Qeya River jus in the wada

for @Esaro and anyone else that wants to drop in

It took all morning for her to climb down from the mountain top, winding a path along the slopes as best she could. The girl's body was not adapted to this environment and, being so light on her feet, she found herself stumbling and sliding along the paths more than cleverly striding across them. By midday, she was tired and in need of rest; yet still Seregryn would not relent. She was keen on discovering every inch of the territory, and would not let any of Thuringwethil's faithful witness her weakness. By the time she reached the southern edge of the territory, the girl was panting hard - and around her, the spring morning had become a surprisingly warm afternoon; the temperature soared, and the wind that characterized spring had abated somewhat, leaving the fringes of the territory in a state of muggy pseudo-summer. As she crept from the shadow of the mountain, Seregryn scented the crisp aroma of fresh water in the air -- and soon enough was settling in near the river's bank, dipping her dark face to take some careful laps.

Esaro made his way north up until the river crossed his path. He wondered how the pack on the other side as doing and while he was at it he wondered about the pack Reek had made. He wanted to know if everyone was alright and doing okay. If he could he'd go visit them but going that far wasn't a good idea since Saena had her puppies. He needed to be around to protect and make sure everyone is happy. He wasn't allowed to get close to the puppies yet so he figured he had some free time before having the responsibility of keeping their location guarded.

While taking a drink from the refreshing water he looked ahead to see another do the same. How did he not see the wolf before? he decided to try to greet "Um, Hello there." He said steadily. But he couldn't go any further than this. He had to follow the agreement and wasn't going to dare try do the same mistake as last time.

A stranger was near, but Sere was distracted - in part by her exhaustion after climbing the mountain, and in part because she was greedily slurping up the water. When his voice drifted over from the adjacent bank, she did not stop to look around, thinking it was merely another wolf of drageda. When she did raise her head, a thin line of water dripped from her masked chin and she lazily surveyed her surroundings, wondering if the stranger still lingered nearby. That was when Seregryn realized it wasn't one of her aunt's followers that spoke - it was an outsider, someone beyond her pull.

In the past few days, Seregryn had learned a limited amount about the pack. She knew not to cross the river or go too deeply south, but she was still a child. An impetuous child at that. So, having realized the tawny male was completely separate from herself and all that she knew, he now represented something foreign in her mind. The girl raised up to her full height (which wasn't much) and picked her way along the riverbank until she found a patch of shallows, and began to cross. The stones were slick with moss in some places, but otherwise it was an easy trek; her feathered extremities became slick as well, dampened to her reedy figure, until she emerged on the other side - his side - without so much as a care to her own safety.

She was still many wolf-lengths from him, and the shallows would be easy to cross in reverse if he posed a problem - but the girl was curious, and there was nobody around who could stop her. With a small shake she rid her belly of some water, and then appeared to reach with her snout towards him, sniffing at the air, wonderment filling her sharp features.

There wasn't a reply from the female at the other side. Esaro simply watched as she moved. He was wondering what she was trying to do so he followed more or less, staying at bottom side of the river. She reached a blind spot and he ended up losing sight of her for a moment. He took his time going up to higher ground in order to spot her. His eyes searched and searched the other side of the river bank but he saw nothing. Where did she go? Did she really just turn and leave? Maybe she didn't really see him or heard him at all.

He shrugged, guess he'll just walk around a bit. But the moment he turned he saw the female on this side of the river. He was in total shock and surprise to see her there. Wasn't she from the Sleeping Dragon? Did she not know about the agreement? Esaro decided to be the one to confront her. There was no way he would want to attack her so maybe just giving her a small warning would be good enough.

Esaro approached. He said in a loud whisper "What are you doing?! Don't you know you are not suppose to be on this side of the river? You're breaking the agreement the Alphas made!" He started looking around to see if anyone from Phoenix was close by or something. He knew the rules but he didn't see them as fair if the female didn't know.

He was older than her, and larger - but most wolves were. His tone became frantic as soon as his gaze settled upon her, and she assumed at first it was because she was encroaching; that perhaps he would see her crossing of the river as a challenge. And his words, they were in the language of warriors - so she braced herself for impact and withdrew her curiosity, stowing it for a time. Seregryn understood what he was saying but gave no indication. She was a gona, a warrior, just as he seemed to be. It served her purpose to remain passive and seemingly ignorant though, and thus she only responded with a slight bristling of her petite body, and a hastily thrown slur of words - Ai laik Seregrýn kom Drageda, - knowing full well that he would not understand her, and counting on it. The girl recoiled from him like a snake doubling back upon its body, pulling her shoulders back and head up, but chin down just in case of assault. She looked more defensive and surprised than offended, playing up the innocent bystander act.

The female's words made no sense at all. He didn't have a clue to what she was talking about. Now it was obvious that this wolf didn't speak the same language. He stood there trying to figure out how he was suppose to tell her to not be here. The only other way of communicating was body language. Now it was up to finding out how to tell her she wasn't really welcome here through that. This meant he was going to have to do something he was still not used to at all.

He was just going to have to try his best to get the message across without words. He lowered himself in preparations to attack her and began to growl lightly. "Since you don't understand me then I guess this is going to be the only way. I don't want to this but it's for your own good." He said, wondering if his little attempt to intimidate was even working at all. He didn't plan on attacking her, he just hoped she understood his poorly displayed message.

How odd it was to hear the warrior's words, and yet have them contradict everything Seregryn had been taught about a true warrior. She knew he would not understand her words, so at least that gleaned a bit of entertainment for her - and then he was baring his teeth, advancing upon her with a growl punctuating the moment. The girl wanted to keep playing the part of a mindless foreigner, for that was what she was deep down, but this game could only go on for so long. It was not in her nature to buckle to any pressure, and she was not about to whine and cry her way out of this situation - if anything, she was goading him in to a fight, although the repercussions would be left up to fate. Perhaps he would return to his pack, wherever it was, and talk of these moments -- but either of them had any sense, they would keep this meeting between themselves. Seregryn knew there was a kill order for anyone who passed beyond the river -- her life was forfeit as long as she was here -- but judging by this boy's lack of willpower, his passivity, she was safe for the time being.

His growling did not frighten her -- he did not frighten her in the slightest, having been raised in the warrior-culture of Seageda and Trigeda. Yet she had a role to play in this game of her's, and so she shrank back from him; her ears fell back and her tail went low, although it did not curl across her belly, and her eyes still held the defiance that was bred in to her. Laik you nou Drageda? She questioned, keeping the tone of her voice light and trembling so as to sound like a fearful child. Her tail lashed behind her once, and then Seregryn pulled her forequarters down in to a play bow, slapping the ground and mewling coyly, as an invitation to the agitated boy to come closer, to play, as if she were trying to befriend someone that she knew, intrinsically and through the laws of her land, was an enemy.

Just how far could she push this boy?

Esaro's heart sank with the female showed that she was afraid but the worse part was that she wasn't going back to the other side of the river. It was getting frustrating very quickly. He couldn't bring himself to really attack, trying to take her life because of her mistake would be even harder for him. The longer they stayed here the more likely someone would show up. And the chances are they would both get into deep trouble. Her because she crossed and him because he didn't attack.

This was only getting harder when the female turned playful. Esaro ended up stopping his aggressive act for a moment as he looked around hoping that no one was around to see this. He shook his head left and right. "No. You have to go!" He was going to need to try harder. He growled once more as he prepared to lunge at her. He jumped at her but stopped himself right before reaching her. That was an attempt to fake an attack. Maybe that would get the message across!

She wanted to linger here for as long as she could, to play with him, to learn of him and his people - but it was clear he was trying very hard to shoo her away. It wasn't so successful (he was not a real warrior, she surmised); yet he tried, and Seregryn felt inclined to lend him some credit for the attempt. Her body lifted from its play bow and then dipped in to a new one, slapping at the soil with her paws, but even before the sound could erupt around her, he was diving in for an attack. It was easy enough to read his movement -- his weight was heavily implied, and whatever training this stranger had received had been minimal at best. Seregryn pulled away from him and huffed a sharp sound, as if afraid, and stumbled backwards to the riverside. Her heel stepped and slid across the river's stones, and she felt the cool sensation of the water as she plunged back in to it, but halted and turned her body in to a crescent as she pulled free.

His attack did not come, and he pulled to one side, away from her - trying to fake her out. Instead of playing up her fear this time, Seregryn launched herself forward, snapping her teeth at whatever part of him was closest. She did not do it to inflict harm, but her teeth slid cleanly through his fur; it was a play-bite, intended to rile him in to a wrestling match. The stranger did not seem eager to attack her for real, and so she would not either. Seregryn let out a series of airy chuffs as she grabbed for his fur, nibbling at him and murmuring tiny, playful noises. Between her play-bites she would turn her head like a child listening to something for the first time - her ears up and pivoted forward - hoping he would take part in the game.

Soon this would come to an end. Either she would grow bored of him, or he would successfully chase her away -- but so far, he was hardly a worrisome force.

His fake attack kind of worked but all that happend was her stepping back into the river. Esaro figured that maybe another fake attack would do the trick. Everything changed when the female suddenly returned with a counterattack. He quickly started being afraid and his heart rate increased rapidly. Because he didn't expected it he was too slow in trying to dodge her attack. He stepped back and turned half way only to have her get him at his shoulder. But it didn't hurt at all, it confused him way too much that she was able to land even more play bites at him.

When he realized she was only playing with him because she thought he was playing, he started getting very frustrated. She was not getting the message at all and at this rate it would look like he was just playing with her. He can't allow this to continue. He decided to take advantage of her playfulness and immediately aimed to grab at the thickest part of her scruff. If she wasn't going to go back then he'll just have to drag her back, maybe then she'll understand the message. If he gets her he would hold on as tight as he could and try to pull her to the other side of the river.

Briefly they danced, with Seregryn on the offensive and the boy waffling about what to do. He was fearful at first - she could sense it in his movements, smell it on him as his emotions shifted - and Sere wondered what he would do about it. Attack her in earnest? Prove himself as a warrior when she doubted him wholeheartedly? Or maybe he would give in to the game, and in that manner grow lackluster to her -- there wasn't time to contemplate things fully, because the tawny boy did react. He reacted brilliantly, and in just the manner she required of him. Suddenly he beset her with his teeth, grappling with the fur of her scruff and pinching at her skin; she immediately let out a squeal of protest, and braced her slight body against the embankment. She would have laughed had the force of his assault not been so surprising, so fierce -- and instead of laughter, a rumbling, bubbling cacophony came pouring out from her.

He pushed her, and she had to give way because of their differences in size. No matter her skill level, he was bigger, and he could do as he pleased. So she was thrust in to the waterway and left pulling away from him, trying to be free of his grip; his teeth were so well set into her flesh that she would have to wait for him to give her up. This game was out of her control now. She rounded on him as best she could with her dark face, and snapped at him with some voracity, this time not with playful nips but decidedly sadistic emphasis. Her grabs were useless -- he was at the precise angle of success that made him impossible for her to grab, and she was slipping on the wet stones, weighed down by the river water.

A speck of blood from her neck slid from the junction of mouth-to-neck and dropped in to the river, muddying it with a brief stain of red that diffused with the pulse and flow. If he gave up his hold now, she would scamper back across the river -- and if he held firm, Seregryn's playful mood would sour fully, and she would not relent in her retribution. And to think, she had caused all this herself! Trying to find some fun, trying to play games and test the limits of her surroundings. Consider these limits tested, then.

He was a little surprised that he actually got a good hold of her, he could have easily taken that as some miracle telling him that this was right way to handle the situation. This was still no joking matter, Esaro needed to stay serious and get this member of the Sleeping Dragon back on her side where she was safe. He kept telling himself not to let go of her until he was nearly at the other side. It was hard to avoid slipping into the water, he was lucky to have four legs in total so he could keep balance.

Once he got to the northern side of the river he tried to toss her a bit ahead onto the river bank. He didn't plan of stepping onto dry land, he was already much too far than he should be. Esaro noticed blood once he let go of her and it shocked him when he realized it was him that caused it. He knows he held on very tight, he wanted her to go back to where she was allowed to be. No one deserved to die just because they crossed a river. He spared when he did. Maybe if he never crossed it would have been her that was spared.

He knew the she didn't understand but he still wanted to apologize. "I'm sorry if I hurt you, but if anyone else found you they might have tried to kill you." He said, still a little shaken for what he has done. He step back a little and kept a close eye on the female. This just had to be enough to get the message to her. But he started looking around nervously. Everything he did here was wrong.

This was lots of fun! :) Fade with your post?

Seregryn struggled across the river, more concerned with keeping her head above water than defending against his teeth. It hurt, but wasn't the worst she had ever felt - nothing was worse than the pain she had gone through in her initial training. This was nothing. This hurt her ego more than her body, especially as she was cast aside from the water on the bank -- her bank -- like a bone being discarded from a meal. He tossed her down and she, drenched and agitated, tried to rise up and thwart his advances. Instinct told her she had to fight. Demand to be taken seriously, showcase her abilities, whichever won out in her desires -- but he wasn't on the bank with her. The tawny creature became a dark smudge with the aid of the river water, while she was left stranded on the correct side of the Qeya. Her neck bled freely, diluted by the water but slowed by the chill.

Before much more could occur -- and before Seregryn's mental image of herself could become properly tarnished -- she was on her feet and pacing along the bank of her side, casting off the guise of a frightened, mewling quim and instead boring her crimson gaze in to the fool that struck her down. At the very least she learned of the tenacity of the wolves adjacent to Drageda. It took some coaxing -- some bloodshed on her part -- but it was knowledge she greatly needed. 

From across the river, she bayed a hateful note and wheeled about, a soaking tail lashing ropes of water across the soil as she turned to leave. The girl did not look back upon the stranger from the other side. She sought the comfort of the mountainside as she escaped, striding sullenly away.

yesh, it was fun! last post here it is.

It took a little while but eventually the female left and Esaro sighed with relief. That was almost a total nightmare, He had harmed her but it was forced. If he hadn't done what he did maybe the situation would have gotten far worse. He wanted to treat those injuries he caused, that would at least make him feel a little better about all this. With all trouble he got through just to get her back to the other side there was no reason to keep pulling on his luck. He wasn't out of the woods yet. He needed to return with little evidence of what happend here. The best would be for no one to know what happend here.

He crossed back to his side and keep a very close eye on the surroundings. Thankfully no one wondered by. He stepped out of the water and tasted blood in his mouth. He panicked a little and then returned to the river to clean out his mouth. Maybe it was a little bit too much to think the other members could smell the female that was here. He needed to get rid of every trace. He can't let anyone know that he had crossed river again, much more saved a member of the Sleeping Dragon from the possibility of getting killed here and now. No one would approve of this. What he did was completely wrong but he couldn't help but feel like he did the right thing. All that was left to do was keep this encounter secret forever. That's what he told himself as he headed back home to the Phoenix Maplewood. Maybe he should stop coming to this river, it was only causing him trouble.