all welcome!
Rumors told of ghosts wandering these wetlands. Raheerah didn't believe in ghosts, just as he didn't believe in good intentions, heroism or love. He believed in immortality and Gods, but only those he could see. Lham was his only immortal, and he knew that she was one of them. She was modest, for she occupied a body crippled and broken, but he had always attributed that to fate. He was meant to be among her most loyal dogs. He had been lured to her, by her form of tempting, a form that would incite a violent hunger in him. She must have known of his nature and her unwillingness to die that day had been enough to convince him. She was wily, but Raheerah appreciated it that much more.
At times, he wondered if he, too, could ascend into the realm of immortality. If he served his Lham well enough, would she grant him that power? Could he wield it as gracefully as she, could he don it when her soul left this mortal plane? That was to assume Raheerah would exist after she had abandoned her body. He would follow her obediently where ever she went, he knew this. And he wondered if he would appear in places where there existed wolves who believed in ghosts.
The dragon skirted along the edge of the wetlands. His massive form lingered where the land was still dry. The soil beneath his paws was wet, carrying the moisture of long-melted snow from the winter past, but the brackish waters that lapped at the grasses were held at bay. Trees creaked quietly in the warm afternoon and songbirds trilled among their slowly replenishing branches. Raheerah had come here purely to snoop, and he was more than eager to know what he could find.
I'm jumping in i hope that's okay :) trying to get the 10 threads in 10 different territories and I am also shock full of muse for Blue :D...let's see how this goes since she stands for everything he does not believe in lmao. Now her family was a story teller and as I find your scarring fascinating...is it alright if i play that she heard stories of some kind of those who wore the dragon tattoo? I can edit it if needed and you don't like it.
Blue Willow flitted from one end of the area to the other. She was getting incredibly desperate to find some herbs for the pregnant females in her pack. It was starting to weigh on her every whim. That's all she could think about, especially for Pied as much pain as she was in. She knew very well that she still had time, but as a traveler and healer she also knew time was miniscule when it came to the art of healing.
She was near some wetlands, she did not think there could be anything here that she could use, but one could never know. She may even meet some other healers, healers that could help her perhaps share stock if she agreed to share her's as well. She was sniffing at the grass and trees and the wet ground, looking but not confident that she would find anything.
She was so intent upon her search she almost did not notice the brutish male that was in front of her a ways, she took in the scarring on his face and her blood ran cold. She had heard stories whispered at night by her father of the one marked with the dragon tattoo. He was rumored to be evil and heartless and she was now standing near him. It was too late she was certain he had already heard her, as she had not been neither careful nor stealthy in her walking. So she stood still and watched him to see if he would speak, perhaps they were just that stories and he really was nothing like this.
so i was just informed that Blue Willow helped Xi'nuata return to nsv after an injury and Raheerah most likely saw her, but he was probably hangin' out in the shadows being all creepy or something. so P:
And discover something he did, for as he turned his gaze through the marshy trees he noticed a shadow among them. Raheerah paused, narrowing his eyes. It certainly was not the ghostly white witch he had encountered near his borders, nor the white woman that traipsed over them not long ago; the creature he had spied did not carry the stench of the Creek, but rather the pack he had turned his attentions away from recently. The Plateau. Still, their aroma spawned an agitation in his brain at the memory of their leader's mistreatment of him and his companions. Lashing his tail to and fro, the dragon held her gaze, finding a pair of green eyes to which his own scarlet sight transfixed.
A slow rumble began to emanate from his chest. It was curiosity now. What was she doing so far from her home? As he recalled, he was nearing Creek territory, and his intentions had been to scour the wetlands for any information he could grasp on their neighbors. The beast slowly began to step towards her, maintaining an almost sluggish pace. Without access to the dragon's thoughts, it could easily be interpreted as a predatory stalking, a creature hungrily advancing on his prey. But Raheerah carried only curiosity about her, signaled by the intrigued lashing of his tail behind him.
Yes lol I think he was the one who came to escort her home. He was being all creepy in the shadows too :P
Blue Willow saw him coming towards her and cursed herself 50 different ways for not being more vigilant. She was wary, and a little fearful as he looked as if he was about to attack with his gait and his tail lashing behind him. She knew he had no right to attack her here on neutral ground, but he still could and the stories she had heard of him it made her shudder. She shifted again and readied herself for perhaps a battle for her life one that she intended to win.
She decided to approach with a friendly neutral manner, keeping her fear hidden though he could probably smell some of it, though she knew how to keep that hidden after all she was a story teller's daughter and had traveled much her life, you learn skills you didn't even realize you knew.
She spoke as he got closer "Hello I am Blue Willow from Plateau. that was all she said though normally talkative, she deduced that this time it would be best to keep her talkativeness to a minimum
yup!! that sounds like him! hahah
Surprisingly, instead of turning tail, the woman chose to approach him as well. Her movements towards him caused Raheerah to slow his pace, pausing even with one paw hovering above the earth still. It was only a momentary interim before he resumed his pace, ignorant of whatever courage she decided to strike up in that moment. Though, maybe it wasn't courage - maybe it was a desperate attempt to stall him, or to make him into less of a frightening predator and more of company. She blurted out her name and origin, which prompted the dragon to carve a ghastly smile into his jaws and pour forward a slimy chuckle.
"Aaand forr whaat reeeason is aa doogg froomm the Plateaauu waandering so faar from hoome." He eyed her with mild amusement, raising himself up to his full height. If not for his height, he could have been mistaken for a shadow cast across the ground. But even then, the oil of his fur reflected the sunlight in minute glaring rays that would betray him still. He fixed his single eye on her, rolling over her stature and the details of her form, which would suggest the woman was fairly healthy. Though he aimed to be intimidating, he truly was curious about her presence here. He'd come searching for Creek wolves and ended up stumbling upon one from the southern plateau, the least he desired was an explanation.
Blue Willow frowned at his calling her of a Dog. She was a wolf not a dog, she knew that this could be a huge insult if spoken by others and it caused most of the rest of her fear to leave her. She opened her mouth and spoke quietly "This Wolf is here on Neutral ground looking for Herbs. I am a healer.
His unnatural fur and one lolling eye made her a little ill and usually deformities did not bother. Her Perhaps it was the way he had gotten it that bothered her if the stories were to be true. Or maybe it was her fear finding a new way to manifest, but she was not sure. However, she was now a little irritated at his words and he did not intimidate her anymore than he would. She did however not pose in a threatening way, she continued to keep herself in neutral position neither subordinate nor dominate.
She took special care towards designating herself as a wolf, and Raheerah cracked his lips into another ghastly grin, entertained. He could remember seeing her before, and as she spoke of being a healer, he recalled the day that Xi'nuata had been escorted back to the Vale by this woman. Yes, it was her, wasn't it? He took a closer look at her, turning his head slightly to hold the entirety of her image within his single-eyed gaze. He didn't know her name back then, but she had offered it earlier. Blue Willow. That was the name of the woman that had helped Xi'nuata; had she seen him, lingering the shadows? Watching and ensuring the safety of his light?
"Yooouu wwere quiite caapaable iin nurrssing my liiight." He began, speaking forth immediately from the stream of thoughts that had ran through his head. Raheerah stood straighter, rolling back his shoulders before he sunk onto his haunches. Despite knowing this woman had helped Xi'nuata, he would still more than readily tear into her if given reason and opportunity; however, at the moment, they seemed to share a common ground, and so he relaxed himself. "Sheee faaares weelll." The dragon huffed. Still, his opinion of the Plateau wolves would not change - but maybe this woman would prove her worth to him further.
Blue Willow saw him study her closer and for a moment she wondered why. As she thought on in though she remembered the day she had helped the other female back to her home, there had been a wolf in the shadows, skulking about. She wondered if it had been him, he proved this idea when he spoke next.
His drawl was strange and she wondered at it, was it from where he fared or was it because he had been wounded so many times, she could easily see the scars that crisscrossed all over his body. "Your Light. I apologize, but she never offered me her name, which is fine. I was happy to help her. She was even more surprised as he sat down and she allowed a ghost of a smile and she also sat down, though she was still wary, and she was certain given the chance he could and perhaps still would fly into her. "I am glad she fare's well. All the thorns are gone? I was extremely concerned for her eye, she has no problems with it?
He was caught off guard by the woman's eagerness to follow up with Xi'nuata's condition. He hadn't really expected her to care at all for the woman, just as Raheerah held little concern for wolves outside of his pack. But he supposed such fools were prone to extending their kindness as far as it could reach under the false hope that it may bring them fortune. He'd known fools like that; the monk was like that, and how many loyal dogs did he have baying at his heels? None any more. They all belonged to the dragon now; all warriors within his faction. Kindness was no virtue; it was a trap, a waste of time at best.
Raheerah grunted, thinking back to when he had to pluck the thorns from his light's fur. "Shhheee iiiss weeelll." He repeated, finding no need to elaborate further on her health. As far as he was concerned, if her eye wasn't bulging out of her head or bleeding, it was fine. She hadn't told him of any concerns she had, anyways. "Yoouu saaay yoou aare a heeaaler. Whaat dooees thiiis entaaiil." Raheerah pointed his nose at her, staring down his muzzle at the female with curiosity. He imagined she would have the same duty as the clerics, but considering the Vale's significant lack of clerics, he wanted to know what the lands outside of his valley could offer. Perhaps he could find somebody out here to serve as a cleric for the fighters of the Vale.
If Blue Willow was not eager to get anything in return for helping others. She just did her best to treat any and all with the kindness belonging to them. She would like to think that she would get the same treatment from other's if she was to treat them nicely.
Blue Willow frowned at his question in contemplation. "Well I suppose it's different for each healer for me I tend to the wounded, the sick as best I can. I take great care in learning the herbs and plants that can help and heal. I know how to bind wounds, and broken bones. I have been among others while having pups and served as a mid wife. I also am always looking to extend my knowledge of healing arts so that I can do my best when the time comes to heal whatever life throws at me." She figured that was the best answer she could give, she was always learning she would never be conceited enough to say that she knew everything about healing, there was always something new to learn.
So her duties mimicked those of the clerics. He imagined that her role would be the same as well; to remain close within the pack borders and tend to whomever was brought to her. But seeing as the packs of the Wilds were not at war with one another (at least not yet) there would be no need to quarantine the medics to the safety of their own pack. That would explain why she was out here hunting for herbs. He eyed her, pondering; could she tell that the beast was in thought, or did it simply come off as an unnerving stare? He didn't care, temporarily consumed by his thoughts.
After a moment's silence, he rose up to his paws again, discreetly stretching his limbs while standing tall before the woman. A second time he looked her up and down, before he uttered a grunt and rolled his shoulders. "Ii seeee." He boomed lowly, drawing his lips back into an unsettling sneer. "Yoouu aare a treeaat. Iii aaaam Raaheeeraah of thhe Vaaaale." The dragon added, certain to include his origin so she would know well where to find him. "Pleeaase, feel weelcoome to viisiit. Uuuntiiiil theeen."
He had not yet ascertained any intention for the healer, but he had come to recognize her use. And with the dwindling number of clerics within the Vale, it may become of urgency to find somebody with Blue Willow's knowledge. Raheerah sent her a lasting glance before he turned away, continuing on his trek through the wetlands.
exit Raheerah!
THank you for the post :D
Blue Willow was slightly unnerved at his stare, but she did not find it too disconcerting at the moment. It may very well just be due to the disastrous injuries to his face, that he looked as if he was leering.
Blue Willow dipped her head, "Well Met Raheerah. She would have to remember his name, she did not know of the Vale, it must be another pack. She tucked the knowledge away, making sure to find a day to ask Peregrine or Hawkeye if they knew of it. She wanted to tell her father the dragon's name, for when he whispered stories of the other in front of her. But she did not know when she would see him again if ever.
She watched him go, with a slight shudder the large imposing beast still made her nervous. One more look back she began to trek towards home, losing interest in searching for herbs today.