The wilds aren’t so much new to him as it is a nuisance to his senses. Being raised a hunting dog meant he had to be now the ins and outs of the critters that claimed the woodlands as their home. But back then he could always count on a whistle to reign him over into his master’s hands, and then from there it was only a short hop back into the truck until they hit the streets and ventured back into a different kind of the jungle: the city. Their last camping trip in particular had gone far off that cement path, leaving the dog perplexed as to which direction would lead him back to humans.
Instead of the smells of cooked meat and dainty perfumes though, his nose seemed to wander over the scents of a different kind of canine. He didn’t know the difference between dogs and wolves; even when he’d seen them from a distance they just seemed to be another breed of dog. A wild kind whose piss nearly dominated his senses as he begun to peek into the true depths of the Teekon Wilds. Inherently he was not aware of the danger, knowing only to retreat at the scent of bears and any cat that was big enough to swallow him whole. There was certainly a threat there, but not one large enough for him to turn tail, so he carried on.
To the welcomed sight of water. A persistent pant rolled off the large tongue wiggling at the side of his maw, gulping back exhaustion as he lowered his head down to side of the bank.
She watched him silently from the brush, eyeing him as he drank the water. He was part what she was, whatever kind of dog that was. In truth she was more equipped to handle the wilderness than he. She had grown up in a cabin not far from these woods and knew how to hunt, not to be bothered by the raw meat or the smell of the canines who roamed here.
She rose silently, moving to stand behind him. She must have looked like a wild woman, her ancestors being bred into a dog that was perfect for surviving in the wild without their knowing. She was no longer a domestic mixed breed but rather a type of wild dog. Twigs stuck up from her fluffy hair in random places that she would meticulously pluck free later. For now she let them be, still attractive though she wasn't big on beauty.
She sat and waited for him to turn back around. Watching him eerily with her honey brown eyes, she might have been a frightening sight but she was smaller than he and nonthreatening.
He wasn’t ‘dog aggressive’ at least his masters would’ve said as much. As far as everything else went though he could’ve been considered a wary animal. Didn’t trust much of anything, not even the smallest squirrel that wandered onto his path. So it was just in his nature to keep his ears keen as he drank his fill. Even still she’d done well to hide herself, the sixth sense of apprehension only lifting the fur along his spine when she neared behind him, and even then there was a moment where he assumed he was fluking himself. The longer it went the more he became uneasy, and to relieve himself of his head did a quick shift—just to check.
Then he did a double take fully, pulling himself up to flip around and gaze at her. It was the shock initially which shot the growl through his throat, but then it continued for the nuisance of being caught off guard in the first place. “What d’ya think you are? A ghost?” Newt snapped, attempting to smooth down the loud bristle of his coat along the edge along his back remained licked up in a nature response now that he got a good look at her. Another dog, one that seemed fully merged into the wild, while he still remained mostly prim—chain collar and all. He assumed he must’ve been more a local then, in whatever dogcountry he’d stepped into.
With the initial jolt flushed from his system, he immediately began an attempt to close the space between them and become acquainted with her with his nose.
She cocked her head to the side, as she stared up at him. Then a wide grin crept onto her lips as she laughed. "I'll take it. I've been called worse," she stood and circled around him, sniffing his larger tan and black frame. Stopping at the odd metal contraption around his neck. "What in the hell is that thing?" She swatted it with her paw, making it jingle.
She poked his chest with her nose, noting mentally that he smelt of some artificial scent. "Hey, why you got a bear trap roundst your neck? Ain't it hurt?" She leaned back a bit, really studying him.
"You're a handsome one alright but you might wanna lose that bear trap. Might freak the ladies out." She tapped his collar with her paw once more, jingling it merrily.
Newt didn’t know his ‘accessory’ as a ‘collar’ but he sure hadn’t known life without the light chain against his neck. Occasionally it has been released for various reasons that his master had seen fit, and with the true loyalty of a pet, he’d never much thought to question it. But he knew enough about it to know it wasn’t a bear trap. So when the other dog assumed the worst of his necklace, he barked out a laugh of his own. Having leaned forward to capture his scent, he now pulled back in his fit of amusement.
“That ain’t no bear trap, if it were—Hell, I’d be hollering myself dead.” He began, not sure he thought it so funny anymore after giving it some more thought. He’d leave those nasty traps for the foxes and badgers, he done enough hunting in his short life to know better than that. “You ain’t got one. You must be a stray.” Thinking out loud more than anything, he tilted his head at her with the consideration she’d gone wild. But with all the scents he’d pick up, and the absent scent humans in the area, it became clear to him a lot of these dogs had gone stray.
“Where you staying at? You stay out here?” Was Newt’s next inquiry, wanting to prove something to his theory.
She stood, making herself taller. She didn't like the fact that he was laughing at her. Her ears flattened and her tail lashed angrily as she stared at him. "I don't know what in God's name a stray is but I suppose I am if it means I ain't got some stupid contraption roundst my neck."
"I live in a tree trunk, not too far from here," she told him. Her tree trunk was large and hollow, big enough for her and then some. Her ears twitched when she heard the other coming.
She turned, tail wagging to greet the newcomer. "Hi," she greeted as she sniffed the canine over. She squinted slightly, "You're not a dog. You're half wolf." It was just a fact, she didn't particularly care if the woman was a fox, she liked making friends.