn looked up swiftly, like she had upon first being found upon the ridge. Her fur stood on-end across her shoulders, and her tail raised, then fell limp after the sensation left her. She made sure to stay composed this time, and even looked away from the woman as she spoke — indicating that Seregryn was bored with the conversation, or not interested, or better yet, that the woman's attention meant little to her. But her ears remained fixed in the direction of the voice, and Sere made a mental note - keeping the name of the plant for herself, just in case. A strong warrior would need some rudimentary healing knowledge after all.

Although gentle of expression, Lucani quirked a brow, and used the glance-away to read the stranger's face. Very still, very stoic. Surely it was purposeful... for how could one so young be naturally inclined to avoid all the expression of youth? She was silent for a couple of seconds, and then asked: would you like me to show you some more of the plants along the stream?

When given this invitation, Sere couldn't contain the interest that fell across her face; she turned and regarded the woman sharply, and in catching herself, turned away again. But the inclination to learn was far stronger than whatever pride kept her rooted. So she wordlessly adjusted to this offer — pivoting cleanly on her paws, and sulking closer. Seregryn still left a wide berth from the woman, looking imperious and seemingly aloof while she waited to be led elsewhere. A wordless acceptance, more or less.

The impression that Lucani actually got from the youngster was that she was a shy pup with no idea what to do. But she also got long glimpses of pride and defensiveness, as if the girl was trying for a shield that she hadn't yet managed to put up properly. Lucani did not question this, but rolled with it, and proceeded with their accidental lesson. This is goosegrass, she dipped her muzzle at the long, paler green plant. You may have had it stuck to your fur before. It's a nuisance, but one of my favourite quick remedies — it can slow the flow of blood when applied to a fresh wound.

The woman directed her attention to another plant, this time not moving from it, and Seregryn lifted her head slightly; she craned her neck, and then spasmed. A sneeze caught in her snout, and briefly she looked rather foolish. Her ears folded back briefly, then splayed out on either side of her head as she re-adjusted. The woman kept talking through it, and so Sere believed she had been too distracted to notice. Goosegrass. A strange name. Perhaps it tasted like bird meat? With this thought, Seregryn boldly stepped close and bowed down - snapping at the tiny white flowers that had begun to open upon the grass stems. When she pulled back again, licking her lips, there were strands of the tasteless grass hanging from her maw. No, they didn't taste like goose - or like anything at all.

By the time Lucani looked round to warn the girl that it wasn't a good idea to taste the goosegrass, it was too late. What was the thinking there, hm? she asked politely. Lucani had told her it stuck to her fur and that its healing properties were external, and surely the stranger didn't like eating plants. She was curious about the failed experiment that had just taken place.

Seregryn continued to chew on the grass, deciding quickly that she would not show weakness by spitting it out, right off the bat. But the woman's words hung in her ears - the tone of them making Sere want to bare her teeth, but that'd be an ugly expression. Like a child with spinach stuck in their teeth. So she chewed and chewed, and chewed, and... Eventually, the grass became a paste. Finally, she spat the wad like a cow would spit cud; licking her lips, Seregryn waited to see if the woman had more to teach her, or if she should choose to leave her to her foolish plant-based duties.

Of course the stubborn young one did not answer, but that didn't mean Lucani should leave her out of the process of asking questions. Unfortunately, the middle-aged female did think the stranger looked foolish eating the goosegrass, but all the more foolish for refusing to say anything. The more the poor child persevered with her facade, the sillier she looked. But Lucani had long made the decision not to point this out to her, instead taking a kinder approach. Perhaps if this had been a pup of her own pack she would have gently pushed her into a conversation (given that the girl insisted on shadowing her), but this was a lone wolf, not a girl in a pack where Lucani held a dominant rank.

The healer continued smoothly along the dried-up river, now searching for a useful waterside plant that — frankly — she didn't expect to find at this time of year.

If all this woman was interested in was plant life, then she posed no threat to Seregryn. It was a little disheartening for the girl - she had hoped to sneak her way by a warrior, or perhaps test the mettle of the resident wolves. Instead she was faced with this old woman and her lessons. Deciding that she'd had enough of both the lessons and the stranger's voice, Seregryn hung back while the gray wolf moved ahead. She appeared less and less interested the longer she sat there, turning away from Lucani and whatever plant she was heading for next, and would eventually rise up to her (diminutive) full height, and begin to saunter around her - slinking as she had before, but this time with hardly any interest in the woman. She was no threat, and Sere had garnered enough information from her by this point; had she been a warrior, perhaps the child would have been more pleased with her company.