Meadowlark Prairie the midnight breeze plays games with us all

@Kove

she'd surprised herself by remaining around the Flatlands for the time being, the place seemed to be providing her well and hence she'd found no reason to depart just yet. aside from the obvious- food and a good water source, the area also seemed to be providing her with the occasional surprsingly intriguing wolf as well as having plenty of space where she could choose not to be disturbed. however lying around grew boring when you were a wolf with no ties and so she allowed the restless energy writhing under her skin to be partially satisfied by moving further down the flatlands to areas she hadn't set paw in just yet.

the moon hung high and dominant in the night sky, bathing everything in its eerily silver glow and somehow seeming to make the shadows even darker where they hid in every nook and cranny available. she much preferred travelling by night, waiting until the oncoming darkness engulfed what light stubbornly tried to remain with keen eyes before emerging like a phantom where she'd seem to almost drift as paws carried her with a quick grace over large expanses of grass. 

she'd eventually slowed upon catching glimpse of something in the distance, a swath of darkness disrupting the large silver expanse like a wound. a forest, and an almost longing look would ghost over her dark gaze as she gazed at the shadowed lands where even the moonlight couldn't penetrate. however it took only a few paw steps in its general direction to get the scent of wolves on the breeze and you would have to be extremely uneducated not to be able to guess that a pack resided within those dark trees and should she continue forward she'd be undoubtedly met by borders.

she'd back up hastily, the look in her eyes perhaps being described as wariness and being something that would never come on show in the company of others as she turned away and stalked back in the other direction. she knew better than anyone to wander into the clutches of a pack she did not know, plus, she was only getting used to the freedom of being a loner and she was actually rather enjoying it and did not feel the want to have to be tied down by packlife again until the weather made it impossible to live easily by herself.

as she leaned back on her haunches by a patch of shrubbery she'd feel a slight nag of frustration as she glanced around. everything was the same, did the wolves who chose to hang around here not get bored of the never changing flatness of these lands? and she knew straight away that this was why she would have to move on eventually, she had just never been one for these large open spaces of nothingness. but what kept her here? her earlier reasons were bullshit anyone could tell that and her tail tip would twitch from side to side as she lifted her head to inhale the cool night air and steady herself. her large, alert gaze would remain fixed in the general direction of the distant forest- simply a dark blur from here and ears would remained perked atop her head, listening for...well for anything.

Gah, I forgot all about this. My apologies!

Through the night did the male’s pallid form travel, forcing the shadows back with each step taken; he was the ghost of the woods, haunting the shadows and, perhaps, even the entirety of the flatlands. It was with precise steps, backed by years of experience, that he walked in total silence, further confirming his supposedly deceased status. He did not have a target in mind, a destination not chosen and his path lacking a map. He moved with little more purpose than to simply get away; day in and day out he patrolled the outskirts of his territory, increasing the strength of his scent with the intention of keeping those not welcomed at bay and his family safe. He did not expect for anything more to take place, and he especially did not anticipate crossing paths with yet another child of the moon.

He gradually lost speed as his strides became shorter, the other wolf well within his line of vision and luring him in. Eventually, he stopped but, so as not to present himself as anything but courteous, it was with several lengths worth of space still separating them. At that point, Kove nodded in the female’s direction before saying, “Hello.”

she'd spotted him from a distance, his pale form drifting across the shadowed grasses as he departed from the woods quite like a phantom. she feels her heart beat pick up slightly at its own accord, surprising her as a frown is quick to grace her features. maybe it's the buzz in the still night air and the dark mysterious element of the forest that he'd just left that had her half hoping his path would cross hers as dark eyes tracked his movements across the flatlands. she would notice him notice her and was (pleased? hardly) when he continued to move in her direction. perhaps she was merely bored, it made sense after all for him to intrigue her if he'd just came the place that had captured her focus so much only moments before.

her long tail would swish slowly over the cropped grass as he came to a steady halt a respectable distance away. cool orbs of complete darkness would rest upon the large brute, keeping contact with his coppery gaze as a light breeze stole over the unsheltered land and tugged at the tips of her thick pelt. she'd drink in his scent, gaze narrowing slightly at the hint of famliarity that clung to it. had she met another wolf from those woods before? "hey" was the simple response given, voice although soft in tone- holding an almost icy undertone that left it impossible to dig through and read any expression from it. her gaze too remained an unreadable pit of swirling shadows. her eyes would shift from the male to the dark patch of land he must be residing in and simply murmured "you live in the woods?" more a rhetorical question that she simply wanted confirmed as it was presumed if one came from the opposite side of a pack's border they should be living there. her gaze flicks back to the newcomer, although feeling a rare sense of almost ease she remains slightly tensed should he suddenly prove to be a threat.

The other engaged in conversation with him, speaking first with a greeting and then a question. Her tone was the icy sort, reminding him, almost, of home—the home he’d departed from years ago, the one covered in blankets of snow and ice. This he refrained from commenting on, however, maintaining a steady focus on her body language alone instead. It was better that way, of course; a voice can lie, whereas a body cannot.

“I do,” he said in return. “I lead those within it.” That this might be an enemy, one looking to rid the region of the woods once and for all, certainly crossed his mind—Kove, however, did not think it to matter much. Whether he was to be attacked there or not, he was still confident in his ability to hold his own; the close proximity to the woods made him all the more confident, too, knowing well that there were those remaining that would not allow him to be destroyed. “Does the forest interest you?” he asked then, curious. Why else would she ask of his origins, if not due to a personal interest?

there seems to be an almost...maturity perhaps, about him and this she finds herself appreciating. it grew tiresome to attempt conversing with so many wolves always trying to throw in spanners and acting as if every conversation was a battle of wits. of course he didn't exactly appear all warm and welcoming but that was expected when a complete stranger asks you about your home, in fact she would've been quite concerned and a bit put off if he'd been too friendly. she was certainly further intrigued when he answered her question and went on to say he in fact led the wolves within the border. having no reason not to take his word for it she'd dip her head respectfully at this although her gaze would return to fix on his coolly- she respected a wolf of rank but of course she was not under his rule so obviously shouldn't be expected to act that way. 

he would now ask his own question and tundra would find herself hesitating for the slightest of seconds- gaze flicking to the brute's home before returning to meet his coppery eyes. there was no real reason to lie so she simply let a murmured "it appears so" slip from her jaws. it now becomes quite obvious to her who she'd met from this pack before and perhaps she'd been aware the whole time but had chosen to ignore it for it made no sense that she could've forgotten his scent after being so close to him...her jaw clenches slightly but otherwise her gaze remains as level as ever as her mind shoves the memory back as far as it could go. definitely not a moment she wanted to be reminded of. "i'm more familiar with and therefore more comfortable with forested land, so a forest amongst the rest of this flatness" she gestures at the rest of the grassy nothingness stretching off in either direction "was good to see" she elaborates, refusing to mention the other thing causing a faint throb of interest as she stubbornly refused to even admit to herself that it had any affect on her at all. instead she let her gaze glance curiously at the unique mark sitting atop the brute's pelt strong and proud. a crimson coloured paw print? she doesn't bother questioning it though, not wanting to launch into personal questions straight after asking about his home.