Luck smiled on the young traveller again, when she arrived at the foot of Sleeping Dragon. The barren area in the beginning did not strike Dwinn as something of value, but after sensing the warmth of the earth in the vicinity, she was urged to explore. And lo and behold - not only she found a plot of geysers, where she could revel in the warm, humid air, but also tracks and trails left by small rodents.
She managed to catch two rats and so strong was her hunger that she gulped them down, almost not chewing them at all. The third managed to escape and for the time being she decided against pursuing it. Instead she chose the best place to lie down and rest her tired paws. In the warmth of the hot water springs, she closed her eyes and enjoyed a moment of rest.
Life was good again.
She was unassuming, with eyes closed and body vulnerable amongst the mist. The man thought for a moment before approaching. He didn't wish to scare the female, rather make her aware of his presence. Vagar had traveled a day's worth to reach these geysers. He was told about them by a kind passerby. The stranger was right, this heat felt marvelous. Closer he walked, making sure to keep a respectful distance while simply clearing his throat. A sort of, 'I'm here too', without saying so.
He was was much larger than her, especially while she lay down. Vagar figured it would be polite if he too lowered himself to relax on the ground, and so he did.
Dwin drifted in and out of sleep. The downside of being outside the protection her home offered, was the necessity to always be aware of her surroundings. Nothing bad had happened to her yet, but her instincts still told her to be careful. Sometimes, when she was in a particularly homesick mood, she listed all the things she missed from Brecheliant. And having a hearty nap, preferably besides one of her family members, without the worry of being taken advantage of while sleeping, was in the top three.
No one had managed to sneak upon her up until now (the encounter with the alien did not count), but she missed the arrival of the dark-furred wolf. It was a bit of a shock to see the figure of a man taller than her seemingly materialize out of the fumes and for a good moment she stared at him wide-eyed, frozen on the spot, while her mind decided the next plan of action. "Hello!" she decided to engage in a conversation, because time for running away had been missed. Dwin calculated correctly that it would not take the man much effort to hunt her down, if he so desired.
"Do you happen to live here?" she asked. "Am I intruding?"
“No. I’m just here to warm up.”
His warm gaze met her’s. Striking eyes of a light green, it reminded him of a fruit he had seen hanging from a tree once. Vagar smiled tiredly as he rested his head on his paws. She seemed like a nice girl. He took a moment to reflect on why he chose a spot only yards away from her. He’d been on his own for so long, perhaps it was his subconscious admitting to a hidden feeling of loneliness. One he didn’t even fully realize. Or maybe he felt he could watch her back while she slept for a short time. Time alone in this area taught him some hard lessons.
“I’m Vagar. Let me know if I’m being a bother.” A knee jerk reaction as his sisters would most definitely tell him to buzz off and leave them to their lounging.
"Sure, no problem. Plenty of space for everyone," Dwin shrugged, though in her mind she had got the best one. It was right next to a bubbling pit of boiling water. Here not only fumes warmed the air, but the sand and ash covered ground as well was nice and cozy.
She yawned and looked him up and down. The fellow was almost as old as Val had been, which made her trust him more easily than the rugged warrior she had met few days earlier. He was good looking, but a little worn out too. This earned Vagar another point in the list of reasons to stay and continue talking with him. They had at least two things in common.
"Nice to meet you, Vagar! What brings you here? Where are you from?" she asked.
He nodded at her gracious words, relieved he could take a small break while on his way to nowhere in particular. It wasn’t long before Vagar felt his defenses drop, muscles relax, and eyes grow heavy. He shut them briefly, feeling them burn with the dryness that winter air brings. “Thank you.” Vagar met her gaze once more as he curled into a tight ball, his rather long tail flopping over his snout. There was something comforting about the sleeping position for him, had been ever since childhood.
The female spoke again, breaking his zoned out state which was for a moment focusing on the bubbling pool next to her. “I’m just wandering.” He replied in a matter of fact manner. The man lifted his muzzle to rest on top of his fluffy tail instead of hiding below it. He felt bad he wasn’t better at entertaining company and so thought of something to ask her. “What is your name? Do you live around here?” A gust of wind blew warm fumes into his face from the geyser nearest him. He quite liked it. The chill of air mixed with the warmth of the earth.
Dwin noticed that the guy was tired and did not have much intention of keeping the conversation going. Still he replied and she appreciated that.
"Name's Dwin and I am wandering too," she told him.
"I see that you want to rest - sleep away, I will keep an eye open for you," she suggested, though it was quite possible that she would fall asleep as well, while doing so. Come to think of it - she did not have much of inspiration at the moment either. Seeing him there enjoying a well-deserved rest, made her realize the extent of her own exhaustion.
We can let them sleep and have a time-jump in the next posts.
Vagar smiled at Dwin and offered a courteous nod before letting his head rest once more underneath his tail. It was sweet of the woman to offer her services as a lookout. Luckily (or unluckily depending on the circumstances) he was a light sleeper. So, even if someone did decide to take the two by surprise, Vagar was confident he could rouse himself quickly enough to offer assistance in a fight. As for Dwin, she was small enough that if she herself tried to attack him for whatever reason, Vagar was confident it would be the last thing she would ever do.
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When he opened his eyes, Vagar was staring up into the sky. Vagar had managed to position himself on his back. He was completely sprawled out with belly completely exposed. The wolf quickly righted himself to stand on all fours and shake off the layer of dust that had accumulated on him. Looking over at Dwin, the man wondered if his sudden thrashing to upright himself disturbed her.
Dwin had given her promise to guard Vagar in good faith and with every intention to keep it. However, the last thing she remembered before resting her head on her paws to close her eyes just for 5 seconds, was that it was such a torture to be one on the look-out, when you yourself want to sleep very much. She did wake shortly before Vagar did and had the opportunity to pretend as if she had been awake all this time. Dwin was grooming her paws, when he opened his eyes and got to his feet.
"Slept well?" she asked, raising to her paws as well and stretching heartily. It was a very nice feeling.