Sleepy Fox Hollow You could try and take us, but we're the gladiators.

@Keelut

As the day went on, they all took a much needed rest. Taki had lightly slept for a few hours, still keeping an ear out for anything that sounded out of place. She soon grew bored, though, and she stood up, stretching and yawning; that was enough rest for her. 

She looked around at everyone, and they all seemed content to keep dozing. @Siarut, wasn't asleep, though, and she trotted over to him. Taki nudged him with her nose once she was close enough and asked, "Feel like patrolling?" If not, she'd do it alone; she just needed something to do and figured he might be feeling the same way.

thanks for starting!

They had been in the hollow for a few days, preparing the pups for the harder journey over the mountain, and resting their own bodies for the challenge to come. Sia, being a workaholic, was definietly not sleeping. Instead he sat as a sentinel, watching over his family. Turning to watch Tak approach with a smile, and accepted her nudge, returning with a nose of his own. He took a moment to consider her offer before nodding and rising from his seat. "Sure." 

Taking a moment before they left to nose @Tomkin know where they were going. He didn't want to disturb the two knew mothers, but he needed to be sure that some one was keeping watch. Once done he looked back to Tak, flicking his head to let her lead the way. Might as well get some training in on their journey.

He had found a hidden treasure the night before, a garden of mushrooms that he could never mistake. But he had miscalculated their potency, and their effects had thrown him in the deepest of trances which had dragged Keelut far from his course. With a pounding on his head and his vision still blurry Keelut arose from his slumber to find himself stranded, laying in the middle of a meadow. But the night hadn't been a failure. A vision had emerged amidst the deep connection that the mushrooms had helped create with an unknown spiritual plane.

He would not be seeing his father anytime soon, but Keelut would find his roots.

Still unsure about his location Keelut got up to look for @Tizheruk. Knowing the guy he wouldn't have stranded too far and perhaps he had an idea of where they were. With the pounding dimming down Keelut walked with his head low trying to pick up a trail that would lead him to his slippery friend. Instead he found a much more canine one. It was fresh and there were several different signatures involved, so Keelut decided it was work a closer look since there didn't seem to be any markings as would be usual around claimed territories. It lead down a hill to a patch of land covered by thicker vegetation and Keelut slowed down to observe a couple wolves from a safe distance.

Taki gladly took the lead when Sia offered it, always eager to prove herself to him. She wanted to travel a productive distance away; no sense in patrolling an area that you could easily watch while next to the group. Once she felt she had done just that, she turned to start walking a circular perimeter around where the group was gathered. 

They walked in silence for a while, both sniffing here and there, ears flicking to any noise in the distance. She wanted to fill him in a little more on what she had found in the glacier and the wolves she left there, but when she about to open her mouth to speak, she caught the fresh scent of a strange male and froze. Taki immediate began scanning the area, attempting to find the intruder. This wasn't exactly their territory, but she viewed any stranger near the pups as an intruder. She looked at Sia then to see if he had picked up the same scent, and assuming he had, she started tracking it to its source. 

It didn't take long to find the pale stranger. Taki froze a safe distance away, tail flagged assertively, and waited for Sia's command.

Following his sister, Sia's olive eyes scanned their surroundings as Tak took them a good good distance from the others before starting the sweep. His nose twitched as he scented their route, his alabaster ears swiveld at the slightest noise. He knew Tak wanted to speak of the Glacier, but Sia wouldn't broach the topic quite yet. Not until they had safely made it over the mountain. Silence swept between them, easy and comfortable, each sibling focused on the task at paw.

And it seemed the focuse was rewarded, as the scent of another hovered in the air. Sia too stopped too, sharing a look with Takiyok they worldessly searched for the man. Once discovered, Sia came to stand slightly ahead of his second, his banner held high and his form pulled to its full height. The man was tall, but his frame was slimmer than Sia's. 

With the pups so close, Sia was wary of any stranger. Taking a quick look at Takiyok, silently trying to convey the need for secrecy. "Stranger." Siarut greeted neutrally, in the common tongue.

Keelut's tail hanged calmly behind him while his ears kept pointing forward in neutral concentration. He approached them curiously, sniffing the air in front of him to tell each wolf's individual scent apart, and when they stopped their advance so did Keelut to greet them with a smile. Thank you, he joked in response to the male's remark, he was weird. No need to flare, I'm friendly, he assured, and after a second of thought he concluded this wouldn't be your permanent home, am I right? if it was they would have been careful to mark the limits. He knew there were more wolves by their scents and the trail he'd been following, but he didn't mention it yet.

What the fuck was he thanking them for? That was an odd way to greet two wolves that had shown only unease at his presence. And, Taki would be the judge of when she did and didn't need to flag. She especially wasn't going to take her cues from a strange male with a smart mouth. 

Her only response to his question was a glare and an annoyed eyebrow raise. Sia was in charge here, so she would let him do the talking for now. Meanwhile, she would keep an eye on the stranger to make sure he didn't try anything.

Sia kept the confusion from his face, maintaining his neutral outward appearance. He couldn't understand the need for thanks, but he pushed it asside, it wasn't the main point to the conversation. The large ice bear took a moment to think of the proper response, "No we don't call this territory home." The border would be much more pronounce if such a thing were ture. 

This newcomer didn't hold the stance of a threat, which helped to ease Sia's worries slightly. Although he maintained an authoritative stance, for his own peace of mind. "We are travelling, and will be gone soon enough if we have encrouched to close to your home." They hadn't come across any scent markings, at least not traditional ones, but Sia remembered the witch from weeks ago. She had not been traditional, her borders hadn't been marked with scent, rather it was infered. Perhaps this was the same scenario. He was glad that Tak left the talking to him, it was easier to control the information being conveyed.

What was there not to thank? Strange things were, in Keelut's opinion, the best kind of things. From his point of view Siarut had only said a compliment in his way of greeting. Out of all the people Keelut had met, He was the quickest one to notice Keelut wasn't a common wolf, he was, indeed, a stranger.

It was rewarding to know that he'd made a correct guessing when he assumed the duo were in fact only passing by the territory and he smiled as a way of enjoying the credit. But the male's response brought more questions to Keelut rather than answers. He turned his head for a moment, but Blackfeather Woods was nowhere in his range of vision. He wouldn't really call it a home but the pale oracle held a homely love for the dark forest. These two were fine. He chuckled, No need to worry, friend. I don't have a home, nor were they encrouching close to it. Are you travelling anywhere in particular? he was definitely curious about that bit of information, travelling was exciting, always an opportunity to see new things. Perhaps I could suggest a destination if you're undecided, he hadn't seen many places in Teekon, but he surely had crossed many peculiar places before coming back.

Taki relaxed slightly, deciding her initial take on the male may have been a bit harsh. The pups being close put her on edge. Plus, she was feeling restless here and was ready to move on. 

Her orange gaze was fixed on the stranger as he talked, taking in his body language for any aggression or dishonesty. "We already have a place that we're traveling to." Taki answered without elaborating any further. He didn't seem to want to cause them any harm, but she wasn't about to tell a stranger where their whole family was traveling. She briefly glanced at her brother to see if he wanted to add anything before looking back at the stranger. She was somewhat curious about the male's intentions but kept her questions to herself for now.

Siarut nodded to his sisters answer, indicating she spoke for him as well. He was not, however going to keep his questions to himself. "What brings you here, then? If this is not your home." He knew what it felt like to have no home to belong to, although it seemed this man was a fan of his wanderings, similar to Speedy's new outlook. 

Although he was still weary, Sia relaxed slightly trusting Tak to have his back. She was his muscle, intimidating enough for the both of them. 

sorry for the lame post lol

Ah, what a shame he commented at the female's response, more to himself than anything, yet not without minding the volume of his voice. Keelut had found that not having a plan was usually the best thing that could happen to anyone. That was when things became most thrilling.

Than it was the bearish male's turn to talk, which Keelut heeded with  a quirk of his head. I was looking for my friend he replied. Tizheruk was still lost! Perhaps you've seen him? Weird eyes, about... that long? he said, pointing at a long stick that was conveniently close ... Quite bite-y? he said, hissing afterwards. That was a spot-on description.

She eyed the strange wolf. "Why is it a shame?", Taki asked? It seemed weird to make that assumption without even knowing why they were going where they were going, but whatever.

Taki gave him a questioning look when he described his friend. "You're friends with a snake?" she asked coolly. That was really odd. She either avoided snakes and or killed them, but never befriended them. Regardless, she hadn't seen any around that she could remember.

He couldn't help but agree with Takiyok, although he was a little more open minded. Friends could be made with all sorts of creatures, he remembered the bone lady who used to speak with the crows on the edge of the tundra. Sia could see the same strangeness in this man as he had seen in that woman. A craziness that could be beneficial. Keeping his oppinion to himself more successfully than his wayward sister, Siarut answered the man instead. "We have not seen them, I'm sorry. If we come across them, we will let them know you were here." 

"Does you friend follow you everywhere?" Siarut couldn't keep his honest curiosity to himself, as he glanced over at Tak with well hidden amusment in his gaze. Something only his family would notice.

It's a shame that you won't allow your journey to be a surprise, he replied with a frown to the female's weird question. Wasn't it obvious? Travelling with a destination in mind was perhaps the most dull thing ever, too worried about the end to enjoy the way. Was he the only sane wolf around?

Keelut didn't comprehend the female's surprise to find out that Keelut had a snake as companion. They are quite useful, you know? Especially when you're a botanist, he explained, Tizheruk was perhaps the most competent garden guard ever. Besides it was believed that snakes are directly connected to Quagmire, the realm of Daedric prince Vaermina "the Dreamweaver". His powers were always stronger when Tizheruk was around and his visions came more often, but he didn't share that part with the strangers.

I would appreciate it, said the pale wyr to the male's offer. Then came a question, but the answer was rather obvious. Well, not everywhere, apparently said Keelut laughing. It was always like this with the sneaky reptile, but it was in every snake's nature to want their own space. Keelut only hoped he was hunting or exploring, for his absence was always worrying.

Well, I suppose you have places to go? said Keelut then, believing their conversation to be done. If they couldn't help him find Tizheruk they were of little use to him, and if he couldn't suggest a destination to surprise them he supposed he was of little use to them.

Taki raised an eyebrow in irritation at the male's comment. "I don't like surprises," she replied coolly. Surprises meant she had no control over the situation, which sounded incredibly stressful, so, no thanks. 

She offered him only a bored expression as he discussed his snake and its value to him. She was honestly done with all of this. They needed to finish their patrol and get back to the family, and this stranger was wasting their time. She was fully prepared to take the out offered by the male with his last statement, but held her tongue in case Sia had anything else he needed to say.

Taki looked at her brother, vexation clear in her expression, and waited for him to add whatever he thought necessary.

The man was certainly odd, and Siarut wasn’t exactly sure how to comprehend the relationship he had with his snake. With a nod of his head he silently agreed that they had places to be, as he tried to decide what to say. “Yes we do. Like I said if we see your friend we will let them know you have passed by.” Siarut waited for the man to turn away, making sure he went in the opposite direction of his family.

last for me

Same! Thanks for the thread guys :)

Keelut squints at the female as though there was something wrong with her. She would have to admit that from the two of them she was probably the most boring one, but if asked Keelut would have to say that he like her the most. At least she spoke what was on her mind, she had no intention to hide behind masks, but her brother... He was a whole other story. Keelut couldn't put his finger on it but there was something about the male that he didn't quite like. Perhaps it was his complaisance or maybe just the energy around him. Whatever it was, Keelut wouldn't put his trust on him to give Tizheruk the right direction back to him. But he didn't speak it. instead the pale oracle eyed both creatures in front of him with half a smile and turned away to comply with the male's clear desire of getting rid of him.