She perched patiently on the shore, amber eyes watching the fish drifting in the shallows. They looked fat and juicy, largely unaffected by the famine plaguing the terrestrial wildlife. For the longest time, none of them came anywhere near close enough for Wildfire to attempt a strike, especially given that she was no expert fisher. But her patience eventually thinned, the desperation of horrible hunger snapping it. Abruptly, she lunged toward a small school of bluegills in the crazy hope that she would miraculously snatch one.
The fish scattered rapidly and the she-wolf stood there, blinking water out of her eyes and staring down at the now cloudy water swirling around her ankles. She felt a flash of heat across her back, a mixture of panic and anger at the desperation of the situation, and found herself fighting tears as she backed onto the nearby bank again.
Sadie felt hunger tear at her sides as she moved along, for the food on land wasn't sustaining her. However, her spirit was never killed off. She remained faithful, knowing Calypso would bring back the food after the plague. After Sadie would cleanse not only herself, but the land.
But that wasn't the upmost important thing on her list. What mattered was getting a meal before starving. So, she had treked quite awhile out of home before finding banks of a river. She sensed another wolf nearby, but paid no attnetion to it. Seeing how the fish were practically coming closer to the shallow, Sadie wasted not time trotting along the bank, unknowingly closer to Wildfire.
With her eyes locked onto a target, Sadie stopped in her path. A large fish, swimming slowly was closest to her. Sadie, feeling her stomach move her over her brain, pushed Sadie to snap. Her attempt was a success. Her lightning muzzle wrapped around the large and fat fish. She didn't know the exact name or expecies, but she knew it was just big.
With a loud cackle escaping her throat, Sadie quickly ended the fish after it struch her a few times in the face and nose. The scent of fresh killed meat wafted around the air, and Sadie began to tear away scales and go right in for the meat. She counted herself lucky, knowing not many had a chance like her to catch fish and be successful.
The arrival of another wolf served to distract Wildfire from a potential breakdown. Her head flicked, amber eyes watchful as the other female roamed the bank, clearly paying close attention to the water. When she stopped and then expertly darted at one of the shadows in the shallows, then retreated onto the bank with a fat fish in her teeth, Wildfire's heart squeezed in despair. The stranger made it look so damn easy.
The strong smell of fish blood made her empty stomach clench too. She wondered if there was any possibility of wresting the catch from the brown she-wolf. But Wildfire wasn't that desperate just yet, so she just watched from afar, frustrated and envious, her ears quivering with every slurp and snap of brittle bones.
Cleaning up the last bits feverishly, Sadie looked at the bones of the fish. It was a gift, and she used every part of it, even the eyes. Deciding to leave the brittle bones there with the scales, Sadie finally took a bigger notice to the unknown.
The girl looked quite sour, most likely angry that she had no kill when Sadie was full.
she felt pity for the other. Sadie went hungry for most of her life, and it wasn't a nice feeling. With the tiniest bit of compassion, she started to make her way over with a neutral stance.
"having trouble?" She asked. Sadie couldn't help but smile at the misfortune of the girl. She was a pirate, she smiled at cruelty and others misery.
Sadie kept making her way over, her grin never fading. "Fishing isn't easy" she said. she would understand if the wolf didn't want Sadie in her presence, everyone was on edge with the famine. "I can help ye catch somethin'" she offered, wondering if her small act of kindness would be taken. if this wasn't taken, Sadie would be sure to give her hell.
Part of her secretly hoped the she-wolf would notice and take pity on her, perhaps share her catch, yet that didn't happen. It was was probably just as well; accepting charity from perfect strangers didn't sit right with Wildfire. She expected the other woman to take off after polishing off her repast, yet instead she turned and jogged over to the yearling. The piteous way she looked at her didn't feel too great, nor did her simpering tone. But pride be damned. This was a famine and Wildfire needed all the help she could get when it came to obtaining food.
Not bothering to ask how the stranger knew she was struggling so badly with fishing, Wildfire simply replied, "If you have any pro-tips, I'm all ears." Yes, fine-tuning her skills would serve her far better than accepting any handouts. "You know what they say: give a wolf a fish and you feed him for a day. Teach a wolf to fish and you feed him for a lifetime." She paused, then added, "I'm Wildfire, by the way."
Welp, she was open for tips at least. The yearling, Wildfire, then spoke of a quote. Sadie agreed, though didn't really pay attention. All she knew was that she was being asked for help.
"
tips? How about a full lesson"? She asked, her from never once fading. "
I be Sadie, apart of a pack around here". She looked down at the stream, seeing small schools swim by with ease.
she turned to wildfire and motioned her to come a bit closer. "
The trick be to wait when one comes close enough to grab it quickly" she spoke, waiting patiently for a bigger fish to swim by.
"
ye can be starving for years, but ye don't get anywhere without patience to wait" she said, having to have taught herself that lesson. Fishing was somewhat natural for her, mostly since she grew up on the ocean side.
Sadie stood still, feeling minutes tick by slowly until light shines upon her. seeing another fish come closer, her muzzle soon sank into the water as she grabbed a smaller but still fufilling fish. It flopped around frantically until Sadie put it out of its misery.
she turned to wildfire and motioned to the stream. "
It be okay if ye don't get it the first time" she reassured her.
ooc : roll
here
Same difference, Wildfire thought to herself, shrugging a shoulder and nodding when the stranger repeated her offer. She introduced herself in the next breath and the yearling immediately caught onto the peculiar lilt of her voice. It was familiar, somehow, though she couldn't quite place it at the moment. Nonetheless, she enjoyed it, as she usually did with foreign accents.
The younger of the two expected some sort of detailed lesson plan, yet it seemed she would get (another) demonstration first. Sadie caught a second fish just as smoothly as the first, causing another jolt of envy to squeeze Wildfire's innards. She almost whined under her breath at the unfairness of it all. Then again, Sadie had surely practiced quite a lot to become such a masterful fisher.
Sadie looked to her, as if expecting Wildfire to give it another try. "Um," she said a bit awkwardly, shifting her weight. "Could you show me what you did? Exactly? Because from where I'm standing, you just reached in and that fish swam right into your mouth." Of course, that wasn't true, but Sadie made it look just that easy and effortless. If Wildfire hoped to learn anything, she would need some more detailed instructions—or at least several dozen more practical demonstrations.
Sadie looked towards Wildfire as she was asked for a more direct lesson. She wanted to know what she did, exactly. Well, Sadie could do that.
wildfire's compliment made the wench cackle about and look at the yearling. "It may look effortless, but it be a tough task." She commented, then stepping back and still looking at the stream.
"ye must look for the right fish first, not just jump" she instructed, looking towards Wildfire.
she could see a school of smaller, quicker fish swim along. She motioned to the school. "Those fish aren't good mate, they 'r too quick" she said, hoping wildfire was digesting the info.
she turned to another, smaller squad of fish. They were a bit bigger and coming closer to the shore.
"those bigger fish are slower" she said. "Walk e bit closer wild, and then wait for 't to come as close as possible" she said, following her own instructions.
"when it gets close enough, dive ye muzzle into the water n' snatch it up" she said, offering a demonstration in the air to not disturb the water. "Look" she said, motioning to another fish coming closer. "That be ye target wild".
Everything Sadie said made sense. Wildfire found herself wondering if she was part of a pack. Recruiting members into Sleeping Dragon was pretty much the furthest thing from her mind, what with the famine, but if this woman could help keep them fed... Wildfire licked her lips and shifted her weight, trying to pay attention to the lesson as Sadie pointed out variable targets.
"See," the yearling replied when Sadie instructed her to wait for the fish to venture closer, then snatch one, "that's the part that's way easier said than done." All the same, she was willing to give it another try. She felt the other wolf's eyes on the back of her neck as she inched closer to the water's edge, amber eyes tracking the movements of the various fish.
Sadie's voice actually startled her out of her concentration. She darted rather wildly and, of course, missed her mark. She ended up causing a huge splash, muddying the waters and causing the fish to scatter. She backpedaled, sputtering a little, and shook her head at herself. Wildfire was a fairly adept small game hunter, yet it was pretty clear she wasn't going to become much if a fisher, at least today.
"I suck at this," she said a bit ruefully, huffing a hollow laugh. She sat heavily, biting back another sigh as she offhandedly asked, "So, where are you from anyway?"
Well, she didn't make any progress. Sadie watched as Wildfire missed once more, her tactic a bit messy. Perhaps she scaed the girl out of concentrating? Sadie, seeing no fault in her own action, blamed Wildfire inside of her head. She needed to block out the noise better, not just be startled by the slightest noise.
The yearling's words could only make her cackle as she began to eat some parts of her fish that she caught. It was hard waiting for fish, it was a game of patience. Sadie didn't have much patience, but she could sure as hell act like a saint when food was short. She grinned crookedly at Wildfire. "It be a game of patience 'Fire" she said, chucking a piece of torn fish towards her.
She paid no attention to the girl's comment, only cackling more to herself. Her ears did perk up at the question of her origin. She looked up and pointed her muzzle to the Sanctuary. "I be home from a sanctuary not too far from 'ere" she said, turning back to face Wildfire. "What about yeself?" she asked with curiosity, her head tilted in the slightest. Wildfire looked like a wolf who belonged strictly on land, just from seeing her fishing skills. Perhaps something that couldn't catch fish was meant to be on land rather than near the sea.
Wildfire tried really hard not to look pitiful as she watched Sadie tuck into her meal, though when the morsel was tossed her way, she wasn't above snatching it from the ground and quickly swallowing it. "Oh," she said as it slid down her throat, nose wrinkling slightly, "that's not very good." But beggars couldn't be choosers, could they? "But, uh, thank-you?" It came out as a question, since she didn't know if Sadie had chucked it at her out of pity or playfulness.
She was from someplace called the sanctuary, which didn't ring any bells. But all of a sudden, she remembered running into that scrawny coyote hybrid with the queer accent. It was a lot like Sadie's. Wildfire grimaced at the memory of watching him disappear beneath the waves. She had felt so strange and helpless. Idly, she wondered if Sadie's sanctuary was synonymous with his cabin. After all, how many wolves were running around with that strange accent and a penchant for cackling?
But she did not bring him up, since the memory was still such a peculiar one. Instead, she answered Sadie's question by saying, "I'm from a pack a little north of here, called Sleeping Dragon." Wildfire paused, considering something. "I don't know where you were headed when you ran into me but I wouldn't go any farther north or east from here. Drageda doesn't take kindly to strangers lurking near the territory." It was a warning, yes, but a friendly one.
On that note, there wasn't much reason to linger here much longer, seeing as she had given up on fishing for the day. "Thanks for taking the time to show me the ropes," the yearling said, jerking her head to nibble at a sudden itch on her bony left shoulder, then standing again. "I'll keep practicing," she assured Sadie, although she was sure the other she-wolf wasn't particularly invested. "But I'd better head back now," she finished, offering a thin, hungry smile before pivoting and loping back in the direction of the volcano.
Instead og being the ass she normally was, Sadie could tell that the girl was lacking a bit of meat on her. It was not out of pity that she threw meat towards her, but the tiny thing of... compassion. She laughed a bit when Wildifre didn't favor the taste. Although fish wasn't always good, it was better than nothing. She only gave her a crooked smile.
Sadie's question was answered, for Wildfire belonged to a pack called Sleeping Dragon. What a strange name to the pirate's ears, but maybe she was the weird one around here... Drageda? What a strange term. Well, that was a piece of info that Sadie didn't mind having. She could only dip her head in thanks towards the lass, happy to hear a nice warning about lurking too close to the land.
Hearing Wildfire's closing words to their conversation, Sadie only agreed and bid her a farewell. Seeing the yearling run off towards her home, Sadie turned back to go and take the rest of her fish back home.