Moonstone Quarry Just floating

@Anita, sorry for the wait! Work has been hectic here lately but I'm back now and have more time to thread!

The trip to the quarry had taken several days at their steady pace, stopping to hunt their meals and to sleep at night. Niita kept close to Anita in case they came across violent individuals though she didn't believe any would mess with the pair. They had fared a bit better, given they had a pack to tough out the famine with rather than struggling on their own.

The quarry itself was beautiful, the pale stone lit up in the evening sunlight though at night it would be even better. The moonlight had a way of making the slopes glow. Turning to Anita, Niita gave her an excited smile. 

"It really is beautiful though I can't wait until night falls, it's even better in the moonlight. Want to try picking our way to the bottom?" The small cliffs that led to the large, pit-like bottom could easily lead to an accident though it would be worth it to reach the crystalline pools at the bottom.

Don't worry about it, you're fine!

     Anita's steps were light despite the long travel they had taken to the quarry. It was mostly curiousity that let her mind wander from her aching legs, and she was glad when they reached their destination. The she-wolf was thankful that the famine had left the lands, and didn't know how she would fare with its presence.

     The quarry truly was a sight to see, with its pale stone still glowing despite the light of day. Anita returned her friend's smile, still taking in all that there was to see. She couldn't wait until night would fall.

     "I'll make sure to take note of this place at night, I'm certain it's wonderful," Anita agreed, glancing towards the bottom of the quarry. "Going down there sounds like an adventure, so I'll give it a try." It was indeed a long trek down, by the looks of it, but Anita was determined to get to the bottom. 

     She was about to challenge Niita to a race to the bottom, but decided that it was not the best idea. She decided on a more careful approach, which would be finding the safest path down. "Do you have any idea how we can get down there?" She thought aloud, turning to look at Niita.

Anita's question led Niita to pace around the edge of the quarry a bit in search of a safe path down. Most were steep and rocky looking, the loose bits of glowing stone creating hazardous materials that would slip them up in a second. The pale waif stopped at the lip of one particular slope that looked smooth enough and had enough small dips in it that they could use them as stairs.

"This looks like a good place." Niita began to pick her way down carefully, fearing a tumble and moving slowly. Once at the bottom, Niita peered up to see how Anita was faring from where she stood next to a small pool.

Anita followed Niita's walk to the cliff's edge in search for a pathway. The stone that jutted out from the nooks and crannies was beautiful, but was as potentially dangerous as any other rock if she were to fall on it. She stumbled to a stop as Niita found a way down. It wasn't a clear-cut path, but looking back to their other options, this one was the best bet. Anita waited for Niita to finish her descent before following. The she-wolf waited until Niita had reached the bottom before following carefully after.

Once she had made her way down, Anita met up with Niita at a small pool. She didn't even want to think about getting back up, if the circumstances came to it. "So, what now?" she asked, making sure her tone didn't sound impatient. She was purely curious on their next move, and awaited Niita's answer.

Niita sighed in relief as her friend made it down, watching anxiously as a mother hen until Anita made it down safely. Getting back up would be harder as they would have to use one of the rockier slopes but falling as they went up wouldn't be near as bad as falling on the way down. It would be easier to catch themselves and get back to climbing. 

"Now's the fun part, we get to explore!" Niita grinned like a kid in a candy store, padding over to a hole in one of the walls to poke her head into it. The hole was shallow, too small to hold even her upper body and completely abandoned. There were a few bones in the back, old and withered to a yellow color. Perhaps a raccoon had called this place home once.

Amongst the bones was a shiny piece of moon rock, perfectly smooth by some unknown cause; perhaps water dripping onto it over time through the rock, and glowing faintly from the light outside the crevice. Niita picked it up in her mouth and backed out of the hole, careful not to bump her head.

The sun was beginning to set as she made her way back towards Anita, setting the rock down and beaming triumphantly. "I found a cool rock."

I don't know if any of that counts as a pp but feel free to pm me and have me edit it.

trust me you're totally fine!

     Anita stifled a laugh when Niita stuffed her head in something that looked like den carved into the wall. She had to be serious, it was a scouting trip and what had to be done, had to be done. But something about Niita's excited expression and demeanor let the she-wolf ease up a bit.

     Her eyes lit up at Niita's statement, and went over to one of the holes herself. Eagerly, she stuck her head in, not thinking about what may be inside. It was dark and smelly, which she didn't expect. She had hoped for something cool, but what she saw was just a bunch of bugs. I suppose you're not going to find treasure everywhere you look.

     Anita pulled her head from the wall, emerging with a few insects crawling in her fur. The she-wolf shook, hoping to rid herself of her uninvited guests. What Niita had found was far more significant. Anita hurried over, studying her friend's discovery. It was a moon rock, glistening and almost luminous.

    Her eyes widened, and she leaned in closer to get a better look. "Woah, that's a pretty rock! I found a few bugs but I will keep looking; something tells me that I'll find something good," she beamed. It was exciting, the whole thing was like reaching your hand into a bucket and not knowing what you'd find.

Niita smiled at her friend's words, thanking her softly as she complimented the rock. Spotting a few bugs that had fallen from Anita's fur and were crawling towards her, Niita squashed them with a grimace. A few bugs didn't bother her but she didn't like the thought of having them crawl all over her like they had just done to Anita.

"You should keep trying. I doubt you have that feeling unfounded."  Niita was certain her pack mate would find something interesting, you usually could if you looked hard enough.

Anita smiled at her friend's words of encouragement. Although she had only managed to find a few bugs, it wasn't discouraging. There were so many more places to look. The pockets in the wall were promising, but the she-wolf decided to look in the shallow pools that dotted the area, hoping to find something shiny. With a splash, Anita dunked her head under the crystal clear water, bubbles blowing from her nose. She could see fairly well due to the clarity and spotted a glistening rock not unlike the one Niita had found.

She picked the rock up carefully in her jaws, sputtering as she broke the surface. Her find was definitely a moonstone, round and smooth to the touch. Anita's eyes shone, it wasn't a huge feat but she had found something of worth. "I found a moon rock!" She exclaimed, dropping the stone to the ground. It was pale, not colorful but it had no need for striking hues. Something about its ghostly glowing surface was breathtaking. "We could keep ours, and if we find anymore we can let the pack have them. It could make a good present for anyone in the pack," Anita smiled, attempting to groom the water from her fur.

Niita cocked her head, watching her friend curiously as Anita promptly dug her head beneath the water of a pool and blew bubbles from her snout. That's one way to do it. Niita chuckled slightly at the comical sight, wiping the amusement off her face as Anita came back with a stone of her own. She didn't want to offend Anita by laughing at her.

"Nice rock, I'm glad you found something." Niita bent a bit to take a closer look at Anita's rock, they were slightly different shapes but similar all the same. "How would we bring them back?" 

Carrying back a single small rock would be easy enough but Niita and Anita wouldn't be able to carry a rock for each pack mate in their mouth. Taking back a big rock to break into pieces would be too heavy, that or the pieces wouldn't be very big. Perhaps they could find something around here to put the rocks in or on to get them up the mountainside and back to Silvertip.

left it open in case you want to find something for them to use :P

just trying to think of ways they could bring back more than two of the moonstones, pm me if it seems too unrealistic :>

     Anita's eyes lit up with her friend's response. "Thanks, I'm glad too. A couple of bugs wouldn't have sufficed," she chuckled, letting Niita study her find. They were mostly similar, differing in shape but both containing their trademark glow. 

     Niita's question made a point. How would they bring back so many moon rocks? "I suppose you are right. No matter how I think of it, there isn't an option of bringing back more than two." Oh, how she wished there was a way. Bringing back a dozen of these stones would be like bringing back a horde of impressive treasures. At least, in Anita's eyes, anything shiny seemed like treasure.

     Movement from a pool caught her eye. She could see some sort of plant floating at the top of the shallow water source. It was wide and round, probably some type of lily pad. Anita moved closer to investigate, and an idea formed in her head.

     "Do you suppose we could wrap a few stones up in these lily pads and carry them back?" By a few she meant two or three--they simply weren't large enough for more than that amount. It wasn't the best idea, but the steep limestone walls did not provide many resources to their advantage.

Niita listened intently to Anita's idea, a picture forming in her mind as the other female spoke. A smiled crossed her face, tail wagging in excitement. It was so strange sounding but surely it would work! "That's a great idea, you're very smart." 

Moving to join Anita at the side of the pool, Niita began to pull in a large lilypad that looked as if it would hold a few good sized stones. They wouldn't be able to bring back a moon stone for everyone but Niita at least wanted to find one to give to Adeline, maybe it would cheer her up. 

Pulling the large lilypad from the water and laying it down gently, she began to look for some nice moon rocks. 

gonna bump this up to when Adeline got reactivated :P

By the looks of it, Niita liked her idea. Niita's praise was very kind as well. "Thank you. And I'm more of an in-the-moment thinker," Anita said modestly, dragging a few lilypads out of the water by their stems. They were slippery, so she often let them slide out of her jaws by accident. Anita finally collected a few and placed them on the ground. 

    Not everyone would get a moonstone, but the first on her list was Adeline. She hadn't really met the pup, but she still wanted to do something nice. As for the other stones, Niita and herself would get their own. Probably Steady too, seeing that he was the Alpha. 

     Anita left the lilypads but not before dragging them far away from the water. She went on to look for more of the moonrocks in the wall, hoping that she would be more lucky than her very first time.

Niita nodded, still certain that Anita was smarter than she let on but pleased that she wasn't a bragger. Niita said nothing else as she began to work on her own pouch, taking the large lilypad and clenching it firmly in her jaws. It was slick from being in the water and she nearly dropped it several times but she could only hope when it dried it would be easier to hold.

The pale waif poked around, searching for a few moonstones. Her lilypad was large enough to hold her own and a few others. In particular she wanted to bring one to Steady, Adeline, and Zeke. They were the wolves she was closest with and while she wished she could bring everyone a stone, it wasn't possible. She wouldn't consider herself close with Adeline but only because the young pup stayed in the den most of the day while Niita had been away looking for her siblings.

After picking out a stone for each of the wolves she wanted to give them to, Niita managed to squish the edges of the lilypad over the stones to created a sort of pouch. Turning to Anita, she checked to see if the other was done. "Ready to go?" 

Provided Anita was, Niita began to make her way up one of the slopes carefully.

The lilypads proved to be quite the tough opponent. She managed to put a few stones in before nipping the slippery ends together. The she-wolf held the corners together in her jaws -- not the best craftsmanship but it would do. Anita had found a total of three moonstones, but wasn't sure who she would give them to--she knew a lot of pack members who would want one. Niita was one of her good friends, but she already had her own.

      Anita thought of the wolves she knew the most, but didn't really know one more than the other. Maybe Phocion? Or Valette? Of course, her mind instinctually skipped over Ezekiel. Maybe I should give Zeke one.... Oh, she didn't want to do that at all. But it may clear some things between them, as unlikely as it sounded. We'll see when we get there.

     "Ready to go," she said before picking the lilypad pouch back up. It swung loosely in her jaws, but the stones falling out would be unlikely. They were secure enough.

     As she saw Niita climbing back up, Anita quickly followed her scout-mate, picking her way up the steep climb with care.

probably gonna wrap this up soon, we can archive after your post if you want?

The climb back up was harder, given that it had no small divots that they could hop down into like they had done on their descent. Instead it was a steep incline that was covered in loose rock that could provide an easy tumble down at any time. Niita tried to steer clear of Anita, climbing up from the right side of the incline. Several times she slipped but did not crash down into the pit below. 

By the time she got to the top she was panting slightly, the taste of the lilypad strong on her tongue from clenching it tightly in her teeth. Small cuts from the shale stung her paw pads but she tried to ignore it. Glancing to Anita, she checked that her friend was okay.

While they had been down in the pit the sun had set and the moon had risen. Moonstone Quarry lived up to its name, glowing beautifully in luminescent light. Taking it in for a moment, Niita turned away from the sight and began to pad away from the hole with the intent of finding somewhere to sleep for the night before they began their journey back to Silvertip.

The ascent proved to be much more risky. Small rocks tumbled down whenever Niita slipped, making Anita constantly on guard and aware of her surroundings. She followed closely behind her friend--if Niita fell, she would most likely get caught up in it too. She decided it was the best to curve to the left, clear out of Niita's way.

Anita dragged herself up to the top during her last few steps. The lilypad had stayed intact, slime coating her mouth. It wasn't pleasant, but pleasantries weren't her first priority at the moment. In fact, she was panting, covered in dirt, and sported a pelt of messy fur. Her pawpads were rubbed raw as well, compelling her to sit and carefully lick them.

Wrapping her hasty grooming up, Anita gazed out towards the quarry. She took in the view, impressed. After a few moments of staring, Anita quickly followed Niita back towards Silvertip, preparing herself for the journey back.