Cerulean Cape breaking water

dated for midday on the 14th

When she hadn't seen Mou in a day, she began to worry. Two days, and the panic began to rise. By the third day of his absence, she had followed his scent trail and found that it crossed the land bridge, headed to the mainland. It sprawled in front of her, vast as ever. Before, she had crossed it without any qualms; now, thinking of Iliksis, she hesitated, paws shuffling uneasily on the sand.

In the end, though, her fear for Mou meeting some dreadful fate all by himself far eclipsed any uneasiness she held, and she took slow, measured steps, following his scent. Along the way, she came across a carcass; she regarded it coolly, watching the flies. Stopped only for a moment, then continued, a shudder running through her, fine as silk. She did not look back, afraid that she might turn around if she did.

Finally, Maegi's feet hit terra firma, and she stopped to compose herself, getting her bearings. The path she had taken upon meeting her brother and Iliksis went one way; to her relief, Mou seemed to have gone the opposite direction. With a deep inhale--wondering if this was a mistake, and if her impulsiveness would once more get her into trouble--she headed up the beach, nose low and focused on the most important task at hand.

Iliksis was a cancer; she knew he would appear again in her life in some fashion. She couldn't control when or where, and she would not think herself safe from his clutches until she saw him dead. If she ran into him again before returning to the isle--so be it. And as for her other enemies. . . Last she saw of them, they were in the mountains, far from here. If they turned up on the coast, that would be an ugly twist of fate, indeed.

Mou. Keep thinking of Mou. The image of her friend in trouble spurred her on, and it was with a determined face, a slight swagger to her step, did Maegi continue, hoping the search would not drag on too long.

The salt in the air was particularly mesmerizing. Everything was new. Like a happy drunk on an acid trip, the young wolf had stumbled from one place to the next as she entered the Teekon Wilds. All Eva had seen since entering this weird place was beauty, a thing which swirled also with fear. Wolves and the scent of them littered nearly every leaf she turned over. Every new blossom seemed to have the tease of a few face, the idea of opportunity, of beasts anew.

Eva had passed through what felt like death and beyond. There was a boundary she didn't know was there, and after it, a new life waited for her. A thirst for that life drew her on, further in, following that fragrance of water and brackenwood.

At the cape, she noticed the worried step of a fellow traveler. Eva had been avoiding direct contact for the entirety of her travels, afraid of what she might find. But, being a social creature, it had been wearing on her. So she pushed forward despite that smell, and it was not long before she found herself in the view of a white wolf. Fear took her for a moment, and she paused in a half step, growling instinctively. To her nose, she knew the land was neutral. So, she abruptly barked out beyond, "Hello?!"

Wolves out here tended to keep to themselves, she thought, so the girl was surprised by a called greeting from nearby. Her head shot up, fur bristling for a long moment before her gaze took in the stranger and she calmed, if only slightly. A gilded woman with black markings, staring at her. Head tilted slightly, Maegi took wary, hobbling steps toward her until she pulled to a halt, far enough to feel at ease but within speaking range; her voice was low and quiet as she responded.

"What do you want?" Perhaps some might offer the question with acid or fire, but Maegi's query came wrapped in a cool, impassive tone completely at odds with the panic over Mou lingering in her eyes. Curiosity had won out over fear. This female had offered no question save 'Hello;' what was to gain from that? Was she looking for a friend, a conversation? Lonely? Happy?

Social skills. What were those again?
For a creature who had been used to gossip and playful interaction, this was a moment Eva felt weirdly uncomfortable with. The she-wolf appeared tense, and kept a safe distance from Eva despite her friendly greeting. Eva had never spoken to anyone outside of her home pack, with the notable exception of a moody bobcat and a foul-mouthed raven on her way to the Wilds.

"Uh.." She faltered at the question. In part because of what looked like a marking across the white wolf's face from a distance. Eva squinted for a moment, rather rudely, but continued her attempt at conversation when she couldn't see much further. "Right, sorry. It's just, you're the first person I've talked to in a while." The statement hung in the air. A gross, awkward feeling swept over her and she shuffled her paws to shake it off.

"Do you live here?"

Maegi took the opportunity of the woman's stumbling to notice her gaze focused on her ragged mouth, and the girl's eyes narrowed. "Something weird about my face?" she asked caustically, lips twisting into a surly frown (though, as always, her left cheek remained permanently painted in a jester's grin). She took the explanation with a snort, shaking her head.

"No, I'm from the island," she said, canting her head toward the sea. She took a couple steps closer, the fire in her countenance dimming as curiosity eventually won over. "Where are you from?" The woman was not familiar to her, not in face nor in scent. But she wandered this shore; perhaps she had seen Mou, somewhere along the way. He had a memorable appearance--how could one miss him?

Caught staring at the limited bit of what Eva could tell of the scar, she simply mumbled, "Uh..  no" She nervously licked her lip and flicked her gaze away for a few moments. The white wolf shook her head, and Eva was left with the dull feeling of disappointment sitting in her gut.

The wolf pointed toward the sea, where she claimed there was an island she lived in. Eva had never encountered an island except in stories, with the exception of a spit of land on the fjord in Kootenay that the children had played on, pretending to be pirates. Remembering that made her feel stupid, especially when she was asked where she was from. "Kootenay Lake," she said. "It's.. a ways away. I've been travelling for weeks." Her feet hurt remembering how long she'd been moving. "This is the first time I've seen the sea, actually." It probably didn't seem that crazy, but for Eva, the new smells and sights were intoxicating.

Disappointment rippled through her; if this woman had just arrived, from a place Maegi had never even heard of, she probably hadn't run into Teamouse. Her mouth firmed, the only outward sign of her dismay. "Kootenay Lake," she repeated, filing the information away for later use, if it were ever necessary.

The girl relaxed a bit at her admission that she'd never seen the sea; perhaps, to her, Maegi seemed some sort of seafarer, a wolf born and bred for the coast. That assumption couldn't be further from the truth. "Yeah, I come from inland, too," she said, nodding. "Isn't it cool? I thought it was a rolling field, the first time I saw it."

Small talk was exhausting. It was time to get down to business. "I'm looking for a friend. He's got one eye and his name is Mou. Have you seen him?" It seemed doubtful, if what the woman said was true, but it was at least worth a try. If she wasn't going to make inquiries, then what was she doing wasting her time in idle conversation?

Eva looked out across the sea, listening for a moment to the whisper of crashing waves. "I was thinking it looked more like a really, really, big animal," she said in reference to the rolling field comment. "It definitely rolls, though." It was an ever-changing thing. If a field were blue and grey and alive, it would be the ocean.

The white she-wolf looked displeased about something. She asked if Eva had seen a one-eyed male. Eva shook her head slowly, frowning for a moment. "Sorry. I've been walking along the coast from the east, but until you I've also been avoiding everyone." She felt bad that she could be more helpful. "I can help look, though. Is this the last place you saw him?"

Maegi squinted out at the water, absorbing her words. Sure, she could see where the woman was coming from, to a point. But she'd never seen an animal like that before. Maybe the animals were much different, at Kootenay Lake. She shrugged, turning back to face the stranger as she spoke on Mou.

"It's okay." She really didn't want anyone else tagging along on her search, especially not someone she barely knew at all. Maegi was happiest alone, she worked best alone, and an addition to this journey would just slow her down. The girl shook her head in response to the question, tipping her muzzle out in the rough direction of the isle.

"We live on an island; he just was gone one day," Maegi explained, glancing at the woman. "He was recovering from injuries--that's why I'm worried about him. If you see him, will you tell him that Maegi is looking for him?" She wasn't entirely comfortable with giving her name out like this, willy-nilly, but what else was she to do? She must find Mou.

The scarred she-wolf shook her head at Eva. She didn't want help. The curiosity was overwhelming; who was this one-eyed male to the white wolf? Were they merely packmates, or something more? They both lived on an island, and the male had somehow been injured. Eva wondered what had happened to him, but such a question felt very invasive.

"Of course; I hope he's okay," she said. "Can you think of where he might have gone? I can at least head in a different direction and tell you if I find him." She offered an anxious smile, knowing what it felt like to be worried about family. Or friends. Or whatever.

"No." The answer was quick, concise. She had no notion of where Mou could have traveled, for she knew nothing of Mou before his life on the island. His memory loss had made him an enigma; even if there were places he had called home before--for he certainly had--he couldn't remember them, and had never voiced them. No, following his scent was the only way.

And what if it faded, suddenly? Maegi didn't know how to grapple with the thought of losing her friend--losing yet another wolf so close to her heart.

She gave the woman a faint smile, trying to push down the worry. It didn't help a thing. "Just if you see him. . .tell him I'm looking," Maegi repeated. "I've gotta go. Thanks for your help." With a curt nod, the girl went on doggedly, head lowered to the ground as she resumed the hunt. It wouldn't occur to her until much later that she had made her name known--but had never gotten the woman's name in return.

Archiving!

Eva frowned and looked between her feet. She had never been a particularly useful animal. She lacked skills. She created problems. She had a plethora of high-maintenance needs. Still, this was the first time she had spoken to another wolf in what felt like an age, and Eva felt regret that she couldn't offer anything to the white creature. What was a wolf without friends? Without reason, or purpose?

Maegi thanked her briefly before switching back into action mode. Eva nodded, "Yeah, sorry I couldn't help more." The other she-wolf turned away and left. Eva was left listening to the sea's ever present song. She blinked, thinking of the description of the one-eyed animal. She doubted she would find him, but the thought of being a hero was nice.

With that fantasy in her mind, Eva moved in the opposite direction, hanging her head and wondering if she'd ever be any use at all.