Verdigris Ravine home?

Kusuma knew home once, in youth. As wee pup, she had land and pack-mate, Furless around her to watch and to bring food. To make scratches with foreign instruments.

This place? It was where Tribekin rested during the hottest part of day, so it must be home. At least - a place to sleep and store prey. Her cache lay hidden still.

She yip-yapped for @Sari . Sahrie! This be where Tribekin call home? Kusuma knew of home, once. Now sandland is home, but where in sandland?

S'ari, who had been unsuccessfully hunting lizards nearby, heard Kusuma calling for her and came running around the bend in the ravine. She screeched to a halt, in front of the dark woman, scattering sand at her paws. Kusuma wanted to know where home was. It was a fair question, for S'ari had roamed far and wide in the desert. For now, S'ari thinks this will be home, this ravine. Yes? It has water and plant life, which attracts prey. She sat down. But S'ari was thinking, perhaps we should move around some? Not now, no. But later, in the fall or winter? S'ari's home Tribe were nomads, and the entire desert was ours. Why should this desert, this Tribe, be any different?

Kusuma considered this, though in truth she did not yet understand a nomadic lifestyle and had before been a lone wanderer, and before that barriers had been placed upon the edges of the territory her kin called their own. Now, she was free to roam wherever she wanted, and she hadn't gotten used to that fact, either.

Kusuma likes idea of sandland whole being Tribeland. Many paths to tread, yes. Start here? Now? How does claim land for season and not life?

Oh, the process is much the same, S'ari explained, patiently. We hunt for food, make caches, mark our territory. And then when we wish to leave, we simply... leave. Perhaps moving about the desert from place to place will keep the wolves away, yes? They will be confused. Are the coyotes here, or there? S'ari chuckled darkly, her eyes gleaming. Coyote is everywhere.

Kusuma had home back when pup - territory was much different, more trees and Plant than sandland, she explained as best she could given her knowledge of her own situation. land was limited, could not jump over shiny grass to other side. Endless land is new to Kusuma.

Shiny grass and birds, she sounded insane. Oh, how she wished her kin were here, he'd understand more than anyone. 

But she had to leave him behind, for her own sake. 

Sometimes, dark woman felt sad about that.

S'ari listened to Kusuma's tale about her home before she'd come here. It sounded very different than the desert. Shiny grass? she repeated, curiously. That sounds interesting. She hummed in thought. When S'ari left her home Tribe, she traveled for many moons before coming here. She saw many different places--places much greener than the desert. All were fascinating to explore, but none were home. She sighed and looked out across the expanse of sand. There is something about the desert, yes? It feels... She did not know the word she was looking for.

Well, come then, she said, standing up. We will mark the Ravine. And she walked over to a curving wall of rock, squatted, and urinated.

You know Furless? Taller than Kusuma, Taller than Zug- who was the tallest coyote dark woman knew. Brougth prey to Kusuma-kin, but did not stay in territory. Kusuma scared off with growl, kept distance.

Kusuma followed, before marking the ravine herself. Kusuma felt winds push paws to sandland... er... desher...ert? ... sandland is easier on Kusuma tongue... S'ari alone among the two of them could say the word correctly.

It was okay. Tribekin did not need to say desher to be Tribe.

Furless... Taller than all coyotes...

S'ari's ears went back along her skull and she stared wide-eyed at Kusuma. This one has seen humans? The world felt foreign on her tongue. She had never seen the monsters up-close but others had come to the Tribe from far away and spoken of horrible creatures who hunted and killed both coyote and wolf alike, as well as other animals. They had long sticks that made loud noises and killed canids instantly. S'ari was not afraid of many things, but she was afraid of humans. H-How did Kusuma... escape them? This she asked in a hushed whisper, as if speaking any louder might attract the monsters to her. She glanced around her, suddenly nervous, as if she'd been telling ghost stories in the middle of the night.

Furless to be feared? she tilted her head, questioning. A wild animal she may be, but one who the Furless found value in. At least, that was what Kusuma-ma say. Furless like Kusuma-kin! Kusuma born near Furless, saw Furless with blue-eyes of pup. Furless rear Kusuma alongside Kusuma-ma. Kusuma never like Furless, too watching and too waiting, stand fur on neck up, but Furless never hurt Kusuma. Like watching, yes? Jackal and coyot, not one or other but two, Kusuma thinks. Has Sahari ever see coyot and jackal pair? by the way S'ari looked fearful, she could assume S'ari hadn't been raised by them. 

Dark woman stopped her tale to let S'ari's mind process this information.

S'ari did not quite understand everything Kusuma said, but it sounded as if the woman had grown up around humans. Humans that had... observed her and her mother, and fed them? She'd never seen a dog before, but the ones who came to the Tribe and spoke of humans also spoke sometimes of dogs, strange canine-like creatures who walked at the humans' sides and protected them. Whatever situation Kusuma had been in before sounded sort of like, except that Kusuma had said she didn't like the humans.

Then Kusuma asked about jackals, and S'ari shook her head. S'ari has never heard of this jackal before. She studied Kusuma for a moment, this woman who looked like a coyote, but... didn't at the same time. Is that what Kusuma is? Part jackal? Did her mother mate with this creature? Not that it mattered to S'ari. All were Tribe. It was only that she was curious about this canid who could apparently mate with coyotes and make babies. Wolves could do it too, which S'ari always found a bit strange, given that wolves and coyotes were often at odds.

Kusuma-da was coyot. How you say...? she trailed off as she continued to mark, trying to recall the word that the coywolves used for "-da". Her face contorted in thought before she found something in her memory. Fa...hir? Gah, common hard for Kusuma! she huffed, shaking it off for a moment before continuing her tale. Kusuma-ma was jackal. Jackal look like coyot, live like coyot; more slim with pointier snout, from Kusuma's memory. Kusuma is coyot-jackal, pup from pairing of Kusuma-ma and Kusuma-da. How Kusuma fur of night and not of sun is secret wind does not whisper. 

She told her story, of the Furless making the world go dark and scooping her up into a smooth, tiny cave they sealed off with methods beyond her ability to explain. Of how Kusuma-kin was taken with her and eaten by an impossibly large, shiny bird, with a loud growl as if countless wolves growled at once. How it spat them out in a new place entirely, how she broke of her cave and escaped the wrath of bad Furless. 

How she met pack of coywolf, how they taught her common and how to hunt for herself. 

Is all Kusuma has to tell about Kusuma. she finished.

iiii feel like shit today so have this smol post

S'ari listened, fascinated and horrified, to Kusuma's tale. It sounded like some kind of nightmare, and yet Kusuma seemed so well-adjusted. Well. She was still young, and younger canids tended to bounce back from things easier than older ones. Yet... Candle. That poor girl was so traumatized, and she, too, was young. S'ari shook her head.

Well, she said, slowly. It is quite a tale, yes? S'ari is glad Kusuma found her way here, to become a member of the Tribe. This is home now. And speaking of which, we must continue marking the ravine. Come now. And she moved off to a new spot, squatted, and urinated again.

Ever a shadow, dark woman followed, parting far enough as to not mark the same area. Squat, urine, stand, move to the next spot. Repeat.

Kusuma likes water, she padded toward the lake in the middle, taking a sip. Sandland no like Kusuma fur. Heat like dark fur, too much. Kusuma no help, so Kusuma like water. 

Back to work she went, pawing at where her little cache of rabbit and mouse and preything was. Kusuma seem to attract prey. Buried here.

Hmm, yes, S'ari said, glancing over at Kusuma's dark fur. S'ari does wonder if this one's fur is perhaps too dark for the desert. Kusuma will need to be extra careful not to wander too far from water, especially now, in summer. In the desert, there were not seasons, exactly, but the temperature did drop some, especially in winter. Actually, winter in the desert could be dangerous at night, as sometimes the temperature dropped to below freezing. On those nights, the Tribe often slept piled atop each other for warmth.

S'ari grinned at her friend's next words. Well. Perhaps attracting prey is the desert's way of balancing out your problems with the heat. Perhaps you are the Tribe's good luck charm. We must keep you around, to bring prey to us, yes?

Desert. There was that word again. 

Deashert? Kusuma's head tilted, trying to say the word as S'ari had. Deshert? 

She yipped the word quietly a few more times, rubbing her face against a rock by her cache, though all Tribekin could come and eat if they hungered. 

Kusuma live in... desert? she yapped in delight when she heard herself. Desert! Desert! if her tongue remembered how to say the word, however, only time would tell. 

Anotehr spot, another mark. Kusuma will hunt for Tribekin. Tribekin can hunt, too.

S'ari smiled fondly at Kusuma, watching and saying nothing as the coyjackal slowly learned to say the word desert properly. She did not care if Kusuma never learned. As long as they could understand each other, that was good enough for her. The Tribe was just prejudiced in this way.

Yes. Kusuma lives in the desert. You call it... what was it? Sandland. S'ari rubbed her body against the ravine wall as she spoke, like a cat rubbing against a human's legs. And, yes. We will all hunt. She stepped back and sniffed about. There. It smells of the Tribe now. The scent is strong; this is good. She smiled at Kusuma. Well. S'ari thinks we have done our job here for now.

Fade?

fade is good <3

Kusuma is happy to help Sahari. 

dark woman's tail wagged, though now she yawned. Kusuma thinks Kusuma will take nap now, and then more hunt later.