Osprey jerked awake with a soft snort, grunted, rolled from her back to her side, then pushed herself into an upright position. Sticky, drying drool crusted her right cheek; although unable to see it, she felt it and lifted a crooked forepaw to rub at it. She then set her paw down and blinked her eyes (the right a deepening indigo, the left a glimmering aquamarine, each still tinged with bursts of cornflower blue) at her surroundings.
It was sometime between midnight and daybreak and the rendezvous site was dark and quiet. A gentle breath of wind soughed through the treetops, rustling the leaves and making them whisper like distant voices. Somewhere, spring peepers sang in the night. Nearby, crickets chirped. Closer still, her family's snores made Junior's ears twitch and she glanced at their still, shadowy shapes.
Deciding she needed to pee, the pup clambered to her feet and wandered from the clearing's western edge toward its center, moonlight now highlighting her onyx pelt. She found a patch of dirt and squatted to urinate. As she relieved herself, something in the woods made a soft snapping sound, not unlike the noise a bone made when Osprey's teeth cracked it in half. It was followed by another sound, a skittering and whisking that made Junior freeze.
Without even thinking about it, the wolf pup rose from her squat and padded toward the tree line opposite from where her family slept. She hesitated and was about to glance backward when she heard the scurrying noise in the underbrush again. Giving into instinct and impulse, she loped past the trees, away from the rendezvous site, in pursuit of whatever critter she heard frisking about in the dark.
Hi. Can I join in? I'm the newest member of the pack and haven't made a post yet... And I'm going after the Caretaker trade, so... yeah. (Also, her "aliens" are actually humans.) Also, sorry for any cursing. This character has a potty mouth. I'll change it if you want me to.
It was sometime during the middle of the night and she couldn't sleep. Damn insomnia, she thought to herself as she sighed and sat up. "I'm just trying to sleep," she muttered. "Brain, would ya shut up for once? God damn..." She sighed again and looked around. There was no point in trying anymore. The scary thoughts were flashing through her brain again. The thoughts about... aliens. And once those thoughts started, there was no going back - and there was no sleep that night. Especially not here, out in the open. At the moment, she was too weak to dig out a den.
She got up and decided to take a walk, hoping that might calm her nerves. Every little sound agitated her, until she felt close to tears and was completely stressed out. She began to think she could see them in the shadows, coming towards her with their long limbs and hairless bodies. With a whimper, she broke out into a run. Blindly, she charged through the trees without looking where she was going, begging the scary thoughts to go away. But being physically weak meant she couldn't run for long, and soon enough she skittered to a slow, staggering walk, cursing her lack of strength.
She continued onward, though, hoping she'd be able to stave off the thoughts until dawn, when the sunlight would dissipate her fears and she could finally get some sleep. And then it happened. Right in front of her, the underbrush began shaking and shifting and rustling. It looked as if something was coming toward her, a shadowy creature close to the ground. Her overactive imagination turned it into all manner of frightening creatures at once, and she went rigid with fear. She couldn't move. Her body was stuck in a morbid fascination. She had to know what it was, even as her brain screamed at her to run.
And then a puppy nosed its way through the last bush and came face-to-face with Nameless, who promptly yelled, "Fuck! You scared the shit outta me! Why don't you watch where you're going, you idiot!" Her brash, nonthinking attitude forced the words from her mouth without caring that she was talking to a pup. Angrily, she glared down her snout at the female, and then began stalking away from her, grumbling under her breath.
I don't mind at all. This should be fun. :)
Osprey found herself at an impasse where the undergrowth grew very thickly. Either unwilling to turn back or oblivious to the option, she slung her belly to the ground and crawled beneath a dense, brambly growth of shrubs, only to emerge on the other side like a rabbit leaping from its hole. Without realizing it, this movement brought her face-to-face with the source of the rustling sounds.
When the other wolf yelled, her ears lay back and she cringed away from the hot breath that washed over her face. Junior then straightened out and peered up at the larger wolf. Her initial, fearful reaction gave way to a fiercer variety of response as her hackles began to prickle and she bared her teeth. For all young Junior knew, this was a trespasser and, in any case, no one should speak to her, the plateau's
prince, like that!
"I's not idiot!" the child bellowed, unaware that both their voices might carry back to her sleeping family.
"You'sa idiot! You bad!" she added with the indignation bred into all entitled royal offspring, her tail sticking straight out like a poker and her mismatched eyes dancing furiously in the dark.
... So is Jr. gender confused? Because I'm - confused...
Nameless began to stalk away, now feeling hot irritation creeping through her fur and making her itch. But then the little booger decided to talk back to her, and she spun around to face the pup again. She smirked - and then began to laugh - at the young one's hilarious attempt at insulting her. She hadn't dealt with wolves younger than her in a long time, and had forgotten how utterly hilarious they could be. After her spout of laugher, she gave the pup a grin, her previous irritation forgotten.
Nameless - despite being young and crude - was naturally mothering. So what came out of her mouth next did not surprise her. First, she started with light teasing. "Oh, I'm bad? Hmm. I see. Well." She pretended to think for a moment, looking up at the sky, and then gazed at the pup again. "At least I'm old enough to be out here by myself." Now genuine worry pricked at her. "Why are you out, here, anyways? It's the middle of the night. Shouldn't you be sleeping in a den somewhere with your mother?"
Nameless looked around. "Where are they? Your family? Or your Caretaker? Or whatever? You want me to take ya home? It's not safe out here." She looked at the pup with absent affection - something she gave naturally to all children. As an afterthought, she grinned and said conspiratorially, "Oh, and don't tell anyone I used bad words in front of you, okay? And don't use them. You'll get in trouble if you do."
She thinks she's a boy. :)
The stranger turned back to face the belligerent pup and spoke to her. Osprey didn't pay much attention, for the most part. She continued to glare, her posture stiff and unyielding. She didn't answer any of the other wolf's many questions, nor crack a smile at her conspiratorial tone. Junior was far too busy still feeling slighted by the stranger's
gall.
"I'sa pwince! My daddy issa king! He bite you fo'... fo'... fo' yellin' mean stuff!" little Junior bellowed threateningly.
"Don't be mean!" she added and shook her head, not unlike a person might wag a finger in chastisement.
"You bad," she repeated a bit more quietly.
Nameless sighed as the pup continued to be angry instead of giving in the way she was expecting her to. "Okay. Fine. Whatever. Bye," she said, the irritation creeping back into her voice. "If you wanna stay out here by yourself, be my guest. I hope nothing comes along and eats you. Have fun!"
With that, she turned tail and continued on her way, glancing back once at the puffed up youngling. If the little thing didn't wanna be friends, then Nameless wasn't gonna give a shit about it. She had to go find somewhere safe to sleep. And yet - she didn't wanna leave the pup out here all by herself - even if she was being a pain the ass. So, she kept her walk slow, hoping maybe the little one would give up her irritating rant and want to go with her.
Osprey did go with her, in a sense; she jogged after the wolf's retreating form, stalking her like prey. The pup remained oddly silent as she crept, pausing when the other wolf turned around to look at her. She didn't know why she was doing it, she just felt a strange impulse to keep tabs on the foul-mouthed stranger.
Meanwhile, neither of the two noticed the Alpha male stalking them both, as he was doing a much better job at it than his young daughter. He moved stealthily through the darkness, keeping an eye on his wayward offspring as well as watching how Nameless (Peregrine couldn't stop pondering the irony of being named Nameless) behaved toward the plateau's self-proclaimed prince. He had arrived just in time to hear her asking the pup about her family's whereabouts and, so far, he was not very impressed by the would-be Caretaker.
Nameless continued on her way deeper into the forest, sighing as she heard the pup romping around behind her. But she was also glad. She would have stayed with the pup had she refused to move, and that would have irritated her. At least this way she could continue on her way and hopefully the pup would tell her where her family was.
Briefly, she had the strangest sensation of being watched, and it sent a shiver down her spine, but then the feeling was gone. She didn't see anything in the trees, and the wind didn't give anything away. She was being paranoid, and immediately forced herself to stop thinking about aliens again. Shrugging off the creepy feeling in her bones, she called to the pup, "So what's your name, anyways? I'm Nameless."
Even when the undergrowth on the forest floor tried to thwart her again, Osprey did not give up on her pursuit. Huffing and puffing, she struggled through the dense scrub, yanking her lengthening limbs through loops of foliage that snagged at her and brushing through branches that etched furrows into the soft black fur on her back. The adult occasionally gained some ground on her but Junior toiled relentlessly, always catching up again.
At some point, the other wolf acknowledged her again with a question. "I's Jun-yaw!" the pup answered without thinking, fumbling through some brambles. "Hewp!" she cried when she found herself badly snared. There was no fear in her voice, just impatience.
Peregrine's instincts screamed for him to reveal himself and to help his daughter. Yet, for the moment, he hung back, watchful and waiting, to see if Nameless would do better this round.
Sorry for the late reply. Been super busy lately! >.<
Nameless sighed in irritation as the pup called out, "Hewp" in the most adorable way ever. She turned to face her follower and saw that she had gotten caught in a patch of brambles and could not get out by herself. The pup stared at her with impatience etched into her face. Nameless rolled her eyes, wondering how the hell she was gonna get the pup out of this situation. She'd had a few experiences with bramble bushes, and she had never come away unscathed. Maybe she was just stupid and there was really a way to get out unharmed, but she had never found out what it was.
She approached the pup slowly, trying to think. "Um..." she began uncertainly. "Try backing up. If you can't get out by moving forward, maybe you'll be able to get out by just backing up out of the bush. But slowly, okay? Don't go ripping your fur off."
No worries at all. :)
Nameless backtracked, approaching slowly and ascertaining the pup caught in the snare of foliage. Osprey froze and looked up at her, then wriggled impatiently.
"Heeewp meeeee!" she wailed dramatically, causing her unseen father's ears to twitch violently backward.
The adult suggested she should try walking backward. Osprey blinked, then braced her hind paws and pulled her anterior half free. Despite Nameless's sound advice, she did it recklessly, causing branches and thorns to scrape the flesh beneath her midnight black fur. Junior barely noticed. She had never been a crybaby (Tytonidae and Saēna contended for
that role) and she was just happy to realize she'd set herself free.
"Fanks!" she yipped at Nameless, ears twisting. She then blinked up at the other wolf before idly turning her head and licking at a small wound on her shoulder.
Nameless grinned and gave a laugh at the pup's antics. And at the same time, she winced, watching as the little thing tore herself violently from the bush, brambles digging into her fur. But the pup didn't seem to notice at all. She twisted her ears and said, "Fanks!" And then began licking at something on her shoulder.
"You alright?" Nameless asked. "Did the brambles get your skin? You didn't do it slowly like I told you to." She sighed. "Oh well. Next time look at the bush before you charge into it, okay? What if I hadn't been here? What would you have done then? You would have been stuck here for who knows how long." She raised an eyebrow at the pup, and then decided she was done playing with her.
"Now you listen here, pup. I'm taking you home, wherever that might be. You tell me where your family is right now or I'll pick you up by the back of your neck and drag you along while I look for them myself. I just got into your pack, and I'm not gonna get kicked out for child neglect."
Nameless showed more concern for the pup's small injury than Osprey herself did. "I's okay," she promised between licks. When the she-wolf continued questioning her, her ears flicked and she paused and chirped, "I's yell weal woud! LIKE DIS!" and grinned impishly.
When Nameless threatened to scruff her, Osprey Jr. darted a few feet away and giggled. "Can' catch Jun-yaw!" she crowed, then broke into a run back the way they'd come, which was incidentally the direction of home.
It was also the direction in which her father lay. Smooth as you please, Peregrine emerged from the shadows to block his wayward daughter's path. His sudden appearance not only stopped her short, it scared the piss out of Osprey... literally. She felt warm water running down the insides of her legs as she squatted in fear. She quickly realized it was just her dad, which was a relief, but her heart pounded all the same. Was she in deep trouble?
"You're in deep trouble," Peregrine said as if reading his young pup's mind. Glancing upward, he made eye contact with Nameless over Osprey's head. "Thanks for corralling my little filly here," he said. "We haven't met properly. I'm Peregrine. You're Nameless, right?" The Alpha male paused, letting her answer, then bobbed his head. "I'd hang around and chat but we'll have to do it another time for probably obvious reasons."
Turning his attention to young Osprey again, Peregrine said crisply, "Come on, butthead." He waited for her to stand and start moving before he fell into step behind her. Before father and daughter disappeared back toward the rendezvous site, Peregrine glanced over an onyx shoulder and woofed to Nameless.
Last post from me, and then I'll request to have this archived. Thanks for the thread!
Nameless was just as surprised as Junior when the big black-coated male wolf came out from the bushes. Nameless jumped, and cursed herself for being so stupid that she couldn't even track other wolves properly. For a horrible moment, she thought something horrible was going to happen to her - or worse - to the pup. She suddenly squared her shoulders to gain her courage so that she could do what it took to protect the little girl, but then the male spoke to Junior... Spoke to her like a dad. When he looked up at her and thanked her, Nameless breathed a sigh of relief, feeling her limbs turn to jelly with relief.
"N... no problem," she said shakily. "You scared the shi-..." She mentally scolded herself, reminding herself that she was in the presence of a pup. She had cursed earlier, yes, but normally she was better around pups. Which was odd for her personality. She censored herself for no one - except children. It was her weakness, so to speak - her need to fulfill some sort of maternal instinct thing around children.
What she said instead was, "You scared me to death." After that, she and Peregrine (Junior's father) made introductions, and then she watched as Junior was corralled back the way they had come. Peregrine gave a woof of goodbye to Nameless, and then she was left alone in the creepy forest all by herself all over again. With no one to look after, she remembered how scared she had been before.
At this point, she was too tired to do anything about her fear, though. Instead, she found the most comfortable bush she could find, curled up underneath it as best she could, and fell into a shallow, fitful sleep.