Jack had left BFW in exploration again. He was still unsure of where to officially settle down. Jack glided over the Wilderness, his dark eyes observing the land below. He was not far off the ground, just a little over average tree height. As he was flying, something caught his eye up ahead.
What...? He swooped down sharply into an oak and gazed off in the distance. It was some sort of odd landform. It was a crater-like thing, that seemed to have a lake in it, if he had been seeing it right. Jack, despite his years, had not seen a Caldera before. And so he sat in the branches of the oak and quietly observed the odd landform up ahead.
He had been gone only one night and back home for another. He spent the latter at the caldera's foot. It was very strange not to walk up to the den he shared with Fox, curl up around his mate and fall asleep beside her. As he scratched out a meager bed among the cold rocks, he couldn't help but wonder: how was she feeling right now? Was she confused? Angry? Sad? He couldn't even begin to guess and he wouldn't find out until he finally spoke with her. He wasn't quite ready for that yet, and so he slept alone. She probably did too, unless of course she was using her new best friend, Magpie, as a pillow pal.
Peregrine felt like an old man when he woke up the next morning. Yawning and stretching, his ears flicked in response to every snap, crackle and pop his Rice Krispies body made. "What the fuck..." he muttered under his breath. He wasn't even four yet, so what was this bullshit? After limbering himself, he trotted out from beneath the caldera's shadow and headed toward the borders, intending to cross them and go find himself some breakfast.
Jack's dark eyes flitted quickly upon a dark canine figure. A wolf. From Jack's experience they could be annoying, always thinking they were more superior than crows, thinking birds like Jack with four years of history were just lunch. He had not lived four years to just be lunch. He ruffled his feathers more on purpose, trying to make himself look larger. More aggressive maybe, too. "Hello, Wolf." He said quietly in his deep voice, his black eyes looking into the canine's green ones.
Oogh, have a sleepy post. *goes to bed*
He would never have noticed the blackbird had it not spoken to him. Peregrine froze, his eyes shifting from left to right. He saw no one. Who the hell had just said his name? Well, his name wasn't
Wolf but... it occurred to him that a fellow canine probably wouldn't address him this way. Slowly, his eyes raised and he found himself looking back into a pair of beady black eyes set in a dark, beaky face.
"Did—did you just say something to me...?" the swarthy canine asked incredulously. Could birds speak the common tongue of wolves? He vaguely recollected talking to an owl once, when Junior
et al were still very small. Yet he couldn't remember ever communicating with one otherwise. That wasn't to say he didn't respect the resident avians. As a matter of fact, March Owl had instilled in all her children a fascination with birds, except for the few that were seen as food (ducks, geese and turkeys came to mind).
He gaped up at the crow or raven or whatever it was, then his dusky jade eyes suddenly narrowed to slits.
"You aren't a magpie, are you?" he asked. Peregrine was pretty sure it (he?) wasn't but he couldn't see the bird's backside to check for those distinctive white markings.
goodnight. I guess Jack would have like a heavy accent or something?
Jack rolled his dark eyes.
"Yes." He replied. He hopped to a lower branch, but still wary of the wolf's jaws. At the idea of being a magpie, Jack rolled his eyes
again. "Of course not! I am a crow. What are you, a coyote?" He replied shaking his head. There were definitely differences between him and a magpie like Shiv. He had no white, he was larger, and many personality-based things that were somewhat common in each species.
"What is this land you have? Where you live seems strange." He observed in a interested tone. Not a bad strange, just something new he'd never seen before. It was strange to Jack, at least.
The bird seemed bemused by the question, then flung one of his own at Peregrine. He was still getting over the surprise of talking to a bird, so he blinked slowly a few times, then quipped, "Have you ever seen a black coyote? I know you know I'm a wolf. Know how I know? You called me one a minute ago."
The crow began asking him questions like inter-species conversations were an everyday thing. Peregrine's ears twitched with every high-pitched, scratchy word. He wasn't even particularly difficult to understand. And the way the crow talked, it was clear he was smart, and articulate as any wolf Peregrine had ever met.
"What?" the wolf blurted, then looked over his shoulder at the caldera. "Oh, that? It's an old volcano that blew its top. Hey, do you have a name? You might think I'm joking but mine is Peregrine."
"It's called sarcasm, Wolf." He muttered with a roll of his dark eyes. Then the wolf called the place a volcano that blew it's top. Jack would probably always be scared to live there, but that was just him. Some just trusted it was inactive and stayed there- but personally Jack would fear being burned in lava every day. Living in Woods was much more calming for him. At his next words Jack couldn't help but let loose a deep chuckle. Peregrine. "Well hello, Peregrine. I'm Jack."
"Well hello to you too, Jack," Peregrine replied, amused by the bird's heavy use of sarcastic humor. "So, Jack, what possessed you to say 'hi' to me anyway? Do you talk to a lot of wolves? By the way, if you see one that looks like a magpie, feel free to peck its eyes out. Just kidding... mostly," he added that last part under his breath.
Jack nodded at Peregrine's greeting, and listened to his question and suggestion. A magpie-looking wolf? Ha, what next? Magpie made him think of his little friend Shiv. He reminded himself to visit her again sometime. "Will do. And I was mostly wondering about the old volcano. I will talk to a wolf, however, as long as they do not try to eat me or they are not annoying." Jack told Peregrine. He had never gotten along well with the annoying, stupid personality that some had. Putting it on a wolf was even worse, but some wolves were okay.
The black wolf chuckled at Jack's prerequisites for socializing. "You and I aren't much different there, Jack: I also won't talk to anyone who tries to eat or annoy me." Peregrine's laughter deepened and he gave the bird a strange look, as if he was already growing fond of the little guy and was surprised at himself for it.
"You mentioned the volcano. Is there anything in particular you'd like to know about it?" Peregrine asked in the next beat, his tail twitching as he canted his head upward.
He chuckled at Peregrine's response. For a moment Jack wondered what would try and eat a wolf, but then he figured things like cougars and bears probably gave it a go to hunt down one. Though it seemed to Jack that wolves were pretty high up on the food chain. When Peregrine asked if he'd like to know anything else about the volcano, Jack thought for a moment. "Do you live here? Aren't you afraid the volcano will erupt once more?" He asked the wolf with a tilt of his head. He would always be too nervous about the volcano exploding to ever stay.
"Yes," he answered the first question, then pondered the second and said, "I'm pretty sure it's long extinct. But if the water starts to boil, we'll know to skedaddle." That was a joke, of course. More sincerely, he elaborated, "The volcano blew its top during its last eruption, hence why it became a caldera. Once it's dead, they don't come back to life... although a zombie volcano would be an interesting development.
His tail switched a few times as he pondered that, then Peregrine asked, "So where do you live? In a tree someplace?" he guessed.
Jack listened to the whole of Peregrine's explanation, and a smile touched his lips at the concept of a zombie volcano. At Peregrine's question to him, he decided how he would answer. "I've only been here about a week, so I don't have a permanent home yet. I've stayed in a different spot every night- though they were all trees." He said. That was why Jack was exploring- he was making sure the Wilds were a good spot for him, and trying to find where he should stay. Shiv had suggested the Heartwood- he'd have to check it out sometime. "Do you have any recommendations for a bird who does not want to be disturbed often?" He said, slightly unsure about asking a wolf for a bird home. But many things had to qualify the proper home.
I read your post and thought to myself, "Do birds have lips?" Lulz.
Jack asked if Peregrine had any recommendations and that query really stumped the black wolf.
"Well, aside from being quiet, what are your other requirements? Do you like certain kinds of trees? Do you want to be in a forest or would you rather have one single tree by itself? What kind of food do you eat—does it need to be plentiful where you live or are you fine with having to travel? ...Did I just become a real estate agent for a crow?" he finished with a bark of laughter.
lol, I didn't think about that. Sorry this thread is going so slowly 'cause of me, Jack is my least prioritized character and all my characters have been a bit slow lately as I have very little muse for most of 'em right now. Didn't mean to hold this up so long.
Jack sighed deeply again as Peregrine lisited a bunch of questions, even though in truth Peregrine was just being logical in suggestion-making.
"I don't prefer a particular tree. I prefer in a forest or at least with a few other trees nearby. I eat seeds, berries, and small creatures like mice, bugs, and worms. It doesn't have to be right there in my home, but I'd like it nearby. Not more than a five minute fli- walk." And at Peregrine's last question, Jack chuckled. Usually he wouldn't think about letting a wolf try and help him with his choice of home, but this fellow lived around here and Jack had found him more likable than other wolves he'd encountered.
No worries!
Jack seemed mildly exasperated by the questions and Peregrine found himself wondering,
Can birds roll their eyes? Does he even have pupils
? But the crow responded, giving him a bit of helpful information. The wolf cocked his head at the strange chuckling noise the bird made.
"Well..." the swarthy Peregrine said after a long, thoughtful pause.
"It sounds to me like just about anywhere in the Teekon Wilds would suit you then. There's a forest within five minutes of, well, anywhere around here. I'm pretty sure you won't have to look far for seeds or bugs, either. You should have tons of options. Even the caldera might suit you; there are forests on the slopes."
But, much as he was enjoying the conversation, he didn't have time to act as Jack's real estate agent,
not really. He'd given his suggestions, now it was time to say goodbye and get back to wolf things. He still needed to fetch a spot of breakfast, then a conversation with Fox was inevitable. He licked his lips at that thought, sighing softly. Jack had been a welcome distraction but it was time to get back to reality.
"I've gotta go, Jack. But best of luck finding a home." He woofed to the black bird, then turned and began loping back in the direction of the caldera, hoping to rustle up some prey somewhere around the territory's outskirts.