Bramblepoint amenamy

After Galaxy's incident and the various health matters that came with falling off a mountain and being held hostage by a bear — not to mention Terance's injuries — Lyra had realised her healing skills were lacking. Quite severely. Not to mention she was still horribly grossed out by almost everything when it came to these sorts of things. The desire to help, however, overwhelmed her aversions to the blood. She hated seeing her family in any sort of pain.

It was early morning when the girl left Moonspear, heading east to a thick forest she spied from the peaks of their mountain. Surely that place would have some herbs or plants she could use. She was going in completely blind, of course, but some of Hydra's stubborn, confident nature had rubbed off on her. She could make this work.

Lyra arrived at Bramblepoint just after the sun had risen, beginning to warm the slightly cooler morning. Nosing through the bushes lining the outer edges of the woodland, she began to forage, searching for any particularly interesting looking plants.

With new pups in the pack, Nightjar's protectiveness was dialed up to ten. He didn't know yet whether the new Blackthorns were worth his time or not, but even if they turned out as useless as their eldest brother, he would protect them with his life. He would protect Eljay, too, even if he would never admit it. So his patrols were more frequent and more aggressive than ever. Just that morning, he'd gone after a coyote that wasn't close enough to normally cause the wolves any concern, but was close enough to irk an overly protective Nightjar.

Now, he departed from the borders to extend his range to the outlying territories. One could argue that this only stripped the borders of one of its vital protectors, but Nightjar could trust his younger siblings and Elwood to keep their territory safe while he dipped out on business. He delved deep into Bramblepoint, occasionally spraying bushes and tree roots with urine as he went. The scent he left wasn't strong enough to imply a claim, but was strong enough to serve as an indication that there was a pack nearby. He hoped it would deter potential intruders long before they ever reached the Caldera's borders.

He wasn't paying attention to anything but this task when he stumbled upon the black-haired wolf rooting around the bushes at the far edge of Bramblepoint. Nightjar hesitated upon seeing her, torn between greeting her, attacking her (but that would be unreasonable even at his most territorial; she was nowhere near the Caldera on this end of the wood), and leaving without saying anything. By the time he made a decision, no doubt she would notice him, too.

Lyra prodded the tiny black berries that hung upon a spindly branch of a low-lying bush, interested in them but not quite adventurous enough to taste them. Perhaps it would have been better if she had brought Hydra or Alya along to be her guinea pig. But what if some of the berries were poisonous? Briefly, she thought that maybe inviting Korei was an even better idea before the sound of footfalls caught her attention.

Had she known the wolf who had just stumbled upon her was toying with the thought of attacking her, she would have fled immediately. However, she offered a small but friendly smile and a cautious wave of her tail. His coat was a rich blend of earthy colours that almost blended in with the surrounding trees. He was also just...huge. A giant! Lyra felt her ear tips burn — the usual response when she was around any boy — and she almost wanted to move on without another word.

She was out here with a purpose, however! Maybe she could glean some information from this stranger. "Oh, hi!" she stammered out as loudly as she could.

If he was a more observant fellow, or really any sort of normal man at all, he would've taken special note of her soft features, the velveteen quality of her ears (even the notched one), and her trim legs. Coupled with her deep but vibrant blue eyes, which he caught sight of when she smiled up at him and indicated with her body that she was not a threat, he ought to have been captivated by the pretty wolfess from Moonspear. He did, in fact, sink in their depths for just a second before regaining himself; after all, beauty had no practical purpose as far as he knew (poor boy was still so oblivious at two years old) and Nightjar was mostly interested in the practical when it came to others. He'd never seen eyes so blue, though. They were something else.

So what he saw instead was the notch in her ear, a sign of having been in some conflict before, and the halting wag of her tail that said, I'm friendly! He let his own wave to match it, and lowered his guard. She was too far from the Caldera to be even a remote threat to his family and there was nothing about her to suggest she was a threat even if she was much closer. Nightjar underestimated Lyra, though. It would have been a dangerous mistake had he chosen to attack her. He would have learned of the Cerberus that day.

Instead, he settled slowly back on his haunches with a grunt and asked, "what're you doing?" To him, it had looked a little bit like hunting, only she wasn't following a scent trail. She was rooting around a bush that—he took a deep sniff of the air—seemed devoid of any prey.