Sleepy Fox Hollow bang bang, he shot me down

@Stigmata

She stalked through the lands, large form held proudly even on neutral lands - even when she had nothing to her name. Atiena was a woman far too proud for her own good but like hell if she'd ever admit that.

Her form would occasional bump against a tree to lightly mark it. She refused to get lost in these news lands. She would not waste her time going in pointless circles. There was far more important business to attend to while she still walked this damned earth. Mother nature may have tried to take her out but Atiena was still alive and kicking.

The woman slowed her pace, nose tipping up slightly as she sniffed at the air, wondering if something worthwhile was nearby.

slipped from the shadows of the rocky hills above -- a figure hard and jagged as if splintered from the dark palisades of his birth -- stigmata rolled in like fog unto the meadow of sleepy fox. at first he was uninterested with the place: aesthetics did not move him, and the more he studied the flora here, the more aware he became than this field would be quite barren come winter.

no, this was not a place he would visit again without purpose.

content to move on with his meager findings, the male prepared to choose another route out of the hollow when he at last spotted the distinct outline of another wolf. sandraudiga stilled, his muzzle turned up and ears pressed forward so that he might distantly observe -- with sullen interest -- the dominant perusing of this she-wolf as she claimed whatever space her paws took up.

She was not alone, a fellow wolfish silhouette was present. Not close enough for her to pick out all the finer details but close enough she could get the basics. Particularly male. She puffed up her form a bit more, hackles even raised slightly. Her head lifted high as ears pressed forward.

Honey eyes narrowed as she wondered if he was going to come closer. Or would she have to take initiative? A heavy huff escaped her at the idea. He had captured her presence - distracted her even - so he must have wanted something. Atiena's ego would not let her think otherwise.

when the shine of aurulent eyes fell eventually upon stigmata's unmasked appearance, he waited briefly to make note of her reaction: watching for her to either continue about her way or treat him hostilely. it was easy for him to assume, regarding her posture, that it would be one of the two outcomes, but when she took neither initiative, stigmata shouldered the responsibility for himself. he wasn't always in the mood for company, and he could not tolerate all sorts, but it was in his fine-grained nature to be curious before becoming dismissive.

he approached at a drowsy sort of pace, all of him alert but largely unconcerned with the threat this she-wolf presented. stigmata felt secure enough in his own capabilities to advance on any wolf without over-caution. smartly though, he came near enough only to speak -- remaining several wolflengths away from her in case she should prove more unwieldy than she looked. "is this your claim?" he asked, the sound of his voice as low and sonorous as the tides.

She snorted at his question, giving an almost dismissive flick of her tail. This place isn't to my taste and if it was mine don't you think you'd smell more of me? Or others? The older female asked as a brow raised sharply. Who would claim land by themselves? It would be foolish to try and protect a whole territory by yourself. It was the reason packs existed.

Her stance remained strong as she eyed the male over. Fit, capable, not too bad on the eyes. What is your name? It was more of a demand for him to answer rather than a question. Atiena's interest was peeked. For now.

"i did not ask if the claim was well-kept or yet established," he returned to her query evenly; "only if it was yours." his countenance remained unchanged by how tartly she addressed him, and for the moment his posture seemed to be disturbed only by the breeze rustling faintly through his coat. however unlikely it was that she had just decided to make this her home, he could only assume it of her stature, and the way she presented herself to own every space she occupied. he supposed his greeting question had been a way to judge her arrogance -- and the hawk-eyed she-devil proved herself to be wiser than she was bull-headed. 

"my name is stigmata," he answered readily, grey eyes never leaving her stately build as he forwent asking her the same and did not presume she would offer it on her own -- he would ask when he was truly interested. and for now, she seemed immune to his grim charm. "are you going somewhere?" he asked instead.

and when she did not seem interested in responding, stigmata made a gentleman's exit.