Wolf RPG

Fishing had been something Chip had been doing a lot of lately. She'd wake up, sometimes earlier, sometimes later, and try to catch the buggers in the ocean. More often than not, she'd only get a mouthful of horrible saltwater. Occasionally, though, she'd manage to resurface with a big (or small) meaty fish, which made her feel very accomplished. She hadn't made any progress toward finding a place to stay, and she was looking rather scrawny these days. Her ribs were showing, especially after one of her many fishing expeditions.

For one reason or another, Chip had fallen asleep still wet after one such expedition, and currently lay in a pathetic state on the sand. She was shivering, even as she slept, and occasionally coughed in her sleep. If she didn't find some source of support soon, she was going to end up as dead as her sister.

Akantha felt no immediate urge to shadow Meteora constantly for her sister had amassed a respectable following upon her departure and subsequent journey from Themiscrya. She was not a mother hen; in fact, she was not even a mother. Now, there was a thought; that niggling feeling of worthlessness that sometimes crept up on her like the shadow of approaching dusk. She had not yet been Chosen by Her. 

The Siren snorted as she plodded down the slope to the beach. Her womb was strong and would bear fine daughters in time, she told herself. Meteora, as far as she knew, did not look upon her unfavorably and the Rites would resume as soon as they settled beside Her again.

Her ears switched forward towards a noise that her mind only registered a beat later as a cough. It was nearly drowned out by the roaring Sea, but her keen senses were tuned to the sweetsong of the ocean. This was not something that belonged. The swarthy she-wolf scanned the beach, eyes narrowed suspiciously as they fixated on a tawny lump of what was unmistakeably a wolf.

Akantha wasted no time in approaching. The strange female bore a queerly marked pelt which was stretched thin over bone and worn muscle. It was concerning, but unsurprising. Outsiders were foolish creatures, that reared foolish young. "Get up," she barked, reaching down to nose the she-wolf's hindquarters roughly with the bridge of her own muzzle. The Siren was unconcerned about the reaction this could garner. "Move."

Somebody said something, and Chip groaned. She hadn't really caught what was being said, or she might have had more interest in why somebody was barking out strange words at her. This, however, was quickly followed by somebody shoving her her hips rather roughly. Instinctively, Chip growled and air-snapped the perpetrator... not that she could actually fight anybody right now, but unwanted touching was downright rude.

"Fuck off!" Chip shot back, then let her head fall back onto the sand. It was comfier there. She would move later. When she felt better. That would be soon, right? Maybe she really should have been working on finding a place for the winter instead of dicking around (or rather, being dicked) the past few months. But she hadn't, and this was her sorry state.

The russet female lashed out verbally and clicked her teeth to ward Akantha away, but the Siren was having none of it. She pinned her ears and looked out across the shores for signs of any others but, blessedly, no one else was in need. Not that she had a quota to fill or anything, but a good deed went a long way when She was involved, and this was more than enough to satiate any philanthropic duty required of Her. 

In short: Akantha was not at all emotionally invested in this.

She turned and spotted a tidepool a bit further down the beach. It was there she chanced upon a decently sized morsel of food. The discarded half of a salmon. Likely the victim of one of the local sea lions. The flesh was a bit pale from time spent in the sea, but it did not smell or look inedible. At least to the someone in as poor of a condition as the stranger.

Akantha picked it up gingerly and trotted back to the woman. She deposited the half-eaten, wave-buffeted, sand-coated meal in front of Chip's nose and stared expectantly.

Chip was left in peace once more, and her breathing went back to its normal rate. Her eyes fluttered closed, and she drifted back to sleep. The soft sound of the waves was soothing, and even though the ground was cold and her fur was wet, she found comfort there. She was in that strange half-asleep state when she heard the "plop," followed by the sudden smell of food. If there was one thing that would wake her up, that was it.

Groaning and pushing herself up onto her elbows, she gave the dark wolf a wary glance before tearing into the already half-eaten fish. Having been on the coast for a few months now, she had begun to prefer fish to warm-blooded meals. It wasn't long before the salmon was gone, and Chip licked her lips. She felt marginally better, though she had a feeling that this was no "free" meal.

"Thanks," she said, eyeballing the dark wolf once again. There would be no apology for the snap or sharp words she had delivered earlier.

Akantha did not sit back as she watched Chip tear into the meal, but she did give the small she-wolf some breathing room by taking a few steps back. She passed the minutes watching the Sea as Her waves rolled into the shore with an intense expression, as if trying to understand a particularly confusing passage in a scripture. Perhaps that wasn't so far off. She was conflicted, but the occasional crunch of meat and viscera kept her mind firmly rooted to her body. 

It didn't take long for the remains to vanish completely, leaving the young female looking a little less weatherworn. Akantha turned and offered her a measured look. She was quiet for a prolonged moment as she weighed her options, but finally replied in a strained version of the common tongue. "Are you alone by choice?" she asked and it was clear from the conflict in her eyes that she was choosing her words very carefully.

Choice was a funny word, Chip thought as she used her tongue to dislodge a morsel of salmon from between her teeth. "Something like that," she replied, and Chip had a feeling she knew what would come next. Either an invitation to stay or an invitation to get the fuck out of here. To be perfectly honest, she wasn't sure which one she would prefer at this juncture. Staying would likely mean swearing some sort of oath to serve and protect, while leaving would probably mean barely scraping by. Considering she'd done the latter for the past few months... maybe it was time to switch things up.

"You recruiting or something?" she asked.

Akantha wrinkled her nose. Who would choose solitude? She knew some outsiders lived an entirely nomadic life, as the Nereides once did, but to do so alone was almost... heartbreaking? Or did she simply lack the confidence and strength of will to believe such a thing possible for herself. It was unclear and something Akantha was not like to ruminate on further. 

She shifted her weight, paws sinking a bit into the damp sands. "There is room," she answered, albeit cryptically. She was not particularly keen on sharing the inner-workings of the Nereides society to someone who might prove untrustworthy, and Akantha was not a particularly good judge of character to begin with. But the poor russet female was clearly struggling, and it played to her basic instinct to protect and nurture the female side of their species. 

"The Sea provides so long as you keep an open mind." She settled on. It was simple, without being too preachy. Akantha hated preachy.

That was enough of an answer for Chip. Considering this lady had just tossed food at her face, she did feel a slight obligation to return the favor in some way. "The Sea" was mentioned again, as a Very Proper Noun. It was not the first time Chip had heard somebody talk about it in such a way, and she smirked, remembering her very funny (to her) pun. Alas, she wouldn't reuse the same joke on this poor soul.

"Ah, yeah," she replied, "I met another couple of you awhile back. Meteora and her… dude… friend." The relationship between those two had seemed a bit strained, at the very least. They hadn't really seemed on good terms with each other, exactly. Chip had found her to be pretty uptight and a little weird, but then again, maybe Meteora had found Chip to be stupid and super weird. "So y'all really like the ocean?"

The Sea is an Extremely Proper Noun thank you very much Akantha would say if she knew what Chip was thinking. But instead Akantha was left with even more questions when the young female mentions Meteora of all wolves. She bites her tongue as the russet she-wolf struggles with defining what Astraios is to them. She's learned recently from her interactions with the locals that some strangers find their opinion of males very... discriminating. Even something to be mocked. It inflames her ire to no end.

Her ears switch back briefly when Chip casually remarks on their affinity with the Sea and, for just a second, anger flashes across her features and her blood rises. She is aware enough to remind herself, however, that the young she-wolf is simply uninformed and blind to the truth of her existence. The dark Siren smiled, but it didn't reach her eyes. "Something like that." She replied. "The Sea is a driving force of the world around us and we honor that." Perhaps Chip would come around with some teaching or, perhaps not. "We are teachers and, if you are willing to learn, you will never want for anything again."

Chip had her doubts (a whole lot of them), but she wasn't exactly in the position to negotiate. This one and Meteora seemed pretty gung-ho about the ocean, and Chip was perceptive enough to realize that they were touchy about it… and lacked a sense of humor. That didn't mean that Chip was going to change the way she behaved around them, of course.

"Yeah, okay. Where do I sign up?" she asked. Was she "in" just by showing interest in not dying? Chip couldn't care less about the ocean, though she had grown fond of living near it—not to mention the delicious fishes! But hey, if these folks were willing to give her a chance, she'd do the same.

Akantha wasn't entirely sure that Chip was worth her salt, but she knew it was better to offer her a chance than to simply walk away. She wouldn't feel right leaving the woman, even if she wasn't a Sister, to her fate. So she was oddly glad when Chip agreed to her offer. There was a world of possibilities open to her now and, selfishly, Akantha imagined this would be a good way to build upon the mistakes of her past. 

She grinned and waved her tail in a wide arch. "I've already offered you a place. You are welcome among us." She hoped, beyond hope, that this didn't backfire. "Our meeting place changes often as we scout suitable territories but the majority of our numbers are congregated in the fields southeast of here. I can take you there, or you can seek them out on your own." She paused, realizing that she should give the younger wolf her name before sending her off towards the many maws of the Nereides. "My name is Akantha."

"Oh, duh," Chip replied sheepishly. It sounded like these ladies were still pretty wishy-washy (haha, water puns), but Chip didn't mind. She was pretty wishy-washy herself, so maybe she would fit right in after all.

The wolf finally introduced herself, and Chip figured it was probably a good idea to return the favor now that she was sorta kinda part of their unofficial little group. Well, she assumed it was a little group. For all she knew, there were dozens of wave worshippers awaiting to welcome her into the fold.

"I'm Chipmunk; Chip for short." She paused to consider the offer Akantha had proposed, wondering if it would be better to find the place on her own or follow the dark wolf back to the group. "I guess I'll tag along with you," she replied. "And, uh, sorry for being such a bitch to you at first. I get cranky when I'm half-starved." Chip gave Akantha an apologetic look, then allowed her new comrade to lead the way "home."