Moonspear Find a way to keep hiding your secrets

wc:327

It was both curiosity and the need for space that drove Bronco to pass beyond the rolling foothills and up the slopes of Moonspear. His muscles had not forgotten the effort it took to climb up the slopes, but by now he knew the route up the mountainside toward the ravine he and Meerkat had previously shared. It was mid afternoon by the time he reached it, and he took a deep breath in as he entered the verdant cashm in the earth, meandering along as he watched the walls of the ravine reach higher and higher. He passed by the first cave, and shuddered as he remembered the bats that had spooked him the last time he'd gone in there. He halted in front of the open mouth of the cave he and Meerkat had shared; he could still see the faint dusting of mica dust on the ground.

He approached with timid pawsteps, peering into the darkness and inching forward bit by bit until the shadows crept along the bridge of his muzzle and over the nape of his neck. There, he stopped, before he finally took a step, bringing his front paws into the very mouth of the den. Staring straight toward the back of the cave, where the walls shimmered slightly in the dark like oily snake skins, he was fine. But as soon as he looked up, it struck.

He feinted sideways from the sweep of nausea, and he felt his throat squeeze shut. The world closed in on him and he scrambled backwards though it only took a few steps for him to be back out in daylight again, heaving hard, laboured breaths as he stared into the darkness of the simple, welcoming den he'd once lived in. It hadn't caved in, and it hadn't changed at all- the swirling darkness he could've sworn that'd been charging toward him, hadn't. It was just a cave, and he was just a coward.

Antares had been busy covering a lot of ground lately. He made his sweeps around the Glen particularly wide most days, and even into the nighttime hours. There was a lot of energy to spend, he felt. When he rounded back into the heart of the territory, he was usually short-lived before he vanished back to the woods to prowl onto the next thing. His brothers would understand, not that he fielded many questions about its specifics.

Today, he caught a glimpse of that speckled-belly hawk again (if it was even the same one), and it had gone winging off towards Moonspear he'd noticed for the whole minute he'd seen it. That naturally got him looking towards the heights more himself, off to where his thoughts wandered right to his younger siblings and cousins too. After a few days of not seeing them, he took off stalking up the foothills to go bother whichever one he could find first, but was almost immediately derailed along the way. It was Bronco's fresh trail he found first.

Swayed enough by how recent it seemed to be, he followed him next instead; his siblings weren't necessarily going anywhere, he trusted, so before he knew it, he recognized the route towards the ravine and continued to tail after the Blackthorn.

Unaware of what brought him up this way, Antares sort of assumed it was just to poke around, or get something they had kept here still. He came too late to see much in way of explanation, and arrived well without one himself. At least there were no badgers this time, he mused. On quiet, sure steps, he appeared in full. Before he could formulate a good question to appropriately cover it, he simply wordlessly eyed the earthy-hued yearling, his business included.

wc:329

He wasn't aware he'd been seen, but a shadowy spectre in his peripheral vision caught his attention and he suddenly wondered if Antares had seen him bolt out of the cave. He'd even left little pawmarks behind from where he'd stepped in the mica dust, but it had disappeared from his paws not long after he'd stepped back out into the light. Meerkat might be disappointed if he didn't come back from Moonspear with a coat full of mica dust- but he might just have to come up with something else for an excuse. Maybe he'd gotten distracted along the way by something, or someone.

And then Antares appeared. Bronco cleared his throat and tried to regain whatever composure it was possible for him to scramble together after his panic attack, and he was eager to distract himself from the realization that he was a coward. So he turned his attention to Antares, and thuoght furiously for a moment about what he might say. He didn't know if Antares had seen him flee from the cave or not- and part of him didn't want to know. So, in case he had, all he could do was play it as cool as he possibly could.

So he stood up, though his legs still felt shaky. “Hey.” He greeted, striding toward his packmate. “C'mon. Lemme show you something,” He said, brushing his muzzle lightly against Antares' shoulder as he passed by. What he could use was a distraction, something to help get his mind off the suffocating feeling of being trapped underground- and what better place could there be to do so, than on the slopes of a mountain? This high up, he was about as far away from what could've been his tomb as he could possibly get. Solemnly, he began to lead the way up the slope, stopping once to look back over his shoulder to see if Antares had any interest in following him, before he continued on.

He had not seen enough to know exactly what he had walked up on, but he had plenty to sense that something, somehow was off. Not in the same way he had thought last time he'd seen him, when Neverwinter had been there. Of course, that time had been a lot clearer. Despite any of his efforts, and an impassive expression withstanding, even he could not see what precisely was wrong. Nothing obvious, in any tangible form, he guessed so far, though the thought came with some hesitance; he didn't want to write anything off, or not see it for himself before it was too late.

Bronco came to him, though, and he realized he had held that breath only after the fact, well after everything suddenly zeroed in on his comrade's presence. C'mon? Just like that? He brushed by, and left warmth in his wake. Antares followed him first over his shoulder, squinting at him suspiciously on that note. ...what? he finally asked, stepping after him, each stride lengthening in this new pursuit; obviously, he was coming along, though he did not know to where.

While following after him, watching the backs of Bronco's ears: So what's inspired the trip up here? he asked, finally, remembering he would have to begin somewhere. He could have the Ostrega's compliance, but not without him bugging him a little bit in the meantime--unless he suddenly took off, and if the tables were turned, he felt it could be awfully tempting here. You weren't actually what I meant to track down, but while you were here.. he edged in for his own way of explanation, hopeful for one back in exchange.

wc:297

Antares seemed confused and surprised, but willing enough to follow him. It was nice- knowing he had someone who would go with him with so little explanation, and he made him put even more faith in the dark, quiet male who was one of the fellow co-founders of the Glen. He hadn't spent a lot of one-on-one time with anyone, perhaps save for Meerkat and Fennec, since the Glen had been founded as he'd been so busy with his patrols, but it seemed like now that they were established, they could take the time to get to know each other better and if that happened while they were both out on a day-trip, then so be it.

He was posed a question that he didn't have a good answer for so he shrugged, but came up with an idea the moment later. “Just wanted to see if Meerkat left anything behind in our old den,” He said, as they walked down and out of the ravine. “We used to live in that cave back there,” He said. He didn't feel like he wanted to confess the truth to Antares, as he was too frightened of admitting it, and he was definitely too frightened to try and face his fear as well. He didn't think that Antares would make fun of him, nor did he think that he'd be bullied into trying to go back into the den...But his fears were things he preferred to keep to himself. In front of Atlas, Antares and Osiris, it was very important for him to feel like he was strong enough to belong in their midst.

“What were you looking for?” He asked, given the fact that Antares had openly admitted he'd come looking for something- tracking it, in fact.

Alright, he supposed. It was about what he had suspected, that this might be about left behind things, and it was the easiest explanation to swallow. Still didn't account for anything else off about this, now or before, but he quietly reasoned that perhaps, it was just him thinking too hard about it. The glittery cave, right? he clarified about their former residence, pretty casual about it, not knowing that the subject matter was as sticky as it was. But he couldn't say he had ever visited Bronco and Meerkat's immediate doorstep before.

Bronco didn't leave him any openings to pick at with that, and instead, questioned back on him as they moved along still. He would take the hint. My little siblings, first.. Whichever I could catch first, he replied. It was getting harder to think of them as little, however. After the recent reminder that Altair just about matched him by now, especially. He wondered if Caelum's storm-songs had made any progress since he had last heard. There was Mira, too.. who he had given some space since her return. Mintaka, as well, would probably savor his attentions--and maybe offer of a trip out? Point being, he had plenty he could stick his nose in relating to them but something pulled him here to Bronco instead. Antares liked to consider himself a pretty decent opportunist, so, he was trying to figure this one out to make the best of it as he was lured on.

So where are you taking me? he asked with that in mind now that he looked past the earthy Blackthorn, and to the mountain's path ahead. What could he have to show him??

wc:357

“Yup.” His answer was somewhat abrupt, just so that Antares might not think to ask him more about the place, or why he hadn't ended up all sparkly all over again. At least, if he'd managed to get far enough in he could have rolled in the shimmery mica dust, and made himself look sparkly again- but he wasn't sure he could do that, not when he couldn't even set both feet inside the cave's entrance without having a panic attack. While he did want to bring some of the shimmery dust back just so that he could shake it all over Meerkat and make her shimmer again too, he simply couldn't. He'd have to try again another day.

Antares had a pretty normal excuse for being back up on the mountain; he still had family here, after all. He thought of Hydra's newest batch of children, and considered for a moment that he ought to visit them as well sometime- but not today, not while Antares was trying to find them. He didn't want to interrupt their family time together. But he'd met Mintaka and Caelum, and knew Altair was potentially more similar to his father, and that Mira was a dark, quiet little thing with a sort of cunning gleam to her glassy little eyes. There was something a bit creepy about her, but he hadn't ever considered it worth talking about.

“Just up ahead here,” He said, as they ascended toward the place he'd found a while ago. It was crater-like in shape, slope very gently from the edges and down toward the center. The ledge around the circular bowl was only a few inches above the bowl itself, and it looked very much like one of the craters that he thought he could see on the face of the moon. Potentially a crated caused by an impact, some thousands of years ago. “I forget what I thought I'd call it,” He said, “But I sparred here with Opalia once. And I figured,” He said, leaning down to stretch out the muscles in his back “We might be overdue a spar ourselves.”

That affirmation was.. just that, and nothing more. Since Bronco pried no further on his own doings, probably accepting his explanation as good enough, he supposed he could leave his alone too. He would take it with a nod and go moving on to the next thought which thankfully for the Blackthorn, it was one Antares had a bit more investment in; he was much more curious about what was going to become their business, evidently.

He was keeping his options open, and Bronco followed through with a good bit more detail here in this direction where Antares went willingly.

Which.. did pay off, surprisingly so, as more about his intentions came forward. Something deep down was relieved it was so sweet to his tastes. He was appropriately baited with this new prospect. Maybe a little, the Ostrega agreed, making it clear he was willing to meet the challenge if Bronco had a spot just ahead--which he'd see for himself soon enough. It's been busy, he supposed, vaguely. With everything going on lately, all of them quite occupied here or there somewhere between the Glen, the mountain, and even beyond, there had been few opportunities to get a good drop on Bronco (or even any of the other Ostregas) to goad them into a spar with him.

She can hit surprisingly hard, right? he snickered since there was that little mention of the Drakru knowing of this locale now too. He had identified early that she was someone he wanted to be on the same side of, if he could help it, but not a whole lot more than that.

wc:402

He reminisced about his spar with Opalia- who had not only been swift, but punitive as well, and she had seemed to be able to keep herself one or two steps ahead of him, and it had the effect of making him feel as though he was little more than an amateur being played by a master. He still felt that perhaps she'd held back with him a bit- and they'd only been sparring, not fighting afterall- but she hadn't even had to force him to the ground or grab him by the scruff to make it blatantly obvious that she was a skillful master of sparring and fighting. She could navigate around him the ay a gust of wind might have engulfed him, with both speed and accuracy, so he was inclined to agree with Antares.

“She certainly does,” He said, and his voice seemed a bit brighter now, as he stretched. Maybe this distraction would do him good, and getting a bit of exercise might help him get rid of a bit of the bad feeling that had settled into his chest, with the realization that he had a fear he simply could not face. He had faced others in a spar before and knew that it was a safe method of practicing and honing his skills, and having worked alongside Antares in several hunts before, he trusted the swarthy man not to get hot-headed and strike up a fight when there was no need for one.

He rolled his shoulders and then gave Antares a nod as he began to circle, giving his companion a bit of time to warm up as he felt the ground, testing it to see how solid it was. It was quite dry, so there would be some slipping he was sure- but he'd simply have to dig his claws in if he wanted to make sure he had all the force behind him that he'd need. Once he'd circled around the perimeter of the bowl once, he dipped into a joking playbow. “Ladies first,” He called out, insinuating that he'd let Antares make the first move- but who was he kidding. Out of the both of them, he was probably the more effeminate one of the two- so he bounded forward, hoping to match strength with strength and jaw with jaw as he instigated the spar with a jab toward Antares' shoulder.

He still insisted on picking up on something being.. off. Good enough at subtlety, Bronco was a hard one to call to someone most experienced in Ostrega, but the aching thought remained. All practically confirmed when he struck a lighter chord in reply to something else, something not quite here. It didn't all make sense to him right now, but later, Antares might think he had been a decent distraction, if nothing else.

First he raked a pointed stare over the terrain from their initial vantage, innately pleased by its circular nature. It curved nicely, and dipped down just far enough to truly have it make that distinction. Antares slid away from Bronco with some reluctance, and watched him stretch from there while he made his own preparations. Already, without his most fancied measure of stealth, here presented almost on a platter, he planned to exercise what he had honed working hard over the months to match his brothers who outweighed him: sheer force.

Scoffing playfully at his insinuation, Antares tipped up his nose, and before he could get the taunting words out, Bronco was already going, he didn't need telling. Alright, he sneered to simply agreed fondly instead, and lunged after him to meet the motion; his opponent went for his shoulder, so he would dance aside--for even in their contact, he tried to deflect most of it, though his skin pinched with the reminder of Bronco's force. He returned the favor with a purposeful snip for his friend's side, still gauging by how hard he wanted to throw back before he completely threw his weight into it. Antares was hauntingly game to goad this into escalating a little, you know, to really help clear his mind.. but he hadn't exactly told Bronco this yet.

Instigating a spar was his knee-jerk reaction to avoiding his problems. He could take some of his frustratins out, and loosen himself up a bit, and get rid of the aching feeling he'd had in his chest, the strangling tightness in his throat. Here, he was reminded of his friendly spar with Opalia, which had ended with him more or less tossing in a white flag- but it was a pleasant memory, one he hoped would keep his mind in the game and help keep him from thinking too much about what it'd been like to step inside that cold, dark cave. 

His shoulder slipped against Antares as the darker male leaned to deflect some of the impact, a move which was both tactful and clever, and as a result, he wasn't able to shove his opponent off balance. He shouldn't have expected that it would be that easy, anyway, even though he'd made he first move. Antares had mentioned before that he was willing to spar- so he knew he should not expect it to be an easy match for him to take. He was the son of a master warrior and it showed- Hydra had done well to train her son, though he suspected that Antares likely developed most of his skill with his own dedication. 

He felt Antares' canines clip through the fur and pinch the skin of his ribcage, which was met with a deep but calm growl. He side-stepped his haunches away so he could possibly avoid being nipped again, and reared up, hoping to use their close proximity to give him the opportunity to toss one of his forelegs over Antares' shoulders, and make a grab for the dark male's ruff.

Very open to this, Antares grew up with a family that encouraged the expression of such roughness. He had brothers, a mother, others, who all wasted no time letting the first brood of Hydra and Dirge sharpen themselves, first among themselves, and inevitably others. What was teeth and snarls and soaring adrenaline could be more than just what it seemed, some of them knew--it sang just right in their blood in an expression of something else--for better and worse sometimes.

Bronco answered him with a low growl, slipping the bulk of his next easiest targets out of reach when he curved his body away. Antares followed the motion with his eyes, looking for his next route forward; he wanted to stay close, within reach.. but he couldn't quite call his opponent's strategy yet, either, so it put him at a compromise. He wanted to see, though, and curious, he started a defensive shift in making his neck small on his shoulders, while it seemed the Blackthorn went for his nape.

When he made purchase, Antares flared his hackles, and would make the grip awkward by arcing against Bronco.. curling towards him to try to bite at his other front leg, if that was how it was going to be. He'd go after his balance this time instead with low mischievous rumbles from him.

While the loose skin and fur at the back of Antares' neck was easy to grab, it was also next to impossible for him to manipulate Antares at all simply because it was so thick, freel and full. He probably could have wrenched his head this way and that, and would've had little effect on Antares. Wolves came equipped with the extra skin and fur there from when they were young- like a handle for their mothers to grip when they needed to move, and then as they aged and learned to fight, it gave them the ability to maneuver their way out of an enemy's grip. 

He'd managed to lift one paw up, hoping he might be able to wrestle Antares to the ground bit when he felt Antares bite down on his other foreleg, he jerked it back. In doing so, he only had his hind feet for stability, and wolves...Were not made to walk on two feet alone. So he toppled forward, clawing as best as he could to grab Antares and haul him to the ground simultaneously, but he'd made the error of opening his mouth in surprise- and had released his hold on Antares' ruff.

Oh, he was built for this. All too eager to greet any challenges with plenty of vigor, it came naturally to thrash against, and into the grip he found himself in. Even as Bronco's weight began to topple and haul him down, he eventually just went with it--though realized belatedly that the Blackthorn was a lot heavier when his gravity did its thing. Though his scruff was freed somewhere in the mix of it, Antares downed in a tangle of legs and growls, eventually with an oof as he landed, waylaid by that for a moment.

But at least in all of his relatively constant motion, helpful where he had learned before to use momentum, or try to, he did his best for instant retaliation. Bronco was bigger, heavier, but Antares wondered if he could just be faster, launching his teeth for his chest or neck this time--and the rest of his force ready to follow, if he could keep himself untangled for the most part on the way back up. Thankfully (so he thought), he was a little used to invading space like this, translating towards a quiet confidence of sorts--almost.

His effort had been clumsy, and he'd lost his balance completely when he'd jerked his foot out of Antares' snapping jaws. He fell sideways onto his packmate, and felt the air of Antares' breath whoosh past his cheek which made him utter a brief chuff, pleased with himself for having flattened Antares for even a moment. But pride often came before a fall and so it was- for when Antares lunged for his chest, his aim was fair. He felt Antares' lower canines press into the flesh just inside one jawbone, and his upper canines grip him by the outside of the other. With his jaw compromised, he uttered a soft, strangled sound and raised a paw to thump it twice against Antares' side- a sign of his resignation.

Seemed he managed to hook him pretty good from there, but he didn't get long to sink into that satisfaction to come. Antares' eyes got big when he felt Bronco's paws on his side, his own momentum stilled there for an instant beneath his jaw. After a quick breath in, all his packmate, the dark Ostrega finally withdrew properly.

But not without one sudden, quick, playful nip on the Blackthorn's shoulder after he had begun to snake away and regroup himself. He waved his tail softly, eyeballing Bronco as if to say feel any better? But, that was that from him and he accepted his win quietly. When you're ready for round two, he panted. I'll meet you here. he offered as he pointed at the bowl with his snout, trying to keep up a good distraction while he gauged how Bronco was doing.

He remained still so that Antares could release him with enough care that he might avoid unintended injury. But that was the beauty about a cooperative spar- and it further engaged the trust that Bronco had in his packmate, to know that they could face off, and he could end up with his jaw caught between the other's teeth without worrying that it might go to far. He licked his lips when he was released and uttered an amused growl as his snoulder was nipped. He shook his shoulders out, and found his posture relaxed in the ake of their joust. It had, indeed, helped. 

And he would plan to engage Antares again, who seemed willing enough for another round. "Yeah. I won't go so easy on you next time," He joked, but he was quick to follow up with an earnest nod, in acknowledgment that he had been bested. "Good spar, Antares. Thanks for that."

For him, it was just a beginning. He knew the timing had other priorities though, ones beyond just the spar itself where he was fine dwelling. Unpacking Bronco's... whatever it was, well, that was probably the best focus for now. But none of that was really within his control. Good, he rumbled in agreement, on both accounts, and would hold him to it someday later down the line--somehow.

You're welcome. Hope it.. helped. he smirked, at least for a hint of a second before he turned his muzzle away, forward and onward. Antares was definitely fine to leave it at that.

He chuckled, and gave Antares a polite nod of his head- his way of saying yes, without going into details. His fear was something he would have to confront on his own, or work on in his own time- but he wasn't sure he necessarily needed to tell everyone all about it. Especially given the fact that he lived in the Glen, which didn't have all the caves and stony overhangs that Moonspear had. 

Content that they had both enjoyed a much-needed bit of sparring, Bronco turned, and began to make his way back toward the Glen, so he could get back to patrolling with a slightly clearer mindset.